Christmas Blessings

This was the noisiest Christmas Snape had ever experienced.

At first, the children seemed a bit shy around strangers, only daring to glance at him from the corners of their eyes while eating.

Good, just leave him alone.

He didn't like these—any of these chattering Cornish pixies at all.

Snape ate the towering pile of macaroni with a grim expression.

But—

"Come on, go on, be brave."

A familiar voice, one that made him want to grind his teeth, rang out.

He saw Eliana reach out as if to nudge someone, and then a tiny tot tremblingly walked up to him, holding a cup of milk.

"Professor Snape, Merry Christmas."

The tot said it quickly, raised the cup to Snape, and then bolted.

Snape: ...

He saw Eliana clap in front of the tot, "Wow, Paul, you're amazing! So brave, you'll definitely become the greatest captain one day."

The foolish-looking tot beamed, flattered.

Eliana popped a candy into his mouth, then turned to the others, "Mary~"

A little girl stepped forward with an expression like she was about to bravely meet her doom. Eliana whispered a few words in her ear, and the girl nodded repeatedly.

Snape drooped his face. As expected, the little Cornish female pixie walked towards him.

"P-Professor Snape," the pixie stammered, "Merry Christmas, and I hope you're happy every day."

Happy every day?

Snape's gaze fixed chillingly on Eliana, who was pulling another tot aside and muttering something, definitely not good, to him. He let out a cold puff of air through his nose.

To see such a creature every day after the holiday ends, and be happy every day?

Little Mary, terrified, ran back behind Eliana, then peeked out cautiously to look at him.

Eliana smiled and patted her head, also giving her a piece of candy.

After a string of little brats had wished him a Merry Christmas, Eliana hopped over to him, "Professor, Merry Christmas!"

Snape's head was buzzing from the noise.

He was losing his temper. "What do you want?"

Eliana's eyes curved into crescents. "Merry Christmas, Professor! You're such a good person, you deserve everyone's Christmas wishes. Now you're the most blessed person in our orphanage."

Snape said dryly, "I don't believe they didn't wish you well."

Eliana shook her jingling braids. "But everyone in this orphanage, including me, has wished you well. You haven't wished me Merry Christmas yet, so I'm one short."

Snape coldly looked away.

"Huh?" Eliana, disappointed, followed his gaze, sticking her head out, "You really won't?"

"Harassing a professor, Gryffindor loses five points."

Eliana's eyes widened. "You can deduct points outside of school?"

A mocking curve tugged at Snape's lips. "You can see Gryffindor's hourglass for yourself when you get back to school."

If the points weren't deducted, he'd find Potter when he returned to Hogwarts. He remembered Potter was staying at school for the holidays.

As Snape walked out of the orphanage, Mrs. Brown enthusiastically stuffed a large flatbread with a whole roasted chicken into his hands.

He walked to a dark corner, preparing to Apparate.

Suddenly, a faint sound came from the side, and he looked over warily.

A small head peeked out from the corner, followed by a few more. Snape recognized them as the noisy little pixies from the orphanage. The two children at the front exchanged encouraging glances, then stumbled forward, while the other children watched nervously from behind.

Snape stood there impatiently.

"P-Professor Snape, Eliana said you're the best professor at school, and that you take good care of her."

The one named Mary stammered.

"How can you women not even speak properly? I'll do it." Paul pushed Mary aside disdainfully, then met Snape's black-hole-like eyes and also started stammering.

"P-Professor Sn-Snape, I wanted to say, uh, thank you for taking care of Eliana for us. This is a gift we prepared for you."

He tremblingly handed over a small box and then bolted.

Mary, left alone: ???

She glared angrily at the fleeing Paul, then forced a slightly trembling smile. "W-well then, Professor, Merry Christmas."

She ran off too.

The little heads by the wall retracted one by one. Snape heard chattering arguments carried on the wind.

"What were you saying just now! You performed terribly. You didn't even introduce my gift!"

"Wow, if you're so good, why didn't you go just now?"

"I'm not going. That creepy, dark professor is really scary."

"He took our gifts. Will he treat Eliana well later?"

"You go ask."

"No way, no way."

A small head cautiously peeked out, meeting his gaze directly, then it quickly retracted as if it had seen the muzzle of a dark gun.

Then an even more terrified voice came from behind the wall: "Waaah, he's looking at us!!"

"Run!!"

A series of pattering footsteps faded away, and the alley fell into complete silence.

Snape opened the small box in his hand. Inside were various odds and ends, like small shells wiped clean, paper cranes folded from candy wrappers, small stones, tiny slingshots, and so on… all treasures that children had collected.

He tugged at the corner of his mouth and casually stuffed these little trinkets into his pocket.

With a full stomach, the children's little trinkets, and Mrs. Brown's cookies, he returned to the desolate and silent Spinner's End, carrying the scent of hearth and home.

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