ONE WAY OR ANOTHER

-CHAPTER TWENTYONE-

BETA: Green eyes

INFO: www. livejournal. com /users/ draycious

"Hey Harry," Sirius whispered when he entered the bedroom upstairs.

"Hello there Siri. How are you?" he said softly sitting down on a chair beside the bed. He couldn't see Remus anywhere, so he supposed the werewolf had stormed out of the room sometime when he had been on his way upstairs.

"I'm mad at Remus. He claimed you as his and Severus'," the animagus spoke sourly, pouting. Raven wasn't sure if Sirius was seriously mad, or simply trying to make him laugh. It was hard to tell sometimes, because Sirius reacted differently every time something happened, and Raven had rarely seen Sirius serious.

"Severus?" Raven said questionably. "I've never heard you use his first name before." Sirius laughed humorlessly and shrugged.

"I wish I could use the slimy bat's last name. I did at first but Remus' hexed me so I can only refer to S- Severus as Severus. Uh, you understand don't you?" Sirius said with a sigh when he stuttered and stumbled out Severus' name. Raven smirked.

"Yes. You can only call Snape Severus," he said. Sirius nodded.

"Alright. I guess now is a good time to tell you... James isn't my father." Sirius's eyes widened. The man opened his mouth and closed it several times before getting any sound out.

"You're kidding me?" he gasped. Raven was happy Sirius hadn't exploded again, like he had heard him to before. He was in no mood to take care of another outburst. Apparently Remus hadn't told Sirius about that part, since he could sense that Sirius was being honest by his reaction. Remus must simply have made it clear for Sirius that he had neither parental control nor access to Raven.

"Oh come on! Not even you can be that daft! Just look at me! I don't look anything like James in any kind of way. Severus is my father and Lily is my mother."

"What? I'LL KILL SEVERUS!" Sirius yelled. Raven laughed at him. It did sound pretty funny to him.

"That didn't sound threatening at all now that you can't use my father's surname!" He exclaimed and Sirius glared at him; Raven sobered quickly. He supposed he should consider his Godfather's feelings in all this, after all, he knew what a shock it was to first hear it.

"So… Do you hate me now?" He asked quietly. He wasn't a trusting person, and he had no illusions about anything. Many people he had thought were his friends had turned on him throughout the years, and he was used to the population switching back and forth between loving and hating him, just like a model switches clothes in a runway show.

"What?" Sirius asked and once again he seemed honestly surprised and perhaps a bit mortified over being indirectly accused for not loving him enough. "Of course not! I love you, you need to know that, forever. This doesn't stop me from wanting to beat the living daylights out of Severus, through," Sirius finished in a way that was typical for him. He really didn't like Severus, even if many simply though it was a matter of pretence. Raven rolled his eyes and decided it was better to get all secrets or rather, news, out at once.

"I'm also in a father-son bond with Dracula", he announced soberly. Sirius threw his head back and laughed loudly. He stopped abruptly and stared at him when he realized he was the only one laughing. The expression on Sirius's face would have been enough for Raven to normally be on the floor, screaming with laugher, but now wasn't the time. Sirius groaned loudly.

"You're really serious!"

"I thought you were," Raven grinned. "But yeah, I am" he agreed willingly. "I am also best friend with the WWUSAM's (The Wizarding worlds united states of America ministry minister's ) son Blade." Sirius's jaw dropped. It wasn't a pretty sight. Raven paid no attention as he continued to inform Sirius of what he had been missing out on. "Lucius Malfoy isn't a Malfoy. His father is Ancius DeSilva and therefore Lucius is actually a DeSilva. I've got a vampire fuck buddy. I've killed Voldemort and my name is either Raven or Cercis," he explained. Sirius was stunned into silence and spaced out until Raven hit him in the head. Perhaps Raven wasn't presenting all this in the way he should, but he knew a playful and informal way worked better when handling Sirius rather than a formal and stiff conversation.

"Don't disappear on me! You haven't heard everything yet!" he said in a fake stern voice.

"There's more?" Sirius asked faintly.

"Yeah! Remus loves Lucius and he is together with Lucius, as in an actual relationship. Narcissa and Remus are apparently having a lovely sex life and all three are involved with each other," he said in mockingly in one breath.

"God!" Sirius croaked. "I think I'm going to be sick! I want no details about that relationship, what so ever!" he almost yelled. "Not under any circumstances!" he added hurriedly when Raven looked a bit playful. Raven took a good look at the man and Sirius did indeed look a little green.

"Fair enough," Raven said lightly. "Draco is bisexual and has fucked Blaise Zabini…" he said quickly when Sirius least expected it. He grinned when Sirius threw himself underneath the covers.

"Please! Are you trying to kill me?" Sirius whined from within his little cave.

"Nope."

"Seems like it! You give me all those very yucky mental images."

"Why? I can't help that you've got a dirty mind! Can't deal with gays and bisexual people?" he asked curiously. He knew Sirius could be slightly narrow-minded at times, but he viewed Sirius as a very open and social man, who didn't care much about ethnical background or social position, he didn't think that Sirius would be any less welcome to homosexuals.

"Of course I can!" Sirius frowned as he came out from the cover. "As long as no one describes the sex they have, I am not interested in that shit." Raven laughed at him. It was so ironic that Sirius responded in typical "straight dude way."

"I'll leave you for a bit", he said when it became apparent Sirius was both tired and needed some time alone to sort out hic chaotic mind after all the news.

Draco kissed him softly. His pink tongue licked his neck and he went down to his chest. Raven gasped when Draco bit down on his nipple. He began to bleed lightly but Draco licked it up in slow measured and sensual strokes. Raven trailed his hands up and down Draco's back. Draco was so soft and his pale skin was moon white. Draco went further down and licked Raven's tights. He realized he was being teased as Draco took his sweet time. Raven could feel Draco's erection against his side and he wriggled a little, he needed them to get in contact with each other. He moaned at the pleasure the friction of him moving brought on. Draco looked up at him and a smile graced his handsome face. He marveled how beautiful Draco looked in the soft moonlight coming from his window. Raven stroked a strand away from Draco's face. He rolled over so Draco was underneath him. He gasped at the sight of Draco's face and hair on the black silk pillow. It was perfect and laid surrounding Draco's face like a halo. Raven kissed the pink slightly parted lips. Draco moaned in his mouth.

"Raven, I want you," he whispered huskily and Raven's breath was caught at the very thought. Wordlessly he began to trail kisses down Draco's chest until he reached down to Draco's erection. Draco was so big Raven hurried licked the engorged member, making Draco wriggle and beg for more. Draco arched his hips up against Raven when Raven took him fully in his mouth. Raven could feel Draco tensing up, almost coming, and he reluctantly pulled away. Draco whined at the loss and Raven silenced him with a breathtaking and quite bruising kiss. Raven looked into Draco's half closed grey eyes when he paced one finger inside Draco to prepare him for what was to come. Draco bucked upwards with an expression of complete pleasure.

"More Raven!" he urged. Raven complied, adding another finger. He waited until Draco relaxed before he moved his fingers in and out and then adding a third finger. When the blond was ready, Raven looked up at his friend.

"Are you sure?" he asked hoarsely, his voice thick with lust. Draco nodded. Raven placed himself at Draco's entrance between the blonde's legs. He began to fill Draco slowly. He kissed Draco to prevent him from crying out. When he was sure that Draco was relaxed and had adjusted to him, he began to move slowly and carefully but soon he began to thrust franticly and Draco met him in every thrust until the blonde boy came with a cry of pleasure. Draco's convulsions made his walls tighten around Raven and after a few more thrusts Raven came as well.

Raven sat up in bed panting heavily. He had only just dreamt about…

"Aaaaah!" he screamed when he remembered. He quickly performed a spell to take away certain body fluids on his sheets. Draco, Dracula, Lucius, Lupin and Severus came rushing in. All the while Raven's was chanting 'I'm not gay, I'm not gay' in his head. It was certainly a huge shock for him to dream about this, it was the first time it had happened and he hoped it was the last time as well.

"Cercis! Are you alright?" his father asked him and touched his shoulder. He wanted to shout 'No' but he couldn't. He looked up at Severus when he felt himself being shaken.

"I'm not…" he whispered, sounding lost.

"Severus, step away," Dracula ordered. Severus did as told while Dracula looked into what was wrong with Cercis. Severus had learned by now that Dracula only had Cercis' best interest in mind. A strange look came upon Dracula's face and Draco noticed.

"Dracula? What is it?" Draco asked.

"Hum?" the vampire said as if he had only just woken up from a dream. "Oh, nothing that I can't take care of… Just a dream about… vampires… Please leave us." The others left, even if Dracula hadn't been very convincing, and neither of them really believed that Cercis had dreamt about vampires, not directly anyway.

"Raven? Would you like to talk about it?" Dracula asked once they were alone in the room.

Raven shook his head violently. He really did not want to talk about anything surrounding the subject.

"You know that it will only get worse if you don't," said Dracula reasoned and took Raven in his arms. At first Raven didn't speak.

"Am I… Am I gay? Because I… dreamt about… you know?" he said in a whisper. He couldn't bring himself to say mention the name.

"About Draco? Maybe, not necessarily. Have you noticed that you like men before?"

"No," Raven said quickly. "And I have never dreamt about… a man... I like woman and now… now… I don't know!" he exclaimed frustrated. He couldn't deny that the dream about Draco had brought him pleasure, and it was alluring. He had never thought that possible before.

"I don't think you're gay. Everyone have crazy fantasies, it doesn't mean anything. Not everyone makes their fantasies come true in real life. Many people are happy with just having them as fantasies, and nothing more. Even if it does mean something, you may be bi or… well, does it really matter?" Dracula interrupted himself. He had never been a man to like labels on people and groups. It was easier to simply let everyone be themselves instead of living after certain rules and restrictions.

"When I was with him, I… I enjoyed it!" he said feebly as he tried to put words on his feelings. "I felt so alive and now I'm just so lost!"

"I'll call for Faith so you can spend the night with her and I'll tell her to bring Jedings so you can decide if you like men too…. then you can decide in the morning, okay?" Dracula asked. "That might put some things in perspective for you," he concluded. Raven thought it was a good idea, even if he felt slightly intimidated to spend the night with a man.

"Don't tell the others!" he pleaded.

"Of course not. Trust me on that," Dracula said as smoothly as ever and Raven knew the vampire wouldn't breath a word about it to anyone.

When Raven woke up in the morning Faith and Jedings were gone. He smiled when he thought back on last night. He never went further than blowjobs with Jedings. He understood right the way that it wasn't right for him. He didn't like men at all in that way. But he did fuck Faith. He whistled as he went down to breakfast in Malfoy Manor. He felt content and happy with his life. Everything was back to normal, and he loved it. When he came down he realized that Sirius had actually joined the table even if he looked a bit uneasy sitting among people he didn't like, as well as vampires.

"Good morning Raven. I take it that you figured it out?" Dracula asked him cryptically when he sat down. Raven smiled widely and grabbed a bowl of mixed fruits.

"Yeah. I'm not that. It was just something crazy for the moment. Just like you said." Dracula nodded.

"I thought so," he said knowingly.

"What are you talking about?" Severus asked them suspiciously.

"Oh nothing at all father," said Raven dismissively and smiled when he saw Sirius cringle.

He looked over at Draco and blushed suddenly when he remembered. Dracula snorted as he was downing his cup of blood.

"Oh shut up!" Raven said sourly. It only made Dracula laugh harder. But it got Raven thinking when Draco looked at him with beautiful confused grey eyes. Could he only be attracted to Draco? And not to any other man? It's possible, his traitorous mind whispered to him as he forcefully stabbed a melon with his fork. You shut up! He told his mind sternly, and concentrated on the conversation flowing around him instead.