Secret Snarry: FIC: First Christmas Title: First Christmas Author:atypicalsnowman Gift Recipient:venturous Rating: PG-13 Word count: 3,100 Content/Warning(s): (highlight for spoilers) *Fluff, of the literal and metaphorical variety.* Summary/Prompt: Christmas kitten, kissing, long black hair, loyalty. A/N: Thanks to roozetter and lovetoseverus for the beta. I hope you enjoy where your prompts took me, mystery recipient. The second part came as a surprise, but I hope you enjoy it.
First Christmas, Part One
Harry accepted the wrapped box—with holes along the bottom of course—that the neighbor boy had been asked to keep until this morning, giving him a few notes for his trouble.
“Thanks, Tim,” Harry said, closing the door and putting an ear to the box. A soft meow and then the sound of nails on cardboard could be heard, and Harry exhaled a breath and made his way to the sitting room.
Grimmauld Place looked completely different now that Harry and Severus had remade the place and began living there properly. The biggest difference compared to the old days, Harry thought, was not the lack of doxies or a screaming portrait in the hall. It was the man who had been so miserable for so many years who was now properly happy.
“Merlin help you if that wasn’t breakfast, Potter,” Severus said from his place on the sofa. “I’m starving and you’ve already taken time that should be devoted to bacon with this gift exchange.”
Well perhaps he never really seemed happy, but Harry was now well-versed in reading between the lines of Severus Snape. The way his arms were spread along one side of the sofa let Harry know exactly where he was wanted. And if that wasn’t enough, the sight of Grimmauld Place completely done up in Christmas lights and trimmings did the trick. Severus was never one to truly celebrate the holiday, but when Harry had told him that he’d never really had his own celebration Severus had readily complied with everything he wanted.
With enough sarcasm and snark to strangle a man, of course.
Biting his lip and reminding himself why he had chosen this gift for Severus, Harry slid into the seat next to him, comforted when Severus’ hand came to rest on his shoulder.
“I got something for you.”
“Clearly,” Severus said, his eyebrow raised. “I’d nearly forgotten today’s date.” He waved a hand at the decorated mantel and brightly lit tree. “Hardly anything to remind me.”
“Shut it,” Harry said, putting his eyes on the ground and questioning his decision. It suddenly seemed like a ridiculous gift to give a fully grown man, and Harry suddenly wished he’d bought Severus something safe like potions ingredients instead of what was currently trying to fight its way out of the box.
“I—” he started, then stopped himself when his stomach began to churn. A hand ran lightly through his hair, gently encouraging him in that perfect way Severus always did: hardly ever with words, but always in a way that Harry needed.
“This is the first real Christmas I’ve ever had,” Harry said softly. “I’d always wanted one of my own. Christmas with the Weasleys, even with Sirius, always felt like I was intruding on someone else’s. But here,” he said, sliding a free hand into Severus’, “with you, it feels like home to me in a way it’s never felt before.”
A subtle lift of Severus’ lip and the softness in his gaze spoke volumes to Harry, and the hand in his began to rub soft circles onto his skin. Steeling himself, Harry passed the box over to Severus, but placed a hand over his when he moved to undo the ribbon.
“I wanted to get you something like you gave me, something you never had before. Something that might seem silly, but I thought you might like.”
“Harry...”
“And if you do think it’s silly, it’s only because I put much too much thought into it...”
“Harry,” Severus said, placing his other hand on top of Harry’s. “May I open the box?”
“Yeah,” Harry said, his hands nearly shaking as he anticipated Severus’ reaction.
Slowly undoing the ribbon, Harry held his breath as Severus carefully tore the wrapping paper, opened the box, and pulled out a fluffy black kitten.
“Meow.”
Silence.
Harry watched as Severus inspected the kitten, seeming confused as to what he was doing holding onto it.
Harry panicked. “I’m an idiot.” He tried not to chastise himself too much, but a voice in his mind—that sounded much like Severus—reminded him that it was ridiculous to gift a grown man with a fluffy animal. “It’s just—you never got to have a familiar. Not even when you left Hogwarts and I thought—” The silence stretched on as Severus turned from the cat to Harry, his expression one that Harry, for once, couldn’t read. “I can give him to Teddy. I’m sure he’d love—”
“You will do no such thing,” Severus finally said, placing the kitten on his lap and petting him. He was quiet for another moment and his eyes were still focused on the kitten when he said, “It’s a very fitting gift for this Christmas.”
“Our first Christmas,” Harry said, exhaling.
“Indeed. You say I’ve given you something you’ve never experienced before.” He placed the kitten on the ground, balled up some of the wrapping paper, and threw it onto the floor for the kitten to play with. Taking Harry’s hands in his own, Severus said, “I realize it’s rare that I express myself with words, but...” He cleared his throat, and Harry smiled widely as he realized that—for once—Severus was at a loss for what to say. “You must realize that you...are every good thing in this life.”
Harry barked out a laugh of relief and fell into Severus’ arms.
“When you’re not being a complete idiot, of course,” Severus said into his hair.
“Of course.” Harry smiled and curled closer around Severus. “So it wasn’t a silly gift?”
“No. I like him very much. I’m sure he’ll make a good companion, and he’ll be able to contribute several potions ingredients.”
Harry laughed. “Yeah, right. So, what are you going to name him?”
“We can’t just call him ‘cat’?”
“No.”
Severus’ sigh lifted Harry’s head up and down. “Here, cat.” The kitten made its way over to Severus, who then picked it up by its scruff and examined it.
“Beelzebub?”
“No.”
“Salazar?”
“No—really? You really want to call him that?”
Severus sighed again. “Weasley?”
“Wea—why?”
“Because then I couldn’t be accused of being cruel when criticizing the name. I could say ‘idiot, Weasley, get down from there!’ and you couldn’t be cross with me.”
“Severus!”
“'Weasley, stop humping the kitchen table!’”
“All right, cut it out,” Harry said, laughing. “Be serious.”
Severus let the kitten crawl onto Harry’s shoulder and petted him, his hand trailing down to lightly graze Harry’s back with each stroke.
“Bagheera.”
“Bagheera?” Harry repeated.
“Well, either that or Lucifer.”
“Right then. Bagheera.” He tried it out on the cat and nodded. “I like that.”
“I’m so glad we finally meet your approval.” He placed the kitten on the ground once again and tilted Harry’s chin to face him. “Thank you for my gift, Harry.”
Harry quickly shortened the distance between them, lips meeting lips in a sweet kiss that confessed every feeling between them, with no words necessary. Harry sighed happily and deepened the kiss, his tongue parting Severus’ lips and his hands slipping into long, black hair. He was so caught up in the kiss that he hardly noticed Severus slipping a small box into his hand.
“Mmm, what?”
“Happy Christmas, Harry.”
Harry smiled, then looked down to find a small, black velvet box in his hand. He felt his heart clench in his chest and all the breath leave his body as he realized what had to be inside the box.
“I—oh.” It was such a small thing, he thought. Something so small, so harmless, yet Harry found himself unable to open it.
A kiss was placed on his cheek. “Open it.”
“But I already know what’s inside,” he said, his voice wavering and betraying his emotions. He exhaled and readied himself for the life he’d always wanted: a life with someone he loved. A life with Severus.
“Do you?”
“Our future,” he whispered, then smiled at Severus, and opened the box.
First Christmas, Part Two
Harry sighed happily and let his feet fall from the side table to the floor. The fire was keeping him warm and toasty, and the wireless was playing a soft Christmasy tune that fit his mood perfectly.
And if that wasn’t enough, the thought of two simple bands of gold in his pocket would have been plenty to keep him happy till the end of his days. He surveyed the wreckage of undone wrapping paper and cat toys littered across their sitting room and relaxed.
A short time later he was woken by a sudden weight on his chest and a pounding in his head that couldn’t be ignored.
“Oh,” he said, his voice thick with sleep and his head spinning. “Hello, Bagheera.”
“Mew.”
“Severus?” Harry called out, petting Bagheera and calling towards Severus’ potions lab. “What time is it?” He yawned and stretched back further into the sofa.
“We’re supposed to go to the Weasleys’ for dinner.”
“Unlikely,” Severus said, coming up behind him and laying a hand on his shoulder.
“There’s a snow storm, and it’s unwise to Floo in such conditions.”
Harry frowned. “Can’t we Apparate?”
“Not in this storm.” From behind him Severus scoffed. “Is the little devil already taking liberties with my intended?”
“Mmm, I don’t mind. My head is pounding and he’s...soft.” He petted the kitten again and leaned back into the sofa. “Kinda glad we’re not going to dinner. Not really feeling up to it.”
Cool, calloused fingers rubbed over his forehead and he sighed softly as a small amount of the pain subsided. “Keep doing that, please.”
“Is the pain truly that bad?”
Harry frowned and compared the headache he was currently experiencing to past ones—including the ones Voldemort used to create. “Compared to Voldemort or Occlumency lessons? Not at all.” The fingers went still for a moment, then continued when Harry made a soft moan. “Still not pleasant though.”
“As much as you enjoy my hands, they’d be put to better use making something to ease your suffering.” Severus was silent for a moment, then his hands left Harry’s face and picked up Bagheera. “In addition, I can put your gift to good use.”
Smiling, Harry leaned up and watched Severus carry the kitten away. “Going to use him in a potion, are you?”
“Yes,” Severus said, so straight-faced Harry would have laughed had he not been sure it would have hurt. “There are several strong pain relief potions in which he can be used.”
“Hmm,” Harry hummed with a smile. “You’re so good to me.”
Leaning back into the sofa, Harry closed his eyes, then felt soft hair prickling his cheeks and a gentle kiss placed on his lips. “It’s a good thing I’ve decided to take care of you, Potter.”
Harry smiled into the kiss and tried to deepen it, but Severus pulled away, cat still in his arms. “You always have. Why stop now?”
“Indeed. It seems it’s my lot in life.”
Harry laughed, then moaned as his head pounded harder and barely noticed Severus closing the door to his lab.
* * * * *
Harry woke some time later, his head still pounding and wondering if Severus was done with the potion. He made a quick trip to the loo, then went to find the door to the cellar still closed. Grumbling in pain and disappointment, Harry went back to rest on the sofa and called for the cat.
“Bagheera? Here, puss.” There was no response, so he shook a bag of treats to get his attention.
Still no response.
Slightly worried that Bagheera had gotten himself lost on his first day in a new place, Harry walked through Grimmauld Place, shaking the bag of treats and calling out for him.
It was only when he went by Severus’ lab that he heard a loud meowing and then Severus shouting, “Stop that! Hold still, you infernal beast, or it’ll hurt more!”
Oh, surely not, he thought. There was no way Severus had been serious, no way he would actually chop up an innocent creature—a kitten, no less—and use him in a potion. That was the sort of thing Harry would have suspected of Professor Snape when he’d been younger, not the kind, generous man whom he loved.
He felt incredibly guilty as he quietly opened the door to the lab, bypassing the stair that creaked on his way down to Severus’ cellar.
He was only checking on Severus, he told himself. He was just checking to make sure Bagheera wasn’t disturbing him, wasn’t trying to climb into a cauldron filled to the brim with boiling beetle eyes and stinging nettles.
The man who loved Severus tried to calm down the angry, frightened student he had been as he made his way down the stairs...
Only to find Severus with a knife in hand, his other holding down Bagheera’s head on a chopping block.
“Severus!” he cried as Severus swung the knife in a sharp downward slice. “No!”
The sound of the knife meeting wood caused Harry to flinch and close his eyes, his head pounding as half his thoughts were trying to find excuses for what Severus had done and the other half was telling him to punch him in the nose.
“Severus!” he gasped, his eyes turned to the floor. “My headache wasn’t that bad! You didn’t have to—”
“Meow.”
“Didn’t have to what?” Severus asked, putting down the knife and collecting something Harry couldn’t see from the cutting board. Bagheera sat up on the bench and licked his paw.
Harry slouched in relief and then felt an irrational anger towards someone who had just not murdered a cat. “You bastard! Do you have any idea what that looked like?”
“What what looked like?” he asked, petting Bagheera and looking at Harry carefully. “Is your head feeling any better?”
“Is my— I thought you’d just murdered the cat! What did you do to him?”
“I harvested a few of his whiskers to use for your potion,” Severus said, as though Harry were some idiot for not knowing. “You thought I did what to him?”
“His—doesn’t he need his whiskers?”
“Of course he does,” Severus said, and Harry was beginning to feel more like a student by the minute. “However, we have come to an arrangement.”
Harry slowly sat down on one of the stools, forcing his breaths to calm and hoping his head would stop pounding. “You made an arrangement...with a cat?”
“No,” Severus said, just as slowly, like he was talking to a child. Harry suddenly had a flashback to the potions classroom and hid an unpleasant shudder. “I’ve made an arrangement with our Kneazle.”
“Our Kneazle?” Harry said, then looked to see the cat giving himself a bath. “Our kitten’s a Kneazle?”
“I thought you knew,” Severus said, taking the treat bag Harry had forgotten he’d had in his hand and giving Bagheera one.
“But I got him at a Muggle shelter.”
“And you’re surprised that you—a wizard—were able to find what was probably the one Kneazle in the hoard?”
“Well, I...” Harry ran a hand through his hair and decided not to admit he’d picked their kitten based on the assumption that Severus would be less likely to toss it out if it was black.
“Kneazles,” Severus said in his lecture tone, “are magical creatures and therefore have higher cognitive functions than regular cats. Thus, I was able to make an agreement with Bagheera regarding his stay here.”
Having decided that his headache had forced him to some odd hell, Harry decided to stay silent.
“We will feed him, provide him with lodging, healthcare, and access to the bed when it’s not in use,” Severus said, as though negotiations with a cat were the most normal thing in the world. “In exchange he will allow you to pet him whenever you’d like, kill mice and other unwanted vermin, and provide me with whiskers when I require them.”
Harry groaned and put his head in hands. Fingers that were warmer than they’d been before touched his forehead and pulled his head back.
“Did you really think I’d murder a cat?” Severus’ glare was tempered with humor, for which Harry was glad.
“He’s a Kneazle.”
“Indeed. Still, he was a gift.”
Harry looked at Severus in horror. “That’s why you wouldn’t murder him?”
“Hmph. How is your head?”
The wool of Severus’ robes was hardly conducive to the healing process, but Harry still laid his head across Severus’ chest in response.
“Here,” Severus said, placing Bagheera in Harry’s hands. “Take your cat and go lie down. I’ll have the potion ready in a few minutes.”
The stairs were difficult to navigate with his head throbbing, but Bagheera was soft in his hands and the loud purring in Harry’s ear was soothing. He sat down on the sofa and let the soft noise carry him until Severus returned with a potion.
“Here,” Severus said, helping him to drink it. “Though I’m afraid I had to toss in tiny bits of Weasley to achieve full potency.”
“Prat,” Harry said, but his headache was gone almost immediately. “You have to admit, it looked pretty bad from where I was standing.”
“Murder a cat,” Severus muttered. “Is that what you think of me?”
Harry thought about it for a moment, recalled how it had been easier for the student he had been to have those thoughts. Then he thought of how he’d grown, how they had both grown together.
“Not anymore,” he said. His side grew warm when Severus sat down next to him, arm wrapped around Harry’s shoulder and Bagheera purring madly in his lap.
“All things considered, I think this was the perfect Christmas,” Harry said, happy as he slid his hand over Severus’ thigh.
“Indeed,” Severus said, gently placing Bagheera on the floor, then leaning over Harry with a leer in his eyes. “The first of many.”