#9 ~ The Dunderhead's Miracle [G] (RL/SS; HP/DM) Title:
The Dunderhead’s Miracle 9
Author:bonfoi Rating: G Pairing: Remus Lupin/Severus Snape; Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy; Kreacher Summary: Rebuilding means forging new relationships…and rediscovering old ones. During the first Voldemort-free Christmas hols, two couples—one brand new, the other separated by time and distance—discover the joys of giving and receiving. Challenge:adventdrabbles 2011: Day 9 ~ Eggnog Word Count: 665 Genre: Alternate Universe; EWE; Post-Second Voldemort War; Romance; Angst; Humor Warnings: Original characters; Deathly Hallows, what Deathly Hallows? A/N: Thank goodness for heating pads, otherwise I would have missed posting today’s prompt.
Disclaimer: The world of Harry Potter, its characters and settings are the copyrighted works of J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros., her publishing companies and affiliates. No profit was made from the writing of this story nor was any malice intended in any way, shape or form to the author or the actors/actresses who so brilliantly have brought them to life.
This author is not responsible for underage readers. Please observe the ratings, warnings, and age of legal consent for your country.
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Remus yelled for Kreacher. “Bring me some eggnog, will you, Kreacher?” His cane clattered to the floor as it slipped from his fingers. He gave it a look and then ignored it.
The ancient house-elf shuffled into the room and sniffed superiorly. “Kreacher makes eggnog. No other kind.” His eyes swept the room and, with a snap of his fingers, he summoned the gingerbread crumbs and various other bits from the carpet into his large hands. “Wolfy uncle stays clean while Kreacher does it.”
Remus boggled a bit and then gave a tipsy laugh. “Yeah, you do that, you old faker. I’ll stay right here, but—”
The tea cup lifted up from its saucer as if invisible hands were moving it and the saucer floated over to rest on Remus’ lap. Two gingerbread biscuits rose up from their larger plate and landed on Remus’ plate. “Eggnog soon.” Kreacher stared pointedly from the plate to the carpet and back and then muttered something about rugs not knowing better before he popped away.
Remus picked up another gingerbread biscuit and sniffed it. There was something about it that was just like the biscuits his mum would send when they were at Hogwarts. He tried to catalogue the ingredients by scent, but that ‘sorry juice’ had its own potent aroma and it was interfering. He shrugged his shoulders and bit into it, chewing slowly, trying to separate out the ingredients by taste and failing for the same reason.
“Bah! Should just enjoy the damned thing,” he muttered and then took another bite. “Mm, yeah, just like Mum’s…”
“Eggnog.” Kreacher’s voice caused Remus to jump and twist in his chair and he slipped to the floor, his plate with its one biscuit flying in another direction. Kreacher turned his head and the plate and biscuit hung in the air, scant inches from crashing into the leg of an escritoire. “Wolfy uncle needs eggnog now.” Kreacher held out a copper salver with a thick-bottomed glass filled with a buttery-yellow, thick, creamy liquid.
“Um, that’s not eggnog like I remember it,” Remus said slowly. Still, his hand was reaching up toward the salver.
“Black family recipe,” Kreacher said proudly. “Best in England. No cherries.”
The glass was slightly warm in Remus’ hand, yet the eggnog was chilled as it passed between his lips.
“Wolfy uncle likes?” Kreacher asked. He rocked slightly on his heels, waiting for Remus to speak.
Remus licked his lips after his first sip. “Delicious,” he breathed just before he raised the glass again.
“Taught Snape when he visited.”
The eggnog spray Remus let out bathed the house-elf from oversized ears to waist. “What?”
Remus looked at Kreacher’s shocked features and then laughed. It was tinged with a bit of hysteria, but it felt good. “Damn, I’m sorry I wasted that, Kreacher. It really is exceptional.” Remus looked sheepishly up at Kreacher as he wiped his chin and stared morosely into his now empty glass.
“Hmph! Kreacher always makes more. Wolfy uncle never stays clean,” he grumbled as he hobbled out of the room, muttering under his breath.
~o~O~o~
Severus put his feet up and sipped at his eggnog. He licked the froth from his lips and sighed as he looked over at the sketches of Draco and Potter’s cake and the decorations that he’d tacked to the wall. He looked away to stare into his cup of eggnog.
“Only thing to come out of the Noble House of Black and it’s beaten eggs and milk. Must have stolen it from Muggles, that’s the only way,” he muttered as he slowly relaxed.
His experimental cakes were lined up in the kitchen, ready for taste-tests. The icing would be made up fresh in the morning. He inhaled the blended scents of old brandy and ground vanilla beans. “Begin notes. Should have some vanilla bean flakes in the icing,” he said aloud. A quill scraped on a parchment scroll behind him. “End notes.” The quill dropped to the parchment.