The incredible roaring assault on their eardrums wasn't the only thing terrifying the Hogwarts students, they were watching the impossible happen right before their eyes. As the mighty metal beast appeared to be thundering to its doom, the nose lifted and the brightly coloured hulking brute unbelievably became airborne. Something that seemed so ungainly while on the ground now looked totally different in the environment it was clearly designed for.
They were finding it hard to believe a machine that looked about the size of at least six knight busses, though held far more passengers, had just shot into the air and was now rapidly disappearing from sight at a speed no broom could hope to match.
Professor Dan Granger was telling them that the aircraft they had just watched taking off was by no means the largest available, or the fastest. Explaining the difference between short and long haul flights, and focusing on the economic reasons why different sized aircraft were used for each, had them again questioning their sanity. How could anything much bigger than what they'd just watched still be able to fly. Standing in the public viewing area of Aberdeen airport, the three muggle professors were finally being believed by their students. Not even Draco Malfoy could dispute something he'd just witnessed for himself.
These children were used to travelling from King's Cross to Hogsmeade station to reach Hogwarts. Watching the organisation needed however for all these people checking in, their luggage being taken away - and put on the correct plane, was impressive. They had of course seen the large information displays in King's Cross, they also had paid no attention to them whatsoever. The Hogwarts Express left King's Cross from the same platform, on the exact same date and time, and had done so for many generations. They had no need of information displays inside the station. Here however were displayed essential details for passengers travelling to all different parts of the world.
A helicopter arriving on a different flightpath to the plane and landing in the centre of a clearly marked area was also impressive, as was the explanation of just what was happening here. These children all flew brooms and clearly saw the advantages of the helicopter's much greater manoeuvrability, especially not needing a long runway for takeoffs and landings. A helicopter could easily land on Hogwarts quidditch pitch while there probably wasn't a big enough piece of flat ground that a passenger jet could land on within miles of the castle - it was the Scottish Highlands after all. Just the thought that one of these large flying contraptions, with rotor blades instead of wings, could land on platforms built by muggles out in the middle of the North Sea was mind-blowing.
Hearing that the bright orange clothing worn by the people getting off the helicopter were survival suits, a precaution in case the helicopter went down in the very cold sea, gave them all some idea of just how dangerous these people's jobs were. The impressed students trooped back onto the coach for the next part of their trip, a visit to the city of Aberdeen.
Hugh McDade was a muggle whose daughter was a fifth year Hufflepuff, and his son would be heading off to Hogwarts with his big sister come September. Hearing from his daughter of the school's new program that would enable both him and his wife to visit Hogwarts when Sam became a first year was certainly something they wanted to be part of. News of a planned trip into the muggle world saw Hugh contacting Hogwarts to offer his support - and free use of one of his coaches.
That McDade Coach Hire was based in Aberdeen saw that city being chosen for their visit. Phone calls between Hugh and the three professors involved soon had an itinerary worked out. The Hogwarts contingent had portkeyed into the empty McDade bus garage before boarding one of his coaches and heading for their first stop - Aberdeen airport.
Hugh was now giving commentary on the coach's PA system as they drove through Aberdeen. It had been arranged beforehand that he would park the coach where they had a good view of the large and busy harbour. They could all see multiple ships being loaded with equipment and supplies to take out to the oil platforms. The biggest ship in the harbour though was the massive ferry that took passengers, their cars and also vital supplies for the islanders who lived in the Shetland Isles. Again the organisation required and sheer scale involved in what they were witnessing here was staggering to those not raised in this environment.
Taking the microphone from Hugh, Emma went on to explain why what they were watching taking place in this harbour was so important to the entire country.
"Remember we told you that non magical people use all different forms of energy to achieve things you can accomplish using your magic? Crude oil is one of our biggest sources of those energies. The coach we are all currently sitting in has an engine that is powered by products refined from crude oil - as do the plane and helicopter we saw at the airport. Everything inside the airport building was powered by electricity, mostly produced by burning gas or oil in specialised power stations. When the crude oil is refined however, it provides us with so much more. Plastics, pharmaceuticals, the list is practically endless. Crude oil is sometimes called black gold, and any country that has reserves of this black gold can count themselves very lucky."
Linking oil and gold helped with getting its importance across to all their students. Anyone owning a gold mine would certainly be considered lucky. The purebloods were also well aquatinted with the principle of using their gold to get whatever they wanted. Since equating gold to power was understood by all of them, it suddenly wasn't such a leap to do the same with oil. Whether they got the literal transformation of oil to supplying electrical or mechanical power would be dealt with at a later date in class.
As the coach was passing the magnificent Marischal College building, Hugh explained that the University of Aberdeen had now moved to a new campus - the four hundred year old building no longer being able to meet their needs. The coach pulling up outside an indoor shopping centre had the students far more excited than some old building. They had been covering muggle money in class and it was now time to put those lessons to work. They were allowed to look around the shops for an hour, before meeting in the food court for lunch. There they would have to chose what they wanted for lunch, order and pay for it from the cash they had been supplied with.
With Christmas now being only a couple of weeks away, the centre and all of its shops were of course decorated to celebrate the festive season. Dan, Emma and Petunia would all be patrolling the shopping centre, available for any of their students who needed questions answered. With Sirius, Amelia, Augusta and Hugh all present too, they hoped that all areas of the centre were covered. It was still a relieved group of adults whose headcount later confirmed that every one their students were now sitting down and excitedly eating lunch.
Hermione, Harry, Neville and their friends knew exactly how much was riding on this outing today. Rather than try to lead the rest of the students however, they had made the conscious decision to do the exact opposite. They hung back, waiting to see where everyone else went, and simply made themselves approachable for anyone who wanted to ask any questions on what they were seeing. The students were far more likely to ask a fellow student a question, rather than approaching one of the adults/professors.
While Parvati adored shopping in muggle stores, she remained firmly on Neville's arm. Her being able to answer some of the questions being asked by their fellow students also added a bit more authority to those answers. Padma and Susan were also part of their group, purebloods being able to answer questions on muggle shopping really impressed those asking them. Since the girls had all been promised a day's shopping in London during the holidays, they were content to just window-shop today. It was like being a prefect and on duty, something they all got a kick out of.
Getting everyone back on the coach after lunch was met with a few moans and groans, that all stopped when they discovered their next destination. Even amongst the muggleborn, only a couple of them had been ten pin bowling before. Sirius announced there would be prizes for the first person to bowl a strike, highest score of the day and a few others that had everyone laughing. No one wanted the dubious honour of being the first bowler to slip and land on their bum.
They were spit into groups of four students to a lane, with the highest group score also earning a prize. After collecting their shoes, and some instructions by the staff that had been arranged beforehand, they were let loose on the lanes. There was at least one adult looking over two lanes of four bowlers so the chances of any trouble starting was nil.
Draco wondered if it had been deliberately arranged that most groups contained a member of each house. Since his group was being watched over by Lord Black, he wasn't going to be saying anything. Once the drinks and snacks arrived, he actually found himself really enjoying the experience. The Gryffindor, Thomas, had obviously done this before and easily led the group. Sirius mentioning that their group was currently in the lead saw Dean being encouraged to keep his high scoring up.
Their group did indeed win, and received small trophies and loads of muggle sweets. They also had to play a challenge match against Sirius, Augusta, Emma and their coach driver, Hugh.
It was a very strange experience for Draco, standing up there to take his shot with most of his year group cheering him on. It soon became apparent why the professors had included the coach driver in their group, he was very good. Cries of 'ringer' were mostly in fun, since the other three were so bad it looked a good bet the student team would still win.
Arriving back on the coach, with all the students high after their team did indeed win the bowling match, loads of muggle sweets were being passed out to those unlucky enough not to win any of the bowling prizes. Since darkness had now fallen, the coach headed down a Union Street decorated to celebrate Christmas.
While everyone on the coach, apart from Hugh, had at least seen the Hogwarts great hall decorated for Christmas - these decorations had been erected and were now run entirely without magic. As they admired the decorations, though still thought Hogwarts' were better, there was now at least a grudging respect for the ingenuity and effort involved in the manufacturing and placing of them without magic being involved. Achieving that feat alone would see Dan, Emma and Petunia regard today as a tremendous success.
Only after their portkey had dropped the thrice counted students outside the gates of Hogwarts did the adults involved finally relax. As the students hurried into the castle, Petunia summed up the adults' feelings with one sentence. "I thoroughly enjoyed that, but I am now so knackered."
She found herself receiving a one armed hug from her nephew, Harry's other arm being around Hermione's waist. "I am so proud of what you achieved today. They not only learned a lot, they had fun doing so. Seeing that today gave everyone a glimpse of what the future could be, and I'm not talking about Augusta Longbottom bowling."
The lady in question actually put her arm around her grandson as she answered that. "I actually had fun today too. Like Petunia though, I'm ready for my dinner and an early night. Don't think we didn't notice what you six were up to either, you probably answered more questions than we did. I honestly don't think today could have gone any better, and this gives me that little bit more leverage when attempting to arrange a trip into the magical world. The Minister and ministry won't want the muggle world to be seen to be better than us. They will certainly help arrange another trip in the magical world - and probably even pay for it too. I will see all of you tomorrow, enjoy the remainder of your Sunday."
Sirius and Amelia were also heading home, leaving the trio of professors to escort the last six students into the castle. There would just be time to drop their coats off before heading to dinner. As Harry was right beside her, Petunia gave her nephew the news Dudley had asked her to pass on.
"Dudley is not going to make Sirius and Amelia's wedding. He has a girlfriend, and been asked to spend that day with Amanda and her family. She'll be staying with us while you're at Privet Drive, you'll get to meet her then. With Luna staying too, you and Dudley might have to share a room for a couple of nights."
Harry had no bother with that, his attention was on someone else. Susan had clearly heard that news yet was smiling, Harry enquiring if she was okay brought a surprise.
"Dudley and me are just friends. I actually knew he fancied Amanda, he was looking for advice on how to ask her out. Looks like he took my advice." Padma was nodding too, confirming she was aware of this.
While pleased, Harry was also puzzled. "Why didn't he ask me, or Hermione? This is the first we've heard of this…"
This set Neville off laughing. "Don't take this the wrong way, but you two are the last people to ask for help with that. I still remember what Hermione told me when I asked how she knew you were the right one for her - 'any boy who would jump onto a troll's back to save you is a keeper'. That was a lot of help…not!"
With Neville still chuckling away, no one took any offence at his remark. Parvati was certainly going to be asking him about it later though.
-oOoOo-
Dinner that night in the great hall was a lively affair as all the second years' were more than happy to tell anyone asking about their grand adventure today.
At the staff table, Minerva was actually smiling, while the three professors responsible for today's unprecedented outing appeared more relieved it was over than anything else. Dan soon found himself being asked a rather awkward question by another professor.
"Excuse me for asking, Dan, but was I deliberately excluded from accompanying your trip today? As a Hogwarts professor who has lived and worked in the muggle world, I was expecting to be asked to go with you and the students."
"No one was excluded from today, Remus. We met you for the first time about six weeks ago, with Emma and I only spending about three of those six weekends in Hogwarts. None of us were aware you had a background like that…"
"Sirius did."
"That's neither here nor there, since Sirius wasn't involved in organising today. Both he and Amelia have a decent understanding of our world and volunteered, purely so they could spend the day with Susan, Harry and Hermione. We were glad to have them. To be honest, Emma and I only took this entire professor thing on so we could spend more time with the kids. Coming up here every weekend soon proved impractical but we still try for every second."
This didn't seem to satisfy Remus, and Dan was sure he knew what the problem was. "I know you and Sirius had an argument, but that's all I know. Harry wanted the details, since Sirius asked him to be his best man. As I said, I don't know what happened and that argument played no part in you not being in Aberdeen today. What I will say is that Harry was really angry when he heard what happened, immediately telling Sirius he would be proud to be by his side at the wedding."
Again, these were words Remus didn't want to hear but Dan then went even further. "I've only known Sirius since he was released from Azkaban but he's certainly someone I would call a friend. With my daughter seemingly determined never to let his godson get away from her, I will in all probability one day call him family. Even in the short time I've known him however, I would have to say his getting together with Amelia has been very good for him - for both of them actually. If you can't accept that, then you did the right thing in saying you wouldn't be his best man. If it's something you feel so strongly about, then I suppose it could be worth losing your best friend over."
There was then steel in Dan's voice as he ensured Remus knew exactly what he now meant. "Any choice between a friend and the woman I love is no choice at all for me, It's Emma every time. It pleases me more than I can say that Harry is the exact same with my daughter. When this dark lord everyone is so terrified of threatened our Hermione, Harry punched the head off that same dark lord. Amelia showed me her memory of having to pull Harry off Voldemort, I don't think I've ever been prouder in my life - including watching them receive Orders off Merlin, First Class. In any choice between you and Amelia, Sirius is always going to choose the woman who'll soon be his wife. I have no idea what went on between you, or whether it's recoverable. I would say that you missing their wedding entirely would pretty much hammer the final nail into the coffin of that friendship. I would also say the next move is yours to make."
The slump in the professor's shoulders gave Dan his answer before Remus actually spoke. "I know you're right, Dan, but it's difficult…"
"Remus, you're talking to someone who had McGonagall turn up at his door and blow his entire safe little world apart. 'Your daughter's a witch' is not a phrase I ever thought I would hear. Emma and I had a very difficult choice to make. To be honest, those choices have never stopped coming at us - and they certainly don't get any easier. Through all this though, we never lost sight of the fact Hermione is our daughter. The most important thing to us is Hermione, and how we can give her the best future possible. We are now juggling our practice, our lives back in Crawley, producing lessons for the classes we teach here every Monday and trying to spend as much time with Hermione and Harry as possible."
Taking a deep breath, Dan calmed himself before continuing. "Sorry for unloading on you like that - today must have wound me up more than I thought. Hermione hugging us and saying how proud she was certainly made the whole thing worthwhile. Seeing her sitting there, obviously happy and surrounded by her friends, that's what keeps Emma and I going. Life has a way of kicking you in the teeth, trolls and dark lords instantly come to mind, it's how you react to that kick which makes us who we are. Sirius spent over a decade in Azkaban, that's enough to finish anyone off. Instead, he got right back up and pursued his relationships with Harry and Amelia. He obviously wanted you back in his life too, but that's something you are going to have to sort out for yourselves. Neither Emma nor I can help, and I wouldn't advise approaching either of the kids. Both of them already love Sirius, have fully accepted Amelia and are already treating Susan as their sister."
Remus was left shaking his head. "I've really messed up…"
"I don't think you want me to answer that. You also know what you need to do next."
"Yeah, except Sirius might use his wand on me next time."
"Amelia says Sirius has changed, 'finally grown up' was the phrase she jokingly used. You seem to be fixated on the younger version of Sirius, someone who doesn't seem to exist any more."
"The old - younger version of Sirius would have used his wand first, rather than punching me one…"
"Sirius actually punched you?"
This surprised Remus. "He really didn't tell you?"
"As I said, he only revealed what happened to Harry - though you can be certain Hermione now knows too. Those two don't have any secrets between them."
"I said something rather disparaging about Amelia…"
"Oh shit! I thought you knew Sirius? That was a really, really stupid thing to do. I can't think of anything worse you could have done, even punching Sirius wouldn't have been as bad as that."
Remus was left shaking his head in frustration. "Since the day I returned to Hogwarts all I've heard about is how much things are changing. I just need to look around the hall to see it's true yet I expected some things to stay the same. I'll need to sit down and think carefully about how I can apologise to Sirius. Sorry for having a go at you too. If the students' reactions are anything to go by, it would seem you've had quite the day."
"Yeah, getting the coach for free gave us a lot more scope with the resources we had. Both Harry and Sirius put cash into the pot too, allowing us to really push the boat out. We'll find out in class tomorrow just how well it worked."
This actually put a small smile on Remus' face, not something he would have thought possible when he first sat down. "I don't think you need to wait until tomorrow, you three have a hit on your hands. How big a hit can be judged by the fact McGonagall is sitting there actually smiling. Trust me, that doesn't happen too often - like never."
Their chat continued in a more friendly vein as both men began the process of getting to know each other better over dinner.
-oOoOo-
Their students next morning were still high from their outing, taking a few minutes to settle down. Emma set them off again by asking everyone if they'd enjoyed visiting Aberdeen before Dan got the class back under control.
"Remember back in September I said none of us believed the non magical world was anywhere near ready to learn about the witches and wizards living amongst them - we still believe that to be true. I also said then that didn't mean those in the know couldn't enjoy both worlds. Who in here now believes that to be true?"
Without any hesitation, every single student in the class raised their hand - making this whole teaching experiment worthwhile for the three new professors. Petunia was next to speak.
"The purpose of these lessons are for you to have a greater understanding of the non magical world, so you can also blend into that environment if you so wish to. We only had a day, a matter of hours really. Yesterday was more a case of giving you a taste of what is out there - and available to you if you want it. There are also cinemas, theatres, libraries, football stadiums, swimming baths, restaurants and so much more available - and Aberdeen isn't even the biggest city in Scotland, never mind Britain."
Emma then took the lead, once again emphasising it was all about choice. "None of us have the knowledge of how magical society works, we're here to give you information on the non magical version. As you get older, going out in the muggle world with your friends could be a restaurant - a trip to the cinema or a night dancing in a club. This might not be something you want to do, as always the choice is yours to make. Our job is to ensure you're as prepared as you can be to take any of those options if you so wish to."
The class were so engrossed in the lesson, they didn't even notice McGonagall entering. After asking if she could speak to the class for a moment, the Headmistress then proceeded to give everyone a little lift.
"I received an owl this morning from a Mr McDade, the gentleman in charge of the coach you were all on yesterday. He wanted to compliment the behaviour of the students he met yesterday, saying it was exemplary and a credit to Hogwarts. He was so pleased with what he saw, Mr McDade has already confirmed he would be more than happy to help out the next time we venture into the muggle world - for free. I have already spoken to Miss McDade, inviting her family to be our guests at the next quidditch match. Hogwarts opening its doors has seen us make a lot of new friends, I'm delighted to add the McDade family to that growing list."
This had the class applauding as McGonagall was again smiling. "Professor Dumbledore loved ten pin bowling, it was one of his favourite things to do. He had intended to surprise you all by turning up and taking part in yesterday's event. Had he done so, I don't think the students' team would have won so easily."
This had expressions of surprise on every student's face. If Dumbledore could play ten pin bowling, who were they to say venturing into the muggle world was wrong. That they all had loads of fun doing so meant most would be looking to repeat that experience. Draco agreed the match would have been closer, but for a different reason. He'd felt the pressure of everyone watching him as he took his shot. That pressure would certainly have increased if they'd been bowling against a professors team led by Dumbledore.
"Yesterday was such a success, I can already confirm that next year's trip - featuring our current first year - will go ahead. Each of you were ambassadors for Hogwarts yesterday, and everyone played their part in ensuring the school's reputation was enhanced. Ten points to everyone who took part."
Minerva actually stayed for the rest of the lesson, which was the students asking questions that yesterday's outing had thrown up. She found herself learning too from that interaction. A question from Hannah Abbot though appeared to have everyone who was muggle raised/born chuckling as they searched for an answer.
"Professors, we really enjoyed our time in the shopping centre. Why did they keep playing that terrible music though? Doesn't it drive the people who have to work there crazy?"
-oOoOo-
Minerva soon found herself at a meeting to discuss another school trip, this time however it was in the Minister of Magic's office. Fudge found himself facing three formidable women in McGonagall, Longbottom and Bones.
"The reason I asked for this meeting is to try and plan a trip for Augusta's wizarding culture class. A trip that, if the story in the Prophet is to be believed, would seem to have a lot to measure up to."
"The stories are true, Cornelius. Both Augusta and I were with them and the students all loved their day."
Amelia's opinion found firm backing from Minerva. "While I wasn't on the outing, I did take part in their class next morning. Every single student had a good time, and came back to Hogwarts with loads of questions. Dan Granger actually filmed some of their day and intends to show them and the first year class how the day went. I've asked if the film could be made available at the next staff meeting. I have heard nothing but positive things about their adventure, and Hogwarts has been buzzing with excitement since they returned Sunday evening."
Augusta then confirmed that all three witches facing the Minister of Magic were of the same mind. "I was there, and also agree with every word Minerva just said - and that's where the problem lies. I now have to follow that for the wizarding culture part of their course and feel we really need to go all out to match their trip to Aberdeen."
"Was it really that impressive?"
Amelia found herself chuckling at a few pleasant memories. "They got to see a muggle aircraft - holding a couple of hundred passengers and their luggage - take off and fly. They spent a couple of hours shopping and having lunch in a heated indoor shopping centre - then got to witness Augusta Longbottom playing a game of ten pin bowling. Cornelius, their day was a spectacular success - exceeding even the high hopes Dan, Emma and Petunia had for it. Seeing a Wizengamot session, followed by meat and potato pie in the cafeteria, is not going to cut it. The bar has been set high and we really need to match, if not better that level."
"I take it you three ladies have some ideas on how to achieve this?"
That's what they had been waiting for, Amelia got the ball rolling. "Augusta has been teaching this class about the functions of our government. The problem with that is trying to make it at least sound interesting - if not exciting"
It was then Augusta who took over as they tag-teamed the minister. "One of the first things we hit upon when trying to formalise these lessons was that, in every single case, they worked much more effectively when we could tie that lesson into something that affected the class. Instead of watching a Wizengamot session, which we all know could sometimes put insomniacs to sleep, I propose we let the class sit in those seats and have a discussion about something that directly affects all of them. They could be the Wizengamot members for an hour or so while we would lead their discussions."
Minerva then went for the body slam. "Since some of those students will one day sit in those very seats, this would give them first hand experience of just what that could be like."
The more Cornelius thought about this idea, the more he liked it. The students would get some first hand experience of how their ministry worked, and see him sitting at its head. Add in some press coverage and the visit would be just about perfect - and all it was going to cost were some free lunches for the students in the cafeteria. Cornelius should have remembered the old adage that there is no such thing as a free lunch.
"That sounds like a splendid idea, one I'm sure could be tweaked a little to show us in the best possible light. Do you think that will be enough of an adventure to favourably compare with their other trip?"
He received an honest reply from Augusta. "I think it's a good beginning, nothing more. Hogwarts scored a big hit by inviting muggle parents to the castle on a quidditch weekend. I think that, after their Wizengamot session and some lunch or dinner, taking them to see a professional quidditch match would certainly round off a pretty incredible day."
While Cornelius agreed with that assessment, his mind had moved on to the spiralling cost of this planned trip before Amelia practically read his mind.
"Cornelius, you're forgetting something. Namely, just who some of these students are. Mentioning that Hogwarts is looking to take the class containing two Orders of Merlin, First Class holders to a professional quidditch match will have teams the length and breadth of the country vying to be the team chosen. That Harry Potter plays seeker for Gryffindor is known by every witch and wizard in the country, whether they follow the sport or not."
All could clearly see the truth of Amelia's words, with a date sometime in June being provisionally agreed upon. The chosen quidditch match would decide the actual date, with the Wizengamot chamber's availability being easier to arrange.
After talking things over with Dan, Emma, Petunia and Augusta, all four agreed they'd missed a trick by not having a few older muggleborn students along to help out on the day. That was something they intended to implement this time around, with Minerva's suggestion of the four quidditch captains accompanying the class being quickly accepted. All four left the meeting happy with what was achieved, and with some planning to do.
Cornelius would be contacting the top half dozen teams in the country to see if they would like to play host to these students. He was expecting to quickly receive six positive replies.
-oOoOo-
Severus was getting angrier and angrier, today's Daily Prophet adding more fuel to his mounting ire. That this supposed newspaper was now reduced to clasping even the flimsiest of excuses to plaster the Potter brat's picture on their front page saw him ranting and raving about the injustices in their world.
A school trip into the muggle world by Potter's yeargroup was more than enough justification for the Prophet's editor to stick their new poster boy on the front page. They also took great pains to inform their readers that a subsequent trip into the wizarding world would take place for the same class before the end of summer term. That these trips were part of a new course Hogwarts, with ministerial support, was pioneering for the first two years of every student's time there also featured heavily in the article.
That praise was being heaped on everyone, especially Potter, put Severus right off his breakfast. It actually did more than that though, it was another building block being added to his growing belief that only his former master could stop this perpetual love-in that threatened the very existence of their ways.
He was well aware actually finding the dark lord would be a massive challenge, never mind returning his spirit to a functioning body. Severus' biggest challenge however might be surviving the dark lord once more being able to wield a wand. Those months his master spent in Hogwarts yet kept his presence a secret from his marked follower bore heavily on Severus, he needed some way to show the dark lord he was still loyal to their cause.
Severus' own cause might be the ending of the Potter line but it really pained him to acknowledge he couldn't see that happening without his master's involvement. Looking again at the picture, Severus suddenly had a piece of inspiration.
All this mutual admiration would have their guard down, and it was always better to strike when your foe was least expecting it. If he could pull this off, Potter's hated face would once more be on the front page of the Prophet. Severus was willing to wager though that the brat wouldn't be smiling.
Doing this would certainly see him become a wanted wizard, and force him to flee the country. It would also let his master see that Severus had not forsaken him, and was more than ready to strike out at their enemies. If he could pull this off in time, it could also provide Potter with a Christmas present he'd never forget.
As his gaze returned to the newspaper, Severus' mood had improved immensely. He now had the semblance of a plan, and a timetable to work with. His time for moping around Britain was now almost over. He would execute his planned revenge, and then leave the country the same day. They would all remember the name of Severus Snape, especially Potter and his useless godfather.
-oOoOo-
A blizzard had hit Hogwarts last night, the deep snow causing the cancellation of their last Herbology class of the year. This saw all the excited second years getting down to dinner early. Today was Friday, they would have the whole weekend to frolic in the snow before catching the express back home for Christmas.
Sitting with her back to the doors, Hermione was as surprised as Parvati clearly was at what she was seeing.
"Hermione, I thought your mum and dad weren't coming to Hogwarts this weekend?"
Hermione was just about to confirm that before noticing Parvati was staring over her shoulder. Turning, she saw her parents entering the great hall. The excited witch was out of her seat like a shot.
"Mum, dad, you changed your mind? We'll be home on Monday..." Hermione stopped rushing into her mother's arms - something was wrong here. The smiles both her parents were wearing didn't reach their eyes. Before she had a chance to say any more, Emma struck. The concealed blade in her hand found its target.
The hall was soon full of screams, spells and blood - what seemed like lots of blood.