AN: I know this is late, but I was traveling. Initially, I was going to leave tomorrow, but when the opportunity presented itself, I left today. I figured a late post was better than none at all though.
Thank you for all the support! It is very deeply appreciated!
It would not be terrible if his date did not show up. In fact, it would be the one time his luck was halfway decent.
Severus took another sip of his pumpkin beer. He'd only been seated for five minutes, and leaving early was already appealing. If his date was thirty seconds late, did it mean she had changed her mind about dating him? If so, did that mean he could leave? Severus was a stickler for punctuality. If she ran late, did this mean they weren't compatible? One could make a compelling argument that it is more prudent to abandon a date than waste time in a relationship doomed to failure.
"You're early."
Severus glanced up at the woman with a white rose on her wrist. She appeared to be ten years older than him, and just as dour. The dress she wore was as black as his robes. Her stringy black hair matched the deep frown etched upon her face. He couldn't help but wonder if Minerva had found a date, or a long lost relative.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were eager to see me." She sat across from him, her eyes examining every inch of his body. He scowled, a warning not to waste his time with asinine observations any stranger could make.
"You do not seem particularly eager to go on this date," he noted.
"On the contrary, I'm thrilled for an evening of socialization," her voice lacked sarcasm, but her lips did not so much as twitch upwards. "Minerva said you were be difficult and would try to find a way to escape this dinner. I like the challenge of forcing you to keep your promises."
"I take it you'll be reporting this dinner back to Minerva."
"I'm sure it will come up in one of our correspondences."
"How often do you two correspond?"
"I contact her every once in a while when I am asking for the credentials of a student attempting to enter my program."
"Your program?" Severus folded his hands.
"Yes," she answered. "I have been a professor at the Wizarding College of Brighton for twenty-four years. For the last decade, I have been the Head of the Muggle Studies Department."
"That sounds intriguing." He blinked, wondering if this evening would prove fruitful after all.. Perhaps he'd walk away with a new professional contact. Those always came in handy, especially if he ever decided on seeking employment at a university, an option which was more appealing by the day.
"My field is very interesting, with new discoveries being made every day."
"Indeed."
Rosmerta approached and gave Severus a look, as if to ask whether or not she should resume her role as the scorned girlfriend.
"Would you like to order something, Professor…"
"Robin Sneed." She extended her hand.
He took it "Severus Snape."
"I know. Minerva mentions you quite frequently."
"Hopefully it's all positive," Rosmerta cut in.
"Actually, she calls him a difficult man with a sharp tongue who could stand to get out of the lab a little more," Robin replied.
Severus huffed. Minerva was naive to have such a high opinion of him.
"Still, I'm sure he can be reasoned with, or at least won't be too unpleasant for one evening."
Rosmerta turned to Severus again.
"Would you like anything? I already have my beer," Severus asked his date.
"I'll take a water." She turned to him. "It's bad form to drink on a first date. Alcohol can often lead to regrettable decisions."
Severus didn't dare say, like remaining at this table?
"I'll get that for you," Rosmerta gave her one last glance before walking to the bar.
"You could have ordered a non-alcoholic beverage," he noted.
"I would if I wanted my insides to rot."
He raised an eyebrow.
"During my tenure of teaching Muggle Studies, I have examined the ingredients they put into things such as fizzy drinks." She shuddered. "I don't know how anyone could ingest that."
"Every once in awhile, it is no great shortcoming to indulge."
"Given how Minerva talks about you I'm surprised you indulge in anything."
"I am not incapable of enjoyment."
"Yes, but there's enjoyment and there's poisoning your body."
"Fine, you do not want fizzy drinks," he answered. "There are other non-alcoholic drinks, some muggles do not know about."
"I would agree, except I looked at the ingredients in them." She winced. "No, I much prefer water."
"I see," he muttered.
"Anyway, your reputation proceeds you. I've heard about all you've done during the war."
He suppressed a groan. If this deteriorated into hero worship he would rethink asking Rosmerta to interrupt this date. Merlin, would he always be haunted by who he was as a younger man? Could nobody see who he was now and accept that man?
"I must say I'm impressed with the way you kept the school together. As the head of a department, can only imagine how difficult that must have been," she continued. "I can barely keep my professors in line. It would be difficult to manage that and Death Eaters."
"It was probably one of the most difficult things I've ever done," he admitted.
"I know, and for what it's worth," her eyes softened. "You did as well as anyone else could have done."
"Thank you." He tensed, preparing for the hero worship.
"I will say that as admirable as your tenure as headmaster was, Minerva has done a fine job too," she continued.
"Yes, she has done a fine repairing the school and charting a more pleasant course for us," he answered, deciding not to say the blind date idea was one of her more unpleasant decisions.
"I was surprised when Minerva hired Hermione Granger for Muggle Studies."
"Why?" Severus lowered his voice. "Do you find her inadequate?"
"No, but as silly as it sounds, it's rare to hire a muggleborn for that position," she replied. "Most muggleborns are so taken with magic they leave their culture behind, not that I can blame them."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you must admit that the Wizarding World has more to offer than the muggle world. We have better conveniences, a wider sense of our traditions, and better healthcare. We have advances muggles could only dream of. I mean, disability is hardly ever heard of except for…" Robin grew silent.
"Except for what?" Severus asked as the air around them became heavy.
"I almost forgot about Ms. Granger's little mishap and her leg."
"Being tortured by Bellatrix until her leg no longer functioned properly is more than a mishap," Severus growled.
"I know, but is her problem that she clings to muggle culture so tightly that she won't so much as consider Wizarding treatments for her leg?"
"No, her issue is that she had so much dark magic in her body it is impossible to remove. Nothing could reduce it, and the influx of additional magic was exacerbating the effects of Bellatrix's curses. Traditional cures fell short, and the experimental treatments were agonizing. The procedures were becoming so painful she refused to continue them, deciding it was more dignified to live life with a disability than spend the last of her savings on treatments which lowered her quality of life."
"Isn't living a more restricted life terrible for her?"
"Not as terrible as spending the last of one's savings on a treatment which didn't work, only to wake up screaming in agony when it's all done."
"Has she told you that, or are you guessing her reasoning?"
"We've discussed her disability in depth on a number of occasions. We have become quiet friendly over the years," he answered.
"Was she asking for your assistance when she began conversing with you?" She asked.
"Not at all. She has fully accepted her condition, but she has discussed the process of coming to terms with it a few times."
"Well she's either brave, stubborn, or insane."
"She is who she is," Severus' voice was low, a warning not to continue this line of inquiry. "She is a strong, fascinating, and kind woman who deserves nothing less than everyone's full respect."
"Point taken," Robin frowned.
Rosmerta arrive to take their order. After ordering the Shepard's pie, Severus wondered if he should have told her it was to go. Was he in that little of a mood to be social, or had she hit a nerve with her speech on Hermione? What business was it of hers that Hermione had a disability? Was there some law Severus was unaware of which stated she needed to be cured or else she was not a true witch?
"Anyway I think it's an interesting choice for a muggleborn to teach Muggle Studies. They have an epistemic privilege a wizard does not posses," Robin continued.
"That is true enough." Severus relaxed.
"I should send her another letter. At one point we discussed sitting down and allowing the Muggle Studies students to spend an afternoon in a university to see what it is like, but alas, finals came."
"I can relate to that sentiment. Finals do tend to put a wrench into most plans."
"I'd also like Hermione's perspective on the internet," Robin shook her head. "It's such an evil Muggle fad which has taken over."
"Evil Muggle fad?" Severus drawled.
"Yes, it is only used for frivolity such as viewing pictures of kittens, as well as reading smutty stories."
"I'm sure the internet is used for more than pictures and smut."
"Who told you that, Hermione?"
"We've discussed it a few times, yes."
"With all due respect, I think she's allowing her muggle upbringing to cloud her judgment. I've seen a computer. It is a bulky machine which barely fits into a sitting room. Then there's that obnoxious keyboard. Whatever happened to a parchment and quill?"
"I hear with good posture, a keyboard is good for one wrists," he answered. "Writing does get tiring after some time."
"It's going to ruin Muggle literacy, and penmanship will deteriorate beyond comprehension. I mean, isn't a muggleborn's handwriting already terrible?"
"In my experience, every student's penmanship is horrendous."
"Yes, but computers and keyboards are going to ruin everything. Then there's television." She flinched. "How anyone can sit for hours watching those inane soap operas is beyond me."
"Most television is vapid," he admitted.
"Then there's the electricity. It gets them out of touch with nature."
"Do you even like muggles?"
She paused.
"You seem to despise everything about them and their technology. I was wondering if you liked them," he asked.
"They're fascinating things to study anyway."
"But they are just research cases."
She furrowed her eyebrows. "Don't look at me like that. You were once a pureblood supremacist, whereas I never was."
"It is a fact I regret about myself," he matched her expression. "Which is why I learned to restrain myself from becoming too arrogant."
"You certainly a judgmental for someone who has done the kinds of things you've done."
"You are certainly haughty for someone who claims to want to spread awareness of how muggles live."
"I prefer a man who will agree with my viewpoint every so often."
"I prefer a woman who is silent."
"Perhaps we should eat in silence," she replied in a low voice.
"That is an excellent idea."
So they sat in silence until Rosmerta appeared with their food. In silence they ate, and in silence Robin paid her bill before leaving. Then, Severus ordered another pumpkin beer, wondering how silence could be so welcome and oppressive at the same time.