Who: Severus Snape and John Watson. When: Early March Where: Park What: Random Encounter Rating/Warnings: Low/None Status: Complete
Severus Snape was at the park. It wasn’t one of the places that he was likely to be found--especially the canon version of himself. But this particular day was beautiful, and his children deserved to go out and play. He’d cut back his hours at the Pharmaceutical Company, and spent a lot of afternoons with his children. They deserved to have the undivided parental attention. Also, Sev had magic. He could make money, food and clothes appear practically out of thin air. (Bearing in mind Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration, of course.) He didn’t need his paycheck the way other people might.
His children needed to play in the sunshine. Daisy was on the swing going “higher and higher” and David was digging in the dirt. His birthday was coming up, wasn’t it? Snape made a mental note to throw him some kind of a party.
John didn’t drive. Well, he did, but so far not in America, and he was putting it off. Anyway, what was the point of living in California if he didn’t get out and enjoy it? Walking a bit of the way home was nice. It gave him exercise and kept his leg in motion. As he walked by the park, he didn’t give much notice to the families there. He would have just kept walking if the boy who was digging in the dirt didn’t suddenly lose his shovel, which ended up near John’s feet. Instantly, he stooped over and handed the shovel back with a friendly smile. “Here you are, then.”
Random stranger bending down to help his son caught Snape's attention. He perked up a little, sitting on the bench nearest the sand pit. There weren't many other families around, so Snape gave his children a little longer of a leash than he might have if the place was crowded.
"Sorry about that," Sev said to the man. "And thank you."
At the voice, John glanced up, immediately worried he was going to be accused of bothering the child. He just put on another smile and shrugged. “It’s all right. It happens, yeah? Wouldn’t have wanted someone to step on it by accident.”
“That’s very kind of you.” Severus mentioned, one eyebrow arching gracefully at the accent he detected on the other man’s voice. “Expatriate?” He asked, and a smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. He Dreamed of England. It might be nice to talk to someone who’d been there more recently than he had.
John’s smile quirked up a bit more. It wasn’t as if his accent was any sort of secret, but people were always keen to ask. “Just moved here not all that long ago actually. From London.”
Severus didn’t want to come off as being absolutely insane, so he didn’t mention how he spent a lot of time in London in his Dreams. He simply nodded. “What brings you to Orange County?” See? He could make small talk!
“Work, actually,” John replied. He was a friendly sort, and, unless he was in a hurry, didn’t mind small talk. “I teach surgery. I got offered a position out here and thought it was as good a reason as any to get out of London.”
“Ah.” Severus nodded. He was a Southern California native in this world, so it was natural that he’d hang around. He loved his mother, even though he knew she was weak. And when his father died there was no reason for him to avoid his hometown anymore. Besides, his wife was here, until she died, too. Now his children were settled. Daisy was registered for a good school. He had roots, surprisingly. He wasn’t going anywhere. “That’s a noble profession.” He added, softly.
John shrugged. “I guess. You can never have too many surgeons, right?” He didn’t think it was as noble as what he used to do, but it wasn’t a bad job. Not by any means.
“Well, I suppose we could have too many surgeons. But I doubt we ever will.” Sev said, frowning just a little. “It’s good for my career of choice, at any rate. More doctors means more drugs.” It was hard to tell if he was being sarcastic.
Either way, John let out a laugh. “You’re in pharmaceuticals, I guess? I never had the brain for it. I’d rather do the cutting and the sewing than all that other stuff.” He paused. “Sorry, that was a bit uncouth, wasn’t it?”
Snape actually chuckled. It was a rare thing, and for it to come out when it wasn’t related to his children? Impressive, John. “A bit. Understandable, though. It’s something I might have considered if it didn’t deal so much with blood and vomit.” He frowned a little. “The chemistry comes more naturally to me than stitching up flesh.”
“Bit the opposite of me, then.” John looked amused. He glanced around for a moment, then said, “I’ll let you get back to your family time, then. I hope you enjoy the rest of your day.”
“Thank you. And you, too.” Snape said, giving the man an uncharacteristic smile. It felt good.