Four Father
Ch. 10: Calm, Praise, or Dress?
After that fiasco was over two weeks before, they had rarely been out of each other's sight for longer than three minutes. The headmaster had had to get used to the three of them and Blaise and Draco being together, because the five were rarely not found together wherever they were at the time if it was outside of their dorms. The rest of the Slytherin's had been apologized to and had taken it all in stride. Pansy had been told that they did not have to hide anymore so she was able to spend her lunchtimes elsewhere instead of hanging off of Draco as she had been doing at the beginning. They had of course cleared this with all adults beforehand. They couldn't afford to give away too many secrets.
Once they had been healed they had had a nice LONG chat about asking for help and not running off like a Gryffindor. They hadn't been punished too heavily because they figured it was enough compensation and incentive for their Sub's that they had almost died and had believed their Dom's to leave them. That's not to say they were exactly happy with them and when Severus had exploded after he had realized it was a basilisk, they had flinched and begged him that they were sorry and that they had had too. It was a forced choice. Severus hadn't understood that but Midnight had and sighed and then explained.
"There are always choices. You always have a choice, but sometimes there are forced choices, and those, those are not your fault."
Shadow had nodded and told them he had had to. He couldn't let an innocent die. It didn't stop Sev from being angry but he understood and eventually it all calmed down and he gave each of them a hug. They had all relaxed and calmed down. He had then sent them to bed.
As they walked from lunch to Potions on Saturday, they debated what they would do for their free period. They had all been cooped up too long in this castle. Vampires did not like to be caged or chained, and they were used to wandering whenever they wished. They shrugged; they would figure it out whenever it was time. They would get to go home tomorrow. They loved Sundays. Lived for them, when they could do whatever they wanted to within reason. They had surprisingly fell into the role of having parents rather well.
Potions went by well. Neville had been doing rather well in the class and Severus left him to it but still checking occasionally to make sure it wouldn't get volatile. He almost dropped in a newt's eye and Shadow quickly stepped over and caught it and gently pointed out to Neville where he was supposed to be. He fumbled for a moment but then quietly said thank you. Shadow had smiled and waved to Midnight that he would be helping him. After he had gotten over the shock they had worked well together and the potion had almost come out perfect. When they had taken it to the front Severus had called Neville to wait after class. He had paled but waited when the bell rang.
"You have done well in this class Mr. Longbottom, a far cry from your father. You have not once blown up one cauldron and for that I am most pleased." And Neville could tell too. He looked vastly relieved. "Thirty points to Gryffindor. Continue to improve Mr. Longbottom."
"But…but Sir, Shadow helped."
Shadow laughed. "You did all the work. I only kept you at a pace that was comfortable to you and guided you. You did it on your own."
"Th…thank you."
"You're welcome."
"And Mr. Longbottom?"
"Yes…yes Sir?"
"I expect that you will keep quiet about your points less they double and end up missing."
"Yes, yes Sir." He was surprised. He had won points and in Potions. He had been told he had done a good job. He stood in shock and Shadow gently led him out and sent him on his way to his next class.
"I think you have made his year Father. He is not used to praise; I can tell."
"I see. But do not expect me to continue this. We cannot afford to seem soft."
"I know, but just once in a random blue moon if he's done really well. Just a nod would help encourage him to keep trying."
"All right. You win Shadow." Shadow smiled. He would of course have his way when it came to this. He would settle for nothing less. "Do you not have a free period next?" They nodded and wondered why. "Then shoo unless you want to help make pain relief." They laughed.
They went back to the Common Room. They sat around the fire and just talked with everyone. Eventually Pansy came out and tapped Darkness on the shoulder and caught Blaise's attention. She would have to be careful here. "Can I please please borrow Shadow and Draco. Please?" She begged. She needed their help. Desperately. At least she had been smart to direct her questions to their Dom's unlike the headmaster would have. Everyone in Slytherin knew, knew the who's and what's of everyone and how to not accidentally say something to offend someone of their position.
Darkness glanced to Blaise and then Shadow. Shadow shrugged and Blaise asked why. "Fashion, of which you have no sense." Blaise laughed. It was true. Draco shrugged and Blaise nodded. "Have fun." "Of course." He hugged his Dom and pulled Shadow to his feet. "You have to help me with this one. One of us is not enough." Darkness nodded and Shadow pulled Midnight to his feet as well. Pansy gave Midnight a calculating look. "He can keep a secret too." She smiled and nodded and pulled the three with her.
Once they were gone Blaise let out his breath. Darkness looked at him and he said. "That girl is a vulture. Don't get on her bad side." He already knew that. For a female and a mortal she had just as much control as Draco did in here. "When she goes into fashion mode, well let's just say their free period is over. We'll have to catch them for dinner." Darkness groaned. Thank heavens he hadn't went.
Draco took control as soon as they walked into the room. This is what he was born for. He and Pansy had a system. Short questions, short answers and they filled in the rest as they went. Shadow and Midnight watched him work till they could help.
"Problem?"
"Date. Casual."
"Whom?"
She gave him a look as if who else. He smirked.
"Place?"
"Rosemerta's." (Hogsmeade)
"Color?"
"Your choice. No pink damn you." He laughed.
"Dress or Pants?"
"Dress. I have no choice on that."
"Style?"
"V. Knee." She knew was his next question would have been.
"Heels or Flat?"
"Whichever."
"Jewelry."
"Plain."
"Hair?"
"Depends on dress." He nodded. It really did.
"All right. Let's get to work."
He walked to her closet and opened it pulling the other two with him. Pansy sat and let them work. They pulled dresses, put them back, and pulled again. Eventually Midnight smirked. "This will do." He showed it to them but blocked her sight and they nodded eagerly. Draco was almost bouncing. It would definitely be appreciated. Draco handed it to her and shooed her into the bathroom. She came back with a light blush.
"You'd had better all be happy." They all smirked at her and Draco chirped of course.
"Spin please," Midnight asked. She tilted her head but then did so. Shadow stopped her and after a few silent exchanges, turned her dress red and silver. Draco whistled. "Never thought of those two colors before but they do compliment her."
"Wait. What color jewelry? That change's things." Draco pulled out what he had planned. Midnight waved his hand and added a light purple to the dress and pulled out a bit of the silver. They wanted everything to stand out with nothing being left out. Draco went to the closet and pulled out shoes. He picked a pair and she groaned. "Oh come on. You know they are liked." She sighed. "Fine then. When you're done though."
They sat her at her vanity and did her hair. At the end they were pleased with their results. Draco added jewelry and then deemed her done minus shoes. They stood her up and looked her over. They made her spin again and then put a few extra pins in. It was down but done in a style that no one else beside Midnight would be able to fix again. She spun a few more times and he deemed her dance worthy.
She was in V-neck red dress with light purple streaks randomly swirled. It was a bit shorter than knee length, but it couldn't be too long or the look wouldn't be able to be pulled off. The little silver that was left was done in tiger stripes. She had one on each shoulder slanted, another horizontal on her sides, and two that appeared to create a slit at the left at the bottom. She had on a simple silver necklace with an amethyst, the reason for the purple in the dress. She had on a plain blue clear ring and two silver bangle anklets were placed around her right leg. Draco was nice enough to help her into her shoes, which she was very grateful for. They then all deemed her perfectly devourable. She blushed and it took a lot to get her to do so. Draco smirked that I know more than you do smirk and bowed to her.
She gave him a pleading look and he sighed. "Oh fine. Come on you two we have to go save Millicent from her nightmare with a dress." They shrugged. What was one more.
Indeed they did have to go help Millicent. When they walked in Draco shrieked and she whirled around and froze before she relaxed. Draco waved his wand and everything went back to whence it came from. "Let's start over shall we?" She nodded. These two were hopeless when it came to casual. He forced her to sit and they took over once more. He would make her compliment Pansy and see if these two caught on.
When they were done, she was in mid-length sleeved V-neck. Her dress was black and had blue swirls. Keeping in fashion, they gave her the same silver tiger stripes though her 'slit' appeared on her right. Her dress was a bit longer and they pulled up her hair, this time courtesy of Shadow. They had her twirl until she was deemed dance worthy as well. Draco put on a silver necklace with a crystal blue stone in it. He then handed her an amethyst ring that she slid back on as she hadn't wanted to part with it in the first place but after Draco had given her a look she had resigned. He handed her two silver bangle bracelets and put them on her right hand. He fished out her shoes and helped her into them and she smiled. They deemed her devourable as well and took their leave.
Darkness had left to help Severus with potions and so when they got back to the Common Room, he was gone. Blaise had headed to the library to finish up an essay and they knew this because a third year politely told them so. They thanked her and she left to do who knows what, not me. They sat and Shadow asked whom the two were going out with. Draco smirked and led them to his room.
"Let's see if you can figure it out. I'll give you a few facts and let you decide from there." They agreed.
"Pansy hates wearing bracelets. Her eyes are crystal blue. Her aura is a deep brown. She's not someone that just dates and drops you. Now think."
"Millicent can't stand anklets. They drive her crazy. Her eyes are an amethyst color. Her aura is a pale yellow. She's calm and easygoing, which is the opposite of her date. Who do you think?"
Shadow stared at him hard. "Serious?" He nodded. Shadow shook his head. "Can't." He burst out laughing at their faces as they realized why exactly the two looked so alike tonight. "Now that's a shock. I never knew. What happened to vampire senses?"
"I keep them hidden. Almost everyone that knows them know but we can't let Dumbledore find out. Think how he is with men. With women, who knows what he would do. They nodded.
Midnight smirked. "Let me dress you two up." "Why," came two identical voices. He shrugged. "Cause I can and I would like to see their faces. "Only if I get to dress you up." He groaned. "Fine." Shadow smirked at Draco. He laughed.
"Since we are in your rooms we shall start with you hmm?"
"I want a shower first, then you can play dress up with me." He sighed. "Why am I agreeing to this again."
"Oh, I'm sure you know why," replied Shadow. Draco gave an exaggerated sigh and nodded. They left and took their own showers with a bit of fun before returning to Draco's room. They dressed him up and he looked damn good if they did say so.
He was dressed in deep blue slacks with a silver shirt. His robe was a light blue with black ribbons atop it. All in all he looked otherworldly and angelic. He wore a simple silver necklace that Blaise had given him and black shoes. A normal outfit but done in style. They had got to him before the hair jell did so they had left it unslicked and soft. When he looked in the mirror he was surprised.
They turned on Shadow and he gulped. They notice-me-not Draco until they got him to their rooms and then Shadow was the one to play puppet. Midnight chose the pants and left Draco to the shirt and robes, which would hopefully hide the pants. At least Shadow was hoping so if he knew what Midnight was going to pick.
Midnight came back out of the closet and Shadow gulped. He had known. He sighed and slid into low hip riding pants. Midnight would get what was coming. Just he wait. Draco smirked at the choice and Shadow told him he had better be happy he was already done. He just laughed and tossed him and emerald shirt. His robe ended up having a mixture of black and gold to represent his Dom's, just as Draco's did. The colors were swirled together and you could never tell where one began and the other ended. Draco then smirked and told him that he needed his leg decorators. He hissed and called them to him and they slid up his legs. Draco nodded satisfied his work was done. Midnight moved and pulled out a necklace and placed it around Shadow's neck. "Now you're just teasing. Just you wait." He laughed melodically.
Shadow turned around and tackled him. He handed him off to Draco. "Make sure he doesn't get away." Draco nodded. Midnight gulped. Uh oh. He tried whispering to Draco who just shook his head and snickered at his discomfort. Shadow came back and handed him his pants and shoes and turned him to the bathroom. He sighed and went. He came back out with extremely low riders. If you thought Shadow's had been bad, these were much worse. Shadow cackled insanely. They stared at him and he sobered some. He left Draco to the shirt and the robes. He was good at that.
Draco could find nothing that pictured what he wanted so he eventually settled on the type of shirt and once he put it on he changed the colors to amber and gold. Shadow stopped him and then he ripped little openings in the sides with his nails. Three on each side. Draco then moved and concentrated on just outside the marks and made them a black color. Shadow whistled. "Nice work." "Thanks." Midnight moved to the mirror and was held back by both of them. "We aren't done with you yet," Draco chided. He pouted but it didn't work. His robes ended up a simple black with emerald swirls. Theirs showed their Dom's so his could show his Sub's. Shadow moved and pulled out a necklace and Midnight pouted. "You are evil." "You deserve it." He couldn't deny that so kept quiet.
Darkness and Blaise met up on their way back to the dungeons to make sure and/or rescue them for dinner. Darkness tilted his head as he realized they were done and were in their room. He gestured and Blaise followed. What met them however stopped them in their tracks.
They all laughed as their Dom's stood speechless before snapping out of it.
They moved quickly and kissed their respective partner(s).
"Why so dressed up?"
"This one was bored once we were finished and we just returned the favor," Shadow answered.
"You'll get to see what's under later, but I think dinner awaits," replied Draco. Blaise and Darkness respectively groaned. They laughed at them.
They walked to dinner and along the way Blaise commented that now he felt underdressed. Darkness agreed. When they walked in it was amid to catcalls and whistles. They tried not to blush and for the most part succeeded. Severus was shocked but told them they looked good through their mental links. They thanked him and he asked the occasion. He got a mental shrug in reply.
Dumbledore was surprised. So the hoodlums could dress up and actually look nice. Good. That worked for his plans. He would need pictures while he was like this. He needed his poster boy. He didn't totally trust that Severus was telling him everything. And that damn snake had refused to help him. She said they had been innocents and he really didn't want a large basilisk lose that he couldn't control. Worse was, the boy could probably control her and that wasn't good. At least he still had the Sorcerer's Stone. He wasn't sure, but he thought that the boy had been the one to almost get the stone on Halloween. He would have to be more careful. Not even Minerva knew that he was using it. That he was addicted to it. Until he knew he could trust the boy, he couldn't lead him on any of the tasks that he needed him for. His meeting with Severus had gone as usual. 'I'll tell you what I can when I know it or find it out.' It was getting aggravating, but Tom just seemed to be sitting still lately. That wasn't a good thing. At least not for him. He would have to stage a raid soon then maybe. Oh well, for now he would enjoy dinner and watch the boy. Black Shadow huh? The boy didn't seem like one much. But if what Severus said was true then this boy was able to play innocent very well.
When dinner was over they made their way back to the common room and then their own rooms. Once Blaise had Draco in their room he opened the robe to admire the beauty that was his mate and wondered how he had gotten so lucky. And more that his mate still wanted him after that earlier disaster this year. He made his mate stand and slowly turn for him admiring him from all angles. "Such nice clothes but they are hiding the true beauty of you my mate." Draco smiled softly and leaned up and kissed his Dom. He loved when they could be together in their rooms without fear of having to act. He moved and slowly began to undress his Dom and fold his clothes laying them aside. He squiggled out of reach when his Dom tried to return the favor and wagged a finger at him and his Dom shook his head but let him continue.
Darkness moved and pinned both of them to the wall. He kissed them both and whispered promises in their ears. They shuddered, eager. He stared at the two and then pulled them from the wall and pouted. "Do I get to see now," he asked in a childish voice. They laughed and antagonizingly slow unbuttoned their robes to reveal their shirts and low pants. He smiled and gently helped them out of their robes and hung them, taking care with the thought they had put into the clothes to please him with. He smiled hungrily when it came to the pants. He could tell who had been dressed first. Payback was a bitch. He saw the glint in Midnight's eye and so turned to him and slowly began to strip him. In between, he hung the clothes, only further irritating both of them. Once he was done to Midnight, they both advanced on Shadow and stripped him completely. Just as suddenly he was pinned and the favor returned. When they were done, they climbed into bed.
Pansy and Millicent laughed when they saw the other. So much for trying to dress themselves hmm. Pansy hadn't actually meant for Draco to help Mill dress, just to monitor, but oh well. They went to their booth and soon ordered their food. It was the closest they could be to one another while Dumbledore was around and on the watch. They were relatively free as he was more focused on the males but still they couldn't depend on that. They enjoyed their night out together. They had discovered one another at the age of 9 and had been inseparable since except to play their consecutive roles.
They made it back to Hogwarts and their dorm with no trouble and headed to their bed. They stripped, hung their clothes, and slid in to a night filled with pleasure.
Severus had waited until all of his snakes had returned and were in bed, before he cast a spell to seal them in that could only be broken by a certain seventh year that he had chosen in case of emergency. With that thought in mind, he flooed home to enjoy some quality time with his mates that was much needed.
High in the astronomy tower, two old lovers found one another again. They came from different houses and this would be the last year they would get to see each other as children. Both were seventh years and if caught would have their lives hanging in the balance but for tonight didn't care. They had eyes only for each other. Such strength in his, and such longing in hers.
A./N. Okay, this one wrote itself too. I totally didn't know what I was writing as I wrote it but I wrote it the day after the last chapter, even though you won't get it for quite some time. Hope you enjoyed this. Please review. This is my only story I've ever actually kept up with and in actual updates. I think it's the longest one too. Woo hoo.