Title: Double Shot
Author: Tsunami-chan
Summary: This story was written for the Master and the Wolf Fuh-Q-Fest.
It is challenge Number 15: Lupin is back teaching at Hogwarts. His quarters
are close enough to Snape's that Snape must pass by them every morning. Snape notices
the most amazing aroma floating out from under Lupin's door the first morning. Lupin has a
cappuccino/coffee machine. Snape is a coffee addict.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters stated in this fanfiction. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Severus Snape roused himself that morning as he always did, climbing sullenly out of bed and heading to the shower, quickly drying his hair and slipping on his robes, before exiting his quarters to make his way towards the Great Hall. On almost any other day, he would breeze by Professor Remus Lupin's quarters without a second glance, but this morning was different. He was no more than two steps past Lupin's domain when he stopped in his tracks, a delicious and familiar aroma assaulting his senses. A nervous tick began in his left eye and Snape cursed silently. He was trying to get off this addicting concoction, and the sheer aroma of it coming from Lupin's quarters was almost enough to make him burst into the other man's room and demand a cup of the delicious brew he was obviously making.

Gathering up all the willpower he possessed, Snape forced himself to start moving again. He had taken almost five strides now (the aroma was beginning to fade)and it almost looked like he'd actually make it to the end of the hall. That is, until Lupin called out to him, popping his brown-and-silver-haired head out of the door.

"Severus!"

Snape stopped in his tracks, the tick that had started, intensifying. "What?" he growled, the word coming out as a harsh demand. Not like he could help it. It was that damnable aroma that seemed to attack his senses with harsh claws, ripping away at his willpower to stay away from the intoxicating liquid that Lupin insisted on brewing this morning.

"No need to snap." Lupin stated, his voice slightly puzzled, but with a measure of tolerance. "I was just wondering if you wanted a cup of-"

"NO!" Lupin's eyes widened and a shock look crossed his face as Snape's shout bounced off the walls in the narrow hallway. The shocked look almost instantly narrowed into a frown of confusion.

"But I've just gotten a new machine and it makes wonderful-"

"What is it that you do not understand about the word 'no'?!" Snape hissed, turning slightly to glare at Lupin, the maniacal glint in his eye a bit unnerving. Lupin merely continued to look confused for a moment, but then his face relaxed and was replaced with a look of smugness. He smirked, taking a long draw from the mug in his hand that was brimming with dark brown liquid.

"Oh, that's right! I forgot about your . . . abstinence." Lupin drawled, taking another sip. "My, that machine does brew the most delicious substance I have ever tasted."

Snape's temper leapt to life. He would kill him! He would hex him into oblivion! He'd never be able to drink that delicious elixir he was now gloating about ever again! Lupin backed away slightly at the murderous look in Snape's eyes, glancing nervously at the few feet that separated him from the safety of his quarters. He scooted back towards his room while trying not to spill the said "substance" in his mug.

"Well then," he stated quickly. "it's apparent you aren't in the mood, so I'll just see you in the Great Hall! Goodbye!" Lupin's door closed just as Snape pulled out his wand to hex the offending werewolf to next Tuesday.

As soon as the door clicked shut, Snape whirled back around, stuffing the wand back into his robes and marching away towards the Great Hall, the delicious aroma still floating about his head.

---~*~*

The Great Hall wasn't much better. In fact, it was worse. Though he was normally seated at the end of the table with Flitwick sitting next to him, Dumbledore had decided it would be fun to play musical chairs at the staff table and rearrange all the staff so that they could "get to know each other better." And, as a tribute to Snape's misfortune, he was coincidentally placed between Madame Hooch and Professor Lupin

Lupin approached the table, bringing with him that ever-haunting aroma, two mugs of the dark substance in his hands this time. He stopped at Madame Hooch's seat, smiling down as she turned and greeted him. Lupin replied with a respectful and pleasant "good morning", before handing her one of the mugs he had been carrying.

"Here you go. Just as you asked for." Lupin stated, beaming with pride. Madame Hooch took a sip of the content of the mug before her eyes lit up and she turned to Lupin with a blinding smile.

"It's wonderful! Best I've ever tasted! Tell me Lupin, did you make it with that new machine you bought recently?" she asked, taking another sip of the delightful elixir. Lupin nodded.

"That I did! Works quite nicely, I might add. It only took me two minutes to make a full pot." Madame Hooch's eye brows shot up at this announcement.

"Only two minutes? Really? Such high quality for such a short timeframe! Tell me, Remus, how did you ever find out about such a wonderful appliance?"

And as Lupin lapsed into story, Snape had to start wondering how he would last through breakfast without killing the werewolf and/or the flying instructor. The constant aroma from both of their mugs was killing him! A chair scraping up to the seat next to him signaled the fact that Lupin was now done talking to Madame Hooch and had decided to sit down. Wonderful. Just wonderful. Now here he was, trying to eat his breakfast while sitting between two people who both had a hot steaming cup of the very drink he was trying to abstain from.

About half way through the meal, he could no longer stand it. He would have to leave the table, otherwise he would be forced to take a drink of the cursed brew he had worked so hard to avoid. Snape scooted his chair back roughly before quickly standing and hurrying out of the Great Hall with probably the most speed anyone had ever witnessed. Lupin smirked as he watched the Potion's Master flee the table. Madame Hooch looked puzzled.

"Lupin, do you have any clue what that was about?" Albus Dumbledore's voice came from the other end of the table. Lupin looked down towards the Headmaster's voice, smiling brightly.

"I'm afraid he has decided to abstain from caffeine for a while, Headmaster. I received the same reaction when I accidentally asked him if he wanted a cup this morning from my new machine." Lupin called down to him. Dumbledore shook his head.

"I pity anyone who has his classes." Madame Hooch stated, taking another sip of the caffeine-fortified brew.

---~*~*

The Gryffindors and the Slytherins who had Snape for Potions that afternoon were well inclined to agree with Madame Hooch's assessment if they'd heard it. Because of the absence of caffeine, the Potion's Master was even more bad tempered than usual. He assigned them a pop quiz on a potion that they hadn't even learned yet and he gave poor Neville Longbottom zero points without even testing his potion (though later, the potion turned out to be perfect, to the shock of all). What was most surprising though, was that he was even beating down on the Slytherins, a rare occasion, and quite a treat for all Gryffindors to watch.

"Malfoy!" Snape snapped. Draco Malfoy jerked his head up to fix Snape with a puzzled stare. "You're adding your ingredient incorrectly! Fix it, or I shall take 10 points!" Malfoy could only stare in shock as his teacher whirled around in a wave of black and strode over to the other side of the room to harass the Gryffindors.

Harry Potter was forced to cover his mouth to keep from laughing out loud at the look on Malfoy's face. He nudged his best friend, Ron Weasley, in the side and pointed toward his arch nemesis, grinning all the while. Ron looked puzzled for a moment, before grinning as he saw what Harry was pointing at. Their smiles both turned to frowns, however, as Snape began haranguing their other friend, Hermione Granger, for trying to help Neville with his potion.

After berating Hermione almost to tears, Snape turned away angrily, seating himself down in the chair at his desk and casting an angry glance around the room before settling in to glare at his desktop. So far his day had been crap right from the beginning. Hopefully it would improve by the time dinner rolled around.

---~*~*

It didn't.

---~*~*

Both Malfoy and Potter ended up gaining a night's worth of detention because they'd commenced fighting on their broomsticks during Flying Class, and since Madame Hooch was busy that night, the two teens had been assigned to Snape's care, much to the annoyance of all three persons involved. The last thing the Potion's Master needed right now was to be stuck in a room with two whiney teenagers who have detention for a class that wasn't even his own.

To make matters worse, someone had thought it funny to leave a bag of one of his favorite treats on his desk as some sort of sick joke. He had been walking (if you could call an angry stride accompanied with glares and muttering, "walking") toward his desk when he discovered the bag with a small note attached to it. Snape frowned at it, wondering who the hell had left this bag on his desk and what he was supposed to do with it. That is, until he discovered its content.

He drew back from the bag slightly with a hiss like a snake, startling both Potter and Malfoy, who had entered the room just minutes before him, glaring at one another. Snape's black eyes narrowed as he reached forward to pick up the small slip of paper, his hand not quite as steady as he had hoped. The paper had a loose scrawl that Snape easily recognized as Lupin's hand, the black ink skirting a short message across the paper.

Snape growled low in his throat, his teeth bared. He would kill him! Damn that bloody werewolf to hell!

"Sir?" Malfoy's voice sounded puzzled.

"What is it, Mr. Malfoy?" Snape growled menacingly.

"When will our detention start? I really would like to get back to my dormitory." the boy asked, raising an eyebrow and giving Snape the same look the Potion's Master usually fixed on Lupin. That was the last straw.

"Well you'll just have to wait!" Snape snapped, chucking the bag of treats at Malfoy's head. The student didn't even have time to blink as the bag hit his forehead with a sound like a hacky sack hitting a brick wall, before falling onto the desk in front of the shocked Slytherin. Potter blinked in surprise, looking first at Snape, then at Malfoy. The corners of his mouth twitched upward, slowly forming into a grin until he finally had to stuff his fist into his mouth to keep from laughing. The Gryffindor's muffled laughter seemed to snap Malfoy out of his shocked state. He turned and glared at the other boy, his eyes narrowed condescendingly.

"You think that's funny, do you Potter?" he growled menacingly. Potter glanced at him and his eyes widened slightly before he cracked up again, putting his other hand over his fist and hoping to muffle the sound well enough.