Harry looked up from his potion with a slight frown. He double and triple-checked the instructions again. And he was CERTAIN that he'd done them all correctly. But it was just a shade wrong. And the consistency. Something felt off about it. So he did something that last year would have been a suicide mission. He raised his hand.

"Yes, Mr. Potter?" Severus asked casually.

"Professor, can you come to look over my work? Something seems wrong and I'm not sure how to correct it." Harry admitted. Severus swept over, still looking stern, but not nearly as cruel as he might have been. Everyone in the class still stared in shock. You'd think after a month, they get over the fact that Snape was finally being a good professor. 

Maybe it was the half a dozen arrests associated with those trying to kill him that still made everyone a bit nervous. 

"I can tell you what was wrong right away." Severus declared. "Hand me those Valerian flowers." Harry handed them over with a frown. "You see the way the petals are curled ever so slightly around the edges? That indicated that they were slightly over-ripe when they were cut. It is easy to miss, but it must still be looked for. I want you to review the chapter of 1000 Magical Herbs and Fungi on signs of spoilage. Then, make a list of all the ones we commonly use in class for you to review when necessary." 

"Yes sir," Harry said.

"As for how to repair this, adding a sprig of mint would be a harmless addition. Can you tell me why?"

"Mint is a stabilizer, that helps balance the pH of strong acidity ingredients, in this case, the bat's bile. That makes it enhance the effects of the Valarien roots, which have lost their potency due to an improper harvest time." Harry explain confidently. Snape nodded with a barely-there smile. 

"Exceptionally well recited Mr. Potter. 10 points to Gryffindor."

"Thank you, sir," Harry said before he picked up his mint. He picked up his ladle and swirled the spoonful around with a wince. "How much of a sprig do you think?"

"About 2 inches should do it," Severus muttered back before walking away. Harry did as instructed and grinned as the potion finally reached its correct colour and consistency. 

"Bloody hell mate…" Ron muttered in awe. His own potion was an unsightly sludge. Harry winced.

"Er… if you add a bit more bats bile you might be able to salvage that."

"Save your ingredients," Snape muttered with a slight scowl. Both Ron and Harry jumped a mile. They hadn't heard the man come behind them. "Mr. Weasley, you obviously didn't follow the precise timing and stirring instructions. I want a six-inch essay on why those are important, with particular emphasis on why ignoring those instructions is dangerous." Ron looked grumpy and turned away from his potion with a scowl. 

"You know Ron-" Harry began casually.

"Piss off." Ron snapped. "I don't need help from you. Snape little pet! I don't care what Hermione thinks! He's a foul git! And you're a traitor to Gryffindor for being nice to him!" Harry flinched back with hurt in his eyes which cut deeper as Ron turned away from him and began muttering darkly into his textbook. So he turned to Magical Herbs and Fungi while his potion simmered. Then suddenly his potion began to sizzle and froth. Harry jumped up in shock and horror. How?! It was perfect!

"Mr. Malfoy!" Severus snarled. "Detention! And twenty points from Slytherin!"

"What?! But I didn't do anything!" Draco argued. Snape's face went cold.

“I saw you through those toad eyes, Mr. Malfoy. So you will lose twenty points for purposely destroying another student's work and detention for willfully endangering your fellow classmates! In addition! I would like you to write a foot on why the addition of ingredients to an already completed potion is dangerous for everyone involved!" He finished with a snarl. Draco looked as furious as Ron and stewed in his seat angrily. "Now! Bottle your potions and bring them for grading." Harry stared down at the ruined slop that was his potion. It was mostly foam and looked like pond scum. He felt absolutely dejected. "Mr. Potter, don't bother, I saw your finished product, before Mr. Malfoy saw fit to tamper with it. You will receive an E for this class."

"Thank you, sir!" Harry cried happily. His smile faltered when Ron gave another irritated snort and stuffed his potion somewhat sloppily into his vial, which made some of it splatter onto Harry's face. The teen flinched and quickly tried to rub it off, but found that the sludge was stuck to his glasses. He whimpered and took them off and desperately tried to clean them. Soon he was the only one in the class, still furiously trying to wipe the crud away.

"Mr. Potter, what are you still doing here?" Severus demanded with a frown. Harry looked up and felt his throat constrict.

"I'm sorry sir! Ron splash me with potion and now my glasses-" he looked down at them feeling utterly wretched. A few tears made his still weak vision blur even further. "They were so expensive and I tried so hard to keep them nice. I can pay you back sir! I can get more next summer! I can ask Hermione to read our notes and use a dicta-"

"Harry!" Severus cried. Harry blinked and looked at him. "Relax. You are not in trouble. Now may I see your glasses?"  Harry handed them over. Snape inspected them before pulling a potion out of his clock and pouring some on the dirty lens. In seconds, the potion evaporated, taking the unsightly mark with it. "There you are. And easy fix. Now I want no more of this ridiculous talk about paying me back, understood?"

"Yes sir! Thank you, sir!" Harry cried happily. Then he collected his books and quickly rushed for his next class. Severus frowned and stared after him. He'd noticed a growing tension between Harry and his classmates as of late. A tension which seemed to stem from Harry's newfound enjoyment of potions, something he'd been quick to foster. The boy had talent, so long as Severus framed his instructions in a more cooking methodology. Through he noticed several other students had also improved with his new approach. Even Longbottom had improved slightly, though the boy still had a habit of stuttering in his presence. And the one time he'd answered a question, slowly but correctly, and Severus had awarded him points and the boy had subsequently dropped into a dead faint had turned him off that little experiment. How the boy had been sorted in Gryffindor at all he would never know. Severus was heartened to know that the tension between his housemates was not universal. Finnegan seemed a bit put out at first, but Longbottom, Thomas, and Granger seemed more impressed, though of course Granger also had intermittent bouts of jealousy. Severus shook his head. That girl had far too much superiority for his liking. Weasley seemed the most put out of them all. He suspected that he too was jealous. Severus rolled his eyes. Weasley would have no reason to be jealous if he actually put the effort in, instead of being sullen about his friend's new understanding. He'd seen Harry offer help many times, but Weasley was far too petty to accept it. Severus sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He hated teenagers. He left the classroom, locking it behind him, to keep out the more… experimenting youths (the Weasley twins came to mind). As he stalked through the halls eyes followed him. Some were cold and calculating, others horrified. He smirked. Fear had always kept the dunderheads in line. He was glad that his loosened grip in the classroom hadn't affected his reputation as much as he'd feared. When he opened the door to the staffroom his mood crashed into the lowest dungeon, just as dark and gloomy.

"Oh, Remus!" Emmeline chortled with her head thrown back in laughter. The vein in Severus' forehead throbbed. Why did she insist on… pawing at him? It was obscene. "I'd forgotten how funny you were!"

"I hardly try," Remus said with a chuckle. "I think it's lack of exposure." The werewolf looked up and gave his usual casual smile. "Hello, Severus."

"Lupin." Severus ground out through his teeth. "Having fun?"

"Oh Severus," Emmeline began with an indulgent roll of her eyes. "Stop being such a grouch and sit. Have some coffee. Relax." 

"I rather prefer my chances keeping my guard up." Severus sneered with a cruel glint in his eyes. "Safer. Less likely to induce bodily harm. Especially when he's off-leash." Remus flinched. Emmeline saw red.

"Severus!" She shouted furiously. "What a horrible thing to say!" 

"It's quite alright Emmeline." Remus insisted, placing his hand on hers. Severus wanted to break all of his fingers. Then Emmeline smacked his hand away.

"No, it's not!" She shouted before standing and marching up to Severus with a stern scowl. "Apologize! right now!" Severus rose an eyebrow and scowled.

"I am not a student Emmeline. You can not scoldingly demand things of me."

"Oh yes, I can!" Emmeline insisted with a furious glare. Remus tried, but his chuckle escaped. Severus snarled.

"Shut your mouth Lupin!" 

"Severus!"

"I'm sorry Severus," Remus apologized, though his eye glimmered. "I was simply marvelling at how little has changed between you too. You always bickered when we were younger too."

"Yes," Emmeline agreed with a huff. "Severus is just upset that I don't let him win anymore."

"I'm glad." Remus declared matter of factly. "You have really blossomed into an amazing woman. I don't think you could have managed that…" he trailed off. Emmeline had a slight blush and a small smile. Severus saw red. But he knew that Emmeline was so fully attached to the mangy cur right now that any attempt to rebuke him now would just result in further reprimanding. So instead he whirled away, so fast his robes snapped, and stormed back to his classroom. And if he was a little more vitriolic than his new reputation warranted, well then it was just an exercise in keeping the brats on their toes. 

“I think we’ll end here,” Emmeline said with a smile. She had her students in little groups. They had been tasked with drafting a peace treaty to end the goblin rebellion of 1612, which the students had been shocked to learn the more intimate details of. The fact that Hogwarts had been under siege for instance. Of course, the original story had a much grimmer ending, involving the death of several hundreds of goblins and a nearly unbearable series of repressive actions. Emmeline’s smile slipped as she thought more about it.

How little they had learned.

Not her students of course! She hoped greatly that they had learned a lot.

Humility for instance.

And empathy.

She waited as each student brought their treaties for grading. She scanned each one with varying expressions. The Slytherins had some particularly… worrying ideas about how to placate the goblins.

That Goyle boy especially had … quite a sadistic streak.

Selling ministry workers' wives? For food?

She shuddered a bit.

“Er… Professor Vance?” 

“Yes?” she said looking up. “Oh, Harry! How are you dear?”

“I'm alright,” Harry said with a slight frown. “Only… do you know why Professor Snape is so… cranky?”

“Severus?” Emmeline questioned before she rolled her eyes. “Oh Harry, pick a reason. I think he's been cranky since birth.” the teen grinned before he shook his head.

“I dunno professor. He was pretty upset.” Emmeline huffed.

"Well, he hardly has a reason! Especially after what he said to Remus this morning!"

"Ooohh," Harry said with profound understanding. " 'splains everything."

"What do you mean?" Emmeline questioned.

"I take it you and Professor Lupin were having lunch… or tea… or coffee or whatever." Harry listed before batting his hand. "Doesn't matter. You were having a conversation and then Professor Snape walked by slash in?"

"Yes," Emmeline admitted with a blink. Harry nodded.

"Yeah, that makes sense then. Professor Snape being cranky I mean."

"Why?" Emmeline demanded. Harry winced and scratched the back of his head.

"Erm… well… Professor Snape really doesn't like Professor Lupin. But… Well, he really likes you. So when he sees the two of you together he gets… sorta…jealous."

"Jealous?!" Emmeline crowed before she let out a loud peel of laughter. "Oh Harry, darling, that's absurd!" She insisted. "Severus jealous?! That ridiculous!" She chuckled a bit more before she sighed. "Oh, Harry I'm sure that's not it at all. Severus is just having a bad day. He'll get out of his mood same as he always does."

"Maybe you should ask him." Harry offered with a grin. Emmeline blink, absolutely flabbergasted.

"Fine," she said after a beat. "I will. But only because it's likely to make him laugh and therefore improve his mood, however slightly. Now get along! Lunch will be almost over by the time you get to the Great Hall. Growing boys need to eat!" Harry then scampered off leaving Emmeline to ponder.

Severus's mood had softened a bit.

But only in that, he was using his mental energy to be flummoxed.

Emmeline had been very quiet a dinner. Usually, she and Remus chatted away, catching up as she called it, and reminiscing about 'the old days'. Severus was rarely invited to join these tete-de-tetes.

Not that he'd want to have such a conversation with Lupin of all people. 

And seeing Emmeline talking so casually with the wolf made his blood boil. 

But tonight she'd been quiet and contemplative, barely registering the food she was eating. And she had to be reminded when the meal ended. 

It was very curious. 

And Severus couldn't help but wonder what had made her so concerned. 

As if the school itself could hear his innermost thoughts as he turned the corner of his designated patrol route he crossed Emmeline's path.

"Oh!" She cried, momentarily startled. "Goodness… you're going to give a student a heart attack one day, Severus. How can you walk silently in those boots? I thought the point was to make noise…" Emmeline muttered. 

"Sometimes," Severus admitted. "And other times I muffle my steps so the students are none the wiser until I'm breathing down their necks." Emmeline snorted.

"You've certainly changed your tune about little midnight trysts since we were students," Emmeline murmured with a smirk. "Didn't we once meet in this very hallway?" Severus looked around.

"No… I think it was a little further down. Around the corner. It's more secluded, better for… such things." Severus finished. Emmeline chuckled at the innuendo. Then her face grew contemplative again. Severus narrowed his eyes before straightening up. "What is troubling you?"

"Hmm?" Emmeline asked with a start before she huffed. "Oh, it's nothing. Just a ridiculous notion that Harry had."

"Oh Merlin, spare us," Severus muttered under his breath, already anticipating the worst. "What hair-brained scheme has the foolish boy gotten himself into this time?"

"Oh, nothing like that." Emmeline insisted with a shake of her head. "It's just… well he had a rather silly theory about the cause of your bad mood."

"The cause of my bad mood?" Severus demanded with a raised eyebrow. "What was his theory?"

"Oh it's really quite silly," Emmeline insisted with a huff, "I don't know why it's been bothering me so much." Severus rose an eyebrow and levelled her with his signature 'well get to the point then' look. Emmeline huffed. "Harry said that he thought the reason you were so 'cranky' is because you saw me with Remus. And he thinks that seeing me with Remus makes you feel jealous." Severus blinked.

"Jealous." He repeated slowly, letting the word hang in the air.

"I know!" Emmeline cried with a chuckle. "How ridiculous, right?" There was a moment of silence.

"Yes," Severus confirmed. "Absolutely ridiculous."

"Right," Emmeline said with a snort. "Because there really is no reason for it. Remus and I are just friends. We've always been just friends. And you and I-" she trailed off letting the unsaid history hang in the air, making things instantly 

oppressively 

awkward.

Severus was the first to break the silence. He cleared his throat as casually as he could. 

"Well don't trouble yourself with it anymore. Harry has too vivid an imagination for his own good. He gets fanciful ideas into his head."

"Right," there was that silence again.

"Goodnight Emmeline," Severus said before he continued down the hall, robes billowing dramatically behind him.

"Goodnight!" Emmeline called after him. She was struck by how… enchanting he was as he walked through the darkness, melting into the shadows. Suddenly she imagined him swooping down on her in the dark. 

Very quickly she turned away, rushing for the darkness of her quarters, categorically ignoring the faint blush of her cheeks.