Life Renovations
Chapter Seventeen
Party On
Lucius strode to the bar and stopped two feet behind Sirius. He watched as Sirius accepted a bottle of Firewhiskey from Dirk with a charming smile. Lucius' face was a closed emotionless mask, but his eyes conveyed exactly what he wanted when he looked at the bartender. When the owner looked up after saying something to Sirius, he immediately stiffened. And since Lucius was an investor of sorts in Dirk's little club- and he wanted to keep it as his club- Dirk promptly excused himself from Sirius and went to work at the other end of the bar. Sirius looked confused for a second before he narrowed his eyes and looked over his shoulder.
"What the hell do you want?" he barked, the turned back and stared at Dirk's backside morosely. There was no way he was going to get any action with Lucius hovering over his shoulder every minute.
"Is it a crime for me to want a drink?" Lucius took the stool beside Sirius and snapped his fingers. There was a spell around the bar area that dampened the music coming from the dance floor, making it easier for people to hear and talk without having to yell. Dirk immediately looked up at the snap and nodded to Lucius. He completed the drink he was making and immediately started on Lucius' drink. Lucius turned back to Sirius to find the Animagus scowling at him. One pale eyebrow rose past his hairline in question.
"You aren't actually thinking about talking to me, are you? There's nothing you could possibly have to say to me."
"But there are things you wish to say to me."
Dirk laid Lucius' drink by his hand and returned to his position down the bar. He'd been completely ignored by the two wizards staring intently at each other. Sirius clenched his jaw tightly shut to keep from answering truthfully. When he felt he could lie convincingly, he spoke.
"I have nothing to say to you." Sirius turned on his stool and stormed away.
Lucius picked up his drink and sipped, his eyes following Sirius' circuit around the dance floor to the back where there were large nook and crannies to socialize or do other more…youthful activities. Lazily, Lucius moved to follow Sirius, his eyes never leaving his prey, and was mentally preparing for a short physical battle.
Sirius managed to find a small alcove at the back. It was, of course, already in use, but after barking viciously at the dozen or so young witches and wizards occupying it, Sirius soon found the alcove empty for his use. Slumping into a chair, he poured a good amount of whiskey into his glass and glared at it for far too long before drinking it. Lucius stood outside, watching Sirius with a calculating look until his face brightened as much as it could for the elder Malfoy.
He moved back to the bar to have a couple more drinks. He would need them before he sought out Sirius again and his body needed to be loose for the beating he was about to instigate. He knew the Gryffindor would not be moving anytime soon, at least not until half the bottle was empty. When he had a drink, Lucius went in search of his friend and found Severus at a table on the second floor glowering down at all the dancing bodies.
"Anyone you're annoyed with in particular?" he asked, sitting down next to Severus.
"No one in particular. Perhaps the whole lot of them. Harry and Draco included."
"What have they done now?" Lucius leaned forward to peer over the banister and watch the younger generation dancing. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, except… Draco was not dancing with Harry. Knowing the boys, Lucius thought this was extremely odd. "They aren't fighting again, are they? Merlin, I hope not."
"No, not fighting. Watch further."
Lucius took his drink in hand and scooted his chair next to the railing so that he could watch in comfort. He soon grew amused at what was happening. They were performing a dance within a dance, and it appeared Harry was leading and Draco was following. Every time Draco managed to get within touching distance, Harry would weave his way to another friend to dance with, leaving Draco alone to find another partner. Lucius imagined when Harry first began to do this that Draco did not take it well. You do not go around denying a Malfoy anything. But Lucius noticed when Harry danced with anyone, his eyes were only for Draco. This seemed to pacify his son, especially since Harry would usually just ignore his dancing partner and do his own little dance for Draco, trailing his hands over his body, taking off his green shirt so that Draco could see his beautiful form. Harry would then vanish back into the crowd when Draco couldn't stand to just watch his mate anymore. But they were both enjoying it, because Draco would always follow, though not in an obvious way to those around him, and was smirking with pleasure as he moved around to find Harry again.
"Is this some sort of mating ritual?" Lucius finally asked after watching for a time. He had a strange feeling that it was indeed a ritual.
Severus sat back with a sigh and began to rub his temples. "It's a possibility. They are turning into creatures after all."
"Draco will not want to play for very much longer."
Severus snorted in agreement. "He'll take matters into his own hands very shortly. Which is what is supposed to happen during mating rituals such as this. He is the dominant one I think." He gave Lucius a wry look. "Very strange, as we all know you are a submissive."
Lucius ignored Severus and rose. "It's time for my own ritual."
Lucius found Sirius just as he left him except half the bottle had been consumed, just as he predicted. Despite what Sirius wanted to believe, Lucius knew him very well. Probably better than anyone. He walked in and set his cane against the wall on his passing, but took his wand with him and came to stop in front of Sirius.
"What the bloody hell do you want, Malfoy?" Sirius shouted once he'd looked up from his empty glass and found Lucius standing there. He stood up and approached Lucius in a threatening manner; a growl emitting from deep within his throat. Lucius allowed himself to be backed towards the wall until he was a foot away, then stopped.
"I thought I'd let you know that I know you were lying. There are things you want to say to me."
"So what if I lied? I don't see how that's any of your business." Sirius turned away, prepared to leave and Lucius murmured a quick spell. An opaque wall appeared in front of Sirius, blocking them both in and keeping everyone out and unaware of what was going on behind the wall. Sirius spun around on Lucius. "What the fuck is your problem, Malfoy?"
"We weren't finished with our discussion. You're always leaving before things are finished."
"I'm the one? Me?" Sirius shouted; he lunged forward and roughly pushed Lucius against the wall before spinning away again and running his hands through his hair in frustration. Lucius shook his head to clear it. Sirius had pushed him harder than expected and he'd hit his head fairly hard. This was good. Sirius was ready to snap. But then Sirius turned back to him and made Lucius think perhaps his plan wouldn't work
"I know what you're trying to do," Sirius spoke softly. "Now, after all these years… but I don't know why. Why? Don't you have a wife? Don't you have the perfect life? Why can't you leave me alone, Malfoy?" Sirius grabbed Lucius and pushed him against the wall once again, but this time did not release his hold from the blond's collar. "Haven't I suffered enough? Why are you doing this?"
"Maybe because I can. Maybe because I thrive in your obvious distress over my mere presence."
"This is just fun for you. Just like it was when we were in school." Sirius released the Slytherin and gave Lucius a pitying look. "I don't know how Harry could love Draco if your son is anything like you. For Harry's sake, I hope he isn't."
Lucius' eyes narrowed. "You should know. You were in love with me."
Sirius smirked and moved closer. "You think so? Maybe you were just a fabulous piece of arse that I didn't fancy giving up just then. You were prime, Malfoy, there's no doubt about that. Gagging for it, Luce. Weren't you? You were. All the time. So easy," Sirius whispered maliciously. "So yeah, at the time I would have said anything to keep you spread."
Lucius' nostrils flared in fury. He pulled back and let his fist swing, hitting Sirius square in the mouth. The slightly taller man staggered back clutching his jaw and astonished Lucius had hit him so hard. Sirius looked into panicked gray eyes and inwardly he brightened just a little bit. Perhaps Lucius wasn't just playing with him. If this was just a game and Lucius didn't really care, he wouldn't have taken Sirius' words so hard. But it was obvious Lucius was bothered by the thought that Sirius never had any feelings for him.
Sirius decided he would run with this and see where it left them both. "What's the matter? Afraid it's true? Did you really think I would pine away for you after you left me for that bitch cousin of mine? What kind of wizard do you take me for? I'm a Black and a Gryffindor. Did you think a Black could really fall under the manipulations of a Malfoy?"
"You told me you loved me, Sirius. Are you saying you lied?" Lucius drawled, furiously trying to regain his composure. Sirius was being cruel, which was his way of coping, Lucius knew. But the Gryffindor was being more malicious than normal. Sirius had never spoken that way to him before, and he was very much afraid he'd been mistaken on Sirius' feelings for him even after all these years.
"Maybe I did say I loved you at the time. But it's just as I've told you." Sirius chuckled darkly and turned away once again. "I would have said anything to get you back on your hands and knees."
Lucius saw red and threw his fist out again, catching the side of Sirius' face with his family ring, cutting the skin beside Sirius' right eye where blood started to run down his cheek. Lucius wasn't finished yet, and he launched himself at the Animagus; kicking Sirius' legs out from under him and watched smugly as Sirius' back hit the floor hard. Lucius bent down, prepared to land another blow, but Sirius' fist came out of nowhere and landed a brutal punch to his right eye. The blond staggered back, his hand over his eye.
"You hit me!" he cried incredulously.
"You started it!" Sirius roared as he regained his feet and threw himself at Lucius, planting a fist in Malfoy's stomach before they both went down in a tangle of limbs.
Punches and kicks were aplenty, as was the testosterone, and the lust that always came when Lucius and Sirius physically fought one another. Lucius felt Sirius' erection against his thigh when the Gryffindor twisted around to try and remove Lucius' hand which was clawed and digging in between his ribs. And usually this would have caused him pause, but Lucius was beyond the game he had started to play. He was humiliated and he had never felt as low as he did now. Like used garbage. That was what Sirius was saying: all Lucius had been good for was the sex.
Sirius noticed when Lucius started to fight like a dying man, dragging out the last of his strength to fight with. He let Lucius have a couple more punches before they rolled over and he had the blond pinned to the ground once more. But he didn't go on with the fight. Sirius didn't have it in him to hurt Lucius anymore. He moved off the blond and took himself a few feet away to try and control his temper. Hitting Lucius was like hitting a girl, and he hated doing it.
When he turned around, he cursed silently. More disgust swamped him when he saw the look in his ex lover's eyes. Lucius' eyes were dull and he continued to lie on the floor, staring up at the ceiling as if he were dead. His blond hair had come out of the leather thong that he'd tied it back with, and was spread wildly out around his head. And despite the look in his eyes, Lucius was looking entirely too appealing to Sirius.
"Fuck!" Sirius looked around wildly, as if an answer to his problem was somewhere nearby. Lucius had yet to move. "Fuck, Luce! What…why? I just don't understand this!"
"Don't worry, Black. You will not be seeing me again."
Lucius dissolved the wall from his position on the ground. Really he would have moved, except his body and his heart were screaming at him for a pain-numbing potion. At least he was behind the table and no one would see him lying on the floor in such an undignified manner. And if they did, he would only blast them with a strong memory charm. He hated himself at the moment. He hated himself, and he hated Sirius. The only person besides his son he ever loved. And apparently Sirius had never loved him back.
You're a grown man, for Merlin's sake, Lucius! Get off the floor! This is not how a Malfoy is supposed to act. Lucius threw his arm over his eyes and tried to block out the voice of his dead father. Why was it whenever he held internal conversations with himself, it was always his father's voice he heard?
Sirius clenched his fists when he saw the arm covering Lucius' eyes start to shake. He took one step towards Lucius, hesitated, and then took another step. His fists unclenched on his third step, and by his fourth step, Sirius was…almost sure of what he would do.
"Get off the floor, Malfoy. You're getting all dirty. I know you hate that."
"Fuck off," Lucius drawled very clearly, but he did move to sit up, and gracefully at that, and started looking around for the black hair tie.
"Looking for this?"
Lucius looked and sighed when he spotted the hair tie dangling off Sirius' finger. "Drop it and be gone."
"No." Sirius grabbed Lucius' arm and pulled him to his feet. Lucius stood stiffly in front of Sirius and watched with narrowed eyes as Sirius reached over his shoulders to retie his hair.
"If you do not step away from me in the next three seconds, I will curse a hole through your chest. And I won't care what Harry does to me for killing you," Lucius hissed.
He eventually backed away himself, as Sirius didn't seem to be taking his threat very seriously. He should. Lucius was very tempted to curse Sirius' head off. Piece of arse! No Malfoy was ever considered just a piece of arse! It was the other way around! Malfoys were always the user and never the used!
Seeing the look in Lucius' eyes, thereby knowing exactly what Lucius was thinking, Sirius rolled his eyes. "Merlin, Lucius, I was lying. It was a bloody lie."
"Which part?"
Sirius shook his head and asked his own question. "You came in here to fight, didn't you?" he asked, waving around to indicate the small alcove they were in. "You came in here to start a fight." He was so close now that his breath ghosted over Lucius' lips. "There was only ever one thing you wanted when you started the fist fights, Luce."
"Don't call me that," Lucius hissed right before Sirius' mouth was on his.
Damn the Gryffindor! Sirius had just called him a piece of arse and yet he still could not control his urges around Sirius. Thought processes ceased when Sirius grabbed a handful of his hair and forced his tongue into the blond's mouth. Lucius moaned at the onslaught. It had been a very very long time since he'd been kissed in such a way. It was one of his favorite things about Sirius. The way he kissed. And it confirmed to Lucius what he'd already suspected. None of the passion they'd felt as children had simmered down. Not at all.
"What's going on?" came a yell from beyond the alcove, effectively breaking the short eye-opening and spontaneous kiss.
"It's Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy! What are they doing?" some random person yelled from the dance floor.
Sirius backed away with a groan. "Please, please, please tell me they haven't lost control in front of everybody?"
"That is why we're here. To make sure they behave," Lucius drawled as he stepped around Sirius and out of the alcove; happy they had gone a step in the right direction and licking his previously claimed lips.
"Your mouth is still sinful," Sirius muttered under his breath as he trailed after the smirking blond. Sirius wasn't happy at all. Nothing had been resolved. He still had no answers, only confusion, and Lucius looked far too pleased with himself, as always.
"Pansy! They're doing the vampire thing again! We should do something."
Sirius recognized that voice as belonging to the Zabini boy. He rushed out of the alcove and ran into Blaise, who had been standing quite near and looking up at the balcony. The older wizards' gazes traveled up, and Lucius paled. His son had fangs and they had just sank deeply into Harry's neck. This was not good!
Harry was having a really good time and he was really very happy at the moment. It would have sucked had he not been enjoying himself at his very first birthday party. But his friends had come through to show him who really cared, and he was having a blast spending time with them all. Even the people he hadn't known very well, like the Slytherins. Even Zacharias Smith wasn't being a complete twat. Until he passed Harry at one point and 'accidentally' ran his hand over Harry's arse. And then for the next thirty minutes Zacharias could be seen running around the club, trying to keep away from a very pissed off blond Slytherin who had every intention of AK'ing the Hufflepuff. Harry was thoroughly amused by all of this, and he didn't even lift a finger to help Smith. Draco was fucking sexy when he was on the warpath and Harry didn't feel like calming Draco down and making that gorgeous dark look of his go away.
After more time dancing, Harry wanted another drink. Some of his friends followed him up, though Draco stayed on the dance floor and told him he'd be up in a few minutes. When Draco did arrive, everyone was laughing, talking, and drinking together as if they'd always been friends. Neville was even having a conversation about Herbology with Gregory Goyle. Ginny, Pansy, and Angelina Johnson were discussing ideas for a new line of witch clubbing clothes. From what he heard, they would take fashion just a little bit away from the Muggle industry and form better suited clothes from the traditional Wizarding garb. Harry heard enough to be interested. It was a good idea and he thought he would have a talk with them and see if they were serious about it. If so, he wouldn't mind backing them financially until their clothing line took off. He expressed his opinion to Draco over their bond as the blond had chosen to sit away from him. Draco also liked the idea though he was a little uncertain about giving out a loan.
That is because you are stingy.
No. I'm just careful about what I do with my money. You should take lessons from me.
Not likely. I've seen some of the things you do with your money…and why are you still sitting over there, Draco?
It seems Draco decided now was the time to take matters into his own hands because Harry decided their game of hide and seek was over and had expressed his wish that Draco sit with him. He wanted Draco's hands on him already. But Draco only smirked at him and sat beside Hermione at the other end of the table.
"Did you catch Zacharias?" she asked the blond. Draco grinned but refused to tell her what he did to the boy who dared touch his Harry. No one had mentioned that Smith had been missing for the last twenty minutes.
Eventually some of them got into a game of I Never and after several rounds, half the witches and wizards were slurring their words and having trouble sitting up straight. Harry was having trouble of his own as he was seeing two of Draco at the moment. Two Dracos' whose eyes were intent on telling Harry exactly what he wanted to do to him at the moment. He was very glad when the game finally ended and everyone decided more dancing was called for.
Draco and Harry remained seated, their friends giving both wizards knowing stares and sly winks as they left. When they were alone, Draco stretched his legs out and crossed them at the ankles before leaning back with his hands behind his head.
"I didn't know you liked to play games, Harry," he commented with a small smile, but his eyes were glinting dangerously. Harry cleared his throat and ran a hand through his hair in a nervous gesture. It was really hard to think clearly with Draco eating him up with his eyes the way he was.
"Games are usually fun," he said, trying to sound at least slightly in control, though he knew it wouldn't be for long.
"Especially if you win at the end."
"Do you think you're going to win?"
"I'm a Malfoy. That's a stupid question."
"Right…I forgot." Harry rolled his eyes and picked up a butterbeer. He was not going to break first. He was not!
They had a staring contest that lasted fifteen minutes. In that time Severus came up to see that they weren't getting into any trouble. "What are you two doing?"
Harry shrugged his shoulders and continued to drink, trying to wet his dry mouth. Draco waved his wand and vanished the bottle.
"Hey!"
"I don't want you drunk tonight. You will be clear headed by the time we leave here, Harry."
It was completely clear to Harry and Severus the reason why Draco wanted to keep Harry sober, and just in case Harry was oblivious, the way he usually was, Draco sent images into Harry's head, making the Gryffindor blush an interesting shade of scarlet. Severus was no fool and knew what was going on. He made a sound of disgust and vacated the top floor to leave his nephew and godson to it and fervently hoped they didn't do anything undignified in the public's eye.
"Draco?" One pale blond eyebrow arched up in question at Harry's determined tone. Harry stood up and began to walk around the table toward Draco, trembling. Why was he so nervous all of a sudden? He knew what he wanted, but he didn't know how to go about it. He wasn't exactly experienced in this sort of thing. "Do you wanna dance with me?"
Draco waited until Harry was standing in front of him before answering. "Do I want to dance with you?" he asked lazily while getting to his feet. Harry only had time to give a half nod before Draco grabbed him by his shirt and pulled the surprised Gryffindor against his body. "Are you being coy on purpose?"
Harry remained silent. He didn't think words were necessary at the moment. His actions would speak louder than words, anyway. So he reached out and placed a palm against Draco's chest and grinned when he felt his mate's heart beat. It was certainly beating faster than normal. On par with his. Harry slid his hand down until he could slip it underneath Draco's shirt, which he did, and then he had the strangest feeling come to him when his palm slid over the Slytherins warm skin. It was like coming home and being wrapped in familiarity, something that had never happened to Harry before. And at the same time, when his eyes connected with Draco's, he felt like he was exploring some place new, someplace dangerous; someplace that called to him every waking hour. It was enough to set him off. His body was quivering, warming to a degree that was almost too much, and silently begging Draco to touch him back. It was good they'd been playing the keep away game all night, because he didn't have to wait long for Draco to do something.
For his part, Draco was enjoying the closeness and touch of his mate. He knew Harry was nervous and that the Gryffindor had no experience. Which made Harry's actions that much sweeter. He felt Harry's hands move around to caress the base of his spine; Harry's warm fingers dipping just below the waistband and he shivered. Draco's eyes flashed silver when Harry grinned at the reaction he received. And before his Gryffindor could do anything else, Draco dipped his head to attack Harry's lips; his tongue easily slipping inside his mate's sexy mouth. He slid his hands into Harry's silky hair, angling their heads to get a better taste, and Harry was very willing to follow his lead. It looked like the two soul mates were trying to suck out each other's souls.
Draco lightened the kiss and tried to pull back but Harry wasn't having any of that and he grabbed Draco's neck to keep him in place. He began to map Draco's mouth out with his tongue, delighting in every taste he found. He drew Draco's tongue into his mouth and sucked on it, loving the purr he heard and felt coming from Draco's chest.
"You love me, Harry?" Draco asked after grabbing Harry's hair and pulling hard on the dark strands, exposing Harry's delicious neck to him.
"Yes!" Harry gasped. A whimper tore through him when Draco tugged harder on his hair. The pain was more than slight but the pleasure he was getting from Draco's rough handling more than made up for it.
Draco grinned down at Harry's face when he realized Harry liked the pain, the rough handling. Their physical relationship was going to better than he ever imagined, and he was prepared to start that tonight.
"Good, Harry. Good," he whispered; his smooth confident drawl running over Harry's neck like warm liquid silk. Draco concentrated on his teeth and grinned when he felt them lengthen."I love you too."
Harry gasped out a surprised cry when Draco's teeth sank into his neck, but he didn't flinch away. Instead he arched into Draco; clinging to him and feeling nothing but pleasure and more desire as Draco began to pull his little love's blood into his mouth. Draco pushed the Gryffindor back against the railing then and they were so into each other that they were not aware that the dancing crowd below could now see them.
Severus pulled himself away from the shadowed corner he'd hidden in to watch the group he was responsible for. He'd just seen Draco sink his teeth into Harry's neck, and Harry wasn't fighting him off. Instead, Harry had his arms around Draco's neck and his legs wrapped around the blond's waist, and he moved his head further to the side to give Draco better access. When Severus realized what was happening, he raced across the dance floor and to the stairs; met there by a heavily breathing Sirius and Lucius, both looking like they had been busy fighting before Harry and Draco decided to make like vampires.
"Is Draco really doing what it looks like?" Sirius asked.
"And is Harry really letting him?" was Lucius' quandary.
"Stop asking questions! We can't let them do that here!" And Severus continued to climb the stairs.
Draco had only wanted to bite Harry, because he knew the Gryffindor would enjoy it and somehow he knew it wouldn't harm his mate, but as soon as he'd sunk his teeth into flesh and Harry's delicious blood flooded his mouth, he was overcome with blood lust, and began to drink from Harry without any hesitation.
For Harry's part, he could only hold on to Draco as wave after wave of pleasure whipped through him as his blood flowed from his neck and into Draco's mouth. The pleasure was so great Harry thought he might come in his pants. Draco was making whimpering noises as he drank; as if he had been deprived of food and liquid his whole life and had just been offered a glorious feast and didn't know whether he should laugh or cry over the gift.
"Draco, for the love of Merlin, stop!" Lucius pleaded as the three wizards arrived to stand behind the soul mates and found that Draco was truly acting very much like a vampire and drinking his mate's blood. "You cannot do this right in the middle of a public place! Everyone is watching… Stop!"
Lucius had to hit Draco upside the head before his son even realized he was being talked to. He withdrew his fangs and hissed over his shoulder at them. Sirius shuddered when he saw blood dripping from Draco's fangs to the floor. Draco turned back to Harry's neck and licked the wound closed. Harry looked dazed and was utterly content to stay wrapped up in Draco, a lethargy taking him over with every passing second.
Draco didn't know how but he knew Harry wouldn't regain any of his right senses without his own blood intake. He tightened his grip, making sure Harry didn't lower his legs from around his waist and moved away from the railing- much to the relief of Severus and Lucius- and took Harry to a darkened corner where the people below couldn't see them.
The elder wizard's watched as Draco lowered himself into a chair and let his head fall back to expose his neck. It was obviously instinct that was driving the boys to such madness, because Harry hissed as his fangs appeared and he immediately went for the juicy spot of Draco's neck. Draco hadn't expected the amount of pleasure that accompanied the pain with Harry's bite, and he gripped Harry's hips so tightly he was sure there would be bruises there by tomorrow. Harry didn't seem to mind; in fact this seemed to encourage him. He began to rub his erection against the Slytherin's and Draco briefly entertained the notion of removing both their pants and having Harry ride him here and now.
Immediately he pushed that fantasy away for a time when Harry wasn't still a virgin, and would actually enjoy being intimate in that position. Draco relaxed and closed his eyes, and let Harry do what he wanted. This was also enjoyable because Harry seemed to want to run his hands over every inch of Draco and keep up with the gyrating hips. In another moment, Draco knew he was going to come and he gripped Harry's hips to keep him moving.
"Harry…Gods, Harry," he moaned, and his eyes shut tight as he found himself and Harry orgasm as one. Draco found it hard to breathe and tried to stop the tremors running through his body from the aftermath, but Harry wasn't finished with him yet and all he could do was hang on. He didn't even realize the three older wizards were still standing a few yards away.
"Should we make them stop until they get home? It seems the closer to midnight it becomes, the more they display. I don't think they've ever done that before." Lucius waved at Harry drinking his son's blood, and shuddered, disgusted. Partly because he was being turned on and partly because they were drinking each others blood like it was chocolate syrup.
"No," someone said from behind the three men. They turned to look at Hermione in question. She stepped forward and spoke softly, motioning to Harry and Draco. "Harry needs to finish drinking Draco's blood or else he really wouldn't be useful for anything until the morning. If they both drink from each other, it kind of balances it out, and their energy is increased rather than decreasing, which would be the outcome if only one partner drank."
"How in the bloody fuck do you know this, Hermione?" Sirius asked in wonder. "How do you always know this stuff?"
"There's this thing called reading, Siri. Really, you should try it." That started an argument between Lucius and Sirius, which left Hermione all to Severus.
"You figured it out? Vampire seems obvious, but that's not it is it?" he asked, and then he immediately wondered what was wrong with her when she nodded to answer but refused to look him in the eye. She'd never done that before and he hated it. He hated that she wasn't looking him straight in the eye.
"No, it's not vampires. Actually Voldemort helped me. I would never have found the book if he hadn't told me. I…." Hermione turned to Lucius and touched his arm to get his attention away from a fuming Sirius. "Er… it was in the Dark Arts section, Mr. Malfoy. I hope you don't mind that I borrowed it. And I wondered…if I may…have permission to study other books in there?" Hermione blushed when Lucius raised an appraising eyebrow.
"You wish to study the Dark Arts, Miss. Granger?" Hermione nodded enthusiastically. Lucius smirked and inclined his head. "Very well. You have my permission."
"Thank you, sir. I'm sure I'll learn a lot-"
"Excuse me?" drawled Severus in a low silky voice that bordered on the dangerous, drawing Hermione's eyes directly to his. "Did you say the Dark Lord was near you? He talked to you?"
"Yes." Sirius and Lucius exchanged troubled looks when Severus stepped forward to command the witch's full attention. "He talked with both Ginny and me, and he touched my head. It didn't hurt!" she exclaimed quickly when Severus' eyes turned murderous. "We were actually having a very nice discussion with Voldemort about what we think should happen in regards to muggleborns when they come to the Wizarding World. Voldemort said he wanted to hear more of our ideas."
"Did you just say 'nice discussion' and 'Voldemort' in the same sentence?" Sirius asked, peering closely at her to make sure it was actually Hermione and not someone under the Polyjuice Potion.
"Something's going on with him, Severus," Lucius muttered. "Ever since you told him about Dumbledore using him…"
"The Dark Lord has been regaining his sanity," Severus replied.
"But how? And why now?"
"Er…hey?" The four turned to see a very embarrassed and thoroughly mussed Harry being hugged from behind by an equally mussed Draco who smirked shamelessly at them. "Um…Thanks for hiding us... Sort of." Harry broke off and looked anywhere but at the wizards staring oddly at them.
"Anyway…." Draco drawled, "we're going down to dance some more. Coming Hermione?" Draco nudged Harry forward towards the stairs, and began walking in step behind him, never releasing his grip from around Harry's waist. He fully intended to have Harry's body against his the rest of the night.
"Oh, yes!" Hermione cried a little too enthusiastically, hoping to get away from the older wizards; a beady blacked eyed one in particular. But her hopes were dashed when Severus grabbed her arm as she made to follow her friends.
"I have things to discuss with you." He looked at Sirius and Lucius and motioned for them to leave. Lucius immediately began to walk away, but Sirius was unsure whether he should leave Hermione alone with Snape. Lucius looked back and sighed. He walked up and grabbed his arm, dragging the surprised wizard behind him for a full three strides before Sirius roughly pulled his arm away with a growl and then stormed down the stairs, Hermione forgotten. Lucius shook his head and followed after.
By the time Lucius had disappeared from sight, Hermione was back to staring at Severus' shoulder. He gritted his teeth and resisted the urge to grab and shake her.
"Tell me more about the Dark Lord."
For the moment, Hermione was relieved and hoped that's all he wanted to talk about.
"I don't know what else you want to know. He wasn't with us for very long. Ginny and I were in the library; I was looking for more information on magical creatures. The door opened and in comes Voldemort." Hermione looked at Severus then. Her eyes portrayed the surprise and confusion she'd felt in those moments in the library. "I was terrified. I thought I was going to die, despite what everyone was saying about him and the Death Eaters leaving us alone.
"I had my wand out, Ginny woke up, and her wand was out too. But all he did was sit down, his wand nowhere to be seen, and conjures us two chairs and tells us to sit. It was an order said in the nicest way possible." Hermione took a breath, and sipped the drink she'd been holding. Severus motioned for her to take a seat at the table nearest to them. She nodded gratefully and sat.
"Do you want me to go on?"
"Yes."
"We sit, because honestly I didn't think we could do anything else. I figured we'd wing it…" Severus rolled his eyes.
"Bloody Gryffindors." He earned himself a glare and he smirked in return. Hermione sat back a little and cleared her throat, her cheeks gone suspiciously pink.
"Any way, it's logical to expect Ginny and I were terrified and at such a time we didn't want to be played with."
Severus leaned forward a little and rested his arm on the table, letting his hand fall to rest very near her own. "It seems perfectly reasonable." He did not miss the tremble of her hands when he used that silky tone of voice. His smirk deepened.
"So we were blunt about it, demanding to know why he isn't killing us and why he's all of a sudden not bothered by Mudbloods and blood traitors."
"Hermione…" he groaned.
"What?" she demanded, and picked up her glass again to down the contents. "I think it was a perfectly levelheaded reaction, Severus!"
"All right." He patted her hand to calm her. "Go on." Neither made to mention he hadn't removed his hand from hers.
"He…um, offered to kill us since we seemed so keen on the idea, and his wand was in his hand before we could even blink." Hermione gasped when Severus unconsciously squeezed her hand. He let go and moved away. "But we quickly reassured him we wanted to live. And then we asked him if he really wanted to rid the world of all Muggles. He laughed. Said that's the lie Dumbledore was telling and that he hadn't gone that insane before to ever believe that could be achieved." Hermione stopped, and her brows drew together in contemplation. Then she looked at him steadily. "I think he realized he'd gone insane, Voldemort, I mean. I think he knew he had lost his mind, and now I think he's getting it back."
"Yes, that does make sense. Anything else happen?"
"No. We just talked about how the Wizarding schools need to have mandatory curriculum for muggleborns so that we can be properly mixed in with this world. I have one idea, but I'm not sure how many people would like it. Especially the parents of the muggleborns. I know my parents would never have agreed, but if the choice had been put in my hands, even at the age of eleven, I would have chosen the Wizarding world."
"What was your idea?" Hermione looked him in the eye for a second before dropping her gaze back to his shoulder. Severus had had enough of that. He grabbed her chin and jerked it up until she was staring into furiously swirling dark eyes, and her lips parted slightly to take in a shuddering breath when he bent forward so that their noses were nearly touching.
"Stop doing that, Hermione. You will look me in the eye, witch, and tell me why you've begun to act like you don't have a bloody backbone!"
Hermione jerked her chin away from his grasp and her eyes were blazing when she stood up, planted her hands on her hips, and glared down at him. Severus remained transfixed as he stared at her in the little black party dress with a form that clearly belonged to a woman. Her soft russet hair glowed like an angel's halo around her head, but her glare was that of a demon that had just been double-crossed. She made a very appealing picture and Severus was sure he was about to do something stupid.
"I don't know everything!" Hermione cried. "I don't know how I'm supposed to feel or act or anything, okay? This isn't something that happens all the time, Severus. And you're not helping at all…." she trailed off at the end, and her hands slid down to hang at her sides. She looked away first and then turned to leave, but Severus couldn't allow her to walk away in that state. Knowing full well that there would be horrible repercussions for his following actions, Severus reached out and brought the young witch in for an embrace. Hermione stiffened at first, but moment-by-moment she relaxed until she felt comfortable enough to loosely wrap her arms around his waist. This feels too right, she thought, and was terrified by that.
"I don't understand what you're talking about," he whispered in her ear. "I don't really care, either." He grinned when her head jerked back with a gasp. Her eyes widened and she froze when Severus moved forward to kiss her. Hermione stopped breathing but her heart was pumping triple time, and then he slanted his mouth against hers and she closed her eyes when she felt his tongue trace her lips. She gripped the front of his dress shirt tightly and invited him in.
Pansy trekked up the stairs on a mission to find Hermione and froze on the third stair to the last when her gaze landed on two figures in the back shadows. Holy fuck! Was that Professor Snape and Hermione? Merlin, it was! Pansy didn't know what to do! She opened her mouth to say something, thought better of it and snapped her mouth shut again. Then she looked left and right for the answer, and when she didn't find it there, she turned around and immediately caught sight of red hair down below among the dancing masses. It was like a beacon of logic and she raced down the stairs towards it. Thank Merlin! It's Ginny. Somehow, Ginny had managed to get Harry away from Draco for a dance, but Draco was right beside him dancing with Angelina Johnson and Luna Lovegood of all people, looking like he was thoroughly enjoying being the middle of that sandwich.
"Ginny, I need you now!" she screamed over the loud pumping music. "Pardon me, Harry! Emergency." And then she dragged Ginny away and up the stairs.
"Pansy! Do you have any idea how hard I worked to get Harry to myself for a few minutes? Draco was vicious!" Ginny nearly shrieked on the way up.
"Shut up!" Pansy hissed. "Just look!"
They got to the top and Pansy was amazed to see the Professor and Hermione were still going at it. Severus was snogging the life out of Hermione as if he were as young as she was. Ginny took one look and slapped a hand over her mouth to keep from screaming her surprise. When she was sure she wouldn't have verbal diarrhea, she dropped her hand.
"What do we do?" Pansy asked.
Ginny looked at her sharply. "Nothing. We forget we saw this, understand? This never happened," she whispered. Pansy looked like she wanted to argue, but Ginny leaned in so she wouldn't have to raise her voice. "This is to protect another Gryff/Slyth couple, Pansy. Look at them. It's been leading up to this for a bit. In Hermione's case certainly."
Pansy regarded the unlikely couple, and nodded. "Do you think it will last?"
"For Hermione, this is big. She never felt like this for my brother."
"How do you know that?"
"She's like a sister, I know her and I know what she wants and she's wanted him for ages." And Ginny knew this was something that should last because of the way Snape was kissing Hermione. Merlin, Snape was hot like that. He had her wrapped tightly in his arms, his fingers thrust into her hair. Ginny could tell Snape was making Hermione feel like the world was shaking because she was holding onto him as if the world was falling out from under her feet.
Ginny shook her head, gave the odd couple an amused last look, before she and Pansy returned to the dance floor, and purposefully dragged Harry and Draco away from each other again.
"Dammit, Pansy! Can't you see I don't want to dance with you?" Draco yelled in frustration.
"Come now, Draco. No need to be rude. Besides, it's Harry's birthday. You can't keep him with you all night. Let him have some fun with his friends."
"Shut up," Draco grumbled, and hissed when a slow song came on and Pansy wouldn't let him go and grind Harry. "I hate you."
"No you don't," Pansy happily remarked and snuggled her cheek against her best friend's chest. Draco sighed and put his arms around her. "There. Just like old times."
"Yeah, whatever." Draco dropped his cheek on top of her head. "What was with you and Ginny? What's happening upstairs?" Pansy looked up and knocked into Draco's chin. "Ouch! Dammit! What, Pansy?"
"It was Hermione and Professor Snape." There was no need to ask what she meant. Draco knew her well enough to know what she was talking about.
"Pansy! You loud mouth!" Ginny yelled from beside them where she and Harry were dancing.
"Seriously!" Harry and Draco yelled, and immediately pushed Pansy and Ginny together, so that they were each dancing with the same sex, much to the boys delight. Ginny glared at Pansy, who was nodding at the boys.
"You were supposed to forget you ever saw anything!" Ginny hissed into Pansy's face.
"I thought you'd want them to know."
Ginny looked up and sighed, and then she spotted movement above and saw Hermione rushing down the stairs in obvious distress. "This doesn't look good. Snape fucked up."
"I'm going," Harry said when he caught the movement as well and then he rushed through the dancing crowd, barely catching her before she would have left the club.
"Hermione? What's wrong? Where are you going?"
"Oh, Harry!" She desperately tried to hide that something was bothering her. "Nothing is wrong… I just need to go home. I'm sorry."
"Don't lie. Something is definitely wrong. I'll take you home. We can talk about it when we get there," Harry persisted. There was no way he was leaving Hermione alone, not when she looked so vulnerable.
Hermione sighed in defeat because she knew that's what Harry was thinking, and he wasn't about to take no for an answer. He rarely did. "No, Harry. It's your birthday. You should stay here. Why don't we go over to the bar for a minute?"
Harry grinned and took her hand, but then his brows drew together in worry. She was shaking, and it looked like she might cry as well. Once they sat, Harry ordered two Firewhiskeys.
"What's wrong with you lot?" Dirk asked, exasperated. "You're all in here with some sort of a problem."
"We're a dysfunctional family, I guess," Harry replied, and then downed his shot and watched Hermione do the same. She coughed a bit, but still held her glass out for seconds. Harry did the same. "Are you going to tell me what happened up there? He didn't do anything…inappropriate, did he?"
Hermione's laugh was shrill. "It's funny you should use that word. The entire situation is inappropriate. I'm a little girl. I don't know what I'm doing. That's what he says after changing my life forever!" she spat angrily.
Harry raised a brow and looked up at the second floor where Severus wasn't to be seen. "What did you do to him after he said that? Tell me I still have an uncle," he begged; seriously worried about his idiot uncle. Nobody talked down to Hermione and got away with it without some sort of scar for their trouble.
Hermione sniffed. "He's lucky I know how much it would hurt you if I killed him." She downed her shot and hopped off the stool. "Let's go dance!"
"Are you sure you're all right to do that?"
"It's just dancing, Harry." She grabbed his hand and yanked him to his feet. Harry hurriedly drank his Firewhiskey and set the glass down before he was pulled into the throng of gyrating bodies. The music had sped up again and more people flocked to the dance floor. The heat was intense and the scent of all the dancing bodies was making Harry lightheaded. He and Hermione began to dance and it was kind of weird for Harry because the Firewhiskey seemed to have stripped away most of Hermione's inhibitions because she started to dance with Harry like he could be a potential boyfriend. He wasn't used to dancing with Hermione like that. It scared him.
She looked up and grinned, catching that look in Harry's eyes that meant she was scaring him. "Sorry Harry, forgot that makes you uncomfortable." She gave him a kiss on the lips and then bounced off to attach herself to Dean for the rest of the song, determined to have fun and forget all about Severus Snape.
Harry turned to go find Draco when he was suddenly pulled back against a hard chest. The body behind him began to move with the music, swinging hips left and right with the beat and guided Harry's hips to do the same until their bodies were lined up and completely in sync. The drumbeats thrummed into their bodies and the energy was pulsating around them. Harry closed his eyes and felt the music more than heard it, letting it take over his movements. He inhaled deeply and smelt Draco behind him. Draco had his head bent so that his hair fell next to Harry and brushed the side of his face. Draco's breath was warm and began to whisper hot promises in Harry's ear, driving the Gryffindor mad. He shivered as Draco's hands passed over his chest and down to grip his hips possessively. Harry pressed into him and felt Draco's breath on his neck seconds before he pressed his warm wet mouth against Harry's skin. Harry moaned and tipped his head further to the side to grant Draco more access. He reached up to tangle his fingers in Draco's hair, pulling the blond's head further down so that when Harry turned a fraction, their lips connected and tongues danced in time to the fast beat they were dancing to.
A slow song came on and their kiss grew lazy and for Harry's part, teasing. Draco's fingers found their way under Harry's shirt, his warm hands mapping out Harry's chest and stomach. When Draco' fingers dipped below his waistband, Harry twisted around and entwined his hands around Draco's neck. Draco's hands shifted from Harry's hips to grip his arse, while lazily kissing Harry's mouth, uncaring that most of the dance floor had formed a small circle around the two well-known wizards who at one point hated each other with a passion.
Harry moaned into his mouth and started to unbutton the silver buttons of Draco's shirt as their kiss evolved into a frenzied state, despite the continued slow pace of the song.
"We're going now," Draco murmured into Harry's mouth. He wrapped Harry tightly against him and Apparated, leaving shrieking wizards and witches in their wake.
A/N: Edited on 10/18/2011