Blood Allegiances
November 24, 1997
“Hey, murderer! Visitor’s for yah!”
“Tell them they can bloody well turn around and go back up the steps if they’re Potter or any of his posse,” snarled a bedraggled Severus Snape from the floor of his cell in the lowest floor of the Ministry in response to the Auror’s jibe. He then was startled onto his feet by the voice that responded to his harsh statement.
“Why, Unc,” said a shadowy figure as it entered the single cell room he was being held in, “is that any way to greet your favorite nephew? I mean, calling me Potter…I think I should be insulted.”
Xander stepped into full view of his uncle’s gaze and smiled, continuing, “C’mon, would a Potter have my stunning good looks?”
Severus stared at him for a moment before reaching one arm through the bars of his cell. The teenager stepped forward and the two embraced through the cold steel that held him captive. As they pulled back, the elder male took a moment to look at his nephew. He was taller than he remembered and a bit more filled out but there was also a darkness lingering underneath the cheerful visage the young man kept up to hide his true feelings and unhappy family life. The pair of robes he was wearing over jeans and a dark sweater also didn’t go unnoticed.
“Where did you get robes?” he asked, finally regaining his voice. “And drop the mask, boy. There’s no point in hiding in front of me and you know it.”
The mask wavered for a moment, allowing him to glance his nephew’s nervousness and worry for a split second. Xander then shook his head and said, “No can do, Unc. If we were on our lonesome without the Watchdog’s wandering about you know I’d do it in a heartbeat. And as to the robes…well, I brought a little company. Hope you don’t mind.”
Severus frowned then nearly had a heart attack when he looked over his nephew’s shoulder and into the eyes of a man he’d never thought he’d see again.
“Dear Merlin…Rupe.”
“Verus,” greeted Giles, his eyes cold. He looked at the man behind the bars for a moment before anger suffused his being and he snarled, “Bloody hell, Severus, what were you thinking?!”
“Of my godson and of every vow I ever made to Albus,” replied the captive man. He shook his head and dropped his gaze to the floor, unable to meet the eyes of the man he’d looked up to as a child. Hell, still looked up to. “It wasn’t something I wanted to do, Rupe. The old coot was a nuisance, sure, and downright insane but he had my respect!”
“Which got him killed.”
Xander stepped forward as his uncle started to speak again, cutting into the conversation with dark eyes flashing.
“Don’t even go there, Giles,” he growled. “I only agreed to let you come here if you didn’t accuse Uncle Sev of murdering Dumbledore in cold blood. Now that you’ve gone back on your word, I’m gonna nicely ask you to go outside and let family have a chat.”
Giles turned a full-on Ripper glower on the young man, who didn’t bat an eyelash in response. After a moment he sighed and muttered a brief apology before mounting the stairs out of the room. Xander waited until he was certain he was gone before he turned back to his uncle.
“Sorry, Unc. I was certain he wouldn’t go back on his word…”
Severus shook his head and said, “Don’t apologize, Xander. I deserve every bit of ridicule he decides to give me. Merlin help me, I joined the Death Eater’s to get his attention after his father pulled him out of school into the Watcher’s.”
“You mean when he was doing the teenage rebellion thing only with black sorcery and stuff?”
The older man stared in shock and the younger grinned.
“Let’s just say there were some issues with a few old pals of G-man’s a while back and leave it at that.”
“Oh, I bet he adores that nickname,” drawled Severus. Then he frowned and asked, “Seriously, Alex, what are you doing here?”
Xander winced, knowing that the time for joking was over. His uncle had been the first one to shorten his name into what it was now and Wills and Jess has taken their cue from him. When the man who had made up that name called him either by his full name or its usual shortened version he knew that either the jig was up or playtime was over. Generally both.
“Apparently your attorney thought I’d be useful in helping your case,” replied the teenager as he leaned casually against a wall. “Though how the heck he found me is a good question. ‘Cause I know you’ve never told anybody about me and Grandmother never knew.”
Severus shook his head and replied, “I’ll be sure to demand an answer to that out of him the next time I speak with him…which is likely to be today or tomorrow. Though I also cannot think of what use you would be in this.”
“Maybe he thinks I can convince the jury you’re really nothing but a big fuzzy puppy?”
“Alex…”
“Yeah, yeah, I know, cut the jokes down. Sorry, Unc. All the cloak ‘n dagger speak and such is giving me a serious wiggins.”
A dark eyebrow arched and Severus said, “A what?”
“Uh, wiggins,” replied Xander. “Wills came up with it. You remember her, right?”
“Your red-headed little friend? The Jewish one that babbles incessantly.”
“That’s my Wills.”
“And what of your other friend? The boy that was always telling you I was a vampire in jest.”
Xander winced at that and Severus frowned.
“Xander?” he queried, his voice dropping into a gentle octave most people wouldn’t have thought he could achieve. “What happened?”
“You’ve heard of the Slayer, right?” asked the teenager, avoiding the question. “Y’know, She-Who-Hunts-The-Creepies-Of-The-Night?”
“All wizards hear about the Slayer at some point in time. But those of the Dark are generally the only one’s that believe she actually exists. Why do you ask?”
“I’ve met her. I slay vampires with her. Hell, I brought her back to life via CPR when the Master tried to fulfill a prophecy that said she helped him get out of the hole he was trapped in. It was sweet to watch her take his ass out like the Slayer should.”
Severus’ dark eyes widened at that and he said, “Her Watcher allows this?”
Xander laughed outright at that and explained, “Uncle Sev, Giles is her Watcher. And he didn’t have much choice in the matter. After what happened with Jess, me ‘n Wills wouldn’t stay out or it.”
“What happened?”
“He got turned. I took him out myself. Hurt like hell, but I did it.” Xander shook his head as he added, “I couldn’t let him live like that. Not with that demon inside him.”
“And now you’re risking your life to help a girl that doesn’t need your help?”
“Guess it runs in the family, dun’it?” quipped the teenager, looking pointedly at his uncle. “Risking our lives, that is.”
“At least you got into risking your life for a good reason.”
“Hey, you may have gotten into it for a stupid reason but you did help people because of that.”
Severus shook his head and muttered, “It wasn’t enough.” He looked at his nephew then and said, “Go home, Xander. If you testify in my favor, you’ll never get another moment of peace again. The press will hound you like rabid dogs for being a blood relation of mine.”
Xander laughed bitterly at that.
“And what makes you think I get a moment of peace at home?” he asked. “I fight vampires in my spare time, recently had a date with a life-sucking mummy, got possessed by a soldier on Halloween because of a bit of chaos magic, and then had a run-in with a demon that G-man summoned whilst in his sorcery days. Home on the Hellmouth and peace don’t even run on the same tracks, Unc.”
“I suppose that’s the end of that then.” Severus smirked - which was a shadow of it’s former self, much like it’s owner - and said, “You always were stubborn.”
“Learned from the best.”
“Indeed you did.”
The sound of heavy footsteps coming down the stairs caused both of them to fall silent and they weren’t surprised when an Auror appeared, his wand clenched in a tight fist as he glared venom at Severus. He turned that glare on Xander a moment later and growled, “Visiting time’s over, kid.”
The teenager bristled at the tone but only narrowed his eyes and nodded sharply at the Auror. He then turned back to his uncle and said, “I’ll see you later, Unc.”
Severus nodded, dark eyes focused on his nephew’s face instead of the Auror’s, and said, “I look forward to it. And be careful, boy.”
Though the words weren’t said with a bit of feeling behind them because of the presence of the Ministry officer, Xander knew that it was there. He had spent enough time around his uncle to know the man cared about him.
“I will,” he promised before he mounted the stairs with the glaring Auror right behind him, wand trained on his back. As they entered the area above the cells, Giles walked over to Xander and the teenager could see the apology in his eyes before he even spoke. Holding up a hand, he cut him off before he started. “I know, G-man. No need to apologize.”
The librarian blinked at him then asked, “How did you know…”
“Could see it in your eyes.”
“Ah. Have you always been this observant?”
Xander nodded slightly as they entered the lift that would take them back up to the main floor of the Ministry building. He picked at a fraying string on the robes Giles had loaned him as he replied, “Uncle Sev taught me how to do it. Most people don’t notice ‘cause of my goof reputation.”
No, son, thought Giles as they left the lift and headed towards the exit. No one noticed at all.
“Hey, murderer! Visitor’s for yah!”
“Tell them they can bloody well turn around and go back up the steps if they’re Potter or any of his posse,” snarled a bedraggled Severus Snape from the floor of his cell in the lowest floor of the Ministry in response to the Auror’s jibe. He then was startled onto his feet by the voice that responded to his harsh statement.
“Why, Unc,” said a shadowy figure as it entered the single cell room he was being held in, “is that any way to greet your favorite nephew? I mean, calling me Potter…I think I should be insulted.”
Xander stepped into full view of his uncle’s gaze and smiled, continuing, “C’mon, would a Potter have my stunning good looks?”
Severus stared at him for a moment before reaching one arm through the bars of his cell. The teenager stepped forward and the two embraced through the cold steel that held him captive. As they pulled back, the elder male took a moment to look at his nephew. He was taller than he remembered and a bit more filled out but there was also a darkness lingering underneath the cheerful visage the young man kept up to hide his true feelings and unhappy family life. The pair of robes he was wearing over jeans and a dark sweater also didn’t go unnoticed.
“Where did you get robes?” he asked, finally regaining his voice. “And drop the mask, boy. There’s no point in hiding in front of me and you know it.”
The mask wavered for a moment, allowing him to glance his nephew’s nervousness and worry for a split second. Xander then shook his head and said, “No can do, Unc. If we were on our lonesome without the Watchdog’s wandering about you know I’d do it in a heartbeat. And as to the robes…well, I brought a little company. Hope you don’t mind.”
Severus frowned then nearly had a heart attack when he looked over his nephew’s shoulder and into the eyes of a man he’d never thought he’d see again.
“Dear Merlin…Rupe.”
“Verus,” greeted Giles, his eyes cold. He looked at the man behind the bars for a moment before anger suffused his being and he snarled, “Bloody hell, Severus, what were you thinking?!”
“Of my godson and of every vow I ever made to Albus,” replied the captive man. He shook his head and dropped his gaze to the floor, unable to meet the eyes of the man he’d looked up to as a child. Hell, still looked up to. “It wasn’t something I wanted to do, Rupe. The old coot was a nuisance, sure, and downright insane but he had my respect!”
“Which got him killed.”
Xander stepped forward as his uncle started to speak again, cutting into the conversation with dark eyes flashing.
“Don’t even go there, Giles,” he growled. “I only agreed to let you come here if you didn’t accuse Uncle Sev of murdering Dumbledore in cold blood. Now that you’ve gone back on your word, I’m gonna nicely ask you to go outside and let family have a chat.”
Giles turned a full-on Ripper glower on the young man, who didn’t bat an eyelash in response. After a moment he sighed and muttered a brief apology before mounting the stairs out of the room. Xander waited until he was certain he was gone before he turned back to his uncle.
“Sorry, Unc. I was certain he wouldn’t go back on his word…”
Severus shook his head and said, “Don’t apologize, Xander. I deserve every bit of ridicule he decides to give me. Merlin help me, I joined the Death Eater’s to get his attention after his father pulled him out of school into the Watcher’s.”
“You mean when he was doing the teenage rebellion thing only with black sorcery and stuff?”
The older man stared in shock and the younger grinned.
“Let’s just say there were some issues with a few old pals of G-man’s a while back and leave it at that.”
“Oh, I bet he adores that nickname,” drawled Severus. Then he frowned and asked, “Seriously, Alex, what are you doing here?”
Xander winced, knowing that the time for joking was over. His uncle had been the first one to shorten his name into what it was now and Wills and Jess has taken their cue from him. When the man who had made up that name called him either by his full name or its usual shortened version he knew that either the jig was up or playtime was over. Generally both.
“Apparently your attorney thought I’d be useful in helping your case,” replied the teenager as he leaned casually against a wall. “Though how the heck he found me is a good question. ‘Cause I know you’ve never told anybody about me and Grandmother never knew.”
Severus shook his head and replied, “I’ll be sure to demand an answer to that out of him the next time I speak with him…which is likely to be today or tomorrow. Though I also cannot think of what use you would be in this.”
“Maybe he thinks I can convince the jury you’re really nothing but a big fuzzy puppy?”
“Alex…”
“Yeah, yeah, I know, cut the jokes down. Sorry, Unc. All the cloak ‘n dagger speak and such is giving me a serious wiggins.”
A dark eyebrow arched and Severus said, “A what?”
“Uh, wiggins,” replied Xander. “Wills came up with it. You remember her, right?”
“Your red-headed little friend? The Jewish one that babbles incessantly.”
“That’s my Wills.”
“And what of your other friend? The boy that was always telling you I was a vampire in jest.”
Xander winced at that and Severus frowned.
“Xander?” he queried, his voice dropping into a gentle octave most people wouldn’t have thought he could achieve. “What happened?”
“You’ve heard of the Slayer, right?” asked the teenager, avoiding the question. “Y’know, She-Who-Hunts-The-Creepies-Of-The-Night?”
“All wizards hear about the Slayer at some point in time. But those of the Dark are generally the only one’s that believe she actually exists. Why do you ask?”
“I’ve met her. I slay vampires with her. Hell, I brought her back to life via CPR when the Master tried to fulfill a prophecy that said she helped him get out of the hole he was trapped in. It was sweet to watch her take his ass out like the Slayer should.”
Severus’ dark eyes widened at that and he said, “Her Watcher allows this?”
Xander laughed outright at that and explained, “Uncle Sev, Giles is her Watcher. And he didn’t have much choice in the matter. After what happened with Jess, me ‘n Wills wouldn’t stay out or it.”
“What happened?”
“He got turned. I took him out myself. Hurt like hell, but I did it.” Xander shook his head as he added, “I couldn’t let him live like that. Not with that demon inside him.”
“And now you’re risking your life to help a girl that doesn’t need your help?”
“Guess it runs in the family, dun’it?” quipped the teenager, looking pointedly at his uncle. “Risking our lives, that is.”
“At least you got into risking your life for a good reason.”
“Hey, you may have gotten into it for a stupid reason but you did help people because of that.”
Severus shook his head and muttered, “It wasn’t enough.” He looked at his nephew then and said, “Go home, Xander. If you testify in my favor, you’ll never get another moment of peace again. The press will hound you like rabid dogs for being a blood relation of mine.”
Xander laughed bitterly at that.
“And what makes you think I get a moment of peace at home?” he asked. “I fight vampires in my spare time, recently had a date with a life-sucking mummy, got possessed by a soldier on Halloween because of a bit of chaos magic, and then had a run-in with a demon that G-man summoned whilst in his sorcery days. Home on the Hellmouth and peace don’t even run on the same tracks, Unc.”
“I suppose that’s the end of that then.” Severus smirked - which was a shadow of it’s former self, much like it’s owner - and said, “You always were stubborn.”
“Learned from the best.”
“Indeed you did.”
The sound of heavy footsteps coming down the stairs caused both of them to fall silent and they weren’t surprised when an Auror appeared, his wand clenched in a tight fist as he glared venom at Severus. He turned that glare on Xander a moment later and growled, “Visiting time’s over, kid.”
The teenager bristled at the tone but only narrowed his eyes and nodded sharply at the Auror. He then turned back to his uncle and said, “I’ll see you later, Unc.”
Severus nodded, dark eyes focused on his nephew’s face instead of the Auror’s, and said, “I look forward to it. And be careful, boy.”
Though the words weren’t said with a bit of feeling behind them because of the presence of the Ministry officer, Xander knew that it was there. He had spent enough time around his uncle to know the man cared about him.
“I will,” he promised before he mounted the stairs with the glaring Auror right behind him, wand trained on his back. As they entered the area above the cells, Giles walked over to Xander and the teenager could see the apology in his eyes before he even spoke. Holding up a hand, he cut him off before he started. “I know, G-man. No need to apologize.”
The librarian blinked at him then asked, “How did you know…”
“Could see it in your eyes.”
“Ah. Have you always been this observant?”
Xander nodded slightly as they entered the lift that would take them back up to the main floor of the Ministry building. He picked at a fraying string on the robes Giles had loaned him as he replied, “Uncle Sev taught me how to do it. Most people don’t notice ‘cause of my goof reputation.”
No, son, thought Giles as they left the lift and headed towards the exit. No one noticed at all.