HP: It's a snake, not a badger.

Chapter 19 Falling in Love

In the early morning, the once spacious four-poster bed was now a bit crowded, and the two people sleeping on the bed were tightly embracing each other.

They were so close that they could kiss with the slightest movement, their breaths mingling and merging. This was the scene that Emeric saw when he opened his eyes.

He instinctively tried to create some distance, but as soon as he stood up a little, he was pulled back.

Snape felt uncomfortable with the cold air coming in, so he groggily pulled the person back, snuggled up to them, and fell asleep again.

Seeing the usually stern professor suddenly appear so adorable, Emeric blushed completely. He hugged Snape, who was practically lying on top of him, and gently patted his back, slowly coaxing him to sleep.

Then, memories from the past few days flooded back: the man's unusual gentleness, his clumsy attempts to coax him, his awkward kisses—all of which made Emeric hopelessly adorable. (Oh no, you've fallen in love!)

He traced the man's features with his eyes and found him to be very handsome. He gently kissed the man's furrowed brows and looked at his slightly pouting lips, which were pressed together. A strange itch rose in his throat.

Wanting to do something to relieve the dryness in his throat, he slowly moved closer to the other's lips, resulting in a kiss that was almost imperceptible. Emeric blushed, unable to hold back his heavy breathing, trying to control his emotions, and his hands, which had been on the other's waist, covered his eyes.

Snape found it strange that the bed was shaking. He tried to open his eyes to see what was happening, but he was still very sleepy. In frustration, he patted the bed with his hand.

He wanted to stay up until Emeric turned back before going to sleep last night, thinking he could just make do on the sofa for the night, but he couldn't resist the cub's big eyes, which is why the two of them ended up sleeping together.

Emeric felt a tap on his head and was so startled that he held his breath and turned pale, waiting for Snape to pronounce his death sentence. After a while, he cautiously lowered his head and found that Emeric was still asleep. Only then did he slowly resume breathing. He dared not do anything out of line again, and his hand restlessly returned to its place, but he didn't dare to move around.

Feeling somewhat bored, he began to observe Snape's bedroom, preparing to improve his decorating plans. As a child, he acted entirely on intuition, and many of the things he brought out were, in fact, the best in the ring, but not the most suitable.

As he pondered what could be improved, the person in his arms felt a warm movement, and the buttons on their collar came undone. Upon noticing that glimpse of white, Emeric stared intently at the other's neck. The professor usually buttoned his shirt all the way up; looking at that pale neck, he could imagine just how white the body in his arms must be.

Emeric let out a deep breath, too afraid to look any longer; he suspected he was going to get a nosebleed if he did.

It turned out that what his father said was true. People from the Aldrickson family could smell the scent of their lovers. He fell in love with this person at first sight. At first, he thought it was a magic potion that had permeated Severus, but he didn't expect it to be the scent of his heart.

Emeric couldn't resist in the end; he lowered his head and buried it in Severus's neck, greedily inhaling his scent.

Even the most oblivious person would wake up if someone breathed near their neck. Severus felt someone embracing him, and without making a sound, he reached for his wand and pressed it against the other person's waist.

"Sir, if you don't want to make a hole, please let me go. Where did you take the child who slept with me? Why would you do something like climbing into an old person's bed?"

Severus, who had just woken up, was unaware that the cub had turned back into its original form. He demanded that the man hand over the cub and was even a little worried that the child might be frightened.

In a sense, the child was indeed frightened. "Severus, it's me! You said yesterday that we would get along the same way as the previous two days, but now you're yelling at me after only one night." Of course, the child was faking it.

Emeric looked at Severus with a pitiful expression, hoping the professor would coax him. Wasn't it normal for him to be frightened by such a fierce man?

The man, who had been fooled once again, started wiping his face, touching his head, and kissing his forehead. Only after he finished kissing did he realize that his child had grown up.

"How much longer are you going to stay in your poor old professor's bed? Get back to your own bed and let the old professor get a good night's sleep." The somewhat embarrassed and angry man threw off the covers and told him to get out of his bedroom.

Emeric, who had tricked Severus into giving him a kiss, felt like he had hit the jackpot and didn't care at all about the barbs in Severus's words. After so many days of close interaction, plus the fact that he already knew Severus was prone to saying one thing but meaning another.

I obediently got out of bed to wash up and prepare to pack my clothes to take with me. Anyway, these are all from when I was little, and I can't wear them now. I'll bring new ones later.

"Severus, I'm leaving now. I've already arranged with Fufu to bring the food over in half an hour."

Severus pretended nothing had happened, calmly got up, changed his clothes, calmly washed up, and calmly ate breakfast, but the blush on his ears betrayed him.

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"Brother Ellie, you're back to normal."

Harry spotted Emerick entering the Great Hall and quickly beckoned him over.

"Hmm, did you have a happy Christmas? Did you like the present I gave you?"

"I like it. Come with me later, I'll take you to see a magical mirror."

Emeric nodded in agreement and then went to the professors' chairs.

A few days ago, when he was walking with Snape, professors would often give him candy or snacks. Now that he's back to normal, he needs to tell the professors so they won't worry.

"Look, it's this mirror. I see Mom, Dad, and Draco. Ron sees him win Quidditch. Allie, what can you see?"

"The Mirror of Erised, it turns out this mirror can see what you desire."

Emeric's image didn't appear in the mirror; instead, his father, his grandfather, and he appeared first, planting herbs in the garden.

As if something had happened, he saw himself stand up and walk into the room, all the way to the end of the corridor. He opened the door, and inside was a potion-making workshop. Severus was wearing a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, intently brewing a potion.

The man, who was being embraced from behind, naturally turned his head and kissed the other person. Seeing that Emerick still had something he didn't understand, he reaffirmed his feelings once again.

Of course, he had to hide it well. His lover was very clever; if he revealed his true feelings before confirming the other's feelings, it would be tantamount to a death sentence.

"Harry, you're here again, and you've brought an unexpected guest." Once again touched by magic, Dumbledore finally remembered what he had forgotten and hurried over.

"Professor Dumbledore, what do you see in the mirror?"

"I received a pair of wool socks, which look very warm."

Harry nodded, seemingly understanding, while Emeric rolled his eyes. He knew the implication of the wool socks; wasn't this a veiled reference to Grindelwald? He'd make sure Dumbledore had so many socks that he'd lose a pair every week.