Sirius Black, the newest Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor at Hogwarts, had organised the first wizarding carnival Parade in Hogsmeade in order to brighten up the seven-year-old Harry, who was slightly depressed after the most recent attack on his life. All Hogwarts students were permitted to go to Hogsmeade for the day. However, since the former headmaster Albus Dumbledore was still attacking Harry on occasion it was deemed necessary for one of the adults, who was not assigned to watch over the students that day, to watch over Harry. Minerva McGonagall, Harry's adoptive mother, was acting as Headmistress until they could find a permanent replacement for former Professor Dumbledore, who had been sentenced to a ten-year-stay in Azkaban before he had fled from the courtroom in his phoenix form. Unfortunately, she couldn't take Harry to Hogsmeade that day because of a meeting with the Minister of Magic and Tom Riddle concerning the open Headmaster position.

Severus was just completing brewing a potion vaccine for the wizard flu that recently seemed to spread throughout Hogwarts, when the fireplace flared and Poppy Pomfrey stepped out. "Good morning, Severus," she greeted him with a foreboding expression on her face.

Severus groaned in exasperation while he lowered the flame under the cauldron to simmer for the final stage of the brewing process. "What is it, Poppy?" he asked, sighing. ‘A visit of Poppy this early in the morning can only mean she has something that will ruin my day with work,' he thought, groaning inwardly.

"Don't make such a face, Severus. You know that it never works on me. You need to finish your brewing for the morning." Ignoring his terrified expression she continued, "You have to take Harry to the carnival parade today."

"I have to DO WHAT?" he asked flabbergasted. "Poppy, you can't really be suggesting that I accompany the child to that monstrosity, now, are you?"

"Do you think I would joke about something that involves Harry?" Poppy replied sternly.

Severus' heart sank into his boots. "No," he replied shortly. But his expression lightened considerably when he remembered something that would get him out the job he had been nominated for, "I thought, especially since the whole crazy thing was the mutt's idea, he was accompanying Harry."

Poppy sighed. "He was going to accompany Harry but is unable to now. Sirius was in fact trying to prank a few six-year students and it backfired on him, and now he is in the Hospital wing for the rest of the day, if not longer, and all other teachers are either accompanying the students or have come down with the wizards' flu. You're the only one available to take him, and since you are his godfather it is your duty to take him." Poppy smiled and stated, "And since it is part of your duty you can't even complain about it."

When Severus opened his mouth to give a detailed but relevant excuse why he couldn't even think about taking his godson to such an event, Poppy began speaking again before he could even start. "Severus, you know how Harry loves to help you, he will be delighted to help with your potions for the rest of the day to make up for your lost brewing time. Now come on, it's time to head to the Great Hall for breakfast."

-----

Minerva and Harry were already sitting at the Head table, talking secretively as Severus and Poppy approached their seats. Harry questioned immediately upon seeing his Uncle Severus, a hopeful smile playing on his lips. "Uncle Severus, are you coming with me to Hogsmeade?"

"Do I have a choice?" Severus asked back, raising an eyebrow. Seeing the small smile disappear from Harry's face instantly, he sighed and gave the boy a piercing look. "Yes Harry, we will go to Hogsmeade together, if you promise not to leave my side for even an instant, otherwise I reserve the right to use your limbs as potions ingredients. Can you help me prepare frog kidney, Thestral skin, and rat liver once we return?"

"Of course I will, Uncle Severus," Harry shouted excitedly, forcing Severus to groan inwardly. None of them noticed the other teachers' faces that turned white at the thought of willingly handling the named ingredients.

Before Harry and Severus left the Hall, Minerva unobtrusively waved her wand at Severus, while Harry mumbled a silent Charm, and the whole Great Hall erupted in laughter. Severus raised an eyebrow and threw his chuckling colleagues an enquiring look.

"Ah, that was funny Uncle Severus. You should have seen it, one of the students turned himself into a rabbit," Harry explained quickly, leaving the others to wonder when he had learned to lie so well.

"Yes, it was really funny," Minerva chuckled, looking at Severus' Easter Bunny form that was visible to everyone except for the Potions Master out of the corner of her eye. She quickly waved her wand at Harry, transfiguring his current outfit into a green rabbit suit, smiling when Harry giggled happily.

"Thank you, Aunt Minerva," Harry laughed, while he felt the soft form of the newly transfigured ear on his head.

‘At least, I don't have to disguise myself; I never willingly wear such a monstrosity, its good that I can at least wear my usual outfit' Severus thought, placing a small sneer on his face and asked, "Now, shall we go, Harry?" He took his godson by the hand and walked with the child down to the small wizarding town, trying to keep his pace slow enough for the boy to keep up.

‘Funny - it's seems to be warmer than normal today,' Severus thought slightly confused. ‘Maybe I'm getting the flu as well; I feel abnormally warm.' He raised his empty hand to his head in order to brush his hair back, but noticed that his hair felt extremely strange as if he was wearing something on his head. Unbelievingly, he followed a fluffy strand of hair down to his shoulder. ‘That's not my hair, that's an ear,' he thought confused. ‘What's going on?'

Suddenly, he realized that he had stopped walking and was standing in the middle of the Hogsmeade road, and that not only Harry, but all students around were staring at him amusedly, trying to cover their grins. Harry quickly cancelled the Concealment Charm allowing Severus to be able to see his own rabbit form. The professor let out an uncharacteristically loud gasp before he turned to Harry. "Who did that? Minerva?"

Harry gave him an anxious nod, a small smile playing on his lips. "Uncle Severus listen, I can hear the music, the parade is already close, let's go."

Pushing several insensible wishes and menacing thoughts toward his colleague to the wayside for the time being, Severus grudgingly followed the small boy along the street, feeling uncomfortable at the laughter arising wherever he went.

-----

It was the first carnival parade ever in the wizarding world, and nobody knew what to expect. Nevertheless, the street was full of people waiting on both sides for the parade to come within their sight. And it was great fun, at least for the students, especially as the wizards and witches on top of the large floats that passed in front of them and started to throw chocolate frogs down for the people to catch. During this time, Severus had noticed that his huge Easter Bunny costume possessed large pockets and didn't hesitate filling them with chocolate frogs, a mischievous smile penetrating his features even more with each frog he placed into them.

An hour later, the parade was gone, and everyone went their separate ways, each with bags filled with chocolate frogs in their hands. "All right, Harry, are you ready to return to the castle?" Severus asked his godson, noticing that the boy's face had turned white under his green costume. "Are you feeling all right?" he enquired quietly, starting to worry when the boy slowly shook his head.

"I ate too many chocolate frogs," Harry confessed in a small voice and was obviously trying to move as slowly as possible.

Severus sighed and slowly led the child back to the castle, quickly grabbing a stomach calming draught from the shelf before he ushered the child to sit down in his private lab. "Here, drink this, it will make your stomach settle," he told the boy, giving him an encouraging nod that turned into a slightly relieved smirk when his godson relaxed visibly.

"Thanks, Uncle Severus," Harry said relieved.

"All right, Harry, do you feel up to helping me brew a few potions?" he asked, banishing his rabbit costume with a wave of his wand.

"Of course," Harry beamed, his eyes twinkling with joy. "What are we going to brew, Uncle Severus?"

"Ah, at first we are going to brew a potion that turns a person's skin green and another one that turns their hair pink," Severus answered, smirking.

"We... What?" Harry asked incredulously. "Are you going to prank someone?"

"Do I look as if I would play pranks?" Severus asked back, raising an eyebrow at his godson, who backed up a bit at the teacher's glare.

-----

An hour later, Severus extinguished the flame under the cauldron and showed Harry how to magic a bit of the potion into a chocolate frog, ignoring the child's astonished look. Finally, he handed his godson a couple of chocolate frogs, each laced with one of the potions. "Here, please give them to your adoptive mother and tell her that I collected them for her at the carnival parade. I would strongly advise you to not keep them for yourself though."

"Oh, of course," Harry smiled at his godfather. "I have my own frogs although I'm sure that I won't eat any of them at least for a few days. Plus, I wouldn't dare interfere in your revenge."

"Ah, yes, revenge is sweet," Severus smiled back.