Disclaimer: Harry Potter isn't mine. Nicola Lewis is my creation, however, so ask beforehand if you want to use her.
A/N: Still need a beta, but have despaired of ever getting one. I'd like to thank Dylan S. Thompson and excessivelyperky for their lovely reviews. My sister has persuaded me to scrap the original ending, so the period of nearly-daily updates is definitely over. I think that the Latin is right, but I couldn't remember how to decline 'family', so it might not be. If you want something to do while you're waiting for the next update, go through what's already up and find all the references; there are loads of them. The events of my story 'Star' are referred to here, so you might want to go read and review that.
Severus looked at his watch, and winced. He was standing outside the restaurant, fifteen minutes late for a business dinner he'd scheduled, rescheduled actually, and he had no idea how he was going to his tardiness to the ad executive. He decided, after a moment of frantic thought, to merely apologize and offer no explanation. After all, she'd be the one trying to convince him that her firm was the best, not the other way around. If she didn't like it, he could just find another firm, he told himself. It didn't help; now he felt guilty about being late and about contemplating an abuse of power. His shoulders slumped slightly, and he went in.
The waiter brought him to the table just as another waiter pulled a chair out for the ad executive. Relieved of the need to apologize, he simply said, "Hello, I'm Severus Snape."
"I'm Nicola Lewis, the representative for Bonner-Glynn." She picked her water glass and turned it in her hands nervously. The gleam of a ring caught his eye, and as he looked at it, he felt a sense of deja vu.
Eyeing the ring, he asked, "You wouldn't happen to know a Sirius Black, would you?" then flushed slightly. A personal question was not how he'd intended to start the evening.
Nicola scowled. "Yes, I know him."
"I am thrilled to finally meet you, then. Sirius speaks very highly of you indeed." In fact, he never shuts up about you.
She smiled sourly. "I'd like to able to return the compliment, but Sirius has never mentioned knowing you, let alone spoken highly of you."
A smile tugged at the corner of Severus' mouth. "Nor is he likely to. He and I were mortal enemies during our school days, and even during while we worked together for the DMLE, we only had an armed truce."
Nicola looked blank. "DMLE?"
"Department of Magical Law Enforcement. We were Aurors together." Severus smiled grimly. "I'm not surprised he doesn't talk about it. Most Aurors don't."
"What's being an Auror like?" Nicola asked, leaning forward slightly.
"Something like being in the Marines and something like being a secret agent, and completely different from either." Severus thought for a moment. "We went through absolutely grueling training in a whole range of things. Sirius was a Recon Agent, so I don't know what he was taught, exactly, but I had to practice playing chess for two hours a day, and learn to lie under truth spells." he shook his head, a smile on his face. "I remember one operation..." and trailed off, as the waiter put a plate in front off him.
Eyes wide, Nicola said, "Tell me. Please!"
"We, I and Peter Pettigrew, were assigned to find out who the next to be attacked were going to be. Remus, the third in our team, was in hospital, so it was just the two of us. We heard, from a source, that Bella Lestrange kept a list of targets in her pocket, like a to-do list, and we decided to get it. We found her in a bar, and Peter went right up to her, and tried to chat her up. I thought he'd completely lost his mind. He was standing there, all five foot six of him, his arm around her waist and a filthy grin on his face when her husband, Rodolphus, came in and threw him across the room." Severus snickered. "I'd been sitting at a corner in the back keeping out of sight, and he landed right, I mean right, on my lap." He gestured with his fork. "So I stood up, right, and I held up Peter by the collar, and asked, very loudly, 'What's the matter, Bella? Newest lover not up to scratch?' Rodolphus was looking like he was going to start throwing curses at any moments, so I acted oblivious and said, 'Well, if you don't want him anymore, I can cut him up for potions ingredients. Thanks, Bella.' and I just walked out the door."
Nicola looked enraptured. "Did you ever get the plans?"
"Peter had picked her pocket when he wrapped her arm around her waist, actually. It was the damnedest thing I'd ever seen."
She giggled delightedly, and took another bite of her dessert. "So what happened after that?"
Severus shrugged slightly. "The war was over a month later. Peter'd been planning to go to Hollywood for ages, and I wound up tagging along. Not much of a story, really."
Nicola was staring at him. "The Peter Pettigrew you mentioned is the Peter Pettigrew?"
Severus shrugged and nodded. "Yeah. I was going to see if I could persuade him to be in the ad campaign here, actually. Him and his latest girlfriend; I think he's seeing Dora Tonks right now."
Nicola gulped audibly. "Speaking of the ad campaign, what would-"
Severus interrupted. "Don't worry, you've got it." He gave her his most charming grin. "After all, if Sirius trusts you, then so do I. And anyway, you're the only person who's ever sat through one of my war stories." He nodded to her slightly, and the waiter handed him the bill. "Don't worry, I'll pay the tab."
Nicola grinned, but she still didn't understand how she'd just gotten a multi-million pound contract without trying. One of those things, she supposed.
Sirius lit a cigarette, and sat awkwardly in the cheap plastic chair. It was the final planning meeting for what they had laughingly decided to call 'Operation Reunion', and he was, yet again the first person to arrive. To the chronically late Sirius, it was a strange new habit, and he wondered what it said about his social life. Nothing good, he gloomily decided. It probably meant that he had too much time on his hands. He took a long drag on his cigarette, and sighed deeply. He had tried calling Nicola, but she was screening her calls. Evidently he was still in the doghouse with her, no pun intended. He sighed again.
"Oh dear, dear, dear. The ever-mirthful and misnamed Sirius Black has a case of the sighs. Whatever is the world coming to?"
Sirius looked up. "Snape." he acknowledged.
Severus smirked. "I met that girlfriend of yours last night. I didn't realize you were serious enough about her to give her your family ring."
Sirius let the pun pass unmentioned. "Ehh. It went with the outfit." He blew smoke at Severus, and watched with detached amusement as he sputtered in outrage.
"Oh my. Trouble in paradise?" Severus' voice dripped with arch sympathy.
"You could say that. She's furious that I've been keeping secrets."
"What secrets have you kept?" Severus prodded, insatiably curious.
"Nearly everything, actually. That I was an Auror, that I wasn't as broke as I seemed, that I was an Animagus, that I'm the current head of the Black family, the whole kit and caboodle."
"Black, even I don't mention being an Auror very much, and I don't go in for the whole Gryffindor false modesty thing. It's just so tacky, to go around bragging about it." Reassurances sounded bizarre coming from Snape, but he obviously meant it. "I understand about the Black family part, too. Three of your cousins died as Death Eaters and your brother is doing life in Azkaban. Your family has a really lousy reputation."
"You just had to mention Reggie, didn't you, Snape?" Sirius dropped his head onto his hands.
Severus looked honestly clueless. "Why shouldn't I? He'd killed three innocent people; you should be glad you helped capture him."
Sirius turned, and gave Severus a Look. "You were a Slytherin, damn it. You of all people should know family comes before everything else to a Pureblood."
Severus rolled his eyes. "I'm a half-blood, remember?"
The corner of Sirius' lips twitched involuntarily upwards. "I'd forgotten, actually."
"Well, I was completely unwelcome in Slytherin House, and all I learned, socially speaking, was dueling etiquette, mainly from Lucius Malfoy, may he rot in hell."
"Then let me enlighten you. Dulce et decorum est pro familia mori. It is sweet and proper to die for one's family. Your loyalty is first to your family, and second to everything else, including yourself, the law, and whatever god or gods you believe in."
Severus winced. "I think I understand it now."
"What is he understands?" Remus asked from the doorway.
"The meaning of life." answered Sirius promptly.
Remus smiled. "So, what is it?"
"Forty-two." announced Severus.
Remus shook his head. "Science fiction, Sirius? Just when I think I know you, you do something I'd never expect."
Sirius shrugged, and gave him a wan smile. "Well, I can't very well be onstage all the time, can I?" He snuffed out the last of his cigarette and lit a new one. "Anyway, I'm not a complete illiterate, you know." He grinned.
"Really? I'd never have guessed. Here I was thinking you only read sheet music and dirty magazines." Peter said, voice laden with sarcasm. He dropped into the chair next to Sirius and conjured a cup of coffee.
"Hey, now I'm offended!" Sirius declared. "I haven't needed sheet music for years!"
"But you don't deny the dirty magazines?" pursued Remus.
Sirius sputtered helplessly, and Peter laughed so hard he choked on his coffee.
Severus passed him some paper napkins, which he used to mop the table ineffectually. "I don't understand how you can drink that slop, Pete."
"What have I told you about calling me Pete?" Peter asked, with a creditable growl.
"Not to." Severus said unrepentantly.
"And didn't I tell you that there would be consequences?"
"There never have been before." Severus was flippant.
"Shove it, Sevvy."
"Ooh, Sevvy!" cooed Sirius breathily, grinning at the sight of Severus slowly turning beet red.
"Is this a bad time?" asked Lily, waggling her eyebrows suggestively as she peeped through the half-open door.
Severus went from beet red to an unhealthy shade of purple and make a horrified but incoherent croaking noise.
"I think you've killed him." observed Remus, as the erstwhile 'Sevvy' collapsed into a chair.
"Oh dear. And I was so hoping that he'd open the meeting for me." mourned Lily, then asked brightly, "Just what did I walk in on, anyway?"
"An argument about nicknames. I object to being called Pete, and plan on calling him Sevvy every single time he does it."
"I yield! I yield!" moaned Severus. "Just make it stop!"
"Very well. I hereby ban the use of the nicknames 'Pete' and 'Sevvy' from being used again." Lily grinned diabolically. "'Peter Rabbit' and 'Snapeykins' may be used at will, however."
"You evil, evil woman."
"Hey, it's what I do best." she smirked, then abruptly sobered. "Really though, we need to finalize these plans." She looked over at Severus, and had to take a deep breath. 'Must remain professional.' she reminded herself, gritting her teeth. "Sirius, do you know where James is?"
He shrugged helplessly. "He should be here by now; when I talked to him an hour ago, he said he was about to leave."
As if summoned by his name, James walked through the door, weaving and smelling slightly of booze. For the sake of diplomacy, Lily ignored this, and merely cast a sobering charm at him under the table. "Now, about these departure schedules..."