A/N: Sorry it took me so long to update, but I've been REALLY busy. *grumble…stupid history project…mumble* And just yesterday, I got my black belt in Tae Kwon Do! Yay! Go me! I've been working on this for about 3 years now, so I'm really happy. I'm also really bruised at the moment (as in my arms are literally purple) but I decided to finally type this anyway. My apologies if there are typos, my fingers don't work very well right now.

Chapter 9

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Sirius jerked away, his eyes flying to the door, then back to me, desperation in every feature. His hand twitched towards the wand where it lay on the hearth, as if he was tempted to curse me, the visitor at the door, himself, or all three. I reached out, grabbing his hand and giving it a squeeze.

            "Transform yourself!" I whispered urgently. There was an almost painful look of relief in his eyes before he changed, then a large back dog appeared where the man had been moments before. As I stood up, there was another noisy banging.

            "Coming!" I yelled, moving quickly towards the door. After glancing over my shoulder just to ensure that Sirius really was unrecognizable, I turned to the door, unlocked it, and opened it a crack.

            "Mira?" asked a familiar voice from the other side of the door. After adjusting to the dim light of the hallway, my eyes made out the rather dour face of my long-time mentor and sometimes friend, Severus Snape.

            "Severus!" It was only then that I remembered that I had missed the advanced potions lesson I had requested of him the previous week. My mind worked furiously. "Oh, I'm so sorry, I completely forgot to owl you. You see," I improvised, deliberately adding a rasp to my voice, "I caught the flu a couple days ago. I didn't think I was up to brewing complicated potions. I'm sorry, I should have told you." Severus' naturally dismal face narrowed in concern.

            "Yes, you should have. Then I might have been able to bring some pepper-up potion with me. Well, I suppose I can forgive you this time. Do you have any murtlap essence? I'll brew some for you now." Severus shouldered his way into my apartment, heading for my potion's cupboard, but halted when he saw the large black dog on the hearth.

            "New dog?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at me with a little smile, "I didn't think pets were allowed here." I blustered a bit, nervously eyeing the way Sirius' hackles were rising.

            "Well, they're not, really…but I-" Severus' lip snaked up into a little smirk.

            "I always thought Slytherins were supposed to be the rule-breakers. But you, a Ravenclaw…" he tsked his tongue at me, and I got a trifle annoyed.

            "Really, Severus, we're not in school anymore. And the poor thing was starving, I couldn't just leave him out there." I gestured to the rain-soaked window. Severus' smile got wider.

            "You're so soft, Mira. But in this case, I think your idea was a good one. You could use a watchdog in this neighborhood." Momentarily abandoning his trek towards my potions ingredients, Severus made his way over to Sirius, holding his hand out for the dog to sniff. Sirius, however, had other ideas. As soon as Severus began to approach him he started backing up, baring his teeth and growling. Wondering what the hell Sirius was doing, I stepped between Severus and the dog.

            "He's still not used to strangers," I said, thinking fast. Severus frowned.

            "You should get him some obedience lessons. Probably needs a flea bath too," he added, sniffing, "If he bites someone, you're going to be blamed, you know." I nodded, too eager to get rid of Severus to bother arguing.

            "I know, I'll take care of him. But I really should get back to bed, Severus," I faked a yawn, then a cough. "I'll owl you when I'm feeling better, okay?" His eyes softened a bit.

            "The pepper-up will only take a minute." He began to head toward the kitchen again, but I caught his arm.

            "No, really, I…already had some today. I just need rest. But thank you for the offer," I said, sweetening my voice in the hopes that flattery would get him more agreeable to my suggestions. "I'm sure a potion made by the potionsmaster would be better than mine, but I just don't think it's smart to have 2 doses in one day." Severus smiled at the blatant compliment, taking my hand in his.

            "You always have to be smart, don't you, Ravenclaw? Well," he sighed, backing towards the door, "I suppose I should let you get some sleep. I'll send you some of my potion tomorrow."

            "Thank you, Severus," I said, ushering him into the hallway, "And I'll let you know when I'm ready for the lessons."

            "Do that." He gave my hand a quick squeeze before I managed to retrieve it and retreat into my apartment, closing the door behind me. I heard a muffled crack as he disapparated, and I leaned against the doorframe, heaving a sigh of relief.

Second A/N: Heh heh…yeah, I love author's notes. Anyway, I'm really not sure where this story is going now. I don't know why I put Snape in there, he just sort of showed up uninvited. I've written more of the story, but I don't like the way things are turning out, so I may have to rewrite it all, and maybe this chapter too. So it may be a while before my next update. If you want me to email you when I put up the next chapter, just send me your email address somehow and I'll get back to you.