"How are the first year boys, Dima?" Severus asked the prefect, a sixth year who had moved to England from the Ukraine when he was eight.

"They're fine, Professor Snape," the boy said, a slight accent coating the words.

"They're getting dressed, telling jokes and plotting the ways to annoy Gryffindors." Dima said with a grin.

"You did tell them-"

"Yes, Professor. I just said that to annoy you." he said, grinning and ducking a swipe at his head.

"Cheeky brat." Severus muttered.

"And how are the girls doing, Areida?" Severus asked the girl standing in front of his desk, making love-eyes at Dima. The two had begun dating last year, and obviously they were still going strong.

"The same as the boys, except they're plotting the ways they can make Harry Potter their boyfriend by the end of term." she said, turning to him, smiling and grimacing at the same time.

Severus winced at the name. If there was one thing he did not need to hear about at this early hour, it was Harry.

"Well, tell them not to come at him all at once. He has enough trouble in potions already." he said, smirking.

Areida giggled and Dima barked out a laugh. It didn't escape Severus' notice that the boy grabbed Areida's hand and held it tightly.

"Alright, you love-birds, leave!" he said, shooing them out of the room. They ran out, laughing softly.

Severus shook his head and chuckled. How he could be a father-figure to all these brats at one time and not go insane, he'd never know.

"I just don't know, Lils. I-I'm afraid." he murmured.

"Lils, you know I'm not good with children, I-"

"You've been Head of Slytherin for ten years, Severus. None of your students have ever gone to the darkness, and they all love and respect you. And they still trust you enough to be able to come to you with their problems."

It was true. Many of the students Severus had taught still owled him letters now and then, asking his advice on things. Often times, from the boys it was advice on love, which never ceased to amaze Severus. Who would ever think that someone was asking Severus Snape's opinion on matters of the heart?

"What if you turn out like your father, Sev? Wasn't that going to be your next question?"

"Yes," Severus whispered.

"Yes what, Sev?"

Severus jumped up from his desk, whirling around to face the intruder, wand at the ready. Remus Lupin held his hands up in surrender.

"Easy, Sev. I just wanted to stop by and see how you were doing before I went to breakfast. Are you alright?" the werewolf said, smiling at his friend.

Severus sat down hard in his chair, running a hand through his hair tiredly.

"I'm fine, Remus. I jus-"

Severus was interrupted by a head poking through his door. Anton, Dima's twelve-year-old brother, opened his mouth to say something, then stopped, eyes going wide.

"I'm sorry sir! I didn't know you were in a meeting!" the boy said, starting to close the door.

"I'm not, Anton. What do you need?"

"Well, I was wondering sir, uh, that is..." the boy trailed off, shooting a slightly embarassed glance at Remus.

"Well, what is it?" Severus said.

"Umm, well...how do you french-kiss?" the boy said, throwing caution to the wind.

"Out!" Severus bellowed, glaring at the boy.

"But, Professor, it's Keona Porter, I've gotta know, plea-"

"Out, Anton! And if I catch you and Ms. Porter involved in any displays of affection, public or otherwise, before your fifth year, you will be in serious hot-water, do you understand, young man?" Severus said, his tone dark and his glare darker.

Anton nodded quickly, and then left, a bit of healthy fear in his eyes.

Behind him, Severus heard Remus chuckle.

"Are they all like that?" he said, grinning.

"No, just the boys." Severus said, smiling too. "And I think I've got another womanizer this year. Mr. Kyle McConnell?" Severus said, and Remus nodded.

"I know their family. All muggles. If he's a womanizer, blame it on his father and five older brothers. Their mother died in childbirth with Kyle."

"How do you know them, Remus?"

"I watched the children the summer when I was sixteen, for a summer job. They lived in the village near our land. They couldn't pay me much, but I did it anyway, because I was bored. They were just babies, one was four years old, one was two, and one was three months. They're, oh, I don't know, maybe twenty, seventeen and fifteen now, and there's three more added to the hoard: Kyle, and a set of twins. Makes a person feel very old." Remus said, chuckling ruefully.

"Maybe he'd like to see you?"

Remus shook his head. "I doubt it. Their family isn't very partial toward me. My father had a falling out with Mr. McConnell the summer before I left home, and I think it's turned into a bit of a feud." He sighed softly.

Severus grimaced as he sat down at his desk. He picked up a peice of parchment and began writing lesson plans on it, glancing up slightly when Remus walked around the desk to sit in the chair before it.

"So..." Remus said after a few moments of awkward silence. "Have you seen Harry?" he said.

Severus groaned. "No, and I do not nead to hear about the boy this early, Remus!"

"Severus, if you just got to know him-"

"Believe me, Remus, I know him much better than you think."

Remus jumped up from his chair, more than slightly annoyed at Severus.

"No, Sev, you think you know him, because you knew his father! As you saw on the train, Harry's most defenitly not his father."

"Oh, yes he is, Remus." Severus said, his face in his hands.

"Harry's not Ja-"

"Not James, I know. I didn't mean he was James. I said he was his father."

"Sev-"

"I said he was his father because I'm his father, Lupin! And he acts exactly like me." Severus said, miserably.

Remus sat down hard.

"What?" the man choaked out after two minutes of tortorous silence. "How do you know?"

"Lily's been coming to me in dreams," Severus whispered tiredly. "She keeps begging me to take care of her son. O-our son."

"It could be just a dream, Sev." Remus said sadly, standing up and putting a hand on his friend's shoulder reassuringly.

"It's not, Remus."

"How do you know?"

"B-because...she's there when I wake up." Severus said, his voice soft.

Remus said nothing, only swallowed hard.

"I mean, she's not there, physically, but I can feel her. And she talks to me." Severus took one look at Remus' face and stood up, snarling.

"I'm not making this up, Remus!" he nearly shouted.

"I never said you were, Sev." Remus said calmly. "It just seems so...far-fetched. I mean, it's just...I don't know." Remus sighed.

"Look, Sev, why don't you do a paternity test. There's a potion for that, right?"

Severus nodded. "But I need something of the boy's. A hair would work, but blood is preferable, it's easier and faster." Severus murmured, partly to himself. He seemed to be in a daze. Remus guessed he hadn't been sleeping very well.

"There's no way you'll get blood without letting Harry know. Getting a hair should be relatively easy." Remus said.

Severus nodded.

"When will you see Harry? Remus asked.

"His first class is Potions." Severus said, the dazed look leaving his eyes, and the sharp, intense gaze of a Potion's Master coming back to him.

"Perfect." Remus said, smiling.