I'm about two years late with the promised missing Christmas chapters, and I apologize for that! I still don't have this short story entirely completed, but I'm getting there, and in the spirit of the holidays, I want to share with you what I have.
For first time readers, this story is sort of an excerpt from 'Getting the Best of the Gloomilows'. It would be Chapter 14 1/2. If you have a flexible mind, I think it could be read without knowing the entire story. The general frame is this: Back in Hogwarts for her missing 7th year of education, Hermione becomes friends with the Potions Master, who helps her deal with some issues she's having since the war. There has been a kiss at the very beginning of their relationship due to circumstances, but since then, Severus has been keeping their relationship strictly platonic, as starting something with a student doesn't sit well with him. It's getting increasingly difficult for both of them, though. :)
Deck the Halls
The faint popping sound of apparition announced the visitor shortly before Hermione heard the knock on the front door to Grimmauld Place. Feeling a thrill of anticipation, she rushed to open it and was overjoyed to find the person whose arrival she had most anxiously been awaiting: Professor Snape.
He cut an impressive figure, standing there on the front step at his full height, his long and black travelling cloak billowing behind him in the slight breeze almost as dramatically as his teaching robes when he roamed the hallways in Hogwarts. Maybe it was the fact that Hermione hadn't seen him for an entire week and had been missing him every day since, or maybe it was because she had gotten so used to seeing him every day that she didn't really look at him consciously anymore... for whatever reason, he suddenly struck her as incredibly handsome, and she could only stare at him breathlessly. She had come to see him as attractive quite a while ago, but that attraction had not so much been due to his physical attributes as to his entire manner. Now, for the first time, she noticed how much about the appearance of the man who used to be called 'bat of the dungeons' before the war had changed over the last few months.
For one, he looked much more healthy than Hermione ever remembered. The tension lines that had always been etched into his features were gone, his expression seemed somehow softer, his complexion still light, but no longer sallow. His eyes, however, were as dark and captivating as ever. Deep, bottomless pools which drew her in... they seemed to be beckoning, making her wish she could fall right into them. She knew now that they were the entrance to a beautiful mind, which she really wished she could enter once again.
"Miss Granger...," he interrupted her silent revery, as curt as he was prone to be. "Will I be invited in, or is there a need for this thorough inspection before letting me pass through the door?"
Hermione blushed profoundly. "Excuse me... Of course not! It's just... you look good, Sir."
Her honest, if unexpected comment made his eyebrow rise, she was uncertain whether in disbelief at the truthfulness of her statement or her typical Gryffindor bluntness.
"Well, it's true," Hermione said defensively. "And it's not only because I've been looking forward to seeing you."
"I should probably offer to brew you an eye-sharpening potion once we're back at Hogwarts, but I think I'd rather reap the benefits of your apparently defective sight."
"Just don't lose your snark or your frown - you wouldn't be you without it. Come on in then..." She stepped aside to let him pass. "Harry and Draco are in the backyard, felling a Christmas tree."
"In the backyard?" he asked, clearly bemused. "As far as I remember, there are no trees in that small patch of dirt Black used to call the yard. Certainly no firs."
"Well, there is this one dead acorn...," Hermione said, twisting her mouth. "The boys figured their charmswork is good enough to transfigure it into a decent coniferous tree."
His brow rose doubtfully. "Is it?"
Hermione shrugged. "The last time I saw it, it was covered in something that looked like green, spiky fur... so I guess in the widest sense of the word coniferous tree, you might call it one."
"Charming. Well, then, lead the way so I can greet my gracious host."
Harry briefly turned around when the back door opened. "Hermione - look what Draco did!" he exclaimed with boastful admiration. On noticing his guest, he smiled even more widely and came to meet them. "Professor Snape!" he said, offering his hand. "Welcome to Grimmauld Place. I'm really happy that you were able to come. We're just putting on the final touches on the decorations."
"So I see..." Severus said, looking at the transfigured Christmas tree that actually bore only very little resemblance to an acorn. It was roughly triangular in shape and sprouted branches and twigs with small, longish leaves that almost looked like needles. It was a bit sparse compared to a coniferous tree, but it would probably allow for lavish decorations.
"We're doing a living nativity scene, too!" Harry proclaimed. "Great, isn't it?"
For a brief moment, Severus was worried he meant they were supposed to do some kind of live re-enactment – in which case he would have cut his visit very short. But then he saw what Harry referred to when saying 'living' and could only barely refrain from snorting.
"It was Harry's idea," Malfoy modestly acknowledged his friend's contribution to the work project at hand. "I just did the charms. Hello, Godfather!"
"What charms?" Hermione enquired, looking over the boys shoulders. Draco pointed to the little figurines that loosely resembled the people said to have been present at baby Jesus' birth: Three holy kings with crowns on their heads, a shepherd with a full flock of miniature sheep, Joseph and the virgin Mary with baby Jesus and even an angel in a white dress. They looked really cute – except for their faces, which were all set in deep, angry scowls. And the angel had hairy legs.
Hermione blinked. "Just what is this?"
"Garden gnomes," Draco said, visibly proud of his work. "Well, except for the sheep - they're actually cockroaches. I really didn't know I had it in me."
"Very impressive, Mr. Malfoy," Severus said, heavy irony dripping in his voice. "I always knew your Hogwarts education would one day allow you to accomplish something of greatness."
Hermione didn't share either of her friends sentiments. She stared horrified at the immobilized garden gnomes. "You can't do that!" she protested. "Harry - you cannot possibly be okay with him torturing those poor creatures."
Harry looked from Severus to her and back with confusion. "Poor creatures? Hermione – they're pests! Besides, we didn't torture them. Draco just petrified and charmed them a little."
"They don't look petrified, just horrified! Their eyes are moving!"
"Well, yes - Petrification doesn't really work very well on gnomes," Draco said, shrugging. "But I think it adds to the overall effect. We'll just have to re-enforce the spell every few hours."
"They'll stop scowling once we bring them in inside and set them up under the tree," Harry assuaged, seeing that Hermione was about to open her mouth and voice her protest again. "After all, it's nice and warm inside, and they won't have to spend Christmas out in the cold rain."
"I'm really not sure they'll appreciate it..."
"Well, I don't appreciate them eating all the vegetables Kreacher is trying to grow in the backyard either, but they do it anyway."
"Professor Snape..." Hermione turned to him, pleading for intervention.
He lifted his hands in helpless gesture. "Don't look at me, Miss Granger. I'm just a visitor, and will certainly not interfere or comment on our hosts' decorations." He bent down and whispered into her ear: "Trust me, it might actually make for some entertainment later on..."
*'*'*'*'*'*
"Miss Granger?" Professor Snape held her back when they stepped back inside and nodded towards the kitchen stair. "May I have a word with you in private?"
"Of course..." Hermione followed him into the kitchen, feeling a bit flustered. Being alone with him in his office was different - in a way, the place defined their relationship. There, he was the teacher, she the student. Grimmauld Place, however, was private, neutral ground and their roles were temporally suspended. He wasn't even wearing the teaching robes she had gotten so used to seeing on him.
"I know that traditionally, Christmas presents are exchanged on the 25th, but since we agreed to do the White Elephant gift exchange and you already gave me a Christmas present, I wanted to return yours as well. I know you told me to keep it until you returned to Hogwarts, but I wanted you to have it."
He handed her a package that was wrapped rather professionally and decorated with a bow that had Madame Maulkins printed on it.
"But..." Hermione began, looking at the label with confusion in her eyes. The coat he had gifted her with had been his own. After having lent it to her in a gesture of chivalry, Hermione had conveniently 'forgotten' to return it. It was nice and warm, but that wasn't what she most loved about it. It was the scent. The cloak smelled like him: Parchment, soap and potion ingredients - the nice smell of potent herbs, not the less savory parts of animals.
"It's still the coat I gave you," Severus explained on seeing her astonishment. "I just took the liberty to have it altered and adjusted to your size. You don't want to trip over the hem all the time. Besides, it now has a narrower waist, too, and looks a bit more - female. I think you're safe to wear it even here... while you won't be able to deny that you were inspired by my style, no one will recognize that it's actually my robe."
Hermione opened the package, pulled out the garment and curiously held it in front of her. In essence, it was still the same pitch black Snape-style robe – just a female version. It was beautiful.
"Oh, I love this!" Hermione declared, pulling the material close to her chest and burying her nose in the soft wool. Then her eyes widened.
"Oh no..." she muttered, sounding stricken now.
"What is it?" he asked, wondering about her reaction. She couldn't be allergic to the wool - it was, after all, the same material. He would have ordered her a new cloak instead of re-tailoring his old one, but he had feared that she wouldn't have accepted it.
"Have you washed it?"
"Of course I have!" Did she think he'd return it worn?
"But you weren't supposed to do that!" Hermione blurted out.
Her teacher frowned. She made no sense. "Why ever not?" Severus asked, totally out of his wits. "Because of those funky spores? Don't worry, they'll still be on it. It's impossible to wash them off, remember?"
She looked at him unhappily.
"Miss Granger?"
"Yes?"
"Just what is your obsession with my robe, pray tell? I'm afraid I'm not getting it."
She sighed and looked down, blushing a bit. "I wanted it to smell like it did before."
"What did it smell like before?" He tried to remember where he might have been wearing it for it to catch a special kind of smell.
"Like you," she said softly, and all he could do was stare at her dumbfounded. "It smelled like you and I found it comforting. I kept it under my pillow. I never had any nightmares while I did."
He didn't know what to say. Maybe it was a thing women did. Merlin, he was almost forty and he honestly had no idea. No one had ever expressed the desire to smell him or his clothes. He had thought she was enjoying the warmth of his robe on her late night trips to the kitchen. But to think that she found comfort in having it close... that she had taken it to bed, buried her head in its folds and... no. He didn't want to think what else she might have done while clinging to it.
It was getting much too warm in the robe he was wearing. In an impromptu decision, he shook it off and held it out for her, demanding the other robe in return.
"I hope this will do to keep your nightmares at bay until we can switch again. Since I can't wear the altered robe anymore, I hope it will suffice if I put it under my pillow for now. But don't get your hopes up - you won't be getting both robes."
Her face lit up like a Christmas tree. "Thank you!" she breathed, hugging the robe close and discreetly lowering her nose to it.
He shook his head. "If I had known it was just the smell you're after, a pair of socks would have come much cheaper."
"You can grumble all you like if that's making you feel better about it," Hermione said, still smiling warmly at him. "But I know by now that you're all snark and no bite."
"Don't be so sure about that, Miss Granger," he said darkly. He was neither werewolf nor vampire, so biting her might not be on his mind, but if she knew of all the things he wanted to do to her, she'd probably be running nevertheless.
Hermione carefully folded the coat, put it back into the parcel and casually cast a shrinking charm on it, so she could put it in her pocket and sneak it into her room without anybody being the wiser. Though Severus didn't say so, he was impressed by her abilities with nonverbal magic and the ease she demonstrated with her charms. She really was a powerful witch.
"Would you like a cup of tea, Professor?" Hermione asked.
"That would be agreeable, thank you."
She busied herself with the kettle, casting a heating charm on it and put out two cups and tea bags.
"I still have to thank you for your present," Severus said, clearing his throat. "And the letter explaining to me what it is... "
Hermione smiled. "I thought you might have wondered why I gifted you with a amber glowing snow globe." She thought it was the perfect gift, but you had to know what exactly it was to appreciate it.
"Indeed," Severus answered, not knowing how to ask the burning question that had been on his mind ever since he had unwrapped the softly glowing glass sphere. The explanation that it contained Magic Butterfly cocoons and spores of the invisible fungus which Miss Lovegood claimed Hogwarts was infested with was, of course, ludicrous. But he had been unable to figure out what else it could be.
"And - does it work?"
Contrary to him, she had no qualms about asking the loaded questions. "Well, it's hard to tell," he said, sidestepping a potentially incriminating answer. "I guess Miss Lovegood will have to sprinkle me with the dust of Magic Hood Butterfly cocoons to be sure." How she had gotten her hands on that rare and precious ingredient was another mystery. Magic Hood Butterflies pupated in camouflaged cocoons that always took on the exact colour of their surroundings and were thus invisible. In consequence, it was rather hard to find them.
"Just how exactly did you manage to make the powdered cocoons inside the globe glow?" He had been wondering about that endlessly after reading her letter. The powder that was gained when drying and grinding the empty cocoons was just as invisible. He had once made the mistake of not immediately labelling the storage jar in which he had put it, and since the powder was odourless and tasteless as well, he had needed to weigh and compare all his supposedly empty containers to find out which one actually wasn't empty. The powder wasn't used in many potions, but it was essential for the making of invisibility coats. It certainly didn't glow by itself, but according to her claims, it was all she had put into the globe. Discounting the non-existent Gloomilow spores.
"You don't believe what I told you?" Hermione asked, and he had to give her credit for managing to sound perfectly serious.
"That it's the Gloomilows spores glowing inside? No." He had believed that she was making a bit of fun of Miss Lovegood's crazy theories. But then, that didn't sound like Hermione at all.
"Well, I had guessed that you - just like me - must have suffered a common Whotnit infection at some point in your life, since you never mentioned seeing spores on me, and we both know it wasn't politeness that kept you from calling my attention to them. Actually, Luna came up with the idea of using the powdered cocoons of the Magic Hood Butterfly as transmitting agent. Inside the globe, the only thing surrounding the powder are the Gloomilow spores, so naturally, the powder will take on that colour. The fact that the powder glows proves that the spores are really in there - and that Luna was even right about the colour of my aura."
"Or you used some kind of charm to make the powder glow. I just haven't managed to figure out which one. Impressive spellwork, Miss Granger! And you even delivered it with a plausible reason why I need to feed it with magic from time to time."
"To feed the Gloomilows, of course."
"To sustain your inventive little charm, more likely!"
Hermione grinned. "If you think so. I won't gainsay you - you're not exactly magnanimous with compliments, so I'll just keep the few I get, even if they happen to be undeserved."
"You will not tell me?" He really was curious. His detection and revealing spells hadn't yielded any result, so whatever she had done, the charm was pretty much undetectable. It irked him that he hadn't been able to uncover her spellwork.
"There's nothing to tell. Why would I give you a glow-globe at all, if not for the therapeutic effect the Gloomilows are likely to have on you?"
He narrowed his eyes. That was an utterly Slytherin question, and he believed she was fully aware of it. If she gifted him with a softly glowing snow globe in the colour of her aura with the honest intention of making him feel good when he looked at it - how could he ever prove it not to work? Of course he felt an odd kind of warmth spread through him when he was bathed in the soothing, golden light of that miniature sun that now set on his desk. She had given him a Christmas gift, and he hardly ever got any gifts. Magic Hood Butterfly was extremely expensive and hard to come by, and she had spared neither trouble nor expense on his behalf. She also must have spent a great deal of time creating a spell to make the powder glow. She wanted him to have something that reminded him of her. She believed they were good for each other. She wanted him to be happy. Basically, she had filled the globe with her blessings and with her affection. Of course it was having an effect on him, whether there were Gloomilows in it or not. And of course he knew that this was exactly the reason why she had given it to him. But he'd rather bite his tongue than admit that to her. And he couldn't say anything else either, without being insulting.
So he didn't say anything and just kept glowering at her. Hermione smiled brightly. A scent of jasmine and orange engulfed him, and he could feel her breath warm on his skin when the cheeky witch leaned closer and whispered: "I'm glad you like it!" into his ear.
*'*'*'*'*'*
Remus and Teddy arrived only a short time later. Harry and Draco were busy floating their decorations up into the parlour on the first floor, and Hermione and Severus were just coming up from the kitchen when the door bell rang.
"Remus!" Harry and Hermione welcomed their long-time friend with a brief hug, and Hermione took the little boy from his arms to cuddle him.
"Lupin," Severus acknowledged the arrival of the his colleague and fellow order member with an incline of his head. His feelings about the werewolf were still mixed. They were on collegial terms, which meant that apart from brief exchanges at the breakfast or dinner table in Hogwarts, they didn't interact much, although Remus kept making friendly advances. Severus, who had for the longest time avoided all kinds of relationships for obvious reasons, was still undecided how to react to that.
Draco politely extended his hand to their DADA teacher. "Hello, Professor."
Remus looked from one to the other and then shook his head. "This is not going to do... Please, Draco, call me Remus. I'm not your professor right now, and we're related, if only through my marriage. Since Severus is your godfather and Harry's, too, you won't be addressing him as 'Professor', either, and I think it would be awkward if only Hermione called Severus 'Professor' and only Draco addressed me in that manner. Can't we just dispense with formalities for the holidays?"
"Sure, that'd be great, Remus!" Draco said, grinning when the implications hit him. Let his godfather try and get out of Granger calling him by his given name. This was going to be fun!
"I see you did quite some redecorating in here, Harry," Remus remarked, when they walked towards the staircase that led up to the parlour in the first floor. It had once been at the end of a long and narrow corridor, but now opened up to a rather vast hallway.
"I really like it," Hermione said, putting the wiggling toddler down on the floor so he could crawl and explore. "I always hated that long and narrow corridor." Not to mention the spectre of Dumbledore that Moody had left behind to scare the wits out of Severus.
"It was claustrophobic," agreed Harry. "We removed the wall on the left. There was nothing but the tapestry room behind it - I never understood the purpose of that anyway. Instead, we built a walk-in closet for shoes, coats and our Quidditch stuff. Much more practical."
"So I see. And you painted the walls, too. Astonishing, how much brighter everything looks."
The walls had been painted white, and instead of dusty oil portraits and shrunken elf heads, they were more sparsely decorated with magical pictures that showed serene landscapes. One looked like it had been taken in the Scottish Highlands, another one was of the sea, almost like the coast near Shell Cottage. They reached the staircase that lead to the upper floors. "You should have taken that wall out, too, if only to get rid of Walburga Black's portrait..."
The black curtains that hid the old hag were still drawn, the only means of defence against her hateful ranting.
"Oh, we didn't have to!" Harry said. "It turned out that the only way to remove the sticking charm on the portrait was to get her consent to take it off. And she consented."
"Really?" Severus raised his eyebrows. "How on Earth did you manage that?"
"We offered to reunite her with the rest of the family at Malfoy Manor." Draco grinned evilly. "She was quite thrilled at the prospect."
"Until she found out that Bellatrix' and Rudolphus' portraits are now hanging in the wine cellar, that is," added Harry, smirking.
"I could say 'I hope she's happy now', but I guess I don't really care," Severus said. "It seems she finally has the company she deserves."
"If you got rid of her, why did you keep the curtains?" Remus inquired, pointing to the alcove that was still covered with velvet hangings, which had raised Teddy's curiosity. Slightly alarmed, Harry followed his gaze and looked at the toddler, who was playing with the tassel hanging from a drawstring.
"Well, the thing is... Teddy, no!" Before Harry had a chance to prevent him from doing so, Teddy had pulled on the drawstring, which made the curtain slide apart and reveal a huge painting. As expected, it didn't show the portrait of the former mistress of the house, but a misty, wintery landscape that was painted with an astonishing depth that almost made it seem three-dimensional. There were snow covered trees, a river and a waterfall in the distance, and you almost felt like you could walk right into the picture, despite the fact that it seemed strangely surreal. In fact, it looked like a scene from a Disney movie - a bit too sweet and too sugarcoated to be realistic.
But it also was animated. The mist seemed to clear and suddenly the snowy landscape was bathed in soft, pastel evening light that actually made the ice sparkle. It reminded Hermione of the unbearably sweet pink frosting on a weeding cake. Then, just as she thought it couldn't get any more kitschy, two unicorns with long flowing manes and tails glided so gracefully into the clearing that they seemed to be floating.
While she stared mouth agape at the unexpected scene that had unfolded in the formerly dark and narrow corridor, Harry hastened to draw the curtains over the frame again.
"What in heaven's name is that?" Hermione asked, flabberghasted.
"Ehm... it's Luna's doing. She thought..."
"It's a gift from a dear friend," Draco said defensively, and pulled the curtains open again with determination. "Now that you've all seen it, there's no reason to hide it again."
"Well, I could name one," Severus offhandedly offered. "It's hideous."
"No, it's not!" his godson protested, while Hermione elbowed her teacher slightly in his rips and admonished: "Don't be rude!"
"I happen to like it," Draco insisted, raising an eyebrow at her that really mimicked his godfather's expression perfectly. "She worked on it for over a week and I think she is an exceptional artist." Hermione wasn't surprised that Draco was defending Luna's painting. Ever since her capture at Malfoy Manor, Draco had been quite taken with her.
"She painted that herself?"
Harry nodded. "She was so enthused about our change of decor that she wanted to add more positive energy to the place. She was on about those Glue-Me-Lose again that she wrote an article about – the picture is somehow to help against them. To be entirely accurate, she practically begged to be allowed to do it. I know she just wanted to be kind and helpful, and I simply didn't have the heart to say 'no' to her."
"Yes," Severus muttered under his breath. "I actually know that feels." Hermione barely refrained from elbowing him again.
"If you like it, why do you hide it behind the curtains?" she asked, trying to look at the picture more objectively. It was rather nice, from an artistic viewpoint.
"Because it looks like something you would find as a cover of a fantasy novel for a 12 year old," Harry bemoaned unhappily.
That would have been Hermione's concluding statement, too, had she been asked to make one.
"Well that, and because that particular shade of pink doesn't go with the colour scheme of rest of the room," Draco added. "It's okay as long as it's white and misty, but every time they hear voices, the unicorns appear."
"If it's any consolation: It's a vast improvement over Madam Black's screeching and screaming," Remus said diplomatically.
"Hor-see!" exclaimed Teddy and happily clapped his hands.
"Well, he seems to like them. And we have to keep the curtains open in any case, as Luna is coming, too. I invited her to spend Christmas with us when I found out that her dad is in St. Mungos."
"Xenophilus is ill?" Hermione asked, surprised. "What happened?"
"Well, apparently, he's not been stable ever since Luna's abduction. His condition got worse over time. The healers are not sure he will recover."
"Oh no! How horrible, poor Luna! She never said anything."
"He was only brought to St. Mungo's three days ago. When Luna told me, I asked her to come and spend Christmas with us. She was really thrilled. I wonder why she's always so surprised when people include her in anything."
"Because people rarely did. She doesn't really have any friends. Everybody thinks she is weird."
Severus snorted. "Miss Lovegood, most definitely, is weird."
Draco threw his godfather an angry glance. "You don't have to be insulting! She's a very kindhearted person!"
"It's not an insult, her weirdness is a fact. But it does in no way negate that she is also exceptionally kindhearted and at times uncannily insightful."
"When is she coming?" Hermione asked.
"She wanted to visit her dad first and come right afterwards. I guess she'll be here in an hour or so. Why don't we all go up to the parlour and finish the decorations before she arrives?"