Chapter 121 – Summer's End, Part 1
This August was one of the very best Harry could recall, despite the things going on in the world.
Usually, as August arrived, he was feeling the accumulated effects of too much yard work, too many chores, too little food, and way too little sleep. The arrival of a birthday cake and goodies from Mrs. Weasley at the end of July helped some, but as he never knew when he'd get to leave the Dursleys, he was always careful to manage his stash of snacks lest it have to last him the month. But the Dursleys, the yard work and chores, the paltry amount of food he was allowed to eat, the fear of a nightmare and waking the family – they were all in the past now.
The food at Hogwarts was excellent and plentiful, and just last night, he and Severus had cooked something for dinner themselves. Actually, Severus did most of the cooking, in a large, strange-looking pot balanced on a ring over the flame, but he helped prepare the food. Everything was fresh, and light, and tasty with some interesting spices and herbs. Certainly nothing Aunt Petunia would know how to make, and nothing he'd ever seen the Hogwarts house elves offer.
His exercise came from flying his broom, swimming in the lake, walks around the grounds. He had not weeded a single flower bed at all this summer, and that struck him as just fine. He still blushed as he contemplated the exercise that he got when he and Severus were alone. The absolute delights of intimacy with Severus were beyond anything he had ever imagined, although still something about which Harry was a bit shy.
He'd also traded in sleeping on an old, lumpy mattress with a too-thin and scratchy blanket, fearful that a nightmare would waken the family, for the comfort of a bed with Severus. The linens were high quality and always fresh, the blankets warm and fluffy, and if he had a nightmare, Severus was always there with sympathy and a vial of potion to let him get back to sleep.
Harry was contemplating his vastly improved circumstances one afternoon when Severus had taken a break from his lab and suggested that they go for a swim in the lake.
It was a gem of a day, bright warm sunshine, just a slight breeze, almost hot but not uncomfortable. A perfect day for a swim, actually.
There was a spot on the shoreline near the lawn in front of the castle that was crowded with splashing, frolicking children, students and adults, all under Hagrid's watchful eye. The house elves had erected large tents to serve as changing rooms, and Professor Flitwick had created a barrier of some sort in the water that allowed him to apply a heating charm to the water close to the shore at that spot. Harry had assumed that the usual swimming area was where they were headed, and looked up with a question on his face when Severus touched his arm to direct him away from there.
"There is a better spot for a swim further along, Harry. A bit more private, and certainly more quiet. Let's go on a bit," Severus explained, with a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
Harry agreed happily. As much fun as he'd had swimming there with his friends, in crowds like that, he tended to attract far too much attention to actually enjoy himself, anyway.
The two walked along in silence for rather a long while, to a spot where the path veered up and away from the shore of the lake. The shore shifted inland at this point, and the path skirted the odd-shaped spot to reconnect with the more regular contours of the water's edge a bit farther along. Severus stepped off the path and followed a much more subtle path that went the other way. Completely out of sight and earshot of the noisy crowd, a small, secluded bit of shoreline appeared. It was surrounded on two sides by forest that came right to the water's edge, with a few large boulders, a small pebbled beach, and views of the lake glimmering in the bright sun.
"How ever did you find this spot, Severus? It's lovely," Harry offered as he stepped out onto the narrow strip of sand and pebbles that constituted the beach, for a closer look at the water.
Severus bit back the true answer. He'd found this place as a matter of self-preservation back when he was a student. It was a place that he could rest, or swim, or even study, where the blasted Marauders had never been able to find him.
"I found it back when I was a student, looking for a private spot where I could read or work. It's just far enough that most students don't make the effort, and if they do come this far, they follow the main path." Severus hoped his edits were not apparent to Harry, and was relieved when Harry made no comment. Just to be sure that no current students had located the spot, Severus quickly placed an obscuration charm behind them, to keep this spot private.
Harry was already kicking off his trainers and unbuttoning his shirt, as Severus unbuttoned his robes. Needless to say, Harry finished undressing first. He was about to transfigure his underwear into a pair of swimming trunks, when he heard Severus snort behind him.
"You're a bit over-dressed, I think," Severus commented, as he stripped entirely and strode past Harry on his way into the water.
Harry blushed, but finally, if reluctantly, accepted that if Severus was comfortable enough to swim nude here, it probably was a very private place. He slipped out of his underwear and joined Severus in the water.
"Eeeek – this is cold!" he shrieked as he surfaced after his dive in to the deeper (and un-charmed) water at this part of the shore.
Severus, already several meters off the shore, shook his head to get his hair off his face, and laughed at his sputtering partner. "Keep moving. You warm up by being active."
To prove his point, Severus took several powerful strokes away from the shore, and went into a dive himself. The water was clear enough that Harry could see him in the dive, and he saw when Severus turned to approach him under water. He gasped to fill his lungs just in time, as Severus grabbed him by the ankle and pulled him underwater.
Severus was an excellent and very powerful swimmer. Harry was not. He'd done quite well when he had gillyweed providing him with gills, flippers for feet and webbed hands, but on his own, he was just passable, certainly not able to keep up with Severus. But, to his surprise, it didn't matter. They dove and splashed and Severus caught Harry and Harry tried to catch Severus. Harry could not remember any time in his life playing like this in the water, and he could not believe that he was playing like this with Severus now.
After a while, Severus surfaced next to Harry and looked at him closely. "Time to get out. Your lips are turning blue, Harry. You've had enough."
Harry swam along side Severus and gingerly picked his way out of the water over the stones and pebbles, back to the log on which they'd left their clothes. Before Harry could reach for a piece of clothing to use as a towel, Severus had grabbed him from behind and pulled him away, over to a large boulder nestled into the shore line. It was covered in light, dappled a bit as the sun filtered through the trees above. With a wave of his hand, Severus applied a softening charm to the stone, and settled down, positioning Harry's back against him, sitting between his legs.
Harry leaned back into Severus gratefully, enjoying the warmth of the sun from above and from the stone below, and feeling the warmth returning to Severus behind him. He closed his eyes and raised his face to the sun, with a smile playing on his lips as Severus rubbed his arms briskly. He could not hold back a loud, contented sigh.
"You're alright, Harry?" Severus asked with some concern.
"Never felt better in my life," Harry had to allow. "That was fantastic." With a small giggle, he added "It really felt different to swim without a bathing suit, even though a bathing suit is so small."
Severus chortled. "I'd hoped to introduce you to some of the other delights of swimming au naturel, but the water here is a bit too cold. We'll plan a trip some day to somewhere warm, where such activities will be more comfortable."
Harry smiled broadly. Severus had been introducing him to "delights" in all manner of ways since his birthday. He'd truly had no idea how varied and exciting his love life with Severus would be, and they were only weeks into this part of their relationship! And for all his fears about being the "wife" in the relationship, their love life was surprisingly mutual. He grabbed Severus' hands mid-rub on his arms, and pulled them across his chest into a hug, as he snuggled into Severus. "I can't wait."
They sat in quiet comfort, warming up and drying off for a few minutes. Finally, Severus spoke, whispering softly into Harry's ear and allowing his tongue to push into Harry's ear a few times.
"Actually, while we passed on the delights that could have been ours while bathing in the lake au naturel, there are some delights associated with drying off in the sun on the shore of the lake after our swim. Intimacy in the open air, outside like this, can be extremely enjoyable. We're at no risk of being discovered here." With a quirk of his head, punctuated by a thrust of his tongue into Harry's ear, he added as an afterthought, "Of course, there can be times that the prospect of discovery itself can be arousing, but I don't think you would enjoy that, at least not yet."
Harry's interest was piqued when Severus whispered in his ear, and the feeling of Severus' tongue in his ear pushed him to full arousal. Sex in the open air seemed intoxicating, especially with Severus' assurance that they would not be seen. He blushed at the very thought of being discovered. He doubted that the prospect of discovery was something he would ever enjoy, but Severus was quite a teacher, so who knew? For now, the prospect of more "delight" was crowding out all other thoughts from his mind.
As he felt Severus' hands work their way down his torso from his chest, Harry twisted as best he could in Severus' arms to reach his mouth. Severus saw what he was doing and met him half-way, connecting them in a kiss while he maneuvered their bodies on the rock.
A while later, Harry recovered his breath from a thoroughly depleting release, stretched out on his back on the softened rock, making no effort (as he would have done not that long ago) to cover his naked body. He dozed contentedly, and reveled in the sensation of the sun and a breeze on his most sensitive parts, contemplating his good fortune in the wondrous turn his life had taken.
The good mood and feeling of being at peace with the world stayed with Harry as he and Severus walked back to their rooms to change for dinner, and it was not dimmed in the least by the note he found on the desk in the sitting room, asking that he go to Balmoral Castle in the morning to tape yet another message.
Things were starting to get contentious in the muggle world. But today, things were just fine with Harry.
X X X X X X X X X X
The month of August had been a wonderful one for Hermione, as well. She never had to spend her summers at manual labor as Harry did, of course; her parents closed their dental practice for several weeks in August and the family usually traveled. No, this August at Hogwarts Hermione got to indulge in her passion for research on a most interesting and challenging issue, together with her growing passion for a certain red-headed wizard.
Hermione's hypothesis about the process of magical transference was proving difficult to validate. The healers she'd met in the medical library were indulgent of her because of her connection to Hogwarts, but clearly skeptical of her premise. After all, the healers who had been involved in the cases she was studying had never perceived that magic had been transferred, so it must not have occurred. Her zeal to prove her theory was amplified by her intense desire to prove the lot of them wrong.
A chance encounter with Kingsley Shacklebolt while queuing up for the floo to the Ministry one morning led to introductions to several senior Aurors, and those introductions led to invitations to consult them and their case files. Hermione's opportunity to work with the Aurors was the turning point. One morning spent with the Aurors gave her a list of several dozen events (fully half of which were never reported on in the Daily Prophet for various reasons) that involved a violent death and a surviving bystander in close proximity to the deceased. She had names, dates, and access to the Aurors' reports for more details, if she needed it. Armed with that data, she now approached the medical records from a very different perspective, one that bore fruit quickly.
In no time at all, she'd assembled a list of thirty-seven individuals who had been nearby but survived their injuries when a victim with unique magical skills was killed. She discovered that no fewer than twenty of them had manifested the unique magical skill of the victim within months of the event.
Both Madam Pomfrey and Professor Snape had reviewed her research and seemed most impressed. Professor Snape even encouraged her to write up her work and submit it for publication!
As Hermione began the process of writing up her results, she realized that she enjoyed writing as much as she'd enjoyed researching. This was so much more fulfilling than even her articles written with Mrs. Longbottom. She knew that her parents would be proud if she was able to get her own work published, but realized that this was at least as much her personal goal. She'd been reading books and journals and reports for as long as she could remember. But until she began organizing her own article, it had never occurred to her that some day, she'd be producing her own original work worthy of being published, to be read by some other youngster, inspiring them as she was once inspired.
She'd even mentioned something to Ron about that, one evening as they lolled in the large four-poster provided by the Room of Requirement. They'd had a very lovely (and loving) evening, and were both trying to delay the inevitable moment that they had to get up and get back to their day-to-day lives at Hogwarts. She told him about her feelings as she wrote, half-expecting him to laugh at her.
While it did seem that it had never occurred to Ron that anyone could experience emotions from the process of writing, he was obviously happy to hear about the joy she was experiencing. His encouragement to keep at it, that evening, made her all the more certain that she'd found a "keeper" in Ron.
X X X X X X X X X X
Ron's August was excellent, but not hugely different from an August at the Burrow. He had lots of family surrounding him at Hogwarts, what with Charlie coming to visit Draco, and even Bill and the twins returning to see their brother, and of course, their parents. Molly was joined by Arthur most weekends, and while Madam Pomfrey was most pleased with the progress of her pregnancy, Molly was not returning to the Burrow until the baby arrived.
At the Burrow, there'd be weeding and de-gnoming the garden to do, but not here. Ron was a mainstay of Madam Hooch's flying program, so he spent enormous amounts of time on his broom, which is where he'd spend his free time during the summer, anyway.
And there was Hermione! Ron could not believe his good fortune that a witch so beautiful and smart was so happy to spend her time with him. They made use of the Room of Requirement as often as they could, sneaking off during the late afternoons on the days she was at Hogwarts, or right after dinner otherwise. He had been so sure he'd never get the hang of this romance stuff, but Harry's suggestion to use the Room of Requirement had been the most brilliant idea he'd ever heard, and it was perfect.
Hermione even got along with his family, something that had at times concerned Ron. He loved his family dearly, of course, but sometimes, they could be a bit much. Hermione fit in, almost like she'd been born a Weasley!
Of course, she was still Hermione. If he or Harry did not periodically drag her out of the library in the afternoon, she'd be white as a ghost. She usually agreed to spend a bit of time swimming, or she'd sit on the grass in the sun watching them fly. Ron had noticed that she really enjoyed her time in the library, which was hard for him to imagine, until one night, she explained how writing made her feel. He saw the glimmer in her eyes and sensed the genuineness of her pleasure, and knew he had to support her in this activity. Even if he found the prospect of a sunny day spent in the library an anathema, obviously she relished it. If it made her that happy, he had to go along with it.
X X X X X X X X X X
Severus' summer was among the busiest he could recall, and also the most enjoyable.
He and Harry were working regularly with the Headmaster on wandless magic. Severus had improved his self-taught technique immeasurably, and was pleased to see how quickly Harry grasped the process. Severus kept close tabs on Harry's magical pathways, and was relieved that none of their work created any problems for him, despite his being far too young by all common standards to even consider attempting wandless. Harry was busy, either taping messages with the royals to support the Ministry's efforts to keep things calm with the muggles, or helping out with the flying classes, for most of the rest of the day, so Severus got to spend a good amount of time in his lab.
Severus often spent a good amount of time in his lab in August, of course. But still, it astonished him how much more pleasant even that solitary time was when it was punctuated with the promise of time at the end of the day with Harry. They cooked dinner in their rooms sometimes, or took dinner on the lawn on particularly lovely evenings when the house elves served less formal fare to allow everyone more time to enjoy the weather. Even on the evenings when he sat at the Head Table and Harry sat amid the Gryffindors, he knew they'd meet up eventually, and he found that he lived for that.
The enthusiasm with which Harry approached their love life was as remarkable as it was surprising. Once he'd introduced the young man to the pleasures of intimacy, there was no turning back. Harry was energetic and far more adventurous than Severus would ever have imagined.
Beyond Harry, two of his friends were a surprising, and surprisingly engaging, part of Severus' late summer.
Miss Granger had not only directionally inspired his own research project to challenge the traditional wisdom and research the pathways by which magic (light as well as dark) travelled in the body, but she'd asked for his assistance in her own research. Her concepts were novel, her research impeccable, and her conclusions were well-supported. She was also fearless, no surprise for a Gryffindor. She wanted to take on the establishment that so quickly dismissed what seemed to her to be the obvious conclusion, but was pragmatic enough to understand that just being right and proving her thesis was not going to convert those so invested in the status quo.
Miss Granger had joined him and Harry one evening after dinner to discuss how to take her work forward, and after talking through several options, decided that her best option was to write an article for a general scientific publication, rather than cast this as a medical issue. She knew where the medical establishment stood, and Harry, of all people, had suggested that they seek a broader audience.
Miss Granger was quite willing to write an article, but needed some guidance in the preparation of a paper or article, one not for a class or for the Daily Prophet, but for a professional publication. Severus had been impressed enough by the quality of her work that he gave her some note's about the structure he'd followed himself in some of his own published articles, and had spent some afternoons and evenings reviewing and editing her work.
The other surprise, an even bigger one, was Neville Longbottom.
Neville followed up on his offer to introduce Severus to one of the witches in the Winter Lands who seemed to serve as a healer to that community. Typical of people in the Winter Lands, her magical power was limited, but she had the most extraordinary understanding of the magical properties of the large array of plants that grew there, some of which were not even known in Great Britain. She'd generously sent Neville back to Hogwarts several times with small linen pouches filled with rare dried herbs and tiny stoppered vials of some of the tinctures she's brewed, always accompanied by notes in tiny, precise handwriting that described the plant and the properties she observed about its use.
The day Severus joined Neville in taking a port key to the Winter Lands to meet the old woman known to one and all as Tante was amazing. It was clear that Neville was regarded as something of a folk hero to the farming community of the Winter Lands for all the help he'd given in getting their farms back to productive status so quickly. That was not surprising. Severus was shocked to find that he got similar treatment.
When he and Neville apparated to Tante's small hut in a nearby village, the little woman was almost beside herself with the thrill of meeting Severus. She clearly knew Neville well, and welcomed him warmly and happily, but she regarded Severus with awe, even more so when he offered her a carefully-wrapped bundle of several rare herbs from his own potions garden back at Hogwarts. He'd consulted with Neville to determine what plants he'd already given her, and what she seemed to be growing already, and selected some he was rather confident would be appreciated.
The little woman had beamed as she accepted the package, and then insisted that they join her for a tour of her workroom, a small shack a few steps from the door to her hut.
"Lord Snape, I think you'll appreciate this," Tante said with quiet pride as she opened the door to the shack.
Severus did indeed appreciate the workroom. The wall opposite the door was glass, covered with rough wooden shelving on which dozens of small plants and herbs were thriving in the sunlight, and the other walls were covered with shelves bearing other plants and large glass jars filled with dried herbs, all neatly labeled. The eaves were hung with numerous small bundles of plant material, drying in a soft breeze wafting through. The large wooden table in the center of the room made it clear; Tante's focus was growing and working with the plants, not concocting elaborate potions. There were items that were "laboratory" staples, beakers and cauldrons, for example, but just as many things that were obviously for the tending, harvesting and drying of her plants.
With a quick glance to be sure he had her permission to look closely at her inventory, Severus made a methodical circuit of the room, inspecting the various items and commenting on some of the more rare or unusual items. "Madam, is this really a Centrella Asiatica?" he exclaimed, fingering a red flowered plant blooming on one of the shelves. "I am working with this plant myself right now, and have been sourcing dried petals from Madagascar. I had no idea it could be grown this far north!"
Tante laughed in delight. "Ah, Lord Snape, call me Tante; everyone does. And yes, with care, the Centella can be coaxed to grow even this far north. I keep some dried petals and leaves handy, although at times, I believe nothing short of fresh material will do. For example," she continued, plucking a small red flower off the plant and gently pushing the petals away from the center to show him, "the stamens here are far more potent than the petals if you wish to strengthen blood vessels and maintain blood flow."
Severus bent over to study the small stamens growing in the center of the flower; he'd never seen them offered, fresh or dried. He purred, "Tante, then I insist that you call me Severus. This is most impressive." In truth, there were apothecaries in Diagon Alley that did not have the quantity, and probably the quality, of the herbs Tante had assembled here.
Severus spent some further time marveling at the plant life she'd coaxed into thriving in her shack, and then joined the old woman on a trek with Neville into the woods to inspect some of the larger specimens that had to be left in place, including a tipitiwichet that was so enormous, it could have swallowed the three adults.
They ended their visit over tea in her hut, the Potions Master cast in the role of student himself as the elderly witch held forth on the properties of many of the plants they'd seen that day. Neville had seemed somewhat lost on the more potions-related conversations, but joined in easily when the focus was on the plants themselves. The result of the day: Severus promised to send Tante several specimen plants from his private garden at Hogwarts, and she sent him and Neville home with a few plants from her garden (including a Centrella Asiatica) and several vials of tinctures she'd brewed from rare wild Winter Lands plants.
Within days, Neville had established the new plants in the Hogwarts greenhouses, where they were thriving. Severus himself was thoroughly enjoying making the acquaintance of plants he'd not encountered before, with the excellent guidance of Tante as to their possible uses and properties. Severus had used Winter Lands materials in his potions work for years, but the range of what was on offer was so limited – he'd had no idea at all of the diversity of plants that grew there.
Severus also had a long conversation with Neville about others in the Winter Lands who were as knowledgeable as Tante about the remarkable flora there. When Neville confirmed that there were no such others, Severus spoke to Pomona Sprout about the need to secure an apprentice or assistant for Tante. The already very old woman seemed to have the sum of all Winter Lands plant lore stored in her head, and Severus could not bear the thought of all that wisdom and knowledge going with her when her time came. Pomona shared his concern.
In a seldom seen alliance, the Heads of Slytherin and Hufflepuff Houses met with the Headmaster to request his assistance in getting Ministry support for their proposal. Pomona had a former student currently working in the Department of Magical Plants at the Ministry who would be perfect for the job of working with the Winter Lands healer, while cataloging the plant material and recording its properties and uses.
Albus was always thrilled to see his staff supporting one another in this way, and was pleased to make an inquiry to the Minister about having the young man seconded to the Winter Land's healer for this purpose. He took the opportunity to remind Minister Bones of the unfortunate situation with dementors that had caused the Winter Lands to transfer their protectorate status to Harry Potter, and suggested that seconding a Ministry worker to the Winter Lands would not only be appreciated by Harry, but might also be a step toward repairing the Ministry's own relationship with the Winter Lands. To no one's surprise, the request was approved immediately.
Neville reported back, a few days later, that he'd visited with Tante when he brought her the plants from Hogwarts, and told her of the plans to have a young herbologist come to the Winter Lands to work with her. She was thrilled; she'd been asking some of the young people there to work with her, as her apprentice or even as her paid helper, but had gotten no takers.
X X X X X X X X X
Sirius Black could not believe how quickly he seemed to have traded the very miserable life of a prisoner at Azkaban and the only-slightly-less miserable life of a wizard on the run from the law once he'd escaped from Azkaban, for the stultifying life of a cog in the Ministry wheel.
Remus was settling very comfortably into his role as a member of the Wizengamot, and he'd even accepted a role in a business venture begun by Merik Volpine and Lucius Malfoy of all people, making him a businessman as well as a member of the government. On the other hand, Sirius had been happiest when he and Remus went out on their own to support the teams protecting muggles in the earliest days of the crisis, and it had been all down-hill for him since then. He'd resisted taking on any formal role with the Ministry, even as his application for membership in the International Confederation of Sorcerers was approved, for fear of the boredom he was sure he'd encounter. The roles he could play in the unfolding crisis were limited by his lack of commitment to the Ministry. He was bored with the assignments he'd been asked to handle and felt he was not contributing to anything, and even the most informal assignments seemed to require far more reporting and report-writing than was worth the effort.
Remus sensed the restlessness brewing in his partner, and was disconsolate at first, fearing Sirius was growing weary of him. Fortunately, before either could do something they'd both regret, a solution fell into their laps.
At the mid-August meeting of the Board of Directors for Lucius' and Merik's firm, Remus met a man in the business of sourcing exotic plants for potions manufacturers. Thurston Landon was concerned because his son, who'd been helping him with a good deal of the traveling required in that business for several years now, was married and planning to start a family, and he had just told his father he wanted a job that kept him closer to home. Thurston had several employees who assisted with the sourcing, but his son's departure from the field work left a large hole in his organization. As the business had grown, he'd focused more on building the relationships and was not really interested in getting back into the field at this stage of his life.
It occurred to Remus as he chatted with Thurston that Sirius had done passably well in Herbology back at Hogwarts. While he'd need some help learning the ropes of this particular business, there were elements of this work that suggested it would be perfect for him. He'd be traveling around, and meeting new people. He'd not have to work at a desk, which seemed to represent a special hell for Sirius. Remus quietly suggested to Thurston that they meet the following day at Remus' Ministry offices.
That evening, Remus told Sirius was he was thinking.
"Are you daft? Alright, I did well enough in Herbology. But what makes you think I'd want to work in that field, and for a company like that?" was the immediate response from Sirius, not unexpectedly.
"No, I'm not daft. I'm worried about you. You aren't happy working with the Ministry, even informally, I can tell that. You're bored. I hope you're just bored with the time you spend at the Ministry, and not with me." That last comment earned him a shocked look of denial from his partner, but Remus kept going. "You haven't had that sparkle in your eyes for a bit now, and I want you to be happy. I heard this man going on about his son no longer wanting to travel, and thought this might be the sort of adventurous activity that would excite you again."
Sirius thought on that for a second. Remus always did have his best interests at heart, he knew that.
"Oh, alright. No harm in talking to the fellow. I'm sure we can get portkeys made up so I can get home most nights. Knowing a member of the Wizengamot does have its benefits, after all."
The meeting with Thurston the next morning went better than either expected.
"We're the top firm in sourcing the truly exotic and rare plants for the potions manufacturing community" Thurston began, rather self-importantly. He went on to describe some of the clients the firm worked with, and the sort of materials they were asked to procure. As he described the locations from which they'd been securing their materials, Sirius noticed the absence of the Winter Lands as a source.
"You clearly scour all the warm-weather places, Mr. Landon, but I can't help but wonder about your connections in more northern climates. I spent some time not all that long ago in the Winter Lands and was amazed at the variety of extremely magical plant material that grows there. Is there no call for such plants in the potions market these days?" he asked, clearly surprising Thurston.
Remus always found Sirius amusing when he took on the persona of a "responsible adult" and he wisely stifled the smile that began to play at his mouth.
"No, no, my dear Lord Black – Winter Lands material is very prized and highly coveted! It's so difficult to get material from there. It's such a dangerous place, what with some of the creatures that live there. The distance is a problem, the terrible weather, and well, frankly, some of the people up there are rather difficult to deal with. Lately, what with their severing their protectorate status with Great Britain, we're not even sure if the trade treaties will be honored. Very risky." Almost as if he'd just now registered all of what Sirius had said, Thurston added "You spent time there recently?"
Remus suspected that Sirius was playing with their guest, but wasn't entirely sure, so he remained quiet as Sirius continued the conversation.
"I was the guest of Lord Asgeir Brand there for a while this past winter." Thurston's eyes widened at the name, a reaction with spurred Sirius on. He wasn't going to share that the Winter Lands were not particularly dangerous to someone who in human form was regarded as a hero there, and who could transform into Padfoot; the Vikings loved the big dog, and the Grendlings seemed afraid of it. He'd actually had a grand time there.
"I actually enjoyed the time I spent in the Winter Lands, and wouldn't mind structuring a business relationship that enabled me to spend more time there, on a regular basis. I met some people who grow some interesting plants, although I'm not sure what you usually source from there. We might be able to come to some sort of arrangement."
Thurston went on then to identify the plants and other potions ingredients that were most sought after from the Winter Lands, and described the sources from which he'd gotten that material in the past.
"Very interesting, Mr. Landon. When you consider the tremendous variety of plants that grow in the Winter Lands and the incredible magic that infuses the soil there, I'm very surprised that our potions industry procures such a narrow range of material from there. And it sounds like you just deal with one of the compounds. The people of the Winter Lands live in at least a dozen communities, each with its own farms and forests." Sirius was truly puzzled with the very narrow focus the potions industry seemed to have on the Winter Lands.
"Those are the only materials we've ever sourced from the Winter Lands, and I never heard that there were other inhabited areas there. Given the climate, it seemed unremarkable that there would be a limited selection of plants. The plants we get are top quality, of course, and until this year, we've done a very brisk business . . ." Thurston trailed off. He had never been to the Winter Lands himself, but his son Eustace had been there several times and they were totally unaware of the opportunity that apparently existed.
Sirius proposed a business arrangement: he would operate as a broker in the Winter Lands, connecting the Landon interests to Winter Lands farmers and others who harvest plants that could serve as potions ingredients. He'd line up sources of the plants that were apparently already known in Great Britain first, so the existing business needs could be met, and then see what else might be of interest. The trade would certainly benefit the farmers, and apparently the potions industry would be happy to get the material. Nothing exclusive, nothing to hold Sirius down or restrict him, or make him accountable to someone else. It gave him a purpose and a way to contribute.