16

Snape woke bright and early the next morning. He didn't even mind Gloria singing "The First Noel" as soon as he opened his eyes. The evening before, Snape had wrapped his gifts. Gloria had helped him with the tape and he had given her the sweets he had purchased for her.

Later they had asked the house elves for hot chocolate and Snape had confessed that he had been at dinner. Since he didn't seem to mind that they had made up a song about his supposedly heroics, Gloria had happily pointed out her favourite parts of the lyrics and they had shared a good laugh or two.

The potions master's good mood was destroyed when he read out the day's recipient of the advent calendar window. Why, oh why, did the bane of his existence, the golden boy, Saint Potter get a window of Severus's calendar every single year when there was a choice of several hundred people?

Potter had the cheek to thank Snape politely before he opened the envelope.

Pink sparks shot out of their small jail as if they had been waiting for their release on tenterhooks. They raced up into the rafters and then dove down to form a whirlwind around the golden Gryffindor.

Snape's mood improved instantly, even beyond the level it had been before, when the sparks died down.

Harry Potter was now wearing a set of white robes that looked suspiciously like a dress. Large white wings were attached to the boy wonder's back and a gloriole was hovering over his head. Potter looked down at the robes unhappily.

He unrolled a small roll of parchment that had appeared in front of him and read out.

"Dear everybody, today you will start working on this year's nativity play. Young Harry will be in charge of everything and he will play the angel. Harry, once you have found all your actors, touch your wand to this parchment and the costumes will appear."

There were cries of excitement and anticipation from all four house tables. People shouted at the newly assigned director that they wanted a part in the play.

"I suggest you hold auditions," Snape told the young hero. "Unless you want to be pestered all day. On second thought, you probably bask in the attention."

Potter glared at Snape angrily before he turned back to the students and signalled them to listen. "This is going to end in chaos if we don't use a little discipline. Everybody who wants to be an actor, contact my assistant, Professor Snape. He will assign you a time for your audition. Everybody who wants to help in another way, contact my second assistant, Hermione. Thank you!"

Snape was going to protest but Dumbledore clapped his hands and everybody joined in, thwarting the potions master's attempt to refuse the job.

Well, if he was going to waste his time assisting Potter, Severus Snape was certainly going to do a proper job. He got up and asked for silence with raised hands.

He got it.

"Everybody who wants to sign up, do so in writing before the end of lunch break. A list of appointments with Potter will be up before the start of the second afternoon period." Luckily Snape's first afternoon class was at a stage of studying the properties of various nocturnal plants where a reading assignment was perfectly fitting for the lesson.

Snape was enjoying a cup of cocoa with Gloria singing "White Christmas" in front of his fireplace when his evening was interrupted by loud knocking on the door.

The potions master looked at the clock on his mantle, clearly irritated. It was almost curfew. Who would dare and try to knock his door down at this time?

It was Potter.

"I'm hungry!" cried the boy wonder instead of a word of greeting. "But the house elves don't answer to students. Get me something to eat!"

"I'm not your waiter," Snape pointed out the obvious. "Why would I do that?"

"Because you plastered auditions all the way through dinner time. I had not a single free minute to have a bite! It's entirely your fault that I'm starving!"

"You couldn't have a sandwich while looking at your candidates?" Snape asked innocently.

Potter glared at the Head of Slytherin and dropped into one of the armchairs in front of the fire uninvited. "I'm not leaving before I'm fed," he stated.

Snape rolled his eyes but called for a house elf. "Tea," he ordered, "and a slice of bread for Mr Potter."

"Bread? Once slice?" cried the Gryffindor. "I'm a growing boy!"

"I will not ask the elves to start cooking in the middle of the night. Also, you wouldn't be able to make curfew if you had anything more elaborate."

"Then write me a pass," Potter demanded. "I want a proper meal!"

In the end they settled on soup, bread and a slice of fruit cake. Potter tried to get more by asking for Dobby, but Snape had wisely sent the elf to one of the deeper dungeons to search for some things that he – Snape – thought could be used for Potter's nativity play.

Once the boy wonder was fed – he was still complaining – Snape sent him off and sat back down in front of the fire.

"Where were we?" he asked Gloria and the fairy resumed her song.