26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Harry could honestly say that Christmas that year had been great fun. Draco had been great company – despite his muggle-hating tendencies – and had spiced things up a bit. While it was always fun to have Ron and Hermione over, it was quite amusing to have a cohort of sorts that didn't fear Snape in the slightest. Suffice to say that Harry was sad to see Draco go but he had to go home. Besides, he was not one of the invitees for boxing day at Alex's home.

"Did you have a good Christmas?" Snape asked after Draco had left.

"I did," Harry replied, "Do you think Draco did?"

Snape smiled and ruffled Harry's hair. "I'm sure he did," he said, "It was kind of you to invite him. I know that he appreciated it."

"Good," Harry said, "What are you going to do until we have to go?"

"I would very much like to make use of the book Professor Bell gave me and go back to deciphering the ancient texts of Pythagoras," Snape replied, "I don't believe I will have a lot of time to do so once we're back at Hogwarts so I want to make the most of my time now. What about you?"

"What else?" Harry replied, "I would like to try and add those plums Luna gave me to the potion I'm making."

"Don't forget about Draco's suggestion," Snape reminded Harry, "He may not be aiming for a mastery in Potions but he has definitely always been adept in the subject."

"I haven't forgotten," Harry said, "But you don't mind me brewing it by myself?"

"I see no possible disasters happening with the combination of ingredients you have been using thus far," Snape said, "But if you do wish to add something that wasn't on your list yet, I ask that you come to consult me."

"Of course," Harry said easily. "Happy translating."

"Happy brewing," Snape retorted as he made himself comfortable in the sitting room. Zippy was depositing a cup of tea on the table as Harry went down the stairs to the potions laboratory. Another interesting day of brewing lay ahead of him.

Harry had absolutely no idea how much time had passed when someone knocked on the door.

"Come in," Harry called and the door opened to reveal Snape. His hair was wet and he smelled like soap. Harry groaned when he realized that it had to be nearly time to go.

"Don't groan," Snape chided, "It's mainly you that wished to be present at Alex and Emma's home, so you can't back out now."

"But I'm nearly done," Harry argued.

"So put a stasis on your cauldron and finish up tomorrow," Snape said. "It's time for you to take a shower and get dressed. We need to be there in an hour's time."

"I understand," Harry sighed. He flicked his wand once to put a stasis on his cauldron and walked up the stairs in clear discontentment.

He very hastily took a shower, making sure that his hair no longer reeked of potion fumes, and got dressed in the nicest muggle clothes he could find. When he came down again, he found Snape dressed in his typical black attire and frowned.

"Black again?" He asked, "No, absolutely not. Out of the question."

Snape raised a sardonic eyebrow. "I beg your pardon?"

"You are going to wear something a tad more colourful today," Harry urged, "You wore all black to their dinner party last year as well. You're not going to a funeral, you know?"

"I am not changing my attire," Snape said icily.

"At least wear a different tie," Harry said.

"Absolutely not."

"I have a nice blue one you could borrow," Harry tried.

"Forget it."

"How about Slytherin green? You must have one of those."

Snape sighed. "It's not going to happen, Harry. Now if you're quite finished, I would hate to run late."

"Fine," Harry muttered.

They both donned their coats and braved the cold weather as they made their short walk towards Alex' house. Snape had once again bought a bottle of wine - a 1985 Bordeaux - and had handed Harry some flowers to give to Emma. When they arrived, Snape straightened his tie and knocked on the door. That's when Harry took his chance. He whipped out his wand which he had hidden in his coat pocket and swiftly muttered a spell. Before Snape had the time to react, his tie had become an azure blue.

Snape opened his mouth to no doubt hit Harry with a scathing remark when the door opened to reveal Emma.

"Severus!" Emma greeted heartily as she pulled the man into a hug, "Prompt as always. And what a gorgeous tie." She then turned her attention to Harry who handed over the flowers with a sheepish grin. "Oh Harry, how kind of you. They're simply gorgeous. Do come in, both of you."

She stepped aside and allowed the two wizards entry.

As soon as they walked into the sitting room, they were greeted by Alex much in the same manner that Emma had greeted them. When Snape handed over the wine, Alex chuckled and clapped him on the back. "Good old Sev," he said, "We can always count on you to uphold proper etiquette and manners, can't we? Handsome tie by the way."

"Thank you," Snape replied through gritted teeth. Harry hid a chuckle in his hand.

"Harry, you must have grown ten inches since the last time I saw you!" Alex exclaimed when he noticed Harry.

"We've seen each other only yesterday," Harry argued.

"Must be a growth spurt," Alex said knowingly.

"Where's Charlie?" Harry asked.

"Oh, he's at his grandparents'" Emma informed them, "So don't worry about waking him up. He's not here. Now don't mind me, I'm just going to put these flowers into some water."

When Alex had Harry and Snape alone, he motioned for them to come closer and whispered in a hurried tone: "I am so sorry but Emma invited one extra person tonight."

Snape frowned. "A tad unorthodox but I'm sure we'll manage."

"You don't understand," Alex said, "She invited her sister over."

Harry couldn't help but laugh. "Really? Why would she do that?"

"Well, she says that it's because her sister is finally back in the area but I say that she wants to introduce her to Severus."

"No," Harry said in an exaggerated tone of voice, "She wouldn't."

"Oh, but she definitely would, my young friend," Alex said, "You don't know her as well as I do and she lives for this sort of thing."

"What sort of thing?" Snape asked.

"Matchmaking," Alex said in a horrified voice.

Snape sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. "Alexander," he growled, "I thought I made it perfectly clear what my wishes are on the matter."

"Oh, I know," Alex said, raising his hands in mock surrender, "Believe me, I do. But there's no stopping Emma once she's got an idea in her head."

"Oh, cheer up," Harry said, "Maybe you'll like her."

"That remains to be seen," Snape drawled, "But I wouldn't get your hopes up; Either way, I appreciate the warning but I think that next year I shall decline dinner at your house."

"He's right," Harry said, "Next time, we should probably invite you."

"So, who's ready for the appetizers?" Emma asked as she came bustling into the room. Alex put a finger to his hand to signify that Harry and Snape should pretend like he hadn't said anything so they didn't.

"That sounds great," Harry said honestly. He was already a bit hungry. When Harry looked around the room, he could see that many things had been refurbished or simply replaced with newer things. It was quite clear that Alex was doing very well nowadays.

It didn't escape Harry's notice that Emma kept checking the clock and wondered if her sister was running late. After an hour of waiting and having eaten all the appetizers available, Emma invited everyone to the dinner table which was quite obviously set for five people.

Snape smirked, "Expecting Charlie to come home early?" he asked.

"Oh no," Emma replied, visibly flushing, "I just set a plate for him out of habit, nothing more." Emma glanced outside once more before disappearing into the kitchen with a barely noticeable frustrated sigh.

"Looks like you got stood up," Harry said to Snape who snorted rudely in response.

"I will not lose any sleep over it," Snape said easily.

Emma re-emerged balancing four plates of cheese croquettes. Harry quickly got up and took two of the plates from her.

"You're such a gentleman," Emma said appreciatively as they set the plates down.

"This looks absolutely delicious, my princess," Alex said, "Very much like yourself, in fact!" He took her arm and pulled her into his lap, giving her an exasperatingly long kiss. Snape met Harry's gaze and rolled his eyes. Harry snorted at his father's antics.

"Alex," Emma chided after a while, blushing fiercely, "The food will get cold."

"Can't have that," Alex agreed, "Dig in, everyone!"

At that moment, the doorbell rang twice and Emma got up from her seat immediately. As she rushed towards the front door, Harry could've sworn he heard her mutter 'finally' under her breath.

"Watch out everyone," Alex hissed, "Here she comes."

Harry chuckled. "She can't possibly be that bad."

They heard the door open and heard muffled voices as well as some higher-pitched exclamations that could be expected from two sisters greeting each other. Footsteps came up front and Emma hushed someone behind her before approaching the dinner table somewhat sheepishly.

"Harry, Severus," she said, "I have a confession to make."

"Is that so?" Snape asked sardonically. Harry kicked him lightly under the table, smiling politely all the while.

"I invited my sister over for dinner today as well," Emma said, "She's a bit late but I'm sure you'll get along just fine if that's okay."

Harry knew that Snape did not appreciate being lied to but was amazed by the grace Snape exhibited as he gestured that all was well.

"Oh, good," Emma said at the sign of approval. "Come in, sis!"

A much too familiar chocolate brunette stepped forward, her amber eyes widening as she took in the company in her sister's dining room.

"Maya, this is Severus and that is Harry. Guys, this is Maya."

Harry's mouth fell wide open as his History Professor appeared before him. He glanced at Snape for a sign as to what to do but the Potions Master seemed entirely unable to process this information. Maya seemed equally stunned but was the first to break the tense silence by breaking into a fit of giggles.

"Maya!" Emma chided, "That is not a proper way of greeting my guests."

"Oh Emma," Maya laughed, "You have simply no idea how amusing this is."

Snape snorted and Harry too began to laugh. He was entirely too confused about all of this. If Maya was Emma's sister, did that mean that Emma knew about magic? And if she did, was she aware if Alex visiting the wizarding world every so often? Did she realize that Snape was a wizard?

"Emma," Snape said as he threw a wary glance at Maya. "Could you please excuse us for a moment?"

Emma blinked in confusion a couple of times but seemed to oblige. "I suppose I will need to make some extra food for Maya. Alex, would you care to join me?"

"I actually believe it would be beneficial for Alex to stay for a moment," Snape said. When Emma frowned at him, he smiled at her kindly. "Don't worry, Emma. If I am correct about certain… things, you will soon be informed."

"Fine," Emma said, "But I swear, you're just as weird as my sister is sometimes."

Harry broke into a new fit of laughter at that and Emma left the room.

"So," Maya said, grinning widely.

"So," Alex said, "What's going on here?"

"Maya," Snape said, "Does Emma know you're a witch?"

"Of course she does," Maya said easily, "How could she not? I don't go around obliviating family members, you know?"

"Hold on," Alex said, "A witch?"

"Oops," Maya said, slapping a hand in front of her mouth, "Oh Severus, look what you made me say. I really don't want to keep obliviating Alex. I think it's making him sort of loopy."

"Are you telling me that you've obliviated Alex as well?" Snape asked.

"Frequently," Maya said, "It's so difficult to keep magic hidden from this one."

"No one is obliviating me!" Alex protested, "I have a license."

Maya frowned. "What is he talking about?"

"He's a licensed observer now," Harry interjected, "We took him to the ministry last year."

"You know what," Maya said, "Emma said that she thought the person she was introducing me to was a wizard but I never imagined that I would stumble onto you!"

"Are you sure this is not some very elaborate prank?" Snape asked, "Because if so, I must admit that it's very well executed."

"It's not a prank," Maya said, "I merely came here to have dinner with my sister and her goofy husband. Sure, I knew that I would have to face another matchmaking attempt but that's how that goes."

"This is ridiculous," Harry snorted.

"It's fantastically confounding," Snape agreed. "Alex, if you would summon Emma back into the room. I'll heat up the food."

He took out his wand and placed a warming charm on the plates that were already set on the table. Shaking his head in utter confusion, Alex stuck his head in the kitchen and asked his wife to come back.

"Alright, what's going on here?" Emma asked as she placed a plate in front of Maya.

"Emma," Snape said, "Harry and I are wizards."

Emma glanced at Alex who didn't seem at all shocked by the announcement. She then looked at Maya who was eyeing her somewhat sheepishly.

"You see," Maya said, "I teach History of Magic at Hogwarts. Severus is my colleague. He teaches defence against the Dark Arts and Harry is a student of ours."

Emma looked at her somewhat wide-eyed. "But – that's, - Alex?"

"Ah, that is entirely my doing," Snape said matter-of-factly, "I've had to erase Alexander's memory a couple of times already in the past and thought it prudent to have him registered as a licensed observer instead. He keeps finding out, anyway."

"I knew it," Emma then said, "I knew you had to be a wizard. No one is that good at healing people, no matter how potent you say your herbs are."

"But if your sister is a witch, why didn't you ask her help?" Harry asked.

"She lived in America," Emma said, "And since she doesn't use phones or anything, I couldn't very well contact her."

"I can't believe you knew all along," Alex said, a small smile on his face.

"And I can't believe you've been able to keep this secret," Emma countered.

"What I can't believe is that I just found Severus and Harry in your dining room!" Maya added happily.

"No wonder you're so crazy!" Alex exclaimed, "You're magical!"

"As magical as they come," Maya said with a wink. "Now let's eat please. I'm starving! I got lost on the way here and thought I'd never eat again."

"Don't be so melodramatic," Emma said.

Harry chuckled. "This is mental. And you're all so calm about this!"

Emma and Alex eyed each other for a moment before showing off a big toothy grin.

"We've learned to expect the unexpected from each other," Alex said.

"Surprises like these keep our marriage exciting!" Emma agreed.

"Muggles," Emma and Snape said simultaneously which made Harry laugh again.

"Wine, Severus?" Alex asked and without waiting for a response, he filled Snape's glass to the rim. "No need to be polite. We have enough of everything."

"Yes, how are you managing that, Alex?" Maya asked, "Last I checked, there's nothing interesting to be seen in this town."

"Nothing but Voldemort's place of death," Alex said evenly.

Maya almost choked on her whine. "You're telling me that you're giving wizards and witches tours of that event?"

"Absolutely!" Alex said, "Affluent folk, you magical people. And quite generous as well."

"That's such a relief," Maya said, "For a moment, I thought you might have become a drug lord or something."

"How dare you!" Alex said in mock anger, "I'll have you know that there is no man more honourable in the entirety of this town."

"So did you two have a nice Christmas?" Maya asked Harry, now ignoring Alex completely.

"Absolutely!" Harry said, "Draco and I went sledging. We made Christmas Pudding and we sang Christmas carols!"

"Oh yes," Snape drawled, "They wrote quite the interesting rendition of 'Twelve Days of Christmas'."

"Is that so?" Maya said, "Perhaps I'll have you two perform it in class."

"Merlin, no!" Harry exclaimed, "Please don't. That would be mortifying!"

"So, do you two ever have joint classes?" Emma asked as she put away the last mouthful of food on her plate.

"No, Sissie," Maya said, "I mean, how would that even work?"

"Hm," Emma responded, "Are your rooms close to each other?"

"Not at all!" Maya said, "Severus lives in the dungeons –" Alex snorted – "And I live nearer to the towers."

"Of course Severus would live in the dungeons," Alex said, "Why am I not surprised."

"It's not that bad," Harry interjected, "His rooms are nice… as far as dungeons go, at least. You should come to check them out sometime, Professor Bell."

This earned him a light cuff on the back of his head courtesy of Snape. "Mind your cheek, brat," he said.

Emma chuckled as Alex topped Snape off once more.

"Harry is going to try and get me to fly a broom," Alex proclaimed out of the blue.

"Muggles can't fly brooms," Maya said easily.

"No," Harry agreed, "But I'm trying to brew a potion that could make it possible."

Maya laughed. "Alex on a broom? He would kill himself!"

"Or perhaps I could become the world's greatest quidditch player!"

"Impossible," Harry said, "Because that's me."

"Oh?" Snape said, "Getting a bit cocky, are you? How many times must I remind you that pride is a Slytherin quality"

"Yes well, intelligence and wit are Ravenclaw qualities," Harry retorted, "But that doesn't stop you from making cleverly snarky comments every chance you get."

"Point taken," Snape admitted as he sipped his wine.

"Oh you and your house rivalries," Maya chided, "Some of the best relationships out there are between people from different houses."

Snape made a noncommittal noise.

"Time for the main course," Emma said happily as she went back to the kitchen to fetch the turkey.

"Your sister is quite the cook," Snape noted, "Does her skill run in the family?"

"Goodness gracious, no," Maya said easily, "Kitchens hate me as do pots and pans."

"I would imagine you could get quite lost in the kitchen," Snape smirked.

"Oh please," Harry said, "As if you cook all that much."

"Just because I don't doesn't mean I can't," Snape remarked. "In actuality, I am quite a good cook."

"I can imagine," Maya said, "Isn't every potioneer good at cooking? It's kind of the same skillset, isn't it?"

As the evening progressed, Harry noticed that Alex kept the wine coming in rather large quantities. He wisely decided to only have two glasses but the older and supposedly wiser adults all partook in the emptying of several large bottles. Even Snape didn't seem to be paying too much attention to the amount he was ingesting, but that could honestly have everything to do with Alex who kept secretly topping off his glass.

After dessert – which was a Christmas cake – they all made themselves comfortable in the sitting room where they enjoyed a cup of tea with biscuits. Even when one was stuffed, there was always room for biscuits.

"You know what Severus," Maya said, "You're actually quite friendly when you want to be."

Snape barked a laugh, "I dare you to proclaim that sentiment at the Gryffindor table."

"Oh, they know," Maya said easily, "They see how you're coddling this boy." She pinched both of Harry's cheeks, smiling at him as she did. "Doesn't he look extremely coddled? Look at him!"

Snape regarded Harry for a moment. A smile slowly crept on his face before he finally nodded. "Yes," he admitted, "He is properly coddled."

"Professor Bell," Harry complained, "If you could please let go."

"Oh, Harry," Maya said as she drew him into an impromptu hug that was much too tight. "Call me Maya, would you? My sister says you're practically family! Severus too!"

Snape grunted. "That might be a bit of an exaggeration."

"Or you simply need to drink more wine!" Maya said happily. She took the bottle from the coffee table and poured Snape another glass. Much too Harry's surprise, Snape chuckled pleasantly.

"We're having tea now," he said, "You should be clever enough to know the difference."

"Ah –" said Maya, "Spoken like someone who has never mixed the two before."

"In this country, we respect our tea enough to not mix it with alcohol."

Emma laughed as she snuggled closer to Alex. She kept whispering into his ear as she pointed at Snape and Maya. Meanwhile, Alex just nodded with a goofy grin on his face. Harry kept wondering how these people were all older than him.

"Tell me, Maya," Snape said in a voice that Harry could only describe as sultry, "Where would you look if I asked you to find a bezoar."

Maya giggled as if that was the funniest thing anyone had ever asked her. "A goat's stomach, silly!" she replied, "How are you a Potions Master if you don't even know that?"

Maya shuffled closer to Snape to get to the biscuits. For some reason, Snape had grabbed the entire plate and placed it next to him. At that moment, Harry decided that Snape was entirely too inebriated as was Maya. He would probably be quite cross with Harry the next morning if he did nothing now. And as much as Harry would like to see Snape come out of his shell, doing so under the influence of alcohol would probably do nothing to further any future familiarities.

"It's time to go home, Severus," Harry said.

"Just a moment, Harry," Snape replied. He had picked up a biscuit and held it out of Maya's reach. Maya tried grabbing it but apparently couldn't think of the solution to simply stand up to take the biscuit away from Snape. Instead, she half leaned over him to try and get it.

"Now, dad," Harry urged.

Snape groaned and tossed the biscuit Maya's way. "I'm afraid that Harry is quite right. We would best be going."

"Do you have to?" Alex asked, "It looked like you were having fun."

"I must admit that it was an enjoyable get-together," Snape said as he rose from his seat, "But all good things must come to an end."

"Not history," Maya said dreamily, "History never ends. It only begins."

"Bye Alex," Harr interrupted, "Bye Emma. I'll see you two later. And I'll see you in school, Professor."

Maya waved her biscuit at him. "See you in school, Harry. Remember to write your essay on troll folklore."

"Already done that, Professor," Harry said. Snape had donned his coat and was ready to go. Even when inebriated, he seemed steady enough on his feet.

"Thank you for a pleasant evening," Snape managed to say before Harry all but pushed him out the door. As they left, they could still hear laughter coming from within the house.

"I didn't require you to rescue me, you know," Snape said and Harry detected a slight slur in his speech pattern.

"You'll thank me in the morning," Harry said. The rest of the walk home they walked in silence but a comfortable one. Harry's annoyance had dissipated already and he was enjoying the cold winter air on his face.

When they reached the door, Snape sort of fumbled with his keys, so Harry took them from him and opened the door.

"Inside and straight to bed," Harry ordered.

Snape managed to raise a sardonic eyebrow. "Harry, I'm almost entirely certain that I have not had enough to drink for you to give me orders."

"Only almost?" Harry asked.

Snape waited for a moment before replying. "Almost," he said and he dutifully went up to his room. Harry followed behind wondering if he was going to have to help Snape even more but the man shut the door in Harry's face.

"I am definitely certain that I'm not inebriated enough for you to take off my shoes," came Snape's muffled voice from behind the door.

"Well, if you're certain," Harry chuckled before going into his own bedroom. It was long past midnight and he was very tired. At least he wouldn't wake up to a headache the next morning. Grinning to himself, he fell asleep.