Severus Snape walked into his shop, and set the loaded pack-basket on his workbench. After leaving Hogwarts, he sold his properties in England, and moved to America. The magical government in the United States has always accepted immigrants who had the potential to become productive members of their community, and the former professor soon became a naturalized citizen. After looking around a bit, he finally settled on a place to live, and bought a cabin and respectable amount of acreage in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom where he quickly acquired a reputation as one of New England's top herbalists and potion masters. He met a witch one day in a Burlington Coffee Shop, started dating, and married soon afterwards. It was a comfortable and peaceful life.
Ben Franklin expertly steered his MGB into the driveway of the Snape Homestead. In American wizarding custom, apparating directly onto someone's property was only done with family members or very close friends. Most of the time, the act was considered rude at best, and at worst a hostile indication worthy of having a gun pointed at you until your intent is discerned by the property owner. American wizards, like other Americans, liked their cars and even a beat-up looking 1979 Datsun station wagon becomes a fun and interesting car once a technomage gets his or her hands on it. Needless to say, Ben's classic MGB had a little work done on it by Tesla Motors. Enough work that many a night-shift Massachusetts State Trooper has either started or stopped drinking after encountering it on I-90.
Snape saw the Colonial Red MGB with the Liberty Bell painted on the hood pull into the driveway, and the corners of his face turned up slightly, wondering what the old headmaster had in store for him today. Snape met Ben Franklin shortly after arriving in the U.S. at Salem. Franklin was the headmaster of the Salem Institute, one of America's premier schools catering to the magical community, and was one of Snape's biggest customers. His meetings with Dr. Franklin were always interesting to say the least, although after he went for a 200 MPH "ride" down I-91 one day, he was loath to get in a car with the man again. Snape finished putting away the herbs from his latest woods walk, and went outside to greet his visitor. "Good afternoon, Dr. Franklin. What can I do for you?" Snape asked. "My potions master is retiring." Franklin replied. "Would you like the job?" Snape knew that Charles Goodyear wished to spend more time at his lab in Naugatuck, so that wasn't news to him. "I have a thriving business here." Snape retorted. "Why would I want to leave this to suffer the antics of a bunch of dunderheadded students?" "Because one of them is your godson?" Franklin smiled.
"Oh bloody hell."