"And yet, the theme of adolescence continues. His glee in bragging on his encounters to his buddy Gareth was hysterical!"LOL! Yep! And not very discreet! But Gareth, though interested and a bit curious, didn't press for details. He's very Postions-masterish in his experimentation and methodology, that's for sure, but as you point out, he's not divorcing his feelings from the acts, which is a positive step -- particularly when he is thinking of others and their feelings and not just of himself and his. Thanks for the review!

Severus knows how to be masterful in other situations, so he's translating that into the more intimate realm, as well. Of course, if Poppy rejected him in the midst of his "masterfulness," it would likely bruise his self-confidence.Poppy is able to be a bit amused by his need for validation more out of affection for him than from detachment, if you know what I mean. Yes, she does rather like to insist it was just sex, doesn't she?Glad you like Masterful Severus with the sexy voice! :-)Thanks for the review!

"Who knew about Goblin anatomy--the things your mind comes up w/, MMADfan! :-)"Scary, isn't it? ;-)I'm glad you're still enjoying it! Thanks for the review!

A Severus Sleep-Over! Glad you like it!Yep, he's definitely feeling things for Poppy that he doesn't recognize -- almost, but not quite -- but give him some time. Yep, Severus shouldn't have been so curious about what made Flitwick good, aside from his myriad sterling qualities! LOL! But at least we know that he can keep a secret! haha! All those years as a spy have to be good for something in his private life, after all!I am very glad you love this pairing. You know, if it weren't for your "other half" (fanfic-writing-wise) and writing her a Severus-Snape-gift-fic, I never would have imagined it, but writing "Heat" made me think, "Huh . . . that could be a rather interesting pairing . . ." I'd always wanted to write a sequel to "Heat," but haven't managed it yet. It may still happen, who knows!Thanks for the review! I hope you had a great Thanksgiving weekend!

Yes, Gareth REALLY didn't want to entertain the idea of those relatives being sexually active, even if some part of him probably "knew" it. LOL!Yep, Severus is very lucky to have Gareth as a confidante! And that Gareth is as patient as he is with him and also doesn't laugh in his face about some of his insecurities and peculiar notions. That would devastate Severus, though he would try to hide it, and it would certainly set him back in terms of trusting any friends or developing close relationships with others.Thanks for the review! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

It's a guy thing and a Severus thing. :-)

I think it's a bit early to call him promiscuous -- two lovers does not a promiscuous person make, not usually, anyway! lol! He also is connecting with the lovers he's taken. He's not engaging in heedless sex with all and sundry. So that is a positive step -- in the past, as Minerva points out, sex had never been associated with true intimacy for him, and it also hadn't been connected with any mutuality, friendship, caring, or other positive connections between himself and the person he was with. So although there's always the potential for people to be hurt in relationships -- of all sorts, not just ones that include a sexual component -- at least he's having relationships and not just looking for his own immediate physical release with a prostitute or other "quick pick-up." I do think he has respect for his body, in the sense you seem to be using, but there's also a lot of shame there that needs to be overcome -- shame because of the Dark Mark, shame because of the ways in which he once allowed himself to be used, and so forth. Nonetheless, he does need to think things through, you're right about that -- the trouble is, he lacks a lot of the tools to do so effectively and he actually ends up over-thinking things to a great extent. But he'll get through it! He survived being a Death Eater then being a spy, so he'll muddle through!Thanks for the review!

Yes, but fortunately, he is a fast learner, and it won't take him 8 to 10 years to go through his delayed/second adolescence. LOL!Thanks for the review!

He is trying to keep himself from pushing people away and otherwise behaving badly, but it's hard to break so many habits.Severus is very sensitive, hypersensitive, almost, about himself and his own feelings, but he's rarely directed that sensitivity toward other people. He's trying, bit by bit, to change that at least a little.I'm glad you enjoyed it. (And the bit about Flitwick! )

Yes, I expect it is hard for him to be sensitive to other people because really when was anyone sensitive to his feelings, especially as a child.  I love to explore the psychology of Snape.  LOL.  I'm particularly fascinated with developmental psychology which now goes from birth to death and everything in between.  Development doesn't stop at age 18 or 21 or 35 or 50.  Some things, like attachment and language acquisition have critical periods for development and if the window is missed there's not much anyone can do at least not at the moment.  Maybe eventually some medical intervention will help.  I really should go back to school and get some sort of qualification to work in the field of psychology.  I don't have quite enough.  So of course I play at it with fictional characters.  I do get to use it in practice raising my kids, though.

I'm still away, but the fic is back, anyway! I managed to find a few extra minutes to myself to do "fic-stuff." I'm glad you're happy about it!

We shall see, won't we? Thanks for the review! Glad you like it!

Yes, Severus is learning to ask for help and advice, which is a huge step for him. It's good for him to have someone he can trust!Thanks for the review! Glad you liked the chapter!

Hi,

! I'm really glad you're enjoying the progress of the fic!"That both she and Severus keep thinking of the other, and can't seem to keep their hands to themselves, tickles me to no end."I'm glad you like that! They really can't seem to stop thinking about each other, and can they be alone for more than a few minutes without touching each other? LOL! I'm glad you find the pair appealing together!Yeah, I'm sure that Gareth's expression must have been priceless. But being a practical and intelligent Ravenclaw, that didn't keep him from making use of the spell! Thanks for the review! I appreciate it!

It had been a while since the scene in DD where we leanr that Gareth is only about 4 - 5 years younger than Severus -- that Gareth was in his second year when Severus was in his seventh -- so I thought it might be handy to be explicit about it. (There's a whole bunch of information about the various characters in RaM and DD on my blog and lj -- mmadfan.wordpress.com or livejournal, same thing -- and the staff list for LVS, too, which I'm pretty sure I included birth years in, if you're interested.) Tarrant was in the same year in Hogwarts as Gareth, which is how they originally knew each other. Oh, and in the initial chapter that introduced Tarrant, we learn that he was in Snape's seventh-year NEWTs class the first year he taught, and Tarrant was the reason he increased the qualifications to enter the NEWTs-level Potions class. LOL! Hence his thinking Tarrant's not very bright. You're welcome for the update! I hope the driving isn't too insane tomorrow! Hope you have a good holiday, too!

So at what age do you determine that Snape began his first year of teaching? I thought I had read somewhere that canon stated he was 21, and "the youngest teacher ever on staff" – but I've tried to find it, and I've asked other people and... well, they just look at me like I'm crazy. I've even searched the HP Lexicon and I can't find any mention of it. When did your Snape begin teaching? I know I could probably do the math that you've supplied in your reply and come out with the answer, but, uh, math is definitely not my strong suit...

Oh, and – was Gareth also one of Snape's first students? Since he was in the same year as Tarrant... or, at that time, had Gareth already been living in exile elsewhere?

Gertrude was attacked in May 1980. When Albus told Gertrude that Severus was going to be teaching Potions at Hogwarts, Gareth was sent off to Amsterdam to live with his brother and Thea. That was in very late 1980. Snape began teaching in 1981. The entire reason that Gareth was sent to live with Robert and Thea was to keep him from meeting up with Snape -- for complicated reasons. She sent him to Amsterdam as soon as she learned about it because she thought that the longer she waited, the harder it would be on Gareth. (We get some of the details of this in the chapter "And the west moon" when Gareth first meets and confronts Severus.) So Severus would have been just barely 21. Severus took his NEWTs in 1978. In my version of events, Severus is offered the job even before Voldy's "killed" and the offer is renewed after he's "cleared" by the Ministry/Dumbledore, and he begins teaching after the Christmas holiday in 1981. Most folks agree that he began teaching in 1981, although precisely when is not (that I know) completely clear.After his mother was injured, Gareth continued at Hogwarts during the year, and he only moved to Amsterdam after Snape was hired. That's why when they first meet and Severus doesn't know who he is, Gareth says to Severus something like, "of course you wouldn't recognise me, since I was only a second-year the last time you saw me" -- or something of the sort.

Ahhhhh. Sorry, I feel I should have remembered most of those details, but thank you so much for clarifying! I'm going to visit your blog/LJ to grab a refresher course in the timeline – I feel really dumb thinking that Gareth would have been a student of Snape's.Thank you, happy Turkey Day! May the traffic be sparse!

I am very glad that you enjoy Poppy and Severus together so much. Of course, Minerva had said that morning that she was concerned for Poppy, but it could have easily gotten lost in the long list of worries she had for Severus.I hope you have a good Thanksgiving, too!Thanks for the review!

Yeah, after her frowsy appearance was a dead-give-away that morning, she's going to be extra carefulf from now on! Teehee!Oh, yes, his faux "meeing" with Poppy -- nice of the witch to give him a handy "out" so he didn't have to come up with another excuse for not joining Sarah for a drink in her quarters. Poor besotted witch! lol!Thanks for the review! The chappie with Gareth will be up fairly soon, then I'm traveling for the holiday and there will be a bit of a break -- some might even call it a respite! LOL! -- from the fic.

Maybe because there is potential for disaster there? But it's not inevitable -- we'll just wait and see! Thanks for the review! I'm very glad you're still enjoying it!

As you say -- and as Minerva warned Poppy -- it is hard to have a "no-strings-attached" sexual relationship unless you discover just don't like the person, and then why would you want to sleep with them? lolI have the next chapter (with Gareth & Severus & their conversation) all ready to post, so I think I will TRY to post it before I leave for Thanksgiving. No guarantees, but I might post it this evening, although it feels too quick. We'll see! I'm glad you enjoyed the conversation between Minerva and Poppy. :-) I think you'll enjoy the conversation between Gareth and Severus, too. Thanks for reviewing!

LOL! I love your thoughts on the students' perspective. Haha! Nope, Gareth hasn't a clue. Minerva won't be the only astonished McGonagall that day! Yes, you're right: there's a big difference there in how he thinks about Hermione and how he thinks about and relates to Poppy. Something that he's not really noticed himself, for all of his brooding and chewing things over and over and over!"Also, I found it curious that he has apologised to Poppy more than once, now, but unlike other apologies, never gave a thought to how difficult or unpleasant apologies can be or used to be."I'm glad you noticed that -- an interesting, perhaps even curious, phenomenon, isn't it? Thanks very much for the review. With the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, and travelling for it, I am unsure about when I'll be able to update, so there'll be another quick update tomorrow. I hope you continue to enjoy the fic!

"I'm glad you noticed that --" That's one of the delights of reading a complex and character-driven fic that updates so frequently. The whole is still a coherent story for the reader, and we don't as easily lose track of the small nuances of character development or bits of detail from chapter to chapter. As a non-author, I'm also much more likely to leave reviews, because I'm a more engaged reader. If I read a chapter in a fic that updates rarely, even if I really like the story, I can't usually think of anything to say. Have a happy Thanksgiving, and safe travels. I'm looking at a long drive, myself. Too bad we can't Apparate, huh?

Apparition, transporter beaming a la Star Trek, whatever -- I just wish it were easier than the long drive! I'd sure visit family and friends a lot more frequently! I hope you have a safe trip!

Excellent questions,

! And ones he should be asking himself.I'm glad you like the story! Thanks very much!

Yes, a very appropriate term, I'd say! Thanks for the review!

As I've mentioned in various places, but I couldn't say where (haha!), I had already written and shared the first two parts with a group, and had the third part read by a couple people to get their feedback, before I posted even one chapter here. I started writing the fic while I was still revising and posting Death's Dominion last year, and I have something like another 30+ chapters already written. So I just have to give each chapter a final polish, have it proofread for typos, and then format it for TPP, then I can post it. I really didn't want to start posting the fic until I'd finished it, but I got far enough into it and close enough to seeing the end that I felt it was safe. There's often weeks and months when I can't write anything, and I hate to have readers hanging around waiting for weeks for an update and not remembering what went before. I had a first draft done of Death's Dominion before I started posting it. Resolving a Misunderstanding, on the other hand, I was usually only between two and four chapters ahead, and because I was writing An Act of Love for a challenge and I started it late, I wrote like a mad woman for a couple weeks and churned the thing out so fast it hurt my brain and left myself sleep-deprived! LOL! I definitely prefer having a lot of a fic finished -- I can get the story done and polished the way I like to have it, and I don't have to feel guilty about going a couple weeks between chapters.A far longer response than you likely wanted, but I guess that I'm feeling chatty today! LOL!

Thanks,

! I appreciate it!

Okay. Finished.Severus has considered every option, except the one where he has meaningful and fulfilling sex with Hermione.  His expectations of her sound boooring!  And, has he ever said before that he is "in love" with Hermione?  Its seems that was a first, or maybe I just missed it before.

"And, has he ever said before that he is "in love" with Hermione?  Its seems that was a first, or maybe I just missed it before."Reread the very beginning of "Playing with Fire" and see his formulation of it there."Severus has considered every option, except the one where he has meaningful and fulfilling sex with Hermione.  His expectations of her sound boooring!"haha! Yes, quite. And what could that possibly mean . . . hmmm . . . *scratches head and ponders* lol!Severus does over-think some things and yet doesn't always think about/consider other things that might be important to reflect on. Thanks for reviewing!