His mum whisked Severus away from the station so quickly that he realized a few minutes later that he hadn't have a chance to say a proper goodbye to Peter and Remus. He hoped they wouldn't be upset with him. There was nothing to do about it, now, except perhaps send an owl to apologize.

His thoughts immediately went to his mother. Severus had known that Eileen Prince had never been considered a beauty, with her sallow face and too skinny to be attractive body. Men didn't want someone with a large waistline, he knew, but his mother didn't have much in the way of...well, what Lily had called "womanly assets," a term she'd borrowed from her own mother. Try as he might not to think about it, Lily had more in the way of those at eleven than he'd ever seen on his mother. Eileen Prince was tall, too thin, and too pale to be considered pretty.

Except, now, she looked much better than Severus had ever recalled. He was sure that she had gained weight during the time he'd been gone-not enough to make her look fat, but she didn't look so skinny, either. Her face wasn't so pale, and maybe it was being outside, but there was some brightness in her cheeks. Also, even tied back, her hair looked a lot better than Severus had ever seen it.

Well, their father had forbidden them to buy anything but soap for their hair. Now that they were both away from him, they were clearly taking better care of themselves.

"You look nice, Mum," he told her, after they'd started on the path.

She turned to him and beamed. "You've never looked better yourself, Sev."

He smiled at her. "It's a good school."

"And you've made friends, so I've read from your letters," she told him, still smiling.

"Yes, the boys in my house are really nice. We're all friends," he answered, simply.

There was no need to tell her about nearly becoming enemies with James and Sirius on the train. That was ancient history. Anyway, his mum didn't know that he'd asked to be placed in Gryffindor. She might be proud of him for being Sorted there, but considerably less for having gone against her wishes...and their plans for him.

"I didn't have many male friends at Hogwarts, but the girls and I were very close," Eileen confided. "I often wish I had remained in touch with them after graduation. Of course, three of them were married within the year..."

"But weren't you, too?" Severus asked.

He hadn't known much about his parents' courtship, but he did know that his mother was twenty-nine. She'd married Tobias Snape when she was seventeen, perhaps eighteen. Then, of course, she'd become pregnant with Severus almost immediately.

He supposed that it had all gone downhill then, if there had ever been any happiness in their marriage.

Eileen shook her head. "We'll discuss all of that later, honey. Right now, I have to get back to work, as I still have the afternoon shift, but I had to meet you at the station and show you around. We'll have some lunch, and you can keep yourself busy for a few hours?"

"Of course," he answered, immediately.

"You do look well, too, Mum," Severus told her, hoping to be conciliatory.

She smiled. "I certainly feel much better, now that I'm away from that drunkard of a muggle," she told him. "I should have taken us away from him when you were a baby."

Severus had no response for this. Yes, she should have, to be sure, but where would they have gone? Would any of her family have accepted him, a mere half-blood, into a pure-blood family? To be sure, the Prince family was not as wealthy nor as outspoken against muggles and muggle-borns as the Malfoys or the Blacks, but they likely wouldn't want to see (or support) a daily reminder of their only daughter's mistake. And her two bothers probably wouldn't have been much better.

"Are you hungry?" she asked him, looking at Severus sideways. "Would you like something to eat?"

Although he had only eaten two hours ago, Severus was hungry. "Yes, please."

Once inside the inn, a very grand building, Eileen Prince removed Severus' cloak and her own before putting them on a hook. She took him into the kitchen, where a few other servants were working, and had him wash up before placing a bowl of hot, flavorful soup in front of him. Then, she set a few pieces of bread in front of that, and sat down with a look that could only be described as fond, even adoring.

"You look so well, Sevvie," she murmured, using the childhood nickname she'd abandoned when he was eight.

He took her hand before starting on the soup. "So do you, Mum."

"You should have seen her when she first arrived!" a witch in dark blue robes declared, putting a plate of cinnamon rolls in front of Severus. "Nearly starved, she was!"

"Hilda!" she laughed, but there was a darkness in her eyes.

Severus had seen it often enough.

"Yes, well," Hilda conceded, after a glance at Severus. "That oaf of a husband had her nearly starved, and I don't suppose he treated either of you very well before you attended school. And her hair! Merlin, it was so lank and dull...but we fixed that right soon enough, although you'd never know by the way she pulls it up in a bun."

"Now, Hilda," Severus' mum said, a grin on her face, "how am I supposed to do all of the housework and cleaning with my hair flying about in my face? Yes, there are cleaning charms, but suds and the like can still get in the way."

Hilda made a hmphing sound. "My help manages fine with braids and the like. Besides," she added, pointing to her own hair, which was partially loose, but also out of her face, "do I look as though I've bread crumbs and the like stuck up in here?"

"Leave her be, Hilda," one of the other women said, this one dressed in yellow robes, although they were mostly obscured by an enormous white apron. "I expect she's still not used to her new freedom."

"Ack, she knows I'm mostly teasing," Hilda returned, putting an arm around her. To Severus, she added, "If I've one complaint, it's that your dear mum works too hard. More than earns her wages, she does."

"And makes the rest of us look slovenly," the same woman complained, but with a grin.

"It wouldn't hurt you to study a few more cleaning charms other than 'tergeo' and 'scourgify', Rebecca," Hilda lightly reprimanded. "I know they didn't teach much of that at Hogwarts, but there are spells for sweeping a floor, for instance."

"Old habits die hard," Rebecca admitted. "I'll reread the book you got me."

Hilda's hand squeezed Rebecca's shoulder. "Good girl. It makes your life easier to know them, or else you'll end up crouched over a broom like a muggle, instead of letting the broom do all the work. And now!" she added, briskly. "I need to be out of here and let Eileen catch up with her dear son, or else there's little sense in having given her the afternoon off."

"I have the afternoon off?" Eileen asked, confused.

"Of course you do, dearie! You have to catch up with your son. Not that you don't deserve it, with all the hard work you've put in," Hilda laughed. "Off with you."

"Well, I'll be back in time to help with dinner," she promised.

"Fine, that's fine. But you're not to work after dinner, you understand?" Hilda asked, and despite her stern look, Severus had the sense she was teasing.

Eileen confirmed this guess by laughing. "Yes, ma'am."

"Good, now you enjoy the time with your son. It was nice to meet you, Severus," she added.

"Nice to meet you, too," Severus answered, grateful he'd already swallowed his mouthful of soup.

And Hilda was off. Rebecca chuckled, then made some excuse to leave, but Severus thought it was to keep from being a third wheel.

After finishing the soup and bread, he was already quite full. He glanced at the plate of cinnamon rolls, then at his mother.

"Go on, they're meant for you," she said, with a laugh. "Or, if you like, we can take some upstairs for you to have as a snack later."

"Let's do that, then," Severus agreed, and rose.

"The cloaks will stay downstairs, in the kitchens," his mum instructed, now grabbing hold of his trunk. "You have the rolls, then?"

"I can carry the trunk," Severus protested, lightly.

"Nonsense. Besides, I can manage a feather-light charm, and I don't suppose you'll learn those for a bit?"

"I believe it's a second year spell," Severus recalled. "James thinks so, anyway. It wasn't in our book."

"It's easy enough to manage. I'll teach you later." She pointed her wand at the trunk, and then lifted it as though it weighed next to nothing. "Follow me, Sev."

Plate in hand, Severus followed his mother out of the kitchen and past several rooms before turning into a windy staircase. She lifted her robes above the ankle to climb the stairs, and Severus was glad that his own robes were above the ankle. All the same, he had to rush to keep up with her. Had his mother always been this speedy?

He was nearly out of breath by the time they reached their room, but his mother seemed fine. They walked down several corridors before stopping. The door read in bright red "7 - E - 15."

"That's the seventh floor, the east wing, and the fifteenth room on the floor," she explained, pointing at it with her wand. The door opened. "Hilda enchanted the staff's doors so that they would open only to her wand, theirs, and any others they wished to enchant. However, the others go away in either a week, or after the tenant cancels the enchantment, whichever is later. We'll get that set up for you in a bit. Come in."

The room wasn't quite as large as the one he shared with four others, but it was certainly larger than his room at their old home plus his parents' old room. By the sound of his mum's letter, he'd been expecting something small with two beds crammed inside, perhaps a table in the middle with a lamp on top. This was far more roomy than he'd expected.

It also looked a lot cleaner and friendlier than any part of their old house. Several paintings hung on the wall, and they were the wizarding kind, with portraits that moved and interacted with you. The walls contained yellow and blue wallpaper, with patterns of flowers along the top and bottom. Both of the beds were as large as his at school, although without the curtain he'd become used to. There was a blue couch on one side, and two desks across from it.

"If you go past the door," he mum said, urging him forward and opening it, "there's a nice bathroom."

The bathroom, too, was quite roomy. Double sinks, one of those claw-footed tubs (or whatever they were called), and a shower with glass doors next to it. On the far end of the sinks was, of course, a toilet. A towel rack hung outside of one of the showers, and another one outside of the tub.

"Hilda treats us like family," she explained, with a smile at Severus. "Rebecca has two daughters at Hogwarts, in Hufflepuff, and when they visit her during the summer, she opens up an adjoining room, so the three don't have to share. Her husband travels most of the year, you see."

"It looks really nice," Severus said, and meant it.

Even if her cousin hadn't paid her, had given her this room and food in exchange for her work, he would have thought it was a decent enough job. Not that he knew much about paid work or fair wages, being only eleven. Still, he could see that she was living far better than at their old home.

Besides, there was no abusive husband to come home to.

She put the trunk down, and then put her hands on his shoulders once more. "It is much better than before, Sev. I'm very grateful to her, although," she added with a laugh, "she tells me not to be, that I earn every galleon."

They sat down and spoke a bit about Severus' first term at Hogwarts. He told her that he was doing well in classes (not quite full marks on everything, but high grades all the same), and his friendships with the boys in his house. She listened in earnest, asking questions on occasion, and seemed pleased with what she'd heard.

Earlier than Severus would have expected, his mum had to leave to prepare for the evening meals, and Severus didn't fancy getting lost in the inn, so he remained in their room, figuring he might get a good start on the schoolwork the teachers had assigned. There wasn't a great deal of work, but he'd never been one to procrastinate. Once his Herbology and Transfigurations essays were complete, he was about to start on Charms when his mother returned.

"I'm done for the day," she explained, by way of greeting, sweeping him into a long hug. "How have you been, Severus?"

As Severus returned her hug, he thought he could get used to this.

"I finished my essays for Herbology and Transfigurations," he told her, "and I've only Charms and Defense Against the Dark Arts to complete. I do have some reading for Potions and Astronomy, but it's more like rereading for me."

Eileen laughed. "With a mind like yours, I'm rather surprised you weren't Sorted into Ravenclaw."

Had she been disappointed, after all? Ravenclaw was the universally acceptable house. Sirius had speculated that his mother wouldn't have been quote so angry had he ended up there, and James had thought that being Sorted there wouldn't have been too terrible. Severus, too, initially saw Ravenclaw as an alternate house for himself and for Lily.

Did it matter, really, where you ended up? All of the classes were the same, and he didn't believe his teachers graded students any differently on account of their house. Their heads might favor them, although McGonagall certainly never favored the Gryffindor first years. It was more about the people who you were with, and what they valued and considered themselves decent at. After all, an idiot might value intelligence, but the Hat would have enough sense not to put him in Ravenclaw.

Severus shrugged. "I'm happy in Gryffindor."

Eileen walked over to the couch to sit down, bringing Severus with her.

"I admit that I was a bit surprised to hear of your Sorting when I received your owl," she admitted, "but when I thought about it, I shouldn't have been. You were always brave, Severus. Far braver than you should have had to be. I suppose," she added, with a rather pained smile, "the hat saw that in your mind."

Should he tell her? Not now, not on the first day of the Christmas holidays. Later, perhaps.

Instead, Severus just murmured that he was glad he hadn't let her down.

"Oh, Sev, even if you had been Sorted into Hufflepuff, you couldn't have let me down!" she said with a laugh. Then, she added, "One of Rebecca's daughters is in that house, so we should mind what we say around her."

"What year is she?"

"Fifth year. A prefect, too," Eileen added. "She only mentions it once a week or so. I expect she's hoping her Kathy will be made Head Girl in a bit."

Severus had to wrinkle his nose. "A Hufflepuff as Head Girl?"

Eileen's eyes twinkled.

"How does, er, your work go around here?" Severus asked, a bit awkwardly. In response to his mother's questioning face, he added, a bit more plainly, "When do you work, and when are you off?"

"Ahh. Well, in the usual months, I work from eight until twelve, and then I take an hour off for lunch, and a bit of my own work," she began. "Then, I resume working from one until around four, perhaps a bit later if there's more work to be done. After that, I have a couple of free hours, so I'll have dinner, perhaps go for a walk, write letters, that sort of thing. I have an hour or so of work to do from seven until eight, and then I'm finished for the day. Once a week, I'll work from seven until eleven instead of my morning hours-there are six of us, you see, plus Hilda, and we switch those hours out. Anything a guest wants after eleven just has to wait until the next day." She watched Severus with amusement. "This week, and next, it's a bit simpler. Everyone has fewer hours and one shift to perform. I chose the mornings, to be able to spend more time with you. So, I'll be working from seven until twelve, and then I'm free for the remainder of the day. Oh, and I am usually off on Saturday afternoons and all of Sunday."

Severus thought that was quite a lot to keep track of. "What sorts of things do you do?"

"A lot of cooking and cleaning and mending, nearly all by magic," his mum answered. "Some waiting on guests, like changing their linens and bringing out an article of clothing to Hilda or Rebecca to fix, if they ask for it. Turning down their beds in the evening, if I work then. There's always quite a lot to do, and Hilda pays me well. She pays all of us well, really. I make the least because I'm the newest, but she says I'll go from ten galleons a week to twelve come January."

"Is that a lot?" Severus asked.

"It is when I don't have to pay for room and board," she answered. "Many places for rent around here go for three galleons a week, and a few of us do rent there, but I want to save as much as I can before leaving. And there's your schooling and your clothes to think of," she added, pulling gently on Severus' robes. "You'll have outgrown those by the end of the year, the way you're growing."

Severus looked down at his robes. When he'd started school, they covered his feet, which were a bit longer than was stylish, but his mother had said he'd grow into them, and she couldn't afford to replace them mid-year. Now, they were at least an inch above his ankle. Not exactly short, and teachers knew that students grew out of their clothes, but if they got much shorter...

"Fortunately, there's cloth underneath for the house elves to let out," she added, showing him the other side of the bottom of his robes, where there was about six more inches of fabric. "If they're too short for you, just leave a note, and they'll fix them up before you wake up. All the same, you will need new ones next year."

He flushed a bit, thinking that James and Sirius and Peter likely never had to worry about the length of their robes. Remus, too, most likely, although he didn't seem to be as-well, pampered-at the others. Sirius' mother might despise his placement, but she'd never let him go to school wearing ill-fitting clothes.

"I-I hope it won't cost too much," Severus murmured, still looking down as his robes.

His mum wrapped an arm around his frame. "You aren't to worry about it. First, it will be more than manageable, now. Second, I expect you've put up with wearing my own clothes for far too long. Of course," she added, with a smile, "now that we'll be living in Hogsmeade, you won't need to wear muggle clothes. They'll look quite out of place. However, you will need a couple of sets of casual robes. I expect I can rework some of my dress robes to suit you-oh, I'm only teasing, you silly boy!" she added, with a laugh.

In all likelihood, wearing a reworking of his mum's dress robes wouldn't have been nearly as bad as her clothes as shirts. All the same, he was relieved she wasn't serious.

"It's getting late, and I expect you're hungry," Eileen now told him, smiling fondly. "I know I am. Let's head down for supper."

Severus nodded, and his mum gave him a quick kiss on the top of his head before rising. He immediately followed her, and she locked the door with her wand before they headed down the corridor.

The path downstairs felt a bit more straightforward than their trip upstairs, and Severus thought he might be able to manage the trip out of the room on his own. From the way it sounded, he would have plenty of time on his own, even though his mum would be working shorter hours while he was there. Should he offer to help? Severus supposed he should ask soon.

It was only just after five, but the staff was already preoccupied with making supper for the guests.

"We eat here, Sev," Eileen explained, nodding at the same kitchen he had eaten lunch at earlier.

"Best if you keep away from the paying guests," one of the other women explained. "Mind you, we all eat the same food."

"And you're protected from some of the unsavory sorts," Rebecca added. "Not that you need to worry about that, Severus."

Severus glanced back at his mother, sure that the fear showed on his face.

"Oh, they won't force anyone to do anything," Eileen quickly added, with a laugh.

"No, they only look," the first woman put in. "But they're usually gone within a few days. Hilda doesn't rent to anyone who's looking for just a bit of fun, and if they cause trouble with her employees, she can hex them something awful. They learn or leave soon enough."

"Really, Meg! You would think we work somewhere like the Hog's Head!" Eileen protested.

"Men are men," Margaret answered, a bit grimly.

"I do have a male child, you know," Eileen answered, her voice taking on a warning tone Severus had heard on occasion.

"Ah, well, he's still a child," Margaret amended.

"Don't mind her, Severus," Rebecca commanded. "Now, don't the both of you stand around there. Have your supper. And, Eileen Prince, don't even think of trying to help. You're done for the day, and that's that."

They obeyed, and Severus noted that his mum must be back to using her maiden name. Well, she was divorced from the muggle, wasn't she? Of course, things weren't so simple for him. And he could hardly consider himself a pure-blood just because that man was out of his life.

Magic and biology didn't work that way.

Author's note:

Next up-Severus explores the village.

As always, constructive feedback is most welcome!