An: This is what me being sick does for you. I wrote the end of "Rules of the Table" last night, and then cranked this one out today."Rules of the Table" is posted if you want to go read it.
I hope you all appreciate my being ill. I haven't as it has caused me to miss most of DragonCon, which is MY con, and has been for over a decade and a half. (That sounds way too long.) Sigh. I am done whining.
Enjoy the unbetad version, since my beta is enjoying herself where I want to be. I ran through it, but please think of my strep/stomach virus brain before you start complaining. Review don't make me nauseated... maybe you guys can feed me those. ^-~
Edited 9/9: Raya came along and fined toothed this one for me. There was a small change due to a review from a Very Small Prophet. Harry has now been subjected to being SNAPEd (Suddenly Noble Affluent People Everywhere) instead of being born to a title. ^-^
Thanks to AvadaK3 for the Brit pick and correcting my Fall to Autumn. If anyone else spots something besides British English spellings, please let me know.
Ree
Chapter 9: Summer at Hogwarts
Severus walked passed the gates and felt the welcome rush over him. He didn't even have to wait until he passed the doors any more to feel it. Hogwarts was pleased that he was there. He could feel it.
Smiling, he headed back to his second home with a lighter step. His talks with Chris Jameson over the last week had helped. The first one was hard, and he had been right, Mr. Jameson would arbitrarily bring up the subject when no one was around. It reminded him of Albus on occasions. He had eventually told him of the death of Charity Burbage, the muggle studies teacher, and even his issues with Sirius Black and the other Marauders came out when he explained who the Rat was. The look on Mr. Jameson's face told him that it was a good thing that Albus was dead, or the man would have found a way to give the old Headmaster a piece of his mind.
Stepping through the door, he headed up to the Headmaster's office to report that he was back, not that the portraits didn't know, and to see what work was now sitting on his desk.
On his fifth day back he was ready to head home and take the twins to the beach. He would Apparate them just so that they could spend the entire day digging their toes in the sand and chasing the waves. He would do his best to be patient with them. He would be careful to only snap and growl at them ever other minute. Anything to relieve the boredom that was an empty castle.
Leaning back in his seat, he banished the fantasy from his mind. Scooping up the last of the pages of the budget, he ran through it one last time. It was finally balanced and everything was covered.
As he set them down, he caught sight of the letter from Fred and George describing the potion and what they had tried with it. Pulling it over, he looked back over the ingredients again, and came to the same conclusion that he had before he had gone on vacation. There was no way to modify it to do what they wanted. Master Delany didn't want a spell to mess with the potion's job, so almost all the important ingredients were ones that were spell resistant. He was going to have to create the potion they wanted from scratch.
A light brightened his eyes. Here was the solution to the quiet halls and tedious, boring paperwork. It was time to become the Potions Master that was the head of Aconite.
セブルススネイプ
Standing in one of the unused potions classrooms, Severus watched as the potion turned a pale blue as he stirred it three times clockwise. Setting the stirring rod down, he looked over at the four cauldrons that were set in a circle. They were still bubbling merrily away. In a few minutes he would start adding the next ingredients to them, at slightly different times so that he could see what the reaction was before moving onto the next one.
The Weasley's potion was almost done. It had taken a hard week to get to this point, but this should be the last ingredient. It had taken him a long, convoluted thought process to get here.
Narrowing his eyes, he scanned the pale gray, almost luminescent, surface as he ran one more time through the ingredients in his head. The potion was radical in the way he had created it. Instead of making it to work on one section of the body, or make the area repair quickly like Delany's that ended up with more scar tissue than anything else, he had geared it to turn back on the HOX genes as well as stimulate cell production. 'Alicia Wells kept going on and on about those HOX genes years ago. How they were the segment of DNA that actually controlled the development of the baby inside the womb. If there is anything that knows how a part of the body should look and be built, then it is those genes and the rest of the DNA. Just add a sample of the DNA and then spell it to rebuild the area that is missing.'
He had taken the idea from the Polyjuice Potion and then changed it so drastically that the only thing left of its origin was the need for a bit of the person to be healed.
Looking back at the potion that he just completed, Severus checked off the last test on the checklist. Lowery's potion was now ready to be patented, it had passed all the necessary tests. He had to modify it slightly to get it to pass the last one, but Lowery was easy to convince of the necessity of the changes. He would fill out the last bit of paperwork and send it back to Lowery so that he could patent it.
Smiling, he checked over the other potion that was currently cooling on the other side of the bench. It had turned the expected shade of brown and would be ready for its final testing stage shortly. Glancing back at the bubbling cauldrons he headed over there. It was time to start adding the last ingredient possibilities. There were only four options, and he knew one of them had to work.
セブルススネイプ
Lucius strode through the doors into the entry hall. He contemplated at the staircase heading up to the floor where the Headmaster's office was. Something told him that he should head down into the dungeons to find his friend. Heading down the stairs, he went in search of the other. He expected to find him in his old office, or his potions lab, or, on the off chance, in his old rooms. Instead, he found him in a classroom surrounded by cauldrons. 'I should have expected that. Here he is with large stockrooms of ingredients and lots of time on his hands.'
Striding in through the door, he let a glare sweep across the scene before him. Severus was crossing the room to a group of four cauldrons that appeared to be the same potion. "I hope you are not using school money for this."
He caught the barest pause in the Potions Master's gait before he continued to one of the cauldrons.
Raising an eyebrow at how he was ignored, Lucius watched as Severus carefully poured a thin, viscous fluid into the gray potion. It started to boil and steam for just a moment before it exploded, shooting hot streams of liquid into the air.
Lucius rushed to push Severus out of the way since his friend was standing there calmly taking notes. Even as he reached the other man, he was stopped by a simple sentence.
"There is a containment shield around the cauldron. None of that is going to get out." The dark eyes had not left the spewing mess as it died down, leaving a melted gloop where there had once been a cauldron.
"I hope that wasn't one of your good ones." Lucius gestured towards the mess.
Severus smirked at Lucius as he moved to the next one. "Of course not. I know better than to experiment in the good ones, especially if there is a chance that it will explode. And that one had a sixty percent chance." He picked up a finely ground powder and held it over the simmering surface. "And, no, these are not the school's ingredients nor cauldrons."
He let the powder fall softly onto the surface and stirred it three times slowly clockwise. The potion turned a pale golden color and bubbled gently. Setting the stirring rod to the side, he wrote down all his observations before moving to the next one.
Lucius knew that he was not going to be able to hold a conversation with Severus until he had finished. Looking about the room, he noticed that these were the last cauldrons that were boiling. He hoped that meant that they were the last ones to be worked with. Looking back at the dark haired man, he watched what many were never privileged to see, a Master working his trade. The next cauldron also exploded, but the cauldron itself did not melt. The last one turned into a dark blue thick bubbling mass. It was almost the consistency of a paste. He watched as a relaxed grin flitted across the normally blank face. The parchment was set down next to the cauldron and Severus turned to face him.
"To what do I owe the pleasure of your company? " He gestured for the blond to move to other side of the classroom away from the workstations.
Lucius took one of the student stools and looked at his old friend. "I'm worried."
Severus raised an eyebrow. "Basil."
A small green eyed elf appeared. "Headmaster Snape, what can Basil do for you?"
"Could you bring a light lunch here, and bring Rosehips back with you?"
"Yes, Headmaster Snape." The elf vanished with a pop.
Severus looked back at Lucius. "When you are worried, you don't eat, and I know that I haven't had lunch. So, instead of facing Narcissa when she is in a protective mode, you are going to eat and tell me what has you worried."
Food popped onto the lab bench and two elves appeared next to Severus' elbow.
"But you will wait for a moment. I need to introduce you to the two elves that work at the safe house. This is Basil and Rosehips." He turned to the two elves. "This is Lucius Malfoy. He is one of the four that are allowed into the house. His wife, Narcissa, and son, Draco, are the others."
Lucius looked at the two elves and decided to humor his friend. "Basil. Rosehips." He acknowledged the two and then turned back to Severus. "I am worried about how the children of the Death Eaters are going to be treated this coming year."
Severus nodded his thanks to the two elves sending them on their way before turning back to the blond. "Isn't that something to bring up to McGonagall? She is the one in charge of that side."
He shot a glare that traveled from the food to his friend.
Lucius made a plate of food when Severus glared at him. "Normally I would say yes, but you are in charge of everything ultimately, and it might be better coming from you to her. We both know that most of them had no choice, but we also know that the other children might not see that."
Severus leaned back a bit after he made his plate. "It is going to all hinge on where they stood in the final battle. Did they stand for the light or the dark? Your own case shows that. Most of them... they stood next to their classmates when push came to shove. They, like me, should show some sort of consequence for their action. Maybe an extended study hall, or detention, with McGonagall for the Fall term two days a week. It would give them a safe area, and show that there is a consequence to their actions. For those who did not stand next to their classmates, their punishment should be three nights and through the winter term as well. But the person that they serve it with should alternate. I should never be put with them, as it might be perceived that I might favor them, or that I would be harsher to them as I am now allowed to be."
He ate a bit giving Lucius a chance to think about his solution.
"That sounds fair. I think that the Board could approve it, making it so that it is not coming from the teachers. The ones that chose with no pressure I'm not sure should be allowed back." He continued when Severus nodded in agreement. " The next thing is what to do about all those who are now Lords and Ladies. They have seats on the Wizengamot and may have to attend meetings."
"They will have to appoint a proxy for normal everyday meetings, and then for ones that require their explicit presence, they will be excused and have to make up the work."
Lucius tried to think of who Draco could name. The proxy had to be related by blood. "That might be a problem for Draco. There is no suitable candidate with the Malfoy name."
He tried not to think of the only set of cousins that might be able to take it. They just were no good at politics.
Severus raised a thin eyebrow at that. "There is a perfect candidate sitting right in front of me. The one I am worried about is Lord Black. He might get Andromeda Tonks to sit for the House of Black, but there is no-one but him available for the House of Potter. You and I both know that the Wizengamot will be wanting to ennoble the name of Potter the same way they did Dumbledore."
Lucius waved that off. "That seat will be filled with the same proxy. Do you honestly think that I could sit the seat? They removed me."
Severus smirked. "But they never said that Draco couldn't name you his proxy. Of course at the time it was thought he wouldn't be coming back to school, but they didn't take into account any apprenticeship he might want to explore. Why? I don't know. There are members that can think of all the loop holes. They have had lots of practice. Maybe they wanted to leave this one." He shrugged.
Lucius nodded in agreement. "There are enough of the elders to realize that there will be a lot of inexperienced people sitting in those seats. Maybe this is a test to see if they are cunning enough to appoint good proxies?"
Severus thought about it for a moment. "Sounds like them. Would you accept it if Draco offered?"
Lucius looked at his plate for a moment. Did he want to go back into that arena? "If he asked. Only because I don't want Cousin Marcus or Sara to take it."
Severus nodded in understanding. He had met those cousins before, he wouldn't want them in charge of any important decision either. "I'll bring up the issues to McGonagall when she returns next week."
Lucius nodded, satisfied that his worries were being handled.
セブルススネイプ
Severus smiled down at the blue, gloppy, almost paste potion. It had passed every test that he had set for it. All that was left was sending it off for human testing. That was the one level of testing that he was not equip to handle.
ASP typically outsourced them and he did have a large network available. But he wanted to patent the Weasley potion under his own name. So, he was going to have to get it tested under his own name. 'I can send the request to some of my current testers, and then I'll contact St. Mungo's to see if they want to give it a try.'
He knew that this was going to be a test to see if Severus Snape could still make it in potions, or if his name was ruined. But the very first step he had to do was to see if he could officially call the potion its working name. Garnering up his courage, he headed out to the Weasley twins' shop.
Diagon Alley was as busy as it had been the last time he visited, and he was trying to convince himself that he really did need their permission to use their name on his potion even though he was making it to help them. As his steps neared the Weasleys' Wizard Wheeze, he noticed that the crowds were thinning. That was not what he was expecting at the end of July. The store should be very busy while students and their family were shopping for school. Stopping at the door, he looked for a sign, or a notice of some sort that explained where they were. All that he noticed was a small sign that read 'Home'.
Closing his eyes briefly, he wondered if he was up to facing the entire Weasley clan. No one but the twins knew that he was working on a potion for them, and he doubted his welcome there. 'But I want this paperwork sent off today. I want it on Richard's desk and in the hands of the testers before sunset. Then tomorrow I can start on the infirmary's potions. So, it is off to the Burrow.'
Twisting quickly, he sent himself to a place that he was sure he would be unwelcomed at the very least. He believed that he would be attacked first and then questioned.
Looking down the hill, he examined the wards that surrounded the property. Once again, it seemed that Bill had been spreading his skills around to all those who were important to him. Taking a moment, he focused a bit so that he could study the lines that were woven together. Almost without noticing, he had made it to their edge. By the time he reached them, he had acquired an entirely new appreciation for the elder Weasley boy. Maybe he could put him in touch with Lucius. Then again, he would hate to see what those two could come up with. Both had a talent for wards, Lucius had the library to back up their enthusiasm, and Bill had the creativeness to make something spectacular.
'At least it is not warded against my presence. Maybe I can get in, see the twins and then leave without anyone the wiser.'
Heading down the narrow path, Severus tried to figure out where those two might hole up. All he was certain was that it wouldn't be under the matriarch's eye, and that was the one he wanted to avoid as well. Pulling out his wand, he cast a silent point me spell.
Following the tip of his wand to a small back field, he heard the sounds of loud children and not so children playing. Slipping his wand away, he ducked behind the nearest coverage and observed the group playing quidditch. Potter, Granger, and all the Weasley children were there zooming about or observing. 'Of course the two I need are on brooms.'
With a sigh, he leaned against a tree and waited. At least the game was good. He was glad that there was no way this group could be the Gryffindor team. None of the other houses would stand a chance. The game was coming to an end as Potter and Ginerva Weasley were almost to the snitch. Part of him was hoping that the girl would get it, just because Potter seemed to never lose when it came to a school game. His hopes were dashed when Potter's fingers closed about the golden ball. Over the din of the cheering he could hear Molly Weasley calling them in.
Straightening up from the tree, he knew now was the time to approach the boys he needed to speak to. All he needed to do was separate them from their siblings and friends. It took a bit of plotting, but he succeeded before they broke out of the woods. A quick impedimenta spell froze both boys while they were hanging a bit further back from the others. Severus quickly levitated them out of sight and removed the charm.
George and Fred frowned at him, but that was all since they had become used to being ambushed by Severus during their school years. Not that he had ever done it in this manner, but they knew that since they were working with him, they should have expected it sometime. Smiling at the blank expression on the dark haired man's face, they could both see the uncertainty that was hiding in his eyes.
It was Fred that decided to find out what was needed before the others came looking for them. "Headmaster, what can we..."
George jumped in and finished the question. "help you with?"
'Leave it to them to take my kidnapping them in stride.' Severus smirked. "I need your permission to name a potion after you."
George's eyes widened. "I thought you were just improving the Delany's potion." It was out so fast, Fred couldn't finish the sentence.
Severus shook his head. "Delany couldn't be modified to do the job we wanted it to do. The ingredients were chosen to resist spells. I have taken it upon myself to create a new potion that has the outcome that we are looking for, and it is ready for the last level of testing." He watched as their eyes widened as much as possible.
"You... you did that..."
"...in a month? But weren't..."
"...you helping with the school's..."
"...construction?"
Severus tilted his head at their surprise and raised an eyebrow. He decided to refrain from telling them that he had actually worked on it for about two weeks. "Of course I did. Now, since I have been calling it the Weasley potion this entire time, I would like to use that name on the patent papers. Do I have your permission?"
"You could have..."
"...asked us that at the..."
"...house. Mom and Dad..."
"...are going to have to have..."
"... a say in the use of the family name."
The twins tried not to smirk at the low growl that came from the professor.
Severus glared at them. He knew that they were right, but he was trying to avoid the matriarch and the patriarch of the family. He had yet to see them since the final battle and he didn't want to do it on this issue. "The secrecy clause is still in effect."
George nodded as Fred looked surprised. "We are going to have to modify it this time if you want to use that name though."
Huffing lightly, he gestured them to lead the way. "At least we built in a clause that allowed for these circumstances."
It had been his idea, the twins had not thought that far ahead, but then again, he wouldn't expect twelve year olds to have. As he followed them, he steeled himself for the meeting as a thought drifted through his mind. "Only your parents are to be involved. I will not be subjected to the whole clan, Potter and Granger."
Fred nodded. "Of course, Professor. So, the potion works so far? How does it work?"
George could feel the glare digging its way through his back and he could tell Fred was feeling it, too. "When would it be ready to test on humans? I want to be a test subject."
'Not in this life time. I have caused enough damage to you. At least they don't realize what the last level of testing is.' Severus harrumphed and cast a quick muffliato before answering. "You will hold this information under the secrecy clause. At least until it is approved. Not even your parents are to know."
At the boys' nods, he continued. He had made it for them after all, and George should know what he was getting himself into. "It is a potion that has to be both topically applied and orally ingested. You must add the patient's hair, skin, blood,or some other part of them to it, and spell it to make the body part you want it to make. Then, before it is topically applied, all the scar tissue has to be removed. This will be painful as the patient cannot have any other potions in their system. I am going to recommend putting the patients into a deep sleep during this. I am attempting to work out a way painkillers can be used with it, but right now the ingredients are counterproductive with each other. Once the scar tissue is removed, the potion will be applied to the area. The patient will have already drunk a portion before going to sleep. Then it is just a matter of waiting. The size of the body part that needs to be regrown will dictate the amount of potion needed and the amount of time it will take to heal. Your ear should take two days, one ingested potion and two topical application if my calculations are right."
George turned around and looked at him with eyes saucer wide. "And when will I be able to do this?"
Severus held in the smirk at the boy's phrasing. It let him tell without agreeing to let the boy be a test subject. "If all goes normal, by the end of the year at the latest."
It could be by Halloween, but that would mean that there would be an unusual number of people who needed body parts regrown. Then again, they might just test it on war veterans. He would have to stipulate that George Weasley would not be tested on, and face the boy's wrath later.
They had made it to the edge of the gardens. Fred gestured for Snape to stand hidden behind a trellis of beans as they went to get their parents.
While he waited, Severus plotted out how to word his test request to keep it a silent testing and not to include high profile war veterans. He would play up on the fact that he would not want them to accuse him of deliberately hurting them. Those who were in the testing industry knew the dangers of a new potion and would understand his caution. That figured out he set a low powered privacy ward around the area, making sure not to trigger the alerts that were in the property's ward matrix.
Fred and George slipped through the back door and spotted Mom standing near the stove. She had already sent the rest up to wash and the table was set behind them. Their luck held as Dad came through the door before the crowd.
"Mom, Dad... we need you to..." Fred's eyes met George's. He didn't know how to continue.
".. remain calm, and come with us for a moment." George continued.
Fred picked up when he saw the concern starting to cover their faces. "It's not bad, but it has to remain a secret."
"A secret? Even from the rest of your family?" It was Molly who broke the parents' silence.
George shot a look at the closed kitchen door and gestured everyone to go out the back door. They could not chance anyone hearing a thing.
Arthur caught George's look and ushered Molly out after the boys. It most likely had something to do with their business.
Once they were outside. Fred cast a quick look at the trellis. "We can't get their hopes up."
"We wouldn't even be telling you, but he wants to name it after us, our family name." George continued.
Arthur looked over at the trellis. "He? Who wants to name what after our family?"
Neither of the boys answered as they came around the trellis. Arthur's and Molly's wands were in their hands as soon as the passed the perimeter of the ward. George and Fred shook their heads. "Professor, was that really necessary?"
Snape stepped out from the shadow. "I felt it was. The potion has not been reported to anyone yet. This is the phase that most ideas are stolen. If it wasn't for the sheer fact that I wanted to call it the "Weasley Potion", I wouldn't even think of talking about it anywhere."
His glare pinned the twins to the ground before he shifted his eyes to the heads of the family. "Do I have permission to name a potion after your family?"
Molly looked the dark haired man over from head to toe. This man had tricked them all into believing the worse of him, and still did what he could to keep them alive. Now he wanted to name a potion after them. "You need to come to dinner where we can talk about this like civilized people."
She put her wand back into her apron pocket as she turned to walk back to the kitchen. A low hiss stopped her.
"What part of the need for secrecy has escaped you, Mrs. Weasley?" Severus glared at her back, hoping she would stop.
Molly spun about. "Our family knows how to keep a secret, Severus."
Arthur rested a hand on her shoulder. "How will this potion get the others hopes up? That is why Fred said we couldn't tell anyone."
He waited as the dark eyes raked over his boys. They didn't seem to be a bit worried being under that gaze.
Severus raised an eyebrow as the twins waited on him. "You explained that much, you might as well tell the rest." He gestured for them to continue.
George looked at his parents, keeping Snape in the corner of his vision. "We asked the Professor's help in modifying a potion to..." He gestured to his missing ear. "but the one we were attempting to modify turned out to be useless, so he created a new one. And, since he has continually thought of it as the Weasley Potion, he wants to name it that."
Arthur looked over at the Potions Master. "You made a potion to regrow George's ear."
Severus brushed his words away as he growled out his response. "It still needs to be tested. And to be tested it needs a name." He pinned them with the glare that Mrs. Timolin had used on him when he refused to give them a number to call him at. "So, do I have your permission?"
Arthur nodded. "You do. And you have our thanks. Even if it doesn't succeed, we thank you for trying."
Severus snorted at the idea of it not working. There wasn't much that could stop the patent. "Thank you."
He swept the wards away as he turned to leave. Molly stopped him when she grabbed his wrist. He figured that the practice catching her brood was the only reason she had succeeded. That, and he was looking forward to getting the paperwork owled.
"You are to skinny, Severus. Stay for dinner." Her tone told him she wasn't up to taking no for an answer.
Severus turned and glared at her. He wanted to get this moving. "I have too much to do to stay here, Mrs. Weasley. I'll get dinner back at Hogwarts."
She was obviously not going to take his no for an answer so George and Fred jumped in, for once both of them rambling the same sentences at the same time. "We promised him that he wouldn't have to deal with all of us together. Just you two and us two. That was the only way he would come up to the house. And you know how the others might react to him."
As Molly looked between the twins and him, Severus was reminded of Mrs. Jameson. She was torn between helping someone who was helping her family and keeping a promise that her family made.
Holding back a sigh, he turned back to her. "Mrs. Weasley... Molly, thank you. I appreciate your offer, but I really need to get back to get the paperwork moving on this. The longer it sits on my desk the more chance of something happening to it."
Severus gently pulled his arm out of her grasp and let his finger clasp hers lightly as he would Karen's or Jacob's before he let her hand fall. Taking a step away, he apparated away.
Molly stared at her hand a moment. That was the gentlest she had ever seen him. A small smile slipped on her face. "We are going to have to invite him over when the children are out." She glanced over at the twins. "And you will be invited as he obviously tolerates the two of you."
セブルススネイプ
The next morning brought the owls to the school and Severus knew he shouldn't expect a reply yet about his request to test the Weasley potion, but he couldn't help his anxiousness as they landed around him. The first one he opened was from Richards. That one was all business until the end. Then the man had basically told him it was about time he patented a potion in his own name again.
The next that he opened was from St. Mungo's. They were thrilled to take this one up, and could he please send about twenty vials to begin with. They were willing to test it on all ages of injuries, as well as body parts. Severus figured that they were about to try and clear a ward. The other four were also agreeing to his request.
Relief flooded through him. He knew that he had chosen them carefully and that the chance of rejection was small, but he was still glad that they didn't. Now that the worry was gone, he new that he had to brew the amount of the potion that they needed, and he might as well brew the infirmary set while he was working. Only he couldn't remember where the list was. 'Maybe Poppy gave it to Minerva.'
He searched the Headmaster's desk, only to find nothing. Giving up, he decided to call Poppy and get it from her. He wanted to make sure she had taken in to account the eighth years that were coming anyway. Moving to the floo, he called her. "Poppy Pomfrey, Castle Street."
"Severus Snape? Is that you?"
Severus spotted her as knelt down near the fire place. "Poppy, I can't find the infirmary list." He stopped at the look that crossed her face.
"Let me through, Severus."
He stepped back and waited, wondering what she was going to say.
Poppy stepped through and looked over at Severus. She wasn't sure how to break this to him, so she figured to do it as blunt as he would. "Severus, I was thinking, since you have the duties of Headmaster and planning a class, that we should order our potions this year." She plowed on as he started to glare at her. "I researched the different companies that could do it, and I decided that the best one was Aconite. I know that this will cost us some, but not that much. They are reasonable in their prices, much more than some other companies."
Severus tried not to stare at her. She wanted to hire his company to make the potions for Hogwarts to lessen his work load. 'That would definitely fall under a conflict of interest. There is no way I can hire myself to do what I would be doing otherwise. Even Lucius would frown at that, at least in public."
Drawing in a breath, he tried to think of a way to tell her it wasn't possible without telling her why. "I can do it. I have a lot of time this summer, and am capable of making the potions this school needs. I am its Potions Master."
Poppy crossed her arms and met the glare with one of her own. She had been working with this stubborn man for years, and she had known that she would have a battle on her hands before she had stepped through the fireplace. "Yes, you are capable. Yes, you are the Potions Master. But, you should not use all your spare time making basic potions. The potions world needs you to be inventing, not just brewing. And I am sure that the company would not turn away our request."
Severus raised an eyebrow at that. "I am still inventing. I have not stopped." He ruthlessly cut off that train of thought. He did not need to defend himself to her, no matter how much her opinion meant to him. "And I hear that Aconite is very picky."
"I am sure that if we requested, they would accept our order. Severus, it is for the best. You do not need to overwork yourself. Take a break." Poppy hoped it would work.
He knew that if he wasn't associated with the school, he would accept the order as soon as it came in. But he was, and there was no way he would let any other company make the potions for his school.
"Poppy, you know brewing relaxes me. And brewing the infirmary potions lets me think. I can do them and let my mind turn over problems and create solutions. It is better than anything else I have ever found. Even better than walking the halls." He held her eyes as he continued. "I am going to be brewing the order. If I have to brew last year's I will. But I would like to know what you honestly need, taking into account the eighth years that are coming."
Poppy knew in that moment she was defeated. She had nothing that would stop him, and nothing to counter his argument. Reaching into her robe pocket, she pulled out a list. "Here it is. I still think we should do like other schools and order from a company. We are wasting your skills. That is how it is perceived."
Severus took the list and glanced over it. He almost wished he could tell her why he wouldn't agree, but he refused to let anyone else know of the particular side venture yet. "Thank you, Poppy, I'll have them done before the beginning of the school year."
Holding in the sigh of defeat, Poppy headed back through the floo. Angelica was waiting on her when she stepped out.
"So, did he thank you for the idea?" The other medi-witch was smiling broadly.
Poppy shook her head. "He reacted about as I thought. He insists on brewing our own potions as he has done for the last seventeen years." He had even insisted the years that Slughorn had taken over as Potions Master, at least for the summer brewing.
"But, the company makes the absolute best potions I have ever used. We've been using them for years. We couldn't last year since they took a hiatus like a number of companies, and it was a dismal year in the infirmary. Our potions brewer's were just not up to the same quality. Surely you can convince him." The blonde wrung her hands as she talked. She could not imagine not using the quality she had come to expect again.
Poppy straightened her shoulders and glared at Angelica. "Our Potions Master does not make poor quality. He is one of the best in the area, in Europe even."
Angelica held up a hand to stop her rant. "I'm not trying to insult your brewer, it just that these are that good. And even though they are a reclusive company, they have the same person make the potions every year for us. Come look, our order came in about a week ago, you can judge the quality."
Poppy followed her as she decided not to correct Angelica on the level of potions teacher they had. Hogwarts had a Master level, not a brewer level. The other medi-witch set a bottle of skelegro into her hands. Turning it over, she looked at a potion that she was very familiar with. The viscosity was the same, even the slight tinge of color in the opalescent sheen was the same.
"See, isn't it so much better. I haven't seen this quality even at St. Mungo's. No one I have ever shown it to has. And it works. It takes a smaller dosage to do the same job as the normal brew. And all the potions are of the same level."
Poppy turned the bottle over to look at the label. Even though she expected to see what she saw, it still surprised her. The tilted, illegible scratch of a S. Snape adorned the bottom right corner, and the date made in the bottom left. The name was written across the top was a bit more legible than those that filled her potions storeroom, but she had lots of practice reading his writing.
Angelica took her shocked face to mean that she had never seen that level quality before. "Show this to your Headmaster and then see what he says. I do ask that you return it." She closed the other's fingers around the flask.
Poppy understood why Severus could not accept her order, or rather that he had accept her order. 'Severus works for Aconite? No... he wouldn't work for a potions brewing company. And they wouldn't leave him in the brewing section, they would put him into research so fast his head would spin. No, Aconite is his. That would explain the comment that he was still researching. This is his back up plan.'
Tightening her grip around the flask, she knew that she couldn't expose this. With a quick nod to herself, she came up with her plan. "I'll show him, but I doubt he'll agree. He'll say that the ones we have used have worked for years." Running her finger over the name she looked back to her friend. "How do you know it is the same person? This name is illegible."
Angelica smirked a bit. "It is the same illegible scratch every time. Can't tell who it is, but I can tell it is the same one."
Poppy smiled lightly as she tucked the bottle into her pocket. She would never show it to Severus, but she would not request to order again. "That makes sense."
セブルススネイプ
The summer weeks slipped by as Severus finished the potions on his docket and then add more. He also had most of the paperwork done, at least as much as he could do until the school year started. Minerva had come back and they had discussed the issues that Lucius had brought to his attention. She like his solutions and had agreed to implement them. They had drafted a letter to send to all those that were affected by the changes, letting the Death Eater children know about the detentions and the new Lords and Ladies with seats about the proxy issue. It had affected a few of their decisions but for the most part the children still agreed to come.
This week was for the interviews and Severus was not looking forward to it. 'I'm going to make the password butterscotch and everyone will blame Minerva. And she won't be able to deny it, at least not to the new teachers. But I think I will make it that during the first week of school. Should I let her make some? I guess we should alternate them. It would only be fair and confusing for everyone else. If I do it just right, I can get the new teachers thinking that Minerva has a split personality.'
Stretching, he headed up to dinner. Most of the others were back by now, and he needed to hear what was going on. They tended to complain about the things they needed during meals instead of bring it to him later.
Settling into his seat he looked over at Minerva. "When are the interviews starting?"
"Tomorrow morning, ten o'clock. So, I expect you up in the Headmaster's office, Headmaster." Minerva smirked at his frown. She had made sure to call him his title ever since she had been back. Tomorrow would start the time when she couldn't, so she was making the most of the time she could.
"I hope that they are more satisfactory than the last." Severus gave up on glaring at her. He knew she wouldn't slip when others were around, so he wasn't going to worry about the new teachers finding out.
The others at the table nodded in agreement. They had all heard about Miss Butterscotch.
Leaning back just a little, he listened to the conversations that were floating around the table. So far he had discovered that Filius' collection of quills were half destroyed and needed to be replaced, Poppy was in need of more bandages, the soil in the greenhouses were a bit too dry, and Minerva needed some more live mice for the upper years. Babbling and Vector were falling into their roles as Heads quite easily, especially since they had been coached for weeks by the rest of them. Hooch was complaining about the school brooms again, and with reason. Hagrid wanted to get a baby dragon to visit from the reserves to show the eighth years. He would have to nip that idea fairly quickly, but privately. Sinistra wanted a spell placed around the top of the astronomy towers just in case this year. Severus agreed, and made a mental note to handle that.
The others started asking Minerva what they should have for the Muggle Studies class. Their reasoning was that she was the one with the most contact with the muggle world.
Severus struggled to keep a blank, interested look on his face as she tried to answer their questions. When she mentioned coffee makers as a new invention, he had to look down at the table and force himself not mention espresso makers, digital cameras, dvd recorders, and cell phones. It was a shame that they wouldn't work in the castle. The phone would help his problem with his almost family. The meal finally ended, and he was able to escape to his room before he gave himself away. But it did remind him that he needed to pay attention to who was hired to teach that. They really did need to know about the muggle world. And the students needed to learn how to move around in that world a bit more inconspicuously than wizards do now.
Settling down behind his desk, he flipped open his lesson plans. Tracing the line for the first week of classes, he smirked. He couldn't wait to get started. He would still put the fear of acting out into them, but they weren't going to know about their assignments. Then again, the muggles might. He was going to make The End proud of him now.
