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One Life Ends…	By : SpeedyTomato Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male Views: 47411 -:- Recommendations : 4 -:- Currently Reading : 3
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Chapter List
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Chapter 3

When Draco had left the hotel they were staying at, Severus didn’t
buy his excuse for doing so. Knowing his
godson the way he did by now, he knew the young man was up to more than just
some sightseeing. Though Lucius seemed
content to let his son do what he wished, he still felt, even after all these
years, that it was part of his responsibility to keep a watch out for him and
see if he couldn’t keep him out of
trouble. In his mind, he understood that
the youngest Malfoy was dealing with the upheaval in his life the only way he
knew how to, as he always had in the past, by being a bully and confronting
anyone that had anything bad to say about him, but he kept hoping that he would
change and just let so much wash off his back like the rest of them had learned
how to do. He was sure that, at some
point in the future, Draco would learn to do that but for now he
hadn’t. Now, well, he was content
to act like an immature student that took on everyone and everything, not
realizing that sometimes it was best to pick your battles, not try to take on
the world.

When the younger Malfoy made a beeline for the beach,
Severus gave an internal sigh and picked up the pace, having a good idea what
the blonde was up to. He had heard that
the group of young men that had the mild confrontation with Draco hung out on
the beach most of the time, so he was sure that Draco was going to confront
them about what had taken place earlier in the day. Draco was very good at hexes and spells but
he was taking on a large-ish group of them and, from what he knew of some of
them, they were no slouch in that department either. This was a confrontation that he knew his
godson wasn’t going to come out on top of. Plus, as he was aware, French laws were very
different about what spells and hexes could be used in self defense. Though Draco knew that, he was sure that the
group was better versed in what they could do and use, putting his godson at a
distinct disadvantage.

He added more speed to his step when he heard the first sounds
of the confrontation. It was his hope,
that since most of the young men in the group knew who he was and what he was
like, that his appearance would end much of the issue or at least defuse it
slightly. Taking his wand out, he
followed his ears to where the group was.
Seeing his godson confront the one called Jay, he was about to step into
the fray and do what he could to stop the whole thing when he watched,
astonished, as Jay changed to an animagus dragon. Though he knew this was possible and taught
in other countries that did things differently than Britain, this was the first time
that he had ever seen it done. Not only
was it an awe-inspiring sight to behold, but his mind immediately jumped to the
fact that to manage such a transformation took a powerful witch or wizard and told
him that his godson should not be tangling with this being. If he could manage something such as this, he
was best left alone. It also told of
training beyond what Draco had, even at the university. Who knew what else this being could pull off?

Wand at the ready, stunning spell on the tip of his tongue,
he waited to see if this would progress to the realm of violence before he did
anything. Though he was aware that one
stunner wouldn’t do any good against a dragon, he hoped that, if it got
to that point, it would distract Jay enough that Draco could make an exit. However, he was relieved when it appeared
that the young man just wanted to put a scare into his godson with the display
and flames. To that, he had to nod in
approval. Talking to Draco did no good,
he needed something else to drive a point home.
It seemed to have worked as well.
Draco backed off, shaking slightly, eyes wide.

Stepping forward, he nodded to the others present to let
them know he intended no harm to them, then he put his hand on Draco’s
shoulder. “Go back to the
hotel,” he instructed in his best snarky, not to be argued with
professor’s voice. Though his
godson was headstrong and willful, even he listened to that voice.

When his godson looked at him, he nodded.
Then, after a glare, to the others present, Draco left, chin held high,
snooty attitude firmly in place as would be befitting a Malfoy.

Turning back to the group, he wanted to talk to this
Jay. There was something about him that
had a familiar feel to it but he couldn’t place what it was. That was something that he wanted to find
out. But, as he saw, Jay had left,
walking down the beach away from them.
Curious about the boy, he decided to follow and see if he couldn’t
talk to him. He hoped that would be the
catalyst to trigger his recollection as to who this was. After a nod to the others in the group to let
them know he intended no harm, he turned and began to follow the retreating figure,
staying a discreet distance from him so that he didn’t know he was being
followed.

After a long, meandering walk, they came to what appeared to
be a barren stretch of beach. From
Snape’s end of things, he could feel the presence of magic. Having been to Grimmauld Place enough, he knew what he
was sensing, all the spells that made it impossible to detect a dwelling. That was another indication that this was a
being of some considerable power and knew what they were doing. Of course, that intrigued him all the
more. In his time, he had run across
many young wizards but only a handful, a very small handful, that could pull
off the things that this young man was. It
was a very intriguing situation and one that made him more curious about just
who this was.

xxx

Wandering towards home, Harry was pleased with himself over
what had happened. Sure, he knew it was
childish and just an extension of the rivalry he and Draco had at Hogwarts, but
it felt good and like some kind of closure to something that had been open for
so long. In his head, he could hear
Hermione chiding him for the whole thing but tuned it out. He felt that, at least for a while, he was
allowed to gloat to himself over it. It
had been a long time coming and was hard earned, the way he saw it.

As he got about halfway home, he sensed that someone was
following him. Not sure who it was,
knowing it wouldn’t be one of his friends since they knew he valued his
privacy, he tried to figure out who it was.
Of course, that didn’t work so he kept an eye out on his
surroundings to see if he couldn’t catch a glimpse of them. While passing a row of darkened shops, he
happened to catch the reflection of a dark, bat-like shape in one of them. That was enough to tell him who this was and
gave him a grin at the same time. Snape
was curious, it seemed. He had seen his
snarky potions master show up on the beach during the confrontation but thought
nothing of it. After all, the whole time
they had been in school, he had kept an eye out for Draco. It appeared that he was still doing the same
thing now. However, he was curious as to
why Snape would be trailing him.

Knowing him the way he did, Harry knew that if there was a
problem that Snape would have no problems calling him out on it. He wasn’t one to do a sneak attack from
behind. That made him wonder. As he was well aware, it was hard to hold his
glamour in place when doing the animagus transformation. He managed it for the most part but sometimes
it slipped slightly when he transformed back.
Could that be what happened? Did
Snape catch a glimpse of the scar or something else that would have given him a
clue as to who he was? Oh he hoped
not! He liked his anonymity and wanted
it to stay that way. Sure, he assumed
that Snape, being the way he was, wouldn’t reveal anything that he knew
if asked. After all, the man would
probably understand why he did this and wanted it to stay that way. However, people made mistakes and it would
probably eventually slip out, then there would be problems. That he didn’t want.

While he walked, he tried to think what to do about it. Sure, once he got to his home and passed
through the wards, he would vanish. But
Snape was astute enough that he would know what had happened and it would
probably make him more curious about him.
That he was sure he didn’t want either. Curiosity did strange things to people and
made them so that they wanted to dig into a situation further. Nothing good would come of that.

When he got to the place just before the wards, Harry
stopped and pondered what to do. There
were many ways to go about dealing with this but he wasn’t sure which one
was the best way to approach the subject.
Then he decided that the direct approach to the whole thing was probably
for the best.

Turning around, he asked, “What can I do for you
Professor Snape?”

Blinking, Snape was startled by this. He hadn’t realized the young man had
figured out he was being followed let alone by who. But, knowing he was caught, he stepped out of
the shadows to face him. “I was
curious about you is all,” he told him gruffly. “There is something familiar about you
but I can’t place what it is. You
went to Hogwarts, did you not? I believe
someone told me that all those of you that hang around together attended.”

“I did,” Harry conceded but didn’t elaborate. “As for the feeling, I get that a
lot,” he told him with a cheeky grin.
“Does that satisfy your curiosity?”

“Of course not,” Snape told him honestly. In fact, it had the opposite effect. He was now more curious about this young man
than he was before. Observing the group
earlier, he had been able to place all the faces except this one. Now, knowing that it was probably one of his
former students, he was more determined to figure out who this was. No, in the scheme of the world, it probably
didn’t matter just who this was or why they were trying to hide behind
glamour, but he wanted to figure it out for his own sake. It was like a puzzle that he wanted to find a
solution to. Deciding that letting the young
man vanish into his abode was just going to deepen the mystery, Snape thought
that he would see if he couldn’t prolong this just a while longer. “Your animagus transformation was quite
impressive. I assume, since I know such
things aren’t taught at Hogwarts that you continued your education
elsewhere.”

“Not really,” Harry shrugged nonchalantly. “I did a great deal of traveling after
I graduated, it was something I learned while doing that. It was my assumption that if I was to be in
other parts of the world that I might as well learn while I was there.”

That statement revealed absolutely nothing to Snape and
didn’t further the cause of figuring out the identity of this being at
all. With the way he had worded things
he could mean anything from traveling on business to with his family. If nothing else, it served to deepen the mystery
of his identity even more. Now he was
more determined than ever to figure out just who this was. He couldn’t let such a thing bypass him
without knowing. It would drive him nuts
if he did.

Standing there looking at the formidable potions master,
Harry realized that none of his curiosity had been satisfied and he doubted
that he was going to give up on the situation that easily. But, along with that, Harry was presented
with an opportunity that he hadn’t had in a while; to find out about
things that happened at home since the war.
Sure, he kept up a regular correspondence with many of his friends and
Hermione was excellent at keeping him up to date about things, but that
wasn’t the same as just sitting down and talking with someone about
it. Thinking that over, he tried to
decide what to do. Sure, he knew that he
should just go inside and leave it alone but part of him wanted to talk to
someone he knew from his past. Plus
there was the fact that Snape wasn’t going to let this go. If he just vanished, Snape would keep turning up for as long as he was
here. The more the potions master
scrutinized him, there would be more of a chance that he would be figured out.

Glancing at the man in black, he saw him staring at him
intently, as though he were trying to see through the glamour he was
wearing. Though he was confident that it
was good enough there was no way anyone could break the spell, it still put him
on edge. But his curiosity was more
pressing. No, he knew he shouldn’t
do this, that it could lead to some very big problems, but Harry asked,
“Would you like to come in for something to drink?”

Eyeing the young man critically for any hint that this was a
trap of some kind, Snape then nodded when he didn’t feel any of his inner
warning signals go off. He wasn’t
sure that the boy would reveal anything that would give away his identity but
he was hoping to pick up enough clues to give him a push in the direction of
finding out.

Taking Snape’s elbow, Harry pulled him through the
wards into the old lobby of the hotel.
Pointing him to the table, he called for his house elves to bring them
something to drink and a snack then seated himself at the table. Looking up at the mirrors that reflected his
magical aquarium, he decided he wasn’t in the mood for something so
sedate right now. Without thinking about
the other person in the room, he waved his hand and the current scene changed
to that of a prehistoric sea with the ocean dwelling inhabitants of the
past. Nodding, pleased, he poured
himself a drink of the cool beverage that his elves had brought then settled
back into his chair, gazing at the older man.

Watching the display on the walls, Snape’s eyes widened
slightly when he saw the young man change them with just a wave of his
hand. This was complex magic, in the
same family as the spell that enchanted the ceiling of the Great Hall at
Hogwarts. To do something such as this
wandlessly spoke of a powerful wizard. That
narrowed his list of possibilities, somewhat, as to who this could be. Taking a cup of the drink the house elves had
brought, he sipped at it, leaning back in his chair, looking at the young man
trying to find something about him that would give him more of a clue as to who
this was.

Knowing Snape wasn’t going to start things off, that
he was going to use this time to scrutinize him, Harry decided to break the
ice. “So, are you still teaching
at Hogwarts?” He asked
conversationally.

Jarred back, Snape nodded, “Yes, I am.”

“Potions still? Or are you doing
DADA?” After that last part came
out, Harry wanted to bite his tongue. As
far as he knew, Snape had only taught that for one year during the time he was
there. Though it might have been a
slipup on his end, it did give him some leeway in things. There were seven years at Hogwarts that would
have attended that class so that was a lot of students. Hopefully, that didn’t give too much
away.

Razor-sharp mind honing in on what the man said, Snape filed
that away to ponder. It was something that was a big clue about his identity
since it narrowed down the field of who this could be. Leaning back, he gazed at the handsome young
man then said, “I’m back to potions. After the fall of the Dark Lord, my want of
that position dwindled. There was too
much bad that took place because of beings that wanted the power the Dark Arts
provide for me to have a willingness to continue teaching such a thing. It was better off having someone else do such
a thing with the emphasis on what could come of it. I felt my skills were better served in trying
to pound the basics of potions into the skulls of the dunderheads of Hogwarts
since Slughorn was inept on a good day.”
That last part was delivered with a sneer. Slughorn, and how he went about things, was
something of a sore spot for him. He
didn’t like the rotund professor in the least and his pandering to
certain students as well as the Slug Club was something that didn’t set
well with him. When the aging professor
once more opted for retirement, he decided that it was time to go back to his
beloved dungeons and the students he hoped would show some skill in the fine
art.

Chuckling at the memory of the walrus-like professor and his
celebrity passion, Harry’s eyes twinkled.
“Yeah, he sure did like to have a group around for what he could
get out of them, didn’t he? He
always reminded me of a big, fat spider trying to trap people in his
web.”

Nodding, Snape snorted slightly, something that was for him a version of a
laugh. “That, Jay, is a very apt
description of him.” He was always
wont to gather those around that could serve some purpose to him later on in
their life, not just because they were friends or deserving of
help.”

“Very true,” Harry agreed with a nod. “Has much changed at Hogwarts since the
war? Or is it pretty much the
same?”

“There have been a great deal of changes since the war
but much still remains the same,” Snape told him, relaxing somewhat. Then, slowly, he began to answer some of the
young man’s questions about things and the people involved.

xxx

It wasn’t until the old clock in the room chimed
midnight that the two men were drawn out of the discussion, startled by the
late hour. Once they started talking,
time seemed to have slipped away from them completely and neither realized how
late it had become. In fact, it startled
them. Neither of them had talked about
such things with another for a very long time.

On Harry’s end, he felt he understood what things were
like now back ‘home’. Sure,
from his owls with Hermione he knew the basics of most of it but this talk
seemed to fill in so much for him and he could ask questions about things that
she wouldn’t think to tell him about.
He liked that. It was like
playing catch-up after not seeing someone for a very long time. Plus, since Snape didn’t know who he
was, he could ask about things and get a clue about how things were seen that
weren’t shaded by his image. Plus,
without the prejudice Snape would hold if he knew who he was talking to, he was
more free about some things. That was a
big plus.

For the professor, he too had enjoyed this talk. No, it didn’t really help figure out who
this young man was but it was cathartic in its own way. Much of what they had talked about were
things that hadn’t been discussed in Britain in a long while. The way he saw it was that it gave a
perspective on some things he hadn’t been able to see at the time they
happened or afterwards when the whole world felt like it was in chaos. That was comforting to him. It also assisted in that the young man he was
talking to didn’t seem to judge him the way so many in the past did. He thought that the young man had been around
after the war to hear what he had truly done rather than the rumored Death
Eater junk during it. Or perhaps the
young man was just the non-judgmental type that was easy to talk to. Either way, this had been something that
hadn’t happened before so he was more looser with his tongue than he
usually was.

Giving an internal sigh, the professor knew that it was time
for him to go. He had another meeting
first thing in the morning and would be required to attend. Since he wasn’t a being that was in the
best frame of mind first thing in the A.M., it wouldn’t do to make things
worse by being overly tired after an extra late night. “Though it pains me to do so, I must
leave. There are things that I have to
attend to first thing in the morning.”

“I understand,” Harry nodded, standing up. “Honestly, I enjoyed our talk.”

Standing as well, Snape agreed, “As did I. Perhaps, if you are amiable to such things,
we could continue our talk before I leave?
We are going to be around for the next two weeks.” That is where he stopped and waited. There was a part of him that was going to be
disappointed if the young man didn’t agree to it but, like with most
things in his life, he was prepared for the rejection.

“You know, I think I would like that,” Harry
said, a cheeky grin on his face. “I’m
around on the beach all day, so you can just find me there or, if you would
prefer, leave a message for me at Cote de Café.
I’ll get it then owl you so we can set something up.”

“The last, I believe, would be preferable,” Snape nodded. Then, doing something he didn’t often
do, he stuck out his hand to the young man for him to shake.

Without a second thought, Harry took it and gave it a firm shake. “I’ll be waiting.” After that, he walked his old potions
professor out then watched him vanish into the night towards the village. Tonight had been something he enjoyed in a
way he hadn’t in a long time.
Hopefully, their next meetings would be just as good.

xxx

As Severus walked back to the village, he enjoyed the
solitude and cool air of the late hour.
But his mind kept skipping back to the young man he had just left. By now, he was sure that he knew him in some
capacity and more than just in passing, but couldn’t place his finger on
where it might be from. However, that
was pushed aside by the fact that he had very much enjoyed talking to him and
was looking forward to doing so again. Honestly,
though it was a quandary as to whom he was, and that he did want to find out,
that was taking a backseat to the other.
In fact, he didn’t think it much mattered anymore who he was,
something that was relegated to just curiosity.
It had been a while since he had someone interested in things he had to
say and liked the feeling.

Smirking to himself, he walked on, actually thinking that he
was going to enjoy the two weeks here rather than see it as a chore like he had
when they arrived.
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