Neville continued to have Remedial Potions lessons on Tuesdays and Wednesdays up until the week of finals. At night, he joined the study group in Snape's quarters, helping the others with Herbology, which he had an instinctive understanding of. Draco had sneered at the shy boy at first, until a swift reprimand from his Head stilled his tongue. Under the dire threat of being pitched out of Snape's quarters by the seat of his trousers, Malfoy remembered the manners Narcissa had taught him and was icily polite to Neville. Once he realized, however, that the other boy had valuable knowledge to impart, and that it would benefit him to learn it, he began to be more welcoming to Augusta's grandson.
Even Hermione was impressed with Neville's expertise. "Wow! You're as brilliant in Herbology as Professor Snape is in potions, Neville," she exclaimed after Neville had recited all the parts of a moonshower plant and their properties without hesitation.
Neville blushed. "I've always liked plants," was all he said.
Severus was relaxing in his recliner, reading a book, thanks to Lena he was not stuck grading papers all evening. The library witch had kept her side of the bargain, and faithfully graded his homework on those nights he tutored Neville. Not only that, but she had taken it a step further and graded the small quizzes he had given his classes in preparation for the big day. When he had told her it was not necessary, she had shrugged and said what was a quiz between friends?
"Besides, it's giving me a refresher course in potions, which I haven't studied since I left school. I'm a bit rusty." Lena admitted. "No knowledge is ever wasted."
Severus couldn't refute that fact, and so allowed the witch to continue grading the quizzes, but he would be taking her out to lunch during the holidays as a reward. He never wanted it said that Severus Snape did not pay his debts. He glanced over at the little study group from time to time, and finding them all working and not trying to hex each other, made a smile flitter across his face for an instant.
Skullduggery woke from his nap upon his wizard's shoulder and peered about. Almost immediately he spotted the children and hissed in Snape's ear. "Isn't that sweet, Sev? Your son and his friends, studying their little brains out. Looks like your perfectionist influence has paid off, eh? "Twould make a nice Christmas card. Too bad you don't have a camera."
Severus eyed the black bird. "Who says I don't have a camera?"
"If you do, where is it? Do you remember?"
"Of course! It's . . ." here he paused, thinking rapidly. " . . . in my closet, in the box where I used to keep Lily's album. I haven't used it since . . . she died."
"Perhaps you might consider taking it out again?" suggested the raven softly. "So you can capture some new memories to replace the sad ones."
Severus was silent for several minutes. Sometimes Skull could be eerily perceptive, but then, he was a greater Tower raven, and all of that breed were uncannily intuitive. He brought up a hand to stroke the glossy midnight feathers and murmured, "Perhaps, old friend."
The raven crooned wordlessly in his ear, then abruptly left his perch and flew into the half-open door of Snape's bedroom.
Severus thought nothing of it, as Skull's perch was in there. He figured the raven had gone to get a drink or nibble upon the dried fruit in his food bowl. He turned back to his book. The clock upon his mantle chimed eight-thirty. Severus went to turn a page when Skullduggery returned and dropped the InstaMagic camera into Snape's lap.
"There!" the raven croaked, pleased. "Now start making some new memories."
Snape stared at the bird in astonishment. "Skullduggery, how on earth did you find this?"
"I looked where you said."
"In the dark?"
"I can see in the dark when I wish," the raven replied, in a mysterious tone. He flew over to where Harry was sitting and perched upon the back of his chair. Skull waited until he saw Snape pick up the camera and fiddle with it for a few moments. Then he cawed loudly, sounding like a movie director, "Lights! Camera! Action!"
All of the students jerked to attention and looked over at the professor, startled.
Severus clicked the camera.
"Huh? Why'd you take our picture, Professor?" asked Ron.
"For posterity. And to prove that I wasn't dreaming when I tell the rest of the staff over dinner tomorrow that I had Gryffindors and a Slytherin studying together without bloodshed," Severus answered slyly. Then he tucked the camera in his pocket.
"Now you're famous," Skullduggery crowed. "You've joined the ranks of those whom Sev considers worthy of photographing. It's a great honor." The raven bowed, spreading his wings. "I take full credit for it."
"You would," Snape snorted. He eyed his students and ward. "You need to finish up, you have half-an-hour until nine o'clock."
There was a mad round of shuffling of books and parchment.
"Hermione, can you show me that wand movement again?" queried Draco.
"Harry, do you add the flobberworms before or after the beetle carapaces?" Neville asked.
"After. And remember to stir four times clockwise," Harry replied. Then he turned to Ron. "Ron, can you show me how to cast that turtle into a teacup again? I think I keep missing a syllable."
Ron demonstrated the spell once more.
When the clock struck nine, they gathered up all their paraphernalia, thanked Snape for the use of his quarters, then they departed. "Good night, sir! Good night, Skull!"
"Good night, children! Sleep tight, don't let the nargles bite! They like to eat your socks. And maybe a bit of your toes." Skull cackled wickedly. "Get a good night's sleep, you want to be nice and rested for your exams."
Ron, Neville, and Draco were nearly doubled over with laughter.
Hermione frowned. "What's a nargle?"
Harry shrugged. "Must be some magical animal. Never heard of them." He waved at Skull. "Wish me luck."
"You don't need luck, Mr. Potter. Not when you have a perfectly good head on your shoulders," the professor told him.
"Don't worry, Harry. Sev won't beat you too hard if you fail an exam." Skullduggery teased.
Harry's eyes widened.
"Ignore the senile ramblings of the raven behind the curtain," Severus drawled. "I have never beaten a student over bad marks, nor will I ever."
"Spoilsport!" Skull grumbled and stuck out his tongue at his wizard. "Quoth the raven—Nevermore!"
Severus rolled his eyes. "Quoth the professor—Shut thy mouth. Now."
"Really!" the bird huffed, sounding like someone's insulted old auntie. "There's no need to be so nasty! I was only having a bit of fun, I was. Harry knows that, right, Harry?" Skull glared disapprovingly at Severus. "Humph! We'll see if Father Christmas brings you anything Christmas morning!"
Harry was stricken by a sudden fit of giggles. Only Skullduggery could get away with saying such insolent things to Snape's face. "Good night, sir!" he called, then bolted down the corridor. When he reached the stairs he collapsed, his shoulders shaking with smothered laughter.
"Harry? Is something the matter?" asked Neville, coming up to him.
Harry shook his head. "No. Just Skull. He just told Professor Snape—" he burst out in giggles again.
"Told him what?" Ron asked.
"Tell you later," Harry said, still gasping and snorting with laughter.
"Come on, you three! Before we're late and Percy makes us write lines," Hermione called from the top of the stairs.
The boys hustled then, running up the stairs as quickly as they could.
Severus shut the door to his quarters with a snap, muttering out of the corner of his mouth, "Someday, Skullduggery . . ."
"To the moon, Alice! To the moon!"
"Don't push me, bird."
"What? You don't like Jackie Gleason?"
"Who in hell is that?"
"Muggle actor. Played in a show called The Honeymooners. See, Sev, this is why we need a TV . . ."
"A TV will not work at Hogwarts, how many times must I tell you this?" sighed the exasperated Potions Master.
Page~*~*~*~*~*Break
It was exam week, and when Harry wasn't studying for his next exam, he was in the library, reading some of the books Lena had placed upon the shelf with the raven symbol—the legends and myths studied by the Society of Ravens. It was Wednesday afternoon, and Harry had selected a book about Irish folklore to read before bed that night. He had just started to read about Finn MacCool, when two Hufflepuff girls came into the library, giggling and laughing.
"Miss Rosario, do you have any catalogs where we can mail order Christmas presents?" one asked Lena, who was sitting at the circulation desk.
"Yes. Look to the left of the Charms section, they're on the rack on the wall," the librarian said, then sent a small ball of light—a wispy—to guide the girls to the right rack.
"Thanks! Ooo, I can't wait to see what they have for my Frankie!" one squealed and hurried after the bobbing ball of light.
"I have to get my sister a present, d'you think she'd like some perfume?" her friend asked.
Only then did Harry recall that he had not had time to go Christmas shopping at all, what with class and exams and all. And it was barely five days till Christmas. He groaned. He knew what he wanted to get Ron and Hermione and Neville. Hell, he'd even get a gift for Malfoy because the other boy had helped him so much with Defense. But he had no clue what to get Severus. He groaned loudly.
Lena looked over at him, he was sprawled in one of the comfy chairs in the reading nook, just off to the right of the circulation desk. "Why such a big sigh, Harry?" She peered over at him over the top of her glasses. "Are you stressing over your exams again?" She had already sent several students over to the infirmary for Calming Draughts because of test anxiety.
"No. It's just . . . I have to buy Christmas presents and I . . . have no idea what to get Professor Snape." Harry told her.
The librarian tilted her head, today she was wearing kitten earrings. She usually wore a different pair of earrings for every day of the week. "Ah. I can see why you're worried. He's not the easiest person to shop for, is he?"
"No. I mean, I already thought of all the usual stuff, like potions ingredients, and a new cauldron, but he had everything he needs already. He doesn't really like many sweets, and I can't buy clothes, I don't know his size or what he likes to wear except his teaching robes. He doesn't really care for Quidditch and he has a library almost as big as this one. It's hopeless! I have less than a week to get him a gift."
"Hmm . . ." Lena tapped her chin thoughtfully. Since she had begun helping the professor grade his homework over a week ago, she had come to see just how much work the man had to do, both in and out of the classroom. Snape was Head of Slytherin, which meant he had a whole House of students to look after and help with their problems, plus his classes to teach, and his ward to spend time with. And he was also a hall monitor every three days. The professor was overworked to ninth degree. She wondered when he slept, or if he did. Lately, she had noticed he seemed even more short tempered than normal and it was probably due to lack of sleep. Heaven only knew, she was a crab when she was running on three hours of sleep for three days straight.
"You know, Harry, Professor Snape is a workaholic. I'll bet he rarely takes time out of his schedule to just relax."
"He hardly ever does. Once in awhile he'll read or play chess with me, but lately all he's been doing is grading. And snapping at me if I breathe too loud." Harry frowned.
"Sounds to me like he needs a holiday. Good thing Christmas break is coming up. I've been thinking myself about a present for him. He mentioned to me once that he likes coffee. How does a large tin of Blue Diamond Coffee sound, along with a mug that keeps it hot and some shortbread?"
"That sounds good. He does like shortbread. And strong coffee." Harry made a face. "I tasted some once. Tasted awful, like something you'd use to strip paint."
Lena snickered. "Let me guess. He likes it with milk and almost no sugar? Or black?"
"Sometimes."
"Harry, not everyone enjoys coffee that strong. They do make other kinds, which are milder tasting, not 100% Arabica beans, and you can put lots of sugar and cream in it to make it taste sweeter. That's how I like mine."
"You do?"
"Yes. One day over break—you're spending it here, correct?—I shall have you over for breakfast and make you a proper cappuccino. You'll like that a lot, I think."
"What's that?"
"It's Italian coffee with steamed milk," Lena answered. "You'll see. Now, I've noticed that Severus has been under a lot of stress this term. I think what he needs is a Relaxation package."
Harry frowned. "What's that? Like a trip to a deserted island?"
"I don't think you could afford that," she laughed. "No, what I'm talking about is a package made up of things he enjoys doing that make him calm and relaxed. I'm making one for Aunt Irma, with some of her favorite teas and lemon curd and cinnamon biscuits. I'm also giving her some magical bath salts and a new bedrobe. And some of her favorite books."
"Oh. That's really nice." Harry said. But he doubted if Severus wanted a new bedrobe.
"What sorts of things does Severus like to do after he's done with class? Does he like a particular kind of magazine? Or chocolate?"
"Uh . . . he's got a bunch of potions magazines he reads. The Advanced Potioneer's Journal, Potions Weekly, The Apothecary's Almanac . . ." Harry ticked them off on his fingers. "And he likes dark chocolate, the darker the better."
"That's good. Maybe you can get him a magazine subscription and some chocolate?" Lena suggested. "And . . . hmm . . .I used to get my dad slippers for his birthday. Nice leather ones. Does he wear slippers?"
Harry's brow puckered. "Uh . . . yeah, he does." He tried to remember if Severus' slippers were old or not. He recalled they were green, not black, and they had looked sort of worn. "Do you think slippers would go all right?"
"I think that's a capital idea! And maybe a small plant as well, like a Christmas cactus. You can order them from a plant catalogue, they come originally from America, but are very good for people who have limited time to care for a plant. They require a cool temperature, infrequent watering, and total darkness at night. And some indirect light during the day. They're perfect for dwelling in a dungeon, don't you think?"
"It sounds good. Why are they called that?"
"Because the cactus blooms around Christmas, with red or pink or white blossoms. And people enjoy giving them as gifts for the season."
"Will it arrive in time?"
"If you rush order it, it will."
Harry looked slightly overwhelmed. He didn't know how to do any of that.
"I can help you with the ordering." She Summoned the plant catalogue to her and together they picked out a smallish cactus with red and white flowers, sort of like a peppermint. Then Lena Summoned several more catalogues, and helped Harry pick out some slippers and a magazine subscription to Potions and Notions—which also sold ingredients and potions apparatus as well as articles about new potions and tips on making more effective drafts. It was one magazine Harry hadn't seen on Snape's table.
He also placed orders at Honeydukes for their finest dark chocolate and some chocolate frogs for Ron and Sugar Quills for Hermione. He ordered Flying with the Cannons, a Quidditch book, for Ron and one called The Wonders of Arithmancy for Hermione. He also got Neville some sweets and another book called Amazing Magical Plants of the Mediterranean. For the twins he bought joke products. He even bought Draco a small present, a sweet called Serpent Twist, which was gummy candy shaped like a snake that hissed and slithered when you first opened it but afterwards tasted like sour-sweet fruit flavors. The sweet also came with a model of a magical snake—Harry picked a runespoor for the Slytherin.
He then sent all the envelopes off with Hedwig, except the plant one, Lena said she would mail it at the nearest Muggle post office.
Harry heaved a sigh of relief, thankful that his shopping was now complete and he could relax . . . sort of . . . until the break. He picked up his book and thanked the librarian, returning to his chair to read until dinner.
Page~*~*~*~*~*Break
Three days later
Snape's quarters:
"Only one more exam left and we're finished!" Ron announced as their study group met for the last time that night.
"Thank Merlin!" Neville sighed in relief. "I'm just happy I have my potions final out of the way."
"How do you think you did, Nev?" asked Hermione curiously.
"All right. With all the extra lessons I've had, I wasn't even nervous. And I didn't blow up anything either," Neville said proudly.
"It's like a miracle, Longbottom," drawled Draco.
"Good for you, Nev!" said Harry. "Now all we have to worry about is Transfiguration."
They all pulled out their copies of A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration and began to practice. As Harry tried to turn his matchbox into a mouse for the second time, he heard a familiar voice say, "Remember, Potter, to focus your will on what you want to occur and then visualize, visualize, visualize!"
Harry nearly fell off his chair. "Professor McGonagall?"
He whirled around, only to find a certain black bird hovering in the air behind him.
"Gotcha, Harry!"
The rest of the study group giggled hysterically.
"Skull, how do you do that?" Harry groaned.
The raven studied the boy with beady eyes. "Do what, bran boy?"
"Sneak up on me like that?"
"I am raven, and we are night's shadow, Harry." Skullduggery replied in a shivery voice. "When I wish to I can fly unseen."
Neville's jaw dropped. "You mean you can turn invisible?"
"In a manner of speaking."
A loud snort came from Snape, who was doing the Prophet crossword in his recliner in front of the fire, his feet propped up on a footstool. "If you believe that, Longbottom, I have some real estate in Loch Ness I can sell you. Don't believe everything he tells you, he exaggerates greatly."
"All right, so it's not a true invisibility. But I am nearly impossible to spot at night unless you have superior night vision." Skullduggery sniped. "Part of a raven's magic is concealment."
"Is it true that ravens escort souls to the Land of the Dead?" Draco inquired.
"Yes. A raven exists in both the material and spiritual realm, and as such can make the crossing between the two easily."
"Have you ever done it?" Hermione wanted to know.
"No. That task is for the Elders of my kind. I am a familiar, and will not be required to travel the Road of Mist until I am quite old and my wizard is no more."
"How long can you live?" was her next question.
"Quite long, my dear. I am a magical raven, and I can live to well over one hundred."
Ron whistled. "Blimey!"
Snape cleared his throat. "Might I suggest, Weasley, more studying and less socializing?"
"Oh. Err . . . right." Ron flushed and then went back to practicing the spells.
As they were all filing out of the door, Severus put a hand on Harry's shoulder. "A moment, Harry."
Harry looked up at his guardian. "Sev?"
"I was wondering if you had decided where you were spending Christmas morning?" the professor began. "I know that some of the Weasleys will be here over the break. If you would rather spend it with them . . ."
"But what about you? Then you'd be alone," Harry said. He shook his head. "Ron has his brothers to celebrate with Christmas morning. You're my family now, sir. I belong here. Unless . . . you don't want me down here?"
The uncertainty in the boy's voice tugged at Severus' heartstrings. "Why would you think that? You are always welcome here." The Potions Master said gruffly. "I simply thought you'd prefer waking up to your friends Christmas morning instead of the dungeon bat."
"No, sir. Christmas is for family. Even though I never really had a proper one, even I know that much." Harry said firmly.
Severus frowned. "Harry, what do you mean, you never really had one?"
Harry bit his lip and looked at the ground. "Uh . . . the Dursleys, well . . . they never really . . . let me be a part of Christmas . . . it was all about Aunt Petunia's friends and Uncle Vernon's friends from the office and Dudley, of course . . .I was just in the way."
Severus' mouth tightened into a grim line. He could only imagine what the boy's holidays had been like, shoved into a corner, forgotten and unwanted. It made him long to go and hex Lily's sister and her fat slob of a husband until they bled. "That is not the case here, Harry. I shall do my best to make sure you have a good Christmas."
Harry smiled. "Thanks, Severus." He reached out and hugged the Potions Master.
Severus returned the hug, he was not as awkward now, and murmured, "You are most welcome, child. Now, off to bed with you. You need a proper night's sleep. And make sure you eat a decent breakfast tomorrow, no sugared donuts."
"Yes, sir." Then he added, half beneath his breath. "When my exam's over I'm going to eat a dozen donuts for lunch."
"You do and you had better not come whining to me that you have a stomach-ache, because you'll get no sympathy from me."
"You'd let me suffer?" his ward objected.
"If suffering a bout of indigestion teaches you not to stuff yourself like a pig, then it's worth it. Sometimes learning the hard way is the best teacher."
"You're mean. I'll bet Ron's mum never did that."
"Then you'd be wrong. She was the one who told me that sometimes a child needs to suffer for their folly before they learn that fire is hot and one should listen to one's elders."
"Oh." Harry said. He quickly decided he would only eat six donuts.
"Good night, Harry." Snape said, turning his ward about and sending him off with a quick pat on the behind. "A dozen donuts! The boy would be lucky if he didn't vomit all over after eating that many at once," Severus muttered.
He returned to his recliner, drinking a cup of tea before he went to sleep. He stared at the fire and mused on what to do to make Harry's first real Christmas special. "Well, Skullduggery, I suppose we'll need to decorate a bit in here."
"Right. If Harry's to spend Christmas, we need a tree."
"A tree? But there's fifteen of them in the Great Hall." Snape objected.
"But none here for you to put the presents under," the raven reminded him.
"I hate fir trees. They shed all over and the smell makes me sneeze," Snape grumbled.
"Buy nose plugs. Think of how disappointed Harry will be with no tree to crawl under Christmas morning," Skull said slyly.
"I don't know where to find one."
"Ask Hagrid."
Severus scowled. "Isn't it enough that I'm going to have red bows and bells and all that other bloody nonsense down here?"
The raven began to sing, "O Christmas tree! O Christmas tree! How lovely are thy branches!" He began circling Snape's head, singing lustily the old German carol.
"Fine. I'll tell Hagrid to pick out a small one. Anything to get you to quit singing! Bloody nuisance."
"Then you and Harry can have fun decorating it." Skull warbled happily.
"Oh, joy."
"Don't be such a grouch. You told me yourself you used to help Lily decorate her tree when you were small. "
"That's precisely why I don't—" the professor began.
Skull fluttered down and landed on his shoulder. "Now you can continue the tradition with her son, and create new memories. He deserves to be happy on Christmas. And so do you."
Severus said nothing, for once allowing the raven to have the last word. Because, though he hated to admit it, the familiar was right.
Page~*~*~*~*~*Break
The next night:
With the cessation of exams and the term ending, several of the more boisterous and mischievous students, such as the Weasley twins, celebrated the holiday by playing harmless practical jokes on their Housemates. They turned Hermione and Alicia's hair into candy cane stripes, and Neville tried a canary cream and molted into a canary for thirty seconds. Ron suddenly sported the head of a bullfrog, and Harry howled like a wolf and scared Mrs. Norris out of her fur.
At least some of the pranks were harmless. There seemed to be a practical joker in every House, but while most of the students had lines they wouldn't cross, there were some who took their jokes too far.
Harry was down in Snape's rooms, helping the professor decorate the medium-sized spruce that Hagrid had delivered that afternoon. There were two cardboard boxes with various ribbons, beads, and ornaments, their contents littering the floor and sofa of the sitting room. Severus had called Harry down a mere twenty minutes before, and had hot chocolate set out as well as gingerbread on a tray. They had strung popcorn and cranberries and draped them over the tree, with Skull assisting. Or at least he was until Severus yelled at him for eating the popcorn and banished him from the room for ten minutes. Harry had just chosen a globe with Lily's picture in it and stood on tiptoe to hang it close to the top, near the star, when a piercing scream interrupted their decorating.
Harry jumped about a foot and stepped on the hem of his robe, landing hard on the floor. "Ow!"
Severus turned and helped him up. "Are you hurt?"
"My bum's sore, but it's not bad."
Severus drew his wand. But before he could heal Harry, the scream came again. "Stay here. I'll fix your backside when I return." The Potions Master strode towards the door, looking like the Spirit of Christmas Future ready to wreak havoc on some unsuspecting soul. He jerked open the door.
Skull was on the other side. "Hurry, Sev! Bates scared poor Maura MacTeague so bad she's turned blue!"
Severus swore. "Where?"
"The common room!"
The Potions Master sprinted down the hall. Maura MacTeague was a fragile second year with asthma, she carried a Calming Draught and a Breathe Ease potions with her wherever she went. Normally the attacks were triggered by overexerting herself . . . or being scared half to death.
When Snape arrived in the common room, he found several students crouched about the gasping form of red-haired Maura, whose face was blue as she struggled for air. Above her hovered what looked like a sheet, though when Snape squinted, he saw the hazy outline of an Illusion Charm. He pointed his wand and snapped, "Finite!"
The sheet crumpled to the ground.
Severus' glare caused the other Slytherins to shrink back as he knelt next to the girl.
"Maura, it's Professor Snape." He spoke softly but firmly. "I need you to look at me. Good. Right at me. It wasn't real. Just an illusion." He pulled the girl across his lap, and quickly uncapped the vial of Breathe Ease. He stuck the potion vial under her nose, it had begun smoking. "Maura, breathe. That's it. Breathe." He urged, wafting the smoke into her nostrils.
She began coughing, sucking more of the elixir into her lungs. The potion worked fast, opening the airway and allowing the girl to breathe. Severus urged her to take one deep breath and then another, until she was breathing normally. The blue tinge faded and Severus helped her drink sips of the Calming Draft. The girl's eyes were wide with fear, though gradually it faded.
"Maura, can you tell me what happened?"
"There . . . was . . . a big . . . bat! Right over there!" she pointed to where the sheet had been. Sudden tears trickled out of her eyes. "I w-was so scared . . .!" All at once she began to cry, and Snape held her. "All right, child. Relax. The bat wasn't real," he soothed. He looked up then at the rest of his snakes. "Who did this? I want the truth—immediately!" he snapped, his voice crackling with icy fury.
There was a scuffling sound towards the back of the room, and then Flint emerged dragging a fourth-year with blond hair by his collar. "Bates, sir. Here he is, the bloody idiot!"
"It was only a joke, sir!" the other babbled, his eyes bright with fear.
"That joke, Mr. Bates, nearly killed your Housemate!" spat the irate professor. "Flint, bring him to my office and watch him. I'm going to bring Miss MacTeague to the Hospital Wing, then I'll be back to deal with him." He stood up, Maura cradled close. "The rest of you, go back to packing or whatever you were doing."
They scattered before his wrath, and he stalked out of the portrait hole, Skullduggery flying overhead.
Page~*~*~*~*~*Break
Severus returned to his quarters ten minutes later, still fuming. He found Harry still hanging ornaments on the tree. The boy looked up when he entered, and asked, "Is everything all right? What happened?"
"One of my fourth-years decided to play an asinine prank upon another of his Housemates, a second year named Maura MacTeague. He scared her so badly by presenting an illusion of a bat in front of her face and chasing her about with it that she had a very bad asthma attack. She was turning blue by the time I arrived. Luckily, she carries emergency potions on her person at all times, I was able to arrest the attack and bring her to the Hospital Wing."
"That's terrible! Did you catch who did it?"
"I did." Severus said, his voice tinged with satisfaction. He reached out and tapped Harry's backside with his wand and muttered a bruise-healing charm.
"He kicked the kid's arse!" Skull remarked. "Scared the little bugger straight."
"I gave him detention tonight and tomorrow night, pickling fifty rat spleens and scrubbing out bedpans without magic, and made him apologize to Miss MacTeague. I also tore strips off him for not stopping his stupid joke when he saw the girl was getting hysterical. Idiot!"
"You should have spanked him too," the raven hissed. "Given him three with the paddle."
Severus shook his head. "He is too old for that to have much effect, Skull. I would have to truly beat him to make an impression and that is not going to help anything. Furthermore, he seems to be truly remorseful, he was not gloating over his little joke as many other pranksters I know would have done."
"What paddle?" Harry asked.
"The one he keeps in his desk drawer," answered Skull.
"There really is one? I thought . . . I thought Malfoy was joking."
"No. I have, on very rare occasions, been given permission by some of my Slytherins' parents, to use it if necessary. Many of them come from pureblood families, who believe firmly in the old adage, "Spare the rod and spoil the child". They are quite convinced that a thrashing shall cure almost any misbehavior." Severus grimaced. "The Headmaster frowns upon it, though he was raised with that doctrine as well. However, I agreed to it, because I know that some parents would not hesitate to come and mete out a beating for an infraction if they thought I was not strict enough with their child."
"Did you ever have to . . . spank anyone?"
"Once or twice, I have administered a mild swat or two, never more than that, over clothes, to a first year that seems incapable of learning to behave with other means of correction. I have never used it on a child without parental permission. I have not punished a child that way in several years. It is not my preferred method of discipline, in case you are wondering. I generally prefer to leave that type of punishment to a child's parents."
"What about me? Would you ever . . .?"
"Harry, there is only one thing that would cause me to spank you, and that is if you deliberately place yourself in harm's way. If you recklessly risk your own life, then I would feel it necessary to give you three swats with my hand as a reminder to never do that again. That would also be in addition to restrictions to your room or loss of other privileges."
"Only three swats?" Harry blurted out.
"Would you like more?" Severus arched an eyebrow.
"No. Three's fine!" Harry hastily assured his guardian. "It's a fairer punishment than any the Dursleys ever gave me."
Severus nodded, then asked softly, "Did your relatives ever hit you?"
"Not really. I mean, sometimes Uncle Vernon would clip me about the ear, but he never spanked me. And once Aunt Petunia nearly hit me with a frying pan for burning the bacon, but they mostly liked to pretend I didn't exist. Dudley was the one who liked to knock me down and punch me." Harry scowled. "He could have used three with your paddle, sir."
"No doubt," Severus agreed. "He sounds a worse spoiled brat than Malfoy."
"He is. I'm glad I won't have to go back there again." Harry said, sounding relieved. He picked up a swirling blown glass twist. "Let's finish decorating the tree."
And that was what they did. When they had finished, Severus stepped back to inspect it. "Not half-bad, if I do say so myself."
"I think it looks great! Better than any tree Aunt Petunia ever decorated," Harry said, smiling.
"That's because it was decorated with love," Skullduggery said, then he flew up and perched on top of the star.
Page~*~*~*~*~*Break
Hogwarts Staff Room
6AM:
"Good morning, all of you," Dumbledore greeted. He looked downright disgustingly alert for so early in the morning.
The same could not be said for the rest of the staff. Severus was scowling into his coffee, Minerva was yawning, Professor Sprout was leaning her head on her hand, Flitwick was snoring softly, Sinistra looked as if she were in outer space, and Professor Vector as if she were beginning to count sheep. Lena was cross-eyed trying to stay awake and Irma was blinking owlishly while she sipped her tea. Quirrell was twitching annoyingly, and staring at his hands.
Dumbledore cleared his throat and said, "Since this is the last meeting before the holidays, I want to remind you all to have your final grades turned in before the children go home tomorrow, so we can send out their marks in a timely fashion. Any detentions you have issued should be logged and points taken will be deducted. Severus, I believe you had a detention issued to one of your Slytherins last night, did you not?"
"Indeed, Headmaster. I caught the boy playing a practical joke upon one of his Housemates," Severus began.
"Gracious, Severus! You gave the boy detention over a joke?" exclaimed Professor Sprout.
"You gave detention to your own House?" Sinistra looked shocked.
"Why so surprised, Aurora?" asked the Potions Master. "When necessary, I hand out detention to my snakes, should the situation warrant it." He then turned to Pomona. "This was not your average practical joke, Pomona." He then went on to explain what had happened.
Several of the staff looked shocked. "The poor dear! I hope she is all right." Minerva said. "He certainly deserved it then. I would have taken points as well as given him a session with my Dunce Cap."
"A Dunce Cap?" queried Charity Burbage, the Muggle Studies teacher. "Like what Muggles used to use in the seventeen hundreds?"
"Yes, only mine is magical in nature," Minerva explained.
"Meaning it scolds the child in her voice for fifteen minutes," Severus added.
"He's lucky he wasn't in my House," Pomona said. "I would have had him weeding and scrubbing the greenhouse till it shone without magic, as well as giving him a good rap across the knuckles."
Filius snored loudly. Severus poked him. "Huh? What did I miss?"
"A discussion over my detention of a student," answered the Potions Master.
"Oh? Who was it and what did he do?" Flitwick asked. He enjoyed debating methods of detention with his colleagues, Filius tended to favor more cerebral forms of punishment, rather than physical ones, such as lectures, writing lines, and essays to try and make the student realize the error of their ways. He had raised ten children and took great pride in telling his fellow professors he had never spanked any of them. "Hmm . . . that's a bit harsh, Severus, I am sure the boy wasn't intending for that to happen."
"Regardless of intent, the fact is that he nearly caused the girl to stop breathing, Filius. Those tasks, while disagreeable, will give him a good long time to think about what he did." Severus returned.
"How do you determine what sort of detention is appropriate?" Lena asked.
"That varies, my dear, upon the professor," Dumbledore answered.
"And also the student," Severus interjected. "I tend to tailor mine to the individual student, with a repeat offender getting progressively worse detentions. Sometimes it depends upon the House as well. I have found Hufflepuffs respond well to being put in a corner and then writing an essay about what they did wrong and why they shouldn't repeat it. For a Ravenclaw, giving them a boring task that doesn't require them to think is sufficient to correct them. Gryffindors, more often than not, require a supervised task that is done without magic, such as preparing ingredients or scrubbing cauldrons. My Slytherins tend to hate my lectures, or loss of points, some of them detest cleaning things, as they regard it as demeaning and beneath them. Very rarely, I have spanked a first year in my House. In this case, Lena, I made Bates scrub bedpans without magic and cut up rat spleens as well as apologize to Miss MacTeague, plus I lectured him quite severely. I would hope he has learned his lesson."
"If not, maybe you should send him to Filch next time," suggested Professor Vector.
"No." Severus shook his head. "Filch has no notion of what is appropriate when punishing a child. I once came upon a student crying in the hallway after serving a detention with Filch, and she was so distraught that Peeves was trying to comfort her."
"Peeves? The poltergeist?" Vector gasped.
"Yes. Which should tell you something, madam."
"I see. That seems fair. But what happens if a Gryffindor student complains to you, Minerva, about one of Severus' detentions, and vice versa?"
"Oh, that's happened quite a lot," Minerva said. "They try and play up to us, but we've all learned to back each other up, whatever the detention given. No teacher is ever allowed to use magic as a form of punishment, nor truly harm a student. We're all required to hand in a report of each detention we give, why and how it was administered and the student's name. If a teacher is too harsh, he or she may be fined by the Board of Governors and reprimanded. Why? Were you thinking on handing out some?"
"Well . . . there are a few students that I've had to speak to more than once about behaving respectfully towards others who are studying, and I caught one boy sticking gum underneath his chair . . ."
"Gum? On my new chairs?" Irma looked about ready to breathe fire. "Give me five minutes with that one and I'll straighten him out all right!"
"If there is any more trouble, Lena, you have my permission to dock points and give them tasks to do just as a professor would," Dumbledore said then. "With all of the hard work you have done in the library, it would be a shame to see it ruined by a few unruly children."
All the staff murmured agreement on that score.
"Thank you, Headmaster. Hopefully there will be mo more incidents."
"I sincerely hope not," said Dumbledore. "The library is the heart of the school. Perhaps I shall make an announcement to that effect during the feast next term." He shuffled some papers in front of him. "Now, on to the next piece of business. The Board of Governors has finally agreed to my request and you will all be getting a two Galleon raise beginning next term. How is that for an early Christmas present?"
Everyone applauded and Filius said, "Finally!"
None of the teachers had gotten a raise in eight years.
"That woke you all up, now didn't it?" Dumbledore smiled, his blue eyes twinkling like mad. "Heads, don't forget to do a spot-check of your dormitories before the students get on the train, and make sure your classrooms are tidy. And make sure that all the students staying over break are accounted for. Christmas dinner shall be in the Great Hall at six o'clock. That's all, ladies and gentlemen. Have a wonderful Christmas!"
He waved his wand and Sugar Quills and Honeyduke's chocolate popped up next to their places. Severus was relieved to note that Dumbledore had remembered he preferred dark chocolate and green apple Sugar Quills. He thanked the Headmaster and tucked the candy in a pocket. It was now seven thirty and most of the shops in Hogsmeade should be open by now, in keeping with their holiday hours. He had time to do some last minute shopping before returning to supervise Bates' detention.
Page~*~*~*~*~*Break
Christmas morning
Snape's quarters:
Harry woke feeling deliciously warm and cozy. He yawned and stretched, then groped for his glasses. He had fallen asleep on Snape's sofa, after drinking some warm eggnog, which he was almost positive Severus had laced with a Sleeping Draught, for he'd been dead to the world soon after drinking it. But now he was wide awake, though reluctant to move from his cozy nest of blankets.
Until Skull flew into the room and crowed, "Wake up, Harry! It's Christmas!"
Then Harry crawled out from his blankets and set a foot cautiously on the floor. "Yikes! It's freezing!"
"Don't be a baby!" the raven trilled. "Look at all the presents under the tree!"
Harry did look and his eyes widened at seeing so many wrapped boxes and bags. "For me? All that?"
"Well, some are for Sev. But most of those have your name on it, I'd wager my tail feathers." The raven cawed, waggling said tail insolently. "Well, what are you waiting for? Go open them."
"What about Severus? Shouldn't I wait for him?"
"Do you want me to wake him up?"
Harry considered. "If it wouldn't be too much trouble?"
"Not at all, bran-boy."
The raven glided off the couch and into Severus' room.
The next thing that was heard in Snape's quarters was a panicked screeching. "Severus—WAKE UP! THERE'S A FIRE!"
Harry laughed so hard after hearing that he nearly peed his pants.
That in turn was followed by Severus bellowing, "Skullduggery, bloody hell! What do you man, screaming there's a fire in my ear?"
"It was the fastest way to wake you up," came the raven's reply. "Don't be mad, Sev. It's Christmas, the time of great joy and giving."
"And I'm going to take great joy in giving you away to a pie factory," grumbled Severus.
He stalked out of his bedroom, his green robe half tied over his pajamas, his hair tousled, and barefoot. The first thing he saw was the empty sofa. "Harry?"
Harry picked himself up from the floor, unable to contain the dopey grin that spread across his face. "Here I am, Severus."
The Potions Master frowned at him severely. "If I find out you encouraged my rascal of a familiar to wake me up, I'm returning all your presents."
"Me?" Harry gazed at him innocently. "Would I do that?"
"You had better hope not." Severus chided. Then he relented and said, "Happy Christmas, Harry."
"Happy Christmas, Severus!" He looked over at the tree. "May I open my presents now?"
Severus went and seated himself on the sofa. "Go ahead."
To his surprise, Harry did not dive immediately under the tree in search of his presents. Instead he knelt and began to carefully remove all the presents he could see with Severus' name on them. He then carried them over to the Potions Master. "These are yours, Sev."
"That wasn't necessary, Harry. I could have Summoned them."
"I was already there, why waste a spell?" his ward pointed out pragmatically. He set down the pile of gifts beside Severus.
Only then did he go and find the boxes and bags with his name on them. He pulled out several that were wrapped in brown paper and began to slowly open them. "This one's from Mrs. Weasley!" Inside was a gold jumper with the letters HPS on it in black. There was also her famous mince pies and fudge. "HPS?" he muttered.
"Harry Potter Snape," Severus told him. "That's a sure sign Molly approves of my guardianship."
Harry opened another gift. This one was from Ron, and it was two chocolate frogs.
Merlin, more sweets! Severus groaned inwardly.
From Hermione there was a book, Quidditch Through the Ages.
The twins gave him a book on how to make potions called Amusing Concoctions.
Neville sent him Droobles Best Blowing Gum and a pen and ink set with the ink pot shaped like a cauldron.
To Harry's shock, there was even a small box from Draco. He opened it cautiously, half-afraid it might blow up in his face. Inside was a Golden Snitch, signed by some players from the Wimbourne Wasps and a note. The note read—Potter, thought you could use the practice for next game. Happy Christmas! Malfoy.
"That is typical Malfoy. A gift with a backhanded compliment," Severus said.
Harry sat back on his heels. He had already received more presents this morning than he ever had in his entire life and there was still many more beneath the tree. He pulled out a box and began to unwrap it slowly.
"Harry, haven't you ever opened presents on Christmas?" Skull queried impatiently. "You needn't take your time with the paper. Here, let me show you how it's done."
The raven promptly landed on a large box and began shredding the paper. A blizzard of colored confetti rained down over them. "There! See? Just rip away!"
Harry stared at the mess, then eyed his guardian.
"Go ahead, Harry, This once, it doesn't matter if the sitting room looks like crepe paper exploded in it." Severus waved a hand.
Harry tore into his gifts with gusto then, and Skull assisted him.
Severus had bought him a whole new wardrobe, from socks and underwear to gloves and a scarf. There was a new broom servicing kit. There was also a certificate to Flourish and Blotts. Harry picked up a small package wrapped in green and gold paper. Inside was a beautiful ivory plated book with a jeweled fox and a cluster of grapes on the cover. When he opened it, he saw that the pages were of heavy parchment with beautifully illuminated illustrations. "Aesop's Fables." He read the title aloud. "Severus, this book . . . it's amazing!"
"It is a reproduction of a medieval illuminated manuscript." Severus said. "I know that you love books as I do, and this was also your mother's favorite collection of stories as a girl. Lily and I used to read them aloud to each other in her backyard when we were nine. I thought it appropriate for your first collectible volume."
Harry gazed up at his guardian and blinked back tears. "It's fantastic. Thank you for everything."
"Wait! You have two more gifts under here," Skullduggery squawked. He pulled out a very tiny box that was labeled, from the Dursleys and another with no name at all.
"Bring me that!" Severus ordered sharply, mindful of the last time someone had sent Harry an anonymous gift.
Skull obeyed, and Severus began to cast detection spells over the package.
Harry opened the gift from the Dursleys. It was a crumpled tissue.
"That's disgusting!" Skull spat. "Severus, look at what those arses gave him for a present!"
"What?" Severus looked up, an odd light in his eyes. Inwardly, he was cursing Dumbledore furiously.
"It's a tissue," Harry said, holding it up. He felt a pang of sorrow, though he knew they had never really cared about him.
"They gave you a tissue?" growled Snape, his eyes hardening. "Those miserable—" he broke off abruptly. "Pay it no mind, Harry. Throw it in the rubbish along with them." He set the mysterious package on the sofa and rose. "Come. You can open this later. I have one more gift for you."
"More? But . . . you already bought me too much!"
"No, I haven't. Follow me."
Mystified, Harry followed the professor back towards a door that until now had always been closed.
Severus opened it, then gestured. "Go on in. This belongs to you. Because everyone needs a room of one's own."
Harry took two steps and lights came on.
There was a thick carpet on the floor of a plush winter blue with black diamonds scattered through it. The room was almost as big as the one in Gryffindor Tower, and came complete with his own four poster bed, done in matching colors, a huge bookshelf, a desk, chair, and nightstand, plus a very large armoire. All of the furniture was done in a reddish mahogany and there was a fake "window" on the left side that was charmed to show a view of the lake and the grounds. The walls were painted a swirled smoky blue and white and when he looked up at the ceiling, he saw it had been charmed to resemble the night sky.
"So you don't feel closed in," the professor explained at Harry's quizzical look. "Do you like it? If you wish a different color scheme or furniture, let me know. I can change it to whatever you prefer. You may decorate the walls as you choose."
Harry just stared, overwhelmed. He knew Severus had promised to give him his own bedroom down here, but he had never expected anything like this! He had thought it would be a tiny room with a bed and maybe a chest of drawers. "I . . . It's . . ." he stammered, unable to form a coherent sentence.
"You needn't spare my feelings if you dislike it," the Potions Master began, mistakenly assuming from Harry's response that the boy hated the room.
"Dislike it? It's . . . the best room ever!" Harry cried, then he turned and buried his face in Severus' robes, crying silently.
Astonished, the Potions Master hugged him. "Harry, what's wrong? You needn't be afraid to tell me the truth. I . . . I'm not going to be angry . . ."
Harry shook his head. " . . .don't unnerstand . . ." his words were muffled by Snape's robe. " . . . nobody's ever given me anything like this . . . I keep thinking I'm dreaming . . ."
"Child, I promise you you're not." Severus stroked his hair, finally understanding the reason why his ward was crying his eyes out. "This is something you should have had long ago and it is my privilege to give it to you."
Harry clung to him a moment more before pulling away. "Sorry. Didn't mean to act like a baby. It's just . . . I can't thank you enough . . ."
"You don't need to. As long as you are my ward, you shall have your own room and anything else you might need. That is what I would do for my own son, and it is what you deserve as my ward. I promised you this and I always keep my promises."
Harry smiled up at him, brushing away the tears with the back of his hand. "All right. Come on, Sev. You need to open your gifts and I need to see what's in that last package."
They returned to the sitting room, and Harry opened the unmarked package. He shook out a silky silvery cloak. "This is nice. Who's it from?"
"The card is unsigned. It merely says, This belonged to your father. Use it wisely." Severus said, clenching his teeth. He knew only one person who could have sent this to Harry.
"This cloak was my dad's?" Harry examined it. The fabric was very fine and light.
"Yes, and it is a very valuable heirloom. It is an Invisibility Cloak. Put it on and pull up the hood and you shall disappear."
Harry did so. "Wicked!" He threw off the hood.
"Harry, I am going to ask you to do a difficult thing. The Invisibility Cloak is a powerful item, but it is not to be used lightly. In times past, members of your family have used it to escape dangerous situations. But it should not be used to wander about the school at night, causing mischief. That is how your father used it when he went to school here. As a tool to play pranks upon people. I understand that it's tempting to use it that way when you are a child. It is why I must ask you to give it to me for safekeeping. There is no need for you to use it here at school. I shall return it to you when you are of age, and therefore responsible enough to use it wisely. Barring that, if it ever became necessary for you to hide, the cloak would be returned to you."
Harry hesitated. A small part of him was howling—no, you can't have it, it's mine! But another part, the more grown-up part, was whispering that Severus was right, he would be tempted to use the cloak wrongly, and after all the other had done for him, it was a small price to pay. He stroked the fabric longingly. Then he made up his mind.
He removed the cloak and handed it to Severus.
The Potions Master took the cloak and said, "I'm proud of you, Harry." With a wave of his wand, he sent the cloak zooming into a trunk. Then he sat down and began to open his gifts.
When he finally opened Harry's gift, the boy was practically dancing with impatience. "Now, what have we here? A magazine subscription. To a potions periodical I don't currently have. Dark chocolate—my favorite." He unwrapped the slippers. "New slippers, excellent!" He promptly placed the slippers on the floor and put his feet in them, they magically re-sized to fit him. "And a blooming cactus." He gently set down the cactus on the table. "Between this and the coffee that Lena gave to me, I am quite ready to relax for an hour or two. Thank you, Harry. That was very thoughtful of you." He gave the boy a hug. "It's too bad I can't start using some of this right now. However, we have been invited for breakfast in Irma's quarters by Lena. Go and change into a new outfit, Harry. One should never keep ladies waiting."
Severus waved his wand and the mess of paper and ribbon was cleaned up and all of Harry's clothing, shoes, and other gifts were floated into his new room. He carefully chose a new outfit and put it on, excited to join the librarians for breakfast and taste Lena's cappuccino. This was turning out to be the best Christmas he had ever had. He couldn't wait to show Ron his new room, and he hoped his friend was having as good a Christmas as he was.
By the time Harry emerged from his room, Severus was waiting, dressed in a new emerald green shirt and black trousers with shiny black boots and a green overrobe. "Very nice, Harry."
"My, don't you look handsome!" Skull remarked, preening his feathers. "Black and gold, very good color combination. Lena will be pleased." The raven playfully tugged on a lock of Severus' hair. "Of course, we won't mention how shocked she'll be to see Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome in something besides basic black for once, now will we?"
"Skullduggery, behave." Severus ordered, the hint of a smile upon his face. He held open the door and the raven and Harry exited.
Together, they walked down the hall, Skullduggery flying ahead, singing White Christmas, in the late Bing Crosby's distinctive voice.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Harry celebrates Christmas with Severus and Skull
Harry's First Real Christmas
Chapter End Notes:
Hope you all like!