Snapedom

Note: you must sign up for an account to post comments on the Snupin Santa site (due to an influx of anonymous spam comments), but you can also leave comments on the fic announcement posts on IJ or LJ.

Title: How (Not) To Relax, for skitty-kat; comment here on LJ or IJ
From: Your Secret Snupin Santa
Summary: Severus has been living a double life for years. Now he’s decided to include someone else. What happens when his new lover discovers his secret?
Rated: Coal and Switches (NC17)
Warning: Cross-dressing. Not entirely canon compliant, especially in regards to DH.
Notes: This is for Skitty-Kat, who wanted “A follow-up fic to my couple of small pieces of ridiculousness posted here. Severus likes to relax by dressing as a woman and has been working as the school librarian, Madam Pince. Remus has gained permission from 'Madam Pince' to court Severus without knowing of Severus's cross-dressing habits. Gentle, mildly silly and excessively porny, please.” I hope this trifle makes your holidays merry and bright!
Word count: 3479

A clever, funny, and touching fic about how Snape has been cross-dressing and posing as Madam Pince, whom Lupin has mistaken for Snape's mother. After Snape and Lupin become lovers, Snape isn't quite sure how to tell Lupin the truth, but then Lupin stumbles across it by accident. Snape is afraid that Lupin will reject him, so it was quite moving and satisfying to see Lupin wholeheartedly accept him as he is--cross-dressing included. An added bonus is a delightful portrayal of Pansy Parkinson as "Madam Pince's" assistant, who aids Snape in pulling off his deception. I've had a soft spot for Pansy ever since she was made out to be a villain in Book 7, and it was lovely to see her fleshed out and made into a three-dimensional character here: she's sympathetic, funny, and as befits a Slytherin, a bit naughty. ;-)

***

Title: Bonds and Birds: A Theodore Lupin Conspiracy, for zephre; comment here on LJ or IJ
From: Your Secret Snupin Santa
Summary: Twelve years after the Second Voldemort War, Severus Snape becomes a target of dangerous pranks. No-one knows who casts the spells, and Remus Lupin is called to investigate. But it soon appears that Theodore Lupin is in the midst of everything.
Rated: Gingersnaps (PG13)
Notes: Zephre, I am so glad you are my recipient. You have made my entire year worth it with your art so I am hoping I can return the favour in at least a small way. I hope you enjoy this! I tried combining your requests: "Snape and Lupin have to solve a mystery or figure out a puzzling problem together," "How do Snape and Lupin go from enemies to colleagues to something more?" and Teddy. And just for you, I tried to keep the angst into a minimum! Happy holidays! Also, I must thank someone who listened to my woes and questions of self-worth while writing this fic.
Warning: next-gen problems, and I changed Fred Weasley II's supposed year of birth to match some of the characters.
Word count: 13802

I'm a sucker for Snupin + Teddy fics, so of course I loved this one! I also enjoy mystery stories, and this one includes a very intriguing mystery that Snape and Lupin have to solve, where Snape appears to be the target of increasingly dangerous pranks, and somehow Teddy (who is attending Hogwarts) seems to be in the midst of things. I loved the mystery element, and I enjoyed seeing Snape and Lupin working through their past and developing a friendship and eventually a romance. Another thing Snapefen will like--whether you're a Snupin shipper or not--is the portrayal of Snape as a teacher. There's no doubt that he's the snarky, intimidating Professor Snape that we know from the books, but we also get to see his concern for his students and a bit of his softer side, which I really loved.

***

Title: The Stupendous Snupin Film Club, for little-iago; comment here on LJ or IJ
From: Your Secret Snupin Santa
Summary: An introduction to muggle films with Lupin and Snape. This could be fun.
Rated: Gingerbread & Cocoa (PG)
Notes: I hope you find this funny (Merlin knows there ain't much else going for it!), darling. Now, technically, it's got one of your unwanted contents things but it's only for a panel and really, how could I not? ;D
This art is intended for the recipient only; please do not take or use it for icons, wallpaper, or any other form of graphics.

This one's an art rec: a comic-strip style story of Snape and Lupin putting their own spin on Muggle films, and it's absolutely hilarious. Dobby as an Ewok really cracked me up! (Warning: do not drink anything while reading this, because I nearly spewed a mouthful of water onto my laptop when I burst out laughing.) Also, Snape makes a very dashing Indiana Jones. ;-)

***

Title: Grey/Aloha/A Twist of Kindness, for silenceberry; comment here on LJ or IJ
From: Your Secret Snupin Santa
Summary: A set of three works for silenceberry.
Rated: Holiday Spice (R)
Word count: 2774

Three short stories that are a mix of humor, romance, and angst. The first and third stories show different takes on how Snape and Lupin become a couple, while the second shows them as an established couple honeymooning in Hawaii. All three are lovely, but my hands-down favorite is the second story, "Aloha," which is really hilarious: snarky Snape, as one might imagine, is not impressed by the friendly girl at the airport handing out flower leis, or by the sunny weather (it's too hot and too bright), and certainly not by the fat tourist in the Hawaiian print shirt. He's soon at the point where he's ready to hex the next person who says the word "Aloha" to him, but all turns out well in the end. ;-)

***

And finally...

Title: Taste, for islandsmoke; comment here on LJ or IJ
From: Your Secret Snupin Santa
Summary: Severus Snape is ordered to go on holidays so he seeks out a cooking class overseas. But it appears the cooking classes are more popular than he thought.
Rated: Gingerbread & Cocoa (PG)
Word count: 6165
Disclaimer: This is a work of fanfiction set in the Harry Potter universe – all recognisable characters and settings are the property of J. K. Rowling and her associates. No copyright infringement is intended. No profit is made from this work.
Author's Notes: Much love to my beta for the very quick work. Many thanks to the mods for being patient with me in my writing block and for running such a great fest every year. Merry Snupin Christmas . You wanted to know what Remus and Severus got up to during their summers. This is how I imagine they spent them.

A very funny, romantic, and if you'll pardon the pun, absolutely delicious story in which Snape and Lupin, much to their displeasure, find themselves enrolled in the same cooking class while on vacation. I've read many Snupin stories where Lupin has been carrying a torch for Snape for years, and while I love that trope, it was kind of refreshing to see that wasn't the case here. In fact, Lupin does not like Snape at all (and the feeling is mutual on Snape's part), still thinking of him as "Snivellus" from their schoolboy days. They both behave badly--Snape insults Lupin; Lupin retaliates with a silencing hex. Not exactly an auspicious start to a love story, but after some reflection, Lupin apologizes and they attempt to put the past behind them. From there, a tentative friendship and romance develops, not without some bumps along the way, but they find that they work well together and that cooking can be a very sensual pastime.

I loved the humor and the delicious descriptions of the food that they were cooking, but since their romance begins pre-POA, I feared an angsty ending. I don't want to give too much away, but suffice it to say that the story ends in a very moving and satisfying way. My only complaint is that reading this story made me very hungry! However, the author does provide recipes of the dishes that Snape and Lupin are cooking so that you can try them out for yourself.