Dawn was just beginning to etch a faint pink light on the eastern horizon when Severus finally Apparated back to Number Twelve Grimmauld Place. He appeared in the kitchen, intending to slip upstairs like a schoolboy out past curfew, hoping that Lupin wouldn't realize he'd been out all night. No such luck.

"You're looking like the cat who ate the canary," came a dry voice, and Severus winced as he turned slowly towards the table, facing Lupin. "Remarkably satisfied, and exceptionally guilty. Do you want tea? There's water on the stove."

For a moment, Severus considered telling Lupin to mind his own bloody business, but he really didn't want to destroy the tenuous truce they'd reached once again. After all, it was only Thursday, and he still had three days before he was supposed to even consider returning to Hogwarts. Oddly, he didn't particularly want to go back just now. Walking over to the cupboard, he took a teacup, then added a few leaves to the bottom of it. He filled it with the steaming water and returned to the table, seating himself across from Lupin. "I haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about," he replied to the earlier accusations. He needed an excuse, and thought quickly. I was just upstairs…

Lupin snorted and shook his head. "I suppose next you're going to tell me that you were in your room all night and just Apparated downstairs like a seventeen year old who just passed his tests?"

Severus scowled into his teacup. That sounded better in his head than it did coming from Lupin's mouth. "What does it matter to you?" he asked, finally deciding to take the defensive route.

"Nothing, normally, but when I have to lie to someone I respect greatly to cover for you…"

"Lie?" Severus frowned. "Who…?"

"Dumbledore was looking for you last night. Just a little after eleven, he Firecalled."

"Oh." He stirred his tea, feeling an odd pang of guilt. "Why did you bother lying? I'm a grown man…"

"And he would have given me that disappointed, reproachful look that would ask why I didn't know where you were. No, Severus, I know you're a big boy who can take care of himself. That's why I lied. I told him you went to bed early. But you might want to let him know that you're all right."

Severus sighed. "I suppose."

Lupin smiled sympathetically. "It's bittersweet to have people caring about you, isn't it?"

"That's the truth," Severus muttered, taking a sip of his tea.

"So, where were you, anyway?"

"Do you really think that's any of your business?" Severus stared pointedly over his teacup at the other wizard.

For a moment, Remus looked as though he were going to retort something equally rude, but he chuckled. "Of course not," he conceded. "But if I can't have a life of adventure and merriment, at least I should be allowed to quiz my friends and live vicariously through them."

Severus snorted softly. "I told you yesterday—I went to visit one of Aislinn's friends."

"Ah, yes. She had something to give you." Severus felt a sinking feeling in his stomach, and he could have almost echoed the next question with Remus. "So what was it?"

Good bloody question. "Er…" he suddenly stood. "I should probably speak with Dumbledore before it gets much later and…"

"It's breakfast time," Remus pointed out, looking entirely too amused suddenly. "And if you Firecall looking like that, he's going to know you haven't been asleep. Now, what did this friend of Aislinn's give you?"

"I really need to change then, don't I? I'm just going to have a shower and…"

"Nope, Severus. Not until you tell me."

Having run out of logical protests, Severus merely scowled, which, to his extreme irritation, only prompted a quivering smile from the werewolf. The kind of smile that meant someone was fighting a laugh.

"Is this friend a woman?" Lupin asked, not quite keeping the humor from his voice. Assuming he was even trying.

"Yes," Severus replied shortly, his scowl intensifying. Stop asking questions you…

"Hrm," Lupin mused, a smile playing on his lips. "You went to visit a woman yesterday evening just before six, and you don't return until just before six this morning. You smarmy git!" There was a wide grin on Remus' face, though, that made it difficult for Severus to do more than continue to scowl, even as the other man slapped him on the shoulder.

"You reprobate," Severus muttered under his breath, not really sure if he was talking to himself or Remus. "She's one of Aislinn's friends for fuck's sake, and Aislinn hasn't been dead a week yet." He sank his head into his hands, closing his eyes. Excellent way to find closure.

"I'm sorry." It was a genuine apology, coupled with a hand on his shoulder, and Severus felt Remus settle into the chair beside him. "I wasn't thinking."

"Neither was I, apparently," Severus replied quietly.

Confusion flitted across Lupin's face. "What…?"

A humorless laugh escaped Severus' mouth with a puff of air. "I can't even deny it," he muttered. "I don't even know how it happened. It certainly wasn't intentional."

For a moment, Lupin faltered. "Was it…"

Severus lifted an eyebrow questioningly. "Good?" he suggested. "Frantic? A bad idea?" He propped his eyes against the heels of his hands. "Yes, to all the above."

Lupin cleared his throat softly. "Ah."

Slowly, Severus turned his head back to the other man. "That wasn't what you were asking."

"No," Lupin admitted. "But it answered my question. I think. At least, I'm going to pretend it did."

"What were you asking?"

Lupin grimaced. "Never mind."

"Lupin…" his voice had taken on the low, warning tone that students recognized and feared. And that even made Lupin take on a guarded look.

"Severus, please. Just forget it."

"Goddamnit, Lupin, I want to know what you were going to ask me!" The longer Remus thwarted the answer, the angrier and more offended Severus became.

After a long pause, Remus said softly, "I was going to ask if it was consensual. You needn't answer that. I'm…"

"Fuck you, Lupin." Severus muttered. Why does everyone always jump to the worst conclusions about me? he wondered as he stalked out of the kitchen and up the stairs, ignoring Lupin's protests. Loud protests.

"Severus, come back here, you imbecile! I said I was sorry."

Severus slammed the door to his bedroom, hard enough to rattle the walls, and it was only through quick reflexes that the mirror on the wall adjacent to the door didn't crash to the floor.

"Look!" Lupin's voice was muffled, but still quite loud and accompanied by the pounding of footsteps taking stairs two at a time. "Fuck it, Severus, I'm tired of fighting with you! Will you please just listen to reason?"

Severus flung his door open again just in time to see Remus reaching it. "Shout a bit louder, why don't you," he hissed, "and see if you can't wake Mrs. Black." For a minute, Lupin stared, then chuckled softly, which only served to further infuriate Severus. "Perhaps you don't care if your presence is known, but I have reason to believe that that portrait is our spy and I for one…"

"You're slipping, Severus," Remus commented casually, folding his arms and leaning against the door.

"What?"

"Bill got rid of it on Sunday afternoon. While you and Ron were playing chess."

Severus' mouth opened, then snapped shut. "Oh."

Remus chuckled softly, and, after a momentary flare of offense over being laughed at, Severus shrugged sheepishly and moved into his room to gather his clothes for the day.

"Shall I leave you to catch up on your sleep? You're probably beat." Remus asked, his voice still sounding amused. Severus scowled as he pulled a pair of neatly folded socks from a drawer.

"Thank you, but I slept quite well last night. Better than I have in months, actually."

From the corner of his eye, Severus could see Remus nodding. "How long have you known this girl?"

"Woman," Severus corrected, without thinking. "I met her Saturday. Now, if we are finished with the twenty questions…"

"Saturday? But you were…"

"I told you, she was one of Aislinn's friends. I met her at the memorial." Severus decided not to reflect on what it said about him that he didn't feel much more than a pinch at his heart after saying her name.

"So last night was the first time you'd actually spoken to her, for any length of time, yes?"

Severus straightened and turned to glower menacingly. "What are you getting at, Lupin?"

The other man had a dopey grin on his face. "Is she a whore?"

Severus' eyes narrowed, and he was considering asking if Lupin didn't think he could get a woman without paying for her, but he wasn't sure he really wanted to hear the answer.

Lupin laughed suddenly and came, uninvited, into the room and turned a chair around, sitting in it backwards and leaning his chin against the back. "You smarmy git," he was grinning. "Hell, even Sirius couldn't have done that, and no one could get into a girl's knickers faster than he could."

For a moment, Severus could only stare, unsure whether to take offense or consider it a compliment. It chafed to hear such a crass proclamation from anyone, and he disliked being compared to Sirius Black. But if he were going to be compared to Black, it was gratifying to know he'd come out on top for once. "You are a vulgar and boorish cretin," Severus replied after a moment. "I can't believe you said that."

Remus only laughed.

"Go away, Remus. I need a shower, and I don't need an audience."

Still chuckling, Remus obligingly left the room, allowing Severus the privacy to finish gathering his clothes and toiletries and then head to the bathroom.

"Severus! Are you out of the shower? Dumbledore's here, and he wants to talk to you if you can…"

Severus grimaced. He almost wished that the portrait was still threatening them from downstairs; at least it had put a halt to shouting upstairs. One more swipe with his razor and he rinsed his face, patting it dry, and glanced around. His hair was wet and still uncombed, hanging around his shoulders in limp, tangled locks, and he didn't relish the idea of letting it drip all over his robes, but he wasn't terribly enamored of the idea of going downstairs in nothing but his dressing robe, either. He settled on the dressing robe, though, with a towel still around his neck. After all, it was just Dumbledore.

As he passed Remus on the stares, Severus leveled him a glare that just dared him to say anything about his state of undress. Remus said nothing, though, and merely gestured at the kitchen. "I'm going to grab a shower too, I think," he said casually, and Severus nearly retorted that he didn't give a damn what the other man did. But he stopped, realizing that it was really an assurance from the other wizard that he would have his privacy to discuss whatever he needed with Dumbledore. Severus nodded and continued back downstairs.

Dumbledore was sitting at the table, unwrapping a chocolate. "Ah," he said, looking up as Severus came in. "There you are, my boy."

"Headmaster," Severus replied formally.

"I just wanted to assure myself that you are all right."

Severus sighed. "I'm fine," he insisted. "Really, I am."

"I can see that," Dumbledore replied. "You look better than you have in months. Chocolate?" Severus waved away the offer, watching the headmaster carefully. "I was fairly certain that Remus would have told me if anything were wrong, but I wasn't sure he would tell me if he simply didn't know."

"What are you suggesting, Headmaster?" Severus asked, cautiously pushing aside the thoughts that would give the lie to Remus' cover for him last night.

"Only that Remus is a truly pitiful liar."

In spite of himself, Severus snorted. "I've often thought the same thing," he replied, seating himself. "I hope you realize that he…"

Dumbledore held up a hand. "You are both adults, Severus, and I doubt you asked him to mislead me for you. And you haven't said anything to reveal the lie, so give it no thought. I just wanted to assure myself that you are all right."

"I am," Severus sighed again. He wasn't sure if he found the concern touching or annoying. Or both. Probably both. And it was leaning towards annoying at the moment.

"Good. That is all, then, unless you have something you wish to tell me?"

Severus shook his head. "No, Headmaster. I've been a good boy."

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled merrily. "Somehow I doubt that, Severus, but very well. Will you relay a message to Remus, please?"

"Of course."

"We shall meet this evening at 8 to discuss a few matters of business. And Severus, if you do not wish, there is no reason it would be strictly necessary for you to attend, though you are, of course, welcome. I don't wish to infringe on your time, though."

"I'll be there," Severus replied.

Dumbledore nodded. "I felt sure you would be, but I wanted you to know it was your option." He stood, and Severus stood as well. "Oh, and I nearly forgot. These are for you." He reached into his robe and removed a bulging stack of parchment—enough to make Severus' eyes bulge slightly.

"What is this?" he asked, taking them hesitantly.

"I believe they are letters from your students, wishing you a speedy recovery. We are still encouraging the rumor that you are ill."

Severus sank into his chair again, untying the string that bundled the letters together, and he thumbed through them. "But why are they writing?" he asked. "I don't understand."

Dumbledore shook his head. "Children have an innate sense of caring," the headmaster replied, his voice taking on that wizened tone again. "They are born knowing love and compassion; it is the world which teaches them bitterness and hatred. Some of your students have not lost all their compassion yet. A good many, from the looks of things."

Opening one of the letters, Severus felt a surge of emotion that he couldn't explain. Dumbledore placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You left a stack of parchment on the table you were using as a desk in my room. They looked personal, so I did not look at them, but they had students' names on them. Shall I see them delivered?"

Nodding mutely, Severus looked at another of the letters. They were, by and large, variations on the same themes he'd seen two days ago, but it didn't matter what they said. It was the fact that they were here.

"I'll see you this evening, my boy." With a soft roar, the fireplace blazed emerald and Dumbledore stepped into the flames, leaving Severus to stare at his letters. One by one, he opened them, smiling at some, shaking his head at others. He reached one with a familiar but unexceptional handwriting on it, and couldn't help a laugh when he read it. "Castle to D3." That was all it said, but Severus knew who it was from as surely as if it had been signed, and, still chuckling, he gathered the parchments and stopped in the drawing room to move a white castle on the board still standing. He gave the board a considering look before heading back upstairs to finish his morning ablutions and rituals.

It was just after noon when Severus heard the creak of the stairs, announcing Lupin's venture to the third floor. After only two days, Severus had learned which stair it was that creaked, and how to avoid it, as it had a sound that grated on his nerves, and he could not believe, in any honesty, that Lupin didn't know which stair it was. Which meant that the other wizard used it as a casual announcement that he was coming.

A quick glance at the parchment strewn over his desk was enough to dispel Severus of any hopes of straightening the mess and hiding his activities before Lupin arrived, and for some reason he couldn't quite explain, he didn't feel any particular need to close the door to his room here. Well, if he thought about it, he supposed he could define the reason—it was a very large house and Remus stayed on the first and second floor, by and large, and when he didn't, the creaky stair announced his approach. And there was something comforting about the sounds of the other occupant of the house moving around downstairs. Not, of course, that Severus had suddenly developed any great loathing for solitude, but he did appreciate the reminders that he wasn't entirely alone here.

The footsteps paused as they approached his door, and from the corner of his eye, Severus could see that Remus had stopped short of entering the room, standing back a respectful distance and knocking on the doorframe.

"Yes?" Severus asked, looking up in earnest this time, laying down his quill. The activity he didn't particularly want Remus to see him engaged in was the answering of those letters from his students, and he hoped Lupin would assume he was simply not following orders and was working on lessons or marking papers or some such.

"The post came," Remus said, "and you have a letter."

"A letter?" Severus frowned momentarily at his desk and prayed that no one had had the cruelty to send any more of these letters from the students by owl post. Getting them in a bundle was marginally exhilarating, but he could see himself becoming exceptionally irritated exceptionally quickly if he was subjected to owls peppering him as often as it would take to deliver those letters one at a time.

Remus moved into the room, holding out a single piece of paper. Not parchment, paper. Sighing with relief, Severus took it and opened it, knowing who it was from before he read it.

Severus,

I think I'm getting the hang of this owl thing. I feel like such a ditz. You came all the way over here and I didn't even give you your gift. I swear that it wasn't a ploy, but perhaps you could return this evening? And perhaps stay for dinner again?

Autumn

He shook his head slightly, and, seeing the curious expression on Lupin's face, waved a hand dismissively. "I've been invited to attempt retrieving… whatever it is she has for me… again. And to join her for dinner." He reached for his quill and a piece of parchment, hastily penning a reply.

Autumn,

Will six be acceptable again? Please let me know if it won't, otherwise I will see you then.

Severus

"Are you going to stay for dinner with her again?" Lupin asked in what was obviously supposed to pass for a casual tone but failed miserably.

"Why do you ask?"

"I don't know. I guess I just wanted to know whether to expect you to be here or not. You know, so I'll know how much to cook." Lupin had moved away to the window and was looking out onto the street below.

"You cook?" Severus asked doubtfully, and Remus chuckled.

"I'm a 37-year-old bachelor who hasn't the luxury of living in a castle full of house elves who see to the meals. I cook after a fashion, yes."

"Hrm." Severus picked up his quill again and added a few lines to the parchment.

PS- I don't believe I will be joining you for dinner tonight. I'm actually visiting a friend, and it would be unconscionable to abandon him a second evening in a row when he has been so hospitable. My regrets on that point, as I'm sure our dinner will be much less palatable than yours, if last night's dish was any indication.

SS

"I don't know," Severus replied aloud, fanning the page to encourage the ink to dry before he folded the parchment and placed a glob of wax on it. "I don't want to be tempted to miss the meeting tonight," he commented. "Have you ever tried any of that Muggle take-out phenomena?"

"What?" Lupin turned to stare incredulously at him.

Severus shrugged. "I passed a small restaurant in my wanderings. Chinese take out. Have you ever sampled anything like that?"

"No," Remus said slowly. "Have you?"

Severus snorted. "Hardly my choice in cuisine. But I have to admit that the smell was tantalizing. I thought I might try that before I went back to Hogwarts."

"Oh."

"I could bring some back when I go to retrieve this… whatever it is," he offered.

Lupin nodded. "Thank you," he said softly, and Severus had a feeling it had nothing to do with the offer to bring back food. Or, perhaps more accurately, nothing directly to do with it.

"You're welcome."

"Do you want me to post that for you?" Lupin gestured at the desk. Severus picked up the letter to Autumn, and studied it for a minute, then nodded.

"Please."

Without a word about the rest of the parchment on the desk, Lupin took the proffered letter and slipped back downstairs, creaking the stair as he went.

A couple of hours later, another owl returned, dropping a reply in Severus' hands. He shook his head slightly, and then edged upstairs quietly, knocking on the open door to the room Remus used for his office. Why he needed an office, Severus couldn't even begin to guess, but he wisely hadn't mentioned that bit of logic.

Remus looked up. "Ah, come in, Severus."

A little awkwardly, Severus stepped into the room, thinking, not for the first time, that he could find worse people to model himself after if he wanted to be a bit more gracious. If. "We've… ah… been invited to dinner," he said without preamble.

"By whom?"

"Autumn." At the confused look Remus shot him, Severus expanded, "Friend of Aislinn."

"Oh, I didn't realize she had a name," Remus joked. Severus' expression didn't change.

"I need to send her a reply," he said pointedly. "If we're going to accept, we need to be there at six."

"What time is it now?"

"Half past three."

For a long moment, Remus was quiet, but when he did speak, it was in a low tone. "If you want to go to dinner with her, and don't want me there, I'll understand." And, Severus thought that the other man would, probably. He shook his head, though.

"She invited us both," he replied.

"But if you…"

"Damnit, Lupin, just a yes or no. Do you want to go into London and have dinner with a friend of mine?"

Lupin stared for a minute, then his mouth quirked into a grin. "Is she a good cook?"

Severus chuckled. "If the meal I had last night is any indication, I'd say she is an exceptionally good cook. Does that mean yes?" Remus nodded. "Good. Be ready in two hours." Severus turned on his heel, ready to stalk back downstairs, but paused. "Muggle London," he said suddenly. "Wasn't sure if I'd made that clear."

"Thanks. I'll be sure to dress appropriately."

Severus was halfway to the stairs before he paused, and backtracked his steps. "Actually, be ready in one hour. I want to make a stop in Diagon Alley before we go." Without waiting for a response, Severus headed back to his own room to pen a reply, then sent the owl on his way with the response in his beak.