Chapter Text
“How are you enjoying yourself so far?”
Severus glanced to the blond beside him and gave a small shrug, “Fine. It is the same as last year, wonderful as always.”
Lucius rolled his eyes and sighed, “I can never get a true reaction out of you, can I? Has anyone at least caught your eye? Maybe I could introduce you to someone for a dance? I know Narcissa would love to set you up with someone.”
With a cringe, Severus opened his mouth to speak, but then the most beautiful creature he had ever seen, or smell, walked by and he was for a second dizzy, with his only attention on you.
You didn’t look familiar at all, which puzzled Severus quite a bit. The soft flowery scent that was starting to dissipate from the air was a clear marker of your omega status, but you held yourself so well, he wouldn’t be surprised if you were actually an alpha. He was positive he would have remembered you.
An amused chuckle brought Severus out of his daze of trying to remember the way your hair laid against your forehead, or how your [color] robes hugged your body in the most perfect way, or how he could picture what you would feel like in his arms- he shook his head and turned his attention back to his friend.
“I see, of course, you wouldn’t go for anyone we already knew,” Severus hated the fact he could feel his cheeks heat up at the insinuation, “I suppose he is a good candidate, especially if you coming together ended in marriage. As a half-blood, we need to raise your ranks the best that we can if you ever want to mean something to Our Lord.”
“Lucius-” Severus tried to interrupt.
“I want none of that, I approve of him, therefore I shall make it happen,” He said with a smirk, “Now, do you wish to know about him or not?”
Severus sighed, and glanced over to where you were sat next to a slightly smaller girl chatting rather avidly, “Yes…”
“Very good,” The blond nodded, “His name if [Full Name], youngest of three of a lesser known French pure-blood family, and the only omega. His older sisters are both alphas. He is currently a 7th year at Beauxbatons, and I believe he has yet to decided on a future, but being the youngest, he gets time. My mother is close to his mother, so I’ve been in contact with him since I was little. We’re not necessarily friends, but friendlier than acquaintances, so I can easily introduce you to him or him to you.”
“I don’t know,” Severus started a bit unsure, he’s never really had someone draw his eye from his former infatuation with Lily Evans. “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt,” He eventually said.
Lucius grinned, “Wonderful,” He said and started leading his friend towards the omega.
-
Your sister stopped short when she noticed the two males heading towards them. If she were being honest with herself, she was wondering when they would make their way over.
As your escort for the party, she zoned in on the dark-haired wizard of the two as he had taken an interest into you, she blamed her protective alpha senses as your older sister kicking in, so she made sure to stay in one spot until they decided to approach. If you were to be approached by a possible suitor, she would much prefer to be present, as it was her duty as your sister and alpha escort for the night to do so.
With a confused air about you, you looked to where your older sister was staring and met the eyes of the two males, “Marie?” You murmured in a slightly worried tone. What was happening?
“Good evening, Miss. [Last Name],” Lucius said to your sister before looking at you, “Mr. [Last Name], Have you been enjoying yourselves?”
Your sister smile and nodded, the perfect image of an alpha pureblood heir, “Thank you, Mr. Malfoy, yes, I have to say this year seems absolutely better than the last. Your mother has really outdone herself, the place is beautiful.”
Lucius grinned, “Thank you, I will have to relay that back to her, she will be pleased with that. How is the evening fairing for you?” Lucius pointed the question towards you, “I believe this is the first year you have attended?”
“It’s my first outing since my presenting and coming of age,” You replied with a nod, your head slightly bowed as you acknowledged his status as alpha and of the family hosting the party, “And it is a lovely one at that.” You added simply to not make yourself too nervous by over-talking.
“That is good to hear,” Lucius smiled and changed his posture to gesture Severus to come forward, “May I introduce you to my closest friend, Severus Snape,” Both you and your sister smiled and nodded your heads towards him, “He’s on the road to becoming the youngest potion’s master this century,” Lucius practically beamed and clapped a hand on Severus’ shoulder in a rather regal manner.
“How interesting,” Marie said with a small twist of a smile tugging at her lips, “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Snape,” She started, “As much as I would love for these pleasantries to continue on a loop, I believe there is much left unsaid by this introduction,” She shot Lucius a sharp look that actually made the man stand a bit taller in defense. She may be only 5 foot 4 inches, but she was an alpha to the boot.
“Of course,” Lucius said a bit tense, “How many courtship offers have you received since your presenting? If I may ask,” Lucius said, making sure to direct his question towards you but never taking his eyes off your sister.
A flush warmed your cheeks at the question. Of course, it would be your own sister to make everything awkward and embarrassing, but you were a fool to think the night would go smoothly.
“One,” You replied, “The youngest Lestrange has made a proposal to my parents, but I refused,” You replied, “It was the day after the announcement of my secondary sex, and it disgusted me that he knew nothing of me and suddenly found me desirable because I presented as an omega. He didn’t want a normal courtship,” You seethed, but kept your frustration low, “He wanted a three-month immediate engagement, no courtship trial period at all. I think he just wanted an omega bride of good blood.” You sneered, now no longer hiding your disgust.
It then dawned on you that this was going to be a proposal of some sort.
You knew that the Malfoy heir was engaged to the youngest Black daughter, so you turned to glance up through your lashes at the other male.
Severus Snape, you mulled the name around in your head for a bit, it sounded vaguely familiar, but it could just be because of his stated genius with potions.
Though he wasn’t conventionally handsome, you did see the charm and the attractiveness to his dark looks and demeanor. He was tall too, which you seemed to always like in a partner, and at 5 foot 10 inches, it was sometimes difficult to find someone quite taller than you. And you decided you liked the mystery behind his dark obsidian eyes.
So you smiled and perked up at the idea, which was not missed by your dear sister.
“If I may,” Severus spoke for the first time, and decided again that you also liked the deep smoothness to his voice, it was alluring all in its own, “I asked for this introduction to know if I were to give a proposal of courtship, if I would have a chance or not. I know I do not know I have the best of upbringing, but I did not think it would hurt to try as my… interest has been peaked.”
There was something in the tone of his voice that made you blush and sputter in an undignified manner before your sister placed a soothing hand on your shoulder and squeezed slightly. You weren’t that in control of your pheromones at the moment, due to your nervousness and that squeeze was a warning. You glanced up at the two males and noticed their slightly flared nostrils and quickly gained control of yourself.
You looked to your sister on what to do next but then realized this was your call. You could say yes or no.
So you shared a look with Severus, a sweet and quick one before your instincts took over and you lowered your eyes in a submissive gesture, “I wouldn’t be averse to hearing you out before you approach my parents,” You said shyly and nibbled at your lip. A bad habit of yours.
Your sister stood with a faint smile, “I shall let you both talk, but I will be listening in and watching, so if I see anything I do not like, I will not hesitate to make a stop to it. Consider this your first and only warning,” You looked startled towards your sister, you have never quite heard such ferocity to her words as you did now.
Severus nodded and inclined his head towards the girl, he would never cross a protective sibling or alpha at that. It would be a stupid move. “Of course, warning noted and taken highly into consideration.”
Lucius offered his arm to Marie with a satisfied smile as she accepted and led her to an empty table only a few feet away, well within her heightened hearing. Severus took the seat your sister just vacated.
“If I may formally introduce myself,” Severus started, holding his hand out towards you, “Severus Snape.”
You smiled at the simple gesture and shook his hand, “[Full Name], nice to meet you. May I call you Severus? I know it is polite to call people by their surnames at these types of events, but…”
“You don’t need to say anymore,” Severus said with a small nearly invisible smile, “I understand, and yes, you can call me Severus. May I call you [First Name]?”
“Please do,” You nodded with your own smile. “So,” You started again, “Would you mind telling me a little bit about yourself? If you are going to start a courtship with me, I’d like to know if we would even get along.”
“Of course,” Severus started, “As Lucius stated before, I’m very close to getting my mastery in potions after I graduate. It’s something that I love to do and can find myself quite happy in it as a long time career. I’m not sure how much you know about Hogwarts, but I am apart of the Slytherin House.”
“I know a little,” You admitted, “Slytherins are known for their ambition, correct?” The alpha nodded, “And cunningness, is that a word? Besides that, that is useful information. So, potions? Even though I myself am rather good in the subject, it’s considered a difficult subject to master, so that is quite impressive that you will be the youngest master of the century.” You complimented.
“Thank you,”’ Severus said and looked a bit uncomfortable at the praise, as that was not the reaction he was expecting, “It is a finicky subject, but I enjoy the tediousness of the work because none of the hard work goes to waste. Plus there are always ways to improve potions, not just creating new ones.”
You nodded, smiling as you decided you liked the way his mind worked, “May I ask what you expect of me if we were to go through with courtship and maybe an eventual marriage?” You asked, getting right to the point as you had to know.
Severus mulled over in his head how he could answer that question. Knowing what the answer was, he just wasn’t sure how to word it.
“If you are meaning in the sense if I’ll keep you locked away at home, I’m not that type of Alpha. If you want a job or want to do things that I may not necessarily wish to join in, I won’t stop you from living a normal life,” He started with, wanting to make that clear, “You are not a pet, so I would never want to keep you like one. You would be my Mate, my husband, and those types of relationships are built on trust and equal partnerships, despite what are statues stated about us.“
A slow smile lifted to your lips, "Thank you, I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t going to be kept as a trophy. I think I would like for you to court me,” You said, “There is still much for us to learn about each other, but that is why we will need to court.”
“And the finer details can be smoothed out after I approach your parents,” Severus stated, “For once I am thankful I let myself be pushed by Lucius.”
“Me too,” You smiled and looked over to your sister who was smiling broadly at the two of you. She obviously was pleased by what Severus said and nodded to the two of you. “I believe that was approval from her for you to ask me to dance.”
Severus arched an eyebrow at you before he too looked over at your sister and received the same look. He gave you an amused look as he stood and offered you a hand, “Then I believe the next song has our name on it.”
You easily accepted his hand and stood, letting him lead you to the ballroom dance floor, pulling you against him and into the dancing and swaying bodies.
You don’t remember how many songs you danced together, too lost in each other to count. The trance the two of you created was only disrupted by your sister demanding a song with you before it was time to leave, which you of course allowed.
Severus made sure to catch you one last time before you left to ask when would be the best time to send a letter to ask your parents permission to court you.
“A week from today,” You beamed, “That will give me time to get Marie to talk to them and for me to warm them up to the idea. Sending it too early may be seen as too eager.”
“Alright, then expect my letter in a week,” He gave you a smile that you were sure was never shown quite often, it was charming and you couldn’t keep one off your face as well.
“I look forward to it, and seeing you again.” With that, you quickly headed towards your sister to where she was waiting with your international portkey.
Severus watched you go, savoring the small smile you gave him just before the portkey activated and took you back to France.
“I believe the two of you would look rather well together,” Narcissa said as Severus approached the two of them, “Plus with him being the youngest, you will be free to focus on your potions or whatever the two of you wish to do.”
“What exactly is his family known for?” Severus asked as he sat down across from the pair.
It was Lucius who explained, “His family owns multiple vineyards and wineries in northern France. I believe they have multiple international investments as well, but I do not know the details of those. His eldest sister is slowly taking over the majority of the business side of the wineries from their father. She married the youngest Selwyn daughter.”
Severus hummed in thought.
“That is also another thing, Severus,” Narcissa said with a grin, “He has two older Alpha sisters, and they are older than him by quite a few years. Marie is the second oldest at 26, making her 9 years older than [Name]. The eldest, Eloise, is 30 and known for being quite protective of her little brother. She nearly tore Rabastan’s head off when he went to offer an engagement for [Name].”
Severus masked his uncertain look with a look of contemplation. He was now going to have to win your heart, as well as your entire family’s heart it seemed.
“Then I will have to think of my words and actions very carefully if my courtship is accepted. Speaking of which, would the two of you assist me in picking out a first courting gift?” He knew the two of them would be more than happy to help.
“Yes!” Narcissa beamed, “We can go out tomorrow and look around to get some ideas. Oh, this is going to be such fun!”
“I thought you would enjoy the challenge,” Severus merely stated, “I believe I am going to turn for the night.”
The two nodded and bid a good night to Severus as he stood. He would need all the sleep he could get with going out with those two tomorrow.