Five

Many thanks to my wonderful beta melusin and my lovely alpha readers chivalric and savine_snape.

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Books must be treated with respect, we feel that in our bones, because words have power. Bring enough words together they can bend space and time.

~ Terry Pratchett

~~~^~~~

Severus' fingers drew lazy patterns on her naked arse, causing pleasant tingles to spread through her body. The sun was nicely warm on her back; she could hear the waves lapping gently on the shore, as a soft wind caused tiny clouds of sand to rain on the grimoire she was reading. Hermione blew them away and looked up to see Lucius walking toward them, all tanned, wearing nothing but the tray with glasses of white wine that he was carrying. A glass of chilled wine seemed like a really nice idea. And maybe something to nibble on?

The beach idyll was suddenly interrupted by an incessant beeping sound.

Hermione's eyes opened slowly to the familiar surroundings of her bedroom. The annoying noise was still there. Her sleepy brain identified it as her alarm clock, but her routine movement to switch it off was stopped by an obstacle in her bed. She turned around and found herself nose to nipple with a male chest. A big smile spread over her face as she snuggled closer to said chest, reaching over the rest of Severus to switch off the alarm.

'About time,' A voice above her head grunted.

'Mmmmh,' mumbled Hermione, burrowing her face into Severus' chest.

'Hermione.'

'Mmmmh.'

'Was there a reason for that infernal noise at this ungodly hour?'

Her head came up sharply at his tone, a lump of fear suddenly in her chest.

'I need to go to work.'

'Now?'

'No, I usually set the alarm early so that I have enough time to get ready.'

'Hmph.'

He sounded more tired than anything else, but the eyes staring into hers were unfathomable. The lump started to rise to her throat. She drew a deep breath and placed a tiny kiss on his collarbone.

In response, he drew her closer to him, and his hand started to wander down her back.

Warm relief swept through Hermione, quickly followed by desire as Severus' hand started to do the most interesting things. She took that as a cue to start some exploring of her own. Judging by the noises he made, Severus approved.

~~~^~~~

Hermione was late for work again, but she didn't care. The plan was to spend the morning, or what was left of it, at her office and then join Severus at Malfoy Manor to go through the rest of Lucius' books, hoping that they would provide a clue.

Severus... A huge grin spread over Hermione's face.

She was still grinning when she practically floated into the chambers of Granger and Patil, and Megan passed her a mug full of steaming black coffee plus a stack of parchments.

'Good weekend, was it?' she asked.

'Yes, excellent. Thank you. Anything else?'

'The Minister wants to see you. Now.'

Hermione stopped on the way to her office. 'That's a bit unusual. Did he say what about?'

Megan shook her head. 'No, he said, and I quote, "Tell her to get her arse over here now".'

Hermione narrowed her eyes, annoyance warring with curiosity. 'I'd better find out what he wants, then.' She said, handing both the cup and the parchments back to Megan before she turned on her heels and Flooed to the Ministry.

Obviously, she was expected as she could get right through to Kingsley's office.

Hermione stepped from the Floo, brushed the soot off her robes and glared at the Minister. 'There'd better be a good reason for this.'

'Morning, Hermione.' Kingsley motioned to a seat in front of his desk.

She briefly contemplated to remain standing, but then sat down at the edge of the chair. Kingsley pushed a piece of parchment, encased in a clear plastic folder, towards her. 'This arrived at our house by owl yesterday. Addressed to Narcissa.'

_{Remember Andromeda? You're next.}

Predictably, there was no signature.

Hermione felt her blood go cold. 'I take it you've shown this to MLE?'

'Yes. Fairly cheap, standard parchment you can buy in any stationery shop around here; handwriting has been altered by magic, magical trace not on record.'

'And the owl?'

'An ordinary screech owl. Took off as soon as Narcissa had taken the parchment.'

'Fuck. I'm sorry, Kingsley. How is Narcissa?'

'Shaken, but coping. The house is under surveillance, anyway, and we've alerted the Aurors to keep an eye on her.' Kingsley sounded calmer than he looked.

Hermione looked at the parchment again. 'Why are you telling me this?'

'MLE wants to question Lucius Malfoy again. They're going to send Aurors to Malfoy Manor.'

'They can't do that without informing me.'

'Oh, they will let you know. Only, you know how it is, the owl might lose its way and arrive late,' Kingsley stated matter-of-factly.

Hermione stared at him. 'Are you saying what I think you're saying?'

Kingsley looked back at her, neither confirming nor denying what Hermione had just implied.

'They're barking up the wrong tree. And the longer they waste their time hassling Lucius, the longer the real culprit will go free.'

Kingsley nodded. 'I know. Despite everything, Lucius would never attack Narcissa. The problem is that you and I are currently the only people in this building who believe that Lucius Malfoy is innocent, and we can't really prove it.'

'When did you say the letter arrived again?'

'Yesterday afternoon. Why?'

'Because Lucius has an alibi for that time. He was with his son and grandson. And I saw him yesterday evening as well.' No need to mention Severus at the moment.

'Not good enough. He could have slipped out any time to send the owl,' Kingsley pointed out. 'And you know Diggory tends to get a bit over-excited when he thinks he's about to catch a former Death Eater stepping out of line.'

Hermione sighed. 'I suppose I'd better go and make sure my client doesn't get shipped off to Azkaban again.'

'You'd better. And you'll need a bloody good strategy for the trial.'

'Tell me something I don't know,' Hermione said. 'Thank you, Kingsley.'

~~~^~~~

Hermione made a brief detour to her office to leave a note for Padma and gather her case files before she went to Malfoy Manor.

Basky let her into the library where she found Severus and Lucius busy going through a pile of books. Despite her worries, she noticed that the two looked good, reading side by side. 'Have you heard?' she greeted them.

'Good morning, Miss Granger. It is a pleasure...'

'Have we heard what?' Severus interrupted.

'Narcissa has received a threatening letter,' Hermione replied. 'And Aurors are on their way to talk to you.'

Lucius turned even paler than usual. 'They can't revoke my bail, can they?'

'No. Not unless they have new evidence, which they don't.'

Basky chose that moment to appear in the library. 'The gates say there's two intruders,' he announced.

Lucius sighed. 'That'll be my interrogators. Make them show you their badges, and then lead them into the blue parlour. Miss Granger and I will meet them there momentarily.'

Basky bowed and Disapparated.

'Severus, it might be best if you stayed here,' Hermione suggested. 'No need to let the MLE know that we have you on our side.'

'Actually, I thought Mrs Shacklebolt might appreciate the visit of an old friend in her time of distress,' Severus answered.

Lucius nodded. 'I think she might. You know how to activate the Floo in my study, don't you? Go before the Ministry's lackeys get here.'

'I'll see you later, then.' Severus briefly put a hand on Lucius' shoulder before he hurried out of the room.

By unspoken agreement, Lucius and Hermione lingered until they were sure that the Aurors had not only arrived, but had been kept waiting for a sufficient time.

The two Aurors had taken their seats on high-backed chairs that were clearly intended for representation, not for comfort, in a room that had been designed to impress. They jumped to their feet when Hermione entered the room, followed by Lucius, and one of them put a hand on his wand, but neither bothered to introduce himself.

They didn't look pleased to see Hermione. 'Miss Granger. You received our owl,' the other said.

'Morning, gentlemen. No, I had an appointment with my client, anyway.'

'Mr Malfoy, where were you yesterday between three and seven pm?' The first Auror had obviously decided to ignore her.

'May I remind you that my client is under house arrest, so this question is superfluous. Secondly, my client is not going to answer any questions before you've stated the reason for your presence here.' Hermione fixed a beady eye on the two Aurors, who started to look a bit uncomfortable.

'Mrs Shacklebolt received a threatening letter by owl yesterday afternoon.'

'And how does a random threatening letter relate to my client?'

'The letter referred to the attack on Mrs Lovegood and stated that your ex-wife would be next.' The shorter looked at Lucius like he was a particularly nasty blob of flubberworm mucus.

Hermione quelled an urge to direct one of the more unpleasant hexes at the man. She asked, 'Is there anything in that letter that would link it to my client?'

'Well, no.'

'So I fail to see the reason for your presence here, gentlemen. Besides, he does have an alibi as his son and grandson spent yesterday afternoon with him.'

'We'll check that.'

'You do that. We've answered your questions, and now I must ask you to leave. Otherwise, I'll be forced to file a complaint against your department for hassling my client.'

Both Aurors looked mutinous, but obviously knew better than to argue with Hermione.

'We'll find our own way out,' one of them grumbled.

'That won't be necessary. Basky, please escort these gentlemen back to the gates,' Lucius said.

When the Aurors were out of sight and earshot, both Lucius and Hermione let out a sigh of relief. Hermione felt slightly queasy. She had acquired a certain reputation at the Wizengamot, but this was the first time she had confronted two of the wizarding world's finest outside the courtroom.

Lucius looked a bit green around the gills, too. 'That could have gone a lot worse. Well done, Miss Granger.'

'Thank you. And fortunately, you did have an alibi this time.'

'One should always have an alibi,' he paused. 'I don't know about you, but I could do with a Brandy after this.'

'That sounds good.'

~~~^~~~

They had settled with their glasses back in the library. Hermione took a sip and felt the soothing effect as the smooth liquid ran down her throat. Lucius was swirling the amber liquid in his tumbler before he too took a sip.

Hermione pulled one of the books towards her and started to flick through it. After she'd read the same sentence for the third time and still didn't know what it said, she snapped the book shut. 'The trouble is that we don't really know what exactly we're looking for.'

'Maybe we missed the pivotal clue,' Lucius suggested.

'Maybe. Or someone could have modified an existing curse.' Hermione opened another book and snapped it shut again. 'You may have to face trial, after all.'

'I'm not going back to Azkaban,' Lucius said.

'You won't have to,' Hermione replied, briefly laying her hand on his arm. Their eyes met, and she realised that she genuinely wanted him to be free. 'Let's try this from a different angle. Who might bear a grudge against the Black sisters?'

'I can think of a couple of people who aren't too fond of Narcissa. Those who didn't agree with her actions at the end of the war, those who wanted to see her in prison, those who don't like that she married the current Minister for Magic. And the petty and jealous ones. Once, Narcissa's word was law in wizarding society. Or her whisper.'

'That makes for a rather long list of people, but I doubt that any of them would have a grudge against Andromeda.' Hermione made a few notes on a piece of parchment. 'The only overlapping points would be those who think both women are traitors. Which leads us right back to the Death Eaters.' She slapped her quill down.

'I thought we were searching for something that would help to exonerate me,' Lucius observed.

'We must be overlooking something.' Hermione looked at her parchment again, but it yielded no more clues than it had a minute ago.

Severus came striding into the room, his travelling cloak over his arm, Basky hurrying after him.

'How is Narcissa?' asked Lucius.

'As well as can be expected. She says she knows you've got nothing to do with the whole sordid affair because you'd never resort to such crude methods,' Severus replied.

'It's good to know that her faith in me hasn't diminished.'

Basky had finally managed to relieve Severus of his cloak and disappeared again.

'Anything that will help us?' Hermione asked.

Severus helped himself to a glass of brandy before he replied, 'There is one really interesting thing. The skin of her fingertips shows the residue of a potion.'

'Why wasn't this discovered before?'

'Because nobody looked for it. I came across it when I performed a thorough scan for magical traces.' Severus looked smug.

'Any idea what the potion does?' Hermione had started to make more notes on the parchment.

'It's nearly impossible to do a precise analysis if you have only residues on human skin,' Severus explained, 'But from what I could detect, I'd say it's some sort of enhancer or modifier for a spell.'

'Which has just made our search even more difficult,' Lucius observed.

'Not necessarily,' Severus objected. 'There aren't that many spells that require a potion to work, and nearly all of them are Dark in nature, so they'd be found in very specific grimoires.'

'So Narcissa would have come into contact with the potion through the letter?' Hermione asked. 'Which means, the parchment must have been impregnated with the potion and then dried.'

Severus nodded. 'Yes, which isn't hard to do, once one has acquired the potion.'

'Would it help if we analysed the parchment?' Lucius suggested.

'Probably. Unfortunately, MLE is keeping all evidence under lock and key. I could demand to see it, though.' Hermione continued, 'However, I wouldn't be allowed to take my wand, and I can't run an analysis without it.'

'Did Andromeda receive a threatening letter as well?' Severus asked.

'There's no mention of a letter in the files, but since she couldn't be questioned, she might have.' Another thought crossed Hermione's mind. 'But then it wouldn't have to be a letter, would it?' She looked at Severus. 'From what you said, a lot of items could be impregnated with that potion.'

Severus nodded. 'Any piece of paper, really.'

'So it would have been easy to slip her something poisoned?'

Severus nodded again.

'So the curse works only in connection with the potion, and the potion is a way to mark one's victim. Nifty, but pretty horrible.' Hermione shivered.

'Yes, but good for us. It's old magic and, as I said, there are very few books that detail that sort of spell, and even fewer people who have access to them,' Severus pointed out.

Lucius had become very quiet. He kept twirling a strand of his hair around a finger while Severus and Hermione were talking.

'Lucius?' Severus asked.

'I know where you'd find that kind of spell,' he whispered.

Hermione stared at him. 'Don't tell me...'

'Come with me.' Lucius rose, took out his wand and walked to the shelf next to the fireplace, Severus and Hermione trailing after him.

He wove an intricate pattern with his wand, murmuring a series of spells Hermione didn't understand. For a moment, nothing happened, then the shelf swung forward, revealing a small cabinet in the wall that contained another bookshelf. After another spell, Lucius took out a very ancient looking book.

'Are those all Dark Arts books?' Hermione's fingers were itching to investigate.

Lucius smiled. 'Oh no, there are quite a few that are of a rather different nature, but equally delicate.'

Hermione stared at him for a moment until the Knut dropped.

'Oh.' Her desire to investigate was now fuelled further by a couple of rather interesting images in her head. She pushed these images away in order to concentrate on their current problem.

After Lucius had closed and warded the cabinet again, he brought the book over to the table and opened it. It was hand-written, illustrated with coloured engravings, and quite obviously a spell book. Lucius leafed through it until he'd found the chapter he was looking for.

Severus and Hermione bent over the page, reading through the description of spells.

On the next page, they found the Animus Translucidus spell, which described exactly the effects Andromeda had suffered and required a potion to work.

'Shit,' said Severus.

Hermione stared at the page, the carefully crafted letters blurring before her eyes. She had the feeling the floor was spinning beneath her. If anyone found out that Lucius had this book, there was no way he wouldn't be convicted. Her brain came up with any number of unlikely scenarios to get him out of the country to a safe place until a more sensible thought elbowed the panic out of the way. 'There must be others,' she said.

'Other what?' Lucius asked.

'Books. I mean copies of this book. Please, tell me this isn't the only copy in existence.'

Lucius looked thoughtful. 'I think there were three originally. All made exclusively for the Malfoy family.'

The rest of Hermione's hope waved goodbye and left the country.

'I know that one was destroyed in a fire, then there's this one and... Hm, I wonder what became of the third.' Lucius went over to another shelf that contained a long row of similar looking books. 'Let me check the inventory.' He started to go through the volumes, anxiously watched by Severus and Hermione. Without noticing it, she had grasped Severus' hand.

'Ah, it appears the book was given to my great-great-great aunt as a wedding gift.' Lucius looked puzzled. 'Odd, I wasn't aware of that branch of the family...unless...'

Lucius wandered over to yet another shelf and pulled out a large black book. 'Aha, they had only one daughter. She married a Bulstrode.' He scanned the page further, murmuring, 'Aha.' He turned to Severus and Hermione. 'If the book was indeed passed along as an heirloom, as it should have been, it would be in the Diggory family by now.'

Stunned silence spread through the room.

'So that would make Amos Diggory our suspect? I don't find that very likely,' Hermione said.

'Hm,' said Severus. 'Let's not dismiss that possibility quite so quickly.'

'Especially as he's our only option,' Lucius added. 'So what do we know about the family?' He looked expectantly at Hermione.

'Diggory is a widower. Lost his wife shortly after the war, in a spell-related accident. It wasn't clear whether it was really an accident or whether she killed herself because she couldn't get over the death of her son. Currently Head of MLE: has a reputation of being strict, but fair, if a bit over-zealous when it comes to former Death Eaters and their families.' Hermione thought about what else she knew. 'Oh, and there was an incident a few years back at the MLE's Christmas party when he got completely pissed and had a go at Harry for testifying in favour of Narcissa.' She added, 'You know, when Harry was still working as an Auror.'

'What if he has nourished that grudge against Narcissa?' Severus asked.

'I'd say we've got our culprit.' Lucius sounded more like himself again.

'Not unless we can prove it,' Hermione cautioned. 'We'd have to find a way to question him.'

'Why don't we have lunch,' Lucius suggested. 'I'm sure between us we can come up with a plan to convince Mr Diggory to admit to his crimes.'

~~~^~~~

Four days later, Amos Diggory was sitting in his usual corner in the Leaky, staring into his usual pint, when a shadow fell across his table.

'Mr Diggory?'

Diggory looked up at the dark stranger. He was sure he'd never seen him before, but after a pint or three things tended to get a bit blurry. 'Yeah?'

'Dearborn, Peter Dearborn. May I?'

Diggory nodded. Both men silently sipped their pints until Dearborn said. 'I admire your work.'

'Huh?'

'At the MLE. Takes a firm conviction to deal with the scum.'

Diggory shrugged. 'S'pose so. Thanks.' He drained the rest of his beer in one swig.

'Let me buy you a drink.'

It took Dearborn a while to get back from the busy bar, but he eventually sat down with their pints. 'To justice.' He raised his glass.

'To justice.'

Dearborn watched as Diggory drank from his pint in great gulps.

'It's a shame so many Death Eaters got away after the war,' Dearborn said.

'We'll get them. Eventually, we'll get them all.'

'Though sometimes it takes a helping hand, doesn't it, Mr Diggory?'

Diggory stared at him. 'N...Yes.'

'And you're happy to provide that helping hand, aren't you?'

'What the...They deserve what's coming to them.' Diggory looked suspiciously at his glass. 'Did you spike my beer?'

'Did you curse Andromeda Lovegood?'

'Was an accident. Meant to get Narcissa Shacklebolt. She was late for tea. Bitch. But I'll get her, all of them.' Diggory tried to stand up, but Dearborn put a firm hand on his arm.

'You don't want to cause a scene.'

Diggory could feel Dearborn's wand poking his side. 'Who are you?'

'Did you set up Lucius Malfoy?'

'I...Yes. Justice. My son and wife are dead because of scum like him. So if he's caught cursing his ex-wife, he goes to Azkaban for the rest of his life. And I'll make sure it's a short and miserable one.' Diggory raised his hand in a helpless gesture, unable to stop the words spilling out of his mouth.

'Is there a counter-curse? Or an antidote?'

'Don't know. I don't care... Wha...' He never get to finish the sentence as his head met the tabletop.

Beneath the table, Dearborn pocketed his wand.

The middle-aged couple at the table next to them was about to leave, too. He nearly bumped into them on his way out through the crowded pub. He stopped at the bar. 'Can't hold his drink, poor chap. Make sure he gets home all right.' He indicated the unconscious Diggory and passed the barkeeper a Galleon.

~~~^~~~

By the time Lucius and Hermione had Flooed back to Malfoy Manor, Severus had already arrived and was waiting for them, sprawled out on the sofa in the drawing room, a smug expression on his face.

'Well done, Mr Dearborn.' Hermione plopped down next to him.

'Good thing you just so happened to have one of the MLE's recording devices,' Severus replied.

'I must have forgotten to return it when I left the Department,' Hermione said innocently.

Lucius was inspecting his hands. 'I hate Polyjuice potion. One never feels like oneself.'

Severus rolled his eyes. 'I'm glad we're back to mundane concerns now that Azkaban can be safely avoided.' He looked at Hermione. 'He'll be cleared now, won't he?'

Hermione nodded. 'Yes, definitely. I'll take this directly to Kingsley tomorrow. With the record and three witnesses to Diggory's confession, even under Veritaserum, Lucius will be exonerated.'

'Diggory won't do anything stupid between now and tomorrow like carrying out the attack on Narcissa, will he?' Lucius asked.

Severus shook his head. 'Not after the Stunner I put on him. By the time he wakes up again tomorrow, he'll already be in custody.'

Lucius looked at them both. 'Thank you.'

'Just wait until you see my bill,' Hermione said with a smile.

Lucius shrugged. 'Meanwhile, can I offer you a glass of wine? I have an excellent Bordeaux from the Malfoi estate.'

He hadn't exaggerated. The wine was excellent, the sofa soft, the room pleasantly warm and Severus' side had never looked more inviting. As she leant against him, Severus put an arm around her.

The hand holding Lucius' wineglass stopped briefly on the way to his mouth as he looked from Severus to Hermione and back. He took a sip before he said with a smile, 'I see I'm not the only one who appreciates charming and intelligent company.'

'Intelligence and charm are always appreciated,' Hermione replied drowsily.

~~~^~~~

Hermione finished her sentence, signed the parchment and spelled it so that only the recipient could read it before she tied it to the owl's leg.

The owl safely on its way, she leant back in her chair and stretched her arms and neck.

'Looks like you could do with a massage,' said Severus' voice from the doorway.

Hermione started. 'How did you get in here?'

'I charmed my way past your secretary, saying I was the delivery boy.' He held up the bag in his hand.

'Hm, I'll need to have a word with Megan about letting strangers into my office,' she said with a wink. 'What's in there?'

'Lunch.' Severus opened the bag and put a couple of sandwiches, two bottles of water, two apples and two chocolate bars on Hermione's desk before he made himself comfortable in the chair in front of it.

'Excellent idea.' Hermione snatched an egg and cress sandwich. 'And chocolate, you brought chocolate.' She quickly stopped herself before she said something silly.

'I thought you could do with some,' Severus said, indicating the files on her desk.

'I can always do with chocolate,' Hermione replied with a grin.

'How did it go with Kingsley?'

'He went down to MLE in person after he'd seen the evidence and sent a couple of Aurors to Diggory's house. Apparently, he was still out of it when they arrived to arrest him.'

'Some people shouldn't drink.'

'Exactly. The grimoire was found in Diggory's house, and he's in custody now. All accusations against Lucius have been formally withdrawn. He's officially a free man again. Case closed.' The warm glow of satisfaction she'd felt since last night was still spreading through her.

'Good. Any news about Andromeda?' Severus asked.

'The Unspeakables are on it. Now that they have the book with the actual curse and potion, they're optimistic that they'll find a cure.' Hermione added, 'I really hope they do.'

Severus nodded. They were still munching their sandwiches in peaceful silence when an eagle owl pecked at the window. Hermione frowned. 'Silly owl. They're supposed to go to Megan's window.'

Severus peered at the owl. 'I think this one has more of a personal message for you.'

Hermione went to open the window. The owl fluttered down onto her desk and stuck out its leg. There was a small parcel and a parchment, both of which bore the Malfoy crest. 'How did you know?'

'Hardly anyone except Lucius uses those owls. What is it?'

Hermione had unrolled the parchment. 'He's inviting us to a celebratory dinner on Friday, and he's sent me a little token of his gratitude.'

She started to unwrap the small parcel, which had started to enlarge when she touched it. It was a book: ancient by the looks of it, but very well preserved, bound in dark leather and engraved with runes. As Hermione started to decipher the runes, her heart started to beat a little faster. She opened the book at a random page and found herself looking at a drawing of three people, a woman and two men, entwined in a passionate embrace. She watched them, feeling a blush spreading over her face and neck as their interaction became more heated.

She pushed the open book towards Severus. He looked at the drawing. 'Lucius, you sly devil.'

'It is a beautiful picture,' Hermione observed.

'I'm sure that's the reason why Lucius sent it. So that we could admire the drawings.'

'My thoughts exactly. I'm sure it is pure coincidence that it arrived together with the invitation for next Friday.'

'Do you want to go?'

'Do you?'

Severus shrugged. 'The food at Malfoy Manor is excellent.'

'I'll take that as a yes.' Hermione quickly penned an acceptance note while the owl helped itself to the bacon and chicken bits from the remaining sandwiches.

After the owl had left, she unwrapped one of the chocolate bars and saw Severus looking at her speculatively. 'What?'

'He fancies you.'

'I don't think I'm the only one he fancies.'

'Does it bother you?'

'What? That he fancies me? Or you? Or possibly both of us?'

'Yes.'

'No, it doesn't. Unless you plan to bugger off with Lucius.'

'Don't be silly.'

'Remember what I told you about calling me silly?'

'That's hardly the point.'

'Then what is?'

Severus played with the rest of his sandwich until he had reduced it to a heap of crumbs. 'You, me, Lucius,' he finally said. 'Who do you want?'

Hermione could feel her heart beating in her throat. She swallowed and drew a deep breath. 'Do I have to choose?'

Severus stared at her. 'Sorry?'

'Do I have to choose between you?'

'Yes, I thought that was what you said.' He paused. 'Not as far as Lucius or I are concerned.'

Hermione narrowed her eyes. 'You two wouldn't have had a conversation about this, would you?'

Severus had the grace to try and look sheepish. He didn't succeed too well.

'Just exactly how friendly are you two with each other?'

'Why don't you find out for yourself?'

'I think it's going to be a very interesting evening on Friday.'