Disclaimer:I own nothing. Sue me for nothing.

A/N: If anyone is interested in Bleach, Gundam Wing or Naruto, I've just kicked out my babies to be criticized by the world. Feel free to browse them after this.

Just What I've Never Wanted

Chapter Nine

Tomorrow Harry would be leaving Hogwarts to spend his last summer with the Dursleys. This was the summer he would turn seventeen and become an adult. This was the summer he would reach his majority and hopefully not explode into a bright magical nova. This was the summer that would herald the changes that he would experience in his last and final year of Hogwarts. And tomorrow was the last day before the countdown would start…and yet, all he could do was wander around in a daze.

Harry didn't know what to think. He now totally, completely and unquestioningly believed everything his friends had said about Snape. Something had happened to him. Overnight he had morphed into…into…

'Into a God.' Harry moaned soundlessly under his breath, feet moving mechanically, as he remembered the Potions Master looking down on him after they had first bumped into each other. His face had been blank appraisal before it had registered 'Potter, bane of existence' and the man had begun to scowl, and Harry would like to believe, for a moment, the man had been assessing him.

He had certainly spent a moment checking out the professor! Every single outrageous word Ron had said was true. The man's hair, unbound and ruffled as it had looked did resemble raw black silk. And his skin was like cream! Milk cream that didn't have a flaw of difference in it. And sure, he hadn't seen the professor since before the battle but unless he was hiding out with a gym machine down there in his rooms, the man had become a bit more muscular in a very pleasing way. And his eyes for the moment before he had turned hostile…had looked like a cat's after it had got at the cream. Satiated and content. Languid black pools. It was no wonder between the first 'Potter' and 'five points from Gryffindor', he had gained a small problem down south.

"…ry! HARRY!" Harry jumped visibly before turning to look at Ron.

"Sorry. Sorry, what were you saying?" He flushed uncomfortably, rubbing the back of his head.

"Malfoy and I want to know if you want to go flying. But if you're so distracted we'd best keep you away from a broom. I've been calling you for the past minute mate. What were you thinking about?" Ron asked curiously as he and Draco paused from their walk around the lake.

'Snape.' "Uh, nothing important. Just, you know, the stuff I'm working on with the professors." Harry waved off the question with a smile. 'Hell, even when the man had started to look mad he had still looked good. Way edible. His lips had been pink like a freshly turning cherry…'

"Harry, are you sure you're okay? You look a bit…out of it." Draco queried leaning over closer to him.

'Happy. Snape had looked…happy. Like he just got laid or something. Suppose he was seeing someone and he had just got back from being with them?' Harry scowled mentally. 'He had snuck back into the school looking like he had just been shagged, when he was supposed to be 'taking a break' in his quarters.' It still of course left the question though of how his looks had changed…but Hermione could help with that. After all she'd been researching Snape for the past couple of weeks.

And damn, but he was hard again.

"POTTER!"

"What?" Harry shouted back, jumping again.

"Get your head out of the clouds before I'm tempted to hex you bald all over! What's wrong with you Potter? Going daft? Go inside before you get hit by a stray bludger or something. You're obviously not on Earth today!"

"Bollocks. Sorry Draco. I'm just…distracted. I'm sorry okay? I'll see you guys inside. Play fair." Harry turned and decided to hurry inside. He had to talk to Hermione. Perhaps she had found out something and didn't tell them because Ron and Draco didn't approve. Because he was now with her. He wanted to find out what had happened to Severus Snape.

HPSSHPSSHPSS

"Hey Harry, did you want to talk…!" Hermione yelped as he took hold of her arm and started to hustle her down the corridor, eagerly heading for the Room of Requirement. "Harry!"

"Shush! I really need to talk to you."

He let go of her arm once they were in front of the tapestry and started pacing frantically. 'A room! Any room! Soundproof preferably. But a room!'

When the handle appeared he almost yelled 'finally' and dragged Hermione inside slamming the door.

"Harry! What's wrong with you?" Hermione let him urge her into a chair though, before he took the armchair across from her and leaned forward eagerly.

"What have you found out so far about the professor?"

Hermione blinked. "What?"

"About Snape! What have you found out about Snape?" Harry answered agitatedly, raking his hands through his hair nervously. 'If I still had my glasses I'd be fidgeting with them right now…'

"The professor?" His friend looked at him in blunt surprise. "I thought you didn't think I should pry like the others…"

"I've changed my mind. It wasn't that I disapproved exactly. More like I thought you were nutters to waste your time studying Snape but…well, I saw him this morning."

Hermione perked up. "Really? What did he look like?"

"I bumped into him while he was sneaking back into school this morning. Like you guys said…wow. Better than Ron said! And Ron was trying to resist saying he was hot. Bloody hell, Hermione he was hot!"

Hermione smiled smugly. "We told you so." His only female best friend watched him knowingly as his eyes glazed over. "Gorgeous thing to look at now huh?"

"Yeah." Harry said distractedly, staring into space. "I wonder why he was sneaking back. And how did his looks change so much! So fast!"

"Well, I have suspicions on the second. And perhaps a reason for the way he looked in between now and after he woke up too. But first," Hermione leaned forward to take his hands as he looked at her in surprise. "You know you can tell me or Ron or Draco even if you'd prefer…that you're gay, and we'd still love you Harry. Because you're our best friend."

Wide green eyes looked into calming brown in shock before Harry laughed awkwardly and tilted his head. "What makes you think I'm gay? How do you know I don't just…appreciate Snape's good looks?"

"Well, Harry you were sort of almost drooling just now. And secondly you sounded kind of jealous when you were wondering why he was sneaking back into school. And thirdly!" Hermione patted his hands before taking hers away. "We've suspected since the Cho incident, me and Ron. And well, it was sort of confirmed with the Draco thing."

Harry blushed furiously, waving his hands. "You know…I didn't only…!"

"Well…we know it's not for that anymore but don't deny it. You became friends with him at first to find out if he was gay and interested."

Harry could only splutter. It was actually true. "Well, well…I don't…like Snape or anything. I mean we were only…like colleagues for a bit there. He doesn't even like me. I don't…like him like that. He's just…" He trailed off. "Hot."

Hermioen laughed, letting him off saying the actual words. "Well, don't worry. I think he's hot too."

Harry cleared his throat and stood up to pace to cool himself off. "Well, he's hot now. You said you might have found out why?"

"Yes. Do you remember the research we did on the Dark Mark when we found the spell to take it off? How we realized the runic symbols in the mark were actually power depleters and that Voldemort was feeding off his Death Eaters' magic?" Hermione took a breath. "Well, I believe that Snape's taking of the Dark Mark when he was a teenager before his majority may have…muffled his magic. Meaning he's only discovered the inheritance of his majority now. Hence, his good looks."

Harry blinked in confusion. "What?"

Hermione sighed before going into lecture mode. "When we first found him something stuck in my mind that Draco said. He said that perhaps taking the Mark was why his godfather looked so haggard…and it occurred to me. What if that was true? The Mark has been draining him constantly since he took it. We knew Voldemort was using it to borrow his Death Eaters' magic. So all along it's been muffling his nature."

"His nature?" Dark brows frowned as Hermione shook her head at him.

"Surely you must realize Harry. His change in appearance isn't natural; you don't turn beautiful overnight. I can't find the proof yet but I'm sure…Snape's bloodline must have some magical creature in it."

"Magical creature…like…like how Bill's wife Fleur is part Veela?" Harry blinked. "Can Snape be a Veela? I thought Veela were all blond…"

"No Harry and, I don't think he's Veela either. I'm not sure. As I said I still need to do more research. More information would help…" 'Though the fact he had been out was quite interesting…Vampires did get worn looking if they hadn't fed in a while…but they didn't have the unnatural beauty of Snape, per se. They had to hypnotize to make people loopy over them…and Veelas danced…Snape just had to be seen when he looked good…' "But I am sure of the one thing I found out. The Mark was why he never looked like this before. But Harry, I also found out something else…about you."

"Me?"

A/N: I decided why the hell not. Update this too.