58

Return of the Raven

"Dante, maybe you ought to try and identify the feather and the fur we found?" Harry suggested.

"Okay. Just let me summon my compendium," the older wizard agreed, and made a beckoning motion and whispered, "Accio creature compendium!"

A large leather-bound book with a gold dragon, a fox with nine tails, and a thunderbird zoomed into Dante's outstretched hands. Harry stared at it with interest.

"Merlin's hat! That's like a dictionary. I didn't realize it was so big."

"I know. But I usually shrink it down to carry it with me," Dante said. He withdrew the feather and the fur from his pocket. "Now, let's see if I can find—"

They were interrupted by the door to the suite opening.

Shoot! Severus! Dante thought, and quickly performed some quick sleight-of-hand, making the feather and fur vanish up his sleeve in a twinkling. Then he said conversationally, "Here's my creature compendium, Harry. You can read about every creature native to America in here, and other countries too."

Harry almost started, but caught himself in time and simply looked up. "Hi, Dad."

Severus turned from hanging his professor's robes up on the hook beside the door. "Hello, boys. I see you found the oatmeal biscuits I left."

Harry hastily brushed crumbs from his robes. "Uh huh. They were really good." Bloody hell! I thought we'd have more time. Guess we'll have to wait till he's asleep to look it up. He pulled out his watch, smiled at Lily, then looked at the time. "They ought to be here any minute."

"In that case . . ." Severus looked at the plate of biscuits, which were half gone and called, "Prissy, would you bring another plate of oatmeal biscuits."

Prissy popped in with a big plate of oatmeal almond biscuits. "Here you go, Master Professor Snape!" Then she snapped her fingers and a tea tray also appeared. "Here is you tea, sir."

Severus gave the elf a pleased look. "That's very thoughtful of you, Prissy. However, we need more goblets and milk."

"Prissy will fetch it, Master Professor!"

She blinked away, returning in a few moments with a tray full of goblets and a pitcher of chocolate milk.

Harry thanked her and set the tray and the large plate with the biscuits on the round table in the corner of the professor's sitting room. "Hmm . . . maybe we need a bigger table. I invited Daphne and you're here too, Dante."

"Stand back. I'll fix it," Dante murmured, and drew his wand. He pointed it at the table and hissed, "Engorgio!"

The table was enlarged, enough so it would comfortably fit seven people.

"I hope we learn that charm this year," Harry said wistfully.

"If you don't I can show you," Dante offered.

"Thanks," Harry grinned.

Dante shrugged, embarrassed. "No problem."

Severus smiled as he removed some homework from his leather satchel to grade. It was good to see his boys getting along and cooperating. It was what he had hoped for over the summer.

Seconds later a knock came at the door. "Professor Snape? It's Daphne."

"Come in, Miss Greengrass," Severus invited, and Daphne entered, her bookbag slung over one shoulder. "Prompt as always." Her Head said approvingly.

"Grandmother taught me and my little sister to always arrive on time," Daphne admitted, her peridot eyes glinting with delight. She looked about curiously, for this was the first time she had ever been inside Snape's private quarters. She thought it reflected the professor, with its neat and tidy appearance, yet at the same time it was also cozy and comfortable, with the gray suede couch and recliner, a large carpet with geometrical designs on it and the bookshelves with books on one side and potions on the other.

"Hey, Daphne," Harry greeted her. "Come and have a biscuit." He gestured to the round table with its plate of biscuits and milk.

The girl's eyes widened. "You have snacks? Brilliant! I'm starving for some reason." She walked over and sat down, setting her bag by her feet. She took a biscuit, a napkin, and a goblet of milk. She sighed in bliss as she bit into the sweet. "Mmm! These taste like they were freshly baked."

"They probably were. I asked Prissy to make more of them," Severus interjected, he had his own plate of them as well as a mug of coffee on the table beside him.

"They taste as good as the ones my grandma makes," Daphne murmured, happily munching. "The almonds make them so much more delicious. I wonder if the house elves would be willing to share the recipe?"

"The house elves didn't make the recipe though," Dante said. "Severus did."

The Slytherin girl gaped at her teacher. "You bake, Professor?"

"I do," answered Snape, a slight smile quirking up his mouth.

"He cooks as good as this too," Harry told her.

Severus wrote rapidly on a spare bit of parchment, then floated it over to Daphne. "Here, Daphne. Just remember this recipe is for a Muggle oven, since it's what I have in my home Ravenhold. So you might need to adjust baking time for a SpellOven."

"Thanks so much sir!" Daphne sounded as if he had given her the key to the Elixir of Life. "I'll send it home to Gran with Apollo tonight." She picked up another biscuit and ate it.

"Good aren't they?" Harry said, eating one himself.

"They are addicting," the girl laughed. She pushed the plate away.

Just then another knock came and this time it was the rest of the study group.

Everyone greeted Snape and then took seats around the table. Soon the plate of biscuits was devoured and the goblets of milk drunk. Then they all took out various homework assignments and began to study, asking for help from each other quietly if they were having trouble understanding something.

Harry discovered that Daphne was an ace not only with potions, but also History of Magic. "I really want to know how you manage not to fall asleep in that class."

The Slytherin girl chuckled. "I tune Binns out and just read and take my own notes on whatever we're supposed to be learning that day. Look," she showed the others her notes, which involved a bunch of diagrams with arrows showing an event with a date and then what happened because or in spite of it.

Hermione blinked as she looked at Daphne's diagrams and said, "Merlin! That's brilliant! How did you think of that?"

"Well, it's how my dad taught me how to remember heraldry and genealogy when I was ten and my grandmother insisted on my memorizing all the pureblood families house crests, mottos, and how we were all related. It used to make my head spin like a top until Dad showed me how to diagram things out."

"Don't you have a family genealogy book, Greengrass?" asked Draco.

"Of course, but who wants to lug that heavy thing around every time you need to host a dinner or something?" Daphne reminded. "So Gran insisted I memorize all the crests and whatnot, so I wouldn't offend anyone if I happened to be hosting a party or whatever. Memorizing all those facts is kind of like history, so I thought it would work as well in Binns class."

"And you're right," Dante agreed. "My tutor, Mark Methglyn, taught me mneumonics for remembering all the First Families, so I didn't embarrass my dad at any social gatherings. Even though there are only a hundred of us, image was always a big thing with him."

"Like it is in most pureblood families," sighed Blaise. "I think I need you to show me how to diagram like that, Greengrass."

"Me too," said Harry. "I always doze off when Binns starts lecturing, his voice could put a bear into hibernation."

Neville found that together Harry and Daphne could explain the potions homework in a way that he could figure out the answers to the questions without too much trouble and he could also write his essay without stressing over it.

Dante and Ron also listened intently, for they also needed to improve their potion making skills.

Severus continued his marking of fourth-and-fifth year homework, grateful that Lena was grading his first through third year homework in his office. She had shown up promptly after supper and he had provided her with a pot of coffee, plenty of cream and sugar, and a plate of butterscotch shortbreads. She had begun marking homework before his student Talia Amherst had shown up to ask a question about the Draught of Living Death which she was brewing as part of her NEWT class.

Meanwhile, Dante completed his homework for Care of Magical Creatures, using both his creature compendium and the standard Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them to draw sketches of a hippogriff and a salamander. Blaise happened to glance over at what the older boy was drawing, as he added color to his sketches and his dark eyes widened.

"Mama Mia! Dante, that's really good! Where did you learn to draw like that?"

Dante shrugged. "My old teacher, Shaman Eagle Crest, taught me how to sketch years ago." He added more detail to his hippogriff, using light and shadow on the feathers and long tail.

"May I see?" asked Hermione.

She rose and peered over at Dante's drawing. "Wow! That's amazing! It looks real!"

The boy blushed. "It's just a sketch."

"Better than I could do," Harry remarked. "Mine would look like a sick chicken."

"What else can you sketch?" Ron wondered. "You ever draw dragons? My brother Charlie is crazy about them, he's a Dragonologist in Romania."

"Who drew dragons on everything, including my homework assignments when he was a student," drawled Severus.

"I know." Ron laughed. "Mum says once he drew a dragon with magical ink on his bedroom window!"

Snape rolled his eyes. "Now that does not surprise me at all. I'm surprised he did not obtain a tattoo of one once he was of age."

"He did, sir," admitted his younger brother. "Got one on his left arm."

"Humph!" was all Severus replied. He summoned his camera and snapped a picture of the study group, so he could show Albus and the other teachers, especially Lockhart, who still had not recovered from his bout of laryngitis, who tended to doubt that his Slytherins would get along with members of rival Gryffindor without a direct order from their Heads. He remembered how shocked some of them had been last year, they would be even more so now that more Slytherins had joined Malfoy. He slyly took two pictures, tucking one away in his new album he had begun last year when he had assumed guardianship of Harry, and the other he put in his satchel for the staff meeting tomorrow morning. He then sent the camera back onto the shelf in his closet.

While the children were still exclaiming over his cousin's sketches, the Potions Master rose and came over to see what all the fuss was about. Severus was a very good artist himself, especially with plants and anatomy of people as well as animals. He found, to his astonishment, that Dante seemed to have inherited the Prince talent also.

"Impressive!" Severus remarked. "You have captured 'the look of eagles' in the hippogriff's expression very well, Dante."

The boy glanced up, his hazel eyes wide with amazement. "You think it's good, sir?"

"I wouldn't have said so otherwise," Severus answered.

"Thanks, Severus," Dante said, adding softly, "My dad used to say I was wasting my time drawing anything when I could just take a photo and be done with it. He said scribbling on paper was for deadbeats."

The other students scowled and Severus muttered, "The man was an imbecile with no appreciation for art, may Merlin have mercy! May I see what else you have drawn?"

"Uh, sure. If you want." Dante reached into his bag and withdrew his old battered leather portfolio book of his sketches of creatures he had drawn while he studied under Eagle Crest and a few others he had done for fun on lazy summer days in Central Park. He handed the book to the older wizard.

Snape leafed through it, noting the excellent attention to detail in each drawing, including the color and shading, with small notes about each creature drawn, like its habitat, preferred food, and abilities. "These are quite remarkable, Dante. Have you ever taken formal art lessons?"

Dante shook his head. "Never. My dad wouldn't hear of it. I just learned to draw what I saw, that's all."

"I believe you have a rare talent for capturing the look of a creature, Mr. Prince. And by that I mean not just the way it physically looks but what it is feeling." He pointed to one that Dante had sketched of Skull, capturing the way the light shone off the inky feathers and sparkled into bluish highlights, as well as the intelligent mischievous look in the black eyes. "You have drawn Skull to the life here. It appears almost as if he could fly off of the parchment."

Dante colored slightly at the praise, which he knew that Severus never gave out lightly—it had to be earned, and even then you had to go above and beyond for the professor to say so in such glowing terms. "You really mean that." He said, slightly shocked.

"Absolutely. I think your father was a fool for not hiring a teacher and encouraging your talent. Did you know that your grandmother, Melina Prince, was an artist? She painted some of the greatest architectural landscapes of her time, as well as portraits of celebrities? That is where you inherited your talent from." Severus told him honestly.

"Really? Cool!" Dante smiled.

"Indeed. If you would like, I can try and find an art teacher to instruct you further." Severus offered.

Dante's mouth fell open. "You think I'm worth lessons?"

Severus nodded. "As I said, it would be a shame if your talent was not encouraged to the fullest. You are very good, child, but with proper instruction you will be even better. If you choose to be."

"I'd like that, Severus," Dante said, his hazel eyes shining. He felt a warm glow somewhere in the vicinity of his heart at the thought that his cousin, whom he had come to admire greatly, almost the way he would have his father, had Sulla been the kind of man to inspire such, believed he was good enough to spend money on an art tutor.

"Good," the professor handed the boy back the portfolio. "I shall ask around, I am sure I can locate a teacher for you. If so, I will arrange for lessons for you on the weekend for a few hours a week."

"That would be awesome!" Dante said excitedly, and gave the Potions Master a rare smile.

Severus playfully ruffled his silky dark hair. "Now, does anyone have any questions for me about your Defense homework?"

"Sir, where can we practice the spells?" Ron asked, recalling all too well what had happened last time he had practiced a Defense spell on Neville and sent the other boy to the Hospital Wing.

"Not here. There is not enough room," Snape declared. "But the third dungeon is empty now. You could all go there and practice casting."

"Okay, let's do that." Harry agreed and stood up.

They all followed the professor out of his chambers and down to the dungeon.

While Severus watched, they all, even Dante, practiced the Shield Charm, Disarming Charm, and the Reflective Charm.

Severus noted that the best students among the group were Dante, Harry, Draco, and Daphne. The others still needed work but were coming along nicely, all could cast the spells by the end of the practice session, and showed more confidence in doing so than previously in class.

Afterwards they all trooped back into Snape's quarters to finish writing his Defense essay and Flitwick's Charms essay, or in Dante's case his potions essay and answering five facts about Jarveys for Professor Kettleburn.

When Severus retreated to his recliner to continue marking papers, Harry nudged Dante. "See if you can figure out what it is tonight."

"Will do, cuz," the older boy whispered. Then he resumed writing his essay, his quill scrolling neatly across the parchment with an ease Harry envied.

"It's quarter to nine, children. Time to finish up and go back to your common rooms," Severus warned.

"Yes, Professor Snape," came the automatic response, and they all hurried to finish their current tasks and pack up their books and other paraphernalia.

After bidding the professor and their friends good night, the Slytherins and Gryffindors scattered towards their respective dormitories, all save for Harry and Dante, who decided to have one last cup of tea with Severus before going to bed.

Harry curled up with his familiar green afghan on the couch, sipping his tea drowsily and covering a yawn with his hand, while Dante sat with one leg crossed on his knee, sketching rapidly with a pencil, his tongue between his teeth as he concentrated.

"What are you drawing now?" Harry asked curiously.

Dante continued working for a few more moments before he was ready to answer. But no sooner than he had opened his mouth, a familiar voice cawed, "That's a really nice portrait of Sev, scamp!"

Dante nearly fell off the couch.

"Skullduggery!" Harry cried, almost spilling his tea. "You're back!"

The wily raven hovered for an instant above their heads, his wings rustling, before he crooned, "Miss me, Sevvy?" and flew down to alight on his bondmate's shoulder, giving a raven's soft purr and hum of affection.

"Hello, Skull," Severus said, reaching up to scratch the raven's head, his dark eyes alight with joy. "It seems parenthood agrees with you."

"It does, Sev. The same as it does you," the raven preened.

"Where are your fledglings, Skull?" Dante asked, his hazel eyes glowing.

"Two of them should be arriving shortly," Skull replied. No sooner were the words out of his mouth then two smaller ravens appeared in the air above Snape's head.

One was a pure black like his father, the other was black also but bore a white V on her throat, rather like a necklace. They both hovered in the air before the professor, examining him with interest.

"Papa, is this your wizard?"

"My, he has a nose like a raven!"

Severus rolled his eyes. "They are definitely your offspring, Skull." He looked at the two fledglings. "You may perch on the mantle."

The two flew onto the mantle and alighted, peering at the three wizards with undisguised curiosity. "What's your name?" shrilled the black fledgling.

"I am Severus Snape, Potions Master and professor. And these two are my son, Harry and my cousin, Dante. What are your names?"

"I'm Loki," answered the young male.

"And I'm Calypso," replied the female, preening herself. "But you can call me Callie for short."

"Pleased to meet you," Harry said, his emerald eyes shining. "Did you Travel here?"

"Of course," Callie laughed.

"I showed them how," Skull informed them proudly. "They learned very quickly."

"It was easy!" Loki cawed.

"Where are Shriek and the rest of your brood?" Severus asked.

"Back in Ghost's wigwam," Skull replied. "My other three fledglings—my daughter Spirit, and my two sons Gwydion and Storm—remained with their mother because they wished to bond with wizards and a sorceress from Ghost's people. But Loki and Callie did not feel a call, so they wished to accompany me back to Hogwarts and meet you, Sev, Harry, and Dante."

"Welcome to Hogwarts," Harry grinned. "Skull, do your other fledglings look like you also?"

"Yes, except Spirit, she is white like Shriek, hence her name," Skull said proudly. Then he nudged Severus and purred, "Sev, do you have anything to eat?"

"We're starving!" chorused the two fledglings.

"Bottomless pits!" their father crooned.

"Are they on a special diet?" Severus asked Skull.

"No. They eat the same things I do," the raven replied.

Severus waved his wand and two perches appeared in the den, with cups on either end filled with water and a mixture of raw ground beef and honey. "There! I hope you enjoy ground beef and honey."

"We do, Sev!" sang Loki and fluttered down to begin eating on a perch.

"But I also would like to try some bangers," said Callie, then she too landed on the other perch.

Severus summoned another dish with some ground beef, honey, and soft bread cubes for Skull and his familiar ate hungrily, perched on the Potion Master's knee.

All the while, Severus gently stroked the glossy black feathers, smiling down at the bird. "Did you enjoy your time in America?"

"It was very interesting," Skull answered inbetween bites. "But you know what they say, Sev—there's no place like home."

"Did you stay all the time in Windfar, or did you go to other places too?" Dante queried, setting aside his sketchbook.

"Mostly we stayed in Windfar," Skull answered. "Though we did go into Wyoming with Ghost to help settle some problem a family was having with a bunyip in their well."

"What's a bunyip?" Harry asked.

"It's a water creature, that can shift into different shapes, but usually prefers to look like a black seal-like creature with many sharp teeth and large glowing yellow eyes," Skull cawed.

"It can roar and make you deaf," added Loki.

"And it can swim like lightning, and sometimes change shape to something like a water horse," Callie chirruped.

"It put the Ugh in Ugly!" her brother snickered.

"And it's nasty tempered," Skull told them. "It tried to snap Ghost's fingers off, but he yanked it out of the well with his magic and dumped it into a swamp somewhere in Louisiana with the gators."

"Bunyips were originally from Australia," Dante recalled.

"Right, scamp!" agreed Skull. "Eagle Crest taught you well."

"Did you see him?" Dante asked, suddenly wistful.

"No, but Ghost knows him. I mentioned that he was your tutor when you lived on the ranch," the elder raven remarked. He leaned into Severus' caress, making a contented sound.

"Maybe I'll write to him," Dante mused, thinking that now he could do so without fearing getting his ass handed to him by Sulla.

Loki had finished his food and cocked his head slightly, eyeing Harry with interest. Then he flew over and perched upon the young wizard's shoulder. "Hello." Harry greeted, and asked, "May I pet you?"

"Go ahead," trilled the young raven. He purred loudly when Harry scratched his head. "Mmm . . . you have nice manners for a little wizard."

Harry giggled. "Uh . . . thanks. I think."

"Hey, what about me?" shrilled Callie, then she flew onto Dante's wrist and he began to stroke her also. "Oooh, that feels good! More, please!"

Dante laughed and rubbed her back. "You're really pretty, Callie."

"Takes after her mother," Skull trilled. "Aww, Sev, you need to take a picture! It can go in the family album. Right next to the one of you and Lena!"

Severus rolled his eyes. "Quit your matchmaking, Skull! Before I use you for target practice."

"You mean you haven't kissed her yet, Sevvy? What are you waiting for—Christmas?" teased the raven.

"Skullduggery!" Severus growled. "Quit trying to play Yenta, bird."

Skullduggery cocked his head, then sang, "Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match!"

Harry and Dante were nearly convulsed with laughter.

So were Skull's son and daughter, snickering in the odd way ravens have.

"Merlin give me strength!" Severus muttered, casting his eyes heavenward. "And to think, I actually missed the mouthy pain in the ass!"

"I love you too, Sev!" Skull crooned, then began to preen his master's hair.

Severus snorted, then wondered how the castle was going to survive Skull and his two fledglings. Something told him that Hogwarts would never be the same again. Even so, with the return of his familiar, the Snape family was now complete.