hey everyone, happy holidays and merry christmas (to those that celebrate christmas)

i wanted to give everyone this as a little christmas gift from me, i have been having a crazy past few days, im in quarantine right now as my whole store has covid and i am sure to get it, so i have been stuck at home reading BTS fics and watching the try guys, i feel like im in a weird drug trip/dream but i wanted to get you guys this next chapter so here it is

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Nathair didn't know who he wanted to approach, in fact he did know who he didn't want to approach, Fenrir, but he wasn't sure he wanted to talk to his father either. In the end Nathair decided he wanted to see someone he wanted to talk to two of the people who were like second fathers to him, as much as he saw Draco as a brother. As it was Yule break Severus had left the castle to be with his lover and family, Nathair knew exactly where to find the two he was looking for. Most afternoons, when there wasn't anything else to do Severus and Lucius could be found in their private sitting lounge enjoying each other's company, once in a while someone even walked in on them making out, and boy did they get an eye full when they did.

Nathair was lucky that day and didn't find them in such a compromising situation when he went to talk to them, they were reading, curled up side by side on a sofa, Lucius resting his head against Severus's shoulder as they read their respective books. Lucius was reading some book on some obscure transfiguration techniques, and Severus was reading one of the latest potions magazines, no doubt reading and being smug over his own newly written article. It was on the separation that occurred when potions that were stored for extended periods of time and the ingredients that made them more likely to separate and his personal findings on solutions to rectify said separation.

Nathair almost thought about backing out, about leaving the obviously comfortable pair undisturbed, and maybe coming back later, or not at all and forgetting the whole situation.

Not that he got very far, both men had been trained to be on alert and aware of their surroundings and just as he started to back up out of the room they sat up and turned towards him, hands going to where they had hidden their wands.

"Nathair, you know better than to sneak up on any of us, lest you want to get cursed by mistake."

"I didn't mean too... I just wanted to talk to you about something, something important... but if you're busy I can leave. I don't want to bother you," said Nathair as he wrung his hands together and turned back into the worried and confidence lacking first year he was when they first met.

"Come here," said Severus as he held out a hand to Nathair. "Tell us what's going on and hopefully we'll have some answers for you."

Nathair felt like a small child again as he came around to the front of the sofa and was motioned to sit between the two men where they had separated to make room for him.

"What's going on that's got you so troubled, I haven't seen you so shook up since you first came to be with us," said Lucius as he placed a hand on Nathan's slightly shaking shoulder.

"It's father, I heard him talking to someone about me. I found out he's been hiding something from me for years, and it's something very important. I can't understand why he would hide something like this from me. We even talked about it a few years ago when he first adopted me, and he knew then."

"What is it he knew, are you sure he lied to you?" Asked Severus as he looked intensely at Nathair, shooting Lucius a look over Nathan's head.

"When I first came to live with you two and father he had me reading many books, studying so many things. One of the books he gave me was Magical Creatures and Their Mates and while father was telling me about it before he gave me the book he said I would probably be powerful enough to have a creature Mate. Then yesterday I was coming down stairs to talk to him when I got close enough he was talking to someone and they were talking about me. Father was talking to my Mate, and they both knew he was my Mate, they were saying how they knew since he met me. It's been years that they've been hiding this from me."

"What? Really? While I'm not that surprised you have a Mate, I can't believe your father's known about whoever it is this whole time," said Severus who seemed shocked by the news but not as shocked as Lucius who had his mouth open.

"He has though, I heard him say it," said Nathair who really didn't look all that good. "They are planning to wait for me to come to either one of them to tell me he's my Mate. But I don't understand why they won't just tell me. Why are they hiding it from me when they both know. I talked to Draco and he said something about it being better if the bond between us forms naturally, about it being better if we don't force it. But I wanted to talk to someone else too, someone who might know more and help me."

Nathair talked so fast and frantically that Lucius and Severus were surprised they were able to keep up with the teens train of thought.

"That's right," said Lucius. "It is better if the bond that forms between Mates is formed as naturally as possible. When it isn't formed properly the bond can twist and cause problems for both of the Mates. I can understand why your father didn't tell you right away, but to wait until you came to him? That I don't understand. You are very smart and you most likely would have figured it out all by yourself, but you also might not have, which is a very big risk."

"In a way I did figure it out, or at least who. I started to like my Mate before I left for Hogwarts but that was it. I had no idea he was my Mate, sure I knew he was a creature, but I was thinking it was just a crush. I didn't dare hope he was my Mate, what if he had found his Mate, or I had found mine and it wasn't him? I didn't want to be disappointed," said Nathair in a small voice, tears in his eyes.

By the time the tears had begun to fall both Severus and Lucius knew something else was wrong, that the boy they both loved as if he was their son, wasn't looking too well. As if the emotional turmoil was making him sick. Lucius took Nathair into his arms and let the boy put all his weight on Lucius' body as the older man held him tight, Severus then took out his wand and ran a diagnostic spell on him.

Severus shook his head signaling that there was nothing physically wrong with Nathair, but that didn't mean that he was fine.

"Who is your Mate if you don't mind telling us?" Asked Severus trying to keep Nathair talking to them and not delve deeper into the state he was working himself into.

"Fenrir," said Nathair as he looked up at Severus from where he was held in Lucius's grip. "When he and father saved me, that night when we first met, they've both known he was my Mate since then."

"Thank you for telling us," said Lucius as he and Severus shared a look. "Why don't you let me take you to your room here, you look like you could use a rest. I'll take you up there, and when dinner time comes around I'll get Draco to wake you and you can have dinner with us. We'll talk to Tom and tell him you're not feeling too well right now so he doesn't worry if he can't find you."

A small sleepy nod and Lucius was steering Nathair up the stairs and to his bedroom they had kept for him in the manor. After tucking Nathair into bed Lucius met with Severus by the floo, both of them flooing over to Slytherin manor to have a strong talk with their friend and leader.

"My Lord, Tom, can we talk with you?" Severus asked Tom through clenched teeth, after having found him in his office.

"Of course, shut the door if you like. What's going on? Why are you angry? Has something happened?"

"Yes, after your near destruction you must have became stupid," blurted out Lucius who couldn't seem to control his seething anger anymore.

"How dare you-"

"No, how dare you Tom? Do you know that your son who you claim to love so much has just more or less cried himself to sleep in our manor? That was of course after making himself sick with fear and worry."

"What?! What's wrong with him? Why did he make himself sick?" Asked Tom frantically, his anger at their verbal attack faded and was replaced with fear for his son's welfare.

"He's tearing himself up because yesterday he found out you've been lying to him for all these years, keeping the fact that you know he has a Mate and have been lying to him about it. Yesterday he heard you and Fenrir talking and he's been so confused, not that he wasn't confused about Fenrir before he learned that you've both been lying to him. He first went to Draco yesterday, then today he came to us, but he didn't want to talk to you. You know how he is. After you yourself told him that all the people in his life were lying and using him, then you go around and do the same thing. You've hurt him badly. I don't know what's going to happen but you need to fix it and soon, before you won't be able to. Leave him with us tonight, he needs time to calm down and be prepared to hear what you have to say, and what I hope you'll have to say to him will be good enough for him. This is not all your fault, but he isn't happy with Fenrir either, but you are who he lays the most blame with."

The couple then left. Tom was stunned, speechless in the face of his horrendous mistake that now left his son in pain. He had only been thinking of Nathair when he ordered Fenrir to keep it a secret, to allow Nathair to have the freedom to love Fenrir all on his own. Now that choice was coming back to bite him in the ass.

HP/FG - TW

True to their words Lucius and Severus had left Nathair to sleep until dinner time came around, sending Draco to wake him and walk with him down to the dining room. It struck Nathair strange that Draco didn't bombard him with questions, like "why was he sleeping in his room here," or "why he was sleeping in the middle of the day." But Nathair chalked it up to the fact that Lucius and or Severus had more than likely already talked to him as they knew that Nathair had talked to Draco first before going to them about that whole thing, and Draco didn't want to push him on the matter.

Narcissa was surprised to find that Nathair was staying with them for the night and maybe even longer depending on what happened, Lucius had told her everything that had happened after he and Severus confronted Tom. Had the pair not already yelled at him Narcissa would have stormed right over to Tom and given him a piece of her mind, several pieces and maybe a spell or two if she had been really angry.

Once she saw Nathair come into the dining room she could almost feel the sadness rolling off him in waves, his eyes filled with confusion and even a hint of distrust. He was quiet all through dinner, though he wasn't the only one, the rest of them were almost afraid to speak and disrupt the almost peaceful silence. Though there was nothing peaceful about it, Draco was confused and afraid for Nathair. The three adults were angry, angry for Nathair and at Tom, none of them agreed with how their friend had handled the whole situation, though how they were going to handle it was a mystery.

Even though Nathair had come down with Draco for dinner he didn't really eat, a few bites here and there, but for most of the time he had spent pushing his food around his plate. When it came time for dinner to end Nathair just stood mumbled a thanks and something about goodnight, that he was going to bed early. The quartet watched as he turned and left, shoulders stooped, walking in a way that said everything for him. After finishing their dessert Draco left, heading to bed as well, leaving his three parents to plan what they were going to do.

In the end they decided they were going to wait a day or two for Tom to make his move, if he made one. If he did, they wanted to have a plan for the chance that it didn't go well. But if he didn't do anything in the two days they decided they were going to take everything into their own hands. None of them, even Tom, expected Fenrir to do anything. If not for the fact that no one had told him anything that had happened, he was still under the impression that Nathair didn't really know anything, and he was still to wait for Nathair to make the first move.