Hey guys! -*Dodges the angrier followers' throwing knives like a boss*- Yes it's has been a long while since the last update! (^_^;) But I'm here now...so don't kill me. I think you'll enjoy this chapter.

Reminder that this fic is rated M for a reason.

Chapter 15: Memory Lane

Harry woke up to a persistent knocking. His closed eyes scrunched as he groaned in protest and tried to curl deeper into the warm body that lay beside him. When the disturbance continued he growled and pushed up. He looked over towards the door and glared at it. Then his gaze fell down on Tom; he blushed lightly as he realized he had more or less snuggled with the man all night.

Knock Knock Knock!

"In a minute!" Harry called out to whoever was outside. Then the teen reached over and shook Tom's shoulder. "Hey, wake up!" Riddle simply rolled over with a groan of protest. Harry rolled his eyes and stood from the bed, smacking one of the man's feet as he walked by. Making his way to the door, Harry noticed the cage that Tom had transfigured for Nagini last night was quite empty. Harry snorted, "Riddle is not going to like that." The ravenette reached the door and pulled it open.

"Morning Potter." Snape flatly greeted. Lucius, standing beside the professor repeated the same, though with a little more charm.

"What's up?" Harry asked them, stepping aside to let them inside the room. Lucius responded, "We just need to speak with our lord; about some official dark side business, no need to concern yourself with it." Harry's eyes narrowed and his brow raised. "Oh don't look at me like that, it's nothing overly nefarious...I'm guessing he's still asleep so-"

THUD!

Both wizards jumped at the sudden sound, looking over to the bed where Riddle was attempting to scramble to his feet furiously; cursing in parseltongue colorfully enough to make Harry blush. Severus was walking away from the bed back over to Lucius's side, looking far to pleased with himself.

"Severus..." Riddle started to hiss.

The normally stern potions master shrugged and replied, "If I recall correctly, you had specifically told us, 'You have permission to wake me, if I am not yet up in time for the meeting." I'm not at fault for your lack of specification in the manner in which to wake you. As if anything less would have been efficient."

Harry snickered as he dug out some clothing for the day from his luggage bag. Taking with him a white T-shirt and some black shorts, he stepped into the bathroom to get dressed. When he came back out he finally noticed the digital clock on the hotel's bedside table. According to it, the time was six forty-five in the morning. "You guys don't fully grasp the concept of a vacation, do you?" He said to the trio that sat around on the couch and arm chair that came with the suite. Harry hopped back onto the bed and dragged his bag over, pulling out his sketchbook and propping it up in his lap. Flipping to a blank page, he frowned a little as he noticed he was nearing the end of the book. He saw that he had only a few blank pages left, but shrugged and focused on his current sketch; leaving the dark wizards be to handle their business.

Harry was pleased to know that Lucius had not been lying when he said their meeting didn't involve anything sinister. They did not talk about who needed to be killed or who needed to be tortured, they didn't talk about plans to attack Hogwarts or muggleborns. Though Tom had already assured him that's not what they were working towards, it was reassuring to see a little proof. Instead they merely discussed policies, or how to manipulate ministry decisions without Lucius's influence. They even talked about which kind of magical creature should be next approached for an alliance.

"There is one other matter I believe we should discuss." Severus reached into his robes and pulled out a copy of the daily prophet, handing it over to Tom. Harry observed how his eyes skimmed over the front page briskly and his expression darkened.

"Perhaps it would be prudent to remind some of my more... enthusiastic followers why they should not act without orders." he growled. That couldn't mean anything good. Harry set his book down with a half finished drawing and pushed off the bed. He came up behind Tom and read the paper over his shoulder.

DARK MARK APPEARS OVER DIAGON ALLEY! ARE WE REALLY AS SAFE AS THE MINISTRY CLAIMS?!

Riddle went ahead and handed Harry the article. "I had not intended to confirm my resurrection until a later date, originally it had been preferable that I'd have acquired the entire prophecy beforehand."

Harry shot a look at him, "What prophecy?"

Tom turned so that he could look Harry dead in the eyes. Behind him Lucius blinked owlishly at the teen. "Dumbledore never told you? The reason I came after you in the first place all those years ago?"

"Apparently not."

Riddle hummed,"...There was a prophecy that implied that someone would have the power to vanquish me. Naturally I reacted to a threat. However I had only heard part of it."

"What part was that?"

It was Severus who recited the following,"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches, born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies..."

The dark wizards watched as Harry went silent for a moment, before he sighed and leaned forward on the back of Tom's chair. "You know, I am really not very pleased with that old goat right now." He griped.

The teen pushed off the chair and headed for the door, "And I never really put much stock in divination; so if you ask me, you should just ignore the thing entirely and not let it rule your life. For example, instead of sticking around to fret over it, instead I'm going to see if anyone else is up and ready for breakfast." With that the ravenette left the room.

Lucius held another amused expression before leaving his seat. "What a marvelous idea, I think I'll join him." he mused aloud as he too exited into the hall. Tom was slightly lost in contemplation as he stood to follow. He passed the conjured cage before he paused. "….Where the bloody hell is Nagini?!" he snarled before stalking out of the room.

"It seems I've been left behind." Snape mused as he made to leave as well. Though a certain sketchbook left unguarded on the bed caught his attention. Picking it up and flipping through the pages, he gazed, impressed with the drawings he was met with. He froze when he came upon one drawing in particular. It was one of himself; whilst he was brewing, most likely during class. He wondered when the boy had drawn this one.

He was more surprised that the sketch had not been one of those pitifully immature renditions, that exaggerated his worst features and held some insulting quote above his head. As a typically least favored teacher he had encountered more than a few of those; and it was always a pleasure to watch the color drain from the artist's face as they realized they had been caught.

This however was not insulting in the slightest. It was by no means the work of a prodigy, but certainly the efforts of someone well practiced. This was drawn with a semblance of respect. Severus could not help but wonder when on earth he had earned that, as he had been quite...well, to put it simply, a complete prick to the boy.

He continued to flip through the book, taking note on how it was nearly full. Perhaps a late birthday present wouldn't give the young Gryffindor to much of a heart attack.

There was one more sketch that caught his eye. It was one of him and Lucius enjoying a quiet evening on the couch back "home." He was reading a book; the irritatingly affectionate mutt even sat at his feet. Lucius was leaning into him, seemingly napping. Coal eyes softened at the composition. He still sometimes struggled to believe someone like Luc had wanted him. He still remembered back when that wasn't exactly the case. Their first encounter had been more than a little rocky.

An eleven year-old Severus Snape could not help but bounce slightly on his heels; he and his red-haired friend were eagerly waiting for their sorting. He had waited for this moment for far too long. He believed this was the day his life would change for the better. For after today, he would be officially welcomed amongst the company of other wizards.

They were led into the impressive great hall and showed the large old hat that would be the instrument of their sorting. Lily, was to be sorted before him. He gave her a reassuring smile as she nervously stepped up to the stool after her name was called. He was mildly disappointed when the hat shouted out "Gryffindor!" but he had not really been at all surprised. He knew he would not be joining her, but was determined to maintain their friendship. Finally, his name was called. He sat on the stool with an expression of cool determination when he felt the weight of the hat placed on his head. A moment of silence, just long enough to make him slightly nervous "...hm, I think it shall be... SLYTHERIN!" He smirked to hide the foolish grin that wanted to show on his face and calmly made his way to his new house, ignoring some of the distrustful looks he received from the house of lions. He was not unaware of the rivalry.

As he took his seat, his surrounding classmates greeted him politely. He did however noticed some less then friendly glances from some of the older students who sat down a ways from him. He particularly noticed an older blonde boy that seemed to looked down his nose at him, even from this distance. Severus may have to be wary of that one, Slytherin often housed some potentially powerful wizards.

It wasn't until the first year students were led to the dorms that he had the displeasure of being formally introduced to one Lucius Malfoy.

"I've never heard the Snape name in wizarding circles." The tall blonde sneered down at Severus, who maintained a neutral expression. Some students stuck around to observed the encounter.

"No, I suppose you wouldn't have." Severus retorted, but felt no need to elaborate. He didn't have to.

"Ah, a mudblood: I suspected as much." Some the older students sneered at the revelation. "You must have really sweet talked the old hat into letting you into our house of serpents. Since we don't normally receive those of...lesser breeding."

With out missing a beat Severus replied, "You think I have coerced a centuries old magical artifact created by the founders of Hogwarts themselves? I suppose I am in the right place after all. Really, either your an idiot or quite the flatterer. I truly can't quite tell."

Severus took pride in making the older Slytherin's composure crack, as he could tell that was not a common occurrence. The students observing around them started snickering.

Before the aristocrat could reach for what Severus could only assume was his wand, their head of house stepped into the common room. Horace Slughorn, a stout man that looked both jovial and a little weary greeted them, "First years gather round before wandering off to your rooms. I'd like to explain some general house rules." Severus was quick to spin on his heel and escape what would have probably been a very unpleasant experience. He would remain on alert...

Snape snapped out of his flash back as he felt something move by his leg. Looking down he smirked, "Good morning, Nagini." he told the viper-python mix as she crawled out from under the bed. He raised and eyebrow as the serpent stretch her jaws into a mock yawn, and with a glance to him, she escaped out the still open door. Severus would never admit aloud, but he quite enjoyed how the snake's actions often kept Tom on his toes...and ready to pull out his hair.

~HPTR~

Ed quietly watched on as their group of misfits debated on the activities for that day. They had been enjoying a nice outdoor breakfast as it was just as sunny as it had been yesterday. Their decision seemed to be split down the middle between going on a riding trail and exploring the village filled with a variety of different shops for tourists. The most heated disagreement came from the twins.

Eddy rolled his eyes and tapped on the table to get everyone's attention. He held up a hash brown before splitting it in half and showing them the two pieces. Linda nodded, "OK, we'll split up into two groups."

And that was how Ed found himself getting into a cab with Adele, Severus and Lucius. He supposed this would be a good time to get to know their best customers a little better. As they were quite the mystery to the rest of the dining staff. While Ed knew they did in fact enjoy his cooking (he was a bit of a culinary genius if he did say so himself), but he was under no delusion that they only came everyday for the food. Nope, ever since young Harry joined their little establishment there has not been a dull day. Not that he was complaining, it was good for business and added a little excitement to their lives. For instance, this trip probably would not have been possible if not for this strange group. Hell, even that encounter with the shark was something for them to laugh about when they got to shore; they had been so close to toppling over that buoy with all the people that had scrambled on it to safety. They must have looked ridiculous.

He knew that Tom fellow was down right smitten with Harry. 'Well he better treat him right, I've become quite attached to the young man.' He could certainly provide for the lad, that was a given. Those blokes had bought their own tickets on a bloody whim!

He noticed Adele had been quick to pester the two men before them with personal questions. What did they do for a living? Where did they come from? Did they have any siblings? Eddy mutely listened to the vague responses, as that was what he does. He was a listener, an observer. He could tell they were hiding something. Whether it was something bad or not, he had yet to determine.

Soon enough they reached the village. It was very quaint in comparison to the fancy hotel they stayed in. Ed liked it already. Adele squeaked with excitement and shot into the first shop. Ed looked to the other two and shrugged before following her. When he stepped inside he realized it was a kite shop.

"It's not going to bite, Lucius." Ed looked over at the other two men. Lucius was holding up a complex kite by the tail. It created an abstract, colorful shape. He was poking and prodding it curiously. Did he not know what it was? He saw Severus roll his eyes and take the kite from the blonde's hands and turned it right side up before explaining the kite's function to him. Ed blinked at the odd moment before turning to explore another corner of the shop.

~HPTR~

Severus had to admit there were some interesting shops in this area. He had even stumbled across a few fairly useful potions ingredients among the herb based shops. He also got to enjoy Lucius's reaction to the wiccan shop that actually contained a few authentic ritual books. Some of these stores rendered the Malfoy lord into an overly curious child. What's that? What's this for? He shared nearly the same fascination with muggle gadgets that Arthur Weasley does. Severus would not tell him this aloud, as it would not be received well. Though the reaction may be worth the consequences. The potion's master paused in front of a shop with paintings in the window. Piquing his interest, he entered, responding politely to the perky woman behind the counter who greeted him. He browsed around until he reached the section he was looking for. He picked out a few sketch books and drawing utensils before bringing them up to the counter. He nearly jumped when Lucius piped up behind him. "What are those for?"

Taking the bag with his purchases, Severus thanked the shopkeeper and left with his lover in tow. "I''m sure you've noticed the book that Harry is always scribbling in?"

"I have."

"Well those scribbles turned out to be rather well done. So as a teacher it's only natural that I encourage the growth of a skill."

"Hm, yes, He has grown on you quite a bit I see." Severus wordlessly sent a stinging hex at the blonde.

"Blimey, why do you always use that bloody spell?!" Now that made Severus openly grin as another memory came to mind.

"Ouch, is that your favorite spell or something?!" snapped the incensed Malfoy heir as he rubbed his arm. Both he and Severus were stuck cleaning Mcgonagall's classroom. Well, Severus had been cleaning; Malfoy had been leaning against the wall and complaining, thus earning the well deserved stinging hex from the younger slytherin. "Your whining was grating on my ears." he told him.

"Malfoy's do not whine!"

"Then it's a good thing I was here to put an end to such un-Malfoy behavior. You can repay me by helping me clean."

"I did not do anything to earn this detention!"

"Neither did I, and yet I am not willing to deal with the professor's ire should the room not be spotless by the time she returns." Of course Potter and his group were the reason they were there in the first place. A prank meant to get him into trouble obviously. Though, Malfoy had also been walking by at the time, and the look on his face at getting dragged into it was quite entertaining. Almost made it worth the trouble. Yet now he was stuck in the same room with the older boy for the next two hours. His only consolation was that Lily had pulled a similar trick on the marauder group in order to keep them from getting away with their dirty trick. And thankfully they were serving their detentions with filch elsewhere.

"Whatever, a man of my station does not lower himself to such trivial chores, That's more fitting of yourself."

Severus glared, which was something he found himself doing often since he enrolled in Hogwarts and he was becoming quite the professional at it. "You are in for a rather rude awakening when you leave Hogwarts, Malfoy."

"Is that so, little Snape? And what makes you think that?"

"Because you've been riding on your father's coattails for so long, that you expect everything to fall into place simply because your name is Malfoy! Your intending to go into politics yes? Have you even made any of your own connections? Have you proven to anyone that you deserve your title?!"

Severus had learned the hard way that he would have to prove himself useful in order to gain the acceptance of his prejudice housemates. So he spent nearly every waking moment refining his potions skills. His hard work in that area was finally coming to fruition as he was already beginning to catch the eye of some masters.

"Nobody starts out at the top Malfoy, some positions need to be earned, not inherited. If your not willing to put in the work; you'll become little more than a joke amongst your precious wizarding circles."

The Malfoy heir gawked at the younger's bold lecture. Obviously thrown off guard by the quiet yet infuriating Severus's seriousness.

Mcgonagall return to find the room in acceptable condition and dismissed the two of them. Severus walked ahead of the blonde as he seemed to need to be alone with his thoughts.

It was about a week later in the library when Severus was given a very absurd request; causing him to nearly drop all the books he had been carrying. "What?!"

"I asked you to meet me in the prefect bathrooms tonight." Lucius repeated simply.

Severus blinked, "And why would you want to meet with me there?" The smaller Slytherin knew the answer though, he had heard the blonde give similar requests to several girls before; but he just couldn't believe his ears.

"I thought it would be nice to 'get to know each other' a little better." came the smooth reply; a hand touched his hip and slowly trailed towards his rear. Severus quickly smacked the impudent hand away.

"And what the bloody hell gave you the impression that I would be remotely interested in that?!" Severus squawked. The blonde smirked and leaned in closer.

"Because I'm irresistible. There's no need to hide it Severus; I know your fond of me." The aristocrat announced confidently.

Severus sputtered, "A-Absolutely -"

"Absolutely yes?"

"-NOT!" The younger of the two spun around to leave, with a huff of frustration. Some other students had been watching them when they heard Snape's normally quiet voice raise. The marauders in their own corner had even been intrigued to witness some Snivellus drama.

Lucius had grabbed his arm before he could get too far away. "It's stupid to turn down a Malfoy." he told him smugly.

Severus's expression darkened, and the taller blonde suddenly realized that may have been the wrong thing to say.

ZAP!

"YEOW!"

That day even the marauders were more than happy to stay out of the dark-haired boy's way.

The propositions continued for months after that. With Severus's answer always being a big fat NO with a side of stinging hex.

It was during the final week of classes that Lucius finally cornered him and demanded a reason why Severus would always turn him down. "I don't get it! I don't get you! Why do you keep saying no? What is it about me that you hate so much?!"

"Well your arrogance, for one thing. I can't fathom why it's so hard to figure out why I wouldn't want to be one of your play things! Call me old fashioned, but I'd prefer a partner that would actually give a damn about me, and not sneer at my origins every five minutes!"

Lucius stood silently; unsure of what to say to placate the angry boy.

"Besides I'm not interested in being tossed aside later on. I despise fickle men like you!"

Looking effectively cowed, Lucius spoke quietly, admitting, "I wouldn't toss you aside."

But Severus would have none of it. "Excuse me if I have trouble believing you." With that the bitter fifth year stormed away not to be bothered by Lucius again for the rest of the school year...

Severus's grin long since fell as he recalled the bitter memory of that final school year together. Sometimes he really resented the venomous appendage that was his tongue. He glanced back at Lucius and was gladly reminded that it did in fact work out in the end. He suddenly scowled, Good lord he was acting like a sappy Gryffindor.

~HPTR~

Harry looked over his shoulder to see who was lagging behind on the trail. He let out a short bark of a laugh as he saw Linda. The normally proud woman was leaning forward with her hands wrapped around the chestnut horse's neck, holding on for dear life. The guide on the buckskin horse had to remain beside her; trying to reassure the nervous diner owner that she would not fall off. Carrie was trotting along at the front of the group on a playful palomino colored mare, she obviously had more experience then the rest of them.

Though Harry seemed to have taken to riding rather well for his first time, as he kept up with her easily. It seemed like the black appaloosa he rode had a little bit of a competitive side to him, as he was determined to keep a quick pace, not letting the palomino mare get too far ahead of him. Tom was determine to stick close beside him on his dark bay mare, but did not seem to be very comfortable with it. Harry suspected that Tom was just as anxious as Linda, but was better at hiding it. Just like he was back on the plane. The horse below the man seemed to have picked up on his nervousness, because it was being particularly stubborn when Tom tried to direct her anywhere. "Just relax Tom, your not going to fall off, I promise." The man straightened up and threw him an irritated look as if to deny his discomfort. Harry just smiled nicely at him, knowing better.

Unbeknownst to the oncoming riders, a certain snake was nearly tying herself in knots as she attempted to catch the most infuriatingly zippy squirrel in the world. The little ball of fluff dashed from branch to branch, both up and back down the trunk, and even ran around in circles here and there.

:Hold still little tree mouse, Mommy Nagi just wants to MAKE YOU DEAD!:

Needless to say, Nagini had not been amused by it's antics.

She finally cornered the blasted thing on a high, thin branch that hung over the path with no other tree limbs close enough to scurry to. She prepared for the final lunge, the horses traveling under them going unnoticed. The snake shot forward and her target made it's final move as it jumped off the branch and stretched out it's body. The flying squirrel easily glided to a different tree; one free of predators.

In the meantime, Nagini became a victim of gravity as she clumsily dropped from the trees entirely, coming to an abrupt landing on the neck of Tom's horse. Disoriented, the serpent's head moved into the horse's line of sight, :Stupid mouse! That was cheating! Mice don't fly!: Her rantings coming out as one long aggressive hiss that threw the mare into panic mode. As she reared up and bolted away from the group at a full gallop Tom was shouting, "NAGINI!" as he tried in vain to get the horse to slow down.

The other horses had also been spooked enough to keep the guide from chasing after him; so Harry was quick to do it for him. Thankfully, it seemed his horse was just as foolhardy as he was as he urged the appaloosa to sprint after them. "Just hold on Tom!" rounding the bend in the path, he had them in his sights. He urged his horse faster, the gelding happily complied as he hardly ever got a chance to gallop on these trails. Harry pushed him to run next to the frightened bay and reached over to grab Nagini, pulling her onto his saddle. The gelding wasn't exactly pleased with the arrangement, but did not freak out like the bay mare had. Harry then helped Tom pull the mare to a stop, luckily just in time to reach the end of the trail. Both of them were panting, despite the horses doing all the actual running. Riddle, who looked the most disheveled Harry had ever seen, was more than happy to dismount.

Harry laughed, "See I told you that you wouldn't fall off." He also dismounted to make sure Tom was alright. He didn't notice the gelding reaching over to grab Nagini's tail and pull her off his back; tossing her into the bushes.

:Oomph! Flying mice, giant human-carrying rats! This place is no place for Nagini!: She continued to grumble to herself as she headed back towards the hotel.

~HPTR~

When everyone met back up that night, the hotel was hosting an international buffet with an impressively wide variety of dishes. Severus raised an eyebrow at Harry who had a strange mix of Mexican and Chinese foods on his plate. Said teen too busy trying to placate a seething dark lord to notice the look.

"I am going to turn that snake into a belt and a pair of boots when I'm through with her." Tom groused beside Harry. Severus wondered what the man's familiar could have possibly done to earn death threats from her own master.

"Come on Tom, it wasn't that bad. It was an accident, and you got out of it with out a scratch on you." Harry tried to placate the dark lord.

"Actually, I got whipped across the face with a branch,"

"Aw, poor baby, want me to kiss it better." The ravenette teased.

Riddle smirked, "Actually yes, I do." Severus shook his head as Harry blushed and scampered to their table.

Carrie swallowed a piece of her pizza as she turned to the Gryffindor, "So Harry, summer's end is just around the corner. Are you excited to get back to that boarding school of yours?"

The other three wizards listened attentively, as the ravenette took a moment to think about his reply, "I'm excited to see my friends again; and well, school is school, though I do mostly enjoy it despite the occasional 'hurdles' it throws at me. I'll miss you guys though, I don't think I've ever had so much fun."

Severus noted Tom's mild wince at that bit.

Linda pointed a fork at him, "Though we are of course incredibly fascinating people, and it's been lovely to have you Harry; you are a bright and creative young man so you better aim higher in life than a simple food server position.." She jabbed her fork in the twins' direction. "Those two may be a lost cause, but there is still hope for you."

"Hey!"

Harry laughed and Linda continued, "Though of course I better see you as a customer from time to time."

"Of course." The teen said as he reached for his drink.

"So what are you studying at that fancy school anyway?" Harry choked a little on his drink. Severus saw him stiffen slightly as he had not been expecting that question. The potions master was impressed with his recovery, "-cough- went down the wrong tube... Um, they teach us the usual things; history, science, etc."

Adele hummed, "So what about the rest of you blokes? Now that I think about it I don't think you've ever told us how you all know each other. In fact, I recall how Harry was all in a tizzy about how he thought you were going to kill him or something. It was funny to watch him try to crawl under tables while trying to sneak away."

Severus and Lucius traded exasperated expressions. This one was far too inquisitive. The coal eyed man was the first to speak, "I'm one of his teachers and an old friend of his mother. I'll be returning to the school with him." He saw the boy's gaze dart to him with surprise. His mum knew Snape?

"Ooh, what do you teach?" The other twin asked.

"Chemistry."

Lucius snorted beside him and he elbowed his side sharply. "These two did not get on well with his parents at the time. Thus the...mistrust you witnessed earlier in the season." This time it was Harry to snort, that certainly had been one way to put it. Severus smirked, " I suppose you could say we've sorted out are differences and are now one big happy family." The teen was snickering now.

Linda frowned, "Harry, if you don't mind me asking, what happened to your parents?"

Harry defaulted to the answer he had originally grown up with, "Car crash, when I was a baby."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's fine, I still have my godfathers; ..well ones my actual godfather the other is more honorary godfather."

"Then why the hell were you stuck living with those other awful people?"

"A broken system?" 'And more than likely a manipulative old goat.' "Anyway, it's over with now, and I think things are starting to look up." He was looking at Tom as he said this and smiled. Severus was now a little more eager to see the teen's reaction to the little "gift" he gave to his relatives. Though his good mood was dampened as Harry proceeded to tell them a tale of one of his dog-father's pranks. The name brought back sour memories of how the idiot had nearly killed him via werewolf. Though, he supposed the incident had led to something good in the end.

It was the beginning of summer after Severus's sixth year. He was seventeen now, and at the moment he was grateful for it as he slumped at the bar of one of the shabby pubs in Knockturn alley. Classes had let out and just in time for the young Slytherin to let out his frustration.

Just before the school year had come to an end, that mongrel Sirius Black had tried to kill him! His pranks, while often humiliating and a major inconvenience had always been something he could deal with. But this was attempted murder! In the end, he even had to be saved by Potter of all people! Had Black been expelled? Have his wand snapped? No of course not; merely a slap on the wrist from the headmaster. If anything Severus had been practically threatened into keeping quiet about the incident. No words could describe the anger he felt. Actually, there probably were words that could describe what he felt; he was just too angry to seek them out.

He wasn't angry with Lupin, he wasn't as ignorant as some wizards who believed that werewolves were monsters all of the time instead of just once a month; and even then they were really just like any other slightly more aggressive wolf. It was the fact that the condition was infectious that got people riled up. He was impressed that the Gryffindor had managed to keep something like that a secret thus far. If it had not been for Black he never would've known.

No it was Black he wanted to see punished. But instead, here he was, drinking the injustice away. He had been aware that he was spiraling into a depression like his mother had. He hadn't wanted to, he wanted to be strong. But ever since he had stupidly called his best friend a mudblood... he hadn't really had anyone to talked to. Even Malfoy didn't pester him anymore since he graduated. Severus realized he had become quite lonely. He was still excelling in potions, and he wasn't doing so bad with the dark arts either. But even he can only be satisfied with being left alone for so long.

He eventually decided it was time to return home; to his empty house. Even Tobias Snape, his father, had left him. Though that was, in actuality, probably the most decent thing he had ever done for Severus as a father. all Severus knew was that the man didn't want anymore to do with him, and instead of kicking him out, he must have decided that he was the one who wanted to leave. So Spinner's End was now his.

The drunken young man stumbled out of the door of the pub, bumping into the hard shoulder of a passerby. Severus tensed, waiting for the angry snarl of whomever he hit. Instead he started when a familiar voice spoke to him with surprise, "Severus?"

It was Lucius, "What's happened to you?"

'Oh how delightful.' Severus thought bitterly. Of course it had to be him, to see him now at his lowest point. The seventeen year-old grit his teeth, for some reason, he felt this was worse than having Lilly see him like this. A drunken mess just like his father. At least he wasn't as violent as that man had been. He opened his mouth weakly to speak, then closed it again as he found no words coming to him. There would be no sharp retorts this time; instead he wobbled on his feat. He nearly collapsed to the stone pavement below him, if not for Malfoy's quick reflexes.

"Alright, I'm taking you home. Severus, look me in the eyes." He did as told and in his drunken haze he felt a brush against his mind. The image of Spinner's End came into vision and the twisting sensation of apparation engulfed him. Severus showed extreme willpower in not retching upon arrival on his front step.

Malfoy guided him into the house and set him down on the couch in the living room. Severus leaned into the cushioned back of the seat. Lucius flicked his wand and the armchair in the room moved to his position just in front of Severus. The blonde took a seat and eyed him for a moment. Severus stared back with half closed eyes.

Lucius had been busy wondering what the hell had made his favorite, proud, little potion's nerd so utterly miserable. His inquisitive thoughts were disrupted when the younger Slytherin leaned forward and pushed off the couch. One of his knees came up to settle besides Lucius's leg, and the other mimicked this position beside the other leg. He lowered himself onto the man's lap as Severus's arms wrapped around a strong neck. He tilted his head down and pressed his lips into Lucius's.

The graduated Slytherin groaned and slid his hands to Severus's hips, before remembering himself and gently pushing the other away. Severus drunkenly disappointed, averted his eyes with shame. A glint in the light caught his attention and he looked down at Lucius's hand to see an engagement ring.

Severus winced, "I see, that ship has sailed." he finally said, maintaining only a slight slur in his voice.

Lucius shook his head. "She's only a friend really. It's a blasted marriage contract. My interest in you has not wavered Severus."

"Then why push me away?" Severus pouted, pouted! He leaned back, though he was still quite tipsy and needed the Malfoy heir to help keep him balanced on his lap.

Lucius smirked, but it was as warm as a smile. "Because, if I have my way with you while your smashed, you'll most likely castrate me in the morning."

Severus smirked back, then his expression turned confused and vulnerable; so unlike the man he'd become in later years. "Why me? I'm not handsome or a pureblood. I don't have many influential connections. Why do you want me?" He needed to know!

"Severus, you should have more confidence in yourself. You are very intelligent, and your potions skills are quite remarkable; I think you'll make a name for yourself yet. As for your looks, while it's true that when we first met you were a bit on the awkward side; but you've quickly grown into a fine young man. If those marauder buffoons are still tormenting you in that regard, it's simply because their not clever enough to come up with new material. And I'm finding that I don't give a damn about how pure your blood is. However as to why I want you, why I would like to even start courting you. You are the only one who will tell me like it is. You won't cow to my name or money. You made me re-evaluate my attitude and it's gotten me to where I am now. I believe I can find a true partner in you."

A kiss was pressed to his temple ,and Severus found himself resting his head against the shoulder of the first person to sing his praises. Not even Lilly ever told him things like that with such conviction. As he drifted out of consciousness, Severus hoped that he could further explore this development in the morning. He prayed it was not some drunken dream.

Thankfully, it was not; and that night's meeting had led to many, many more. That entire summer had been spent in close contact with Lucius. They grew closer than Severus ever thought was possible for him. A small part of him was bitter that Lucius was to marry another. However, after many a conversation with Narcissa he understood that there was no romantic interest involved. They would have to provide a proper pureblood heir for the Malfoy line, but after that they would only be man and wife in the eye of the public. The rest of the time Lucius was all his. This was something he could accept. Turned out that such a practice was quite common in the pureblood world.

Through Lucius, he was eventually introduced to Tom; and realized that he agreed with many of his views. He found that he got along with the Dark Lord quite well. His conversations with the man were never strained or forced from fear of punishment; Something Riddle had found quite refreshing. He enjoyed the intelligent conversation. They discussed certain magical theories and the like. It was eventually how he established such an informal friendship with the dark lord.

When Draco came along, he found that any lingering resentment from Lucius's marriage had vanished. After he held his godson for the first time, both Lucius and Narcissa had been perplexed to watch the out-of-character grin that remained stuck to his face for a week.

When the day came when the Dark lord chose to attack the Potters. Severus asked Tom to spare lily. He knew deep down that it was pointless though, as Lilly was not the kind of person to abandon her child to save her own life. Looking at Draco he knew he wouldn't have been able to do so himself. While this pained him he understood that he and Lilly were on two different sides of a war; and he had his own family to care for now...

Severus was snapped back to the present as something shook his arm lightly. Lucius looked at him with concern, "Are you alright? You were out of it for quite a while there." The potion's master realized everyone else had left the table. He also realized the outdoor speakers were playing some upbeat music he didn't recognize. Their companions were amongst the crowd of hotel guests dancing the night away. He looked over to Lucius, happy that the man remained beside him while he had been lost in his memories. He thought carefully on something for a moment before leaning over, standing up, and gesturing for Lucius to follow him with a very... specific look. The blonde man perked with surprise and utter delight as he shot up from his seat quickly. He followed his lover promptly. Severus had led them back to their rooms.

Locking the door behind them, Lucius turned to watch Severus begin unbuttoning his black shirt. The dark haired man watched him as he did so, smirking. He imagined if Lucius had a blonde dog tail it would be wagging furiously. Unfastening the last button, he walked over to the Malfoy lord and whispered something in his ear.

Lucius's eyes grew wide and he pulled Severus back by his shoulders, locking gazes with him.

"Really? You want to...?"

As soon as Severus nodded his consent, Lucius pounced.

~HPTR~

Later that night, Harry was on his way to his room. He held his shoes in one hand as he walked down the carpeted hall, as his feet were quite sore. He and the twins had stayed until the very end of the dance. Linda and Ed had turned in; and Tom told him he had a few papers to deal with before it got too late. Though, the teen also suspected he was just too embarrassed to admit he was wiped out. Harry and the twins just had a lot more energy to burn than the rest of them.

As he rounded the corner, he heard something that made him stop. Sounds were coming from behind the door he was now in front of. He thought he recognized Snape's voice. His curiosity got the best of him as he leaned closer to the door. The voices were getting pretty loud; were he and Lucius arguing?

"Harder Luc, ah!"

Harry practically jumped backward stumbling to the floor. His face went pale at the same time a fierce blush inflamed his cheeks. He scrambled to his feet and ran the rest of the way to his room.

He fumbled with the keycard, racing through the door as he quickly and loudly closed it behind him. Harry pressed his back against the door. Tom looked up from his book to see the frazzled teen, who slowly pushed away from the door and sunk into one of the chairs. The man took in his startled expression and grinned at him, "Lucius and Severus forgot to put up a silencing charm, didn't they?" Harry, hearing the laughter in the man's voice threw a throw pillow at his face.

Harry grabbed another pillow, pressed is face into it and groaned; then he lowered it to his lap, "Dear Merlin, I could have gone my whole life with out hearing proof that my potion's professor has a sex life." Riddle laughed again and Harry scowled, standing up once more to go change into night clothes.

When he came back he hopped onto the bed, "So did you find where Nagini escaped to?" Harry grinned as Tom growled at the mention of his wayward familiar and closed his book; after placing a black ribbon to mark his place, "Who knows where she's skulking about now. She's quite an expert at remaining undetected...I mean, when she's not falling from high places like tree branches or ceiling fans."

~HPTR~

Meanwhile, Ed stood frozen and unblinking in the doorway of the bathroom watching the very large snake that was settled in the warm spray of the shower, staring back at him. He saw her tail slowly lift to turn the hot water off, then move back to her side, still staring at him like a cat that was caught poking into something it shouldn't have. The serpent slid out of the shower. Ed jumped out of the way as she made her way to the window. He had forgotten that he'd left it open earlier that day. She climbed over the window sill and whilst the rest of her long body followed her out; a diamond shaped head popped back up, keeping a cautious eye on him. Ed then noticed that by this time the heavier parts of her body were now outside, and his eye's widened as the snake lost her balance, and dropped from the window entirely with a loud startled hiss.

:SHIT!:

The cook continued to gawk at the window before he heard a distant splash followed by screams. He ran to the window and peered down to see the reptile flounder in the pool two stories below; A young couple was clambering out of the water and dashing into the hotel.

The snake finally got her bearings and escaped the pool to slip into the bushes beyond. Ed slowly pushed away from the window, closing it while he did so and decided that it was time to get some sleep.

~HPTR~

Harry hummed and fell backward onto the bed, staring up at the blank, white ceiling. "I hope the others don't run into her. That would make for an awkward conversation."

He heard Tom stand from his seat and approach him, "Not if they think she's just another animal skulking around among the usual wildlife." Harry breathed in deeply as Riddle sat beside him; a large hand threaded through his wild locks.

The teen tilted his head to meet Tom's gaze, which was staring down at him softly. He flushed as the man leaned down to kiss him. Harry shyly raised his hands up to brush along Tom's shoulders. A hand moved to the nape of his neck and gripped his hair to pull his head further back, deepening their kiss. Harry gave a muffled yelp, as he was picked up by his hips and raised farther up the bed until his head rested on the pillows. Tom crawled on top of him and thumbed the band of his boxers, whilst a warm dominating tongue distracted the lovely boy.

"Tom?" The lithe boy squirmed as his shirt was pushed up above his chest, and that hot mouth latched on to a nipple. He traveled downwards, slowly removing the teen's underwear.

"Shh, just lay back and relax...I'd like to try something with you. Will you let me?" The teen stared at him nervously for what felt like a long while before slowly nodding; deciding that he trusted him.

Harry shivered, as he felt the older man move low enough to nip at his thigh. The ravenette pushed up on his elbows enough to see what the dark lord was planning, "Tom what are you_?!" Harry fell back as his hands shot to his mouth to muffle a shout as that mouth engulfed him. "Ngh! Tom!" he practically screamed behind his hands as his former enemy spent the next few minutes enjoying the taste of him.

"Stop,...I'm going to-!" Harry gasped loudly as he reached his limit. Tom did not pull away. Then, he pushed himself up to hover over his boy, and wiped the side of his mouth off with a mischievous smirk. "Delicious."

Harry flushed nearly as red as those eyes that had watched him writhe. He self consciously buried his face into the pillow below him. Riddle was not having that though as he pulled the light beauty up and rolled them over so that Harry straddled him. "Don't hide Harry, you were so cute."

The boy glared petulantly at him, "Don't call me cute." He shifted slightly from the intimate position then froze when he felt something poke him. Glancing downwards and making sure his eyes were focused on anything but Tom's face. "What about you? Your still..." He nodded his head towards the man's arousal..

"Don't worry about it." The wizard told him, rubbing his hand up and down Harry's side gently.

Harry thought about it for a minute before he pushed up off the bed entirely. Ignoring the jelly feeling in his legs, he tried to give off an air of sudden confidence. He grabbed one of the pillows and walked around to Tom's side of the bed. Said wizard raised an eyebrow, "Are you going to try and smother me?"

Harry grinned and rolled his eyes. He tossed the pillow to the floor and knelt on top of it. "Just getting comfortable." He urged Tom to swing his legs over so that his feet were planted on either side of Harry. Tom looked down into the emerald eyes, quick to figure out what the ravenette wanted to do. "Harry you don't have to, if your not comfortable with the idea-"

"I...I want to try it."

The teen slowly reached for the waist banned of Tom's pants and pulled them down and off. He blushed as he realized Tom hadn't been wearing anything underneath and was directly faced with the man's member. Harry swallowed when he took in it's large hardened size. After mustering his courage once more, he finally reached forward to grasp the length. He shivered as he realized the one hand on it's own couldn't entirely wrap around this man's full girth.

Harry finally leaned down and experimentally licked the tip of Riddle's prick.

The man could no longer resist entangling his hands in Harry's hair, urging his mouth to go further down on him.

When Harry's moans started, muffled around him, Tom came undone. His climax reached before he could warn the ravenette or pull him off. Harry had wanted to try swallowing as Tom had, but was unprepared for the sudden flooding of fluid and flavor. A lot shot down his throat, some splashed against his tongue. The rest painted his lips and chin as he had to pull away. The taste sat in his mouth a moment. It wasn't amazing, but it wasn't really bad either. He swallowed the rest in his mouth and started licking the rest off his lips.

Tom finally pushed back up to see Harry licking up the evidence of his act. A spot of white still dribbled on the corner of his mouth. Riddle's crimson gaze seemed to flash brightly as he eyed the spot hungrily. He hauled the delectable boy onto his lap and licked that spot clean. Then he allowed his tongue to dive back into it's new favorite hiding place, Harry's sweet mouth, that now also tasted of himself.

Tom laid him down and curled around him comfortably; while lethargically kissing his neck and wrapping his arms around the smaller teen's waist. "That was perfect." he purred in his ear. The slowing, warm breaths on the Gryffindor's skin lulled Harry into darkness...

The green-eyed boy shot up as a loud and thunderous roar sounded out the window. He nearly jumped out of bed to get ready for a fight; when he realized that the sound had only been, in fact, thunder. He had never heard thunder that loud before. Tom, of course, was still sleeping like a baby beside him, utterly unaffected. A long arm still draped on Harry's lap. The teen sighed and sat back against the headboard, giving his heart a moment to calm down from the scare. Glancing at the clock on the end table he saw that it was 8 am. For him that was basically sleeping in. He raised his arms and stretched with a yawn. He made to get up and get ready for the day; but looking down at Tom and then back at the window that showed it was pouring outside, he decided against it and curled back in bed next to the man who lately made him feel more cared for than ever. It was a vacation after all.

Remember that reviews make the world go round!

I had wanted to include the last day of their trip in this chapter, but then I thought it would've been too long and would've taken even longer to write out. So I'll put it in the next chapter, which may be the last chapter.

Don't worry there will be a sequel.

Next: Last day at the resort...and could it be?... an Order member? Two members?! Oh my gawd they do exist!