Four days and fifteen chapters later... Nah, I don't need a life or anything. Actually, I just wanted to note that I had nothing to do with this chapter. I accept no responsibility for the characters, and this was a plot born in Aislinn's head, NOT MINE. I just wanted to make that clear.

"Take a page from her book, indeed," Severus muttered under his breath. "If I asked one of them, she'd probably laugh in my face."

"No, she'd probably be too pleased that someone noticed her to think abuot laughing," said a voice behind him, and he spun around. Dumbledore again.

"I…"

Dumbledore raised a hand and smiled kindly. "But it is your choice, Severus. If you wish to ask one of the girls to dance, it would very likely make her night; few like to be the one left out of the festivities." Severus nodded absently, watching as Mickery and Aislinn seemed to catch each other's eye, and soon they were sweeping near each other. Both paused, and Mickery, to Severus' horror, let go of the Hufflepuff he'd been dancing with, and offered a hand to Aislinn, who spared only one glance at Gerald before letting go of his hand.

"That," Severus muttered, "was cruel of them."

Dumbledore was smiling though. "Actually," he said, stroking his beard, "I think it was rather brilliant. Look."

Severus looked again, and his eyes widened marginally as Gerald and the Hufflepuff were suddenly waltzing together, Mickery guiding Aislinn back over to where Severus stood. They were both laughing as they approached, and as they drew close enough for Severus to hear, Mickery was asking, "I wonder how many times we could get away with that before they figure out what we're doing?"

Aislinn laughed too. "If we could enlist the help of Severus and Madame Hooch…" she was suggesting, and before Severus had the chance to protest, Mickery was beaming.

"Brilliant!" he said, "I'll go speak with the old girl, and perhaps Sybill as well. Think we could convince Flintwick to help out?"

Severus opened his mouth to insist that he wasn't going to be any part of this conspiracy, but Aislinn apparently already had it decided. She leaned close to him, her scent intoxicating him. "Severus, see that group of Ravenclaws over there?" she was pointing. His eyes followed her finger and he nodded. "Go ask one of them to dance," she commanded, "and I'll meet you on the floor with one of those Gryffindors over there," she nodded her head towards a cluster and was off before he had the chance to protest.

Severus cursed silently but vehemently. He had little choice, though, and, wishing he had a strong drink to fortify himself for what he was sure was going to utter and abject humiliation, he set off for the cluster of half a dozen Ravenclaw girls. They were all Sixth Years, and four of them were in his NEWT Potions class. If she says no, he thought sourly, I'll have her in detention for the next month. He knew he wouldn't, though. Besides, he didn't even know which of them he was going to ask yet. The girls all stopped talking when it became clear that the Potions Master was approaching them, and they all took on a vaguely frightened look, as though they worried he was about to send them all to the dungeons.

He drew to a halt in front of them and took a careful breath. "Ladies," he addressed them all, and noted that one of them, one of the ones not in his NEWT class, smiled weakly at him. Melissa, he remembered from the previous year, had earned a high enough mark on her OWL to take his class, but had opted not to do so. "I trust you are all enjoying youselves?" There was a general nodding among them, and a few murmurs, but nothing difinitive. Bloody little dunderheads not giving him anything to work with. "Good," he commented, looking over his shoulder again. Aislinn had one of the Gryffindor boys on the floor again. How does she do that? he wondered, then cleared his throat. "Miss Kichney," he addressed the one who'd smiled at him, and smiled as friendly a smile as he could muster. Just don't scare her to death, he told himself firmly. "May I have the pleasure of a dance?" he asked, offering her hand.

Melissa's eyes widened, and she looked at the two girls on either wide of her, who were also wide-eyed. One of the other girls giggled, and another one nudged Melissa, and the giggles spread, to Severus' horror. He was beginning to feel like a fool standing there with his hand out, but just before he gave up and went to tell Aislinn to find another pawn, Melissa nodded. "All- All right," she stammered and took his hand.

Severus drew her awkwardly onto the dance floor, and, to his immense relief, she seemed to know how to dance. He wasn't sure he could have taught her as Aislinn had taught Gerald; Severus was barely proficient himself, having had little opportunity to practice over the years. He was talented enough to match Melissa Kichney, though, who was also of dubious talent, and, as he guided her towards the middle of the floor, his eyes scanning for Aislinn, he made small talk. "How are your classes going this year?" he asked, not really sure what to say to a sixteen-year-old girl who wasn't in one of his classes.

"Okay," she replied, looking as awkward as he felt. A little more awkward, in fact. Her hands were clammy, and twice she stepped on his foot, but he gallantly ignored that.

"I was surprised that you were not on my rolls this year."

"Oh," she muttered, suddenly looking like she wished she were anywhere else in the world. "I, erm, I'm going for a position at Gringott's," she offered, though it had the sound of an excuse. "I didn't have room for potions in my schedule after all my required classes." He rather thought that was a lie, as he'd seen her coming out of Firenze's divination class, but he kept his mouth shut.

"Well, Miss Kichney," he said formally as Aislinn caught his eye from across the room and nodded. That, he assumed, was his signal, and he began veering Melissa towards the center of the dance floor. "I wish you luck in your career choice," he told her, and had a hard time keeping a straight face as Aislinn 'accidentally' backed into him.

"Oh!" she gasped, and laughed. "I am sorry, Severus, I wasn't watching where I was going very closely, was I?"

Severus felt like that was supposed to be his cue for something, but he hadn't the slightest idea what. Why didn't you educate me as to the rules of this little espionnage before you involved me? he moaned inwardly. Outwardly, he smiled. "That's quite all right, Aislinn. Er…" he looked at his own dance partner, and at the young Gryffindor who had stepped back from Aislinn in surprise. "You don't mind if I cut in, do you, Mr. Green?" The boy in question was another Sixth Year, this one in NEWT Potions. The young man's mouth worked silently, and Severus shot a quick glance to Melissa and nodded slightly, and he noticed that Aislinn was winking at the girl.

"I, er…" the boy said, but Aislinn had taken control of the situation and slipped her hand in Severus' and was already tugging him back onto the floor, though in a subtle enough way that it looked like he was still leading her. He shot a glance over his shoulder, and saw that Mr. Green was saying something to Melissa, whose eyes were wide but was nodding. Soon the two of them were dancing together, and this time Severus couldn't help but laugh.

Aislinn grinned up at him, and she nodded towards the corner again, where several of the teachers were grouped, and they danced their way back across the room.

"Very good!" Hooch was saying, her smile broad as she slapped Severus on the back hard enough to make him stumble a bit. "That's eight down and only three dozen to go!" Severus glanced over his shoulder at the students, who were talking more in their little clusters.

He threw caution to the wind. "Shall we meet on the floor, Madame Hooch?" he asked, his dark eyes glittering in a way that was not vindictive for once.

"Quite right, Snape," she said, slapping him on the back again and setting off towards a group of Hufflepuffs. Severus took a deep breath and looked at the options he had. There was a group of Hufflepuff girls, but so far they were having so much success getting the Houses to mingle that he didn't really want to disrupt that. There were three Slytherin girls off to one side, but based on his knowledge of them, he doubted they really wanted to be dancing; they seemed content enough with their cake. The group of Ravenclaw girls, well, he couldn't see pulling the same ploy on another one of them right away, so that only left… Taking a deep breath, he crossed the floor to where a trio of Gryffindors were standing.

"Your pardon, ladies," he said, much more smoothly this time than he'd managed with the Ravenclaws. "I was wonering, Miss Rennick, if I might entice you to dance?" He had picked one of the homeliest of the bunch, a plump Fifth Year with messy tangles of brown hair, who reminded him a great deal of Aislinn when she was that age. There's hope for you, he wanted to assure her, but kept his mouth shut.

Her eyes widened, but she nodded silently, and, to the wide-eyed astonishment of her companions, took his hand. It took considerably less time and conversation to connect with Madame Hooch than it had taken to connect with Aislinn, and before the song was even well under way, Becky Rennick was dancing with a Hufflepuff Sixth Year.

As it happened, the students caught on fairly quickly to their teachers' ploy, but that only made it easier. Severus visited the Hufflepuffs, and barely stifled a laugh as the girl he picked looked anxiously around the room for who she was going to be deposited with. With a grin, Severus spun her around quickly several times until she clutched his arms to remain standing. "It's Mark Brightman," he whispered in her ear, and didn't bother to fight the laugh as her eyes lit up. He didn't even have to stop this time, and neither did Sybill who simply let go of Mark's hands and the two students fell in step together.

As Severus guided Sybill back to the corner, he couldn't help shaking his head. "Those little gits," he muttered, "they know, and they're just waiting for someone to pair them up. It would save time to just point at them and tell them to dance." Despite his words, though, Severus knew that he was enjoying this. Immensely. He hadn't anticipated another school dance being fun. They were usually miserable events where boredom eventually won over all the students' promises of good being forgotten in the face of boredom.

After four more pairings of students, Severus was beginning to take more care in which girls he asked to join him based on the selections his fellow-conspirators were making. As he swept a Fourth-Year Ravenclaw to Join a Sixth Year Slytherin, he grinned in response to the grateful look he received from the young man. As he handed the girl into the lad's arms, he found himself the happy recipient of another brief turn with Aislinn. He started to guide her back to the corner, but she stopped him with a touch of her hand. "How about a dance for us?" she asked quietly, and he smiled.

"The pleasure would be mine," he told her, and his smile broadened even more as she seemed to relax in his arms, letting him guide her around the floor in truth instead of just in appearance. "Are you enjoying your evening?" he asked oblivious to the stares that were beginning to follow them.

"I am," she replied, her eyes twinkling, but he could see the beginnings of a cloud to them. Her head was starting to hurt. "Are you?" she asked.

"The best I've had in quite a long time," he replied, pulling her a little closer. She obliged, but he wasn't sure if her motives were the same as his. He was contemplating asking her if she didn't want to come to the dungeons with him for a few moments so he could brew her a bit of potion, but he had a feeling she'd resist. He thought carefully for a moment, then, braced himself. "I think," he said softly, "that I've had quite enough dancing for a bit. Would you care to join me for a glass of punch?" he asked. In reality, the last thing he wanted was to let go of her; dancing, after all, was one of the few socially acceptable occasions for a man to touch a woman intimately, and he was reluctant to give her up now that he was finally getting a chance with her, but her eyes were growing increasingly opaque, and he could almost imagine her head pounding in three-quarters time to the music.

The smile she gave him was grateful, and it told him he wasn't fooling her for a moment. To his surprise, though, she pulled him closer suddenly, her hand sliding from his shoulder to hook across the back of his neck, and guiding his hand to encirlce her waist more closely. "I don't care what anyone says," she whispered in his ear, her voice little more than a breath that sent shivers up his spine as it passed his ear, "you are a good man, Severus Snape." She pulled her arms tighter around him, and he returned the affectionate squeeze, his heart suddenly feeling as though it were being squeezed. "I'd love to join you for punch."

He let go of her hand, and pushed a lock of her hair from her face. "Outside, in the courtyard?" he suggested, thinking that getting away from the din might help somewhat. She nodded, and he directed her to the door, and then opened it for her, handing her outside into the crisp night air. "Have a seat," he suggested, "I'll bring us out some punch." He made a note of where she was sitting, then went back inside to fill a pair of glasses with the bright orange punch.

"That was quite noble of you," came a voice behind him, and Severus groaned inwardly as McGonagall stepped forward, busying herself with a glass of punch.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Severus replied.

"Aislinn. You've been wanting to dance with her all night, but when you finally got the chance, you directed her for a break. Poppy has been close to bursting a blood vessel over her being on her feet so much so soon."

Her feet? Oh, right, she sprained her ankle. "I had forgotten all about that," Severus said, quite honestly.

McGonagall snorted. "Very well," she said, though her tone said she didn't believe him for a moment. "After this song ends, would you care to walk an old woman to the Gryffindor Tower while you check in on you Slytherins?"

Shit. He'd forgotten all about that. He nodded, though. "It would be my honor," he replied, picking up the two glasses of punch and slipping back outside.