I do not own Harry Potter or anything you recognize from the Harry Potter World. I do not own Dorian Gray. I do however own Hazel Gray and the idea behind this story.
Rabastan LeStrange found Severus Snape in their dorm room after he couldn't locate him before or during dinner. Taking a deep breath for patience, he moved to stand next to the other boy, watching him gripping a leather bound journal tightly in both fists, his knuckles poking nearly clean through his thin skin, his wiry muscles straining as he continued to grit his yellow and crooked teeth.
"Gray was upset," Rabastan spoke without preamble, wanting this over and done with so things would go back to normal. He liked teasing the Ravenclaw in the Pureblood manner they all cut their teeth on, even if they hadn't interacted much in the past.
"I don't care." Severus snarled, still gripping the journal hatefully. His fingers starting to bend oddly from how tightly, which was worrisome for the other Slytherin.
"She didn't mean for things to happen the way they did. She was actually crying, and Purebloods do not cry. Its ingrained in us from infancy to never cry in public. Whatever is going on between you two, it seemed you were friends." Taking a seat on his bed, Rabastan stared unwaveringly at Severus, barely blinking to watch for any small tells from the normally stoic boy.
"I don't give a damn, she can cry to the Headmaster himself and I don't care!" He snapped, tossing the journal across the room, seething as he gripping his biceps tightly. With the pressure being shown through the crinkles in his robes, it was likely the young man was going to bruise himself, but LeStrange didn't comment on the fact.
"You were friends, though, weren't you?" He asked, watching as the anger flickered before returning in full force.
"Friends don't lie, and friends do not keep their own bloody identity a secret!" The greasy haired male snarled, beginning to pace the dorm room in quick angry strides.
Shoving a hand through his own thick wavy locks, Rabastan stood and gripping the slimmer boy's shoulders and shook him a bit.
"This is why she did not say anything! You are a Half-Blood, and while I don't care, you do not understand how Purebloods are raised. Females do not go about making male friends commonly. There is an entire set of rules for friendships, most of which she has ignored blatantly in order to have a friendship with you. Have you any idea the reputation she can earn by studying in a room alone with you, a room only you two can access without prior approval from her father? A man born in 1817 and raised during the Victorian Era, no less!" Rabastan didn't want to stand up for the girl, but Severus needed to understand where a Pureblood female might be coming from.
"She has risked an upstanding reputation to befriend you, Snape. Her father is from an era before our Headmaster, and Dumbledore is rather antique in his views, as are many old Families. At least give her a chance before cutting her off, Snape. She said she'd owl you her journal, and that she wouldn't bother you again. She also said she'd talk to Slughorn about moving to another seat so you wouldn't have to deal with her in class." Releasing his roommate, Rabastan stalked out of the dorm room, giving Severus a chance to think over what he said.
Severus dropped onto his bed, scowling up at the green canopy overhead. It was true, he didn't know everything there was that Purebloods went through, and he could see where it might appear bad with a single female being in a room alone with him, but they had started that last year, and no one said a word. Her father, if nothing else.
Suddenly jolting upright, Severus let out a long groan as he pressed his face into his hands. He hadn't thanked Lord Gray for standing up for him yet. Cursing, the sixth year Slytherin snatched up his cloak and started out of the dorm, making his way into the Common room, and then beyond. He was getting that over with so he would have no more ties to that Family, he wanted peace, not drama every year because of some girl.
No one was worth this much drama, least of all someone he wasn't even interested in shagging.
Pulling his wand and tapping the birds, he strode into the Trickster room, scowling as he took in everything. Nothing had changed from earlier when he popped in to drop off a book he had borrowed from the shelves, the bird construct was still shifting from sparrow to blue jay and back. It was Hazel's latest project, getting birds to shift in a painting via construct spelling.
Frowning, Severus took a seat at the desk he had taken as his own in the room. He didn't really understand why he was so angry, yes, she didn't tell him the whole truth, but she never outright lied either. But the fact she didn't tell him, it hurt.
Did Hazel not trust him enough to share that she was Persephone? Yes, it had been easier to converse with a journal compared to someone in front of him, but still.
Just as Severus moved to stand, the fireplace flared green, and an immaculately dressed male in his mid thirties stepped out into the room, waving his hand and removing what little soot was on his dove gray muggle like suit. He didn't look a think like any wizard Severus had seen before in the Magical world, but there was no mistaking the man once he turned toward the younger wizard.
This was Dorian Gray, Hazel's father and the full color version of the ink from the hospital wing.
It was the eyes that gave him away, though, violet in the most striking shade Severus had ever seen, and it wasn't merely a ring like Hazel had. No, this was his entire iris with deep, rich purple for the pupil in place of the black most everyone else had.
"Lord Gray," bowing at the waist, Severus only hoped the near immortal Pureblood was not yet privy to what happened in the classroom. The younger man would have preferred a few more days to live.
"Hm? Ah! Lord Prince, is it? Good to meet you, lad." The older gentleman gave a swift bow before straightening almost instantly, looking about the room, an almost Slytherin smirk on his lips. "My wayward heir wouldn't happen to be on her way, would she? We were supposed to have another practice run tonight before I went and picked up her dress for All Hallow's Eve." He remarked, moving to inspect the construct and sighing before shaking his head and waving his fingers over it.
Severus watched in awe as the bird took on life, even as it changed from sparrow to blue jay in the same pattern as before. It wasn't until the Pureblood turned back around that Severus realized he had yet to respond.
"Er, I'm not certain, she didn't mention anything about it to me at least." He didn't meet Lord Gray's eyes, fearful the man would pluck the information out of him. "I never properly thanked you for your help, the other day. So, I thank you, Lord Gray, for your assistance." He bowed deeply again, having watched the other Slytherins until it was nearly second nature to the Pureblood Families he interacted with.
"Hm, rather unlike the girl to ignore a lesson. Ah, no matter, she's most likely tired." With a nod, Dorian turned to regard the averted face of Snape, a slight frown marring his rather aristocratic features, something he did not share with his daughter.
"She said you had requested her to join you for the Ball, as friends, she believed. Was she wrong to believe such?" Dorian didn't care for the way the boy wasn't meeting his eyes, it wasn't as though he went about reading children's minds, like some meddling fools younger than he. It wasn't his favourite skill to use unless someone was unable to speak openly.
"No, sir, she did not believe wrongly. I had asked," he shuffled, uncomfortable since he was now required to remain, and could not slink off into his dorm room again.
"Hm, I see. Have you found someone else to take, then? That is the only reason I can guess at with how you're acting. Or is it you had intentions beyond innocent in regards to my daughter." His English suddenly gained a similar accent to Hazel's, Italian, if he wasn't mistaken, though more smooth than her own.
"No, my lord. I have not found anyone else to take. I never had anything but friendship in mind towards your heir." He was petrified, now. A shift in accent was a dangerous thing in regards to the House of Gray, if Hazel's actions were anything to go off of.
"If it is lack of funds for a costume, do not worry. I went ahead and purchased a suitable one that compliments the dress I picked out for Hazel. She has a certain image to maintain as the Social one of my line of the House of Gray." Dorian waved a dismissive hand, the other dropping into his suit jacket before pulling out a small bundle.
Placing the little bundle on the nearby desk, Hazel's Desk, Severus quietly said to himself, Dorian waved his hand over it, quickly returning it to his normal size. The apparent lack of requiring a wand left Severus a bit more uneasy than before.
"I... I was simply going to transfigure some clothes into a costume, my lord." Snape said softly, uneasy about the Grays buying more things for him. Persephone, Hazel, had already spent so much when she sent Hermes.
"Nonsense! You will be escorting the Heir to the House of Gray, you are required to dress the part!" Dorian fell back into English, the accent mostly gone now. "I wasn't certain of your size, so I spent a bit extra for them to re-size a bit. There's a bit of parchment with instructions on how to put it on and size it correctly. Its mostly a one size fits most, as the Americans say, but I've learned it helps if its tailors a bit more toward your own body. Us blokes aren't all build alike, after all."
Grinning, the Pureblood wizard moved to clap a hand onto Severus' shoulder, though the second he was touching the Half-Blood, his grin turned into a scowl. "If you hurt my daughter, young Lord Prince, I shall be certain to find you, and you will not enjoy it." Then just as quickly, he was grinning again and starting toward the fireplace.
"Do give my best to Hazel, and let her know I expect to see her here next Saturday, I'll owl her dress to her later this week. Good evening, Lord Prince. I expect to hear only good things when next I'm here." With a flare of green flames, he was gone.
Snape stood there for several long moments, staring dumbly at the now empty and cold grate before falling back into the chair and paling.
"Merlin's beard, he knew..."
A.N.: Hello once again everyone, I hope you all didn't hate me too badly after last chapter. I'll keep this note short, but wanted to say thank you for reading, following, favoriting and especially reviewing! Getting the email notifications make my day, you have no idea how much.
I still have no beta, so any and all mistakes are my own, if you see them, please point them out so I can either fix them or watch for them in future chapters.
Also, thoughts? Opinions? Ideas? Any clues as to what the costume Dorian brought for Severus is? What about for Hazel? Be sure and let me know in your review, and see you all again next Sunday!
(Chapter Pre-Note: 1,916)