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It was the perfect present. Not only would it make the recipient very happy but maybe the rest of them would finally accept them as a couple and not continue acting as though he meant to harm the werewolf. Then there was the recognition, once he published his finding, he would be applauded as the person who eradicated lycanthropy. He’d be remembered forever. Then there were monetary rewards. All in all, he’d win whichever way you looked at it and it wasn’t like he’d failed. After all, he’d never failed to develop a potion once he’d set his mind to it before and if a dim wit like Gibbons could come up with a potion that inhibited the change then surely he, with his skill, could develop something that would cure it once and for all.
So he researched, if it had any reference to lycanthropy then he read it. He was currently the proud owner of some very rare and very expensive tomes. He’d also taken out a subscription to the Quibbler, amazingly, it’d provided some interesting information. His stock of ingredients had also increased as he had examined every possibility. He crushed, he sliced, he diced, and he blended. If there was a way of preparing a potion ingredient he tried it. Different cauldrons, different knives, different pestles, if it was a possibility, he tried it. Everything. He was at the end of his tether and all he had to show was a wolfsbane potion that was better tasting and caused fewer side effects. The only consolation he had was proof that Gibbons really was a dunderhead who should not be left near a cauldron, let alone mass produce a potion for release to the general populace.
The question now was what he was going to get as a present. There were only so many books a person could read, chocolates they could eat (though in Remus’s case that was debatable) and clothes they could wear. Whatever he got would have to be special since he’d missed the party, plus he thought he might already be in the dog house, given the amount of time he’d devoted to this project. A situation that would have been solved if things had gone as planned. He could still see it in his minds eye, sweeping into the party, in front of everyone with a smoking goblet and announcing…
“You’re missing my party. I hope you have a good excuse as why you’re hiding out here?”
No, that wasn’t part of the scenario. Snape left his head sink dejectedly onto his hands.
“I didn’t get you a birthday present.”
“That’s why you’re avoiding me? Because you didn’t get me a present? ”
“Not you, everyone else. They’ll see it as a sign that I’m neglecting you. Another black mark against me and another reason why we shouldn’t be together, since I mistreated you so much that I’d forget your birthday”
Warm hands settled onto his shoulders, began rubbing some of the tension from his shoulders. Involuntarily, he relaxed.
“I don’t care about presents, I’d rather have you there.”
“I failed”
The grip on his shoulder tightened before he felt himself being turned to meet the concerned Remus’ concerned. Avoiding eye contact, Snape instead studied his shoes.
“At what exactly?”
“I wanted to discover a cure for lycanthropy so you wouldn’t be a werewolf anymore and go through the change. I also thought that, well life would be a bit easier for you if you were no longer condemned as a monster. Except nothing works and now I’ve nothing for your birthday”
The hands moved from his shoulders to cup his face.
“Severus, does it bother you that I’m a werewolf? Does it affect us being together? Do you not want to be with a monster as you put it?”
“NO, I just hate seeing you in pain. I hate the way when you go when other people write letters or say things. I wanted to make it all stop. I also thought that if I could do this for you then I thought everyone would stop wondering why you’re settling for me when there are other people out there far more acceptable then a snarky git”
“Severus, I don’t care what other people think, all that matters is what you think. If you say that my being werewolf doesn’t affect how you feel about me then that’s all that matters. I don’t want other people, I happen to think you’re quite handsome and more importantly you’re mine a fact I’m very happy with. Though I would appreciate it, if you could grace me with your presence more often.
“But I still failed”
“I appreciate the thought. However, I’m not sure if I would take a cure if it became available. I’ve been a werewolf so long it’s an integral part of me. I’m not sure who I’d be without the wolf. Now are you going to join my party and share some birthday cake?”
“It’s not a complete loss, I have managed to improve the flavour and shelf life of the wolfsbane. It’s now a weekly dose as opposed to a daily one.”
“Excellent”
“Plus Gibbons should be banned from brewing and I intend to publish my findings to support this theory.”
“There’s the Severus I know and love. Now come and have some cake, you can make up being late and the lack of present later.”
“How about we skip the cake and I make it up to you now?”
“As much as I like that idea , What would our guests think?”
“That the evil potion master has abducted their beloved werewolf. No doubt they’d mount a rescue attempt. Very well, I will make an appearance but don’t expect me to be sociable.”
“Never, I wouldn’t want the shock of such an occurrence to kill off our guests.”
Fin