Chapter 11: Secret Agent Man*
*Secret Agent Man, (1966). P.F Sloan, Steve Barri
Severus sat by the fire long after Maya Ladon left to return to London. Thoughts of Maya churned in his head. Her confident nature, the effortless way she used magic, the way they fell into an easy natural banter tonight, it all reminded him of a time long ago – of a woman with flaming red hair and sparkling green eyes. But he couldn't let his thoughts go down that path tonight or he would never find sleep. It had been a very tumultuous day. The encounter with Maya coupled with the summons from the Dark Lord had left him on edge and irritable, resulting in a splitting headache. It was rare that the Dark Lord would call at such a conspicuous time of day. Something was coming soon, he felt sure of it. The sudden rush of green flames from the fireplace shook him from his thoughts, as Albus Dumbledore stepped out onto the grate.
"Evening, Severus. I see your visitor has gone for the evening," the old wizard stated. He was already in his dressing gown, wearing an old pair of scarlet slippers adorned with gold griffins on his feet.
"Yes, she returned to headquarters just before dinner," Snape said, summoning a decanter of brandy and two glasses. He poured them each a measure.
"Anything to report from this morning's summons?" Dumbledore took his glass from Snape.
"No, not really. Something's coming though, I can sense it." Severus dragged his hand across his face.
"Yes, I too have felt it." Dumbledore took a seat in the armchair across from Severus and sipped his brandy with a contented sigh. "Quite an eventful day then, yes?" Dumbledore asked innocently.
Severus found himself irritated with the older wizard. Much of today's misunderstanding could have been avoided if Dumbledore had not been so stubbornly secretive. "Did you forget to tell me a few things, Albus?"
"Why Severus, what could you be referring to?" said Dumbledore, but Severus could see the mischief in the old man's eyes. Albus Dumbledore had not been a Gryffindor for nothing. Severus found it irritating at the best of times.
"I was referring to the fact that you knew the woman had been engaged to a Death Eater, a Death Eater that killed her parents no less! You didn't think that was something I needed to know?"
"Really? I had no-idea?" Dumbledore replied evasively.
"Don't play coy with me, Albus. And what about the fact that she has mastered both non-verbal and wandless magic? She's a bloody menace!"
"Well, well. She is indeed full of surprises. That, Severus, is news to me as well. It seems there is more to Ms. Ladon than even I had guessed." Dumbledore smiled, taking another sip from his glass. "I could be mistaken, but you seem impressed by her abilities."
"I might have been. If I didn't have her wand pointed at my chest."
"I could also add that those are both skills you have mastered as well. Though I must admit, until now, you and Remus Lupin were the only students I have had in a very long time that had truly mastered those particular forms of magic."
"Well yes, but that's beside the point. Oh and while we're at it, let's not forget that she can transform into a fire breathing monster?"
"So you've seen her dragon then?" Dumbledore said curiously. "Was it as impressive as the rumors made it out to be?"
"That's not the point, Albus! The point is, it would have been helpful if I had known what I was walking into, that maybe you could have given me a little warning."
"Well, I do remember telling you both that you should be honest with each other. It sounds as if neither one of you heeded my advice."
"Albus, are you certain that she's stable? That she's in control? And don't look at me like that; Minerva has had the very same reservations. If Ladon is unbalanced or loses control we will have an extremely powerful witch who can turn herself into a full-sized fire-breathing dragon on the loose! Do you think that's a wise idea?"
"Severus, what are you afraid of? That she will be a danger to others or that she will be a danger to you?"
It was Snape's turn to be evasive. "I don't know what you mean."
"Why didn't you tell her about the Dark Mark and your true role in the Order? Everyone else in the Order knows what you do, that you put yourself at risk." Dumbledore fixed the younger wizard with his penetrating gaze.
"It was none of her business and besides, who knows if she is going to be traipsing back to America at any moment," Snape said defensively. "Although in retrospect, perhaps if I had known more about her past I might have come to a different conclusion."
"I think our young Ms. Ladon has gotten under your skin, as the Americans say."
"Yes, because she's a ruddy pain in the arse! She's irritating, hot tempered and pig headed, not to mention obnoxiously American," Severus huffed.
Dumbledore chuckled out loud at the younger man's protests. "Yes, those things may be true. But let's not forget that she is also keenly intelligent, very accomplished, and quite lovely. These traits have a tendency to balance out the others, especially where men are concerned."
Severus gave a derisive snort of protest.
"We will see, my young friend, we will see," Dumbledore chuckled.
The sounds of the great hall were deafening to Severus' ears. The Hall was full of laughing children, dishes clattered, cutlery scraped against plates, school bags were thrown to the tables and floor and benches were dragged against the stone floor as students got up and down from their house tables. Scents from tonight's beef wellington and apple cobbler filled the air. The enchanted ceiling mirrored only the dreary cloud covered winter sky, blocking all stars and moonlight from view. Light from the oil lamps cast long ominous shadows on walls.
Severus tried to eat his evening meal in peace, something that was made difficult by Deloris Umbridge's relentless attempts to draw him into conversation about the necessary changes needed to run the school properly. Her voice pierced his thoughts like jagged glass making it impossible to ignore her completely. He felt the familiar burning sting to his left forearm and took a deep steadying breath. His mouthful of food instantly turned to lead in his mouth and he had to force himself to swallow. He calmly put his fork down and caught Dumbledore's eye at the center of the staff table. Dumbledore gave him a nod of understanding and Severus calmly rose from his seat. "I'm sorry, Professor Umbridge, but I must take my leave," Snape said without waiting for her response.
"But Professor, we haven't finished our discussion. What could be so urgent?" the toad-like witch protested, her exceptionally high, squeaky voice drilling into his skull.
Severus continued on his way out of the great hall with no response. He took a less traveled route out of the castle and vanished at the edge of the grounds.
The Death Eaters gathered at the abandoned estate of Tom Riddle's grandparents. Since the Dark Lord's supernatural snake Nagini had killed the muggle caretaker last year, the rumors about the house being haunted had grown. No one was willing to buy the house and no one from the village would come near it.
"Severus, my friend, so good of you to join us," Voldemort hissed.
Severus bowed and took his place at the table. Death Eaters sat nervously around the long table in the formal banquet room. The once elegant room, like the rest of the estate, was covered in dust and cobwebs from years of neglect. The room smelled of mold and decay and large water stains spotted the plaster on the ceiling. Muggle portraits of stately Gentleman frozen in time lined the walls. Lucius Malfoy was conspicuously missing from the group sitting at the table. Lucius' absence hinted that the Dark Lord felt that his attention would be better spent on his mission to obtain the prophecy from the Department of Mysteries than on attending the meeting. Severus guessed that the pressures on Lucius were mounting. Lucius would be making another attempt at a break in soon or risk paying the ultimate price for failing their master.
"Now that everyone of importance is here, let us begin. Grady, your report?"
"Yes, milord," Grady obeyed. "My sources indicate that the Americans are strong in numbers but incredibly disorganized. They spend much of their time fighting amongst themselves and cavorting with muggle gangs in petty crime. The weak leadership in Boston has lost sight of our ultimate goals, master. I believe that is why they have not made contact or requested orders."
'Well, that is one question answered,' Severus thought, careful to keep his face blank and his occlumency wards firmly in place.
"Foolish incompetence!" Voldemort howled in rage. Grady whimpered as Nagini slipped from her coils at Voldemort's feet and wove through the chair legs. When she reached Grady's chair, the great snake reared up and rested silently at his shoulder, inches from the shaking man's neck. "Americans are once again behaving like brash children. I will send someone to remind them that it is I whom they serve; it is my mark they wear. They will need a great deal of supervision to ensure they stay on task."
"Perhaps Malfoy, milord," a Death Eater named Yaxley spoke up from the far end of the table. Severus knew that the disheveled-looking man had his own personal reasons for wanting Lucius Malfoy neatly out of the way in America. Yaxley had a habit of cornering Malfoy's wife at every opportunity.
"No, Malfoy is otherwise engaged at the moment," the Dark Lord responded. "I think perhaps McGovern might be up to the task. I want all of our followers in America, the Continent, and Eastern Europe awaiting orders and at the ready. We will strike as soon as I have my prize from the Department of Mysteries. I want that prophecy!" Voldemort slammed a skeletal hand on the table and several Death Eaters jumped in their chairs. "With the information it contains no one will dare to question my authority, my power!"
Severus's stomach turned to ice behind the carefully crafted mask of indifference on his features. The prophecy had identified Harry Potter as the Chosen One that had the power to defeat the Dark Lord. It was this information that sent him to the Potter's home all those years ago, only his spell back fired separating him from his body and leaving the work to believe he had been destroyed. But his master had not heard the entire prophecy and now believed that there would be information within the unheard portions that would tell him how to destroy Potter, becoming invincible.
"There is more, milord," Grady spoke up, voice wavering. "The Black Dragon has disappeared. Whoever this wizard is, he seems to have gone into hiding."
"Perhaps he has become fearful of the strength of our followers in America," said a sharp-faced Death Eater named Travers that worked for the Ministry.
"Or Maybe an American Death Eater has killed him already," said a wizard named Nott excitedly.
"Impossible. Someone would be taking credit. They would be boasting from shore to shore!" replied another wizard farther down the table.
"No, this Dragon is not dead. It is more likely that he's gone into hiding or fled America. My guess would be either Paris or right here in London. Though Prague or Brussels could also be possibilities," proposed a blonde-haired wizard that Severus knew as Gibbons. Severus didn't know the wizard personally but he had a reputation for having excellent instincts when it came to strategy. Gibbons was a hunter, an expert at instinctively understanding his prey's motivations and movements.
"Severus, what are your thoughts?" hissed the Dark Lord.
"I'm sorry, milord. I do not claim to understand the American thought process," Severus replied dryly as the others around the table snickered, "but I see no reason to assume that the wizard has left America or that he has connections in Britton or on the continent. He is likely hiding in plain sight. A malcontent Auror or Ministry worker perhaps, someone who fancies himself a hero."
Voldemort was silent for several moments. "As usual Severus, you are the voice of logic and reason. I agree, it is most likely the Dragon is still in America, waiting, luring the self-indulgent American's into a sense of security while hiding from the American Ministry," Voldemort hissed. "I grow impatient with this tiresome nuisance. I want this Dragon discovered and eliminated. Grady, I expect that you and McGovern will deal with situation. For your sake, I would not fail."
"Yes, milord," croaked Grady.
"You have your tasks, be gone, all of you!" The Dark Lord stood and stormed from the room, Nagini dropping from Grady's side and slithering after her master. Severus's face remained blank and his mind shielded with occlumency as he left the estate. He spoke to no one. One benefit to these meetings was that no one expected the niceties of polite society. Only Lucius put on the appearance of civility and he was blessedly absent tonight. As he strode back across the school grounds and up to the castle, he knew he would have to speak with Dumbledore immediately. It was more urgent than ever that Maya Ladon keep her identity hidden. They would also need a spy in America to gather additional information about the size and strength of the Death Eater forces there.
The embers in his office fireplace were beginning to cool. Severus was lost in his thoughts, all the recent events weighing down upon him, the two halves of his life tangling in a deluge. He had met with the headmaster as soon as he returned from the abandoned Riddle mansion. Dumbledore agreed that Ladon's identity must remain a secret for the foreseeable future. He still had a stack of grading to do for the fourth years. He looked down and saw that he was still on Cyrus McGee's deplorable essay. With his mind so distracted by meetings with the Dark Lord and Dumbledore, it would take him all night to finish grading. A knock on his office door gave Snape an excuse to step away from McGee's scratchy handwriting and rest his tired eyes. He pulled the heavy wooden door open expecting to see a Slytherin student or perhaps Filtch. But it was neither.
Maya Ladon stood in the Hogwarts corridor in a deep blue traveling cloak.
"Hi, Sev! I was here meeting with Dumbledore and thought I would stop in and say hello," she said with an inviting smile.
He just stared at her for a moment. 'What on earth was she doing here?' he thought.
"Well, are you going to invite me in or are you going to leave me out here in the hall all night?" she joked.
He said nothing, but stood to the side so she could step through the door. Once she was through, he quickly glanced up and down the corridor to make sure she had not been seen.
"What were you thinking, coming straight to my door? Are you sure you were not seen by Umbridge or any of the students?" he asked in annoyance.
"Of course I wasn't seen," she said. "I used a disillusionment charm from Dumbledore's office. I know how to tell if I'm being followed or if I've been spotted," she said with a huff.
"Yes, well, that remains to be seen. I assume you've spoken with Dumbledore?" he asked, returning to his chair behind his desk. Instead of taking a seat in a wooden chair reserved for students, Maya choose to remove her cloak, push over the stack of ungraded essays and perch on the edge of his desk. He could see the outline of her wand in the back pocket of her muggle jeans and swallowed dryly.
"He wanted to warn me personally about the news you found out yesterday. I'm to keep my identity a secret from anyone not in the Order and under no circumstances am I to be seen. I need to transfigure my appearance anytime I'm in public."
"Does this not count as public?" Severus replied, meeting her eyes.
"You already know who I am, Severus," she said, with a teasing smile that made her blue eyes sparkle with excitement.
"I suppose I do," he replied, giving her a smirk in return.
"I think you like me more than you let on, Professor," she said, voice low and conspiratorial.
He gave her a snort of amusement in response but never let his eyes waver from hers. Her unspoken challenge spurred him to return her flirtatiousness. "You're the one sitting on my desk, not the other way around."
Maya leaned closer to him. He could smell the lavender scent of her hair and see the reflection of the candle flames in her eyes.
"Laugh if you want," she whispered, her face inches from his own, "but I think you like me quite a lot."
"You're wrong. I don't -," he began, but then her lips were on his, soft and warm like honeyed mead. He deepened the kiss greedily. Her hands raked through his hair. Without thinking, he pulled her down from the desk, the stack of essays crashing to the floor, and pressed her hard against him. She rolled her hips against his, the friction maddening and he smothered a groan against her soft skin.
His mouth blazed a trail from her wonderfully soft lips, down to her jaw and to her neck. She arched her back in response, which only intensified the sensation of having her in his lap, and he growled in satisfaction. Everything about her felt magnificent, her silky hair as he ran his hands through her curls, the smooth cool skin beneath her shirt, and the delicate curve of her neck.
Maya groaned with impatience as she made quick work of the buttons on his white shirt. Her hands pressed on his bare chest and heat washed over him in waves, his blood rushing through his body. Her muggle shirt slid off easily, exposing her pale skin to his keen eyes. His breath caught in his throat at the sight of flushed skin in the candlelight. He brought his lips back to hers for a hungry kiss before moving his attention to her collarbone. Her hands slid down his back and over his shoulders, pausing at his belt buckle. "So Professor, are you going to show me your wand or do I have to find it myself?" she breathed into his ear, moving against him enticingly, her desires unmistakably clear.
A door slammed outside his office, distracting him from his mission of conquering the button of her jeans with one hand, and then a burning pain flared in his neck.
He awoke with a start. His lap was disappointingly empty, and the only thing on his desk was his quill and Cyrus McGee's essay.
"Bloody hell, not again!" he groaned as he rubbed at his neck painfully. This dream was different than the previous ones, he thought, as he dragged his hands across his face, failing to dispel the lingering images from his mind. Lily was nowhere in his dream tonight, yet it felt so real. He could still feel her hands and lips on his skin, could still hear her husky voice in his ear. Severus shook himself and looked at the clock on the mantel. Merlin's beard! He had missed breakfast, and classes were beginning in ten minutes. This woman was going to be the death of him yet.
Maya stood just out of sight in the shadows of an alley. She and Severus had been waiting for hours, long enough that she had to re-apply her transfiguration spell twice already. They had tracked the Death Eater, Grady, to a run down alley in London, hoping that they could discover how he got his information about American Death Eaters. She was certain Dumbledore had sent Snape with her as a reminder that subtleness was of the highest priority. She found it irritating that Dumbledore thought she needed Snape's supervision. She was not a child and this was not her first mission. Tonight she wore the shoulder length raven waves and slate gray eyes flecked with silver from the night she showed Severus her dragon. Snape on the other hand had chosen a disillusionment charm, opting to blend in with his surroundings completely, flat out refusing to allow her to transfigure his appearance.
"You know what I've missed?" She sighed, attempting to break up the monotony.
"No idea, Ladon." He had been spending much of the evening trying not to imagine scenes from his latest dream as they waited in the dark alley for the Death Eater to re-appear.
"I haven't been to a Chippy since I've been back!" she said wistfully, remembering the amazing aroma of perfectly fried potatoes and vinegar.
Severus just stared at her, not entirely certain that she was serious. He hadn't had chips since he had been in school. His mother took him occasionally and later when they were in school, Lily would coax him into going to the shop in town.
Maya didn't have to see his haughty look; she could feel it. "You are such a sourpuss! That's it - we're finding a chip shop just as soon as we're finished with Grady!" Their conversation was interrupted by the creak of a door and footfalls on the damp concrete. "Here we go," she whispered. She pulled her traveling cloak up to hide her face and held her wand at the ready. They moved out onto the street. Grady and another wizard were half a block ahead of them arguing in whispers. As the two men approached a pub, Severus and Maya ducked into another alleyway to watch from around the corner.
"So, that's where you're getting your information," Maya hissed.
"You know him?" His voice, so close to her ear, caused Maya to break out in gooseflesh.
"Yes. He's an American." Instead of entering the pub, the two wizards ducked into the shadows, and Severus and Maya heard two audible pops as both men apparated from the scene.
"Bugger! I told you we should have just stunned him, checked his pockets and wiped his memory. Now we've lost our chance."
"You do recall Dumbledore saying that caution was paramount, yes?" Snape reminded her in the same irritated voice he used with his first year students.
"Yes, yes. I remember, but now we've lost him. Still, knowing Connell is involved is a very helpful piece of information. Come on. Let's get out of here, and I'll fill you in." She pulled herself back into the shadows.
"Headquarters, then?" He removed the disillusionment charm.
"Nope. Chip shop! Lead on MacDuff! I want chips!"
"You are aware that is a misquote, aren't you?" He raised a dark eyebrow at her in annoyance.
Maya and Severus walked into the tiny chippy, lit by the green glow of florescent lights. Much to his annoyance, she had transfigured their clothing into something more appropriate for muggle London. For Maya, this simply meant transfiguring her cloak into a muggle jacket; Snape, on the other hand, was feeling out of place in muggle clothes. Maya stood at the counter, bouncing on the balls of her feet with excitement. Severus eyed her with the wary look he would give a lunatic.
"I want one portion, wrapped, with extra vinegar," she requested to the gent behind the counter.
"Righto," he said and went to work on preparing her order.
"Ah! Smell that. Isn't it wonderful?" she said, nudging Severus in the arm with her elbow. The gent handed her the greasy newsprint package, and she handled it with the reverence of a child on Christmas morning.
"Oh," she said, turning around almost forgetting, "Is there ketchup?" The gent silently tipped his head to the end of the counter and gave Severus an empathizing look that said 'Good luck with that one mate,' mistaking them for a couple. Severus rolled his eyes and gave the man a look that said, 'You have no idea!'
"Alright, you have your chips, Now can we go home?"
"Yes, now we can go. Your place or mine?" she asked, oblivious to the shopkeepers' reaction behind the counter.
"Yours," he grimaced, as if it caused him physical pain to say it. As much as he detested the idea of running into Black tonight, he couldn't stomach running into Umbridge tonight. They apparated with a pop to the darkened park across from Number Twelve Grimauld Place. The house was quiet as they walked through the front hall.
"Tonks is pulling a night shift at the Ministry, and Remus is on guard duty. It should only be Sirius here," she said, listening for sounds of the owner's presence and hearing nothing.
"Marvelous," Snape said sarcastically, as they made their way down the hall.
"If it's free how about the parlor?"
"Any room that doesn't have Black in it is fine."
"One day you're going to have to tell me what this feud is all about." She eyed him with interest.
"Not likely, Ladon," he said, as they entered the dark and quiet parlor. Someone had repaired the vase that had been shattered and removed the scorch marks from the wall. There was no evidence of the emotional scene that had taken place there the other day.
Maya started a fire in the grate with a flick of her wand, pulled off her cloak and high boots, and made herself comfortable on the sofa. She unwrapped her chips and savored them one at a time.
"So, who is this Connell?" Severus asked choosing a seat at the opposite end of the sofa.
"Hm," she said, swallowing a mouthful of potato. "William Connell is an American Antiquities dealer, which gives him unlimited access to muggle and wizard money. It also places him in contact with international markets and several import/export businesses. His company is based in New York, but he spends a lot of time in the Boston area. Boston, New Orleans, and Seattle have the largest wizard communities in the States, and he has ties in all three cities. He hasn't been confirmed as a Death Eater, but he has done business with several Death Eaters. I'm not surprised, it was only a matter of time."
As Maya ate, she sat cross-legged on the sofa, dipping chips into ketchup one at a time and popping them into her mouth. Severus watched as she licked salt and vinegar from her fingers. He felt his mouth go dry and cleared his throat. "Do you know him personally?"
"No, but we used to move in some of the same circles," she answered. "You know what this needs?" He shook his head as she stood up. "Back in a tic." She disappeared out the door.
Severus could hear her footfalls on the stairs leading down to the kitchen. Feeling warm but unsure if it was the fire or Maya causing his discomposure, he stripped off his frock coat and loosened his collar. She reappeared in moments with two pints of Guinness and a plate.
"Here," she said, handing him a glass.
"Ta." The uncharacteristic turn of phrase revealed his northern upbringing that he had long ago worked to forget. A flush crept up the back of his neck when he realized what he had said. Taking a draft from his glass, he appreciated the way the bitter liquid burned his throat as it went down.
"Welcome." She gave him the bright smile that lit up her eyes as she sat on the couch. She took the plate, mounded several handfuls of chips onto it, and handed it over to him. "Forgive my fingers."
He hesitated for a moment before taking the plate and trying a piece of crisp potato. It blended surprisingly well with the Guinness still on his tongue. Maya again sat cross-legged on the sofa but she was closer this time, her knee almost touching his leg. 'Are all Americans so familiar. They had barely know each other two months?' he thought.
"So you're from the north?" she encouraged him to tell her a little more about his past.
Severus eyed her intently for a moment, weighing his options. He had already told her more than most people knew, and his suspicious nature had him wondering why she would want to know so much about his past. How did she manage to coax the words out of him? He hesitantly nodded his head and took another draft from his pint. "Yorkshire," he admitted. His pride wouldn't allow him to tell her how he had snuck downstairs every night the summer before his third year to practice speaking with the late night movie on the telly to rid himself of his common accent so he would sound posh like Potter and Black. "Near Halifax."
"Is that where you call home then, when you're not at Hogwarts?" she asked, feeling encouraged that she had gotten this far.
"I rarely go back. Most summers I spend at the school or in London. My father's house is there but he and my mother have been dead for several years, so I see no need."
"Something else we have in common, I guess."
He gave her a non-committal shrug, uncomfortable with the direction the conversation had taken. "So this Connell, I'm guessing he will be on your list of leads when you get to America?" he asked, changing the subject.
"Yes," she nodded. "I think I know where to start looking. Most of the high-ranking Death Eaters on the east coast are based out of Boston. I've heard he does business occasionally with some of the import/export businesses down by the docks. I'll start there."
"The Dark Lord has been known to be very interested in relics, magical ones at least. He might find Connell useful."
"What kind of relics?" she asked, taking a long draft of her Guinness and then another chip.
"Mostly items to do with the Four Founders," he said, trying another chip.
"All Hogwarts stuff then," she thought out loud. "That would definitely be the kind of thing Connell would be interested in. I can also check out his warehouses in New York while I'm there to see what I can find. I have a contact with Customs that can let me know if there have been any unusual shipments coming into either harbor."
Severus gave her a questioning look with a raise of his brow.
"The American Death Eaters have started using muggle shipping to smuggle in all sorts of things that they don't want the Ministry to know about like dark objects, back market items, potions and poisons. American wizards are much more intertwined in the muggle world. That's how they survived the witch-hunts, hiding in plain sight. The muggles can't sense the magic in the smuggled items, and it's too difficult and time consuming for the Ministry to monitor all of the muggle traffic without making the muggles suspicious. So lots of stuff gets through unchecked," she said.
"Sounds like they have quite a problem on their hands," he said.
"Yes, especially with wizards like Connell that are so active in both wizarding and muggle business," she said. Maya finished her last chip and crumpled up the paper wrapping, shooting it basketball style into the fire.
He shook his head at her. "Are you sure you're actually British?" he asked, reproachfully.
"I am a unique hybrid of the two." Unable to hold back, she smiled with satisfaction as she sat back with her pint in hand. "Chips and Guinness!" she sighed. "Makes me feel like a teenager. Well, what I thought being a teen would have been like if I had stayed here. What about you? Ever take a girl out for fish and chips?" She nudged him with her knee.
"No," he said derisively, his suspicion flaring up again. He could only imagine the things that Black and Lupin had told her. Besides, none of his trips to the chip shop with Lily could have ever been mistaken for dates, even if he had wanted them to be.
"Pity," Maya said. "That was always my favorite fantasy date as a girl. Well, now you have. It's a first for both of us!" She smiled, and then thought better of it. "Wait, I don't have you pegged wrong, do I? You're not into blokes, are you?" she asked, mostly to tease him but curious just the same.
"No!" he said, affronted, scowling at her in earnest now. "What would make you think-." He stopped realizing she was taking the piss. "Oh never mind!"
"Good," she said, "because I have every intention of considering this my first date in England."
She finished her pint and reached for his empty plate and glass. She brushed his hand with hers as she took the plate from him. He quickly looked up from their hands; her teasing smile reached her eyes. He held her eyes, attempting to read their depths. Severus couldn't decide if she was serious or not and what was worse he couldn't decide if he wanted her to be serious.
"Thanks for humoring me anyway," she said genuinely.
"You're welcome," he said, finding himself confounded by her yet again.
