Severus fought the tears trying to fall from his eyes as he looked at his lost friend in front of him.
He knew...
If he did this, he sealed their fate...
"I'm sorry." He choked out to her. "It's got to be now."
He gripped the wand in his hand tigh...
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Christmas Eve 1993
Severus was scouring the halls trying to find Meae. he had thought maybe she'd be in her classroom, but all he saw in there was a desk piled with gifts, that he found after reading the tags, she'd received from students and their families.
Most of the gifts had been hand wrapped too.
He knows just before the break she'd taught the students muggle holiday traditions, and engaged them in a gift wrapping competition. He'd overheard some of his Slytherins going on about egg nog and the wonders of it.
As he was leaving her room though a note floating in the air with his name caught his eye. He snatched the parchment out of the air and opened it.
Where magic and muggle are the same. -Meae
He rolled his eyes.
Of course that's where she was.
He diverted his course towards the kitchens. Honestly he should have known.
Every year when they were students if Meae stayed behind for The holiday, she was in the kitchens Christmas Eve.
He's not sure why he thought it would be different now.
Severus entered the kitchens to absolute chaos. There were pans and pots boiling over on stoves, dozens upon dozens of house elves running from one thing to the next, and Meae standing in the middle baking four different deserts at once.
"Uhh...."
She whipped her head towards the door at the sound of his voice. Manic smile in place.
"Severus! Perfect your here! Come help me with these."
He slightly glared at her. "Unless you want me to poison the students and staff, I decline."
Her smile turned slightly more genuine "Well even if you did it would still taste perfect. So get your mopey ass over here and help me bake!"
Severus sighed to himself.
He never said no to her.
She squealed with happiness as she saw him give in to her demands. "Ohk perfect! You start finishing the pies over here, and I'll get to finishing these cookies here."
Severus glanced at the ingredients for the cookies she was making... "Is that?.... Chili powder?" He asked her "what kind of cookies are you making?"
She smiled over her shoulder at him "Their called 'Galletas Mexicanas picantes de chocolate'"
Severus groaned at her language shift. "You know I haven't studied Spanish since school..."
Meae smirked at him.
"Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies?" He asked after a minute
She beamed at him "YES!"
She turned back to the batter she was stirring "I thought they'd be a good idea, a little different than usual, but still delicious. I had them the first time on my last trip to America.... I thought it'd be nice to bring some other cultures into our own here. I'm making a few foreign deserts this year."
There were a few foreign students at the school this year, Severus was sure Meae already knew that as well. Most of the time those students stayed behind for the holiday, rather than go through the hassle of trying to find a way home and back for such a short break.
Severus was sure Meae was aware of these facts and that's why she was incorporating so many foreign dishes this year. To make Hogwarts feel like home to everyone.
"So Meae what did you get me? Or should I wait for Bird to open my gift for me again this year?" He asked her smugly.
She groaned over her baking "Bird's a menace! And no, I will hand it to you personally this year, thank you."
Her owl, Bird, indeed was a menace. Especially when it came to wrapped gifts or parcels, blasted thing loved to open them before taking them to its corresponding recipient.
"Hand wrapped?" He asked her
She smiled over at him. "Always."
Severus and Meae had a longstanding tradition to always hand wrap each others gifts, it was something they started her first year.
Lily used to be part of the tradition as well.
Severus as a third year had known the gift wrapping charm, but Mason as a first did not. He had offered to teach her, but she admitted to him she preferred hand wrapped gifts. Hand wrapped gifts exposed everything the gifter was feeling. It revealed their angst, care, love, all the feelings they themselves weren't aware they could display in the wrapping of a gift.
Ever since the two always exchanged hand wrapped gifts.
It was a tradition Mason had continued even when the war tore them apart.
Severus was ever eternally grateful to her, he knew even his love for Lily could never truly encompass the love he shared with Mason.
Meae was his best friend.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Christmas Day had been a spectacle.
Well...
Mason had made a spectacle of herself at least.
Christmas Day brought with it the brightest most garish holiday sweater in her collection.
The sweater in question was at least two sizes too big for her, and adorned in bright glittering bobbles that hung from a painted on tree. The tree had lights that were sewn into it and charmed to never run out of power.
It was in all honesty the ugliest thing he had ever seen in his life, and it was completely Meae's style.
"You never do anything in halves do you?" He asked her that night at dinner.
She smiled at him, amusement dancing in her eyes. "Never."
Severus smirked to himself.
She was insane.
"Did you hear The Potter boy got a new broom for Christmas?" She asked him.
Severus nodded "A Firebolt, figures really."
She squinted her eyes at him "I don't understand... is it not a good one?"
Severus wanted to laugh at her statement. It's not that it was funny, it's that, as always, Meae was completely unaware of her utter impact on the lives of others. The broom the Potter boy received was first developed by her company years ago in an effort to help the Aurors office with a fast reliable broomstick. The patent had been sold for commercial use just after the nimbus 2001's came out on market. It was now the number one broom in the circuit, coveted by everyone.
"Oh no, it's the fastest in the world, expensive too. I only know of a handful of people who could even afford it, yourself included...."
It was as he thought it over more carefully, the clues started to be put together in his mind.
He turned a glare towards his betrayer of a best friend. "You didn't...."
She turned way too innocent eyes on him "What?"
"Masondrit Cassandra Night!" He hissed under his breath to her.
She rolled her eyes at the use of her full name "Honestly Severus, I have no idea what your on about. I don't know a thing about broomsticks, and besides, my owl would have unwrapped anything before it ever got to him."
Severus was still suspicious, but he had to concede to her point.
She really didn't know a thing about broomsticks...
