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Tweak says, "I want a golden egg!"

Severus Snape (manofsecrets) wrote in hogwarts_dawn,
@ 2021-05-06 16:22:00

Entry tags:

character: harry potter, character: severus snape

Who: Severus & Harry
When: 6 May
Where: Headmaster's Office, then who knows?
What: A discussion about the aftermath

Severus leaned back in his chair and pushed away the paperwork he'd been going through. The records from the staff prior to the school closing down were surprisingly meticulous but not terribly edifying. Probably not much of a surprise but frustrating nonetheless. He tapped the cover of his journal and considered opening it to see what sort of debacle had occurred now but after the last couple of days, he probably didn't want to know.

He looked up at the portraits instead. The frame that apparently held his portrait had been empty ever since he'd stepped into the room. He didn't know whether his portrait self had somewhere else to go or whether he'd disappeared with his appearance. The latter didn't seem likely since Albus still wandered into his portrait. Not that any of the former Headmasters and Headmistresses had been able to offer any information about the virus, whether because they didn't know or because the castle was preventing them was up for debate.

He got up from behind the Headmaster's desk and began to pace the room, his thoughts turning back to the previous days' ructions. In all honesty, Potter's sudden abdication hadn't surprised him. Potter was about as well suited to being Minister as Severus himself had been to being a teacher. Between Nott's need to poke at people without considering the potential consequences and Potter's temper, that exchange between them went about as well as he'd expected. Nor was he surprised that where Potter lead, Weasley and Granger followed. It did leave something of a power vacuum at the top though. A concern given some of the people here.

He shook his head and decided he needed a walk and perhaps some tea. He swept out of the room and down the stairs, not even pausing as the gargoyle leapt aside for him with alacrity.

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ab_harry
2021-05-07 03:03 pm UTC (link)

"It was the day of the battle when I got the job. The Aurors were dead, a few were in hiding and the ones who worked under the Thicknesse' administration were arrested. There was no time for training, not when you had Greyback, Rosiers, Yaxley and so many others on the run. The moment he went down, they Disapparated without waiting. We had to find them and bring them to justice with no Wizengamot, no Aurors, nothing but a few people who'd been hiding, Ron, Neville and me," he said. "This actually reminds me of those days."

He accepted the wine; they could keep the firewhiskey for later. "We had nothing. People don't seem to realize that everyone still working at the Ministry was suddenly a potential Death Eater. Everyone had to be investigated and tried. It took us months to go through that, while the Death Eaters were put in cells waiting for trials. It took us years to get through them not because the trials were long, but because we didn't have a Wizengamot to run the full trial. I understand what it's like to have rules that can't be enforced, having to come up with temporary solutions that were always different, but always had to be fair. That's what people don't get it. Not a single thing is a problem. It's trying to keep it fair without pushing the system to the edge of destruction. I think we pushed it," he said, sighing.

"I thought Albus and Savannah has volunteered to help with some classes. You should talk to Parvati for Divination. I know it's not urgent, but if there's anyone who's got the gift, she'd know and the rest-" He chuckled. "I don't think we need to waste their time making up fake deaths like I did."

He smiled. "That large fat boy took up boxing and other stuff and became tall and built like a Greek God, blond, blue eyes and enough muscles to make you faint; Ginny said that. And yes, all three of his children are magical. Uncle Vernon died of a heart attack before they were born. Dudley said that Aunt Petunia has been supportive, but then she always adored him. He couldn't do anything wrong, so I'm not surprised."

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manofsecrets
2021-05-07 10:33 pm UTC (link)

"Ah, I was already dead by then so no wonder I was not able to be a voice of opposition and a fly in the ointment," Severus said with a level of snark that he hadn't been able to use with many people. The last people who had fallen into that category had been his fellow Heads - Minerva, Filius and Pomona. People always underestimated Hufflepuffs but Pomona had always been quick with a pithy word or two. "Then again, I doubt my word would have mattered much if I was there, given that it would have been difficult to hear it from Azkaban."

"They have but Savannah has only expressed interest in teaching Flying, which leaves a great deal for Albus and myself," he said, lounging in his chair as he idly swirled his wine in the glass. "We were thinking about something like an apprentice system, given we will be getting people at various ages. The language appropriate for a fifteen year old would not be suitable for an eleven year old." He paused and arched an eyebrow sardonically. "Or so I am told. I have never claimed to be a good teacher."

"Over-muscled oafs have never been to my tastes and Greek Gods are overrated," he said with a shrug. "Blond and blue can be attractive on the right person though." He snorted. "I'd imagine being jealous of your own grandchildren was a step too far even for Petunia."

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ab_harry
2021-05-07 10:49 pm UTC (link)

"Yes, you were dead and we were desperate," he said, with a shrug. "McGonagall wasn't happy. She told Kingsley off, wanted us to return to school, but there wasn't really any choice. We couldn't leave them walking around. And you would not have been in jail. I made sure that everyone knew what you had done and Dumbledore's memories proved that you only did what he ordered you to do."

Harry was already counting the classes in his head. "I bet Mum could teach herbology. She's in charge of the greenhouses anyway, that takes care of a few classes. Not optimal, but good. Hey, I can teach Defense unless you want to take the job," he teased. "I don't mind teaching them. Hell, they should be trained in case something happens. Hermione is great at Arithmancy. I mean none of us can teach full time since there are only 2 classes but we can help. And I thought you wanted to do with two classes, eleven to fourteen and fifteen to whatever?"

He snorted. "I didn't know that men were to your taste at all, but he was a looker. Still is. I met him after he owled me. His kids saw the news that I was alive and told him." He shrugged. "Vernon would have. The man was awful and I don't know about much it was her and how much it was him. Not that I have any interest in finding out."

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manofsecrets
2021-05-08 01:04 am UTC (link)

There were many things Severus could have said about that, mostly revolving around the fact that an eighteen year old was not the best option for that job, no matter who he was, but the fact was, he hadn't been there. He did quirk an eyebrow at the last statement though. "I'm not certain I would have handled that any better than prison. I had never anticipated surviving."

"It all largely depends on how many students we have. Flexibility is going to be important," he said as the house elf reappeared with their meal. He let the creature place the plates on the table then continued once it had disappeared. "And whether simply replicating what came before is the wisest move. The students need a good basic grounding in the fundamentals and that is largely where I want to concentrate initially. Transfiguration, Charms, Defence, Herbology, Potions. The first three years are the fundamentals." He frowned. "And I need to talk to the castle about opening up a new dormitory area. A neutral one."

"I was under the impression that students considered their teachers to be as sexless as a marble statue," he said dryly. "However, I have no particular preference between men and women." He snorted. "I only knew Petunia through Lily and him not at all. His attitude towards magic was not unfamiliar though." He paused to take a bite of his meal before finally deciding that Harry already knew enough for him to say what he did next. "My father... well, jealousy was probably an aspect of it, though it was more complicated with him."

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ab_harry
2021-05-08 01:28 am UTC (link)

"You should have survived. Everyone should have. I replayed that scene over and over in my head. I was there but there was nothing I could do. I wanted to, but I couldn't have stopped him, not when the horcruxes weren't all destroyed." He closed his eyes for a moment. "I'm sorry I should have done more for you."

Harry sat down, knowing that he should eat if he planned to drink later and he definitely planned to do that. "True, but as I said I can start rounding them up. Lucius said he'd go to the homes of the younger ones. His age might give us more credibility with parents." He smiled. "It does sound a little like the old curriculum. You're just missing History and Astronomy out of the first two years curriculum." He shook his head. "You don't have to. We left the Ravenclaw tower for that. It's safe and contained. They can just... redecorate without any of the houses or will a little bit of all four, keep the tradition without keeping the divisions."

He snorted. "I stopped thinking of you as my teacher long ago. You went from being evil incarnate to being my saviour, settling on the fact that you were a very good man in an impossible situation." He tried to eat slowly, because he knew he was in the habit of eating at super speed despite years of having enough food. "You know, sometimes I think of men like them and wonder if I should have fought so hard to protect them, and I know how absurd it is, because it's wrong to hurt people indiscriminately, but I wasn't sorry when he died."

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manofsecrets
2021-05-08 02:41 am UTC (link)

Severus gave a somewhat dismissive flick of his fingers. "The odds of my survival dipped considerably the moment I killed Albus. The Order would have killed me on sight if I'd given them the opportunity, every Death Eater wanted my position and were scheming to get it and there was only so long that the Dark Lord was going to allow a contender to his throne." He shook his head. "My last job was to somehow tell you that you were a horcrux and needed to allow the Dark Lord to kill you." He smirked. "Something I was sure was going to go very badly."

"Lucius can bring the appropriate gravitas to the job," he said with a nod. "Irrespective of any other opinions he might have, he values the wizarding world. He's unlikely to sabotage things." He snorted. "History can wait until we find a suitable group to revise the curriculum. I'd like the class to be relevant this time." He considered that. "Yes, I'd like it stripped of all House decorations, though I'm not averse to each House crest being in the common room, and with a non-partisan portrait to guard the door."

One eyebrow shot up and he gave Harry a long look. "I have been called many things but a good man was never one of them. Nor would I claim to be one." He shrugged. "My father... he was not always like that. I think I was about six or seven when the factory he worked at closed, along with many others. Jobs became scarce and he was out of work more than he was in work. He was a proud man and not being able to provide for his family made him bitter and angry. He died not long after I finished at Hogwarts. Drank himself to death."

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