A/N: Poll results so far…

A. We have a trial, either big and revealing or small 53 votes so far

B. We do not have a trial. 9 votes so far (

C. We avoid the whole issue of a trial and have Voldemort capture/kill Dumbledore and potentially out his deeds to the world. 6 votes so far

Everyone's opinions have been incredibly insightful and I have pages and pages of notes written down with your comments. I am currently thinking about having a trial but still having Voldemort deal with Dumbledore (so he will be both tried and sentenced but still dealt with by dear old Voldie). The trial will not be a media circus though I don't think. I just can't do that to Tallis. Whenever there are high profile rape trials it breaks my heart for the poor victim. As if they haven't been through enough already. I have some plans in the works but don't want to give too much away…because then you wouldn't need to read!

Updates have been a bit slower since my arthritis has been acting up recently and typing is a bit difficult (I got rheumatoid arthritis when I was a little kid…no, I am not really, really old…I'm 24). I'm hoping to write some more tomorrow. Right now I'm only a few chapters ahead—much less than I prefer. Thanks again for all of your wonderful reviews.

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Chapter 37

"Are you sure you are ready for this?" Severus asked, watching his son nervously for any sign that he was going to crack. He disagreed with his son's decision to tell Draco some of his past that night. He didn't have a problem with telling Draco the information but he violently disagreed with the idea of doing it when his son had already had an incredibly emotional day. He really didn't want another repeat of the incident last month when Tallis lost his place in reality and was so confused. He had already gotten dangerously close to doing it again, earlier today.

"Yes," Tallis said quietly but firmly. "I owe him that at least."

"You don't owe him anything" Severus protested, concerned that his son felt that he truly owed it to Draco to tell him everything.

"Well perhaps 'owe' was a bad word. But I feel that as my friend he deserves to know more. As your godson he deserves to know more. I feel terrible lying to him. I won't tell him everything but I want to give him something of an explanation. I'll just tell him enough so that he understands a bit of why Perry scared me so much. And maybe I'll tell him about my tattoos. Nothing about my old identity."

"I'm just worried, Tallie. It's been a long day already. Can't you do this in a few days? Take some time to yourself?"

"I'll be fine, Father. I just want to get this over with. I'll be careful and if I feel that I need you I'll call you."

This was another thing that had Severus extremely concerned—Tallis wanted to tell Draco alone. He had refused his Father's offer to be present as a buffer and Bill was not yet home from work. Severus had a feeling that even were Bill home that Tallis would have refused him entrance as well. He knew that his godson was a bit of a loose canon at times though and his potential reaction to a revelation of even a part of the truth was cause for concern. "I know you can take care of yourself, I just worry."

"I know. It will all be fine though." Tallis gave his Father what he thought was a reassuring smile but it still looked weak. Severus gave in. He knew his son would get his way in the end anyway, he just had felt the need to put up a token resistance. He hoped desperately that Draco would behave himself tonight. He, more than anyone, knew that his godson could be incredibly selfish and immature. He just prayed that he didn't display those qualities tonight.

Draco's knock sounded quietly on the front door. Tallis gave his Father another weak smile and went to his bedroom, curling up in one of the armchairs that stood near the small fireplace. Severus opened the door, letting Draco in. "Against my better judgement he insists on having this conversation with you. Let me tell you now, if you do anything to hurt him or scare him tonight then you will spend the rest of your life regretting it. You need to think before you act."

Draco looked at his godfather with wide eyes. His godfather had never threatened him before, not even in play. "I would never hurt him," he said softly, trying to reassure Severus. Inside though, he was wondering exactly what Tallis would be telling him that made his godfather feel it was necessary to threaten him.

Severus nodded briskly. "He's in his room." Draco walked toward his friend's room, nervous for the first time about entering it. He tapped lightly on the door, alerting Tallis to his presence and then entered.

The room was dimly lit; most of the light came from the low burning fireplace. He spotted Tallis in one of the chairs, curled up even more tightly than he was wont to do. Tallis smiled briefly and nodded toward the other chair. Draco sat down, still not saying anything.

"I'm not really sure where to start, Draco," Tallis said quietly. "There's so much…so much I need to tell you." Tallis sighed heavily and sat in silence for a few minutes before abruptly beginning. "I wasn't always Tallis Snape." Draco looked up in shock and confusion but Tallis continued before he could say anything. "This is new, this is all new for me. It was only recently that my Father and I learned of our connection. He took me from my old life and started taking care of me."

"Is he really your Father?"

Tallis smiled—the first true smile he had had all day. "Yes." He paused for a few moments, clearly collecting his thoughts. Draco watched him closely; mind running as he tried to figure out what had been truth and what had been lies. He held his tongue though, his godfather's threat before he entered the room running clearly through his mind. He didn't want to risk losing Tallis and his godfather all because of some hastily spoken words.

Tallis was clearly thinking about how to continue his explanation. He didn't really know where to go from there…how to ease into a bit of information about his past without giving anything away about his identity. Unfortunately, there was no easy way to start talking about life with his aunt and uncle. Even thinking about them was painful. He decided to start toward the end of the story. It was a bit easier that way. "My tattoos aren't just tattoos," Tallis suddenly said. Draco looked a bit lost by this non sequitur. "They are a protective shield that I invented to repel touch—magic bound to my skin to serve as my ultimate protection."

Draco opened and closed his mouth a few times in shock, unable to verbalize anything. "How is that possible? That defies everything that I have ever known about magic, everything I have learned."

"It's a long story."

"But why? Why would you even want to do that?"

Tallis swallowed hard. This was the difficult part. "Before my Father took me to the manor I lived with other people, people who didn't like me very much and were sure to let me know it. The woman hated me because I reminded her of my dead mother. The man…liked me, perhaps too much. When I discovered that I was a wizard I dedicated my life to finding a way to defend myself from them during the summers. Ironically, I finished it at the beginning of this summer and used it only one time before I learned that I had a living parent."

"Who were these people? What did they do?"

"My aunt and uncle," Tallis said, clearly ignoring the second question.

"Has it all been lies?" Draco sounded desolate, thinking that he was losing his new friend just as they were starting to get really close. Tallis was his first and only good friend that he had ever had who hadn't been ordered to like him or stay near him or suck up to him. Blaise and Theo weren't too bad and Millie was definitely pretty close to him but none of them were like Tallis. He was his first friend that he found completely on his own merits. Now, he was finding out it was all a lie.

"No, hardly any of it has been lies, at least of the important things. Our friendship wasn't ever a lie. I haven't always known my Father and clearly haven't always lived in the manor. I didn't go to Veyle Academy but used that as a way to protect my old identity. Other than that though, it is all true, I believe."

Draco felt instantly better. Yes, a lot of the big "facts" of his friend's life were fabricated but he himself, who he was as a man, was entirely true. He wouldn't be losing Tallis. "Who were you before?"

The expression on Tallis' face was pained for a moment before he wiped his face of expression. "I can't tell you yet. I will someday."

Draco nodded. He wasn't remotely satisfied but he wouldn't push. Merlin, he was actually glad that Severus and he had that little discussion earlier. It had helped to prepare him a bit.

"Will you tell me about your aunt and uncle?"

Tallis looked down at his lap, wringing his hands as he always did when he was nervous. "I don't know. I…I don't want you to stop being my friend."

Draco laughed. "Nothing you can say could do that. Tallis, it's fine. Tell me what you are comfortable telling me. It can't be that bad!" Tallis paled visibly, clenching his hands until the knuckles turned white. Draco saw how terrified his friend was and tried to fix his mistake. "I didn't mean to be flippant. I…whatever it is, it will be ok. I'll still be your friend," he said reassuringly.

Tallis nodded, albeit with a bit of skepticism. He took a deep breath. "When I was a baby they woke up one morning to find me on their doorstep, telling them to take care of me as they would their own son. They didn't want me though and so they ignored me as best they could. When I was old enough to walk I was given chores and duties around the house. Nothing too bad, but difficult to do on the amount of food they allowed me and the injuries that were never tended to."

"They didn't feed you?" Draco interrupted, aghast. So this was why Tallis was so much smaller than his Father. This was why Sev wouldn't explain why his son was so short. He couldn't possibly have explained it without giving away his son's past life.

"Sometimes they did. It wasn't too bad, then." Draco gave him an incredulous look that he simply couldn't stop, although Tallis was no longer looking at him. Tallis sighed and pulled his knees up on the chair, tucking them under his chin and wrapping his arms tightly around them. "When I got a bit older my uncle started coming to my cupboard at night." His eyes glazed over as if he was seeing a past event. Draco sat there in complete shock. Tallis had made a similar comment earlier, about his uncle liking him too well but he hadn't made the connection then. He now knew exactly what Tallis was implying but he couldn't really believe it. He had heard in some sort of abstract way about rape and sexual abuse but it had never seemed remotely real to him. Tallis shuddered violently and skipped on, still unable to say the words.

"When I found out about magic I started looking for a way to make it end. I read an extremely vague reference to binding magic to animate objects and decided to pursue it. I started getting tattoos when I was…thirteen" he quickly substituted, not yet prepared to give away his true age "and finished getting them all this last May."

"Is that what happened to Perry?"

"Yes," Tallis said quietly. "I currently have the highest form of protection turned off but I can activate my protection by thinking the code word. I used it for the second time today."

"You used it for the first time on your uncle this summer when he tried to r—"

"I don't want to talk about it," Tallis said sharply. Draco immediately nodded.

"What is the highest level of protection?"

"It won't allow any men to touch me and it puts all women onto a secondary system where I need to choose to attack them rather than doing so indiscriminately."

"What about Bill and your dad?"

"My Father is the only male I have ever allowed to have full access to me, the only man on my safest list. Up until recently I only had an extremely small group of people who were on even a partial touch policy where they could safely touch me without getting shocked. That is what Bill is on. I still had a defense set up though where I could use my safe word and even those I trusted could be attacked if I needed to. When my Father and I decided to come to Hogwarts though I knew that I needed to turn that highest level off—the level that shocked every male who's aura was not personally keyed into my tattoos."

"This is how you've been able to shake hands with people and brush up against people without them getting injured. I've heard some people comment on feeling some sort of electricity or magical currents whenever they stand too close to you. I never felt it though so I thought it was just gossip."

"It is usually only able to be felt like that when I am nervous or overwhelmed. I don't like crowds and I don't like people looking at me or touching me."

"Yet you got rid of it anyway. You did it for Severus, didn't you?"

"Yes. I didn't want him to be ashamed of me. With losing my top protection though, I have felt more…"

"Vulnerable?"

"I can take care of myself" Tallis snapped. He closed his eyes. "I'm sorry, Draco. Everyone always wants to take care of me and it drives me insane. I think they forget that I'm not ten years old just because I'm a bit small."

"They just worry about you. And trust me, everyone knows you can take care of yourself. No matter how small you may be, you are also the most powerful wizard I have ever met. I think you may be more powerful than Dumbledore and the Dark Lord both."

Tallis chose not to comment on this allusion to his power. "I actually like it a lot of the time when Father worries about me. It's nice, you know? I've never had a parent care before."

Draco gave his friend a sad smile. He felt like an ass now, thinking back to their conversation a week ago where he had complained about his Father ignoring him. Hell, Tallis had probably prayed for a parent—any kind of parent, just someone to take him away from his life. No wonder he was so thrilled to have Severus now. "How did you discover that Sev was your Father?"

"The Headmaster," Tallis hissed, growing truly angry for the first time in Draco's memory. He had seen Tallis irritated and peevish occasionally and he had seen Tallis very upset today but he had never, never seen him angry. "He knew all along. He knew it all. He knew…" he faded away as he realized that he couldn't tell Draco that the old man had known about what was happening at his relatives without giving his identity away. Dumbledore wouldn't have had any reason to know such intimate details about anyone who wasn't a student. He swallowed thickly. "He wouldn't tell us for some reason. So I lived with my aunt and uncle in misery while my Father lived alone, all alone." He faded off as he contemplated this. For a boy who had spent a large portion of his life locked away in a cupboard wishing for human companionship that didn't consist of abusive relatives, being alone was the worst punishment imaginable. Ironically, for a boy who wanted to avoid all human touch, he still was terrified of being alone. He had craved friendship and affection desperately yet found himself often incapable of accepting it.

The fire crackled loudly bringing Tallis abruptly back to the present conversation. "We were both grateful to learn of the other. I know it seems crazy to most of the students here, but finding out that I had a Father was a dream come true, literally. My Father, too, was incredibly lonely, although I doubt he would ever mention it to anyone. We needed each other" he finished softly. "We still do. I think we always will."

"I can't believe that he knew and didn't tell you! Why in the hell did you come here after all of that?"

"Revenge" Tallis whispered fiercely. "He hurt my Father and he will pay for it."

Draco wanted to point out that Tallis had been hurt far more that his Father had but he again held his tongue. He had known Tallis for almost a month now and he had quickly learned that his small friend had little concern for his own wellbeing and worried almost exclusively about those who were close to him. "I'll help; when the time comes." Tallis smiled gratefully. "So how exactly do your tattoos work? I've never seen anything like them. Hey, is that why they changed color earlier?" he said, remembering what he had seen in the Defense classroom.

"Yeah. When the spells are activated they turn silver for a few moments. I didn't think anyone saw." He proceeded to explain how the tattoos worked to Draco, giving him the slightly shorter version. Draco was completely blown away. He had been learning about magic and magical theory since he could speak and every single thing he learned went directly against this. It should not be possible. He was literally staring at the evidence though.

It was growing late and Tallis was clearly exhausted. His eyes kept drifting closed and he lay curled up on his seat. "I should go. You need to get some sleep," Draco said as he stood.

"I'm sorry I kept so many secrets from you, Draco," Tallis said softly.

"I understand. I probably would have done the same. You know you can always talk to me though, don't you?"

"Thanks."

"I'll see you tomorrow. Good night."

"Night" Tallis called out quietly as his friend closed the door. Tallis stripped off his clothes and crawled into bed, thankful for the warm comfort his bed provided. Now if only Bill would be there to cuddle with he would feel wonderful.

Draco entered the sitting room to find Bill pacing anxiously holding a nearly empty glass and Severus drinking heavily. They both looked up as he entered the room. "How is he?" Severus asked immediately.

"Fine. He's gone to sleep, I think. He was very tired."

Bill set down his glass on the mantle and hurried to his lover's room. He had returned from work to hear rumor in the hallways of Tallis being attacked and then rushed into the Snape apartment to find that his boyfriend was closeted away with Draco Malfoy, evidently telling him some of the truth. He had been a nervous wreck, waiting to see for himself that Tallis was all right.

Draco poured himself a drink from the bottle of bourbon that was sitting on the table and threw himself into the seat next to his godfather. "So, what did you do to the bastard uncle when you found out about Tallis' childhood?"

"Castrated him," Severus said shortly.

"Good." He paused for a moment. "It's not enough, is it?"

"No. It'll never be enough. How much did he tell you?"

"Very little, I am sure. He told me briefly that he wasn't fed much, clearly explaining his size. He made a sort of drop away hint at physical abuse, talking about unhealed injuries or something. He mentioned his uncle coming to his cupboard at night and then skipped on to developing his spell. I guessed the rest."

"He can't say the words. He can't even hear them."

"I noticed. Was it as bad as I am thinking it was?"

"You can't even imagine it, Dray," Severus said hoarsely. "It is beyond your capability to even dream of. When I first saw the man I was nearly ill. I, who used to be a Death Eater and have happily witnessed and participated in revels."

Draco paled. "Merlin help him," he whispered. "No wonder Tallis was so thrown by Perry grabbing him."

"Frankly, Perry is lucky to be alive. My son is extraordinarily powerful and he holds a tenuous grasp over it at the best of times. When he is panicked he loses control completely. He's destroyed quite a few rooms in the manor beyond repair."

"Merlin," Draco whispered again. The two men drank in silence for a bit. "It bothers him, you know, that everyone is constantly watching out for him, trying to help him. He thinks that you guys think he can't take care of himself."

"He can't" Severus said immediately. "The boy would forget to eat if I didn't remind him and the day will probably never come where he actually looks out for what is best for himself. He worries constantly about making everyone else happy and defending our injured feelings but he never thinks of himself. I have to stand up for him."

"He actually likes it when you fuss, it's the others who bother him. He didn't way who 'they' were though…I guess Bill? I don't know. He's worried that you all see him as a little kid."

Severus rolled his eyes. "None of us sees him as a little kid. Even if we had done we are now fully cured of it after Bill's little show a few weeks ago."

"What did he do?" Draco asked.

"I had a few people over in a meeting to discuss potential revenge on the old man. Tallis came home early so we hid in the kitchen and sent Bill out to distract Tallis. After nearly fucking him right then and there they finally removed to my office."

Draco howled with laughter. "Guess that solved you of seeing him as a kid, huh? Merlin, he doesn't do anything in halves, does he?"

Severus glared half heartedly at his godson. "I'll have you know that I may be permanently scarred from that. I still blush when I go into my office. I don't even want to know what they did in there."

Draco still couldn't stop laughing as he leaned back in the comfortable chair. The two men sat in silence for a while, drinking quietly. "Will he ever be ok?" Draco finally asked, quietly.

"He's getting better every day. He's miles away from the scared boy I met just a few months ago. He has moved on so well and grown so much. If you had seen what he was like then you never would have thought he would ever reach the stage he is at today, much less in so short a time. Tallis is a remarkable young man."

"That he is." Draco sat for a few moments, deep in thought. "I suppose his uncle has gotten everything fixed by now. Pity it couldn't last."

Severus laughed darkly. "He is a muggle, as is the wretched woman and their spawn. They can't fix it. Muggle medicine can't do anything for him, really, and there is no way that they would go to a wizard and ask for help."

"His uncle is a muggle?" Draco gasped, completely shocked. "So that's why…he didn't not know them because you are eccentric, he didn't know them because he never learned them!"

"Either that made no sense or I have imbibed entirely too much alcohol tonight" Severus said, eyeing the nearly empty bottle of bourbon warily.

"No, no. A few of us had been wondering earlier why Tallis had such strange holes in his wizarding education—things that all of us were taught at an early age. We had assumed that you had decided not to give him those specific lessons for some strange reason understandable only to you. I understand now though, that he didn't know them because he was reared by muggles, if you can call what they put him through that."

"I taught him what I could this summer to help him blend in. He's done remarkably well so far. And it appears that my reputation serves us well in this case."

"I never would have known. A Malfoy couldn't pull something like that off but a Snape certainly can. He's eccentric enough on his own anyway. Anything that is even a bit off people just chalk up to the typical Snape eccentricity."

"Tallis is a bit odd…not that I can really speak, I guess" Severus said, pouring another glass. He was well aware that few people understood his sense of humor and that most people thought he was impossibly strange.

"No offense meant really, but frankly, it surprises me on multiple levels that Bill Weasley is dating him. Foremost because of the abuse that he suffered but also because…well…he's very odd. Bill didn't strike me as someone who would find that appealing in a mate."

"Eh, the whole lot of the Weasleys are as strange as they come. Look at Molly…if that woman's not half crazed then I don't know who is. No doubt he finds Tallis completely normal, or more so than most people. He's never commented on it to me and I would think that if it bothered him he would speak of it. That boy certainly has no compunction about doing other things in front of me."

Draco snorted again, remembering his godfather's embarrassment overhearing his son and Bill before they had sex and how uncomfortable he had been on that first day when they had set up the lab and Bill had mentioned genital piercings. Weeks had passed and the man was still blushing. "I don't guess you'll tell me who he was before, will you?" he said hopefully. Severus glared at him as best he could, given his state of inebriation. "I thought not, just wanted to try. Did he just learn this summer too that Miranda Jurow was his mother or did he know that before?"

Severus was at a complete loss for how to answer him without giving anything away. He decided to be vague. "His parentage was a complete shock for him but he welcomed it as best he could."