It was a late night during the Christmas holidays, and Harry, Draco, Fred, and George were all on the floor circling the muggle television, the screen's light flickering in the dark room. They all had a pillow that their elbows dug into to prop themselves up and a single blanket draped over all four of them as they stared intently at the screen.

A monster slowly stalked across the screen, growling, and reaching for its victims as they cowered in the snow. It opened its mouth, showing off large, sharp teeth. Suddenly, an unlikely hero ran on screen with his mighty dogs and they sacrificed themselves to get rid of the monster, to the horror of the movie characters—and the kids watching the screen.

"No!" Fred cried. "Not the dogs!"

"What about Yukon?" George asked.

"Him too!"

"At least Rudolph can get back home now," George said, "look how sad everyone looks. This is depressing—and they made this for kids!"

"Guys," Harry said, laughing. "Shut up and watch the movie."

"Look who's talking," George smirked over at Harry. "Bet you've seen this a thousand times. It's made you heartless."

"It's tradition to watch it every Christmas. It's a classic."

"Yeah, right up there with Old Yeller."

Harry rolled his eyes and stared back at the screen, watching as Santa announced that Rudolph would be leading the sled team through the white out storm. Everyone cheered when Yukon reappeared with his dogs and the monster, who was in a jollier mood and even helped decorate the tree. They laughed at the ending, then groaned when lights flicked on above them, everyone shielding their eyes.

"I told you to leave at least one lamp on," Severus scolded them as he stopped in front of the TV and crossed his arms. "You shouldn't be staring at the screen in complete darkness. And back up from the TV before you all burn your eyes out of their sockets.”

Everyone shuffled back before sitting up. Harry gave his eyes one last rub before asking, "Can we watch one more?"

"It's getting pretty late, Harry," Severus said, glancing at his watch.
"One more short one? Please?"

"Yeah, Uncle Sev—just a short one," Draco asked.

"We'll promise to go right to bed after," Fred and George said.

Severus raised an eyebrow at that. A promise from the twins to go right to bed after one more movie—what a temptation he could not resist. The two eleven-year-olds proved that they could be just as mischievous at school as they were at home, and often, without any proof to punish them with. He sighed as the four kids gave him pleading looks.

"You will go to bed regardless," Severus said, giving the twins a stern look before eyeing his son. "One more. You know which ones are short, so I expect you to choose wisely. Then its straight to bed."

"Thanks, Dad," Harry smiled, crawling forward, and digging through the movie drawer. When Severus walked out of the room, the three others crawled forward and assisted in digging through the many vhs tapes.

"Got any scary movies in here?" Fred asked.

"Why would we watch a scary movie during Christmas?" Draco asked.

"Well, it's like that one song, right? There'll be scary ghost stories and tales of the glories of Christmas's long, long ago." Fred wigged his fingers dramatically as he sang the small verse, earning a pillow smack from George. Fred retaliated with his own pillow before glancing through the movie drawer again.

"What's this?" George asked, pulling on a slab of wood underneath all the movies.

"That's a divider thing," Harry said. "All my movies are on top while Dad keeps most of his on the bottom. He'll let me watch some of them as long as I ask first."

"What movies does he got?"

"We're not really supposed to be digging through his stuff right now. Look, I've got all the Christmas movies right here . . ."

"Oh, come on," Fred insisted, tugging at the divider. "Just a peek?"

The divider gave and all the movies that were on top collapsed and mixed with the bottom movies. Harry's eyes widened for a second before he glared at Fred.

"Usually, I take all the movies out before moving that thing," he snapped.

"Whoops," Fred said honestly, rubbing the back of his neck as he put the divider down. "Sorry."

Harry huffed. Now he would have to separate all the movies at some point and his father would surely catch him in the act. He could start now, he supposed, while he had everyone's help. Draco was already pulling all the Christmas movies back out. Harry started grabbing the ones he knew he kept on the top while Fred and George checked out the lower-level movies.

"Look at this," Fred said, leaning into his brother as he held up a vhs tape, waving his other hand dramatically while reading the title. "A View from the Bridge."
"What about this one?" George picked up another and waggled his eyebrows. "As You Like It."

"Les Liaisons Dangereuses," Fred said with his best French accent before kissing his hand and throwing it.

"Even better, Romeo and Juliet," George snicker.

"What a romantic!" both boys said before falling over in fits of laughter.

Annoyed, Harry grabbed his pillow and wacked them hard with it.

"Shh!" Harry said. "You're gonna bring Dad back up from the lab. Be quiet. And stop going through his movies."

"Oh, come on," Fred said, putting the movies back in the drawer as Harry finished pulling out the ones that belonged on the top. Another movie caught his eye, it had an interesting picture on the case. "This one looks interesting. Die Hard. It mentions Christmas in its summary part. Does this count as a Christmas movie?"

Harry shrugged, then took the tape from Fred and put it back in the drawer. Before he could set the divider back on top, George managed to grab another tape and he smirked at the title.

"Ooh, Count Dracula!" he exclaimed.

"Really?" Fred smiled, leaning over his brother's shoulder to look at the case cover. "You're telling me Professor Snape has a movie about the Prince of Darkness . . ."

"The Lord of the Night . . ."

"Count de Ville . . ."

"Vampire King . . ."

"We want to watch this one!" Fred and George said together, holding out the movie.

"Err . . ." Harry looked at Draco, who shrugged.

"I don't know guys," Harry said, looking down at the other movies on the floor around him. "Dad said a quick movie. I don't think that one's very quick. And what if it's really scary?"

"Who cares?" Draco smirked. "Whatever Fred was yowling about earlier on ghost stories at Christmas time, doesn't this one seem like the perfect ghost story?"

"Dracula's not a ghost."

"We know, but he's scary."

"Besides," Fred added, "it's a muggle thing."

"Muggles don't know scary," George finished.

Harry looked at the divider in his hands, then at the movies scattered around him. He sighed. Maybe the twins were right. The Wizarding world had a lot of scary things to offer, and he was sure the muggle world would never compare. So how scary could they actually make a movie? Besides, it might be fun to watch something different and exciting with his friends than the same old Christmas movies he's seen a zillion times. Besides, he knew his dad would probably get distracted in his lab and forget the kids were even up still, especially if they stayed quiet. He sighed and nodded.

"Okay, fine. But help me put all these movies back first."

After replacing the divider and reorganizing the top section, Harry closed the drawer and put in the movie. Fred and George turned out all the lights once again while Draco heated up more popcorn. The three kids ran back to their spot in front of the TV, moving their pillows and blanket up again while Harry fast forwarded through the trailers. Finally, the movie began, and Harry crawled under the blanket between Draco and Fred, grabbing a handful of buttery popcorn and munching on it.
The movie began with haunting music and a lawyer traveling through town and being warned about staying at Castle Dracula. The lawyer does not listen to anyone, however, and arrives at the castle where he meets a strange, dark clothed man named Dracula, who casted no reflection on any mirror they passed on the way to the room the man would be staying in.

The wind whistled outside, and combined with the music, the howling startled all four children, who calmed after a minute and laughed nervously at each other, turning back to the movie.

It is quickly revealed that the man is trapped in the castle, and when he tries to escape, he has a feeling of being followed. The tension grew thick as the kids held their breath and stared intently at the flickering screen.

Suddenly, in the movie, three seductively dressed woman capture the man, dancing and giggling around him with visible fangs just grazing his neck teasingly while they asked the man if he'd like to stay for a bite.

The Count appears and declares that the lawyer is his alone, and with that, he threw a small crying child at the women, who pounce and dig in while the horrified lawyer watched.
At that sight, all four kids screamed and hid under the blanket.

The lights in the room turned on and the TV was quickly turned off.

"What is the meaning of this?" Severus demanded, kneeling down to yank the blanket off the children.

They resisted at first before realizing who it was. The blanket was tossed aside, and Severus stood up, hands on his hips as he glared down at the kids.

"I do not believe that was a quick Christmas movie. Anyone care to explain?"

The four kids sat up and shared glances before Harry spoke.

"We thought a ghost story would be a cool way to end the night."

"Not twenty minutes into it and you're already trembling under the blanket. You thought it would be cool to have nightmares for the rest of the night? And what's more, you went through my movies without my permission and I know that at least you knew better, Harry. So, who's idea was this exactly?"

"It was ours," Fred and George answered quicky.

"But we agreed to it," Draco said, and Harry nodded.

"I see. You two will do well to abide by the rules of this house. Your TV privileges have been terminated for the rest of this vacation. That goes for all of you."

"Aww," the four kids said together.

"I was really starting to like the magic box," Fred complained.

"Now," Severus said, kneeling in front of the kids again, "what you just saw was a bit disturbing and potentially nightmare triggering. I will leave this up to you, but does anyone feel that they'll need a calming draught before going to bed?"

Everyone shook their head.

"No? Very well. Head upstairs and get ready for bed. I will be checking on you in twenty minutes and you better be in bed by then."

The four kids gathered their pillows and ran up the stairs. They were already dressed in pajamas, but they set their pillows down on one of the two queen beds that were temporarily transfigured in Harry's room. Running into the bathroom, the four had a quick water fight before they grabbed their toothbrushes and started brushing their teeth.

"Did anyone notice that Snape kind of looks like the vampire we saw?" George said.

"He does not," Harry argued, his mouth frothy from the toothpaste.

"Well, not exactly, but he's pale skin," George countered.

"And wears dark clothes all the time," Fred said. "I've always wondered how he makes his robes billow all the time. Like a vampire's cape."

"I'd think I'd know if Dad was a vampire or not," Harry said, spitting into the sink and rinsing with water.

"Yeah," Fred agreed. "I mean it's not like he's ever needed to be invited into a room or anything."

"Boys," Severus announced himself, knocking on Harry's bedroom door. "May I come in?"

Everyone froze in front of the sink. Harry and Draco looked at each other wide eyed while Fred and George slowly smiled before fighting over the mirror, opening it, and trying to adjust it in an angle that might catch Severus.

"Come in, Dad," Harry said. He walked out of the bathroom and hopped up on one of the beds. "We're just brushing our teeth. Well, the twins are still at it, but I'm done."

"So I hear." Severus shot an annoyed glance at the bathroom where all the noise was coming from, water splashing and things in the mirror cabinet falling. "Quit fooling around in there, boys."

"Yes, sir," the twins said, running out of the bathroom and jumping on the other bed in the room. They crawled under the blanket and fluffed their pillows.

"We're really tired," George said.

"Exhausted." Fred stretched and yawned exaggeratedly.

"It's been really fun today but . . ."

"I think we'll just go right to sleep."

Severus raised an eyebrow at the boys while Harry frowned at them. Draco crawled up in bed, sitting down on the blanket and sharing a look with Harry.

"That would be ideal," Severus said slowly, eyeing the twins carefully. "Just stay in bed, you two. If you're so inclined, you may make up scary ghost stories in here. But I don't want to see any of you falling asleep tomorrow at breakfast because you scared yourselves awake all night. This goes for you two, as well. Stay in bed, you may talk for a while longer if you wish but try to fall asleep at a decent time. There will be severe consequences if I find any of you out of bed. Am I understood?"

"Yes, sir."

Severus motioned for Harry and Draco to get under the covers, then quickly gave Harry and Draco a kiss on the temple before killing the lights.

"Don't we get a kiss goodnight, Professor Snape?" Fred dared to ask.

"A smack upside the head, maybe," Severus said smoothly, earning a snort from the twins. "Goodnight, boys."

Everyone chorused a goodnight and Severus closed the door to Harry's bedroom. Silence reigned for three long minutes while everyone listened to Severus's steps down the stairs. When there was more silence for a couple minutes, George reached over and flicked Harry's lamp back on.

"Are you guys thinking what we're thinking?"

"Probably not," Draco said.

"There's a vampire sharing the same roof and you're not thinking what we're thinking?" George asked.

"Uncle Sev isn't a vampire. It's all in your head because we watched that stupid movie."

"How were we supposed to know vampires would start attacking little kids in the movie. Anyway, whoever made that movie was sick in the mind. No. What we're thinking is that we need to catch him in the act. Even if the movie was fake, I'm sure the facts were true." George sat up in his bed, everyone else following his lead. "Quick, what did we learn about vampires?"

"Well, you said pale skin," Draco said.

"No reflection in the mirror," Harry added.

"They don't like sunlight," George added.

"Red glowing eyes when they're hungry for blood," Fred said, coming over George and acting as if he was going to bite his brother's neck.

"But Dad isn't any of that," Harry said.

"Let's not jump to conclusions," Fred said.

"That's exactly what you're doing!"

"Am not. I'm making a very calculated judgement. Maybe the first thing we should do is prove Snape is a vampire. All in favor, say aye."

"Dad said not to leave our beds."

"That's exactly what a vampire would say to keep us in bed, so he knows where to find us when he gets hungry for a drink."

While Fred spoke, George took two fingers and jabbed them in his own neck while making a gagging noise.

Harry crossed his arms and glared at the twins.

"How do you suppose we get proof that Dad is a vampire, which he is not."

"We catch him in the act," George explained. "One of us will draw a little blood—just a finger prick, no worries. That should be all we need to get a vampire in a hunger craze. When we draw him out, we'll have hand mirrors ready to see if he casts any reflection. That's the biggest tell-all."

"What if he bites us?" Draco asked, his voice anxious now.

"Draco!" Harry scolded.

"What?" Draco shrugged. "They make a compelling argument."


Down in the lab, Severus slowly mixed a simmering potion as he carefully added the spider legs into his invisibility potion. He was supposed to demonstrate the potion to his fourth-year class after the winter break, yet he realized he had none left in stock. The potion wasn't exactly a best seller, it only turned one invisible for a few minutes. He usually demonstrated on a familiar that happened to be in the classroom, or if a student was willing (and mature, might he add), he would allow a student to drink it. It usually earned many ooh's and aah's.

However, it was a rather difficult potion—not to brew, just to avoid getting on you. The potion was very bubbly in its brewing stage, and even if you were paying close enough attention to it, you could end up with scalding unfinished potion splattering on you from a bubble popping.

As Severus stared at his watch to count out forty seconds, his thoughts strayed to catching the four boys watching that Dracula movie. He should have gotten rid of that tape. It's not that he didn't like the movie, it just grossed him out more than horrified him. The movie's sexual allure of vampires disturbed him, and the scene he had stopped the children from finishing was disgusting at best. He hoped they did not have long lasting trauma from those few minutes of that movie.

Suddenly realizing it had been more than forty seconds, Severus glanced down at his potion, realizing too late that a large bubble was forming before it popped with a loud snap.

"Ahh!" Severus cried out, throwing his hands over his burning eyes where a couple droplets had struck him. He could also taste the unfinished concoction in his mouth. He ran over to his eye wash station and turned the sink on, letting the raised faucets run over his eyes. He scooped water into his mouth, slurping and swishing it around in his mouth before spitting it back out.

Severus looked up in the mirror, expecting to see inflamed eyes, but instead, he didn't see himself at all. His reflection was gone.

Severus shook his head. It was a common side effect of drinking an unfinished or incorrectly brewed invisibility potion. Instead of turning invisible, the reflection of the drinker disappeared instead. Even the shadow disappeared. Thankfully, it only lasted for a few minutes, and since he only got a splash in his mouth, it wouldn't even last that long. Severus splashed more water in his eyes when footsteps in the living room caught his attention. Growling under his breath, he turned the water off and headed upstairs. This was turning out to be a long night.


Harry carefully pricked his finger with a needle Fred and George had transfigured from a pillow feather. He flinched at the immediate sharp pain, then watched as a small dot of blood appeared. He gulped and looked up at the door leading to the basement. He didn't think his father was a vampire, but he was sure Severus would be angry for him and the others being out of bed. He did not like this plan but the twins would not drop the "Professor Snape is a vampire" thing. He had to at least prove them wrong.

The twins were in the living room and kitchen searching for small handheld mirrors. They didn't want to transfigure one just in case they didn't get it completely right and casted a defective mirror.

Quick, loud steps coming up the basement stairs made Harry gulp again and he stepped away from the door so he wasn't smacked when it opened.

It swung open and Harry gasped.

With a furious face and red blazing eyes against pale skin, Severus glared down at Harry, who took hesitant steps back.

"What are you doing out of bed?" Severus snapped.

"Err," Harry looked at his hand, then bravely held it up for Severus. "I accidentally pricked my finger on something."

Severus flexed his fists for a few seconds before saying, "You'll live." A shuffle from the living room caught both of their attention, and Severus roughly grabbed Harry's upper arm and dragged him out to the living room, finding Fred, George, and Draco standing side by side, the twins holding their hands behind their backs.

"What did I tell you children?" Severus said, still holding Harry's arm.

"Who are you calling children?' Fred said. "We're vertically impaired pre-adults."

"Don't play games with me. I told you to stay in bed. What was so important that you had to venture down here and cause a racket?"

While Severus lectured them on the importance of obeying his rules, Harry noticed Fred adjusting a small mirror behind his back. Harry held up a hand slightly when he could see himself and Fred stopped moving the mirror. He sucked in a breath when he did not see his father's hand grabbing his upper arm. He pulled against his father, but Severus held him tight. Regardless, the movement of his father's hand and arm did not show in the mirror.

"And if you guys think about leaving your bed again, you'll all take a trip over my knee. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir."

Severus pushed Harry toward the others, finally letting go of his arm. He pointed up the stairs.

"Back to bed. Now."

Everyone nodded and began walking toward the stairs, the twins trying to get a look in the mirror themselves.

"I didn't see a reflection," Harry whispered to the twins, who shared a look.

"Damn, I need a drink," Severus muttered behind them, rubbing at his eyes.

The kids jumped at that, then ran the rest of the way to Harry's bedroom, Harry shutting the door behind him and leaning against it as he watched the others, his heart racing in his chest.

"Did you see his red eyes?" Fred asked. "I knew the smell of blood would reveal his true nature!"

"He wanted a drink!" George exclaimed. "He wanted to suck us dry. We're trapped in here for the rest of the night. We have to barricade the door."

"Did he bite you, Harry?" Draco asked, trying to look at Harry's neck.

"My daddy's a vampire!" Harry cried, throwing his head back against the door. All this time, how did he miss it? Maybe his father was freshly bitten? There could be hope for him after all. But how did you save a vampire from itself?

"Hey, it'll be okay," Fred said, putting a hand on Harry's shoulder briefly before trying to look at his neck. "He didn't bite you, right?"

Annoyed, Harry pushed Fred away.

"We have to do something," Harry said. "What if he decides to turn me?"

"Or all of us," Draco said.

"He did just have a chance to," George said. "He didn't jump on it, though, very strange. Maybe he's waiting for the right opportunity."

"This is serious. Who knows when Dad was bitten? We have to help him."

"Okay, we'll help you. But it's gonna cost you. To the drawing board."

Harry pouted at the twins as they rushed over to his old chalkboard on the wall his father had put in when he was two—apparently, he liked drawing on the walls then. The small chalkboard had never come down, but the twins were making use of it now.

They drew a layout of the house in squares and labeled each section. They drew tiny stick people at various locations, notes and supplies to the side as Fred spoke very fast.

"This is your house. Professor Snape is here, we are trapped in this bedroom. We're going to need our wands—check—wire cutters, a knife, a thinner log from the fireplace, and bait. One of us, preferably Harry, will be the bait and lure Snape to the living room, where George and I will be waiting to drop the chandelier. Trust me, it's a classic monster trap. Once Snape is momentarily knocked out by the blow of hard brass, Draco will tie him up with those plastic things you were showing us—zip ties, that's it. When the monster is detained and helpless, that's where we stake him through the heart."

"What?" Harry's mouth dropped.

"It's the most effective way to kill a vampire."

"Nobody is staking anyone, especially my dad."

"It's your funeral if you get bit."

"I'm gonna bite you!" Harry snatched the chalk away from Fred. "Give me that. There's gotta be something we can do to free Dad of vampirism. Without killing him."

"That diminishes our resources," George said, tapping his chin with the chalk he was using. "But . . .maybe there's a way to turn him human again."

"How do we do that?"

"Well, a vampire only becomes an official vampire when they drink the blood of an innocent human. I think."

"So," Fred continued, leaning against George, "we keep Snape from biting anyone and use things to ward off the vampire inside him. Could take days though. Depends on how hungry he is."

"What will we need?" Draco asked.

"Garlic," George said, "lots of it."

"A cross if we can find one," Fred added with a shrug.

"I know where one is," Harry said.

"A very bright light," Fred went on.

"Holy water," George said.

"What makes water holy?" Fred asked.

George shrugged. "It probably wouldn't hurt to have a stake nearby."

"No stakes!" Harry said, glaring at the twins.

"Okay, okay. No stakes. Let's get everything else. We've got a mission to accomplish."


Severus carefully applied a drop of burn relief potion to each eye with a dropper. Slowly, his eyes stopped itching and the inflammation went away. He rubbed his eyes one last time. They were still sore, but at least no longer red. He drank a pain relief potion and decided to call it quits with potion brewing for the night. Maybe he could head upstairs, check on the kids, then crawl into bed with a good book.

Slowly climbing up the stairs, Severus shut off all the basement lights and shut the door behind him. He walked into the kitchen, pouring himself a nightcap, sipping it as he glanced at the morning paper that was still lying on the dining table half read. He never did get to finish reading it since four rambunctious kids had kept him on his toes most of the day. And to think he had the rest of the weekend to entertain all those kids. Trouble, they were. All of them.

Sighing, Severus would finish the paper later. He left the kitchen, nightcap in hand, and made his way through the living room.

All of a sudden, a blanket fell on top of him. He stumbled slightly, spilling his nightcap as he did so. The blanket appeared to move on its own as it wrapped itself around him tightly. Struggling, he managed to free his head through a gap to see the twins holding an end of the blanket, pulling the ends tightly so he was trapped in the entanglements. Draco threw a necklace of garlic around his head before shining a bright flashlight on him. Harry stood in front of him, holding an engraved cross.

"What in Merlin's name is going on?" Severus growled.

"We're trying to save you," Harry explained, shaking the cross in front of Severus. "By turning you human again."

"Turning me human? What are you talking about?"

"You're suffering from vampirism," Harry said, looking to the twins and Draco for help.

"Don't worry, Uncle Sev, in a couple days, we'll free you," Draco said. "We just have to make sure you don't bite anyone."

Severus's frown deepened, and the twins said, "We know you're a vampire, so relax and enjoy the hunger strike."

"I'm not a vampire!"

"That's exactly something a vampire would say," Fred accused, glaring at Severus.

"We saw your red eyes earlier," George said.

"My red . . ." Severus stuttered.

"And your reflection didn't show in our mirror."

"Now wait just a minute . . ."

"And you needed permission to enter the room earlier. Remember that, vampire?"

"And you're always wearing black and hanging out in dungeons—it's awfully suspicious."

Harry had been watching Severus's face and if there was one thing he knew about his father, it was the look of utter disbelief and anger mixing together. He slowly lowered the cross as he thought about everything they were accusing Severus of and how ridiculous it still sounded. Severus was glaring at everyone.

"You're not a vampire, are you?" Harry asked.

Severus raised a brow at his son, before muttering a strange word.

The blanket yanked out of Fred and George's hands and twisted itself free from Severus before chasing after the children and wrapping itself around them, trapping all four in a tight wad before dragging them to Severus, stopping right in front of him. Severus threw the garlic necklace off and then carefully removed the wooden cross with Lily's name carved into it from Harry's grasp, setting it on the stand next to the couch. His drink had fallen to the floor during the attack, and he waved his hand and vanished the mess. He put his hands on his hip as he glared at the children.

"You are more trouble than you're all worth," he began, trying not to raise his voice. "For your information, I was working on an invisibility potion earlier and a bubble broke and splattered in my eyes and mouth, resulting in my red eyes and the momentary loss of reflection. As for asking to enter Harry's room earlier, you four were supposed to be getting ready for bed. I did not want to walk in on you if you were indecent. It's one thing to change and do any business in front of each other, but another adult who does not happen to be your parent is another story. I was offering you that privacy."

"We don't get a lot of privacy in our house," Fred admitted.

"Well what about him always hanging in dark and cold places all the time?" George added.

"Yeah, and the dark clothes? Making your robes billow when you walk?"

"Your paleness?"

"Remind me when to laugh," Severus said, narrowing his eyes at the twins. "That's enough out of you two. This is all because you four watched that damn movie, isn't it?"

"Well . . ."

"You see . . ."

"It's not really that . . ."

"I mean, maybe . . ."

"Enough," Severus said, annoyed with all of them talking at once. He rubbed his temples. He would need more of that nightcap. "I am not nor have I ever been a vampire. I'm sure Harry can attest to that. I do enjoy the sunlight and have not yet burned to ash because of it."

"That's true," Harry said.

"And you can clearly see my reflection in the glass of the grandfather clock."

Everyone craned their neck to see before nodding.

"And you have all never seen me drink blood."

"Well . . ."

"Mr. Weasley," Severus growled.

"I guess not," Fred consented.

It was probably the best he was going to get. Severus sighed and flicked his wrist at the blanket. It fell to the boys' feet, freeing them at last.

"I must say, your teamwork astounds me," Severus said, then muttered softly, "and slightly frightens me." He clapped his hands together and offered a smile. "How about some hot chocolate to ease some of your nerves and settle you guys for bed, hmm?"

The boys nodded their heads excitedly.

"Let's head to the kitchen," Severus herded the boys to the kitchen and sat them at the table while he prepared four hot chocolates. Reaching into his sleeves, he found his small vial of calming draught he kept just in case and allowed two drops to fall into each mug as secretly as he could. He slid the vial back into the pocket of his sleeve and gave each kid a hot chocolate. He sat down in a seat across from them and watched as Harry and Draco gulped down their drinks while Fred and George sipped theirs slowly, eyeing Severus as they did so.

"Are we all satisfied that I am not a vampire, or do we need more convincing?" Severus asked, staring back at the twins, who smirked and shook their heads.

"I'm sorry I thought you were a vampire, Dad," Harry said.

"Yeah, me too," Draco said.

"You are both forgiven. But no more vampire movies for either of you."

"I can live with that," Harry said, a big yawn escaping his lips. He blinked his eyes slowly, Draco looking much the same.

Severus waited patiently. The two slowly finished their drinks before putting their heads down and falling asleep. He smirked. So maybe he had given the extra strength dose to the kids. He turned his eyes on the twins, who were still taking the smallest sips of their drink. They smirked back at him.

"Do you boys need any further convincing?"

"Oh, we never really thought you were a vampire," Fred said.

"We just like messing with you," George said.

Severus's eyes widened for the briefest moment before he frowned at the boys across from them.

"And we appreciate the calming draught, too." Fred raised his glass, George copying him. "It'll help us sleep for sure tonight."

So they knew. And that was why they were drinking the hot chocolate so slowly. He shook his head. He was dealing with two very smart miscreants. Not only had they put him through the ringer, but they had also convinced Harry and Draco that he was a vampire.

"Do you think that was fair to them?" Severus motioned to Harry and Draco.

"Maybe not. But we sure had fun."

"Maybe we can spend the night again sometime. We really like hanging out with Harry, you know."

"I'm sure. To bed with you."

Fred and George laughed, standing with their hot chocolates. Severus carefully picked up Harry and Draco and led the way back to Harry's bedroom, the twins still snickering behind him. He laid the two boys down in their bed and covered them up, placing a kiss on their foreheads. His poor boys tortured by their so-called friends. He hoped that as they got older, they gave it right back to the twins. He looked forward to that.

"Don't forget us, Professor," Fred said. George made kissy noises at him.

"If Harry and Draco don't put me in an early grave, you two will," Severus said, taking out his wand and lightly smacking the top of each boys' head. "Go to sleep and stay in bed."

Fred and George drank the rest of their cocoa and handed him the mugs. He accepted them and with one last warning look, he turned off the light and left the bedroom. Exhausted, he decided to retire himself. He sent the mugs flying to the sink downstairs and headed for his own room.

A vampire. What would those boys think of next? And he still had the whole weekend to look forward to with the twins sleeping over. He regretted it already.