snape and skull

47

A Yankee in Yorkshire
S

everus' first instinct was to snap at the thirteen-year-old to mind his mouth. But as he eyed the rumpled boy keenly, he smothered that first instinct. Perhaps the boy was under stress, almost certainly he missed his late father, so maybe being a smartass was his way of dealing with it. Not that that excused his comment, but . . . perhaps he'd been trying to be funny? Severus didn't have much of a sense of humor, not after the things the Marauders had done to him, but he also didn't want to get off on the wrong foot with his cousin.
H

e cleared his throat, recalling vaguely that The Addams Family was an old Muggle TV show with all of the classic monsters in it, like the wolfman, Frankenstein, a vampire, and witches. He raised an eyebrow and said, "Dante, my name is Severus Snape, and I have never starred in any TV show. As for wearing black, I figured it was appropriate to do so considering the circumstances. My condolences on your loss. Did you wish to visit your father's grave before we left?"
"No. Did that already," the boy said shortly. He stuck his hands deeper into his pockets. "I guess we'd better leave."
"We have about half an hour before our next flight," Severus answered. Then he added, "We can get something to eat and stretch our legs before then. Oh, and one more thing. In the future, you may address me as sir while we are at Hogwarts or Severus at home, but never without respect. Is that clear?"
Dante looked slightly alarmed. "It was just a joke."
"He's not the sort you do that with," Harry interrupted. "I'm Harry, your cousin too." By adoption, he thought, but didn't want to say that aloud yet. He went to shake Dante's hand.
"Dante. No relation to the author," Dante replied, shaking Harry's hand politely.
"I shall gather your things, Dante, while you and the Snapes have a snack," said Mr. Martin, relieved that things had gone over well.
"Sure, whatever," Dante answered, getting an uneasy feeling in his gut. So he said, "Did you know my father well, then? Because he never mentioned you at all." Not that his father would have. Sulla Prince kept secrets close to his chest and preferred to not acknowledge people he didn't like. Dante wondered if that were the case here.
"We shall be back soon." Severus told Mr. Martin. "Come, let us see what they have to eat."
"I'm starving," Harry said, following his father from the room.
"I'm not very hungry," Dante muttered and went with them.
Severus ignored that. Instead he answered the boy's previous question. "No, your father and I did not know each other well at all. He left for the States before I was born. My mother was disowned, you see, for marrying a Muggle, what you would call a Normal, and we had no contact with anyone on her side of the family until now. We are the last of the Prince line."
Dante sighed. "Great. What's the big deal about marrying a Normal? It's done here all the time."
"You don't have a Statute of Secrecy?"
"Well, sort of, but it's not forbidden or anything for a wizard to tell the person he or she marries about us. Most Normals don't even believe in magic unless you show them several times and as long as you don't act like a total nutcase, we can live right next to them and they'll never know. It's called blending. Don't you do that in Britain?"
Severus frowned at the boy's tone, which was slightly condescending. "We do things differently there. Most of our world is hidden from Muggles. Only a few us "hide in plain sight" and that because we grew up that way. Like I did and Harry."
"Oh. Seems sort of . . . backward."
"Whether it is or isn't, isn't your concern. While you live with me, you shall be expected to abide by our rules, including the Statute of Secrecy, which means no underage magic performed outside of school, unless it is in the presence of an adult wizard," Severus said in a low tone.
"What? I have to ask your permission everytime I cast something?" Dante hissed. "That's crazy! I'm not a baby."
"It is the law. And as long as you live under my roof, Mr. Prince, you will follow it."
Dante thought about saying to hell with that and bolting, but the fact was he had nowhere to go. All of his money was in the hands of this Severus Snape person until he came of age, according to his lawyers. He didn't have a dime to his name and nowhere to go now that the New York apartment and the ranch in Wyoming had been sold. "Fine!" he said shortly. Great, another one like Dad, with a rulebook up his ass! He thought rebelliously, then considered that no one could beat Sulla Prince when it came to rules. His own rules, that is. Sulla didn't give a damn about anyone else's.
"Mind the tone," Severus ordered. "I do not tolerate mouthy teenagers, as my son can tell you."
Dante glanced over at Harry. The kid was small for his age, but didn't seem scared of his father. Maybe he was one of those goody-two-shoes kids who never got in trouble, Dante thought with a half-sneer. Probably the worst he'd ever gotten was a scolding. Dante bit his lip and nodded his head quickly, not saying anything. He'd learned a long time ago to be silent, because silence turned away anger. Most times.
Severus found a snack bar where they sold hamburgers, hot dogs, pizza, chips, and some sandwiches. Harry got two slices of pizza and a soda, Severus a hamburger with onions and mushrooms and some chips. Dante would have refused, but the hot dog smelled so good, he ordered one and an iced tea. He figured he'd better eat now, airplane food was notorious for being terrible and he had a five hour flight or so to England.
They ate at one of the tables and then Severus took them back to the small room. Martin had gathered Dante's trunk and suitcases, including his backpack and had them piled in a corner, waiting for them to be picked up.
"I don't know what your solicitors told you, but in Britain magical children attend a school called Hogwarts until they are seventeen or eighteen. I am a professor at that school, I teach potions," Severus said calmly. "You are how old? Thirteen?"
"Just this past month," Dante answered.
"And how much magical training have you had?"
"My dad hired teachers for me when I was little. But the past three years, he trained me himself." Dante answered.
"I shall give you a test when we are home to determine your aptitude in certain subjects. Though you should start the term in September as a third year. Have you a wand?"
"A wand?" Dante repeated, puzzled. Then he recalled something one of his tutors said about wizards in Britain using wands for everything. "We only use them for focusing, or for spells that are really advanced."
"In Britain, we use them for most everything, especially when you are in school," Severus said. "I shall purchase one for you before you start school."
"But . . . I can do magic without it," Dante protested.
"But you will learn to do magic with it," Severus answered.
Dante said nothing, but scowled and threw himself into one of the lounges. What was this, the Dark Ages? Everyone knew that you only needed your will to use magic, not some outdated tool.
"So you can do magic without a wand?" Harry asked.
"Sure I can. Can't you?"
"No. Not yet. Except accidentally."
Dante turned away, looking out the window. He wasn't looking forward to this at all. It sounded so backwards, being forbidden to associate with Muggles and using wands to cast spells. What did people do over there, wear charms all the time so they weren't seen? Pretend their wand was a stick so ordinary people didn't notice? Dante had to be careful here too, but at least he could go out and mingle with other people and not worry about being thought of as some kook. He thought wistfully of the apartment they'd had here in the city. Sometimes he'd hated it, but at least he hadn't been trapped inside it day after day. Though the ranch in Wyoming had been better, because he could find places on it to be alone, to practice charms or brew and ride his horse, which he'd had to give away to a neighbor once Sulla had forced him to move to New York three years ago. Dante hadn't wanted to go then, anymore than he did now, but he had no say in the matter. One did not say no to Sulla Prince. Unless you wanted to get your ass kicked. Was it the same with his cousin Severus?
Harry sat down a little ways from the other boy and tried to make some conversation. If h was going to be spending the summer with Dante, he might as well try and get along with the other boy, though at the moment, the kid didn't strike him as very friendly. "Do you play Quidditch?"
Dante glanced at him. "No. Why?"
"You don't? Because almost everybody I know does at Hogwarts." Harry blurted.
"Well, I don't. And yeah, I know what it is. My father said it was a waste of time. He said flying was for transportation or for impressing some dumb country hicks, not for chasing a ball around."
"Oh. Do you have a broom? When we get home, we can go flying."
"Yes. Do you need to fly everywhere over there? Or can you walk? In the city you can walk all over. Or catch the subway or a bus."
"No, not everywhere. I just like flying a lot. Don't you?"
"It's okay," Dante shrugged. "A horse is better."
"You had a horse?"
"Yeah. Awhile ago."
"Do you still have it?"
"No," Dante said and turned away. The last thing he wanted was to discuss Flyaway with this kid. He didn't need any reminders of what he had lost after coming to New York.
"Did you always live here in New York?" asked Severus.
"No. I moved here three years ago. Before that I lived in Wyoming, on a ranch. That's where I had my horse. But then my father decided I'd be better off over here, so we moved." Dante said, thinking of how he had disliked it here at first. It wasn't until he'd met others like himself that he'd started to enjoy it. And now his life would change once again. Damn you, Dad! Damn you for dying and damn everything else you did too!
"Did you ever have a familiar?" Harry asked.
"No. I just had a horse. Do you?"
"I have Hedwig, my snowy owl. And my dad has a raven named Skullduggery."
Dante's eyes widened. "You have a raven? Ravens don't choose any but the best." He stared at Severus.
"He is one of the best," Harry said loyally, before Severus could say anything. "Even Ghost said so. He was my tutor, he came from here too. From a place called Windfar, and he had a raven named Shriek, only she was white. Do you know him?"
"Know him?" Dante gasped. "You had Ghost Walker for a teacher? That's like being taught by Merlin over here. How did you manage that? Was it expensive?"
"Uh . . ." Harry glanced at Severus.
"Ghost is a member of the Society of Ravens," Severus put in smoothly. "So he agreed to help Harry free of charge, as I am a member also."
"Hot damn!" Dante whistled. For once he was impressed.
Severus frowned. "You will refrain from using bad language in my presence, Dante. Or else you'll be scrubbing my dungeon."
Dante gaped at him. "Are you for real? I say that all the time."
"Not anymore. Unless you want to be acquainted with a scrub brush."
"Okay. Chill." Dante snorted. "Holy Merlin, it's not like I used the f-word."
"If you did, you would have a session with a bar of soap and some time scrubbing," Severus interjected firmly. He would not tolerate a child with a mouth like a sailor.
"What are you, the language police?" asked Dante insolently.
"Your new guardian. Would you like to begin washing the floor tomorrow?" Severus demanded, his eyes hard. He fixed the boy with his obsidian gaze.
Dante met his eyes for about a minute. Severus saw defiance and a bit of fear before the boy dropped his gaze. "No, sir."
"I thought not. We shall discuss other rules later on when we get home."
Dante just nodded, thinking rebelliously that it wasn't his home, just a place to stay. Until he came of age and was free to go where he liked. And say what he liked too.
He caught Harry's sudden warning look. Don't even go there, it seemed to say. Unfortunately, Dante had never been good at taking advice.