The Serenading & Seduction of Severus Snape

Disclaimer: JK Rowling owns Harry and Co. Metallica owns the words to Nothing Else Matters, and Bryan Adams, Sting, and Rod Stewart own the lyrics to All for Love.


“And welcome to another year at Hogwarts!” Dumbledore began, standing up and calling attention to the 200 some odd students in the Great Hall.

“This year, not much has changed from years before. The Forbidden Forest is still off limits to students, as are the corridors that have been roped off…”

At that precise moment, the double doors to the Hall opened wide. A man of about 30 walked in carrying a guitar case in his left hand with a tan dog the size of a small pony walked under his right. On his shoulder sat a pure white owl.

“And, here is Hogwarts newest professor…”

Severus Snape watched in mild surprise as the young man walked stiffly in with his pets and his guitar. He observed that the man was wearing a pair of black suede leather pants, a cream colored silk shirt, a pair of silver tipped dragon hide boots, and a deep green velvet traveling cloak. He studied the dog for a moment wondering how long it would take the creature to maul a student, and then his eyes traveled to the owl. Bloody hell! It’s Potter!

“…Harry Potter. He’ll be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts.”

Harry stopped and looked around the hall at the faces of the children, those that could be seen, anyway, and gave a slight bow of his head and resumed his walk to the staff table. He took in every excited gasp and the round of applause that ensued. Stupid fame, he thought.

He took his place at the head table as Dumbledore finished his speech. The food arrived and the students turned their attention to the food in front of them instead of staring at the ‘savior of the wizarding world.’

Harry put his hand on the large dog beside him and whispered something. He turned to his plate and picked up a roll. Breaking off a piece, he fed it to Hedwig, and then she flew off to the owlery. His dog whined as he helped himself to some potatoes. “You know this kind of food is not for you Killer,” he chastised the dog.

Killer merely put his head in the young man’s lap. “Harry, did I hear you just call your dog Killer?”

Harry turned his face toward the voice. It was Minerva McGonagall. He smiled. “Yes, Minerva, you did,” he answered with no trace of an English accent.

Minerva’s mouth dropped open in surprise. Harry chuckled. “I’ve been in America since I killed Voldemort, Minerva. Actually, I’ve been in Texas.”

“I always wondered where you made off to after the end of the war, Harry. I know Albus kept in touch with you, but he would never say where you were.”
Smiling, he answered, “Well, that’s because I told him not to, at least not until the appropriate time.”

Minerva was looking directly into Harry’s eyes. “You’re blind, aren’t you?”

His face grew grim. “Yes, old Voldy managed to take my eyesight before he died, but,” he added brightening up a bit, “Killer here has helped to remedy that.”

“He sees for you?”

“Something like that,” Harry answered. “He’s not an ordinary seeing eye dog, like muggles have. As long as we are in contact, I can see through his eyes.

“I discovered him as a puppy, alone, abused, and starving. The second I picked him up, I could see everything he could.” Harry absently rubbed the dog’s head. “It’s kind of weird, but neither of us have ever questioned that he was supposed to be with me.”

Minerva’s face softened. “That’s an amazing story, Harry. What kind of dog is he?”

“He’s a Great Dane. This particular breed is very smart, and gentle, even though they are large and tend to intimidate most people just by their sheer size.”

Albus interrupted Harry’s explanation with, “Harry, my boy, it sounds as though the states did quite a bit to help you!”

His face shifted toward the headmaster’s voice. “I learned many things over the pond, Dumbledore. It’s definitely been an interesting decade. And, I managed to find myself a new set of eyes.”

Harry made small talk with his colleagues and before long, the welcoming feast was over. The students were making their way to their dorms, and the professors to their quarters. “Severus,” Dumbledore asked, “can you show Harry to his new home? He’s going to be staying in the dungeons, down from you?”

Snape blanched. “What?”

“You heard me. Harry’s quarters are down from yours…”

Harry walked up and rolled his eyes at his most hated professor. “Sev, I’m blind. That means that I can hear any and every little sound. It also means that any little bit of perfume the female students might wear will find its way to my nose. It will be much easier for me if the only sounds I hear are the quiet of the dungeons and the only scents that reach my over sensitive nose are those of potions. It’s much less of a sensory overload for me.”

Snape scowled. “Don’t scowl, Sev. You act like I’m going to skulk around the dungeons just waiting to annoy you.”

Through gritted teeth, Snape answered, “Don’t call me ‘Sev’ and quite frankly, Potter; I wouldn’t put it past you to lurk around every corner just waiting to annoy me.”

Harry just shook his head and laughed. “Some things never change.”

The pair walked down to the dungeons. Killer walked ahead of Harry and listened and sniffed. “Must you let your dog run wild?”

Harry stopped and laughed. “He’s not running wild. He’s not even investigating. He’s committing the path to memory, Severus.”

Harry trailed his hand along the stone wall as he began walking again. “What do you mean ‘committing the path to memory’?”

“When I touch Killer, I can see through his eyes. It’s not like seeing through my eyes, you know, everything’s in gray scale and most things aren’t in focus, but it’s always been enough that I could manage. When he gets done exploring, he’ll know every high spot and low spot in the floor. When we walk to class, he’ll look at them, and I’ll know they are there. Basically, I won’t fall on my face getting around the castle.”

Snape’s lip curled up in a sneer. “That would be a sight to see.”

Harry just laughed at the older man. He looked at the wall to his right and whispered something to Killer, who looked up at the portrait. “I do believe that these are my quarters, Professor Snape. Such a wonderful picture of Salazar Slytherin, don’t you think?”

Snape stood in shock at the Gryffindor Golden Boy’s choice of entrance covers. The picture showed Slytherin sitting on a large boulder holding a cobra draped across his shoulders. Harry waved at the picture, “Sal, I trust you are well.”

The man in the picture merely raised an eyebrow and looked at the snake. Harry laughed at the reaction. He looked at Severus and back at the portrait. “Begin anew,” he said, and then he spoke something in parseltongue.

The reaction of Salazar was priceless. Then Harry said, “Sal, if my dog ever comes to your portrait and barks, you must let him in. Also, the only people to be admitted without the password are Severus and Dumbledore. Got it?”

Salazar nodded his head and opened for Harry and Snape. “Care to join me for a glass of fire whiskey?”

Snape shook his head in declination but Harry grabbed his arm and dragged him in any way. Killer romped through the rooms sniffing while Harry walked through to the kitchen and pulled out two tumblers and filled them with whiskey. He sat his down and washed his hands. “Before we drink, I’d like to see you. Have you changed much?”

“See me? Why not just touch your dog and have him look at me?”

Harry smiled. “Watching through his eyes is ok when you want to see large rooms, like the Great Hall, but it fails miserably when it comes to seeing faces. I miss things like wrinkles, unless they are prominent and even moles and such. Using my hands like a blind muggle is much easier.”

Snape sighed and drained his tumbler. “You’re annoying me, you know that?”

Harry laughed at the statement. “If you let me do this, I promise I’ll be invisible for the rest of my tenure here at Hogwarts.”

He gently touched the older man’s face tracing his jaw and chin. Harry lightly touched his lips and made his way up to the man’s large nose. He caressed Snape’s prominent cheekbones and his eye brows, finally ending with the man’s long hair. “You’ve not changed a bit, except your hair is longer,” Harry announced with a satisfied smile. “You should tie your hair back, it would suit you.”

Harry picked up his tumbler and drained it. “Glad to know you approve Mr. Potter,” Snape answered sharply, though the look on his face belied his tone. “I do believe that it’s time I make my leave. I have first years that are probably waiting for me to tell them what I expect of them.”

With that, Snape left Harry’s rooms. The younger man could hear his robes billowing out behind him as the portrait shut. He laughed. “Killer, come!”

The dog obeyed, as always, and when Harry touched him, he could see that the hearth was lit brightly in his sitting room, and there was a small couch and a chair near it. He smiled when he saw that Dumbledore had found him (or conjured) a baby grand piano. He walked into his room and found a king size four poster bed, and a bureau next to it. His bathroom was small, but that was fine with Harry because he could get around in it without Killer’s help.

He decided that it would be best to call it a night and go to bed. His first class was at 8AM and he knew that the first years were probably going to be really fun to teach. He hoped that he wouldn’t have to prove himself to his older students. Harry imagined some seventh year throwing a hex at him simply because he was blind.

At the end of the first day of classes, Harry was exhausted. He’d had to deflect at least one curse or hex in all but his classes of first years, and that was only because they didn’t know any. He sat in front of the fire stroking Killer and reliving the day. He was furious at the brats and managed to take away a total of 400 points, and give several detentions because of the ‘problems’ the students had.

Harry walked over to his piano and sat down. He began to play a song that he’d written. It was a feel good song and always brought him out of any kind of bad mood he was in. He played on, not caring about anything but lifting his own spirits. Suddenly, Killer barked. He stopped playing and didn’t turn around. “Is my playing bothering you Severus?”

Snape grunted. “How did you know it was me?”

Harry turned and smiled. “No matter what potions you brew, you always smell like sandalwood, patchouli, and green apples. Your scent is unmistakable.”

Severus blanched. “Green apples?”

Harry laughed. “I figured it was your shampoo or something.”

A flush crept across the potion master’s high cheekbones. “It is,” he answered quietly. “No one’s ever noticed.”

Harry tapped the side of his nose. “No one’s ever been blind at this school either. The combination is rather intoxicating if I do say so myself. Now, was my playing disturbing you?”

Snape was at a loss for words. He’d just received a compliment from his most hated student. He stood for a moment shocked. “I…no…I just wondered where the music was coming from.” Gathering his composure he added, “I would not put it past you to charm your walls to play music loudly simply to annoy me, though.” With that, he swept from the room and shooed the children from the hall outside of Harry’s private quarters.

Harry chuckled and cast a silencing charm around his rooms. He played well into the night and felt much better when he was done. He rested better than he had in many years, that night.

The next day, word had spread about not only his ability to block curses and hexes, but his musical ability. There were many questions asked that day about when he would play for the students. He reassured them all that they could hear him play the guitar as opposed to the piano because the only piano in the castle was in his private quarters, and students were not allowed in there. All week, there was gossip at the school surrounding the new DADA professor. He just waved it off and taught his lessons, took points, and graded papers.

Saturday morning dawned bright and clear. After breakfast, Harry and Killer decided that a walk on the grounds was in order. They both needed some fresh air. It was still warm, and Harry threw Killer’s tennis ball for him to chase. Soon, he was being chased around the grounds of the school by his dog. Harry laughed and Killer barked. It was not long until the duo had attracted a small crowd of early rising students. Those who weren’t afraid of dogs quickly joined in the banter and tossed the ball from one to another as Killer galloped back and forth, barking, and eventually whining. “Ok, I think Killer’s had enough guys. He’s starting to whine. Whoever’s got it throw it toward him and really high in the air.”

A second year Ravenclaw girl named Sarah Williams had the ball and she threw it as high as she could. As it came down, the dog jumped up on his hind legs and caught it with a loud snap of his jaws. The students made many different awed noises. “Killer, come!” He said with a hearty laugh.

Obediently, the dog pranced toward his friend. Harry held out his hand, and Killer set the slobber covered ball in it. He patted the creature on the head and held the ball high over his head. “Killer, up!”

With that, Harry threw up his free arm, and Killer stood on his hind legs, forepaws landing on the free arm. He stood there, bracing himself on Harry and pointing his nose up as high as it would go toward the ball. Harry could only see the ball that Killer was concentrating on. He whispered, “Look around.”

The canine immediate panned the semi-circle of students and Harry caught blurry glimpses of their faces. The dog turned his attentions back to his prized possession and Harry gave it to him, prompting him to get down. The students all clapped. With a laugh, he bowed and began to good naturedly shoo the students away.

Harry sniffed the air. “How much did you see?”

“All of it,” came the silky baritone behind him. “Don’t you think it’s rather irresponsible to let the children play with a beast as large as yours?”

Harry laughed. “Killer? Ha! He’s a gentle giant. He wouldn’t hurt one of these children purposely if they threw an unforgivable at me. Was it not obvious that he’s not going to get to ambitious and injure them?”

Snape snorted. “Ok, so why did you name him Killer?”

Harry and his dog walked toward Snape standing on the steps of the castle. Before answering, Harry sat and Killer did the same right beside him. “Well, when I found him, Killer was just a puppy, maybe three months old. He was beaten, abused, and starving. I could hear him whining, and Jenn, one of the squibs I lived with in Texas, found him, but he would not come to her. She led me to where he was, in a garbage can, and I called him and he walked out on shaky legs and practically fell into my arms. Much to my surprise, I was looking at Jenn for the first time through a real set of eyes. I almost dropped Killer I was so surprised. I didn’t say anything, and basically that night, we fed him from a bottle every two hours. The next day we took him to the vet and he checked him over and got his shots, and he gave us a nutrient powder to help him pick up some weight and hopefully not stunt his growth and things of that nature. Over the coming weeks, we almost lost him three times, and I’d still not named him. Jenn looked at him one night and said, ‘He’s so beautiful. It just kills my heart to know that someone didn’t want him and they starved and abused him.’ She and Steve, that’s the other squib I lived with, didn’t know about my childhood, and how it paralleled the poor dog’s in front of us. I just smiled and said ‘That’s what we’ll call him, Killer!’ Steve and Jenn both laughed and found that name to be rather ironic. The name stuck.”

Severus sighed. “Are you always this long winded Potter?”

Harry guffawed, “You can thank those Texans for that. They always loved a good story. What time is it, Severus?”

Snape looked at the sun glowing proudly in the sky. “It’s nearly lunch Potter. We should probably make our way to the great hall.”

Harry agreed when his stomach gave a great growl. The two men walked up and sat on opposite ends of the staff table. Harry pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill and wrote Snape a quick note.

I could go for a glass of fire whiskey tonight, how about you? My quarters at 7PM.

H


Harry gave it to Killer and had him walk it to the older man. Snape gingerly took the parchment from the dog and read it. He rolled his eyes and scratched back:

You’re annoying me. No.

S


The dog took it back to Harry and sat down. Harry touched the dog and held the parchment up so he could read it. He laughed and quickly wrote a reply.

I’m not going to stop until you have a drink, then. I’ll play my piano without silencing charms all night Monday night if you don’t have a drink.

H


The dog walked back down to the other end of the table, and Harry heard the older man give an audible sigh of exasperation. He pointedly looked that way and flashed his large goofy smile at the older man. When Killer came back, he had the parchment.

Fine. Don’t ask again or I’ll hex you.

S


Harry laughed out loud and turned toward the older man again. He stuck out his tongue. By this time, students had started filing into the hall and a few watched the note being passed. Others watched the expressions of the professors and a few giggled when he stuck his tongue out at Snape. It was not long until the rest of the staff had filed into the hall and took up their places at the head table. There was light conversation but Harry was more interested in the fact that he’d asked Snape to have a drink, and he’d managed to get him to accept.

After he finished eating, he made his way to his chambers and grabbed his guitar case. “Killer, you want to spend the rest of the day outside?”

The large dog barked happily in response. “Good,” Harry answered, “Let’s go!”

Most of the students were still in the great hall, so Harry made his way to the same tree he would sit at while he was in school. Memories of Ron and Hermione flitted through his thoughts and he sighed. He really missed his two best friends. He pulled his guitar from its case and began to idly strum it, adjusting the strings. He listened as the giant squid lazily flopped and splashed his tentacles in the lake.

Students were starting to mill about the grounds again, and Harry began to play and sing softly.


So close no matter how far
Couldn\'t be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
And nothing else matters

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don\'t just say
And nothing else matters

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us something new
Open mind for a different view
And nothing else matters

Never cared for what they do
Never cared for what they know
But I know


Students heard the guitar and slowly came to sit and listen to the person quickly becoming their favorite professor.


So close no matter how far
Couldn\'t be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
And nothing else matters

Never cared for what they do
Never cared for what they know
But I know

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don\'t just say

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us something new
Open mind for a different view
And nothing else matters

Never cared for what they say
Never cared for games they play
Never cared for what they do
Never cared for what they know
And I know

So close no matter how far
Couldn\'t be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
No nothing else matters


When he finished, the students erupted in applause. Several were yelling things like “Bravo!” and “More!” while others just sat there entranced at the talent of their professor.

Harry blushed at the response. “Don’t cheer me, I didn’t write that song. It’s called Nothing Else Matters and it’s sang by Metallica.”

One of the muggle born students said, “My mum loves that whole album. Do you know any more from it?”

Harry laughed. “Sure, I know them all, but some of them can be really difficult to play on an acoustic guitar. Do any of you play instruments?”

Several children raised their hands and then realized that Harry couldn’t see them because Killer was too busy being petted by a couple of Slytherin students near the front.

A young Hufflepuff boy spoke up. “I play the classical bass, professor.”

A Gryffindor girl answered, “I play the violin.”

Of the group of students, only about five didn’t play a musical instrument. Laughing, Harry asked, “Those who don’t play, what is your interest in music? Do you just enjoy listening? Do you sing, perhaps?”

Each of them said that they enjoyed singing, though none would admit being any good at it. Again Harry laughed, “Your voice is an instrument! Never be ashamed of your talents!”

Harry played several more songs for them and the group got bigger as the afternoon wore on. Harry smelled the familiar smell of sandalwood, patchouli, and green apple while he sang a song by the Eagles. “I believe I’m going to take it down a notch or two for my last song,” he announced, not acknowledging the newest arrival.

“It\'s in a movie I saw when I lived in the States, but now I can’t remember the name. This song is called ‘All for Love’.”

Harry started strumming his guitar and closed his unseeing eyes. He could feel the eyes of everyone on him. The pair that he felt penetrating him were those of his old potions master.


When it\'s love you give
then in love you live.
I\'ll be the rock you can build on,
be there when you\'re old,
to have and to hold.

When there\'s love inside
then there\'s a reason why.
I\'ll be the one that protects you
from the wind and the rain,
from the hurt and pain.

Let\'s make it all for one and all for love.
Let the one you hold be the one you want,
the one you need,
\'cause when it\'s all for one it\'s one for all.
When there\'s someone that should know
then just let your feelings show
and make it all for one and all for love.

When it\'s love you make
then it\'s love you take.
I\'ll be there when you need me.
When honor\'s at stake,
this vow I will make:
that it\'s all for one and all for love.
Let the one you hold be the one you want,
the one you need,
\'cause when it\'s all for one it\'s one for all.
When there\'s someone that should know
then just let your feelings show
and make it all for one and all for love.

Don\'t lay our love to rest
\'cause we could stand up to you test.
We got everything and more than we had planned,
more than the rivers that run the land.
We\'ve got it all in our hands.
Now it\'s all for one and all for love.
Let the one you hold be the one you want,
the one you need,
\'cause when it\'s all for one it\'s one for all.
When there\'s someone that should know
then just let your feelings show.
When there\'s someone that you want,
when there\'s someone that you need
let\'s make it all, all for one and all for love.


When he got done, he could hear the girls sigh. He was also met with applause and questions as to when he would be playing again for them. Harry just put his guitar up and laughed. “I’ll probably be out here next weekend, if it’s not raining. I rather enjoy the fresh air here. It’s much better than the polluted stuff in Dallas! I do believe now my dear students that it is about time for supper. Why don’t you all go on to the great hall?”

He finished getting his guitar packed up and put his hand on his dog’s head. “Like the show?” He asked Severus.

Snape laughed. “Once a show off, always a show off.”

It was Harry’s turn to laugh. “Hardly,” he answered with a smirk. “Have you ever heard the saying ‘music tames the savage beast’? Well, what I just did was spent, what, four hours, entertaining those brats. It kept them out of the other teachers way, and it kept them out of trouble. I know where I’d have been if I had a teacher that took the time to try to entertain me while I was here. Granted, I might not have saved the sorcerer’s stone and Ginny Weasley might be dead right now, but I would not have gotten in nearly as much trouble. Are we still on for tonight?”

“Potter, why are you being nice to me?”

“Well, Severus, I’ve had a decade to think about how you treated me while I was here. I realized that, other than overlooking your Slytherin’s sabotage in potions, you did nothing that a father wouldn’t have done. You protected me from myself and my new found freedom. I appreciate that. Also, had it not been for you, I would not have been able to defeat Voldemort. As a teen, I never gave you credit where it was due. I was a stupid kid.”

Snape stopped walking. The look on his face was a mixture of amazement and disbelief. “You think that you can make up for all of that by being nice to me?”

Harry chuckled and laid his hand on Snape’s arm. “No,” Harry said, “I’m being nice to you because I want to know Severus, the man who saved me all those times. I already know Snape, the greasy git bastard. Seven o’clock, don’t be late, and leave room for dessert and a little whiskey,” he added with a wink.


A/N: This is my first fic on here, so I\'d really love a review or two! Let me know what you think and if it can be improved. Also, this story has been posted on TSS.