Harry had done well enough in his classes that he not only avoided a scolding from his da, but even earned an outing to Fortescue's, a treat that made him hug himself in delight. He was happy to have some one-on-one time with his father after the Potion Master had been so preoccupied with exams and grades for the past few weeks. Snape also explained that Harry would spend a few weeks with the Weasleys towards the end of the summer before rejoining him at Hogwarts. All told, Harry could not have imagined a better summer for himself.
Snape, on the other hand, was more than a little grumpy at what lay ahead. Instead of a nice, peaceful, child-free season spent brewing, he had to sort out all the administrative details for next year with Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Flitwick, make sure the mutt and werewolf were well-prepared for their new roles at Hogwarts, tutor the brat in Defense and Potions, and ensure that their deranged house elf didn't get up to any additional mischief.
Still, he had to admit that traveling to Switzerland was a rather appealing prospect once he had arranged to see Brunhilde againтАж
Sirius and Remus were, as expected, delighted to see Harry, and the boy was nearly smothered by their hugs. "You made it through your first year!" Remus said proudly. "And Severus tells us your grades were excellent!"
"I believe I said they were adequate," Snape corrected sharply. It would never do to let the brat get a swelled head.
Remus winked at Harry. "Right. And we all know that adequate by your standards is excellent by anyone else's."
Harry laughed even as Snape scowled. "It was easy with all the extra help an' tutoring that Da arranged for me," he explained. "In most of the lessons, I got way ahead of the classroom stuff, and even Potions wasn't so hard with Da letting us all help him prepare the ingredients most nights."
Sirius grinned at Snape. "Sounds like you've got yourself a whole army of willing slaves, Snape!"
The Potion Master did his best to look nonchalant. "Some professors are able to make their topic sufficiently interesting so as to attract students' attention outside of class."
"We'll have to remember that and do our best to emulate you," Remus put in, exchanging a mischievous glance with Sirius.
"What d'you mean, Moony?" Harry asked curiously.
The two Marauders glanced at Snape, who shrugged irritably. He couldn't really hope to keep it from the brat any longer. "Your godfathers," he announced, "will be teaching at Hogwarts next year."
Harry's jaw dropped. "Really?" he gasped in delight. "WICKED!"
"Hmf." Snape huffed as the other men grinned at Harry's obvious happiness.
"Yep! So you'll have to call me 'Professor'!" Sirius teased Harry, ignoring the look of pain that crossed Snape's countenance at the thought.
"And 'sir'," Harry teased him right back. "But you'll have to get used to it and stop turning around to see who I'm talking to!" Then he paused as a thought struck him. "But what classes are you teaching?"
"The Headmaster and Professor McGonagall will be on leave," Snape cut in. "The Headmaster will be taking some time to recuperate after the excitement of this year тАУ he is not a young man anymore тАУ and Professor McGonagall will be looking after him while she pursues some research of her own."
Harry frowned. "Professor Dumbledore is okay, isn't he?" he asked worriedly.
"He is fine, Potter. Just a little tired," Snape reassured him briskly. "But with their departure, we needed some temporary faculty to replace them for the term or two they'll be gone."
"I'll be teaching DADA and serving as Gryffindor's Acting Head of House," Remus told Harry. "So no sneaking out after curfew, Mr Potter!" he growled with mock severity.
Harry giggled in delight. "That's brilliant! An' what about you, Padfoot? What're you gonna teach?"
"Transfiguration!" Sirius exclaimed, grinning. "If we don't have the two of you fully fledged тАУ and unregistered тАУ animagi by the end of the year, I'll eat my boots!"
"You probably gnaw on them already, mutt," Snape grumbled under his breath.
"Ooooooh, this is gonna be great!" Harry was beside himself with excitement.
"Yes, think of all the extra tutoring I can schedule for you, not to mention the fact that now there will be three of us at school to keep you out of mischief," Snape told him silkily.
That effectively punctured Harry's enthusiasm, as he belatedly realized that Remus at least would likely be a lot less indulgent as a professor than as a godfather. "You're not gonna give out detentions, are you?" he asked uneasily.
"Would you prefer we just turned you over to your da for punishment?" Remus asked, amused.
Harry shook his head vigorously. "But you're not gonna use that special quill, right? Just regular lines or essays or stuff?"
Snape pinched the bridge of his nose. Here it came.
"What special quill, Harry?" Sirius asked blankly.
The resultant explosion left no doubt in anyone's mind that Blood Quills would not be used, and only after examining Harry's hand repeatedly, to ensure that there were in fact no lasting scars, did Sirius grudgingly permit that Harry did not have to be sequestered in Switzerland and privately tutored. "What kind of fucking psychos is Dumbledore letting in that place?" he demanded of Snape irately. "How could he allow someone to use a bloody torture implement like that?"
Snape rolled his eyes. "He has employed disgraced giants, former Death Eaters, and squibs, not to mention someone possessed by the Dark Lord himself. By comparison, Umbridge was nearly normal."
Sirius huffed. "Good thing that bitch disappeared or I'd show her a few things that crazy Cousin Bella used to do to the house elves."
Remus eyed Snape narrowly. "Are you sure she won't be making a reappearance?"
"Completely," Snape said, with a meaningful look. He didn't want to give too much away, particularly not in front of the wide eyed boy who was sitting on the couch, listening avidly as Sirius fumed and swore.
"Perhaps it's just as well that Albus is relinquishing control, at least for now," Remus commented, shaking his head.
The rest of the visit was much less exciting and, for Harry, less educational, as Remus kept a closer watch than ever over Sirius' language, cautioning that the ex-Auror needed to get used to censoring himself in preparation for his new role as a teacher. Still, Harry was pleased that Sirius' single outburst had provided him with at least a half dozen new phrases that he could teach the other boys once school resumed.
Snape spent several afternoons floo'ing over to visit Brunhilde in Basel. (Urusla and Sirius had, as predicted, long since parted company.) To Harry's delight, on more a few of these occasions, he accompanied Snape and they were also joined by Brunhilde's godson Jonah and his younger brother Seth.
Harry was accustomed to being the youngest and smallest, so it was nice to be the "big kid" for a change, looked up to by nine year old Jonah and seven year old Seth, and he took his role seriously, much to Brunhilde and Snape's quiet amusement.
"Are you sure you can do it?" he asked for the sixth time one afternoon in the flying park. Brunhilde and Snape were off talking on a nearby bench while the boys practiced with their brooms and a toy snitch. Harry had already demonstrated some of the moves that he used during the school Quidditch season, and naturally Jonah and Seth were wild to try them too.