Chapter Seven: In Which We Mull Over The Date
Severus Snape sat in his London flat overlooking the Thames. He had decided to go there instead of the cottage, so he could listen to his Muggle music collection while thinking. Led Zeppelin filled his flat.
It had gone much better than he had dared hope. One way or another, he'd have to get her to start teaching him wandless magic. Her discussion of the topic had raised his interest enough that a trip to the US was certainly going onto his itinerary. Land of the Gryffindors it may be, but apparently it was also land of the wandless witch.
She was not what he had expected. What did you expect? Her to be seventeen? Yes. Well that was bloody stupid now, wasn't it? She'll be seventeen again as soon as you become thirty-seven.
The idea of him thirty-seven again set him to thinking of the one thing that had really bothered him about the date. She had been absolutely shocked at the idea of him as a decent bloke. Yes, he had had the whole greasy git thing going, but he hadn't been that bad.
"You were worse." The redhead sat on the arm of his sofa as she spoke.
"How would you know? You weren't there," he responded, looking into her green eyes.
"Of course I was there. I'm the figment of your imagination. I'm the little voice that keeps you honest with yourself. And you were an absolute horror to anyone who got too close to you, especially certain bushy-haired Gryffindors."
"Well, I had good reasons."
"I know that, but I doubt she does. After all, it's not like anyone else knows the full story of why you were such a bastard."
"And it's not like anyone will anytime soon."
"Will you marry her?"
"Hell." He rubbed his temples. "Probably, it seemed like a good meeting, and I very much doubt I'll do better, let alone in the time I have."
"Then you'd better tell her, or she'll never be rid the image of you as the man who used to torment her for fun," and with that Lily faded from the room.
Harry and Ginny sat next to the Pensieve looking stunned at the memories Hermione had just shown them. Finally Harry said, "Who the fuck was that?"
"My thoughts exactly," Hermione replied.
"Was he flirting?" added Ginny.
"I think he was. Surfing?" Hermione shook her head in amazement.
"Who was that? It's got to be some sort of joke. It was George playing a joke. He must have set it up with Percy. There is no way that could have been Snape. We all thought he died when Nagini got him. He must have died and someone else has been pretending to be him. It's Wormtail!" Harry said desperately trying to make what he had just seen fit with his worldview.
"Harry, we saw him die, too," Ginny said. "It's Snape. You know just as well as I do that Nagini didn't really kill him. We watched the trial. He was certainly Snape then."
Harry looked a little chagrined at his nonsensical outburst. "Well, yeah, he was Snape… This new guy… There is no way that was Snape. Snape does not smile. Snape does not joke. Snape does not wear attractive clothing with a sharp hair cut. Snape does not flirt, and he especially does not flirt with you. Next thing, you'll be telling me he plays seeker for England and likes to prance about meadows with daisies in his hair. It's just not him!"
"It's been seven years. I guess not being a spy anymore has agreed with him." Hermione was also trying to fit the man she had just spent an hour with to her six years of memories.
"Hermione, this isn't stress relief! This is a full frontal lobotomy followed by a personality transplant. I don't know who that was, but that was not Snape. I think you're in some sort of danger. I don't want you seeing him alone."
"Whoa… calm down, you." Ginny put her hand against Harry's chest. "I think that was Snape, happy. Or at least Snape not suicidally depressed. We could bring back some memories of your fifth year, or worse the Horcrux hunt, versus now and see how closely the two Harrys resemble each other."
Harry looked at her, saw she was only partially joking. "Point taken. So what happens now?"
"We've got a date. Dinner at my place day-after-tomorrow."