*14*
Snape was – for the first time since he started teaching – late for his first class on Monday. To be more exact, he opened the door to his classroom fifteen seconds after the official start of the lesson after he had jogged up the corridor from his quarters. He was in desperate need of a cup of coffee after sharing not only one carafe of sherry with Sybil the day before.
"In!" he bellowed at the Gryffindor and Slytherin seventh years. "What are you waiting for? Granger! Brew me a cup of coffee!" As much as Snape hated to admit it, the girl was probably the only person in this group of students who was capable of brewing coffee and finishing her assignment in time in spite of the extra task.
"I'm not your secretary!" the girl snarled angrily. She added "Sir," in a smaller voice when Snape glared at her.
"I'm not in the mood to discuss women's rights, Granger. Caffeine! Now!"
This finally made the girl move. She hurried to the front of the classroom, where Snape kept a cauldron just big enough to brew one cuppa. Unfortunately she returned barely a minute later. "You are out of coffee," she shook the coffee tin accusingly.
"And why are you wasting my time telling me that? Run to the kitchens and get some!"
"Only if you start my assignment for me," the girl stood her ground.
Snape waved her off and she left at a run. With a sigh the potions master sat beside Potter – he completely ignored the boy – and started to slice cabbage, which was needed for the base of the stomach ache cure they were brewing.
The ten minutes until Granger returned and finally put a cup of coffee in front of Snape were the longest in Snape's life, which was saying something seeing that he had spent a lot of time in the presence of the Dark Lord.
Luckily the students were scared enough of the potions master that he made it through the morning without too much trouble. At lunch, help came from an unexpected corner.
"Hangover?" smiled Sprout. She handed Snape a small brownish root. The potions master chewed it without hesitation and finally felt human again.
"Thank you so much, Pomona," he sighed happily and held out his advent calendar invitingly. Sprout definitely deserved a reward.
"Oh, I've heard of your calendar!" cried the Herbology teacher. "I'm honoured!" She opened the window and clapped her hands. "Beautiful!"
It was an icicle and seconds later, the Great Hall was decorated with glittering icicles all over. The students ooh-ed and aaah-ed, Dumbledore was beside himself.
The first trace of panic stirred in Snape when a drop of water landed on his nose. "It's melting!" he shouted. "Out! Out!"
The students were quicker to react than most of the teachers. Nevertheless barely half of them had left the hall by the time the first icicle fell from the ceiling. It hit a second year Ravenclaw on the shoulder. The boy screamed with pain.
Some of the Slytherins dove under their house table. More icicles came down and more students were hurt. Luckily Dumbledore had the presence of mind to cast a shield spell and McGonagall banished the remaining icicles.
"Well," sighed Sprout beside the potions master, "that was a short pleasure, but nevertheless beautiful. Thank you, Severus."
The potions master smiled weakly and hurried off under the pretence of having to prepare his next lesson.