Harry had turned the lights out at 9, but despite feeling exhausted he struggled to fall asleep. He dozed in and out of a shallow sleep for a few hours before finally sitting up in his bed with frustration. His mind was racing with anxiety. He was thinking about Ron and Hermione, and wondering if they were missing him at all. He was worrying non-stop about the apprenticeship- he was afraid it would work out and he'd be stuck with Snape, but then he was also afraid he wouldn't get it and he'd be forced into foster care.

He laid in his bed for several minutes trying to force himself back to sleep. When that didn't work, he tried closing his eyes and counting sheep. Finally, he tried relaxing each part of his body from his head to his toes. When none of those worked, he decided to get up and go to the parlor. Perhaps he could relax better with a change of scenery. He brought his book and laid on the sofa, propping his head up with a few of the dark green throw pillows as he laid by the dying fire.

Harry read for about 15 minutes before he realized he still couldn't sleep. He felt a restlessness that he knew he could only get rid of if he walked. It was 3:30am in the morning. With the students gone for the holidays he knew there wouldn't be anyone in the hallways, the Professors didn't bother doing night rounds during school breaks.

He desperately wanted his invisibility cloak, but he knew there was no way to get it from Snape's wardrobe right now. If he wanted to go out, he'd have to do it without the security of his cloak.

Harry put on a pair of his brand new socks, deciding to forgo his shoes so he could move with more stealth. He silently walked through the parlor, listening for any signs of Snape. When he didn't hear anything, he crept out the door, closing it quietly behind him.

 He walked for a while in the dungeons before he thought of Hedwig and decided to take a trip up to the owlery. Snape had mentioned that he and Dumbledore had rescued her when they went to visit the Dursleys and he wanted to see her and make sure she was still OK. Damn, I should have brought her a snack.

As he walked through the long corridors, Harry felt his body relax. It had been so long since he'd felt this safe. Even though he was worried about everything going on, he was also just plain happy to be back at Hogwarts. This was the one place where he had felt loved, safe, free, and just like a normal kid for the first time in his life. Even if he had to agree to be apprenticed to Snape, it felt like it was worth it. He couldn't imagine never being able to come back here.

The sky was incredibly clear. With no clouds and a nearly full-moon, the moonlight lit up the castle and the grounds like a dreamy film set. Harry could see all of the stars perfectly. He traced the outline of the big dipper until he found Polaris. Then he traced Orion's belt in the sky and looked up to the right to find the W of Cassiopeia. He loved looking at the stars.

Harry paused often on his way to the owlery, soaking in the ambiance of the castle, breathing the fresh air, and just enjoying the feeling of serenity. When he finally got to the owlery, he climbed the stairs to the tower and called out for Hedwig.

"Hedwig, come here, girl! Where are you? I've missed you!" he called out to her in his most gentle baby voice. He heard a squawk and then he saw her in the upper rafters.

Hedwig was definitely not happy with him and she refused to fly down to Harry right away. So he continued to cajole her. "Hedwig, come here girl, I'm so sorry I had to leave you. I'm so so sorry, girl. Please come to me, Hedwig, I've missed you. Please forgive me."

After about two minutes of begging and calling out to her sweetly, Hedwig finally flew down. She pecked at the side of his head for a moment before she allowed herself to be held and gently petted.

Harry sat in the owlery for hours, stroking Hedwig and looking out into the stars. He let his mind run free. He imagined that his dad had taken him on a camping trip and it was just the two of them, star-gazing and talking. He imagined what he would be doing for Easter break if both of his parents were still alive, how his mom would cook all of his favorite foods and hug him when he walked in the door. Just before dawn broke, Harry finally dozed off to sleep with Hedwig in his arms and a smile on his face.

Snape had planned to wake up around 8:00am, that way he'd get in a good amount of sleep and still have plenty of time to eat breakfast, get ready, and travel to London before meeting with Master Barclay at 10:30.

But for some reason, Snape woke up with a jolt around 5:45am. He looked at his watch and cursed to himself. He wanted to go back to sleep but he had a nagging feeling that something wasn't quite right. He put a dressing gown over his pajamas and walked into the parlor.

He saw Harry's book on the seat of the couch, which was odd because he was pretty sure he remembered the boy taking it to his room before bedtime. Snape picked up the book and set it on the end table before heading toward Harry's room.

He slowly opened the door and saw that Harry's bed was empty. Snape rushed in and checked under the bed, on the floor, and even in the wardrobe. Next he ran to the washroom. It was also empty. He called out Harry's name but he heard no response. He saw that his glasses were no longer on the bedside table and he immediately knew that Harry must have left the quarters.

Snape searched every inch and corner of every room before he started to panic. It was 6am, still too early to wake others to ask for help. Besides, he didn't want the rest of the staff to think he was a failure for losing the boy in two days!

Snape calmed himself down and tried to think rationally. Where would the boy go? There were no students in the castle so who else or what else would he want to see?

He threw a thick pair of teaching robes on over his pajamas and wrapped himself in a cloak before leaving his quarters.

He tried what he'd done that day at the beach to see if he could attempt to connect to Harry's mind even if he wasn't in direct proximity. This was a new skill for Snape, one he had only discovered that night when he was searching for Harry in Brighton. He still wasn't entirely sure how it worked or if it was just a fluke, but it was worth giving it a try.

He calmed his mind and focused his mental energy, casting a long-distance legilimens. Nothing pinged back to him at first, so Snape did what he did before and just started walking, allowing himself to be guided by his own intuition, attempting to feel Harry's energy along the way.

He was walking slowly for about ten minutes before he was suddenly hit by a vision. Just like it had been before, it was a quick flash, but it was unmistakable. He had seen the stars, the tower, and the owls. Snape knew just where to go.

Snape had been panicking and worrying like a mother hen for the past thirty minutes, but now that he knew where Harry was, he felt the anger taking over. Just wait til I get my hands on that brat. How DARE he deliberately disobey me. He knows damn well not to leave my quarters.

Instead of the fresh air and the long walk calming him down, Snape became more enraged with each step. When he finally got to the tower, he was on the verge of spontaneous combustion until he saw Harry asleep, leaned up against the wall, Hedwig snuggled in his arms.

Snape paused for a moment and the anger started to evaporate. He was deeply relieved that Harry was safe, and seeing him sitting there so peacefully might have been quite adorable if he wasn't so PISSED.

He debated about what to do. Should he just scoop the lad up and carry him back to his bed? Or does he wake the brat up, give him a stern talking to and force him to walk.

He looked at the boy's feet- he had no shoes on, just a pair of socks (which were now filthy on the bottom).

 Dammit Potter, don't you have ANY common sense!

Against his better judgment, and certainly fighting against his urge to strangle the boy, he bent down and scooped Harry into his arms. Hedwig took that as her signal to go and she flew out of Harry's arms to find a comfortable perch.

The boy barely stirred and instead laid his head on Snape's shoulder. Harry's skin felt ice cold to the touch, so Snape wrapped him in his cloak - he prayed the boy wouldn't fall sick. Once again he realized just how light Harry felt. It was like carrying a baby bird.

Snape held him tightly against his chest as he made his way through the castle and back to the dungeons. He laid Harry gently on the couch and used his wand to add more logs to the fire. He then transfigured his cape into a giant down blanket and covered Harry, tucking the covers in tightly all around him. He removed his glasses, and carefully placed them on the end table.

This whole little escapade had been entirely outside the scope of anything Snape had ever done. He couldn't explain what he was feeling, but he felt an attachment and concern for the boy that he'd never had for anyone. Ever. It was clearly clouding his judgment. He needed to separate his emotions from his duty and his responsibilities-immediately. This kind of sentimental nonsense could not be allowed to continue.

Daybreak was near. Snape, seeing Harry sleeping comfortably, went back to his room and showered, shaved, and pulled out his finest clothes. He was nervous, so he soothed himself in the simple rituals of readying himself to meet with Master Barclay.

He picked out a fresh pair of black trousers and his most crisp white collared shirt, one that had SS embroidered onto the cuffs. He pulled his Prince family cufflinks out of the box and carefully threaded them through. After tucking in his shirt and putting on his belt, he put on his nicest black frock coat. This one had intricate patterns embossed in black velvet and the buttons were made of onyx. It was a gorgeous piece of clothing that he'd treated himself to while at a conference in Milan two years ago. He almost never got the chance to wear it, but when he did, it made him feel elegant and powerful.

Next, Snape pulled out his formal Potion Master's robes. They were a heavy black wool/silk blend with three green velvet stripes on each shoulder designating his status as the highest level of Potion Master. The inside of his robes were embroidered with gold thread listing his name, his mentor's name, and the date on which he received his qualifications as a Potion Master. Sewn into the lining of the right sleeve was a small Latin motto, passed down from Master to Apprentice, a special code that bonded a wizard or witch to the many generations who passed through the same academic lineage. It was only ever to be shared at the time an apprentice passed their final qualifications, and never to be seen or spoken of to anyone outside of that.

Snape believed in the power of words and rituals—both those spoken and unspoken. While he rarely wore these robes except for special occasions or certain meetings with the APM, he felt a certain empowerment when he put them on. He felt seen, like he belonged to an elite group of brilliant minds that stretched through time. It gave him an internal sense of validation, and he relished it on the rare occasion he allowed himself to experience it.

He kept the top robes off for the moment, laying them across his bed and casting a de-wrinkling charm so they'd look fresh and neat.

When he came back out to the parlor and hour later, Harry was still sound asleep on the couch. Snape would let him sleep as long as possible and then they would have a much needed conversation.

Snape sat in his armchair and drank his tea while he watched Harry sleep. He didn't know what to do with the brat. They had such an important meeting today, he really didn't want to get the morning off to a bad start. He knew he needed to punish the boy, but he also knew that might put him in a terrible mood, causing him to sulk and whine the whole day.

This was such an important day for both of them, he didn't want to take any chances of ruining it before it had even started. But at the same time, he didn't want the boy to think he could get away with this. He had deliberately disobeyed Snape and left his quarters without permission. On top of that, he was gallivanting around the castle, alone, after dark, after they had already discussed how unsafe that was. He didn't know what to do. He would just have to play it by ear.

At around 8am, Harry began to stir. It took him a moment to realize that he wasn't in his room- he was on the couch in front of the fire. Before he could put on his glasses and orient himself, he heard the unmistakably silky voice of Professor Snape.

"Good morning, Mr. Potter. You enjoyed a restful night of sleep, I hope." His voice was a dangerous calm dripping in sarcasm.

Harry's mind began to spin- how did he get back here? The last thing he remembered was going to visit Hedwig...and then, he woke up on the couch. Shit. SHIT. Did I fall asleep outside? Did Snape find me and bring me back here?

"How did I get here, sir? I don't remember much, I sometimes sleep-walk you know." Harry let the lie roll right off of his tongue. He wasn't sure what else to do, Snape would kill him if he told him the truth. Besides, how could he possibly call his bluff? The burden of proof is on the accuser, Harry was innocent until proven guilty.

"Sleepwalking, really?" Snape arched an eyebrow in mock surprise. "How interesting," Snape drawled calmly, bringing his teacup to his mouth for a long, slow sip. "Are you sure, Mr. Potter? Give your history of wandering the castle at night, is it not more likely that you purposely went out for a midnight stroll, despite being told to stay in your room?"

Harry decided to double down. He was all in with the lie now. He wasn't going to fall for such an amateur attempt to get him to confess. "No sir. The last thing I remember I was falling asleep in my room and then all of a sudden I woke up here in the parlor. I have no idea what happened."

Snape could tell this was complete rubbish. He'd been a teacher for ten years. Being a human lie detector was practically his job description. The boy was lying straight to his face.

There were several ways he could handle this. He could use Legilimency, but that would be highly unethical against a young student, especially without consent. He could yell and scream and threaten him to confess, which was way more drama then he was prepared for this morning. Or he could let it go—for now—and see if he could use other means to get Harry to confess later. If Harry wanted to play this game, he'd chosen the wrong opponent. Snape was a master of the long game, and he never, ever lost.

"Very well, Mr. Potter. Now that I am aware of your..."sleep walking" issue...I shall have to strengthen the wards so I'll know if you leave your room. Perhaps I should also tie a little bell around your neck like a kitten, just so that I can hear when you're moving about. I'd hate for you to harm yourself in one of these unfortunate sleep-walking episodes."

Harry was annoyed. Snape was purposely taunting him with a calm voice, although anyone who knew him would know that it was drenched in indignation and sarcasm. He was sure that Snape knew he was lying, but he wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of admitting it. Snape was obviously playing some kind of mind game with him, but there was no way Harry was going to fall for it.

"Before we move on, let me just make a few things clear for you. You know you are not to leave these quarters without permission. Do you understand that, Mr. Potter?"

"Yeah."

"I beg your pardon?" Snape's voice hardened at the disrespect.

"Yes, sir."

"Good. I also feel VERY strongly about not being lied to. If you lie to my face—whether a lie of omission or a direct bald-face lie—the consequences will be most severe. Do you understand this?

"Yes, sir."

"Excellent. So then, let me start all over again and let's see if we can't get to the truth this time, hmm?"

Snape paused for dramatic effect but kept his voice light, almost like he was talking to a naughty puppy.

"Did you purposely leave our quarters last night to go to the Owlery?" Snape stood tall and crossed his arms against his chest, looking down disapprovingly at Harry. "The truth, now, if you please."

Harry felt the panic rising inside of him. He could lie once, but being asked to repeat the lie over and over again was starting to be difficult. His heart raced, his breathing was getting faster, and he could feel sweat starting to bead on the back of his neck. He tried to force himself to calm down but his body was giving him away. Still, he was fully committed to the lie at this point. There was no way back.

"No sir, I must have sleep-walked. I really don't remember anything after going to bed last night."

Ever the master of games, Snape allowed his eyes to fix on Harry's, letting the silence play the supporting role. Seconds ticked by, painfully. Harry was nearly bursting with anxiety.

"Very well, then we will put this episode behind us...for now. I just hope you had enough sleep, this is a very important day for both of us." Snape looked down at Harry with a combination of disappointment and disapproval.

Harry felt terrible. He hated lying, but worst of all he hated Snape knowing that he was lying and letting him get away with it. Snape had to know that the guilt was going to eat him up.

Snape acted as if nothing had happened. He knew this would unnerve the boy even more. He worked hard to keep his tone free from scorn. He was rather enjoying toying with the boy, it was like a little game of psychological cat and mouse.

"Now then, time to get up, Potter. We'll eat breakfast and then I will cut your ridiculous hair. I want you to look every bit like the perfect little apprentice today."

As they walked to the table, Snape grabbed Harry's arm suddenly and whispered in his ear: "By the way Potter, if I ever find out you've lied to me about gallivanting around the castle--last night or any other time--I will put you over my knee and spank you until sitting will be nothing but a fond memory for you."

Snape let go of Harry's arm and gave him a smirk. Harry's heart rate was in the 180s and his entire face had gone red, but he moved quickly to sit in his chair, desperate to avoid any more talk of his nocturnal escapades.

Just making those threats put Snape in a somewhat better mood. He knew the boy was pushing boundaries, and now he was going to start pushing back. He had wanted to formalize things before he laid out all of the "official" rules. He honestly didn't expect Harry to be running wild in the few short days since he arrived. Clearly he needed to do more, and a little intimidation could go a long way. As tempted as he was to end this game and put the brat in his place, today...today he needed Harry in a good mood and on his best behavior. So, let the boy think he's gotten away with it.

Harry waited until Snape had served himself breakfast before putting his napkin in his lap and politely serving his own food. Recognizing that he was on thin ice, he was making every attempt to be on his very best behavior.

He didn't know if it was anxiety for the meeting, poor sleep or whether it was lying to Snape so blatantly, but his stomach felt like it was in knots. Breakfast was usually his favorite meal, but Harry could barely eat.

"You haven't eaten much, Potter, are you feeling ill?" Snape said, casually, looking at Harry's half empty plate. The boy had been moving around the same few pieces of eggs and hashbrowns for five minutes.

"No sir, I'm not ill. Just not very hungry."

"Try and at least finish your milk and have some fruit," Snape said, eyeing a bowl of fruit on the table. "Surely you can have a few raspberries or perhaps some apple slices."

Harry put a few berries on his plate but then continued to pick at them. He couldn't finish.

"Very well, don't force yourself." Snape tapped the table and the dishes disappeared. "Now let's get your haircut out of the way."

Snape walked Harry to the washroom, and with a flick of his wand, a small chair appeared. He sat Harry in the chair and Snape laid out all of his tools out on the bathroom counter. Snape had never been one for fancy haircuts, so he hoped that this would be good enough. He'd learned the charm sequence from a book yesterday. Worst case scenario, he'd shave the boy 's head and he'd look like he came from one of those military schools for boys who needed to be scared straight. The thought made Snape smile.

"Stay still, Potter. If you move even half an inch, one of these charmed scissors could take your ear off or put an eye out. That would be most inconvenient for me, so do try your best to stay calm."

Snape wrapped a towel around Harry's neck and splashed his hair with a bit of water. He then called out several incantations to the combs, scissors, and razors that would shape Harry's hair.

As soon as he flicked his wand and finished the incantations, scissors and combs were buzzing around and hair was flying everywhere. Standing back in the doorway, Snape was rather amused watching Harry panic while several styling tools attacked his head. After the first round of cuts got rid of the long hair, the clippers came in and shaved a line around his neck and faded up a little bit to make the cut look shorter on the back and sides.

Snape muttered the counter spell to stop and have a look. He had to say, he was quite impressed. It looked mostly even. It certainly looked a hell of a lot better than it did five minutes ago.

"Well, Potter, you're a new man."

Harry stared at himself in the mirror. It was not the worst haircut he'd ever had.

"Yeah, it's fine, I guess."

"Excellent. Now get in the shower and clean up. I will lay out the clothes I want you to wear today for the meeting with Master Barclay.

"Yes, sir."

Snape used another spell to clean the hair from the bathroom and banish it outside. He put the scissors, combs, and clippers into a drawer, leaving Harry alone to shower and get ready.

Stepping into Harry's room, he went to his wardrobe. He was pleased to see that Harry had followed his instructions and hung everything up neatly. He pulled out a pair of black trousers, a black belt, and a white dress shirt. Next he got out a charcoal gray waistcoat. He then looked for one of his formal academic dress robes- a beautiful black robe with green velvet trim (for Potions), and an APM insignia on the left side.

He actually felt really proud just looking at Harry's robes and he hoped that if today went well, Master Barclay would agree to grant them the bond and he would have the robes embroidered with "Apprentice Potter." Although a year ago he could have never imagined this, he now felt motivated to help Harry- there was so much he could teach the boy if he was given the chance. He knew he couldn't undo the first twelve years of his life, but he could make sure the next twelve were infinitely better. He wanted Lily to be proud of him, and to know that her son would be in good hands. For the first time in a long time, he felt a sense of purpose, and it felt good.

Snape left Harry's room and returned to his desk in the parlor where he gathered together some parchment, quills, and a portfolio he'd compiled with a Letter of Intent, two letters of reference (one from Dumbledore and one from McGonagall) and series of academic papers he'd sourced to help him gain some academic precedence for making this appeal. He hoped all of this would be enough. He packed the papers carefully together in a portfolio which he would shrink and place into the inner pocket of his robes.

Harry dressed himself in the clothes Snape had laid out for him. He had to admit, he felt like a completely different person. He didn't feel like a scraggly orphan, he felt like a confident young wizard. He looked at himself in the mirror and smiled.

It was getting close to 9:00, so Snape knocked on Harry's door. "We need to go soon. Are you ready?"

Harry opened the door, a huge smile on his face. "What do you think?" He gave his impression of a model pose, showing off his new clothes.

"You actually look like a proper young gentleman. I may die of shock." Snape added the sarcasm, but he was clearly very pleased.

"You need a tie, Potter. Do you have any besides your school ties?"

"No, sir."

"Follow me, you can wear one of mine."

Harry followed Snape to his bedroom door, hovering outside of his room politely while his professor searched his wardrobe for the perfect tie. He chose a tie with a silver and black woven pattern that would look nice with his waistcoat and his dress robes. He handed it to Harry.

The boy paused for a moment, staring at the tie in his hands. "Um, can you help me with this please, sir?" Harry asked, blushing. "I don't know how to tie it, the prefects did it for me at the beginning of last year and I just never unknotted it."

Snape grabbed the tie back. He took Harry by the arm to the washroom and stood him in front of the mirror. Standing behind him, he put the tie around his neck so that Harry could see his movements clearly in the reflection. "Watch what I'm doing, Potter, this is something every young man should know how to do."

Harry watched Snape carefully in the mirror as the man's arms reached over his shoulders and gently held each end of the tie. "The skinny side goes on the right. Give yourself a lot of length on the left so that the tie isn't too short. You can always adjust it later."

Snape made sure he talked through each step. His long, deft fingers moved slowly enough so that Harry could see them but with great precision and care. At the end, he had a perfectly knotted Double Windsor. He turned Harry around to adjust it.

"Right then, we need to leave. I don't want to be late."

"How are we getting there, sir?"

"We will Floo to Diagon Alley, and then take the tube from King's Cross to Paddington. We'll walk from there to Master Barclay's office. For the time being, we will hold onto our dress robes, we can put them on once we arrive. Do you have any questions?"

"No, sir."

"Good. And I know I've said this to you ten times before, but today is very important, Mr. Potter. I want you to behave like the proper young gentleman I know you can be. I don't think I need to detail what tragedies would befall you if you made the grave error of disrespecting me or misbehaving in front of Master Barclay."

Snape gave him his most foreboding Professor look.

"No, sir. I'll be good." Harry's face turned red. Even though he knew the man wasn't seriously scolding him, he hated being talked to like a naughty kindergartener.

To be honest, Snape wasn't too worried. Harry had actually been on his best behavior all morning. Perhaps that little threat earlier had been enough to scare him into line. He could also tell that Harry was feeling confident in his new clothes and he was eager to make a good impression. Whatever it was, Snape was happy as long as he stayed that way.

"See that you do. Now then, let's go."

Snape glanced at his watch as they walked out of Paddington station. By his calculation it was less than a ten minute walk to Barclay's office from there. They had 40 minutes before the meeting started.

"We have a few extra minutes, Potter, do you want something small to eat? You hardly touched your breakfast. And I wouldn't mind another cup of tea."

Harry was confused at how pleasant Snape was being, but he wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. "Yes, sir, that would be nice."

They stopped in a little patisserie across from St. Mary's Hospital. Harry had a pain au chocolate and some fresh-squeezed juice and Snape had a cup of Earl Gray. They watched all of the people passing by, and as usual, said very little.

"Is Master Barclay nice?" Harry asked, as he absent-mindedly used his index finger to pick up crumbs from his plate before putting them in his mouth.

Harry sucked his finger and then put it back on the plate attempting to pick up the rest of the crumbs.

With the precision of leopard pouncing on his prey, Snape reached out and gave Harry's hand a sharp smack. "Your table manners are atrocious, Mr. Potter. We're in public, make an effort."

Harry's face turned red and he withdrew his hands to his lap, gently rubbing the sting from where Snape slapped him. "Sorry," he mumbled.

"Yeah, but was he nice? Like, when you were his apprentice did he treat you nice?"

"Nicely, Potter, it's an adverb. But to answer your question, he never mistreated me. He could be very strict, and he demanded a lot of me, but he was always fair, and he always treated me with respect."

"Oh. Were you scared of him?" Harry asked with his eyes wide, a hint of excitement in his voice. He couldn’t imagine Snape being afraid of anyone, but he also couldn’t imagine Snape as a teenager either.

Snape nearly smiled, but he kept a straight face. "I did my best not to disappoint him...Now go wash your hands and wipe your face, you've got chocolate and crumbs all over yourself."

Snape finished his tea and left some change on the table. He stood up and pushed his chair in, brushing any crumbs off of his own shirt and trousers.

Harry came bounding out of the loo and followed Snape out the door. Snape paused for a moment outside to inspect Harry's face, hands, and clothes. Satisfied he wasn't sticky or covered in pastry, they walked down the street toward Barclay's office.

Snape pushed a button outside the large white building and the two were buzzed inside. They took the elevator to the 5th floor, pausing to put on their dress robes before knocking at the office door.

Harry was nervous but excited to meet Master Barclay. He could also tell that, even if he wouldn't admit (and he kept the same neutral scowl on his face), Snape was also a bit anxious. It was funny for Harry to try and imagine Snape as the apprentice, with someone else bossing him around and yelling at him when he did something wrong. He nearly giggled at the thought until Snape shot him a warning glare.

Snape adjusted his own robes and then leaned down to fix Harry's. He straightened his tie and smoothed the back of his robes before putting his hands on both of Harry's shoulders and bending down to look at him in the eye. "I'm doing this, Mr. Potter because I believe you are capable of great things. I hope you will not disappoint me."

Harry felt his heart leap. Snape had never said anything like that to him before. He definitely wanted to make him proud.

Snape stood up again, straightened his robes once more, and knocked on the door.

The door opened to reveal a man in his 70's with thick, wavy white hair, a well-trimmed goatee, and bright blue eyes behind wire-framed glasses. He wasn't short by average standards, but Snape towered over him by several inches.

"Severus! So wonderful to see you, come in." He opened the door and ushered them inside. "And this must be the young Mr. Potter."