Annoying Guests

Severus stared at the closed door. He could not believe that after the attack during the World Cup that the Tri-Wizard Tournament was still going to be held, but Albus just assured him that that was the case. Running his hand down his trouser leg, he stood and headed out of his classroom.

"Severus!" Coriander smiled at him as he entered the kitchen. "What can Coriander help you with?"

Severus shook his head. "Nothing at the moment. I wanted to make sure that the Headmaster told you that we shall be having visitors at the end of October."

"Gritz was just summoned by him, maybe he is being told now."

"If not, we will talk over dinner tonight." With a nod, Severus headed for his lab.

Later that evening Severus told them about the delegations from the other two countries that were coming so that the elves would have time to purchase ingredients and learn recipes to make the children feel more at home.

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Severus watched as the other two schools entered the Great Hall, each showing off for the Hogwarts students and staff. Looking about, he knew the elves were clustered in the corners and along the edges of the room. He was doing his best not to move his feet as he was positive that Bell and Rung were sitting right in front of them, watching the show from the High Table's dais. A quick glance up showed him tiny creases in everyone of the House Banners that hung from the walls.

Once the greetings were complete and the students settled down at the tables, Severus watched as the tiny creases vanished from the banners and felt the two elves near his feet slip out. Barely a minute later dinner was served.

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Roil, Coriander, and Fennel tried to talk to the elves that had found the kitchen that morning while Sage slipped away to talk to Severus.

Knocking quickly on the Back Door, she waited until she heard him call out enter before darting through the door. "Severus, Sage is here to tell you that you cannot come into the kitchen right now. Sage will bring you breakfast here, if Severus wishes."

Severus looked at the door before looking back at the little elf. "What has happened?"

"The house elves from the other schools are in the kitchen. Severus cannot let them know that he is the Hogwarts elves potions master."

"And my going to have breakfast in the kitchen will let them know that?"

Sage's ears drooped slightly. "No, but Sage knows that all the Hogwarts elves would treat you as normal, and then the others will know." She wrung her hands slightly before continuing. "Sage is sorry, Severus."

"Don't they already know? Surely the elven community knows that I am the Potions Master of Hogwarts at all levels."

The elf's ears lifted back up and she glared lightly at the Potions Master. "No, Severus. We have kept it quiet. Neither of your other two Masters needed to know, and if these elves find out, then they will."

"I'll breakfast in the Great Hall, then. Thank you, Sage."

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"Potter didn't enter his name in the Goblet, Severus." Nilly sank onto the bench next to him as the others watched their Potions Master. They knew how much time and effort Severus put into keeping Potter safe. "Nilly watched it all last night. Lilac and Ebony watched it all today."

"Then who put his name in?" Severus looked at the small cluster of elves near him. "Was there anyone suspicious - anything suspicious at all?"

Nilly shifted in her seat while Lilac spoke up. "The Weasley twins tried to use a potion to best the age line the Headmaster put into place. It didn't work."

"That does not surprise me. Those two fifth years are … " He stopped when he noticed Nilly's anxiety. "What is it, Nilly?"

"The presence … the one that keeps breaking into your secondary storeroom … it was near the Goblet last night. Maybe it did it?"

Severus' lips compressed as he held his temper in check. They had been trying all year to find out who was breaking into the storeroom. The ingredients that they were stealing would make a multitude of different potions with other ingredients, but only one if that was all that was being used. He did not like the idea that someone was using Polyjuice without his knowledge. He had explained to Albus what was happening near the end of September, but there were no answers yet.

"So, our Polyjuiced friend did this. We know it can't be Potter."

The elves nodded at this, they had check on and watched over Potter enough to know when it was him, even with the Invisibility of Cloak.

Severus sighed. "Potter is stuck in this mess, no way out."

"We'll help watch him, Severus." Gritz pushed a cup of tea across the table. "Now, did the visitors like the choices we served?"

Severus let the conversation change. "They did."

The kitchen elves cheered.

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As Coriander and Fennel scrubbed the wall from his latest explosion, Severus listened to them fuss.

"Ingwer and Zeller are insistent that we cannot cook for the Durmstrang students. They come into the kitchen early in the morning and attempt to take over our stoves. They started bringing Citrom, Vízitorma, and Zimt with them. Severus this has to stop. They are just invading the kitchen, but that is enough." Coriander glared at the spot that was refusing to be cleaned.

Bell pressed Severus back into the chair that Rung had helped him into while Fennel started helping Coriander with the potion spot. "Severus is still too injured to think of getting up. Let the potion work it way through you, or Bell will be calling Dits to take Severus to the Infirmary."

Giving into the pressure from those little hands, Severus glanced about his private lab. Ever since Drumstrang and Beauxbatons arrived, it was here that he could see his little friends and converse with them. They sometimes slipped into his room, but more like than not, it was his fifteen that met him here to tell him of what was happening in the school. "Is it only the Durmstrang elves, or is it Beauxbatons as well?"

Fennel gave a final swipe at the wall before hopping off the shelf and sitting on the lab bench. "There are four elves from there as well. Basilic, Girofle, Ail, and Poivre seems to think that Hogwarts elves cannot cook well enough for Beauxbatons students either. Just because we are not French doesn't mean we cannot cook."

"Have you discussed it with the Headmaster?" All four elves nodded. "What did he say?"

"Accept it."

With that, Severus sighed. "Then that is all we can do."

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Severus shut his office door wishing there was some way to never see Moody or Karkaroff again. He knew it was impossible, but it was still a wish. Heading down the stairs towards his room, he decided to stop in the kitchen for a bit to eat. Karkaroff's interruption had succeeded in making him behind enough that he had missed dinner.

Reaching for the door, he stopped, his lips compressed slightly. Ever since the other schools came, many of his privileges had been put on hold. His food was not hand delivered, and he was not notified when the elves were in the vicinity, though he still knew. But, even though those had been changed, they still knocked on his room's door. Raising a hand, he knocked on the door, hoping that there were no visiting elves in the kitchen.

Coriander opened the door, her eyes wide when she saw who had knocked. "What does Master Snape need?"

Just that one line let him know that they had company. "Dinner."

Coriander spun from the door, waving Severus in. "Fennel, a plate for Master Snape."

Eyes looked at him and ears perked up as Severus settled into his seat. A quick scan of the room showed him three elves he didn't recognize. They were the cause for the formality and the tense atmosphere. A plate was set on the table and gently pushed towards him. Nodding his thanks, Severus dug in.

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Gritz paced from one corner of Severus' sitting room to the other, his ear high and his eyes bright with his agitation. "Headmaster will not listen to us. We are more than capable of preparing for the Yule Ball. We have decorated that Great Hall for decades and not once has it been considered lacking. We have cooked many Feasts, each one excellent. I will accept the visitors in the kitchen, they know how to make special treats for the other schools students, but they are not qualified to help in the decorating."

"I thought Hagrid helped with the decoration of the Great Hall?" Severus watched as Gritz changed directions once again.

"Professor Hagrid does. He brings in the trees and the mistletoe, and Master Flitwick helps with the decorating of the trees. But we handle everything else. It is our time to prepare."

"We have to listen to the Headmaster." Severus watched as Gritz's ears drooped at that.

"I know, Severus. I know."

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"Who took the gillyweed and gave it to Potter?" Severus stared at the elves waiting for one of them to fess up. No matter how much he accused Potter of breaking into his storeroom, he knew it wasn't the fourth year. No, he was hoping that the Gryffindor would slip and give him information to help him track down the thief. Or try to figure it out to stop him from accusing the boy.

"That new elf, Dobby." Bryo answered from his guard position near the cracked open door. "He is loyal to Potter."

Severus sighed. There was worse things than the boy having a house elf loyal to him. "Keep an eye on Dobby and let me know if he starts acting completely out of character. Now, have the Beauxbatons and the Durmstrang elves learned that you can cook the dishes that they think should be served to their students?"

Fennel shook his head. "No, and they are attempting to find out who makes our potions for us. You have to keep low still."

"The Headmaster still thinks that this is a good idea?"

Gritz nodded. "He said that we should be happy with their help in the kitchen and around the school."

Severus sighed. He knew just how territorial the elves were. This was their school and their responsibility, they did not want the other elves working in their space. "Do they at least help?"

"Our systems are different, and are incompatible."

"Severus, you need to go." Bryo shut the door and the other elves hustled their Potions Master towards his room.

Severus was barely hidden from view when the kitchen door opened. The visiting house elves peered around the kitchen amazed at the congregation of elves present.

Gritz spoke up as if he was running a meeting. "The Grounds elves will make sure that platform is cleaned up and will also double check the Quidditch stands." He looked at the gathered elves for a moment before continuing. "Is there any other area of concern that needs to be immediately addressed?"

The Hogwarts elves shook their heads. "Then head out."

The kitchen emptied of all but the elves that normally worked it.

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Severus slumped into his chair. A fire flared to life in his fireplace as a cup of tea was pressed into his hands. Opening his eyes, he noticed Fennel waiting for him to accept the cup and Coriander moving towards him from the fireplace. Shifting his attention from them, he spotted most of the elves clustered about his door and his fifteen along with Gritz in his sitting room.

Raising the cup to his lips, he sipped the hot tea.

"Severus' second Master has finally returned." Rung said what all the others had been thinking.

Severus nodded. "He has, and it took a lot to convince him that I was still loyal to him and his ideology."

Dits pressed through the crowd into the room, her gaze raking over the man. "But you succeeded."

"Yes, I did."

"The elves will help no matter what, Severus." Gritz folded his arms and glared at Severus. "Severus has no say in this."

Sighing, Severus leaned back again, his eyes closed and the tea cup held securely in his hand. "Just help watch Potter, he will be in more danger now than ever before."

Nilly pressed close to the chair. "Of course, Severus, that was a given, but we will take care of you as well."

A small smile that curved Severus' lips was all the thanks that they needed.

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"Gone! They are gone!"

Severus kept the grin off his face as he listened to the elves cheering as the other two schools left. He knew that they were ecstatic over the other elves leaving but had not expect them to be literally popping about and cheering because of it.

Watching out the window, he to was glad they were gone. He was now able to spend more time in the kitchens and handling things that had been put on hold since their arrival. He had not been able to perform his duty as the elves' Potions Master to the best of his ability and that irritated him.

Turning about, he swept down the hall, his robes billowing behind him as he headed for his lab. It was time to make a few of his speciality potions for them, ones that he had been unable to brew all year due to prying eyes.