Chapter 18

The pair Apparated into the bottom of Hogsmeade High Street with a smart crack. Severus offered Sarah his arm, which she gladly accepted, and went on to explain to Sarah about Hogsmeade being one of the few wholly wizarding places in the UK as they strolled casually past the little row of shops. Severus felt proud to have a lady on his arm and, noticing their reflection in a shop window, thought they made quite a dashing couple.

Sarah, meanwhile, was fascinated by the colourful magical displays in Zonko's front window and lured by the delightful sugary smells coming from Honeyduke's.

"Will I have time to have a look around the shops after lunch?" she asked hopefully.

"Of course. I need to get some supplies from Alcaeus Apothecary myself."

Jasmine's restaurant was opposite a shop called Dervish & Banges. Sarah's attention was caught by strange looking instruments in the window, and she made a mental note to pop by after lunch.

The sign above the restaurant was emblazoned with shimmering mirrored letters. The windows were a discreet smoky-grey colour. It looked like a very fine establishment. Severus held the door open for her to walk through before following her in. They were instantly greeted by the Maitre'd, an olive-skinned wizard with a neatly-trimmed goatee and a shock of oiled, slicked back hair.

"Professor Snape! It's been too long," the man acknowledged graciously.

"It has indeed, Alfonso. I trust you are well?"

"Business is good. And if business is good, then I am good also." He smiled genially at Severus for a second before his eyes flicked to his companion. "Forgive me; I do not believe I've had the pleasure, Miss..."

"Shaw," Sarah offered. "Sarah Shaw."

"Wonderful to meet you, Miss Shaw." He gave a polite smile before turning again to Snape. "Your favourite table is ready, Professor. Please be seated whilst I fetch your menus." With a curt nod, he disappeared behind a rich velvet curtain as Severus led Sarah through the restaurant to their table, pulling out a chair for her before taking a seat of his own. Sarah really appreciated his manners and his sense of unquestioning old-fashioned chivalry, and it made her feel quite ladylike and special.

She took the opportunity to look around and noted the highly eclectic décor. Behind Severus was a massive wooden plaque, carved into the shape of an ornate, Oriental dragon. A full-sized Grecian statue stood in the far corner. There were also Italian-looking Frescos painted on the ceiling, whilst brightly-coloured paintings of Hindu gods and gilded Buddhas sat juxtaposed on the walls against delicate Japanese ink drawings, Egyptian papyrus and Aztec masks. The cultural clash could have easily been gaudy and gauche, but instead the overall effect oozed class and elegance.

On the table in front of them were silver goblets and heavy-looking silver cutlery with a tiny twist detail on the handle, and large silver plates. Thick white napkins were folded into the shape of a lotus and had been charmed to gently open and close on the plates.

Alfonso returned swiftly with the menus. They were bound in black leather and had 'Jasmine's' embossed in fluid script on the front. After presenting the menus, he left them to decide their order in peace.

Sarah opened her menu and was shocked to find it contained only one piece of parchment, which also happened to be completely blank. She frowned and then looked over at Severus, whose menu was exactly the same. She opened her mouth to vocalise her confusion, but Severus spoke in his rich baritone.

"Italian," he drawled, and Sarah watched as flowing purple ink appeared on the menu in front of him, filling the page with curly script. Sarah smiled as it dawned on her what she needed to do.

"Choose whatever you like," he encouraged with a smile.

Sarah thought for a moment, and then said, "Thai." This time, her menu began to blossom with fancy purple writing as dish after dish materialised on the page.

After a discreet amount of time, Alfonso came over once more. "Would you like to see the wine menu, Professor?" he asked Snape, but Snape shook his head.

"We'll have the '82 Diavolo Rioja, thank you."

"An excellent choice," replied Alfonso before disappearing again.

"I've never heard of that wine before? Is it Spanish?" Sarah asked.

"It is. But you would not have heard of it as it is wizard made. It's called Diavolo as the grapes are blended with a tiny amount of belladonna. It's literally the 'Devil's Rioja'." He smiled at her.

Sarah meanwhile looked affronted. "Isn't belladonna poisonous?"

"You're correct; in certain amounts belladonna is toxic and can be fatal. However, it is used in many wizarding potions and is quite safe if used properly and can even aid digestion. In this particular vintage, they would add one berry for every three litres in the cask. The effect is subtle, but I promise you, it's wonderful."

Well, he did say he used to teach Potions, so he must know all about it, she thought.

"What are the effects?" she asked curiously.

"It makes the lips tingle, and the pupils dilate. Belladonna means "beautiful lady" in Italian. Drops prepared from the belladonna plant were used to dilate women's pupils, an effect considered to be attractive. Highly dangerous, of course." He smiled again, and Sarah found herself wanting to know more.

Just before she was able to voice her next question, her eyes were drawn to her goblet, which was now silently filling up with deep red liquid. Severus grabbed his and took a sip, closing his eyes briefly with pleasure. Sarah did the same and was surprised at how delicious it was. It was deep and almost like black cherry in fruitiness, with a rich chocolaty aftertaste that did indeed make her lips tingle lightly. Her first impression was that it was like sex in drink form, and that appealed to her sensualist nature no end.

"This is incredible," she managed after her first sip.

Severus smirked indulgently. "I'm pleased you like it."

Severus plucked at the lotus-flower napkin, giving it a brisk shake to return it to its natural shape before placing it on his lap. Sarah followed suit, remembering her next question.

"What made you give up Potions? Do you hate the subject that much?"

Severus let out another customary bark-like laugh. "Hate Potions? On the contrary, I adore Potions. It requires a high level of skill, patience and concentration, and also subtlety and intuition. It is the teaching of Potions that is maddening and that I detest. You tend to find that few students prove competent, and the rest are eternally dismal and there's no hope for them. The grading process for marking Potions is more tedious too, as you have to analyze each component to understand what made it particularly bad or good. It is completely soul-destroying to watch students continually blunder through a subject I have so much passion for." He paused, taking another sip of the Rioja before continuing.

"I had wanted to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts for some years, but was denied the position for several... complex reasons," he explained. "Besides being a subject I have had very real experience of, it is one of the most paramount skills pupils need for their own personal protection. I take great satisfaction from making sure every pupil at the very least will be able to walk away from my class being able summon a Patronus charm or conjure an effective Shield charm. And of course, the marking is much simpler."

"It is a shame I will not be able to take your subject," Sarah lamented.

"It is unfortunate. But as I have said, I am more than happy to cover the basics with you outside of the school so you will also have defensive tools at your disposal."

"Thank you, Severus. You are very kind." She smiled at him sincerely, and he saw the pupils in her fern-coloured eyes had begun to dilate already. Beautiful lady indeed, he thought.

"Have you decided what you would like?" he asked after a moment, tearing his eyes away from hers.

"Oh, no, just a second." Sarah had been so engrossed in his conversation, she'd barely looked. "I've decided," she said quickly.

"Tagliatelle con funghi et salsiccia," Severus muttered carefully at his plate, looking at Sarah to do the same.

"Thai red curry," she said clearly. Within seconds, each meal miraculously appeared on to the wide silver plates, steaming hot and deliciously prepared. Sarah's curry had a delicately-carved vegetable to one side which looked to be a beetroot; deep crimson, and shaped like an incredibly delicate flower. She grinned across at Severus with pleasure as he raised a fork and muttered, "Bon appetite."

There was relative silence whilst they ate, punctuated by the occasional moans of delight and "Quite delicious" from Sarah. Severus watched her eat, amused.

"It's good to see a Muggle woman actually eating. I'd presumed they were all stick-thin due to starvation, if the trend in their vulgar magazines which I confiscate from pupils on an almost daily basis is anything to go by," he said dryly.

Sarah felt a flash of embarrassment. She was certainly no size zero. "I could probably do with losing a few pounds myself, but I enjoy my food," she said quietly.

Severus realised that she was somehow insulted by his last comment. "I am very glad you have a healthy appetite. I would not find you so positively charming if you lost any of your curves. There is clearly something wrong with Muggle men if they find skeletal forms attractive."

She smiled up shyly at him now, realising he was trying to pay her a genuine compliment.

"If you are agreeable, once we have finished in Hogsmeade we will need to buy you a wand," Severus said after finishing the last mouthful of his tasty pasta dish.

Sarah looked puzzled. "But I already have a wand."

Severus raised his eyebrow. "I could no more perform spells with that than you could. Wizarding wands have special cores, usually a piece from a magical creature. Whereas most people with any kind of magical ability should be able to yield some results with any of these magically-imbibed wands, wand ownership is very complicated and wizards tend to perform best with their own custom wand. The wand chooses the wizard, so they say. Mine chose me at the age of eleven, and I've had it ever since. Nearly lost or had it broken innumerable times. It would be like losing a limb if I ever had it taken from me." Sarah saw him reach into his jacket instinctively, to see if it was still there.

"Is there a wand shop in Hogsmeade?" she asked.

"No, unfortunately not. Ollivander's is the main UK supplier of wands, and his shop is based in London and is usually shut on Sundays. However, I have made a special request that we can go and see him later on this afternoon to buy you a wand, as I will be unable to begin coaching you without one. I've already explained to him that you have never owned a wand before. Naturally he was suspicious, as most people will purchase a wand at the age of eleven before pursuing a magical education, and the only time they would have to go back is if their wand was lost or damaged. I told him you had a spell rebound on you that had inflicted magical powers upon you; he does not need more information that that."

Sarah finished her last scoop of red curry and rice with a satisfied smile. "Thank you for bringing me here. It was wonderful."

"It was absolutely my pleasure," he drawled before draining the last of his wine. "Would you like dessert? Coffee?" he offered.

"I'm absolutely stuffed, thank you," she replied.

"In that case, I'll request the bill."

As if Alfonso had read his mind, he was there in an instant, with a polite, "Anything else I can get for you, Professor?"

"Just the bill, please, Alfonso. Once again, you've outdone yourself, it was truly delicious."

"Very kind, Professor, very kind," he answered with a smile before producing a plain piece of parchment and his wand from his apron. He tapped it once, causing italics to spread across the surface. With a little bow, he handed the parchment to Severus and left their table. Severus glanced at the parchment, before noticing with amusement that Sarah was rifling through her bag looking for her wallet.

"I don't think so," he said in a silky drawl as she looked up at him. "Wizards have their own currency. And besides, I wouldn't dream of inviting a lady out to lunch and expecting her to pay." With that he removed a tiny black velvet pouch from his coat and tapped it with his wand. The pouch grew to about ten times its size, and Severus carefully opened it and removed ten fat, shiny golden coins. With another tap, the bill turned into an envelope, which he slipped the coins inside. He then tapped the pouch again, returning it to its miniscule state before pocketing both pouch and wand.

"Thank you, Severus." She smiled at him graciously. He felt a warm glow; it felt rather luxurious taking a lady out for a civilized spot of lunch in a fine restaurant. Pleasures such as these were, for someone like Lucius Malfoy, with all his pomp and circumstance and devoted wife, taken for granted as an everyday experience. However, the novelty was certainly still there for Severus, who could count his romantic meals out on one hand.

Rising from their seats, they bade their thanks and farewells to Alfonso before stepping back into the High Street for a spot of unhurried shopping.