Thank you for reading! I don't own any of Harry Potter! Please let me know if you enjoy! Updates every Saturday!
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The following morning brought with it the first class day of the new academic year.
To Severus's surprise, Harriet appeared in the dungeons classroom a half hour before he had requested.
"Potter," Severus greeted her in his low purr of a voice when he saw her step into the doorway, "You're early this morning, how unlike you."
Harriet shrugged off his snide comment and asked the alpha, "Is the room to your liking, sir?"
Severus glared over at her.
He let his black eyes flicker around the classroom for a moment before he met her gaze.
Slowly, he drew in a silent breath and spoke, "I suppose it's…….satisfactory……..at least, the parts of it that I've been able to examine so far. I haven't yet gotten the chance this morning to check each and every detail, but I will, Potter, don't worry about that. If anything's out of order, I'll be certain to let you know."
"Of course. I did my best on the instructions you sent, sir. They were quite clear." Harriet replied with a nod, unable to hide her happy grin that Severus was pleased with her work whether he wanted to say it directly or not.
As Severus studied Harriet's smile, he had to resist the urge to return it. Instead, he chose to scowl as he folded his arms and spoke, "Our schedule is strict. Years one through three come in rotations during the mornings, years four and five are immediately before and after midday, then years six and seven will conclude our afternoons. We only have a few moments of time between each class, with the exception of lunch in the Great Hall, as you're aware from your own time here. I need you to be quick and efficient, Potter…….is that understood?"
"Did I fail you when you relied on me before?" Harriet asked.
Severus narrowed his eyes as if he were concentrating very hard and with a gentle sigh he replied in little more than a whisper, "...No."
"Then that should be enough evidence to ease your mind, Headmaster." Harriet answered with a nod as the first students of the day began to file into the room.
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After years of watching Harriet slack off, talk out of turn, and generally cause a disruption in his teaching environment, Severus was almost startled by how obedient she was as his assistant.
Harriet was quiet and respectful while she aided Severus in demonstrations, with passing out documents to students, and by walking around the long, wooden tables full of students to answer minor questions……….she even helped clean the room between class periods.
Throughout that first day, Severus eyed the Auror trainee very carefully.
Besides his own personal interests in the omega, Severus began to yearn for Harriet to stay in his employ forever.
Once Slughorn returned to work and he no longer had to teach classes while overseeing the school, Severus was certain that having Harriet with him all day every day would still prove to be just as useful.
Severus despised the harsh realities that Harriet was only going to be with him for a short period of time, and that she was only helping him to pass her trainee program.
Whenever their hands brushed as they touched the same piece of parchment simultaneously, whenever Severus glided past her and caught a strong whiff of those lovely pheromones that exuded from her skin, whenever Harriet's green eyes locked onto his and smiled brightly at him, Severus allowed himself to imagine.
He imagined a world in which things were different, and he was happy, she was happy, they were happy…..together.
To Severus, it looked as if it may be the best school year in recent memory as that first week sailed past and Harriet stayed loyally at his side.
She was kind enough to work next to him in the evenings as well and he did thoroughly enjoy their long, nightly chats by the fireplace in his office while they graded assignments together.
Those chats were just like the ones he had shared with the omega during the months he had spent under her care two summers ago.
When he sat so near to the omega, breathed in her scent, and listened to her voice, it soothed him in a way that he was certain Harriet didn't notice.
Severus himself wasn't aware of the price he would pay for that luxury.
In the middle of Thursday night, Severus sat bolt upright in bed, soaked in sweat, and he realized how arrogantly careless he had been.
He heaved for breath as he pulled himself from his damp sheets to stagger into the bathroom of his quarters.
Hesitantly, he dared to look into the mirror at his own reflection in the glass.
Severus's face was pale and haggard. Nausea turned his stomach at the sheer force of aggressive impulses that pulsed through his veins.
It hadn't happened to him in so long, he had nearly forgotten how miserable it felt……….
Severus pressed a clammy hand to the cold side of the porcelain sink and closed his eyes for a moment as he groaned.
His body was not as willing to play along with his game of ignoring what he felt for Harriet.
Severus Snape had gone into a rut.
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In the hypnotic haze of what he wanted, the alpha tried to keep his grasp on his sanity and work on what he needed.
Perspiring and trembling, Severus pulled out one of his best cauldrons and quickly began to warm the iron pot while he added the necessary ingredients.
Within the hour, the mixture was bubbling and brewing but Severus stared down at it in abject despair.
There were many mixtures and elixirs that could be used for alphas and omegas.
One potion in particular worked very well at silencing heats and ruts.
In the past, Severus had kept a supply of that potion on hand, in case an unexpected emergency arose, but his excellent self control had made it needless.
Since so much time had passed since he last had any use for the stuff, when his previous batch had expired years ago, he neglected to make any more.
Severus was disappointed in himself for not having the foresight to prepare a batch as soon as Harriet had arrived at the castle.
During their previous time together, his injuries had meant that a rut wasn't possible, his body had been too weak, in addition to the fact that Harriet had not presented yet.
However, there was nothing weak about Severus when she, a fully blossomed omega, had come into his charge at Hogwarts~.
He scowled down at the cauldron and thought to himself.
His pounding heart made it impossible to go back to sleep and even if drowsiness would have been biologically able to set in, he couldn't rest.
His instincts told him he had work to do.
The potion to quell his rut needed to brew for two days.
On that timeline, he wouldn't be back to himself until late Saturday night or early Sunday morning.
Severus sighed as he contemplated the notion that Friday's classes would begin in a few hours and he would be unable to teach them.
He wrenched himself away from the cauldron, sat down at his writing desk, and hurriedly scribbled a letter. After he had sealed the envelope, he leapt from the desk's chair as if his seat were made of fire.
The stone floor massaged his feet as he paced around and around his chambers restlessly.
Fight, mate, breed, protect……
Fight, mate, breed, protect……..
Those words, those thoughts, played over and over in his mind, rising from his heart and boiling in his blood until they were actions ingrained in his brain that left him in dire need to complete.
There was no one around to fight and there was no one around to mate with, Severus understood that, in the thick fog of his dreadful state, but he had to do something to ease his suffering.
Silently, with his teeth clenched, Severus began to move things around in his rooms. He opened up his linen closet and piled every towel and blanket he could find on the sofa and the bed. Once they were in place, he arranged them as neatly as possible, and then set every pillow he owned around those places, the sofa and the bed, in the most welcoming way he could surmise.
Omegas made nests but alphas made dens.
Severus knew that Harriet wasn't coming to him, that she wouldn't be there, but it made him feel so much better to dream differently.
Towards dawn, with his pulse still racing and sweat still dripping from his pores, Severus laid on the bed and closed his eyes as he thought of Harriet and all that could be……..
She could come by and see him.
She could accept his invitation into his chambers.
She could inspect the den he had made, accept it as her nest, and him as her alpha.
She could need him and want him and allow him to-
Severus opened his eyes as the sun rose outside his lonely window.
His heart slammed in his chest as he used great will power to leave his dreamy reverie, stand from the bed, and pick up the letter he had written.
Severus quickly slunk down to the dungeon classroom, laid the letter on his desk, and quickly escaped back to the shelter of his chambers.
Once his errand was complete, Severus laid back down on the bed with a frown.
For a moment, he wondered if Harriet would wish he was by her side over the next few hours, after she read the letter.
It was of little comfort to him as he passed one of his hands over his damp face.
Severus was certain that no matter how badly she wanted his company during her first day of teaching, it couldn't possibly compare to how badly he wanted her next to him~.
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Harriet Potter had faced many challenges in her relatively short life.
She was skilled at rising to whatever occasion occurred and handling obstacles bravely.
That was no different for the omega that Friday morning when she walked into the empty dungeons classroom an hour before the first period of the day and found the letter lying on Severus's desk, but no Severus to go with it.
Harriet frowned as she picked up the letter, opened it, and read the words it contained:
Potter,
I've taken ill during the night and am unable to lead class today. That duty will lie with you. The day should be simple. You know what to do. Do not attempt to seek me out, I fear my ailment may be contagious. There is a cure, however, it will take two days to become viable. Do not disappoint me.
Severus Snape, Headmaster of Hogwarts and Professor of Potions
Harriet was more worried about Severus than she was guiding the students as the first years began to trickle into the room that morning.
She had led a small army during the Battle of Hogwarts, she had confidence that she could supervise groups of students in groups of twenty or thirty for an hour and a half or so.
Besides, that day was perhaps one of the easiest to teach during the semester, each year had a quiz scheduled for the entire period.
The first week and Severus was already giving them a quiz.
Harriet would administer the quizzes, the students would take their quizzes, she would collect their answers, and they'd go on their way.
Easy.
Simple.
That was what worried Harriet even more, the fact that it was such an easy, simple day and Severus wasn't coming to teach.
Throughout her entire student career, Harriet had never known Severus Snape to miss a day of work due to illness.
Where had he possibly been to contract a disease so severe that the cure took two days to prepare?
Harriet tried not to let anxiety crease her face as she walked around the room and watched the first years' quills bob as they completed their assignment, but her hidden nervousness remained.
Harriet wished that she didn't have to let Severus down, but she couldn't help it.
As soon as classes concluded for the day, she was determined to go and check on the ailing alpha.
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If classes ever concluded for the day……
Everything went smoothly for Harriet until the last period with the seventh years.
She had just started to pass out the quiz parchments when Elion raised his hand.
"Yes, Mr. Dacre?" Harriet asked.
"Do you need any help, Ms. Potter? As Slytherin house prefect, I'd be glad to lend a hand while our professor is incapacitated." The young man replied to Harriet with a warm smile.
"Thank you very much, but there's no need, we're only taking this quiz today. By order of Headmaster Snape, you all have the entire class time to finish, then you can start your weekends. Does everyone understand?" Harriet asked as she glanced around the room.
The seventh years all nodded, including Elion who kept his dark eyes firmly fixed on Harriet.
"Good." Harriet replied with a kind smile to her temporary students.
She finished passing out the papers and then she sat and watched the students work while the afternoon slipped slowly towards the moment of dismissal.
When that time finally came, Harriet felt a small whisper of dismay while she gathered the students' quizzes and noticed that Elion stood politely off to the side as he let his peers walk in front of him.
Harriet thought he was being courteous to others, but she had the intuitive feeling that he would want to chat.
Elion did indeed want to chat.
He wasn't submitting his quiz last out of kindness towards his fellow students, Elion was submitting his quiz last so he could have a moment alone with Harriet.
Once the two of them were left alone together in the room, Elion walked over to Harriet and handed her his quiz with a delighted smile.
It was a gesture to which Harriet didn't really know how to respond.
She took Elion's quiz from his hand and nodded politely as she spoke, "Thank you, Mr. Dacre."
"Thank you, Miss Potter~." Elion said with a purr as his dark eyes bore into Harriet's.
He stood a bit shorter than Severus but quite a deal taller than the omega in front of him, and his white teeth showed as he spoke, "You did an excellent job today~. Truly marvelous! I'm certain that Professor Snape would have been more than proud. You really honored him by the flawless way you handled class, and on such short notice!."
As oblivious as Harriet often was to advances from the opposite sex, even she saw through Elion's superfluous compliments, but she made a crucial mistake in the way she responded to his flirtation.
"I suppose I'll find out shortly. Now that class is over, I'm going to see him. I want to make sure he doesn't need anything." Harriet replied.
An arrogant smirk curled Elion's thin lips as he smiled down at the caring omega and whispered, "How very thoughtful. As Slytherin house prefect, Headmaster Snape's well-being is my concern as well…...I'll go with you~!"
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Elion was careful to keep Harriet chatting while they left the dungeon classroom and walked through the stone corridors together on their way to visit Severus.
By the time they made it to the door that led to the headmaster's chambers, Harriet was in the middle of detailing a long story about the Battle of Hogwarts to Elion.
Severus had worked as a spy for nearly two decades.
He was quite skilled in the art of stealth and so, with his senses heightened from his rut, he heard Harriet's voice first from the hallway outside as she and Elion approached.
His black eyes widened and his insides clenched as he listened to the sweet melody of words that slipped from the omega's lips.
Harriet……..
She had come to see him…...she had disobeyed him.
In his lonely, desperate state, Severus didn't care, he would just be glad to-
He bristled where he stood as another voice drifted in from the hallway, a voice much unlike Harriet's.
A deep, masculine voice.
The hair on the back of Severus's neck stood up when he realized that his omega, er, the omega wasn't alone.
A low growl echoed rose in his throat as the footsteps and voices drew closer and Severus understood.
Harriet wasn't alone, Elion Dacre, that wretched, meddling, dunderhead, was with her.
The voices grew louder until they were right outside his walls and then Severus heard rapping on his door.
Knock, knock, knock.
The sound was too soft to have come from Elion's fist, Severus knew it was Harriet who was asking to see him.
For a moment, he stood with his mouth hanging open and his dark eyes glistening.
No one had ever…….wanted to see him……showed concern for him…...before…...but…….Harriet was there and Harriet wanted to see him.
Harriet was concerned for him.
Slowly, after he swallowed his primal impulses and pulled the white ruffles at the end of his black sleeves down over his sweaty hands, Severus began to glide towards the door to his chambers.
As he moved, he heard Elion speak from outside in the hallway.
"Miss Potter," Elion said to Harriet while they waited for Severus to answer the door, "I was thinking about going to the lake for a while after dinner this evening…and….I was wondering….would you like to join me? It's quite peaceful to watch the sunset there."
Severus stopped in his tracks.
Disbelief froze him for a moment.
What did he….just…….say?
Severus's veins flared, his mouth filled with drool as his eyes dilated and he lost himself to the emotions he usually kept so well pent-up.
Severus abandoned the fight to uphold his better judgement against the raging demands of his rut.
That was the day that Headmaster Snape would lose his job.
Severus had mastered broomless flight years ago and from where he stood, he took to the air like a swirling, black, ball of angered pain.
Fight, mate, breed, protect…….
Fight, mate, breed, protect…..
Severus was going to burst out of his chambers and crash into Elion. He would shred the young alpha to pieces and then he would take Harriet into his arms and make her scream his name all the way down the corridor. He would lick the love bite that sealed their bond while she laid in the den he had made for her, as his hands splayed over her belly which would surely be holding their growing pups after he was finished ravishing her.
Elion didn't even know that his demise hurtled towards him as he stood there, smiling at Harriet while he waited for her reply.
Elion didn't realize either that Harriet probably saved his life as she looked at him and uttered the sentence that wiped the grin off his face and knocked Severus out of the air in shock.
"That's very kind of you, Mr. Dacre." Harriet smiled, "But I'm afraid I can't, I don't think my mate would like it very much if I did."