WARNING: This is a slash story, which means it contains male/male erotic content involving consenting adults. If you're not of legal age or are offended by such material, please go find something else to read.

Title: True Confessions
Author: Geri
E-Mail: geri-chan@excite.com
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Lupin and Snape and a truth potion..."
Disclaimer: Characters belong to J.K. Rowling; no money is being made off this story; consider it a little wish fulfillment on my part. This is an alternate ending to Prisoner of Azkaban.

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"I'm very disappointed in you, Severus," Dumbledore said sternly. "You disobeyed my direct orders to keep Professor Lupin's condition confidential."

"I apologize, Headmaster," replied Snape with a noticeable lack of sincerity. "In all the excitement, it just sort of...slipped out."

"I am not stupid, Severus!" roared Dumbledore, slamming his fist down on his desk. "And I'll thank you not to treat me as if I were! We both know you did it on purpose! As valuable as you are to this school, if you ever defy me in such a manner again, I shall be forced to dismiss you. Is that clear, Professor Snape?"

"Yes, Headmaster," said Snape sullenly, slouching down in his chair sulkily like a chastised schoolboy. He had in fact sat in that very same chair with the very same expression on his face many times as a boy at Hogwarts. Dumbledore sighed wearily.

"Severus," the Headmaster said, "if I were not so angry with you right now, I would feel sorry for you." Snape looked up, a puzzled and resentful expression on his face. "You are your own worst enemy. Who are you really trying to punish--Remus or yourself?"

"I have no idea what you mean, Headmaster," Snape said icily. When no reply was forthcoming, he stood up and said, "If that will be all--" "No, that will not be all," said Dumbledore. "I require two more things--a vial of Veritaserum, and your presence this afternoon in the staff room." As Snape raised an eyebrow, Dumbledore continued, "A hearing is being conducted as to whether Professor Lupin will be allowed to remain on the staff at Hogwarts."

"I thought he resigned!" snarled Snape.

"He did offer his resignation, but I refused it," Dumbledore replied calmly.

"The parents will never accept--"

"They will if the Ministry of Magic endorses my decision. Cornelius Fudge is attending the hearing, and will make the final determination." As Snape stood there, turning red and spluttering with rage, Dumbledore smiled pleasantly and said, "Now, that will be all, Severus. Run along and fetch me that truth potion." Snape swept out of the room in a swirl of black robes, slamming the door behind him.

{What does he mean, I am my own worst enemy!} Snape fumed to himself. {And all that rubbish about me punishing myself! Does he think I have a guilty conscience?} Snape snarled and ground his teeth together. Two students passing him in the hallway cringed in terror, but Snape didn't even notice them. Yes, all right, so he had been a Death Eater, but he had repented and changed sides when he realized the true intent and scope of Voldemort's plans. Had he not paid for his mistakes by risking his life spying on the Dark Lord? Was he not still paying, every day of his life, by putting up with that bleeding heart of a Headmaster and that insolent brat Potter who looked and acted so much like his father? That father who had the gall to save Snape's life and then get killed, leaving Snape forever in his debt? Not to mention the werewolf--having Lupin around was a constant torment and reminder of his childhood humiliation. He still remembered the way Black, Potter, and Pettigrew would laugh and sneer at him. Lupin though, never laughed, but would always give him an apologetic half-smile after his friends had made Snape the object of their latest moronic prank. His blue eyes were never mocking, but always gentle and a little sad, some hidden secret pain in them that made him older than his years. It was that pain that led him to briefly trust and befriend Lupin, to try and find out that secret and ease his pain...but he had been betrayed.

Snape tried to conjure up in his mind the memory of Lupin-as-wolf about to tear out his throat, but all he could see was Professor Lupin's blue eyes, still gentle and sad as ever, staring at him across the Great Hall at breakfast. Strangely, despite the fact that Snape had just outed him as a werewolf, there had been no anger in his eyes--just sorrow and resignation.

Snape shook his head violently, trying to shake off that image. He had no reason to feel guilty, none at all! Lupin was a menace, and the school was better off without him--surely Fudge would understand that! And perhaps with Lupin gone, those blue eyes would stop haunting his dreams.

There was a mild buzz of whispered conversation in the staff room as the teachers and staff gossiped amongst themselves, varying degrees of dismay or sympathy in their voices. No one spoke to Snape, the black scowl on his face apparently discouraging any would-be conversationalists. A couple of house elves passed through the room, serving tea or coffee. Still scowling, Snape accepted a cup of tea and took a sip just as Dumbledore, Lupin, and Fudge filed in and seated themselves at a long table at the head of the room.

The Headmaster cleared his throat and the room fell silent. "In light of recent events, and...ah...certain allegations--" Dumbledore shot a quick glare in Snape's direction "--Professor Lupin has agreed to submit to questioning under truth potion to clear his name. Remus, if you will--" Dumbledore handed Lupin the vial of truth potion.

Technically, only a few drops were needed for the required effect, but Lupin downed the entire bottle in one gulp. {Showoff,} Snape thought darkly to himself. After a moment, Lupin's eyes went glassy, and a rather dazed smile spread slowly across his face.

"Your full name for the record, please," said Fudge, as he opened a notebook and readied his quill pen.

"Remus J. Lupin," the werewolf drawled in an almost languid tone of voice. Snape frowned; the potion seemed to be having an odd effect on Lupin, possibly due to the excessive dose. Then he mentally shrugged off his concerns; if there were any adverse side effects it was Lupin's own damn fault.

"And are you a werewolf, Professor Lupin?" Fudge asked.

"Yes," Lupin replied calmly.

"Have you ever caused harm to any students or staff members at Hogwarts?" There was a long silence; Lupin frowned slightly, appearing to be puzzled by the question. Fudge cleared his throat and said,

"Er...Professor Lupin?"

Lupin blinked, then answered, "Ah...no physical harm to anyone. But I did frighten Severus rather badly once."

Snape heard a few quiet snickers behind him. He glanced around quickly, but the offenders had already composed themselves and everyone met his eyes with a straight face, although Hagrid had a slightly too-innocent look about him. Snape glared balefully at the Gamekeeper (and at everyone else in the room for good measure), then slumped back in his chair, took a sip of tea, and thought to himself, {I'm going to KILL that werewolf!} He entertained himself with thoughts of wringing Lupin's scrawny neck with his bare hands, only halfway paying attention as the interrogation went on and Lupin explained that yes, he was perfectly harmless as long as he took the wolfsbane potion, and no, he was not in league with You-Know-Who. There was some concern expressed about Lupin's transformation the previous night, but Lupin explained that away too, with the help of some carefully phrased questions from Dumbledore. They practically made Lupin out to be a hero, risking himself to save the three brats! Like a fool, Fudge fell for it, accepting the Headmaster's assurances that Lupin would never again miss taking his wolfsbane potion. Snape's fellow teachers also appeared to have all accepted the decision, some--like McGonagall and Hagrid--with unabashed relief. {Trust Hagrid to stick up for the monster,} Snape thought to himself with disgust. {He'd probably keep Lupin as a pet if he could!} Others were obviously less than pleased about Lupin remaining on the staff, but none of them seemed inclined to argue about it. Snape scowled ferociously at his now cold cup of tea; he had the feeling he'd need something stronger after this meeting was over...

Although Fudge seemed satisfied with Lupin's answers, Dumbledore had one more question. "Remus," he asked, "is Sirius Black in league with Voldemort?"

"Albus, please!" said Fudge, looking pained at the mention of the Dark Lord's name.

"No," replied Lupin in answer to the Headmaster's question. For the first time since the questioning began, his eyes lost some of that dazed, unfocused look. "Not now, and not thirteen years ago, either--Sirius is innocent! It was Peter Pettigrew who betrayed James and Lily, then faked his own death and set Sirius up to take the fall!" The room fell into stunned silence, then erupted into loud commotion with everyone talking at once.

"What do you mean--"

"Black is innocent--?"

"That's impossible--"

There was a loud crash as Snape leapt to his feet, knocking over his chair and dropping his teacup, which shattered into pieces on the floor. "HE'S LYING!!!" roared Snape furiously.

"Er...now, now, calm down everyone," said Fudge ineffectually.

Dumbledore calmly said, "Remus cannot lie, Severus. He is still under the influence of the Veritaserum. Or are you saying there is something wrong with your potion?"

Now Fudge looked alarmed. "What?! There's nothing wrong with the potion is there, Snape?"

Snape ground his teeth together in frustration, his hatred of Lupin warring with his professional pride. Pride won out. "No, there is nothing wrong with the potion," he said through gritted teeth. "But just because Lupin believes Black is innocent doesn't make it true. He's always been soft on Black, always been ready to make excuses for him no matter what he did." He gave Lupin a venomous glare with that last remark.

"Yes, yes," Fudge said. "It's possible Black misled Lupin, and Harry Potter as well." Lupin opened his mouth to protest, but Dumbledore placed a hand on Lupin's arm and shook his head. Lupin subsided with obvious reluctance as Fudge continued, "The Ministry will look into it, of course. But in any case, I believe we can certify Professor Lupin fit for duty." He shook hands with Lupin and Dumbledore, accepting their thanks, then left the room, saying he had many other pressing duties to attend to (not the least of which was locating Sirius Black).

The teachers also started to file out of the room, but Dumbledore called out, "Just a moment, Severus! I have one last question for Professor Lupin."

Snape stopped halfway to the door, a much put-upon expression on his face. "What now?" he snapped. "Your pet werewolf got his sanction, what more do you want?"

The other teachers who were about to leave lingered behind, obviously curious. Dumbledore had intended to dismiss them to give Snape some privacy, but changed his mind after Snape's sarcastic remark. The potions teacher was long overdue for a little comeuppance, he decided. Aloud he said, "Remus, did you know beforehand about Sirius's prank when you were students, when he sent Severus to your hiding place in the Shrieking Shack?"

Snape froze, turning pale, as Lupin answered, "No! No, I didn't!"

"Liar," Snape whispered.

Lupin turned towards Snape, his blue eyes tearful and pleading. "I swear, Severus! I swear I didn't know what he was going to do!"

"Black tried to kill me!"

"He was stupid and irresponsible, but he only meant to scare you, Severus! And if I had known, I would have stopped him, I swear! I would never intentionally have done anything to hurt you!" Tears were now openly streaming down Lupin's face.

The other teachers watched the exchange with fascination. Hagrid's head swiveled back and forth between Lupin and Snape as if he were watching a tennis match. "Eh?" the Gamekeeper asked, scratching his head. "Don't yeh two hate each other?"

Lupin, still bespelled by the truth potion, had no choice but to answer honestly, "No, I don't hate Severus. I love him." Snape made an odd sound that sounded like a strangled scream. The mouth of every person in the room (except of course for Lupin, Snape, and Dumbledore) dropped open. Hagrid stammered, "Ye...ye...yeh love Professor SNAPE!?"

"Oh yes!" said Lupin earnestly. "Ever since we were sixteen."

"Shut up, you lying mongrel!" shrieked Snape.

"But it's the truth, Severus!" protested Lupin. "I love you, I always have!"

"Shut up!"

"But why Snape, of all people?!" Professor Flitwick blurted out without thinking. Professor McGonagall had recovered enough to give him a withering glare and a discreet blow to the side with her elbow, but it was too late.

Lupin giggled inanely, and said with a dreamy look in his eyes, "When we were teenagers, I thought he was kind of sexy in a sort of dark, brooding way..."

"SHUT UP, LUPIN!" roared Snape, his face turning red.

"I love you, Severus, I've always loved you, there's never been anyone but you, before or since," Lupin continued to babble, unable to stop.

"SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!!!"

"Never?" muttered one of the female teachers under her breath incredulously. Unfortunately, Lupin, with a werewolf's keen hearing, overheard...

"No, never, I've never had any lover but Severus, never slept with anyone but--"

Snape screamed and fled the room.

Snape slammed the door of his dungeon workshop behind him hard enough to make all the glassware in the room rattle. He started grabbing various toxic ingredients off the shelves while one thought ran over and over in his mind: {I'M GOING TO KILL HIM!!!} Then a small voice in his head, the one tiny corner of his mind that was still capable of rational thought and not gibbering insanely with rage, said dryly, {Which `him'?} That gave Snape a moment of pause and broke his concentration. Lupin had humiliated him in front of the entire staff, but clearly Dumbledore had set the whole thing up. He mentally waffled back and forth, unable to decide which man he ought to kill, then was struck by a sudden burst of inspiration: {I'll kill them BOTH!} The small voice thought this was a splendid idea. Snape continued puttering around almost happily as he mixed together a particularly virulent poison, thinking to himself that a wolfskin rug would look quite fine beside the fireplace in his bedroom. As for the Headmaster, it would probably be more practical to poison him, but he found the thought of strangling Dumbledore with his own beard to be much more satisfying. At that very moment, the door swung open and the object of his murderous fantasy walked in. Snape's right hand slipped into his robes, reaching for his wand...

"Don't even think about it, Severus," said Dumbledore. Snape's rage receded just a fraction, and he paused for a moment, giving the Headmaster a closer look--he was heavily warded with protective charms and spells. Snape sighed regretfully as he let his hand drop to his side; the old man was smarter than he looked. {I suppose the wolfskin rug is out of the question too...} Aloud, he snapped, "What do you want?"

"I need your help, Severus." Snape laughed mirthlessly. "Oh, that's rich! Why should I help you after the way you arranged to humiliate me in front of the entire staff?! I guess I should be grateful you didn't invite the students to watch as well!"

"It wasn't my intention to humiliate you, Severus," Dumbledore replied patiently. "All I wanted to do was prove to you that Remus never conspired with Sirius to hurt you, then or now. The potion had an...unforeseen effect...upon him. Possibly due to the large dose, but a few people do suffer odd side effects because of an allergic reaction. But in any case, it's your own fault."

"WHAT!?" screeched Snape in outrage.

"If you hadn't exposed Remus as a werewolf, this whole trial wouldn't have been necessary," Dumbledore pointed out calmly.

"If YOU hadn't hired him in the first place--oh, never mind!" Snape gave up; all he wanted now was for the meddling old wizard to leave him in peace. "Let's just get this over with--what did you want?"

"Well, obviously the potion had an effect similar to alcohol or a mild narcotic--euphoria, loss of inhibition--"

"In other words, Lupin acted like a maudlin drunk," Snape translated dryly. "Save that he was unable to lie."

"Er...yes, although I was attempting to put it more tactfully. And do you know what usually follows a drinking binge?"

Snape stared at him blankly.

Dumbledore sighed. "Remus is feeling...a bit under the weather. I'd like you to take a hangover cure to him." Snape burst out laughing. "Fat chance of that! Let him suffer, it's the least he deserves!"

"I'm surprised at you, Severus. You still hold on to your old grudge against Remus even though you know now that he wasn't involved with Sirius's prank."

"I've known that for years!" Snape snapped, then stopped, stunned into silence. He hadn't intended to say that. But it was true, he realized, though he had never consciously thought about it. For a short time, his paranoia and jealousy had led him to believe Lupin must have conspired with Black, but deep down he had always known that Lupin wasn't capable of something like that. He was an annoying little git, to be sure, but an idealistic one.

Dumbledore was just as surprised. "But then...if you knew...why have you hated Remus all these years?"

Snape meant to say, "None of your damn business," but what came out of his mouth was, "He betrayed me!" {What the hell is going on here?!}

"What do you mean?"

"He trusted Black and Potter and Pettigrew with his precious secret, but not me! He said he loved me, but he didn't love me enough to trust me with his secret!" Snape clamped his hands over his traitorous mouth, a look of horror on his face. He slowly lowered his hands and said accusingly, "You...you dosed me with my own truth potion!"

"Just a couple of drops in your teacup," Dumbledore said with a smile, not looking at all contrite. "Just enough to make you stop hiding from the truth."

"How dare you!"

"Go up and take Remus his hangover remedy now."

"I will not!"

"You will," said Dumbledore, calmly but with a hint of steel in his voice. "You can talk to Remus and resolve things in private, or you can do it in public. Your choice."

"That's blackmail!" shouted Snape.

"I would call it poetic justice, Severus," Dumbledore said with an insufferably smug smile on his face. "Remus was publicly humiliated twice today--once when you exposed his secret at breakfast, and twice when, because of you, he was forced to be questioned under truth potion in front of his peers." The expression on his face hardened. "I am just about out of patience with you, Severus. You have wallowed in self-pity long enough. I thought you were being foolish, but as long as it did not affect your work, I respected your privacy. However, now that it has begun to affect the affairs of this school, you have made it my concern. Now take that potion to Remus, or I will convene another staff meeting to look into your behavior. Most unprofessional, you know, to break confidentiality or lay false charges against another teacher. Oh, and that truth potion should still be in effect for at least another hour..."

Snape snarled, giving the Headmaster a look of complete and utter hatred, but of course he had no choice but to give in. "Fine! I'll give the damn werewolf his remedy," he said, practically spitting from the words from his mouth, as if they had a vile taste to them. "But don't expect us to kiss and make up!" He grabbed a bottle from a nearby shelf and left, slamming the door behind him even harder than before. The glassware rattled once more, and a couple of jars actually fell from their shelves. Dumbledore caught them before they hit the floor and put them back in their rightful places, sighing wearily and mumbling to himself about stubborn teachers.

Lupin was lying on the couch in his room, a bag of ice on his head doing little to ease his headache and nothing at all to ease his nausea. Suddenly, someone began pounding on the door loudly, echoing the throbbing pain in Lupin's head. He winced, struggled to sit up, and called out, "Come in." To his surprise, Severus Snape walked in, looking extremely vexed.

Snape handed Lupin a small amber-colored bottle with a curt, "Here." To Snape's surprise and annoyance, Lupin downed it without even looking at the label or asking him what it was. "So trusting, Lupin," he sneered. "Aren't you afraid I might poison you?"

Lupin grimaced as he swallowed the potion. "Tastes almost as bad as the wolfsbane potion."

"You're welcome," Snape said sarcastically. Lupin blushed and apologized, irritating Snape even more. "I'm sorry, Severus. Thank you for bringing the"--he paused to glance at the label--"hangover remedy."

{Why are you apologizing to me, you idiot?} Snape fumed to himself. {I'm the one who almost got you fired!} Then he got irritated with himself for caring what Lupin thought.

"In answer to your question, Severus," Lupin continued, "no, I'm not afraid you might poison me. You are, in your own way, an honorable man. You might, in a fit of pique, try to get me fired--"

Snape blushed, hating himself for doing so.

"--but you would never stoop to murder."

"Don't be so sure," growled Snape, remembering his earlier desire to turn Lupin into a wolfskin rug. "It's not as if you don't deserve it," Snape blustered in an attempt to cover up the unexpected twinge of guilt that memory called up. "After the way you humiliated me during the hearing!" When Lupin stared at him blankly, he snapped, "Don't you even remember what happened this afternoon?!" Lupin rubbed his temples, trying to focus through the now-receding pain in his head. "Er...it's all a bit fuzzy now. I recall testifying about being a werewolf and about Sirius's return...Sirius...Albus asked me about Sirius and the prank he played when we were sixteen...and then...oh!" Lupin's face turned bright red. "I seem to have a vague recollection of confessing my love for you in front of the entire Hogwarts' staff."

"You also told them that we were lovers when we were teenagers, that you found me `sexy in a brooding way', and that you'd never slept with anyone but me," Snape said caustically.

Lupin's face was growing redder by the moment. He groaned, burying his face in his hands. "I really said all that?"

"Yes, indeed. I don't know how I shall face the other teachers tomorrow morning."

"Me either. I'm so sorry, Severus."

"You're always sorry, Lupin," said Snape coldly, feeling another twinge of guilt at the hurt expression on Lupin's face. He turned to leave, but some impulse made him stop and ask, "Is it true?"

"Is what true?"

"That you haven't been with anyone else since then." There was a brief pause. "Never mind, forget I asked."

"Yes," said Lupin quietly. "It's true. It's all true. Even if you don't trust me, you should trust your own truth potion."

"Why?" whispered Snape. "Why have I never taken another lover? To be honest, after what happened between us, I feared no one would ever be able to love a werewolf. But mostly because you are the only one I have ever wanted, Severus. I have never stopped loving you."

"Even after the way I've treated you?"

"Even so."

"Then why?" demanded Snape. "Why didn't you trust me, all those years ago? If you loved me, why couldn't you trust me with your secret?!"

"I was only sixteen, Severus," said Lupin, a pleading tone in his voice. "I was young and frightened. I wanted to tell you, but I was afraid you'd hate me, afraid you'd look at me with disgust, afraid you'd think I was a monster. And I was right, wasn't I?" For the first time, a hint of anger crept into Lupin's voice. "You did think I was a monster, didn't you?"

"No, I didn't!" Snape shouted, silently cursing Lupin for phrasing that remark as a question, and cursing Dumbledore as well for slipping the truth potion into his tea.

Lupin stammered, "Wh...what...what do you mean?! Then why...?"

Snape was unable to stop himself from answering, "I didn't hate you for being a werewolf! I hated you for not trusting me with your secret, for loving your friends more than you loved me!" Lupin gave him an odd, almost suspicious look. Snape decided to flee before the werewolf could ask anymore questions he didn't want to answer. He bolted for the door, cursing under his breath, "Damn you, Dumbledore! I'll get you for this!"

Unfortunately, he had forgotten about Lupin's keen hearing. His hand had just closed around the doorknob when Lupin asked, "What did Albus do to you?"

To his horror, Snape heard himself reply, "He dosed me with the truth potion too. Slipped it into my tea at the hearing." He glanced back and saw shock giving way to comprehension on Lupin's face, as well as a certain gleam in those blue eyes that sent a surge of panic through him. He opened the door hastily, and had taken one step out into the hall, when Lupin cried:

"Severus, wait!"

Snape froze in place, despite the fact that it was not a question.

"Severus," Lupin asked quietly, "do you still love me?"

Still standing in the doorway, Snape closed his eyes and whispered, "Yes."

Still speaking softly, Lupin said, "Severus, look at me."

Slowly, with as much dread as if it were Lord Voldemort behind him, Snape turned around to face Lupin.

"Have you always loved me?" the werewolf asked.

"Loved and hated you at the same time, but yes," Snape answered in a hoarse whisper, "I have always loved you."

Lupin continued, gently but mercilessly, "Why did you try to get me thrown out of Hogwarts?"

"I was jealous of Black, but mostly..." A lump in his throat made Snape pause for a moment, but the spell forced him to continue, "But mostly it hurt too much to be around you. To be reminded of what I had lost."

Lupin started to laugh, but somehow it turned into a sob. "Ah, Severus, what fools we both are!" They stared at each other in silence for a long moment, then Lupin asked, "Do you think it's possible for us to start over again?"

"No! Yes...I don't know! I'm too old and cynical to start over again, Remus."

Lupin smiled. "I'd hardly call you an old man, Severus. Besides, I'm the one with gray in my hair." He rose from the couch and glided forward till he was face-to-face with Snape, not quite touching him, but close enough so that Snape could feel the other man's breath on his face as he said, with the same flirtatious smile Snape remembered from their student days at Hogwarts, "Do you still find me attractive now that I'm old and gray?"

"Yes," Snape said hoarsely. Lupin moved a little closer, and their lips met in a long, lingering kiss. It seemed now that not only his voice, but his entire body was no longer under his control as he wrapped his arms around Lupin's waist and held him tightly. The small rational voice in his mind was screaming in protest, but the rest of him didn't seem to mind. Still, when they came up for air, Snape said weakly, "I don't think this is such a good idea..."

"Do you really want to stop?" asked Lupin with a mischievous smile that said he already knew the answer.

"No!" Snape gave Lupin a long, hard kiss that left them both gasping for breath.

Lupin said, "Perhaps I should ask Albus to dose you with truth potion more often!"

"Don't you dare!"

"Why?" Lupin laughed. "What would you do to me?"

"I might be forced to give you detention, Professor Lupin," Snape said with a playful little growl in his voice that sent shivers down Lupin's spine.

Lupin smiled to himself. {And people think Severus has no sense of humor! If they only knew...} Aloud, he said, "I just might take you up on that, Professor Snape."

The little voice in Snape's head was still protesting, but he told it, {Oh, bugger off!} The voice subsided sulkily, then vanished altogether as Lupin started nibbling on his earlobe. They stumbled towards the couch together, awkwardly fumbling with each other's robes. It was almost like being a teenager again...which reminded Snape of something. "So, Remus," he growled as nipped at the soft skin on Lupin's throat, "tell me something."

"What?" gasped Lupin.

"Do you really find me sexy in a dark, brooding way?"

"Come here, Professor Snape, and I'll show you just how sexy I think you are!"

When the Potions Master didn't return to the dungeon, Dumbledore thought maybe he should go check up on Severus and Remus and make sure they hadn't killed each other. He was more worried about Severus killing Remus than the other way around, but there was a chance Lupin's inner wolf might emerge if sufficiently threatened, even though the full moon had passed. Actually, he didn't really think Severus would resort to violence, but he had pushed him pretty hard today, maybe too hard. Perhaps it was too much too soon--on the other hand, it was long overdue. Dumbledore sighed to himself, "Only Severus could hold a grudge for nearly twenty years." As he reached Professor Lupin's room, he heard a loud thud, as if a body had just fallen to the floor. Alarmed, Dumbledore pulled out his wand and reached for the doorknob, but stopped when he heard Lupin laughing.

"Ouch!"

"The couch is too small for this," Snape grumbled. "And we're too old to be making out on the couch anyway, Lupin."

"Well, there's plenty of room here on the floor..." Through the closed door came the sound of more laughter, gradually giving way to urgent moans.

Dumbledore chuckled to himself and started to walk away, then turned back and cast a silence spell on the room. He made a mental note to remind Remus about that later; he didn't think the happy couple would appreciate being interrupted right now. He whistled happily as he walked back to his office, thinking that perhaps he should tell the Chocolate Frogs manufacturer to add "Matchmaker" to the list of accomplishments on his Famous Wizards Card.