"You were Sirius' Godson, Harry. I cared about you as if you had been mine. I know I'm not around much, but I do care," Lupin said calmly. "It came to me just now."

Some of the tension left Harry. "Oh."

"I have been wondering for months why I kept feeling like something was missing," Lupin continued, coming off rather wistful. "I guess I know now."

Harry felt his heart fill with warmth, and he smiled.

"But, you were in London last summer, too?" Harry asked.

Lupin frowned a little. "Yes, but I'm not sure… I remember I had a hard time placing you, but I don't think I had forgotten you yet. You were just very elusive. Probably from the Obscuration and Perception Filter."

Harry nodded. "Yeah, Snape said it was really dangerous and unpredictable. But, you know, I don't remember what I did after I left Hogwarts. I don't remember going back to my relatives, or even to Grimmauld Place. But there I was, all summer, and I never stopped to think how odd it was. I ran around half of London, just doing whatever."

A hint of something that might have been disapproval shadowed Lupin's eyes for a moment. "Like going out with…Charlie."

Harry stilled, feeling suddenly as if he had to be very careful. "I'm gay. Does that bother you?"

"It is…different," Lupin said, his tone carefully even.

Harry snorted. "Yeah, of course it is! D'you know how long it took before I could even say it out loud? Or how long I went around feeling like there was something wrong with me, like I didn't belong? I get now that being with Charlie probably wasn't the brightest thing I could've done, but without him I'd still be completely lost. He made me feel comfortable about myself, and he let me ask questions and just be me. If it'd been Ron instead of him, Ron would have pushed girls at me 'till I screamed and hit someone. Ron wouldn't even let me get an earring because he thought it was gay!"

Of course, there had been more to it than that, and numerous sessions with Derek, but point of fact was that if Charlie hadn't been around to help Harry understand that, yeah, he was still an ordinary bloke, just like he'd always been, Harry might still have been floundering in the dark. Well, if he hadn't had Snape, that was.

Snape was great like that.

Lupin's eyes were still a little troubled, but he didn't say anything more on the subject.

That complete silence was, in a way, worse to Harry.

"Ron thinks earrings on blokes are gay?" Bill asked.

Harry shrugged. "Yeah. Guess you didn't count, though. I dunno."

The sitting room felt too oppressive to Harry right then. He wanted to go to the kitchen and make himself a cup of tea with loads of milk and honey in it, but he couldn't because even in the kitchen he wouldn't be alone.

Bill's grin was just a little wry. "Well, to tell the truth, I only got the earring because girls think it's hot."

Harry snorted. "Yeah, Snape said something like that, too."

Bill and Charlie both looked like there was something stuck in their throats. "Snape?" Bill sputtered.

Harry grinned. "Oh, yeah. He said it was great for getting girlfriends, and annoying your parents, at the same time. He seemed to find it all awfully neat."

Mrs Weasley let out a heavy puff of air. "Oh, yes, that much is certainly true."

"Do you still not remember me, Mrs Weasley?" Harry asked.

Mrs Weasley frowned a little. "I'm not sure. I feel like I do." She was sitting down on the sofa again, next to Harry, and she reached out and cupped his face in her warm hands. Just like she had done before. "It's your eyes, dearie, they pull me in."

"Have you tried talking to your friends?" Lupin wondered.

Harry was careful to sit very still, because the attention Mrs Weasley was paying him right then made him feel as if he couldn't move. He felt warm right down to his toes. He answered Lupin without turning around. "No, not really. During the summer, I was," he trailed off. "Well, I might've been a bit depressed. There was too much stuff going on in my head, and I had a hard time sorting the mess out. I didn't think too much of it at the time – Ron and Hermione going off all the time, I mean – because I was too busy, um. Sorting myself out. I just thought they were dating or something, making the most of the summer.

"But when we got back to school…" Harry wet his lips and looked Mrs Weasley straight in the eye. "They still wouldn't talk to me. I know Neville tried a little, but he didn't put much effort in. At the time, what with…that thing that happened with Charlie, I was a bit…down. Spent all my time with Tom, who's a first year Slytherin."

"Wait a minute, Harry," Mrs Weasley interrupted. "What thing?"

"We dated?" Harry ventured, heart pounding beneath his breastbone. It was really hard to tell if she disapproved or not, except that she was a little too tense, and her eyes a little too hard. "I went back to school, and suddenly he was all distant?"

"Hmmmm," Mrs Weasley said, not sounding very convinced.

"So, Snape and I think because I basically spent all my time with the Slytherins, my House sort of assumed I was a 'traitor to the cause'. To them I would've been a new student, exchange student or something. And in their eyes I'd go from being newly sorted in Gryffindor, to completely shunning them and spending all my time in the dungeons with, and I quote, 'slimy snakes'. It…didn't go over all that well, I think. They were all rather annoyed with me."

On purpose, Harry left out the bit where he had been systematically bullied and shunned from his dorm. Didn't mention the frequent attempts to get into his trunk, or to keep him from his bed. To this day, he still had no idea why that had happened, or even who had done it.

"What it all comes down to is that I haven't talked to Ron or Hermione since school let out last year," Harry finished. "I've been living with Snape most of this term."

Mrs Weasley stiffened suddenly. "Severus isn't a deviant, is he? A 'homosexual'? She pronounced the word as if it were made up of foreign syllables she really had no business taking into her mouth. Harry frowned, feeling as if he should be wary. Mrs Weasley continued before Harry could come up with something to say. "Has he been touching you?" she inquired stiffly.

"Mum!" Charlie exclaimed, red-faced.

Harry paled so rapidly it looked like the colour had apparated from his face to Charlie's. "What the fuck? Mrs Weasley—!"

"I merely—!"

"NO!" Harry sputtered, face now red with indignation. "You've no right! Snape's great, you know? He's taken care of me, looked after me, made sure I didn't fucking kill myself 'cause I couldn't keep anything down! He's my professor! I bloody want him to be my dad, and you—? Ugh!" Harry almost shouted, then shot up from the sofa. "I don't believe you!"

"It's a legitimate concern, Harry." Mrs Weasley snapped. "You are a child. You say you are….like my Charlie, and that you have been living in close quarters with a male member of the faculty. It's a natural cause of worry."

"No, it's not! You'd never have asked if I hadn't said I was gay, and you know it!" Harry cried out. "That's just your stupid old fashioned prejudices, Mrs Weasley! I'm just gay! I don't want to bugger every bloke I see. I'm not a pervert going after little kids. I don't blow my teachers for extra credits. And Snape is my professor! It's— that's just sick and wrong and fucking insulting!" Harry was panting at the end of his tirade, ears throbbing as the piercings made themselves known. "I'm just as normal as any other kid out there."

Feeling a strong urge to hide, but not really willing to admit to that, Harry slipped past where Lupin was sitting still, eyes wide, and disappeared inside the bathroom. The bathroom was the most Muggle one Harry had ever encountered at Hogwarts. The bath wasn't sunk down in the floor, or as large as a swimming pool. It was an ordinary Muggle bath, with Muggle-ish plumbing. Granted, it was a bit longer than the bath at the Dursleys had been, but that was probably because Snape was a very tall man.

Standing in front of the sink, Harry stared at his reflection in the mirror, also Muggle. "I'm not a freak," he whispered. "There is nothing wrong with me. I deserve to be a kid. A happy, normal kid."

Derek and Snape, both of them in their own, unique ways, had taught him that. It was slowly sinking in, but that mantra he had taken to repeating whenever he felt a bit down, or started to question himself.

Or when someone questioned him.

Harry turned the taps, mixing cold and warm water until he found something comfortably lukewarm. Then he washed his face, over and over, until he felt clean, awake and the itchy feeling in his skin was gone. The rush of water and the repeated rinses and drained away the sound of someone pounding on the door. Long ago, back when Harry was still having a rough time keeping anything down, Snape had made sure, somehow, that the bathroom couldn't be magically tampered with.

Nowadays, Harry sort of wished it could be tampered with, because silencing charms while having a nice, lazy wank in the bath? Oh, that would've just about made his day.

Hurriedly drying his face, hair still wet and ripping a little, Harry unlocked the door.

When it slid open – because, of course, only Snape would have a sliding bathroom door – it was to reveal Snape. The dark eyes flitted over Harry's face, then took a quick cursory look at the bathroom behind Harry.

"Were you sick?" Snape inquired. He lifted his wand, touched the wet fringe framing Harry's face and silently dried it.

"No. Angry."

"I heard a commotion."

Harry let out a big huff of annoyance. "Well, Mrs Weasley seems to think you're molesting me or something. Because, you know, I'm gay? So everyone is!" he exclaimed, feeling his temper rise all over again.

Snape's dark eyes glittered with something – Harry wasn't sure he wanted to name that emotion. "Did she now," he bit out, tone clipped and carefully even.

Harry shivered.

"You are fine?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I… Just a bit upset, she…"

"While the Weasleys are accepting of Muggles and Muggleborns, both Arthur and Molly hail from old pureblood families."

Looking away, Harry said, "she said her own mother would've tossed Charlie out because he's queer. But…you're a professor!" Harry empathised. "A teacher, why—"

"Because it was not that uncommon for teachers to take advantage of their positions in the past," Snape said softly. "The Headmaster has been working diligently for years to dispel such rumours. It was rather different when he was in school, I believe. Older prefects taking advantage of their elevated status. Purebloods in the old days had certain privileges, Harry. Money and power walk hand in hand, after all."

"That's just sick."

"Yes."

The darkness that had been in Snape's eyes before came back. "Now, I will deal with Molly. Perhaps there is someone else whose memory you can kick-start in the meantime?"

Darting out a hand, Harry gripped Snape's wrist before the man could turn away completely. "Snape?"

"Yes?" Snape glanced back over his shoulder.

Harry winked and gave Snape a cheeky grin. "I want a proper dad, not a sugar daddy."

Snape's hand shot out so quick Harry didn't have time to duck before it clipped him over the back of his head.

"Ow! Hey!" Harry protested, trying to straighten out his hair.

"A little less impudence, please," Snape drawled as a parting shot.

By the time Harry felt satisfied that his hair was behaving somewhat so that he could return to the sitting room, both Mrs Weasley and Snape were gone. Lupin was gone, too, but both Fleur and Tonks were back. Once again, Harry wondered how the kitchen could possibly be large enough to house so many people.

"Hiya, Harry!" Tonks greeted loudly, her hair going from yellow to purple to pink. "What d'you say to old Snape to make him drag out Mrs Weasley like that?"

Harry shrugged. "He asked why I'd locked myself in the loo."

"So you actually do tell him everything? I thought you were joking," Charlie said.

Harry shrugged. "Believe it or not, but Snape's actually great to talk to."

Tonks laughed. "It's the same way he's a brilliant potions teacher, then? As students, we don't believe it, but once we're out in the real world… I'll just say, any Auror who had Snape as a teacher is a lot better than the others."

"Ditto," Bill added.

Harry just smiled smugly. "I know."

Though Harry may have been total rubbish at potions, he wasn't half bad at gathering ingredients, or preparing them for that matter. Snape had taught him meditation, a bit of spells and rather handy magic. Then there was all the rest of it: what it was like to be treated like a normal kid, to have a proper home, to have someone who looked out for him. The family bits. Snape had been more than a brilliant teacher in those areas.

It wasn't long after that the Order members began trickling out of the kitchen, one by one. They made their goodbyes to Harry, then Floo'd out. Soon, it was only him and the Weasleys left. Mr Weasley had joined his wife and Snape in Snape's bedroom the minute he found out what was going on.

Harry sat back in the armchair and let the conversation flow over him. Never having been one who was fond of talking – talking drew attention, not always pleasant one, at that – he preferred to simply sit and listen. You could learn a lot, really.

Tonks and Charlie appeared to go way back. Harry had never known they were the same age and had gone to Hogwarts together. It appeared, despite having been sorted into different Houses, they had still maintained a friendship. Bill and Charlie had the advantage of being brothers, but in addition to that, they were very close to each other in how they acted and behaved. Having only known the younger Weasleys before, Harry hadn't been aware of how close the two oldest brothers were. None of the younger brothers and sister shared friends the way it looked like Bill and Charlie did. They didn't have the same easy and natural friendship these two did – well, except the twins. Tonks was obviously friends with Bill, the same way Fleur looked more than comfortable with Charlie.

If Harry hadn't known Charlie was gay, he would've wondered if the four of them weren't two couples.

"So, you and Charlie hooked up?"

Harry blinked.

"Huh?"

Tonks grinned at him. "I asked, you and Charlie are friends, then?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I suppose. When the git deigns to remember me beyond my culinary expertise." Charlie looked so affronted, Harry couldn't help but grin.

Tonks burst out laughing. "That might be a lost cause, mate."

"So I've been led to believe," Harry drawled.

"I take offense at the direction this conversation is going," Charlie protested. The twinkle in his eye belied his statement.

"Right!" Bill rolled his eyes. "You'd sell your soul if the devil himself offered you a home cooked meal."

"I would not!"

Harry just laughed. "Oh, yeah, you would. You were practically worshipping me when I told you I knew how to cook."

Charlie just grumbled while the others laughed at him.

Fleur leaned forward, and began inspecting all the various cups and platters on the coffee table. Harry, remembering that he was supposed to be the host since he actually lived here, leaned forward as well. "Is there anything left?"

"Non," Fleur said. "I do not even remember which ez my cup."

"Yeah, me either. You want more tea? I think I spied some grapes and satsumas in the kitchen earlier."

Fleur favoured him with a brilliant smile. It made it impossible not to notice how beautiful she was. "Zank you, 'Arry."

"Okay." Harry quickly and efficiently gathered the used cups in a pile, then cast a levitation charm on the bunch, made sure the teapots and plates floated as well, then directed the whole bunch to the kitchen. He didn't think they were all Snape's, because he couldn't remember seeing so much china in the kitchen before. He directed the whole of it to land on the kitchen table, trying to be as careful as he could. Then he brought out a tray and loaded it up with a bowl of satsumas, a plate or two of grapes, five mismatched mugs, and a fresh chipped teapot. It was the one he and Snape usually used. While he waited for the water to boil, the process sped up by magic, Harry selected the tea. Deciding it was better to be safe than sorry, Harry added a small pitcher of milk along with a small bowl of sugar.

By the time Harry made it back to the sitting room, one of the guests had prepared a board game.

"Where d'you get that?" Harry asked as he put the tray down next to the game. It wasn't a game he recognised, or had even played, for that matter.

Bill pointed at one of the tall bookshelves. "It was at the top of the shelf. It's all right if we play, right?"

Harry shrugged. "I didn't know he had any games."

The rules of the game were fairly straightforward: each player got a mission card – first one to accomplish their mission won. It was a bit more complex than that, but Harry quickly surmised that as long as one 'stuck to the plan', victory was near. The game was called Risk, and contained a large board of the world, divided into countries. Each player was in charge of an army. The different dices decided who won or lost the war when battling over a territory. The cards Bill dealt at the beginning of the game contained all of the countries, so it was all down to chance if your army ended up even close to where you wanted it to be.

Harry's mission was to capture Africa and South America. Harry had one country in Africa, and four in South America. Fleur was his largest adversary; she had most of Africa from the start. South America was a little more evenly divided among the players.

During the course of the game they migrated from the sofa and armchairs, to cushions and pillows on the floor.

"So, what d'you think Snape's really talking to your parents about?" Harry asked after a while. He was pretty sure they'd been playing for almost an hour, and Snape and the Weasley parents were still not back yet.

Charlie shrugged.

"Could be anything, I suppose."

Harry frowned. "I guess. Snape was rather annoyed with what Mrs Weasley said. You know, about him taking advantage of me."

"Rather annoyed? As in – run for your life, annoyed?" Tonks quipped, causing them all to laugh.

"Oh, mon dieu!" Fleur murmured amidst all the laughter.

"What? Oh, bloody hell!" Bill ground out.

Fleur's smile was rather smug. "I 'ave now all of Australia and Europe." Indeed, the countries in those areas were all covered by Fleur's purple army. "Shall I take Asia next?"

Both Bill and Charlie looked rather dismayed. They'd been warring against each other over Asia almost the entire run of the game. Harry had managed to get South America, but he was stuck when it came to Africa, because both Tonks and Fleur were out for that part as well. Every now and then, Harry waged mock war with Charlie about the southern parts of North America, mostly just to keep the man on his toes. Tonks and Charlie had appeared to come to some sort of truce when it came to North America, but Harry wasn't going to lay off that part of the world just because of that.

It wasn't really that surprising that Fleur was a vicious player. She may be the prettiest witch Harry had ever seen, but she could be perfectly ruthless when the occasion called for it. She hadn't been a Tri-Wizard champion for nothing, after all.

"I'm beginning to wonder what your mission is," Harry said.

"World domination, of course!" Fleur chirped. "Now, I will make war with you, Charlie. I want India."

It was, rather unsurprisingly, Fleur who won the game.

By then, Harry's stomach was letting out small growls of hunger. He wasn't the only one. "Well," Harry said, "I can either cook something, or ask the House elves for something."

Bill leaned back against the sofa, long legs stretched out under the table. Sitting next to him, Harry couldn't help but notice how muscular Bill was. "There's always the option of going down to Hogsmeade."

Harry hesitated. "I don't know if I should. I mean, now that I'm not Obscured any more, I don't know how safe it is for me to walk around where I could be recognised by stray Death Eaters." Still, Snape had let him got to Muggle London all by himself earlier, but that had been in disguise with portkeys.

Frowning, Bill nodded. "That's true. I don't know about yu, but I feel like a chilled butterbeer."

"We have butterbeer," Harry pointed out. "Snape keeps some around for the weekends. I can cook up a mean stir-fry, too."

"Oh, can he ever…" Charlie's grin was dreamy and smug.

Tonks laughed and cuffed Charlie on the shoulder. "Weasley glutton!"

"I'll be cooking, then?" Harry asked. A round of nods answered him. So Harry untangled himself from the pillows, got up on his knees and then used the sofa behind him for support as he stood up. His legs felt a bit stiff and wobbly after having been sitting on the floor for so long.

The fridge in the kitchen was divided in two partitions, one larger than the other. The smaller part was Harry's. Snape didn't mind people who ate meat, but he absolutely detested it in his kitchen. He had expressively forbidden Harry from storing red meats in either the freezer or the fridge. What was left for Harry to eat from the animal kingdom was chicken and fish. Since Harry had stayed with Snape he had become rather good at inventing new recipes for chicken and fish. Of course, there were times when Harry had cravings for a proper burger with greasy chips, but on those occasions he'd either waited until he was with Derek, or asked the House elves. At times, Harry wondered about the aversions Snape held for meat, but he had never really asked.

The chicken was quickly sliced into thin, narrow stripes that were fried in no time at all in a separate pan. Red pepper, chopped mushrooms, a bit of onion, various other vegetables that Harry counted as 'fry-able', and some spices all went into the mix. The very last thing he added was the rice substitute Snape used. After trying it once, Harry had to admit it was a bit better than ordinary rice.

Sometime during the cooking, Harry noticed he wasn't alone in the kitchen.

"That smells delicious," Bill proclaimed.

Harry flashed a smile over his shoulder. "Thanks. It's easy, quick, and tasty."

"Aren't you going to mix in the chicken?"

Harry shook his head. "No, Snape doesn't like it."

"What's not to like about chicken?" Bill wondered.

"I guess when you're a vegetarian, you just don't like it. Could you lay the table?"

Bill flicked his wand, and the mess of used cups that Harry had place there earlier stacked itself neatly and organised itself in the sink. Another flick and plates, glasses and cutler arranged itself in an orderly fashion on the table.

"I don't know if Charlie knows," Bill spoke up suddenly. Harry startled because Bill's voice came from a closer proximity than he had been expecting. "I've tried to keep it from him. But you know how that goes."

"I guess?" Harry ventured. He plucked the pices of chicken, one by one, from the pan onto a serving platter.

"Ron doesn't do well when it comes to gays, Harry. You'd already sussed that much out, right?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. He doesn't take to different all that well. That, and, well. I think he wants me to take it up with Ginny," he mumbled. "That's sort of the feeling I got in the past, anyway. It didn't matter much if I was sort of going out with Cho at the time, because in the future it would be him and Hermione, and me and Ginny. I always got the feeling that he was planning it like that, anyway."

Bill sighed loudly. "He does like symmetry. Just don't throw it at him, all right? Give him time. Try and ease him into it, if you can."

"It's sort of how I normally do it, it was just…Mrs Weasley just made me…remember how awful I felt, back then. Charlie helped me feel better in so many ways, I guess it just makes me real angry when people try and make me feel bad about it. I already did that myself, you know?"

"Snape knows, right? He always seems so strict."

Harry snorted. "He's the most complex person I've ever met. I was seeing a bloke earlier, and Snape took great delights in teasing me something awful about it. At the same time, he made it perfectly clear to me that if we stepped over the line he wouldn't hesitate to ground me until I'm thirty, or something. And when Charlie came over the other day, after I finally got around to sending him a letter— Snape put a bloody Chastity Ward on my bed!" Harry's voice was laced with indignation.

Bill chuckled. "Mum did that all the time, too."

"Yeah, so Charlie said," Harry muttered. "But I still don't see why he had to go and do it."

"Maybe so you wouldn't do something you shouldn't?" Bill said, serious.

Harry shrugged. "I guess. But with Charlie not remembering anything, and me being sort of over it anyway, I just don't think it was necessary. Especially not as Snape takes way too much pleasure out of it. It's like he delights in making me embarrassed."

Bill huffed with laughter. "I'm not surprised, mate."

"Oh, shut up," Harry groused. "Let the others know dinner's ready."

Bill poked his head out of the doorway, said one word, "Food," and then the chairs around the table were filled.

Harry blinked. "Okay. Hungry, much?"

"Starving," Charlie corrected. "I skipped lunch."

Halfway through the meal, Snape returned with Mr and Mrs Weasley in tow. Mrs Weasley gushed over the food, Mr Weasley grinned and helped himself to a rather large serving – it seemed the Weasley men all appreciated good food. Snape squeezed Harry's shoulder in passing, then served himself as well.

"Molly and Arthur will fill in their younger children as well as Miss Granger," Snape said. "The rest is inconsequential for now."

Knowing Snape, that was all Harry was going to find out about what the three adults had spent what felt like several hours talking about. Still, that didn't stop his insatiable curiosity from rearing its head, demanding to be let free to ask questions.

—x—

It was much later that night. Neither Harry nor Snape had gone to bed, despite the fact that midnight was approaching.

"I have plans for Christmas," Snape suddenly spoke up.

Harry snapped his head up. The book he'd been reading landed with a thump on the floor. "What?"

"I said, Harry, that I have plans for Christmas." Snape cocked his head to the side. "I usually wait to see if any Slytherins remain before I decide what to do. There are not many remaining behind this year. As some are staying, I am not normally allowed to leave the castle, much less leave the country."

It might have been a childish, stupid impulse. Either way, Harry didn't give a flying tosser about the kids in Slytherin who had stayed at Hogwarts. No, his priorities were much straighter than that. "But…what about me?" he asked, voice a bit too soft, eyes narrowed.

"Yes, what about you?" Snape agreed. He crossed his arms over his chest. "Do you have any plans, Harry? Anything at all?"

Harry shook his head. "No. how could I? I mean…yeah, we've figured out why everything's so bloody messed up, but just because we know, and those from the Order you told, doesn't exactly mean I've got all my friends back, y'know? I don't think my relatives are even an option, 'cause, you know."

Snape raised an eyebrow. "Quite," he said.

It was Christmas. Harry really didn't have any desire to spend another year locked up somewhere. Be it a cupboard under the stairs or an upstairs, unused bedroom.

Harry cleared his throat. "I, um. I sort of thought I'd spend it here. Christmas. With you. But if you have plans… I'm not really sure I have anywhere…anywhere to go. Not if you're going away, I mean." Harry swallowed. He began picking at the hem of his shirt. "Are…are you going to leave me here, too?"

"Do you want me to?" Snape's question was frank.

Harry bit his lip. "Honest?" Snape nodded. "No. No, I don't want to be alone."

Snape looked at him for a little while longer, then he nodded again. "Good," he said. To Harry's ears he almost sounded relieved. He reached inside his vest and pulled out an envelope. "Think of it as an early Christmas…gift, if you must," Snape told him gruffly.

Bemused, Harry accepted the rectangular envelope. "Okay." He turned it over exactly three times before he dared to open it. It was plain white. Probably Muggle, since it wasn't made of parchment. There wasn't anything written on it, no marks. It wasn't even properly closed, the flap merely tucked inside the opening of the envelope. Cautiously, Harry tugged it open very carefully. Whatever it was inside was upside down, because Harry couldn't make out what it was from this angle. The piece of paper he pulled out was stiff and sort of glossy.

"New Orleans." Harry blinked, read the myriad of words printed all over the ticket – because that's what it had to be: a ticket – all over again only to end up at the same conclusion: Snape had got him an aeroplane ticket to New Orleans. "I… What?"

"I intend to go to New Orleans, Potter. You are invited to join me."

"New Orleans?" Harry said again.

"Yes, Potter," Snape agreed, sounding rather amused. "Located in southern America, I believe."

"Snape…these are 400 pounds per ticket! That's like, 800 pounds for both! And, I don't even know how much that is in Galleons, but…"

"Yes?"

"I can't let you—"

"Christmas gift," Snape ground out, enunciating each syllable clearly.

"You can't spend that much on me!" Harry blurted. "You've already given me so much. I'm not worth it, I—"

"You are," Snape snapped. He was beginning to look annoyed. "It's my choice, is it not?"

"Look, it's not that I'm not grateful, 'cause I am, it's just… It's a lot of money, you know?"

"Yes. But most assuredly well spent."

"You really want me to go with you?" Harry asked quietly.

Snape reached out and closed Harry's fingers over the tickets. "Yes, Harry, I do."

"Oh. Okay." Harry smiled. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Something that Snape had said earlier in the conversation suddenly clicked. "Hey! You said you couldn't leave the castle!"

Snape smirked, looking rather amused. "True. Minerva has agreed to look in on my students."

"There is another matter as well," Snape said slowly. He was staring at the crackling fire.

"Okay?"

"It might be an excellent opportunity for us to see how well – or even if we can at all – function outside of the castle."

Harry swallowed, once.

"I trust you realise you will be required to follow my rules, don't you?"

Put like that, Harry thought it sounded rather ominous.