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

Chapter 104 The Joy of Sweets

Draco stood with his arms crossed against the wall, waiting for Harry to come find him. Christmas was approaching, and they would be separated for another whole holiday.

"Draco!!" Gentle black eyes came into view. Draco looked at the boy running towards him from a distance. They had been dating for two years, and incredibly, they had never argued in all that time.

Even when he was being unreasonable, Harry would coax him and never tried to reason with him or calm him down.

"Let's go to Hogsmeade." Draco tiptoed and kissed Harry's cheek. He thought Harry had grown so tall all of a sudden, even though he ate almost nothing every day.

"Mmm." Harry lowered his head and kissed Draco's lips. He loved those soft, fragrant lips and wanted to kiss them every day.

The two walked hand in hand down the street. They were going to buy a lot of Christmas presents today. Occasionally, they would see something interesting in a shop window and go in to browse.

When they bumped into classmates, Draco would bury his face in Harry's arms, but his platinum blonde hair had already given him away. The two mischievous badger cubs, who loved watching the excitement, pretended to be calm and greeted Harry.

They started chattering only after they went to a corner.

"I told you they were a couple, look, look!!!"

"I'm totally shipping them! This arrogant little peacock and sunny big boy, I'm totally shipping them, okay?"

"Hurry back to the lounge, the others are waiting for our news, it's true!!!"

But unexpectedly, they not only found themselves shipping a young couple today, but also an older one. They hadn't walked two steps before they saw Dumbledore and Gellert coming out of Honeyduke.

"Gail, don't walk so fast. I'm sorry, okay? I won't eat candy tomorrow."

"Ha, Al, how many times have you promised me this? How many times have you lied to me? If I still believe you, I'd be a fool, hmph."

Gellert walked straight ahead, completely ignoring Dumbledore who had just stolen candy. He had agreed to come to buy gifts today, but before he could even turn around, Dumbledore had run off to the candy store to buy sweets.

After he finally managed to squeeze in, Dumbledore had already paid and started eating. Furious, he turned and left, not wanting to pay any attention to his gluttonous lover.

"Gail, I was wrong, I was really wrong. Don't be angry anymore, or I won't talk to you anymore."

"snort."

Upon hearing Dumbledore's threat, Gellert stopped in his tracks, not daring to take another step, fearing that Dumbledore would really get angry and ignore him.

Two badger cubs hid in the corner, biting their handkerchiefs, afraid of being discovered if they cried out. Their faces were flushed with excitement, and they would glance at each other from time to time, looking like they had just fallen in love. Only after the old couple had walked away did they start screaming.

"Aaaaaah!!!"

"I knew it! I knew it! The principal and this substitute professor are a couple!!!"

"It's fine to ship them, what a special day it is that so many couples are being so affectionate today."

"Merlin, if you had another pair, I would gladly eat a balanced diet of meat and vegetables for a whole year."

"Dream on, you really want both."

Two badger cubs were playing and frolicking; they're totally smitten. Real couples are so sweet, whether they're old or young, they're much more entertaining than the gossip in the Daily Prophet.

Whether Merlin truly heard their wishes or not, the third couple to appear before them today was also someone they were shipping, although neither of them had given a direct response. But they continued to ship them anyway.

"Professor, let's go check out the candy store. We can buy Albus a gift. His gifts are always the easiest to find every year. We can just get a big gift bag from the candy store."

Emeric sighed to Severus that, apart from Dumbledore, other professors had to think long and hard about gifts, especially for his sweetheart.

"Okay, go buy two portions."

Severus still gave Emeric a lot of face in public, and Emeric's suggestion was the same as his own, but he didn't want to go into the candy store at all; it was too crowded inside, and it would be just right for Emeric to squeeze in.

"I bought Gellert a bunch of wool yarn. Two years ago, Albus said he liked wool socks, so I had Gellert knit some to keep him occupied. It'll save him from having to ask me to do chores all the time. I believe he'll be willing to learn to knit socks for his lover."

Emeric blinked and told Severus his dirty trick, clearly showing how unhappy he was with being enslaved by Gellert.

"Have you decided what to send Minerva?"

"Well, I'm planning to give Professor McGonagall a Quidditch model set. I begged my father for ages before he finally agreed to make it for me. Professor, what about you?"

"I haven't decided yet."

Severus was somewhat troubled. He really didn't know what other gift to give McGonagall besides potions, but she had made it clear this morning that she didn't want potions.

"How about a plaid coat? Professor McGonagall likes plaid patterns, or anything else with plaid patterns?"

The two walked toward the Elegant Wizard Clothing Store as they talked, and it was clear that Severus had taken Emeric's advice.

Not far from them, two little badgers had expressions of utter satisfaction; their trip today had been so worthwhile, as they had managed to ship all three popular couples.

"Waaaaah, this is the taste I've been waiting for! Can't I just eat it? Who invented Thaddeus and Professor Snape? They're such a perfect couple!"

"Discovering this pair of people who are so compatible is simply genius. One is a cold and aloof professor who has fallen in love with a student, and the other is a warm-hearted but ruthless student who has taken a liking to the professor. It's so easy to ship them."

"I'm on Sass's side. Younger women are the sweetest. Without older men spoiling younger women, how can there be any crazy younger women? What about you?"

"I'm on Sisa's side. Don't you think it's more romantic for an older man to raise a younger woman into his lover?"

"Never mind, let's just keep going. Remember to go back and urge my senior to write her story; she hasn't written in ages. Oh, and remember to hide it well so Professor Snape doesn't find out, or our house is doomed this year."

"Keep it absolutely hidden. Putting aside Professor Snape, if word gets to Thaddeus's ears, the food in our house will become unpalatable. Who can stand that?"

The two little badgers sealed their mouths shut, intending to go straight back to the castle; with so many people on the street, they would be doomed if word got out.

Emeric, who had just stepped out of the Elegant Wizarding Clothing store, couldn't help but sneeze. He had a feeling someone was talking about him behind his back, but after racking his brains, he couldn't figure out who it was, so he simply put it out of his mind. He was on a date with Severus right now; how could he think about anything else?

"Professor Flitwick, what are you planning to send? I've been sending wine for years now, don't you think it's time for a change?"

Emeric was somewhat troubled. There was nothing he could do; the fairy professor simply loved drinking, all kinds of alcohol. He sent him alcohol every year, and if he sent it again this year, wouldn't that seem a bit perfunctory?

"Just keep sending him wine, he likes that. Or you could send him a quill pen. I recently heard him say that quill pens break too easily, so you could engrave some protective magic runes on it."

Severus offered a suggestion: he planned to send a special dragon's blood wine this year, an idea inspired by Emeric.

The two quickly bought a lot of things, and most of the gifts were prepared. They just needed to give them to each other, and they planned to do so secretly, without telling each other.