A Room With a View

The Prodigal Returns

August 15, 2005 - Hogsmeade

The loud pop at the far end of Hogsmeade High Street signaled his arrival. The streets were deserted, the residents inside enjoying their suppers or doing the washing up. Gathering his work satchel closer, Severus began the short walk toward the Hogwarts grounds with his trunk scampering behind.

He took his time walking through the gates and down the gravel path that led to the castle entrance. Severus enjoyed his stroll; he'd forgotten just how good it felt to breathe in the highland air and how magnificent the scenery was in the peaceful pre-term period. Birch and oak trees rustled gently in the breeze and the rowans were just beginning to show their fall finery. Hagrid--he assumed Hagrid was still groundskeeper--had allowed thistles to grow wild at the borders of the manicured lawn. Their showy blossoms were still bright in the setting sun. He supposed they must have been charmed as they should have long ago gone to seed, but they likely continued to provide pollen for the school apiary that was in the woods behind the groundskeeper's hut. His senses overwhelmed him with a nostalgia that nearly made him grin. Severus had come home.

All too soon, he arrived at the castle's entrance. Stones old and new greeted him as he passed from the sun and into the shadow of the castle's gothic arches. With a sigh, Severus turned his mind to business. He wandlessly gestured for his trunk to remain in the foyer, Filch (was it still Filch?) would see that it arrived at whatever rooms he had been assigned. Severus made his way toward the familiar spiral stair that led to the Headmaster's office.

The stone gargoyles that guarded the Headmaster's sanctum stood to the side of the open door. Minerva was seated at a large, ruthlessly organized desk, scribbling on a piece of parchment. She glanced up at the man in her doorway and motioned for him to come in. "One moment and I'll--oh, Severus. Good, you've arrived. Take a seat, I just need to finish this missive to Kingsley," she said.

Severus sat in the dark wood chair in front of the Headmistress' desk, marveling at the changes to the office since Dumbledore's and, indeed, his own tenure. He'd banished the whirring and clicking magical devices that had populated Albus' space to an extended closet at one end of the office when he'd become headmaster, but he had kept and enjoyed the creature comforts of the plush throne-like chair behind the desk and comfortable seating alcoves. Minerva clearly favored a more streamlined working environment, though he could see her personal proclivities in the deep burgundy fabric covering the stone walls and the sheer gold-toned curtains at the window. The room was far from spartan, still containing the myriad portraits of past headmasters and a small collection of enchanted clocks, but her desk was a simple affair of walnut with naught but a padded desk chair behind it. A tartan shawl draped over the back of her chair for the chilly evenings he remembered all too well.

He noted that Minerva herself had changed little over the years. Her hair was more liberally streaked with grey than in years past, but the lines on her face still seemed to reflect more years of good humor than actual age. She had upgraded her wardrobe a bit since attaining the position of Headmistress, discarding the dark teaching robes of a Professor of Transfiguration for deep plum robes trimmed in maroon and gold braid. A thistle brooch rested at her neck.

Minerva raised her eyes to meet Severus', interrupting his survey of the room and its primary occupant. "Welcome back to Hogwarts, Severus." She blinked at him for a moment. "I'm happy to see you here again, though I'll admit I hardly would have recognized you."

Snape colored slightly at her comment but otherwise did not change his expression. "I thought some changes were in order."

In fact, he was still getting used to changes in his appearance. While he hated the term 'makeover', he supposed that is just what he had accomplished. His straight hair, still black thankfully, had been styled into a simple brush cut and was held in place by a dab of his own personal pomade formula. He had chosen to dress casually for his arrival at Hogwarts, eschewing the traditional teacher's roves for the more comfortable muggle combination of dark jeans and a button-down shirt of deep green with the sleeves rolled to the elbow. He would have been embarrassed to admit that he had sought the assistance of several muggle salespeople before settling on this simple, understated style.