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“Go, you disgrace! And don’t come back until you’ve made enough money for our food!”
Severus rolled his eyes at his father’s words. More like his alcohol. But still, he obliged. It was better to listen than to endure beatings and cold nights locked outside of the house.
Severus grabbed the basket of medicinal herbs that his town had harvested and forced onto him. After all, no one else wanted to walk through the large dense forest that separated them and the closest village.
Severus didn’t want to go either, but he didn’t have a choice.
Before exiting the house, he put the basket down and, while wrinkling his nose, grabbed his bright red cloak. He hated the thing, but it was the sole item that prevented the other town from trying to kill him on site when he was first visible at the edge of their woods.
Tying the strings of the cloak around him, he picked up the basket and left the house, closing the door behind him. He heard the large wooden lock slam shut behind him and he sighed. He knew his father wouldn’t let him in unless he sold every single bit of herbs he had.
He walked towards the forest. He and his father were outcasts in his village, as such they were forced to reside closest to the forest. No one liked them, but they tolerated them because Severus was the one that they could force to go through the forest. After all, why send someone you care about when you could send the stranger?
That day was not a good day to walk through the forest. Severus cursed as a branch hit him across the face. The strong winds were causing the trees to sway and their branches to become weapons against him. He started pushing branches away from him harshly, not bothering to care about the trees. They responded by whipping back and smacking him. He simply did not have the strength to push the branches away, so he had to resort to ducking under them and finding alternative routes to continue down his path.
He was tired. So tired of this journey again and again. Seeing people in the other town glare at him when he tried selling the herbs. He was lucky that they needed the herbs otherwise he was sure they’d never give him money. No one was welcoming.
Severus was so bothered by the trees whipping around him that he barely noticed, but he straightened, eyes wide and alert once he realized. He felt the hairs on his neck rise.
He wasn’t alone. Someone- or something- was watching him.
Severus knew that beasts existed in that forest. That’s why he was sent opposed to anyone else. But he had never encountered anything more than a stray hare while traversing, and they were likely to simply ignore him.
However, there was another category of being that typically didn’t live in the woods, but traveled through them often. They felt at home there.
He had never met a half-beast before. They were rare, but not unheard of. He had only heard of them in passing stories he overheard. Tales of people meeting them and never being seen again, though Severus would always chalk it up to superstition.
Often, they were considered more beastly than actual animals. The characteristics of beasts with the intelligence of humans. A dangerous combination.
Regardless, Severus had no proof it was a half-beast. Just because that ran through his mind doesn’t mean it wasn’t actually a wolf that would attack him.
Not hearing anything more, Severus cautiously continued, moving forward carefully while looking around, to the sides and behind him, trying to capture everything in his line of sight. In doing so, he ended up missing when something moved in front of him.
Severus looked forward and stepped back without thinking, extremely shocked. From behind the trunk of a tree slid out something he’d never thought he’d see…
A half-beast.
Severus took in everything he could, unable to move, trying to figure out how much of a threat the other was.
He honestly looked like just a normal man. But there were slight differences. This man was wearing only pants, and it was clear to Severus that his muscular frame and defined abs came naturally to him. He was tan, a far cry from the people he was used to in their always cloudy village. He had messy brown hair, handsome facial features, and even had a pair of glasses resting on his nose!
But Severus has already noticed the telltale sign that the man wasn’t fully human: adorning his head were large, branching antlers.
Severus straightened when he saw the other smile. “What do you want?”
The other man chuckled lightly. “What is this hostility? I just want to talk.”
Severus breathed in hard. “Talking is not something I do often. Besides, I’m busy right now.”
“Ah yes,” the man said, putting his hands behind his head. “Out to sell those herbs for your village?”
Severus wanted to hide any emotion from showing, but he couldn’t help but let out a gasp.
This man had been watching him.
Severus bristled. “I need to go.” And tried to move around the man. Unfortunately for him, the man moved to stand in front of him again.
The man was still smiling, but Severus was put off by his eyes. They were hazel, with gold in them, but they were looking at him with an expression he hadn’t seen in human eyes before.
It was predatory.
Severus started attempting to find a path that would get him away from this man. He didn’t know what the other wanted, but he felt it was better to not find out.
“Come on, I just want to have a conversation. Is that so bad? I find you quite… delectable. I’d love to poke around that head of yours.”
Severus subconsciously stepped back once more, abandoning his attempt to move around the other. “Delectable?”
The man put his hands behind his back and leaned forward slightly. “Well, yes. I’m sure it would be quite satisfying.”
Severus couldn’t take his eyes off his grin. It was wide, toothy. Alarming.
Severus was shaky as he spoke. “W-what do you want from me?”
Somehow the man grinned wider. “Hmm, that’s a question,” the man crossed his arms and brought his hand up to rub his chin, taking on an exaggerated inquisitive expression. Then he smiled wide once more. “Can’t a man just want to… consume another?”
At Severus’s continued worried stare, the man elaborated, eyes boring into Severus’s own.
“I want to devour you.”
Severus stared, speechless, then slowly gestured towards the other’s antlers. “You’re a stag.”
“And?”
Severus paused, bewildered. “Deer are vegetarian.”
The man just put his hand to the side, gesturing outwards, keeping the other one crossed. “So naive.” And he stepped forward, close enough for Severus to feel his breath on his skin.
“First rule of the forest: eat… or be eaten.”
And Severus just watched as the other man winked at him. Against his will, Severus found himself starting to blush.
What the fuck??
Severus gritted his teeth and pushed the man away. “Leave! Stay the fuck away from me!”
The man didn’t step forward. He raised his hands in surrender, but as he turned around, he spoke. “Alright. But you might want to remember that my name is James. I’m sure we’ll meet again.”
And then he was gone, the sounds of the trees whipping around in the wind the only thing present. It was like James had never been there.
Severus shook his head. Why was he referring to the half-beast by his name? But despite that, the memory of the other’s tan skin, deep rich voice, and that tone.
The blush did not go away.
Severus didn’t know how long he stood in place, breathing heavily. It felt like hours, though it was probably only a few minutes. Gulping, Severus straightened and started walking forward once more, the singular goal being his sole driving factor.
He had made it a bit farther, traveling through windy branches again, but clearly the world was against him. It started raining. And this wasn’t a light drizzle; it was torrential. Enough to knock anyone down as it teamed up with the wind.
Severus cursed and abandoned his plan of going to the village for now. He needed shelter, otherwise he’d never be able to go anywhere again. So he searched the forest, abandoning his familiar path and making his way through paths that were unfamiliar to him. He couldn’t care less about the idea of getting lost, he just needed to get out from under the rain.
After time wandering around where Severus became positively drenched, he stumbled onto a clearing. There was a garden of plants that Severus recognized, plants that gave enough vegetables that the owners wouldn’t need to go out for a while. Just past it was a tiny cottage, with lights on inside it. Severus felt slightly envious that it seemed like the residents did not have to interact with people often. Living alone sounded really nice at this point.
Severus could really care less about someone living there. He was going to get out of this rain by any means necessary, even if it meant barging into a family dinner.
Traversing past the garden, he made a grab for the handle, overjoyed to find that the door was unlocked. He swung it open and entered, the door swinging shut behind him from the strength of the wind, pushing him forward. Looking inside the house, he was bewildered to find… no one. The lights were on, but the dining room and kitchen were empty. Based on the size of the house, Severus estimated that there was only a bedroom left in the small cottage.
Seeing a coat rack, the first thing he did was shrug off his bright red coat and drape it onto a hook. It needed to dry somehow. He only wished he could do the same for his tunic and chausse. Grimacing at the drenched herbs in his basket, he deposited it onto the dining table. He’d grab it later.
He went into the kitchen. He was starving and didn’t really care about pillaging for food. If the owner came he’d explain himself.
But to his surprise… it seemed like there was nothing. No food in the first cabinets he checked. After throwing cabinets open with no care, he finally opened a cabinet to discover a butter dish and bread. Severus snatched it, looking around for a knife that he did end up finding, and cut himself a slice of the bread, spreading the meager amount of butter on it.
He took a bite and winced. The bread was stale, but it was the only thing he had around him to sate his hunger. He tried eating the entire piece he cut but after a few bites it became too much for him to palate.
Leaving it on the table, he looked out the window, seeing if he could leave yet. Unfortunately, the rain was still going strong. Severus huffed in irritation.
Well, he might as well try to find a place to dry his clothes, if he could. He traversed into the cottage further and found himself at the single closed door. Must be the bedroom.
For some reason he hesitated. Severus had to deal with a father who constantly got on his arse from things he discovered in his bedroom. He learned very quickly to never keep secrets in there. But these people didn’t have that. They probably valued their privacy.
But wincing from feeling the wet clothes clinging to his skin, he got past his hesitation and opened the door, pushing it open. And he stopped short.
The bedroom was pretty large. It had a dresser, a bed, and a stand by the bed. The room was built with reinforced wood, done very well in Severus’s opinion. There were decorations of flowers among a white background on the bed sheets.
But he wasn’t able to notice these facts, as his eyes were drawn to a familiar face sitting up in the bed with the sheets covering them, toothy grin and all.
Severus sputtered. “James?”
James spoke in a rickety older sounding voice. “Yes child, how can I help you?”
Severus scrunched up his face hearing that. “Do you live here?”
James grasped the covers, pulling them up slightly in an attempt to seem more innocent. “Why no my dear, I just come to visit my grandson from time to time.”
Severus narrowed his eyes and James’s grin became wider. He was clearly amused by this persona he was taking on.
Severus wasn’t used to people talking to him, at least in a friendly manner. So Severus, in a decision that went completely against his character, decided to play along.
“Oh Granny, it’s been a while. I don’t remember you having such large antlers.” Severus was completely deadpanned with the sentence, arms crossed in front of him.
James’s eyebrows raised as he smiled became crooked. It was clear he was happy about Severus deciding to go along with it. “Why, of course! You know antlers grow, so they would be larger than the last time we met.”
Severus let a hint of a smirk come onto his face, but it disappeared as quickly as it came. “Oh Granny, why are you shirtless? It’s positively indecent.”
Severus felt his confidence falter as he saw the other’s expression become more… predatory. Just like before.
“Well, darling, Granny likes to have a bit of fun from time to time. I like to indulge.” Throughout the sentence, the rickety old voice shifted to one much deeper, and filled with what Severus could only describe as want.
Severus's confidence was decreasing as he felt like his dominance in the situation was being overcome by the man before him. It was a game, and he was losing.
Severus, in a last ditch effort to feel dominant again, asked one more question. “Granny, why are your features so… beast-like?”
Severus watched as the other smiled wide, all semblance of the rickety old voice gone. “Oh darling, isn’t it obvious?”
Severus and James’s eyes were locked in a battle of will as James finished his thoughts.
“I want to eat you.”
Severus should have been scared for his life. And he kind of was. But there was a curiosity to this arrangement. Severus could feel it.
Would he dare? Dare to see which it would be? Dare to see how this would conclude?
Severus couldn’t help the next question from slipping out of his mouth, concerned, but interest clear. “What do you mean?” And that question laid between the two of them, meaning unspoken.
It must have been 10 seconds before James answered, his eyes hooded and a small smirk on his face.
“Come here and find out.”
Against all his self preservation instincts, Severus felt himself drawn closer as if a string was pulling him. He wanted to know. He had to know.
He had to let himself go.
He went around the edge of the bed, slowing as he got closer to the man in the bed, with James’s eyes watching him the whole time. When Severus got close enough, he found himself in a whirl of movement starting with being grabbed and ending in sitting on James’s lap as the other sat up, blanket between them.
Severus’s breath hitched as he felt teeth against his neck, arms wrapped tightly against his arms and midsection, trapping them in place. Fear started coming in his mind as the thought that the other’s words were about being eaten came into place. He at least hoped the other would have the mercy to kill him first.
Severus stayed frozen at the teeth grabbing at his neck, tongue licking along it. Against his will, Severus felt waves of arousal running straight to his crotch. How embarrassing.
It wasn’t until he heard James growl against him, lifting Severus slightly and ripping the blanket out from in between them that Severus fully understood. As he was slammed back down, he felt something hard against his crotch. And James took his lips off Severus’s neck and slammed them against his lips.
Severus couldn’t help but moan. This is the first time he’s ever been kissed. And honestly? It was the first time someone had wanted him.
Inexperienced as he was, he didn’t know how to make out without opening his mouth, which James took full advantage of. He shoved his tongue in the other’s mouth and swirled it around. Severus let out a whine as they fought for dominance with their tongues. His hands went up, one grasping around James’s neck and the other twisting in his hair, weaving between the two antlers sprouting from his head.
Severus never wanted to leave this feeling.
Chasing that pleasure, Severus subconsciously started slightly grinding against the crotch beneath him. He didn't notice, but James certainly did.
James pushed them down without breaking the kiss, Severus flat on his back as James hovered over him.
James separated from Severus, faces centimeters apart. “Let’s take off these clothes, shall we?”
Severus, extremely dazed, agreed strongly. He wanted the sticky clothes off of him. With both their effort, the bottoms came off first, leaving the undergarment on. Severus could barely raise his arms in time before James ripped the tunic off of him.
Severus could barely think about the fact that he was technically indecent before James’s head moved down and Severus felt a warm wet feeling around his nipple. He gasped, his hands holding James’s head there as the other swirled his tongue around the bud. Although he came out of the fog a bit when an antler hit him in the face, thankfully not hard enough to hurt.
“Hey!” Severus uttered.
James smiled up at him sheepishly. “Sorry, I’ll try to be more careful.” And he did, as he lowered his mouth to suck on the nipple once more.
Severus let his head fall back, just letting the pleasure run through him. He felt his other nipple get played with as the other continued sucking. Severus sucked in a breath as James pinched the sensitive bud, hard, but somehow it made Severus more excited.
Severus squirmed under him, body unable to handle the rushes of arousal while also chasing it more.
James chuckled against his chest, going back to sucking as his other hand moved down to grasp at Severus’s crotch.
Severus gasped, moaning as he felt the hand push down on his member, not fully moving up and down on it but rubbing the area. Severus handled it for a bit, but he was getting antsy. He needed more.
Becoming emboldened by his desire, Severus reached his hands down and grasped the top of the other’s bottoms, attempting to pull them down.
James looked up in surprise, lifting off the other’s chest.
Severus, with his head clearing slightly, realized what he did. A blush spread across the entirety of his face.
James smirked, backing away to pull his trousers off, which is when Severus realized the other was not wearing any undergarments.
As soon as the cloth was off James was on top of him again, kissing him roughly. Severus jolted when he felt the other moving their crotch against his own.
It felt so good to grind their members together. Severus couldn’t stop his moans, but they quickly turned into whines. He still had his undergarment on, and he needed it off.
“James, please!” Severus pleaded. James looked up at him, surprised.
Then he grinned so wide. “Alright, since you asked so nicely.”
Severus sighed in relief as James stripped him of his undergarment. But against his expectations, instead of continuing to be ground against, he felt himself being flipped over, guided to raise his arse with his head and arms laying on the bed. Severus couldn’t help but feel arousal at how easy it was for the other to ragdoll him.
Severus was wondering what would happen next when he felt a tongue pressed flat against his hole. He cried out, embarrassed again. “No, don't!"
But James did not heed him, continuing to lick around his rim. Severus felt his embarrassment fade as he felt the pleasure course through him. He never knew that this could happen from that place.
Severus gasped as he felt the other explore his arse, even pushing his tongue inside. Severus felt like he was on edge, unable to stop the rushes of pleasure but unable to get enough to reach the peak.
James’s tongue left his hole, and Severus whined. Only for him to suck in a breath as he felt a small digit push in, going farther than the tongue ever could.
Severus moaned louder as the finger pushed in and out of him, moving around in an attempt to stretch him. Severus choked when he felt a second finger push in, the two scissoring and stretching further. Once the third finger joined, Severus felt the burn, but it faded as they wiggled inside him.
Severus was curious. It was like the other was searching for something. And indeed he was, as James pushed his fingers against a certain spot in his canal that made Severus see stars.
Severus flushed as he heard the chuckle from behind him. But that went away as he felt the fingers pull out of him. He could have cried.
Severus felt an arm grab around his chest, pulling him up onto his hands. Severus was confused at the change, mind too clouded to think properly, until he felt something else at his hole, something much wider than the fingers that were in before.
Severus trembled as he felt the other’s member breach his hole, the pain and burn making him hiss. James did not stop, slowly moving forward until he had bottomed out inside of the other. Severus felt so full.
But he didn’t have a chance to pause and enjoy it because he felt James pull back, and slam in hard, causing a choked moan to leave Severus’s mouth.
And Severus continued to let the moans and whimpers leave his mouth without concern as the half-beast set a punishing pace, thrusting with so much force.
Severus felt the feeling inside him change as James leaned over him, mouth next to his ear as the other continued his brutal pace.
“Don’t you love this?,” Severus heard James’s raspy voice say next to his ear. “Being fucked like an animal? By an animal?” From these words Severus realized what position they were in. His face flushed, but at this point, he couldn’t bring himself to care.
James grabbed his neck, tilting his head up. “You’re my bitch.”
Severus just stayed in that position, head help up by James as he was fucked thoroughly. His arms were becoming weak but James held him up by his head, the other hand on the bed for stability.
Severus felt James lick his ear and Severus’s breath came out stuttered. He never thought he could feel this good.
Severus felt it coming. His moans turned into whimpers and his whines became higher pitched. His breath caught in his throat as the feeling rose in him.
James must have noticed, because he shifted behind him, managing to slam at that very spot that made Severus see stars again and again. And boy was it pushing everything to the extreme.
Please. He was so close.
James bit his neck, hard, and this mix of pain and pleasure did it for him. Severus came untouched, his semen spilling onto the sheets below him.
Severus was overstimulated, but loved feeling James still move inside him. It wasn’t much later when Severus started to hear James grunt, breath being held as he went harder and faster. Severus heard himself whimper when the other came, filling him with seed with a few more thrusts.
Severus was spent, but still had enough energy to make sure he fell onto his side instead of straight down. He didn’t want to lay on his semen.
He thought it was over. He was wrong.
Severus’s eyes widened when he felt his leg being raised, James positioning himself against his hole once again.
James raised an eyebrow at Severus’s expression, then smirked. “What, you thought we were done? Not at all, pretty boy. Stags are known for their stamina, after all.”
For hours the two continued. Severus lost his grasp on his own mind starting just a little bit into it, being completely lost in pleasure and stimulation for all the time after.
Maybe that’s why he said what he said.
After Severus had come once more, not being able to keep count at this point, it happened. James was on top of him, thrusting into him hard, hands on the bed at the sides of Severus’s face as he laid over him. Severus had his hands on the other’s back, grasping and scratching, keeping him as close as he could.
After many moans, many sounds that weren’t words, Severus finally spoke clearly.
Looking up into James’s eyes with his dazed expression, he spoke.
“Keep me.”
James faltered in his movement, eyes wide. “What?”
Severus pleaded. “Please. I don’t want to go back. Keep me. Take me with you.”
James was shallowly thrusting at this point. Severus was mewling at the light stimulation, distracted enough to not see the knitted brows of the man above him.
After a moment, James leaned closer and uttered one word. “Okay.”
Severus, overjoyed and unable to think, grabbed the man’s face and smushed their lips together. James happily reciprocated, going back to his brutal pace as Severus moaned under him. James groaned as the other dug his nails into his back.
After hours of pleasure, the two finally settled down, messy and calming down from their high. Severus and James were breathing hard, laying next to each other on the bed. Severus’s head was against James’s chest as the other had his arms wrapped around him.
As his mind cleared, it finally hit Severus what he had said during the act, in that specific moment. He balked, shooting out of bed and scrambling to put his clothes on. They were still damp so he was having some issues.
Severus heard James sit up. “What’s wrong?”
Severus felt sick holding his bunched tunic to his naked chest. “I- I have to go back.”
“Why?” Such a simple question made Severus gawk at the other.
“Because…” Severus tried. Rationalities ran through his mind, but each one was countered as he went through them.
He didn’t care about his town. He didn’t care about his father. He didn’t care about selling these herbs. He didn’t care about fulfilling his duty.
He wanted out, he realized.
But he was proud. Too proud to admit it. Too proud to ask someone else for help, in the way he did.
It made him vulnerable. And that was the scariest thing of all.
Severus felt arms gently wrap around his torso, but the touch was enough to startle him. James was looking at him, and Severus almost didn’t recognize the expression because he never expected it to be directed at him.
James was concerned for him.
James looked like he wanted to do more than just gently hold him, but he resisted. “Look, I know we just met, but I quite like what I’ve seen so far. Not just sexually,” and here Severus blushed, looking away. “But also the personality that I’ve seen from you. I’d love to see more.”
James unwrapped his arms and took a step back, Severus turning to face him. James brought his hand up to cup Severus’s face. “I just know I don’t want you going back there. I’ve seen a portion of it, and when you asked… it’s clear that you need to get away. And if I am the way that can happen, I’ll do it.”
Severus looked up at the antlered man, thoughts running through his head. Doubt and concerns were at the forefront, but there were also spatterings of something else.
Hope.
Severus was never one to trust easily. But somehow he found himself answering in the same way the other did, when Severus first asked the question.
“Okay.”
James brought his hand up to the back of Severus’s head. Moving closer, James kissed his forehead gently.
Severus felt uncomfortable. He had never had someone be like this towards him. But as the other man wrapped him in a hug, Severus ended up snuggling closer, letting himself hope for the first time in his life.
They separated, and continued to put their clothes on. Severus wrinkled his nose at the feeling of his damp bottoms slipping up his leg. “Is this your residence?”
James chuckled, pulling his bottoms up past his hips. “Nope, which is why we should leave as quickly as possible.”
Severus felt himself sputter, scandalized, but he couldn’t help the small smile that came across his face. Pulling his tunic on, he was finally the one to smirk at the other.
“Well, we better get going then.” Severus turned and exited the room, hearing footsteps only a few seconds afterwards catching up to him.
“Hey, look at that,” James observed. “The rain stopped.”
And indeed it had. The skies were still cloudy and the wind was still strong, but they could leave.
And leave they did. Severus and James ran through the garden and into the thick forest, chattering and bantering as they attempted to escape before the cottage owners saw what they did.
Back in the cottage, the forgotten basket and bright red cloak lay still where they had left them.