"Off to bed. Hurry along." The cold, quietly commanding tones of Severus Snape acted as a motive for the dawdling students to hurry faster, if only to escape the unnerving sound of Hogwarts's most frightening teacher telling them off. The tall, fair-skinned man watched the children pass him by, with an indifferent yet hard expression, until only a trickle of them were left making their way back to their respective dormitories for a good first-night-back sleep.
Sometime during that point, Severus was aware of another body standing beside his, and it was not a student. Severus caught a whiff of the person's scent and found it somewhat comfortingly familiar. When he looked around, he was not surprised to see that it was Remus Lupin who had joined him. The person he remembered as a teenaged werewolf was suddenly standing there, all grown up, bringing back memories both bitter and pleasant.
"Good evening, Professor Snape," Remus greeted him, in an irkingly chirpy manner, putting a humorous emphasis on his old classmate's title.
"Evening, Professor Lupin," Severus replied, keeping his tone professionally apathetic, but stressing the word 'professor' as much as Remus had done. "It's been a while."
"A long while," Remus agreed, still smiling friendlily. "Too long, you might say."
"You might say," Severus corrected. That he himself would ever be caught saying such sentimental words to this man was a notion an insane man would hold.
"I might," said Remus, in a tone of agreement once again.
"I must say, I never thought I'd see the day when Remus Lupin became a professor at Hogwarts school," said Severus snidely, with a hint of bitterness. "Of Defense Against the Dark Arts, no less." Here the bitterness was more pronounced. To have been trying for the job for years, only to have it taken from him time after time, until eventually an old school rival took the position. That position should be his, Severus's.
"Well, I will admit that my…condition...makes finding a job rather difficult. Particularly one like this," Remus said, ignoring the slight insult behind his new colleague's words. "Luckily for me, though, Albus is a generous man."
"Very generous, clearly," said Severus. "Speaking of the man, I have spoken with him regarding your treatment."
"Ah, yes. The potion," said Remus, looking more serious now. "I'm sorry to put you to the trouble, Severus. I know it's a difficult potion to make."
Severus sneered; Remus hadn't changed. "Only you would apologise for a condition you couldn't help, Lupin."
"You think you know me so well," Remus said playfully, suddenly smiling again.
"Perhaps I do," Severus replied, smirking. There was a pause as Remus studied Severus's expression. Severus kept the smirk fixed across his pale pink lips, wondering if Remus would find whatever answer he was looking for in his obsidian eyes.
"When should I come for my…for my treatment?" Remus asked. Severus thought Remus must be borrowing the term that he had used moments earlier, because it could refer to one of many different things. The look on the bookish werewolf's face suggested the same. "Eight o'clock? Nine?"
"Let's say ten," said Severus. If any troublesome students were still up and about that late, they probably wouldn't venture near a teacher's office.
"Ten? That seems terribly late…I rather think I'd be much too tired to return to my own office after visiting yours at ten…" Remus was being a little over-dramatic, but the suggestion behind all of it suited Severus well.
"Then I will permit you to share my sleeping quarters."
"That's very generous of you," said Remus, voice dropping to unnecessarily quiet tones. He was facing Severus now, and the size of the gap between the two of them suggested no need for personal space from either man.
"It's been known to occur on…special occasions," Severus replied, his voice lowering to equal volume. Remus's hand reached up to brush against Severus's pronounced cheekbone, and to brush a lock of raven hair behind his ear. Edging gradually closer with every second, the two pairs of lips eventually met, softly and briefly.
Footsteps. The two professors quickly jumped apart to a respectable distance, attempting to look casual. Remus achieved this; Severus only looked more tense.
Minerva McGonagall rounded the corner. She stopped when she saw the two men, gave them both a severe look that would be more appropriately saved to use on a misbehaving pupil, and said, "Shouldn't you both be heading to your offices?"
"Hello, Minerva," said Remus calmly. "Severus and I were just discussing the curriculum for my classes this year. And you're quite right. It's late, I'm tired; I should head off. Goodnight." Midway through turning to leave, Remus looked back over his shoulder at Severus. "I'll see you tomorrow. Well, both of you…" Quickly so as to hide his sudden grin, Remus walked off down the corridor and out of sight.
Minerva and Severus regarded each other for a moment. Then Minerva spoke. "He provides a believable cover story. However, I feel I must break the pretence of gullibility to commend you on an excellent choice of…friend. And well done on catching him. Pomona and I spent most of the feast wondering how you achieved it."
Severus stood as frigid as he had been the whole time, regarding Minerva with a look of mingled surprise, frustration and embarrassment.
The Transfiguration professor gave him a smug look. "Goodnight, Severus." With that, she continued past him, leaving Severus to wonder whether Minerva was exceptionally intuitive or whether he and Remus had really been that obvious.
Probably both, he thought broodingly, and swept away to his office to contemplate the prospect of the next full moon.