The morning was cool and crisp as Eileen apparated with Snape to a breezy hillside. As far as the eye could see, there were lush green fields, woodlands, and the beautiful scenery of the village of Ottery St Catchpole. From up high, the village looked like clusters of toy houses, dotting the landscape where beams of light poured through the clouds.
"How about it, isn't this a nice spot?" Eileen asked.
"It's great!" Snape exclaimed. "How did you think of building a house here?"
"I couldn't find anything suitable in the village. Then I heard that old Lovegood had a plot of land that hadn't sold for ages, so I went and bought it from him," Eileen said, turning and pointing at the two-story wooden house behind them. "He was so happy when he heard I wanted to buy this land. Look, he even helped me build this house, only charging fifty Galleons extra."
"Lovegood?" Snape was a bit surprised. "Why did he want to sell this land?"
"He said it was too close to people, and he didn't like it. Although I disagree with that point," Eileen said with a slight hesitation, "compared to that peculiar cylindrical house he and his son live in, this place is certainly too ordinary."
"Never mind, I like it here!" Snape said with a grin. Since Luna wasn't born yet, why should he worry so much?
---
For the rest of the summer holidays, Snape and Eileen were busy arranging the house and clearing the overgrown garden. Although he had clearly told Eileen that the Trace wouldn't precisely identify who had cast magic, and that the Ministry of Magic relied on wizarding parents to supervise their children's behavior at home, and he'd argued about it several times, Eileen still insisted he follow the rules. So, he had no choice but to turn over every bit of soil with his own hands and plant every tiny seedling.
"Oh, I've had enough!" Snape exclaimed, leaning on his spade in the wide garden. "Mom, you should come see this!"
"What?" Eileen poked her head out from behind the window. A group of garden gnomes, with their bald, potato-like round heads, were scurrying into the garden between the freshly planted hedges, shrugging their tiny shoulders. The hedges hadn't grown dense enough yet, so it was effortless for them.
"Not just one or two, there are more and more!" Snape said, pointing at the gnomes diligently trying to burrow their tiny bodies into the ground. "All our hard-transplanted cabbage seedlings will be ruined by them!" He bent down and fiercely grabbed a cabbage seedling. With a violent struggle, an ugly gnome was pulled out.
"Let go of me! Let go of me!" the gnome shrieked, kicking and flailing its calloused little feet. Amidst the gnome's squeals, Snape grabbed its ankle, lifted it upside down, then raised it over his head, leaning back and giving a mighty swing—The gnome drew a graceful arc through the air, then tumbled down the hillside.
"Severus," Eileen said, a bit surprised, "that was easily fifty feet."
"Fifty feet of what?" Snape said, a bit exasperated, pointing in the direction the gnome had rolled. "Look over there!"
---
Following the direction of his finger, Eileen saw more gnomes still sparsely climbing up the hillside. Her gaze traced back along their path, and through a tall hedge and an orchard, a crooked little house vaguely appeared. Snape threw his spade into the ground. "We have to go over there."
"Knock, knock, knock." Eileen, holding a box of freshly baked custard tarts, knocked on the front door of The Burrow.
"Bill—would you get that!"
"Mom, I'm busy!"
Soon after, a plump woman in a floral apron hurried to open the door for them. "Hello there!" Mrs. Weasley's anger quickly morphed into a friendly smile. "Oh, Eileen, is this your child?"
Eileen smiled and nodded. "Yes. This is Mrs. Weasley, Severus."
"Hello, Mrs. Weasley," Snape said.
"Thank you, Eileen." Mrs. Weasley took the box of tarts Eileen handed her and happily invited them inside. "So, you've moved in already?"
"We've been here for a while, busy tidying up the house," Eileen said, sitting down in a chair in The Burrow's living room, looking a little embarrassed. "We should have come to visit sooner..."
Seeing Eileen take so long to get to the point, Snape couldn't help but say to Mrs. Weasley: "Mrs. Weasley, you see, while we were tending to our garden, we noticed gnomes migrating from here," he thumbed towards The Burrow, "up the hill. Since our hedges haven't had time to grow tall yet, they've all been sneaking into our garden and digging holes, so I thought—"
"Ah—" Mrs. Weasley suddenly exclaimed. "Bill, Charlie, come here!"
Two red-haired boys ran over, each carrying a few gnomes. One of the taller boys had long red hair, whom Snape guessed must be Bill, and the other sturdy boy was Charlie.
"Mom, we're clearing out the gnomes like you asked!" Bill said somewhat impatiently.
"Never mind the gnomes for now, we'll deal with them in a few months," Mrs. Weasley told Bill and Charlie. "Just rest up today. Alright, you two, release the gnomes and go wash your hands." They clattered away again.
"We're so sorry," Eileen and Snape kept apologizing to Mrs. Weasley. "We've caused you trouble and interrupted their work."
"It's quite alright," Mrs. Weasley said gently, comforting them. "To be honest, I'm almost used to them. Arthur is too lenient with them; they always come back soon after being chased away."
As they chatted idly, a baby's cry suddenly echoed from an inner room. "Oh, Percy, he's awake." Mrs. Weasley smiled apologetically at them, then turned and left the living room.
A moment later, she returned carrying a baby, humming a soft tune. Little Percy gurgled in her arms, his tiny hands unconsciously reaching into the air as if trying to grasp something. Snape leaned closer to look at him. Percy's small head tilted slightly, seemingly curious as he surveyed the unfamiliar person before him.
"You're so cute!" Snape couldn't help but gently touch Percy's chubby nose with his finger. He turned to Mrs. Weasley. "May I hold him?"
"Of course," Mrs. Weasley said, demonstrating how to properly hold an infant. "You need to support his neck and head with one hand, and support his..."
Snape carefully cradled Percy, saying cheerfully in a voice only he could hear, "Oh, little Weatherby."