Chapter 23

"Sev! We've got to go to the US next Saturday!" Tara was saying excitedly, waving a piece of paper. He had just finished up his classes for the day and Tara had run all the way from her quarters to show him.

"What's the occasion?" he asked.

"It's the crab feed!" She plunked the printed email down on his desk. It was an email from her mother who was on the committee that put on the annual event.

"He reached for her to give her a tight hug and a kiss. He hadn't seen her since the morning. "I must say I miss you when I don't see you all day," he told her. She smiled. "Now, what, may I ask, is a crab feed?" Severus asked.

"Oh it's great. Do you like crab?" she asked. He shrugged. "I haven't eaten it in a great while, but it's good."

"Okay good. I was afraid you were one of those people who can't stand seafood--or is allergic to it. Anyway, you go to this hall and they have all of these long tables--"

"Like our dining hall?"

"Um, well, sort of, except that the ceiling is plaster and the walls aren't rock - and the tables are covered with white butcher paper. So you sit down with about 600 people and they bring out salad, then some garlic bread, then big, galvanized vats of crab, and all the wine you can drink. So you just go at it until you can't hold anymore, and that's about it."

"Six hundred--"

"Yes," Tara replied, her brown eyes flashing with excitement. "Oh Sev, it is such fun. You get really messy - they have rolls and rolls of paper towels at your table, and I usually bring some premoistened ones--" Severus was making a face, wrinkling his nose.

"Well, I suppose I could try it. It sounds rather...unsettling - the mess, that is."

"You just clean up afterwards. No biggee. So, should I have my mom get the tickets?" He nodded. He figured he had to try her customs, and had even agreed to go to the Indianapolis 500 with her two months later.

The day came, and they had to figure out the time zone difference in order to travel. He came to get her and she saw that he was dressed in his black robes, as usual.

"You're going like that?" she asked. She was dressed in her muggle attire - jeans, an old t-shirt, and atheletic shoes.

"Why not?" he asked.

"You'll drag your sleeves right through it - oh Sev, you'll be a mess!" she exclaimed. She could already picture bits of crab shells and meat all over his front and sleeves. She glanced at her watch. "No time to change though, and I haven't gotten the hang of the dressing spell yet. I don't want to put you in a tutu or anything by accident. We'd better just go." She grabbed her fanny pack and fastened it around her waist.

"A tutu??" he asked, as they walked towards her fireplace, which had recently been added to the floo powder network.

"Well, not necessarily, but I've had some rather strange results learning that. I'd rather not go into it...it's embarassing." Since he and Tara had gotten back together, Madame Hooch and Minerva were teaching Tara some of the more 'girlish' utility spells, and that was one of them, while he was teaching her more traditional spells.

She threw a handful of floo powder into the flames, which then turned emerald green, and yelled "Muggle Mom's!" and in she went, followed by Severus. They tumbled out at the other end and got up. Tara's mom was already at the event since she was on the committee. Tara's car had been parked in her mother's garage since her departure to Hogwart's.

"Let's go," she said, taking the key off the hook.

"We're driving there?" Severus asked.

Tara rolled her eyes at him. "Yes. We couldn't very well fly there without getting a lot of unwelcome attention, not that we aren't going to get enough of that," she said, eyeing his clothing. "Don't start--" he began, in a dangerous tone. She disarmed him by kissing him, and they went out to the garage. Tara's car was a classic 1966 Corvette Stingray. "Hey - it's a beautiful day, so let's put the top down!" Tara said, taking her wand out of her fanny pack. "Convertamous!" she said and the top folded itself down, and anchored itself. "You're really getting good," Severus commented. Tara beamed as they got in, and took off. She drove through the hills and cranked up the stereo, and was singing at the top of her lungs. She had forgotten how much she loved to drive her car.

"I feel like a newborn---I feel like a newborn!" she was singing, along with "Filter." She glanced at Severus who clung to the door handle for dear life, his black hair flying everywhere. He looked terrified. She drove up to the hall and parked, which wasn't an easy task since the event was so well attended. She parked down the street from the hall, and unfastened her seat belt and turned to Severus, who was opening his eyes. "Did we make it or did we die?" he asked.

"Oh puhlease. You ride around on broomsticks where you're from and a ride in a convertible freaks you out?"

"I'm not used to going up windy roads at 100 miles an hour with a crazy woman driving and singing!" he said, frowning.

"Oh, but you love me crazy. Don't you?" He made a face at her and unbuckled his seat belt.

"Shoot, have to put the top up the regular way," she said, "don't want to draw a crowd." She showed him how to help her with it, and they secured the car, then walked to the hall from where they had parked. They were already drawing looks from passers by; Tara looked perfectly normal with her stars and stripes fanny pack fastened around her waist, but Severus, tall and pale in black, looked anything but.

They walked into the hall and there was a long line. "Is it always like this?" Severus asked. Tara nodded. "They're starting to let people in though. It's almost time for the first feeding. They have 3 feedings, you know."

"Sounds like a time at the zoo..."

They were let in and seated at the end of a long table. Tara took out a zip lock bag with several metal implements in it. She laid them out - 2 nutcrackers, a couple of matching picks, and 2 crab forks.

"Choose your weapons," she said. He looked at her, bewildered.

"It helps get every morsel of meat out of the crab."

"You mean we have to...crack it ourselves?"

"Yep. That's half the fun!"

Soon, they were joined by several other people and Tara greeted them warmly, and introductions were made. Tara's mom came over to see them briefly before having to run off to the kitchen. The salad arrived first; which was a loose term. It consisted of some shredded lettuce and cabbage and was accompanied by a dish of Thousand Island dressing. Next came the garlic bread, and wine.

"This is really something," Severus commented.

"Oh, just wait!" a woman to Tara's left, who had introduced herself as Andrea, said with enthusiasm.

Several oohs and ahhs were heard behind them, and Severus watched over Tara's head as the servers brought huge vats - some of them steaming - to the tables. Their server cleared large areas on the table and supplied them with cardboard buckets.

"What is this for?" Severus asked, picking up the bucket.

"For the shells."

"He's a virgin, isn't he?" Andrea asked.

"Yep!" Tara replied, and Andrea grinned at his bewildered look. Color appeared on his face and he looked at Tara, "I'm not--a--"

"You've never been to one of these. So you're a crab feed virgin."

"Oh!"

Tara picked up the folded plastic bib next to her plate and tied it around her neck. Severus followed her lead and Tara had to stifle a laugh. He looked so comical with a plastic bib with a huge crab on it.

"What?" he asked, his eyes piercing hers.

"Oh nothing...if they could see this back at Hogwarts--"

"Let's be sure they don't..." he said.

Just then, the first large metal dish of crab came. "Here's the cold stuff," the server said, putting it down. Another server came and brought a steaming container, which contained a red broth and crab legs were sticking out of it.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, start your crackers!" Tara exclaimed and everyone within earshot laughed, and Severus looked bewildered again. "It's what they say at the beginning of the Indy 500, and other auto races," Tara explained.

"He doesn't get out much, does he?" Andrea commented.

"Nope. I'm trying to change that, show him a bit of the world," Tara commented. Severus cleared his throat and shot a slightly annoyed glance at her. Tara stuck her tongue out at him and served herself some crab, then handed him the spoon. Then she tore several sheets of paper towels off the roll near her and suggested he do the same, then she dug in.

Severus had to admit, he was enjoying this muggle crab event. He liked watching Tara crack her crab and then display large pieces of the meat she was expertly extracting. It was a messy event, but it was very tasty. Finally, Tara had enough and put her crab tools back into her zip lock bag, and looked across at Severus, and stifled a laugh. It was worse than she had imagined it would be. She had been so absorbed in her devouring of her crab, she hadn't noticed how bad it was. "What is it?" he asked, noticing her expression.

"How in the hell did you get crab in your hair?" she asked him, and was laughing. He looked annoyed, and crosseyed, working on removing it, then finally smiled slightly. "Did I get it all?" he asked. She shook her head and reached over and brushed it off, and then off his shoulders. He had rolled up the sleeves of his robe, but was wearing a long sleeved shirt under that which he hadn't rolled up, and they were covered with the broth from the crab dripping, and his hands were covered with bits of crab meat and shells. He was always so immaculate; this was so out of the ordinary for him. "Why didn't you roll up those sleeves too?" Tara asked, making a face. He looked at her and shrugged. "Men!" Andrea muttered. "I think we're going to have to hose you down when we get back," Tara commented.

Joan Hall came over to them, having a little bit of a break. "So did you like it?" she asked Severus. He nodded, and cracked another piece open. "It's a bit sloppy..." he commented, looking at his 'crabby' sleeves. "Yeah mom, I just got the crab shells out of his hair!" Tara laughed. "Now dear, don't make fun of your man," Joan scolded. "But it's so fun to!" Tara said, and Severus gave her such an evil look, but couldn't help but smile at her.

The evening was great fun and afterwards there was a dance, but Tara was exhausted. They returned to Hogwarts and had to readjust to the time zone all over again.

"So did you really like it, or are you just saying you did?" Tara was asking Severus. They had both just gotten out of the shower and they were both wrapped up in big, black terrycloth robes with the Hogwarts insignia monogrammed on the front. He toweled her hair and kissed her playfully. "I liked it. I really did."

"Good. I hope we can do some more muggle things together. I know it's strange for you--"

"No stranger than your new world is."

"True. But some things cross over. But then again, this is more of a Northern California thing. If you talk about a crab feed to someone from the middle of the country, they'll look like you're from another planet."

"It might be fun at Hogwarts," he remarked.

"Why don't we plan one for next year?" Tara suggested. "Do you think Dumbledore is game?"

"You'll have to ask him."

"The way they feed around here - seems like a natural thing to have. And we can use magic, so it wouldn't be such a huge job to do it."

"Well, talk to Dumbledore; he isn't adverse to new programs; he went with the computer thing, after all."

"Just think if he didn't..." Tara's voice trailed off.

Severus held her close to him. "I don't even want to think about that." He couldn't imagine life without her now. It was the strangest but most wonderful thing to ever happen to him, even if it involved being covered with shellfish occasionally...