"Mister Potter, what are you doing? I have been gone nearly two hours, why have you not completed your furniture shopping?" Snape asked, coming to stand next to the Wizarding Savior.
Harry looked at him, then back to the wall of armoires. "I stopped at the leather shop down the street to get a wallet for my Muggle money and card, went to the nursery to find some nice plants for my balcony, then spent a good forty-five minutes finding the perfect living room set and matching kitchen. I also found my office set and linens, plus pillows and the other little things I'll need. I have to say, it's simpler to shop for kitchens the Wizard way, since they can magically install the exact set you pick out. All I have left is to choose some carpets, and settle on my bedroom set. If there's time before lunch, I'd like to find some knick-knacks to add personality. Right now though, I'm stuck. They don't have a bedroom set that I like. I managed to pick my chest of drawers and bed all right, but I'm stuck on the armoire. I know I want ebony, but I can't choose between these two." He indicated the black armoires in front of him.
"They look identical, Mister Potter."
Harry nodded. "They are, aesthetically, but the one on the right has charms to prevent someone tampering with my clothes. The one on the left, however, offers charms to keep clothes smelling freshly laundered and wrinkle-free. Both will expand to accommodate additions to my wardrobe."
Snape sighed. "Just pick one, Potter. I'm sure if you asked, Flitwick would be delighted to teach you the charms to encompass your needs no matter which you should choose."
Harry grinned at the Potions Master. "Wow, thanks, Professor, I hadn't even thought about adding my own charms. Alright," He looked to the clerk that had been following him while he shopped. "I guess I'll take the one on the left, since it has the more immediately necessary spells." The clerk nodded and the armoire disappeared with a wave of his wand. "We can go next door for the carpets and the little touches that mean so much." Snape nodded, but before they could leave the clerk stepped forward.
"Would you like to look at the bill, Mister Potter, to be sure we have everything?" The man asked. Harry nodded and took the roll of parchment.
"Seems right, except I wanted the ebony office set, and the dark cherry wood with black leather for the living room. It's listed backwards here," He said, handing it back. The clerk adjusted the information and when Harry approved it he wished them a good rest of shop as the two professors left.
As Harry walked into the next shop, he groaned. He'd never realized just how hard it was to furnish a living space. There were two walls dedicated entirely to carpets, and shelf upon shelf of everyday bric-a-brac. He moved to the carpets and huffed.
"This is going to be impossible. I've only got solid colors for everything, and I can't imagine choosing a carpet that doesn't have a nice pattern, at least for the living room," He said, looking at the hundreds of throw rugs.
A clerk moved in their direction. "How may I help you?" The pretty witch asked politely.
"Mister Potter is choosing carpets to match his furnishings," Snape said, sneering at the girl as she sidled closer to Harry.
The younger wizard backed away from her slightly, uncomfortable with the proximity she'd created between them. "Er, yeah, what he said. I'm sort of trying to get a dark and earthy color scheme, since my rooms are a bit bright on their own."
The young witch smiled at him in a way he supposed was meant to be seductive. "Most wizards let their girlfriends or wives pick their furnishings for them. A woman's touch is a wonderful thing to have for a new home."
Harry blushed. "But I'm not seeing anyone. I probably should've asked Albus to let Hermione or Ginny come with us," He said, looking at Snape.
The Potions Master smirked evilly, glancing at the clerk. "Don't worry, Mister Potter, I'm sure this lovely young woman wouldn't mind offering her…woman's touch. I shall meet you for lunch at The Leaky Cauldron when you have finished."
Harry gaped as Snape abandoned him with the clerk, who had practically attached herself to his side in the interim. He looked at her and blushed. "Er, hi," He said lamely.
"Hi, I'm Miranda," The girl said, smiling up at him dolefully. "Did you really duel twenty Death Eaters and You-Know-Who all at once when you were just 14?"
Harry shot a nasty look in the direction Snape had disappeared. "No. It's a long story, and I don't want to talk about it. Will you please just…help me find some rugs?" He snapped, having to practically pry her off his arm. He started to walk along the wall, looking at the different fabrics and patterns, the girl following with starry-eyes, completely undeterred by his attitude.
SSHP
Harry huffed, glaring at Snape as he sat in the booth across from the Potions Master. "I can't believe you ditched me with that clerk. The girl should be given the clueless award for the year. I had to tell her five times that I wasn't interested, and she still wouldn't take the freaking hint. I eventually had to speak with her manager just so I could shop for two minutes without being asked the most ridiculous questions imaginable. Merlin help me, if you didn't leave for a damn good reason I will spend every moment I have as a semi-official teacher making your life hell. That girl practically molested my arm!" He snarled, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back in a pout.
Snape only smirked and placed a shrunken shopping bag on the table. When he'd removed the charm, Harry leaned forward curiously, not having expected any sort of explanation. The Potions Master pulled out a beautiful onyx-and-white-marble chess set.
Harry scoffed. "You fed me to that wild beast so you could get a new Wizard's Chess set?"
Snape glared at him in response. "This chess set is for you, Mister Potter. It is a tradition in Hogwarts that the professor's each purchase something for new hires to make them feel welcome. The faculty has not given anything to new Defense Instructors for several years, deciding we would wait to see if they survived the year. After discussing it, your professor's have decided to continue with the tradition this year, to show our faith in you or some such rot. It was Albus' ridiculous idea. If, however, you would rather not take my gift, I would be more than happy to return it."
Harry grinned. "No, I love it, thank you. I was just upset…I should've known you wouldn't abandon me to that devil woman for something stupid."
Snape raised an eyebrow in challenge. "I wouldn't be so sure, Mister Potter, I got a great amount of pleasure from your discomfort."
Harry rolled his eyes and muttered "sadist" under his breath. He picked up the re-shrunk package. "Glad I could make you happy, Snape. I appreciate the chess set, it's gorgeous, and onyx is my favorite stone. I hadn't even thought about getting a set of my own, I'm so used to someone else having one that I can use. Being alone in my rooms is going to be hard to get used to, I've gotten so comfortable with the noise and chaos of Gryffindor."
Snape nodded. "It is not uncommon, Mister Potter. Most of the faculty still spend their free periods in the Teacher's Lounge, choosing to socialize rather than to sit in the suffocating silence of their rooms. Even I have found myself in there from time to time. I would not be overly surprised if a few of the professors came together on their gifts to purchase a record player or magical radio for your rooms." He stopped talking as Tom came over with two mugs of his blackest coffee.
Harry smiled when he realized Snape must have ordered them. He wondered if Snape had gotten them lunch, since no one had come to take their order.
"I have ordered us both the beef stew, the only edible thing in this establishment." Snape said, apparently sensing Harry's train of thought. "I wish for you to tell me what happened at Gringotts. The timeline you gave me before suggests you were there for another twenty minutes after I left, at the very least."
Harry sipped his coffee for a minute, then started to relay the events to the Potions Master, struggling when he tried to explain the bad feeling he'd gotten with Burgdorf. By the time he'd finished, their stews were arriving. "I'm really glad I always thought to hide my vault and wizard money from my relatives. If they'd found out I had piles of gold, they would have found some way to access my vault, probably through my death."
Snape nodded seriously. "It would appear your instincts are as well-honed in the matter of your fortune as they are in the case of your survival. You did well to recommend Griphook. He once managed the accounts of the Malfoy's, before they hired a Wizard to replace him. They would not have near the vast estate they do now if it had not been for his investment recommendations to Lucius' grandfather."
Harry grinned at the rare praise, and began to eat.
SSHP
Harry groaned as he followed Snape into yet another Muggle clothing store. "I already have a full teacher's wardrobe, Snape, what could we possibly buy here that we haven't already got?"
"Proper recreation attire, Mister Potter. Even on the days during which you attend classes you are a Probationary Instructor and thus a member of the Hogwarts faculty. You must dress for your station even as you muck around with your peers," Snape explained impatiently.
Harry sighed in defeat and held his arms out as Snape picked out 'proper clothing' for him to try on. When the pile was sufficient, he followed Snape to the dressing rooms, grabbing t-shirts as he went. Snape had only chosen polo's and button-ups, and Harry would be damned if he didn't have some comfortable t-shirts as well. Luckily, they'd been to Gladrags first for his teaching robes, so they had his new measurements. When he'd tried on all of the clothes, Snape removing some from the pile based on color or how they fit, they moved to the checkout counter. There they ran into the last group of people Harry had ever wanted to see. His hopes that they wouldn't recognize the new him were dashed by his companion.
"Would you hurry up and pay for your purchases, Potter, instead of staring like a dumbstruck buffoon?" Snape snapped from beside him. Harry handed his card to the clerk as his relatives turned to look at him in surprise.
"What happened to you, Freak?" Dudley said, walking over with his parents on his heels.
"It's called a growth spurt and contacts. You haven't seen me since my 16th birthday," Harry said, standing to his full height. He was now a quarter inch taller than his cousin and uncle, towering over his 5'4 aunt. "How have you been, Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon?"
Vernon turned a nasty shade of red and didn't respond as Harry flicked his long hair back from his face, flexing his bigger arm muscles. Petunia, however, gaped in shock at something over Harry's shoulder.
"Severus?"
Snape sneered at the horse-like woman. "Petunia." He acknowledged, grabbing some of Harry's bags. "Excuse us, Potter and I must be going. Come, Potter."
Harry smirked at his family. "Coming, Professor Snape," he said, grabbing the rest of his bags. "I guess I'll see you around." He followed the path Snape had taken to exit the store, but Dudley stopped him before he reached the doors.
"What are you doing here?" He demanded.
Harry rolled his eyes. Dudley had always behaved as though any building he occupied were his. "Shopping. I needed new clothes for my job as a teacher. Professor Snape was under the impression that the clothes you so graciously handed down to me belonged to a humpback whale, and insisted I buy a proper wardrobe with the vast fortune my parents left me." With that he turned and left the shop, with Dudley fuming behind him.