Becoming Familiar with a Man of Misery

Chapter 82 ~ Two Snapes Too Much

Hermione walked into the nursery to find Raucous perched on the rail of Eli’s crib staring down at the baby in fascination. He had already examined Demetrius. Both chicks looked very much like his master, except for their beaks. Raucous thought that was a pity. He liked his master’s beak. It was a proper beak, nice and big.

Hermione looked at the raven studying her son and decided it was time to talk to the bird.

“Raucous?” she said tentatively.

The raven turned and half-spread his wings when she saw her. She was in the doorway, blocking his escape. He didn’t squawk because he didn’t want to wake the chicks.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to hex you. I want to talk to you,” she said to the raven.

Raucous lowered his wings but continued to look at the witch suspiciously.

Hermione walked slowly into the room.

“I’m going to sit down in the rocker, Raucous. I don’t want you to fly out the door. You need to hear this,” she said.

Raucous fluttered his wings a bit and glanced at the door, but he was curious as to what the witch would say. So he remained perched on the crib, turning to face her.

Severus who had been putting the finishing touches on his lab, walked into the house and headed for the bedroom to find his wife. Seeing it empty, he started for the nursery. He heard Hermione talking and paused outside the door. Who was she talking to? The babies?

“Raucous, Eli and Demetrius are babies now, but they won’t always be babies. They are going to grow up,” Hermione said to the raven, who was listening closely.

Severus realized she was having a heart to heart with Raucous. He leaned back against the wall to listen to how it would play out.

“And when they grow up, they are going to be very attached to both me and their father. They will also form attachments with Eli and probably you,” Hermione said.

Raucous fluttered his wings at this. He was looking forward to the chicks becoming big. They could have a lot of wicked fun together.

“What you have to understand, Raucous…is they are going to be very attached to me. If they see you doing bad things to me, they aren’t going to like you. No child would like anyone who did bad things to their mother,” Hermione explained, “And if they see me hexing you, then they are going to believe it is all right to hex you too. So not only will they not like you, they will attack you like I do.”

Raucous frowned at this, though Hermione couldn’t tell. The raven didn’t want his master’s chicks to dislike him and hex him. He let out a low caw at the witch. Demetrius wriggled a bit, but remained asleep.

Hermione looked at the bird.

“What we need to do, Raucous, is call a truce. It’s the only way we will have a happy family. It’s not just us anymore, now we have to be examples for Demetrius and Eli. Good examples. We have to get along if you want to be a positive part of their lives. You’ll never have their affection or respect if you don’t agree we stop this war between us. Severus belongs to both of us in a way…you are linked to him through your bond as his familiar, and I am tied to him through marriage and our sons. Neither of us is going anywhere. So what do you say, Raucous? War or peace?”

Raucous bowed his head in defeat. It was over. For the sake of the chicks he would have to leave the witch alone. But then again, dodging Hermione was pretty exhausting. She was very sneaky and her hexes were getting worse. Just before she had the chicks she had managed to roll up on him and give him two extra wings. He couldn’t fly or show his face for days. Plus mating season was approaching. If he were hexed, he’d miss out on all the choice plumage out there. He didn’t want that. The raven looked up at Hermione then flew to her feet. It was the closest he had been to the witch since he had become Severus’ familiar. It meant truce.

Hermione nodded.

“A wise decision, Raucous,” she said to the dejected bird. “Don’t worry. I’m sure you will find plenty of other people to aggravate. There’s always Albus.”

Raucous brightened a bit. Yes, there was the Headmaster. Now that Severus commuted to the castle from home, Raucous could make their house his base of birdie operations. That way he could do his dirt to the old wizard and not worry about being thrown out of Hogwarts. There was the possibility of being hexed, but he could handle that. The hex factor was what made it so exciting. Then there was that sour-faced witch who turned into a cat and the annoying one with the big glittering glasses and trailing multi-colored scarves. Raucous had wanted to plant one on that piece of work from the moment he saw her. Maybe the truce with Hermione wouldn’t be so bad. He saw the potential for expansion.

He squawked at the witch and nodded. The war was over. Peace had been made. With Raucous at least.

Severus quietly went back to their bedroom. He was glad the two finally had come to an understanding. He sat down on the edge of his bed. He and Hermione had something to settle as well. He was ready for ‘piece’ too.

“Eli!” he called.

The elf winked in immediately.

“Yes Master?” the elf squeaked.

“I need you to go tell the Mistress I want her. You will be watching the boys for the rest of the night,” the Potions Master said. “Whatever comes up, handle it. I don’t want to be disturbed unless it is an absolute emergency.”

Eli nodded.

“Yes, Master,” the elf said. Then Eli looked at him with a lascivious mien. “Is you finally going to give the Mistress the in-outie, Master?”

Severus looked startled. How did the elf know he wasn’t fucking his wife?

“That’s what I plan, Eli…but how did you know we weren’t engaging in …in the in-outie?” he asked.

“Oh sir, most easy to tell sir. The Mistress is very short sir. Very mean and tight. Not loose, sir. Not happy. On the verge of hexing, sir,” Eli said trembling a little.

“Like when she was pregnant, Eli?” Severus asked him with a smirk.

“Not so bad, Master…but close,” the elf replied.

“She will be in better spirits come morning, Eli. Maybe walking funny, but in much better spirits, ” the Potions Master assured the little elf.

“That is good sir. You wants me to get her now, sir?” Eli asked as Severus rose from the bed and started unbuttoning his robes.

“Give me a chance to get into the shower, Eli, then go tell her I need her,” Severus said, walking toward the bathroom and entering it.

“Yes sir,” Eli said smiling.

The Mistress was going to be very happy. Walking funny, but very, very happy.

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Remus returned with the wine list and the dinner menu. He handed Isadora the wine list and stood to the side of her as she perused it.

What was the witch up to? Obviously she arranged this meal so she could talk to him without his leaving. If he did leave, it could cost him his job. She effectively had him in her control.

Remus also knew that Isadora was not in business mode. She had been suggestive with him concerning him obeying her commands, her voice dropping to a low purr that went straight to his loins. He had been in the process of getting a raging erection when she let him leave to retrieve the wine list. Only by thinking of Albus and Minerva naked had he managed to deflate before re-entering the dining room.

He noticed immediately that she had removed her shoes, her delicate feet crossed at the ankles as she read over the wine list. His eyes fell on the low cut of her dress, and the full cleavage peeking out, then swept over her waist and the flare of her hips. Remus leg began to vibrate a bit, and with an effort he stopped it.

“I’ll have a dry sherry before the meal, Remus,” she said to the werewolf, “but leave the wine list. I’ll decide what I will have with dinner when I choose what I will eat,” she said.

“Very good, Isadora,” Remus said, bowing before he handed her the dinner menu and exited to retrieve the wine.

Isadora opened the menu and scanned what was offered. None of the meals were suitable. She would just substitute then. She loved vegetables. Hmm. Steamed asparagus and carrots. Steak, medium rare, celery sticks, veggie dip, strawberries and chocolate dip. Perfect. And the wine? Hm.steak. That called for Cabernet Sauvignon.

Remus returned with her sherry, setting it before her and again stood to the side of her attentively.

“Have you decided what you will have for dinner, Isadora?” he asked her.

“Yes,” Isadora responded, taking a sip of the sherry. She looked up at the werewolf. His eyes were gentle as always, though they also looked a bit troubled.

“Remus, you look out of sorts,” she said, sipping her drink.

“I don’t understand this. Or you,” he said, “I told you today I needed to be away from you, and you do this. Arrange for me to be in your presence…when I told you, ” he stated before Isadora cut him off.

“I invested a lot of time in you Remus, and you just walked out on me. Do you do that to everyone who shows an interest in your welfare? I was counting on you to help me with my workload, not just gain experience for yourself. And you just left me high and dry. Severus warned me you wouldn’t stick with it…” Isadora said

“What?” Remus said, his eyes showing anger for the first time since Isadora had met him.

Severus said I was wasting my time trying to help you and bring you onboard. That you have no strength of character and you would abandon the training like you abandon everything else in your life,” Isadora informed him. “He almost made me sound like I was a fool to want to help you. Now I feel like one. I haven’t told him he was right yet. But I will have to tell him. I know he’s going to gloat.”

Isadora was stretching the truth just a bit, hoping that Remus would not be pleased he fulfilled Severus’ prediction. She was also piling on the guilt. She was a mother all right.

Remus scowled.

“Let me take your order to the kitchen, then we will talk while your food is being prepared,” he said, a frown on his face.

Isadora told him, and the werewolf left quickly. In a moment he was back. He walked over to the other chair.

“May I sit down, Isadora?” he asked her.

She nodded.

Remus sat and looked at her for several moments, his face passive. Then he spoke.

“Severus is wrong. I did not leave because of a weakness of character, Isadora. I left because I believed it was the safest route, not just for myself but for you as well. I told you I am attracted to you. I’m a werewolf, Isadora…unfit for any witch. And even if I were not a werewolf, I am still out of your league. And there are other things about me…that make relations with a witch impossible.”

“If I were to continue working with you, I would be tormenting myself…my attraction would only continue to grow until the point I wouldn’t be able to contain myself. I’ve been through this before, Isadora. The best thing for me to do is to leave you to your life. It has nothing to do with me not wanting to finish my training. It was a wonderful opportunity and I am sorry I have to pass on it. It could have made things so much easier,” he said trying to make the witch understand.

What he was telling her was tearing him up inside, and the pain was evident in his eyes.

“Remus, let’s say for the sake of argument I was attracted to you also…” Isadora said.

Remus eyes went wide for a moment. He looked shocked.

“Let’s just say that…what would be your reaction to me then?” Isadora asked him.

The werewolf swallowed.

“I…I would still wish to stay away from you, Isadora. Even more so,” he said softly.

“Why?” she asked him gently, “Why, if I were willing to accept you, even with your malady?”

“Because you have no idea what you would be accepting, that’s why,” he said, an edge of bitterness in his voice. “Suffice it to say, I don’t have to transform to be an animal, Isadora.”

He stood up.

“I don’t what to discuss this. I’m going to retrieve your dinner,” Remus said, exiting the room quickly.

Isadora sighed. That hadn’t gone well, tantalizing as it had been. He had pretty much confirmed that what Hermione told her about his sexuality was true. But he had a wall up that didn’t seem to want to crumble in the slightest. It was a strong wall, built on a foundation of fear. What else could she do?

Isadora put her elbow on the table and rested her chin in her, drumming her fingers against her cheek.

“Think, witch…think,” she said to herself.

The door opened and Remus appeared with her meal. His face was set as he placed the plate on the table before her and a carafe of Cabernet Sauvignon.

“I’ll bring your dessert when you are finished with your main course,” he said. “Will there be anything else before you dine, Isadora?”

The witch looked at him speculatively. He obviously didn’t want to talk anymore.

“Yes, Remus…there is,” she said.

The wizard looked at her in askance, waiting to hear what she wanted him to do. When she didn’t speak, he pressed her.

“What else do you want, Isadora?” he asked.

Isadora’s dark eyes became even darker.

“For you to feed me, Remus,” she replied softly.

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A/N: Hm. Two rather sexy situations at once. Can my keyboard handle it? I already need to take a nap. Lol. Please review.

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The Burning Pen

Becoming Familiar with a Man of Misery
by Ruth Solomon

The story content is adult in nature and can contain graphic sex and violence. Those under the age of 18 are asked to leave this site immediately. You are not welcome here. The author is not responsible for those under-aged who view these works.

CHAPTER 83

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to JKR. All situations are mine. No $$$ is being made from this fanfic.
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