They played pin the horn on the unicorn, Harry was the closes so he won that one. Next, they played gobblestones, Snape thoroughly beat Hermione in that game, while Harry beat Ron. Snape even brought out a pinata in the shape of Voldemort's head, for Harry and the others to hit. They went outside as Snape held one end of the rope, while the pinata hung from the tree. Snape used the branch for leverage. Ron and Hermione put a blindfold on Harry and spun him around 3 times, then gave him a stick to use. Harry swings his stick and misses the pinata as the pinata was pulled up and away from Harry, by Snape. Harry swings again and manages to get the lower half of the pinata, but didn't hit it hard enough to break it open. Harry ends up missing a 3rd time. Ron went next and missed all 3 times, which made everyone laugh, even Snape! Next was Hermione, she managed to hit it twice, but missed a 3rd time. She almost had it open! They talked Snape into hitting the pinata. They blindfold him and spun him 3 times. They gave him the stick as Ron held the rope. He was slightly taller than the other 2 were, so he could pull the pinata up and away from Snape. Snape swings once and hits the pinata. It was nearly open now! A few Honeyduke's sweets fell out of it! Snape swings again and misses. Snape's eyebrows furrow as he concentrates. He takes one final swing and breaks the pinata in half, spilling the entire contents onto the ground. All 3 of them scrambles around on the floor, getting as many sweets as they could, while Snape takes off the blindfold and smiles. After they all got the sweets off of the ground, Snape gave them each a small bag to put their sweets in. They all walk back inside to eat some sandwiches, chicken and corn, with a glass of pumpkin juice. After they ate, Snape looks at Ron and smirks, "Are you ready to play a game of wizard's chess, Mr. Weasley?" Ron said, "Um, sure Professor." Snape still smirking, said, "Are you afraid to lose to me?" Ron's ears went slightly red as he said, "No, I'm not afraid, sir. You're on." Snape's smirk widens as he goes and gets his chessboard and chess pieces. He sets it up by the table, letting Ron be white, while Snape was black. Snape was still smirking widely as he said, "May the best chess player win." Ron nods as they shake hands. Ron orders a white pawn to move forward 2 squares to start the game.

The game went on for nearly an hour, before Snape orders his black bishop to stand in front of Ron's king. The bishop drags the king off of the board. Ron realized that Snape had played the game the way he did on that giant chess board the year prior. Snape had won! He beat Ron Weasley! Snape said with a wide smirk, "Check mate, Mr. Weasley." Ron's jaw drops open and said, "You're the only one who was able to beat me, Professor...." Harry and Hermione laughs as Snape said, "I played chess for years, Mr Weasley. Professor Dumbledore taught me how to play over the holidays, when I was a student at Hogwarts. Good game, Mr. Weasley. You were a worthy adversary." Snape holds out his hand for Ron to shake. Ron takes his hand and shakes it as he smiles. After shaking hands, they let go. Snape said, "Mr. Weasley? Miss. Granger? Are we ready?" Both nod, smiling as Snape leads a curious Harry to the table. Snape heads to the kitchen and uses his wand to light the candles. Snape brings the cake out, with the candles lit. He sets the cake on the table and smiles. In unison, they sang the Happy Birthday song, "Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday, dear Harry. Happy Birthday to you." Harry grins widely as his eyes went red again. He said, "Thanks guys! Thanks dad!" Snape smiles, "Make a wish, Harry and blow out the candles." Harry said, "I don't have anything to wish for, dad." Snape said, "There must be something you would like to wish for, Harry." Harry went thoughtful, then finally he had a wish. He looks at the candles, closes his eyes and said mentally, 'I wish for dad to be happy and to be able to finally move on from the pain in his heart.' He opens his eyes and blows out the candles. Ron said, "What did you wish for, Harry?" Harry said, "I can' tell you, otherwise it won't come true." Hermione laughs as Snape chuckles. Snape carefully removes the candles and hands Harry a knife." He said, "As you are the birthday boy, you get to cut the first slice." Harry cuts the first slice and places it on a plate. He hands the knife to Snape who then hands Harry the first slice of cake. Snape then slices a piece of cake for Ron, Hermione and himself. Snape brings out the cookies and cream ice cream and puts a scoop of it on each plate, including his own. He smiles, "Can't have cake without ice cream, now can you?" They begin to eat the cake and ice cream as they drank pumpkin juice in between. Once they finished eating, Snape said, "Time for presents, Harry." Ron and Hermione leads a grinning Harry to the couch as Snape levitates all the presents and sets them on the floor, next to Harry. Snape said, as he sits next to Harry, "Which would you like to open first, Harry?" Hermion sits on Harry's other side, while Ron sits in the armchair. Harry looks at his presents and smiles, "I think I'll open Hagrid's first. Then Ron's, his mum's, Hermione's and lastly, your's dad." Snape smiles and said, "Very well, Harry." He picks up Hagrid's gift and hands it to Harry.

Harry takes Hagrid's present and wonders what Hagrid got him for his birthday. Harry opens the gift and his eyes widen as he sees a painted snowy owl, carved out of wood. It looks exactly like Hedwig, only smaller. His 2 friends oohed and aahed as Harry shows them the carved owl. Snape was impressed with Hagrid's carving skills as he looks at the details on it. There was a card in the box. Harry takes the card and sets the carved snowy owl back into the box. It read:

Happy Birthday, Harry!

It took me weeks to carve the piece of wood into your snowy owl. I hope you like my gift Harry. I hope your having a grand time on your birthday, over there with Professor Snape! See you when term starts!

Hagrid

Harry grins, "I love it! This is going to look so great on my dresser!" Snape chuckles, "I will have to admit, he's quite gifted when it comes to carving. It's quite life-like." Harry smiles as he sets the gift aside. Snape hands Harry Ron's present. Harry opens it to find a green book called, "Quidditch Through The Ages." Harry grins, "Thanks Ron!" Ron grins back, "You're welcome, Harry! It'll tell you how Quidditch got started and how the golden snitch came to be. You'll love it, Harry!" Harry takes Ron's card out of the box and reads it:

Hey Harry,

I hope you like my gift, Harry. I figured since your Seeker now, I thought you might like this. Have a great birthday, Harry!"

Ron Weasley

Harry grins as he sets the book and card back into the box. He sets the box aside as Snape said, "I suppose knowledge of how Quidditch came to be and how we ended up with the golden snitch is something worth reading. A history lesson in itself. Very nice, Mr. Weasley."

Ron smiles as Snape hands Harry Mrs. Weasley's gift. Harry opens it to find minced pies and a pair of red hand-knitted gloves. Harry grins as he tries on the gloves. Harry said, "These fit perfectly! Tell your mum I said thank you, ok Ron?" Ron grins, "I'll tell her Harry." Harry takes the gloves off and sets it aside. He picks up a hand-made card, which read:

Dear Harry,

I hope you're having a wonderful birthday. I've heard so much about you from Ron. I do hope Severus will let you stay with us the week before term begins. It would be so nice of you to meet the rest of the family. Happy birthday, Harry!

Molly Weasley.

P.S. I hope you and Severus enjoy my minced pies! 

Harry smiles and hands the card for Snape to read. After reading it, he said, "I'll allow you to stay with Mr. Weasley and his family for the final week before term begins. That is, if you want to, Harry. I'll even take you to the Burrow myself." Harry smiles, "Thanks dad, that would be great! I hope you'll be ok, dad. I don't want you to feel lonely." Snape smiles, "I'll be alright, Harry. I'm due back at Hogwarts a week before term begins anyways. All the teachers are. We have a meeting with Dumbledore every year before term begins. That's when we meet the new Professors and go over things." Harry smiles, "Ok dad. What's the Burrow?" Snape said, "It's what their home is called, Harry. You'll see soon enough." Harry said, smiling, "Ok dad." Harry looks at Ron and said, "Looks like I'll be spending the final week with you and your mum." Ron grins, "Wicked, I'll let mum know once I'm home." Harry smiles as Snape hands Harry Hermione's present. Harry takes the presents as Snape takes the minced pies. Snape said, "We'll save these for after dinner." Harry chuckles as Snape puts the pies away. Snape comes back and sits down. Harry opens the present to find a book called, "Hogwarts: A History." Harry chuckles, "Thanks Hermione. Now I have my own copy of the book." Hermione smiles, "Once you read it, you'll learn a lot about Hogwarts! I hope you like it." Harry smiles, "I do, Hermione, thanks. I'll definitely start reading it tonight." Hermione beams at Harry as Ron said, "You'll become a bookworm like Hermione, if she keeps giving you books to read." Snape raises an eyebrow at Ron, "And what is wrong with being a bookworm, Mr. Weasley. I enjoy reading, it's relaxing. Not to mention, that I have the copy of that book myself. It's a great read. You should try reading, sometime." Harry and Hermione snicker at him as Snape smirks. Ron turns a little red and said, "Sorry, Hermione. Maybe you're right." Hermione smiles, "It's ok Ron." Harry takes out Hermione's card and begins to read:

Happy Birthday Harry!

I hope the gift and this card finds you well and that you're having a great birthday! I really hope you like my gift. I wish you nothing but the best on your birthday.

Your friend,

Hermione Granger

Harry smiles as he puts the card and book back into the box and sets it aside. Snape picks up the final gift and hands it to Harry. He said, "The final gift is from me, Harry. I hope you like it." Harry smiles as he takes Snape's present. He wonders what Snape got him for his birthday. The present wasn't big, nor was it small. Harry opens it to find a book of muggle fairy tales. He takes the book out and looks inside. Inside the cover were words written in a slant, cursive handwriting. It read:

To Sev,

Happy Birthday, Sev! I hope this book will put a smile on your face and cheer you up. It always helped me, after dealing with my sister. I always let my imaginations take me away to a magical place. It always made me feel better, even if it was just for a little while. It really helped me. I hope it helps you.

Your friend,

Lily Evans

Harry's jaw drops open as he realizes that this was Lily's gift to his dad. Harry said, still shocked, "I can't have this, dad. This was mum's gift to you. Why are you giving it to me?" Snape smiles, "Because, I felt that it was time to pass it on to you. You're mother was right. Reading the stories did help me. It helped me get away from the real world for awhile. My imagination whisking me away to a land of fantasies, where the heroes of the stories always defeated the evil villians." Snape chuckles as he adds, "And in most of these stories, the hero always manages to get the girl. These stories were entertaining to read and it helped keep me sane, while I lived here. You, who never heard of these stories, due to the Dursleys' neglect, now can read them to your heart's content. Please accept it, Harry. I want you to have it. I have enough of Lily's letters, photos and gifts over the years to remember her by. It's time that you have something of hers, other than photos, Harry." Hermione was sniffing as she wipes her eyes. Ron goes over to her and hugs her to comfort her. Harry eyes were red now, with tears threatening to fall. Harry looks at his dad, and said hoarsely, "Thank you dad. This is the best gift ever!" Snape smiles and hugs Harry as tears fell from Harry's eyes. Harry was overwhelmed for 2 reasons. One, was that he received a present that meant so much to Snape, that despite how much it meant to him, he was willing to give it to Harry. That meant a lot to him to receive the book. Two, was because the book belonged to his mother, who was Snape's only friend and the only woman Snape ever loved. The fact that it was his mother's book, meant a lot to him as well. After crying for a few minutes, Harry lets go and wipes his eyes. Snape lets go and smiles at Harry. He said, "Are you alright now, Harry. I can tell that my present to you, meant a lot to you. Take special care of that book, Harry. I made sure it was in good condition. It shows how much I cherished her gifts. I hope you will cherish your gifts as well, Harry. I'm glad you liked my gift." Harry said hoarsely as he smiles, "I will dad, I promise. Thank you so much, dad!" Snape smiles and said, "You're welcome, Harry. Read my card." Harry takes the card out and sets the book carefully back into the box. The card read:

To my son, Harry,

I wish you a very happy birthday. I truly hope you like my gift. It's a heart-felt gift from me, to you. It has been in my possession for years. As much as I cherished it, I felt that she wanted me to give it to you. As you are her only son, it was only fair that you should have it. To be able to enjoy it as much as she and I did. She truly was an amazing friend and an amazing woman. Cherish it forever as I have done.

Your father,

Severus Snape

Tears fell from Harry's eyes again as he hugged Snape once more. Snape chuckles softly as he hugs Harry back. Snape said, "I take it you were touched by my words that you read." Harry nods as he looks up at Snape. He wipes his eyes and said hoarsely, "You're the best dad ever! I love you dad!" Snape smiles as he takes his wand out and clears away the boy's nasal passages, as it was beginning to run again from his crying. He puts his wand back up his sleeves, then takes out a handkerchief and wipes his face and eyes. Snape said, "I love you too, my son." Harry smiles and hugs him. He said, "Thank you for my first ever birthday party, for the food, the presents and most of all, my friends and you, for being there to celebrate it with me. This was the best birthday ever!" Snape hugs him tighter and smiles, "Good, I'm glad you enjoyed yourself. I enjoyed planning it all. To see your smile and give us that big grin of yours, makes it all worth it." Harry grins and said, "Come on you 2, join in on this group hug!" Snape chuckles as Ron joins in on the hug. Hermione wipes her eyes and grins as she joins in as well. They all hugged one another then lets go.

Suddenly, the clock chimes the 6th hour. It was now 6pm. Snape looks at the clock and said, "It's time that you 2 went home. You both can use the floo network to get home. Mr. Weasley first, since he knows how to use it. Watch closely, Miss. Granger." Hermione nods as Ron takes a handful of floo powder and throws it into the fireplace. The fire burns green, then Ron steps into the flames holding his bag of sweets. Ron said, "It's a tight fit, Professor, but I'll be ok." Snape chuckles as Ron said, "The Burrow!" The flames consumes him as he was whisked away to his home. After a moment, the fire returned to its normal color. Hermione looking nervous as she takes a handful of floo powder and throws it into the fireplace. The fire once again turns green. She steps into the flames, holding her bag of sweets and said, "Grangers' Home." The fire consumes her as she was also whisked away to her home. Snape said, "Wait here, while I check to make sure that Miss. Granger has made it home safely." Snape takes the floo network to Hermione's house and finds that Hermione made it home safe and sound. After introducing himself to her parents, he returns back to his house. Snape said, "She's made it safely to her house. Though I surprised her parents." Harry chuckles as he grins. Snape chuckles as he said, "I'm sure you're still full from eating all the foods I've prepared for your birthday party. Go and put your gifts away and your sweets. You may have 2 pieces of sweets before bed. No more than that. You can read the 3 new books you have now, while I clean up the mess." Harry smiles and said, "Are you sure you don't need my help, dad?" Snape said, "I'm sure, Harry. Go on." Harry smiles as he takes the gloves and carved owl to his room. He sets the cards in a neat pile onto his dresser. He then takes the 3 books he received on his birthday and heads downstairs. He lays on the couch as he reads the book Ron got him. The books that his dad and Hermione got him were on the side table behind him. Snape smiles as he waves his wand and cleans the living room and kitchen. He puts the remaining food and ice cream away. Then sits in the armchair to read a book himself. Snape looks up some time later to find Harry asleep on the couch. The book, Hogwarts: A History, laying open on the floor. Snape marks the page where he was reading, and gets up from the chair. He sets his book down and goes over to Harry. He picks up Harry's book and places a bookmark in the book to mark where Harry left off. He sends the books to Harry's room with his wand. They land softly on Harry's desk. Snape puts his wand up his sleeve then carefully, lifts Harry off of the couch and carries him up to his room. He lays Harry down on the bed and removes his glasses. He places Harry's glasses on the bedside table next to his wand. Snape tucks Harry in and whispers, "Pleasant dreams, Harry." He runs his fingers through Harry's hair and smiles affectionately at his adoptive son. Harry curls up under the blanket and smiles in his sleep. Snape smiles as he turns and leaves Harry's room. He leaves the door slightly opened in case the boy called for him. He heads back downstairs and sits back in his armchair. He resumes reading his book, by the fireplace, all the while, remembering everything they did on Harry's birthday.