As the day wore on, Severus and Ron came to an unspoken agreement regarding the game they had in the drawing room: it was not necessary for them to both sit there and stare at the board all day. After lunch, Severus had only glanced perfunctorily at the array of pieces before making his move, capturing Ron's second knight and feeling rather smug about it, then had excused himself to have a quiet conversation with Dumbledore. Half an hour later, he'd returned to the drawing room to find Ron and Harry holding an animated conversation about Quidditch. It had taken Severus twenty minutes to make his next move, and he'd leaned into the kitchen, where the Quidditch talk had moved, to tell Ron it was his turn before he headed upstairs to check on the progress Hermione was making with her unusual suggestion. It, similar to the twins' endeavor, was moving 'slowly'. Severus nodded encouragingly, and mentally urged them all to speed up.

He was shutting the door to a second floor room when Remus' voice tickled his ear. "They'll come up with something. I wouldn't worry."

Severus spent a omment looking at the door before turning slowly to face Lupin. "Of course you wouldn't," he replied evenly. "You aren't the one whose name will be attached to a massacre if they fail."

Lupin nodded in acquiescence. "You have a point," he conceded. "But what good will worrying do? It isn't going to change anything."

"Maybe not, but you'll have to pardon me if I don't find much comfort in that."

Again, the other wizard nodded, and leaned against the wall. "I'd still have a bit of faith in them," he offered. "And not spend so much time checking on their progress that it disrupts their work."

Severus snorted softly. "And now you're advising me on how to monitor students I've had in my classes for six and seven years." It was a bland statement, and accompanied by a slight roll of his eyes. "Excuse me, but I haven't the time for pleasantries."

"Oh?" Lupin challenged. "And is that because you're too busy moping or too busy waiting for Ron to make his next move? You aren't doing anything at the moment, Severus, and you know it as well as I do. If you don't want to talk to me, then just leave. But don't make silly, transparent excuses." He folded his arms across his chest. "Don't insult my intelligence to that extent."

Thee was a retort on Severus' tongue, but he swallowed it. He also did not walk away, however, but leaned against the opposite wall, arms folded, almost a mirror of the other man. "Tonks and Alastor aren't going to be here for a meeting, are they?" he asked after a moment, and, after a hesitation, Lupin shook his head. "Was there ever really a meeting planned?"

Lupin sighed softly. "I did not tell you that, Severus," he protested weakly.

"Don't insult my intelligence," Severus muttered, his eyes darkening. "Although that seems to be everyone's favorite passtime lately."

"No," Remus said quietly. "It really isn't. They're just concerned about you."

Severus regarded him levelly. "Whose idea was this, anyway? Dumbledore's?"

Remus nodded. "He is especially concerned about you. Has been for some time."

Closing his eyes, Severus shook his head slightly, setting the ends of his limp hair swinging. "Crazy old coot," he murmured. "It's hard to be angry with someone you know genuinely has your best interests at heart, but I wish he would stay out of my affairs."

"He didn't think you needed to be alone," Remus offered, as though the explanation forgave everything. Severus opened his eyes to level a cold look on Lupin.

"And what if I want to be alone?" he asked pointedly.

"Do you?"

It was such a simple question, and it would have been a simple thing to reply 'yes'. Except that in the last six months, Severus had learned that nothing was simple. It's a fair enough question. Do you want to be alone? Was it a desire to be alone that drove you to the Slytherin Common Room last night? Is it a desire to be alone that has had you in the drawing room all day, around people, when there was never anything preventing you from Flooing back to Hogwarts and retrieving the work you could be doing? There are more empty rooms in this house than there are at that school; surely you could have found one if you truly wanted to be alone.

"Perhaps I don't want to be alone," Severus admitted quietly. "But I want to be left alone. And damned if that makes the least bit of sense to me, so I don't expect you to understand."

"I think perhaps I do," Lupin said softly. "Everyone has been rather… attentive the last day or so, haven't they?"

Severus snorted and walked to the stairs to the third floor, sinking onto the second step and leaning his head against the wall. "I can't turn around twice without someone looking at me like I might break in half," he said bitterly. "I don't want their pity. I don't want anyone's pity."

"I'm not sure it's pity," Remus commented, moving to sit on the bottom step. Severus moved his foot to make room for the other man.

As Lupin leaned his head against the banister and closed his eyes, Severus noted for the first time just how gaunt and tired the other man looked. Of course, the moon was full just the other night.

"Then what would you call it?"

"Concern." Lupin's eyes opened again. "Friends do tend to worry about each other, you know."

No, I wouldn't know, actually, Severus thought, but refrained from voicing the opinion. "Well," he replied shortly, "I'm fine. And if everyone else would just accept that I'd be even more fine."

"If you'd give them what they want, they might accept that you're handling your pain better than they realize," Lupin suggested mildly.

"And what exactly do they want?" Severus asked evenly. "Another emotional outburst to sneer at?"

"You're the only one sneering around here," Lupin pointed out. "Everyone else is…"

"Concerned, I know."

"And with good reason," Remus insisted. "If it had been Molly so upset, everyone would have hugged her, but been on their way. She's upset at least twice a day. When was the last time you…" Lupin trailed off, and Severus' lips curled into one of his signature sneers.

"The last time I cried?" he prompted bitterly. "I don't think I've given into that particular weakness three times in the last two decades," he replied. "And I think I was a Second Year the last time anyone saw it." And yesterday I not only had an audience, but I had no fewer than three people fussing over it. It's little wonder I don't let anyone see me in such a state.

"Exactly," Lupin said with a shrug. "It isn't…" he paused, obviously looking for a word.

"Normal?" Severus offered, almost too innocently, and was rewarded with a scowl.

"Expected," Remus countered. "So, naturally, everyone wants to know what prompted such a reaction."

"Well," Severus snorted, "it's none of their damn business."

There was a momentary lapse in the conversation, then Lupin observed quietly, "If everyone minded their own business all the time, the world would be a lonely place."

And is lonely so much better than aching for someone you know you will never see again? Severus' heart clenched as a memory of Aislinn lying in a bed in the hospital wing, clutching his hand and asking him not to leave, flooded his mind. I should have been with her these last few months, he chided himself. She'd been so frightened of hospitals, and he couldn't imagine her facing it alone. He closed his eyes and clenched his fist, trying desperately to fight the urge to find a corner to curl up in again.

"Severus?"

Remus had leaned forward and had a hand on his shoulder, and Severus stiffened at the touch. "What?" he asked, more hoarsely than he'd intended.

"Are you sure you're all right?" Remus asked, concerned.

"Fine," he replied tightly. After a glance at Lupin, though, he ammended his assessment. "I will be fine," he adjusted. There was silence for a long moment, and Lupin's eyes were concerned, but he was keeping his distance. Thank god. Severus recognized the raw emptiness that was clenching at his heart, and he knew that if Lupin were to give him half the excuse, he'd be sobbing again. He kept his mouth shut until the pain lessened. "Sometimes…" he began by way of explanation, then paused, not really sure what to say or why he was bothering. "Sometimes it's as though everything reminds me of her."

Lupin nodded, and after a moment, his hand left Severus' shoulder. "Do you want to talk about…?"

"No." Simple and precise, and without a moment's hesitation. "I do not wish to talk about it."

"Then why don't you tell me about her?" Lupin suggested softly, settling his back against the banister again.

"There's little to tell," Severus replied with a shrug, though his mind and heart protested in unison. It somehow seemed a discredit to her memory to dismiss her so casually, but he hoped she would forgive him that particular crime.

"Well, how did you meet?"

For a moment, Severus looked levelly at the other wizard. "You're not going to give up, are you?" he asked.

There was a brief pause, then Lupin grinned. "Nope," he replied. "So you might as well start talking."

Severus sighed. "She was one of my students," he replied after a moment, then, at seeing the horror flicker across Lupin's face, he couldn't help a slight smile. "She was one of my students who graduated years ago," he rephrased. "One of my first students, in fact." Lupin nodded, looking somewhat sheepish, and Severus scowled. "Contrary to popular belief, Lupin, I am not so hard-pressed for companionship that I have to resort to defiling children. I know I'm unpleasant, but I'm not that much of a degenerate."

"Sorry," Lupin muttered. "It just sounded bad for a minute."

Severus nodded, but he couldn't help but reflect that had it been anyone else, Lupin's mind would not have jumped to that particular conclusion. "She came back to Hogwarts to teach divination," he offered after a moment of silence. "And we became friends. Not much to tell," he retreated from the subject again quickly, quite suddenly.

Lupin's mouth was open, as if to say something, but there were footsteps stomping up the stairs, and Severus found himself scrambling to his feet, not really wanting to be found in such a companionable position with a man he was known to detest. Lupin didn't move, though, so when Ron appeared in the corridor, the sight he was greeted with was his potions teacher standing, leaning against the wall, arms folded and scowl on his face while the old Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher sat on the lowest step, looking vaguely amused.

Ron cleared his throat. "I…er… I was just going to tell you it's your turn, Professor," Ron stammered, then darted into the room where Hermione and Ginny were working. Without knocking. A chorus of protesting squeals erupted from behind the door, and Severus thought it prudent to take himself downstairs without speculating exactly what the young Weasley had walked into.

He returned to the board to find that Ron had captured another of his pawns, and once again, Severus settled himself into his chair, studying the board intently, and finding it just what he needed to push the thoughts of Aislinn from his mind.

hr

"Dinner's ready!"

Severus looked up from the board he'd been studying for the last twenty minutes, and then frowned at the clock. Dinnertime already? The day was passing in lazy haste, much to his horror on many levels. Every minute that ticked away was one more minute he was behind in the preparations he needed to make for tomorrow's potions lessons, and he'd completely given up on grading the stack of scrolls that he knew littered the corner of his desk. He'd do something with them tomorrow, but he really ought to be checking his stores of ingredients for the Sleeping Draught his Third Years were going to be making. Yet, somehow, he would rather be here.

He was slowly coming to terms with Number Twelve Grimmauld Place, though heaven alone knew if that comfort would last beyond his leaving tonight. It was, quite possibly, the closest he'd ever been to a home. Between the ever-lengthening turns at chess and the occasional chatter from one of the students and a half-dozen quiet conversations with Remus and Albus and one forty-five minute nap in an upstairs bedroom… Severus thought he could almost see the benefit of a life that didn't involve danger or deception.

"Come along, Severus, you're about the last one around here who needs to skip a meal. Those pieces aren't going to go anywhere while you're having a spot of supper." Molly had a hand on his arm and was ushering him away from the game, barely giving him the time to lock the positions in his mind. Molly's hand was gentle, but firm on his back as she guided him into the kitchen and to his seat, across from Lupin and with Ron at his left elbow and Fred at his right. Dumbledore sat at the head of the table, Arthur at the foot with Molly at his side, the girls sat sandwiched between Lupin and Dumbledore. Severus couldn't help but wonder whose idea the seating arrangement was, but thought it rather effective at keeping meals more or less calm; none of the children seemed particularly interested in plotting when they all had an adult sitting beside them. Fred and George, unlucky twins, were surrounded, which did not stop them from leaning their heads together.

The group had no more than settled when the chaotic confusion of dinnertime erupted; a spectacle which Severus had witnessed only once before. Breakfast had seemed casual, and Molly had been serving everyone herself, as she cooked, plopping plates of food in front of each of the people at the table. Lunch had been sandwiches and soup, and again had been unhurried and relaxed, with the bowls of soup already on the table when they'd been called. Dinner, however, was obviously the most important meal of the day to the Weasleys. Molly had been cooking for the better part of two hours and the table almost groaned under the weight of the results.

A platter of chicken sat in front of Dumbledore, and the side dishes were arrayed down the length of the table, creating a veritable feast, which Severus found himself admiring on some level. Not that he was particularly hungry, having already eaten more today than he did in any given four days normally, but there was something appealing about the steam curling up from bowls of potatoes and asparagus and broccoli. The platters started moving around the table, passed from hand to hand as everyone took portions of the food, and Severus found himself participating in the meal out of a politeness. A spoonful of this and a bit of that, and by the time all the plates had passed him, he had a plate piled as high as anyone else's. He caught Molly beaming at him from her seat as he studied his plate for a moment, trying to decide how to begin.

"Would you pass the salt, please, professor?" Ron asked suddenly, pointing at a spot on the table to Severus' right.

Severus retrieved the requested shaker and handed it to Ron, who proceeded to dump it all over everything on his plate. An act which made Severus' tongue curl slightly just thinking about it.

"Ron!" The shrill, indignant chastisement from across the table brought Severus' eyes to Hermione, who was looking exceptionally offended considering Ron hadn't even spoken to her or looked at her. "You're going to give yourself a heart attack before you're thirty if you keep putting all that salt on everything!"

"Yeah, well, I'd rather live and have fun and die when I'm thirty than be stuck up and boring and live to three hundred!" he retorted, giving his plate another shake of the salt.

"But what if you can live until you're a hundred and still have fun?" Hermione asked sensibly.

Ron wrinkled his nose. "Who wants to live to be that old? It's only worth it until you're thirty or so, anyway."

During this exchange, Severus had studiously avoided looking across the table, not trusting himself to meet Lupin's eyes. At Ron's proclamation, though, Lupin suddenly gave voice to the laughter that the potions master had been so fastidiously controlling. "Isn't it grand, Severus, to know that we've outlived the age 'worth living until' by nearly a decade?"

Shaking his head slightly, Severus took a bite of broccoli. "I think that is the first time I've been called old by anyone who meant it."

Ron's eyes widened and he shook his head quickly. "I didn't mean you," he protested, "I just meant that…"

Remus put down his fork and leaned his head into his hands, still laughing. "It's okay, Ron," he wheezed. "I remember when I thought thirty was old."

Severus considered for a moment. He didn't remember ever thinking that thirty was old. He remembered thinking that forty was old, but hadn't thought that in about ten years, and the closer he drew to that benchmark, the younger it seemed. In fact, the older he got, the less he thought that 'old' had anything to do with a specific number.

Ron's face was burning, and Hermione was looking exceptionally like an offended old woman, and Ginny was grinning across the table in the direction where Harry was sitting. Severus made it a point not to notice any of them too thoroughly.

"Ah," came a voice from the end of the table. "It is the nature of youth. When one is sixteen, thirty is still a lifetime away. When one is thirty, it is sixty which is a lifetime away. And when one is five, sixteen is two lifetimes away, and as incomprehensible as thirty."

Severus frowned slightly at the wisdom issued from the Headmaster, and nodded thoughtfully. "Then you suggest that the age which one considers old is twice one's own age?" he asked, glancing at the elder wizard.

Dumbledore shrugged ostensibly. "Not conjecture, Severus, for people are not so predictable as that. It is merely an observation."

"How old do you think is old, Professor Snape?" This came from Harry, who had leaned forward a bit to look down the table in his direction.

Severus frowned slightly. "There are days when I think I am very old, Mr. Potter," he replied evenly. "And days when I think I am very young. Normally, though, I endeavour not to think of such things. It's mostly a waste of time."

"Then how old do you think is young?" It was Ginny this time, and Severus' lips tightened slightly, then curled into a sneering smile.

"I make it a point to never trust anyone under thirty."

This earned a snicker from Lupin, who seemed to be the only one to pick up the reference. Severus became exceptionally interested in his dinner plate, and remained so until the meal was over.

Soon after rising from the table, Severus had returned to the chess board and moved his Queen, having decided on a strategy that he hoped would begin to settle the game. The hour was growing increasingly late, and Severus increasingly aware of how much he needed to do before he went to bed. And bed was becoming increasingly appealing. The long day, it seemed, was finally beginning to catch up with him.

Ron, Hermione, Harry and Ginny were busy cleaning the kitchen, and Severus had settled himself in the drawing room with the other adults, who were making innocuous conversation about the weather and polite inquiries about each others' work. It was exceptionally civilized conversation, and, though Severus was not inclined to join it, it had a certain calming effect on his nerves. Arthur was relating some incident from the ministry when Fred and George suddenly came bursting into the room, their faces wide with grins.

"We got it!" George exclaimed, waving a piece of parchment that had been folded several times. Fred was pulling up a chair and settled into it.

"It was the chess board, you know. We figured that if we could set up some charms like a grid…"

"…then we could note everyone's name…"

"…and instead of trying to map their location…"

"…we could give a grid number."

"What are you talking about?" Molly asked finally, voicing the question on everyone's mind. Meanwhile, Lupin held out his hand, and the parchment was deposited into it. He unfolded the parchment, and peered at it for a moment, then breathed softly.

"Brilliant," he whispered, turning it over and unfolding it more fully.

Interest piqued, Severus moved to stand behind Lupin and peered over his shouler. After glancing up at him, Remus flipped the parchment over again and pointed to a very brief list of names. The Weasleys were all listed, and their locations. A. Weasley—Drawing Room; B. Weasley—Corridor; F. Weasley—Drawing room; George Weasely—Drawing Room; Ginny Weasley—Kitchen; M. Weasley—Drawing Room; R. Weasley—Kitchen.

"Now, look," George instructed, and he suddenly Disapparated. The location beside his name blanked, and then changed to 'Room C3.'

"Room C is the third room on the third floor," Fred explained. "We didn't label all the rooms yet. Dunno if we will."

Severus nodded, but was frowning in concentration. "The list only shows certain people…" he noted unnecessarily, watching as Fred's location changed to 'Room C0' then 'Room B0'.

"He's going downstairs," George explained, answering the perplexed look on Lupin's face. "We haven't figured out how to do the stairs yet. And the way it works, we have to have something from everyone we're tracking. And we have samples of everyone in the family."

"Something from everyone you're tracking?" Severus repeated softly, then stood and sighed. "It's a nice piece of work, boys, but the chances of acquiring something of the Dark Lord's are… doubtful."

"That is something we may be able to overcome," Dumbledore said, and Severus started slightly to find that the Headmaster was standing right beside him. "Now, you say you are having difficulties mapping the stairs. Why is that?"

"Because we have charms set in all the corners of the rooms," came a voice from the doorway, "but we couldn't really set them on the corners of the stairs and make them go up and down… so the they're interpreted as corridors."

"Charms in the corners of all the rooms?" Severus repeated. He was beginning to feel like a parrot. "So you propose we create a grid of charms all over England?"

There was a bit of silence, and Severus could feel more than one pair of eyes on him, silently scolding him for being too harsh on the boys. But the others could praise efforts; Severus needed results.

"What if you can turn it around, somehow?" came a voice from the doorway, and almost as one, all eyes swivled to Hermione. She seemed almost oblivious as she came into the room and stood at Severus' elbow, peering at the parchment over Lupin's other shoulder.

"How so?" George asked, apparently nonplussed by the discussion from earlier.

"Can you make the charms be something someone can carry, and use something from the sites? Like, dirt or something from a hillside?"

Dumbledore shook his head slightly. "There is too great a risk from simply picking up stones. The soil moves, after all. Perhaps setting charms all over the country is not so unrealistic, after all. We do have advantages on our side, after all."

"Such as?" Severus asked, mostly under his breath, and was marginally surprised when Dumbledore answered.

"Such as not needing to know what room an event is taking place in. We need only know a general location, and then can simply look for the gathering. I wonder if this would work with charms spaced at three or fou kilometers apart?"

Fred had returned by this time, the notation by his name now saying 'Drawing Room' again, and he and George exchanged glances. "I dunno if it would work from so far apart or not," Fred finally said, "but there's nothing to keep us from trying."

"And we've yet to overcome the difficulty of getting 'something' of the Dark Lord. I guarantee you, even if I do have reason to see him again before the dark of the moon, he is not going to simply offer a drop of his blood."

"Well, we have you," Hermione pointed out logically. "We can use the map to track where you are, and that will lead us to him."

Severus scowled. He'd been hoping no one would suggest that. "Provided I'm 'invited' to this little gala," he conceded.

"If it's to be named for you, surely you will be." That came from Lupin, and Severus turned his scowl to the other wizard.

"Perhaps," Dumbledore suggested suddenly, "Professor Snape would feel more confident if this were not an endeavor that could be used against him. Why don't you two," he pointed at Fred and George, "continue working on the map. When you have it working properly, then I will take it into my office and we will link it to Professor Snape just before we need to know his whereabouts. And, after the purpose has been fulfilled, we will either remove him from it, destroy the parchment, or give it over into his safekeeping. Will that be acceptable, Severus?"

Severus sighed softly, but he knew he had no choice in the matter. He didn't think he trusted Fred or George any farther than he could see them, so he had been very reluctant to give them any means to track his movements. Dumbledore, however, he did tend to trust, so after a moment's consideration, he nodded. "Very well," he replied. "I will give you what you need, Headmaster."

"Excellent! Now, I don't know about you, Severus, but I'm growing quite tired, and I still have a few things I must do before tomorrow. I had hoped we would have the chance to meet with Alastor and Tonks, but that does not seem likely at this point. I think I will be returning to Hogwarts now. Will you be staying a bit longer?"

Severus' eyes darkened. "No," he replied shortly. "I'll join you." There was a slight shifting at his elbow, and Severus glanced to his left, his eyes falling even with Ron's. When did he grow so tall that he could look me in the eye? "Is there something you wanted, Mr. Weasley?"

Ron scratched the back of his neck, then glanced across the room. "I, er, I was just wondering if I should… put up the game… or…"

Severus glanced across the room, too, and for a moment was tempted to tell the boy to put it away. After a long moment, though, he changed his mind. "Only if you've conceded the victory, Mr. Weasley," he replied, somewhat formally. "Otherwise, I suggest trying to maintain the positions on the board."

A grin broke out across the redhead's face. "It will be there the next time you're here," Ron promised, and Severus resisted the urge to grin back at him. The humor in his eyes faded, though, as they moved to Harry, and as he regarded the boy who looked so like his former nemesis, Severus' eyes grew flinty. "And, Mr. Potter, I suppose that you and I will be resuming some extra lessons, though I can't imagine that our old excuse will work so well this time. I would never accept a student into my NEWT class if I thought he needed remedial potions tutoring. So, I suppose it will be a detention from you tomorrow at seven. And I'm sure we can make that official to bear out our masquerade."

A flicker of hatred crossed Harry's face but he nodded. "Yes sir."

Arthur stood and tromped over to him, offering a hand, which Severus shook. "We'll see you next time, then, Severus," the elder Weasley was saying. "And with luck, Fred and George will have made some headway."

Molly was beside Arthur then, and Severus turned to take her hand, but she brushed the offer aside, instead pulling him into a tight and very unexpected hug. "You take care," she whispered into his ear. "And get some rest. And for Merlin's sake, eat. You're far too thin."

He made an awkward attempt to pull away from her, but she held tight, so, in resignation, he finally snaked his arms around her as well. He was rewarded by an even more bone-crushing hug, but it felt oddly comforting. "I will," he promised. "Thank you for four delicious meals in a row," he told her, and she eased her embrace.

"You come back here tomrrow evening, and I'll fix you a fifth," she told him. "And if you need anything, you know how to get in touch with Arthur and me."

He couldn't imagine anything that he might need that Arthur or Molly could help him with that no one at Hogwarts could, but he nodded anyway, feeling an unaccustomed warmth in his heart from the offer. "Thank you," he murmured, and she finally let him go.

The two Weasley parents were talking to Dumbledore now, and Lupin took the chance to offer a hand to Severus, which Severus looked at doubtfully for a moment. He finally took the proffered hand, though, and Lupin clasped his hand warmly between his. "Take care," he said quietly. "And don't be such a stranger here. You know, you don't need a meeting to pay me a call. Perhaps you can teach me more about chess some time, without an audience."

Severus frowned slightly. "We'll see," he murmured in reply, though in honesty, he couldn't imagine himself humoring Lupin on this point. It was one thing to be civilized towards him, to cooperate, even be pleasant with him when the situation warranted it, but he did not consider Remus Lupin a friend.

When the good nights were finally finished, and Dumbledore had admonished the students to return to Hogwarts before curfew, Severus and the Headmaster Flooed back to the school, into Dumbledore's office. Severus waited until the older man had ducked out of the fireplace before scowling at him. "Next time you want me to spend a day somewhere, please tell me that it's for no good reason."

"My boy," Dumbledore said softly, "it was for a very good reason. I apologize for deceiving you, but it was for your own good."

Severus snorted. "I have a dozen things I could have been doing," he protested.

"Yes," the Headmaster said, plucking a cinnamon candy from a dish on his desk, "and you would have done none of them. You needed time away from Hogwarts, and away from your work, and in the company of those who care for you. Your scrolls will wait. Candy?"

Severus looked at the bowl of crimson candies and frowned slightly. "Fine," he replied. "Next time you feel I need to be in the presense of others, don't lie to me."

"Have a piece of candy, Severus, then go to bed. You've had a long day."

Severus folded his arms pointedly. "Don't treat me like a child," he hissed. "I don't care what your motives were, I want your word."

Dumbledore sighed softly, but nodded. "Very well, Severus. But I want your word that if I think you need a leisurely afternoon somewhere besides the dungeons, that you will take it."

"Fine," Severus hissed. "So long as it isn't more than one afternoon in a week's time.

Dumbledore shook his head slightly. "I never thought I would be arguing with a member of the faculty about how much time off he has. Not from this side of the argument, at any rate." He placed the crystal bowl of candies back on his desk. "I am proud of you, though. The way you reacted with Ronald Weasley this afternoon was quite admirable."

Severus snorted softly. "Who would have guessed that such a miserable little mischief-maker as he would play such a decent game of chess?" he mused softly, then reached for the bowl of candy, plucking one of the scarlet orbs. "Is there anything else, Headmaster?"

"No, Severus," Dumbledore replied, his eyes twinkling as Severus popped the candy into his mouth. "Enjoy the remainder of your evening."

"Good night," Severus replied pointedly, and stalked out of the Headmaster's office, rolling the candy around on his tongue.

A/N: duj: the chess game came from http:www.xs4all.nl/timkr/chess/fant100.htm

I think the one I'm using is #9 (I already copied all the moves onto a more readable format, so I've forgotten.)