As the Christmas season approached, Snape found it more and more difficult to not accidentally give Draco Malfoy a potion designed to turn him deaf and mute. The boy already had the dumb part down. The Trio's jibes at Potter in class about having to stay for the holidays at Hogwart's hit uncomfortably close to home.

Snape rounded the corner one day to find Ron Weasley launching himself at Malfoy. As much as he dearly would have loved to see Malfoy spit out a couple of teeth, he took more delight in taking five points from Gryffindor as payback for the Quidditch game. It was small consolation but he took it where he could get it.

The students that were leaving quickly fled for the holidays leaving the rest to the feast in the giant hall, gaily decorated. Snape was enjoying the peace and quiet, for not many Slytherin students stayed over the holidays.

Christmas morning came with five gifts sitting by his bed. Two were from his sisters and he wished there was some way he could pawn the blasted mittens off on someone. He had a drawer full of the things and he still couldn't convince his sisters that humans normally came with five fingers (not six or seven) and that he hated the color baby blue. Or anything pastel for that matter. His father sent a card and a large hint that maybe his son and heir should think about settling down. The card was conveniently lost in the garbage can. Snape couldn't think how that happened.

The other two gifts were from Dumbledore. A set of special potions parchments for use in spells and special colored ink and a small set of vials, which was a good thing, because Snape had been running low.

It wasn't a fabulous Christmas, but he was used to that by now. Any further plans for the Christmas day was to gorge himself at the feast and then sleep it off, if possible. His cracker came up with a straw hat with pastel flowers on it, which he stepped on 'by accident' to keep from wearing it. He also got more vials and a vial rack from McGonagall, who apologized for not getting them to him that morning. He graciously accepted the gift and kicked himself for not getting her anything. Even after all this time, he wasn't used to generousity.

Dumbledore patted Snape on the back as everyone exited the hall. "You have duty tonight, don't you, Severus?" Snape's mood went south but he perked up again at the thought of catching Gryffindors out where they didn't belong. Especially Potter. He might even catch Quirrell wandering around again as well.

It was almost midnight and Snape was several floors above the library when Filch and Mrs. Norris, the irritating tabby cat that Snape often itched to give a swift kick, came bounding up to him.

"Professor Snape, someone's been in the library!" Filch quickly headed back down the corridor now that he had Snape in tow. "You asked me to come directly to you, Professor, if anyone was wandering around at night, and somebody's been in the library - Restricted Section."

Snape paused. That couldn't be Peeves. The moron ghost wouldn't know what the library was for, let alone be in the Restricted Section, pilfering around. "The Restricted Section? Well, they can't be far, we'll catch them."

Both men and cat rounded a corner and took off toward the library...

...where they found absolutely nothing.

Snape nosed around for a bit and found a black and silver book on the floor. It looked like someone had tried to stuff it back onto the shelf but in its shrieks (which had now thankfully subsided) the book had fallen back down. The title wouldn't give him a clue, "Recent Breakthroughs in the Art of Alchemy".

Or would it?

Had Quirrell been in here, sneaking around looking for information to help him get passed the traps? Had he no idea what to do with the Philosopher's Stone once he had it?

Snape shook the idea off. Quirrell didn't need to sneak around the library at night. He had full access to the Restricted Section at any time during the day. So that brought up the question of a student, but which one?

The incident was definitely puzzling and obviously Quirrell wasn't the only one who needed a shadow.

The holidays left, bringing back students and taking with it the snow. In the place of that snow, though, there was rain. It was Scotland, after all.

Dumbledore called Snape into his office one foggy afternoon and Snape swept in with a light step. He'd been having a good week. He'd nailed Neville Longbottom once for five points from Gryffindor and Ron Weasley had been extremely easy to pick on this week.

"Ah, Severus. I have a favor to ask of you, old friend." Dumbledore looked up from the parchment he was scribbling on as Snape entered.

Snape came to an abrupt halt. "I'm not feeding the dog."

Dumbledore laughed heartily. "No, no, nothing like that. Sit down, please." Dumbledore held out an inviting hand in the direction of the the guest chair, which obligingly moved around for Snape's sitting convenience.

"I think that you should referee the next Quiddict match. It's between Hufflepuff and Gryffindor, correct?"

Snape frowned at the older man. "You know it is, Headmaster," he said with a sniff. Why Dumbledore put on the air of forgetfulness, Snape never knew. Albus Dumbledore knew every breath that was taken in this school.

"Yes, well, with Quirrell for some reason wants Harry injured and Harry's friends think that you're trying to hurt him, I think you'll be safer and more useful on the field, as it were. What do you think of that?" Dumbledore leaned back in his chair with a self-satisfied smile.

'I'd rather move in with the Malfoys,' Snape thought but he didn't say it outloud. He got the distinct impression that the Hogwart's headmaster read his mind, because that smile got wider. "Very well," Snape agreed with an aggravated sigh. "But I want no questions on the calls I make."

"Of course not, Severus," Dumbledore replied generously. "No one would question your honesty in refereeing such a potentially exciting game. The stakes are high, aren't they, on this game? If Hufflepuff loses to Gryffindor, the houses of Slytherin and Gryffindor will be tied in points."

Snape heard the warning and only grunted in reply. So much for an overlooked play here and there in favor of Hufflepuff.

"Thank you, Severus. I knew I could rely on your competitive spirit and loyalty to the school." Snape only grunted again. "Now about Quirrell, anything new to report?"

On this Snape could actually make more than grunts for replies. "He's out wandering near the door again, Headmaster, but I don't know if he's yet to get by Fluffy." Snape spat out the name. "I can't figure out how to get by Fluffy."

"Tell you a secret?" asked Dumbledore.

"Certainly." 'Now what is he going to blab?' Snape wondered.

"Music soothes the savage beast, but I wouldn't go around singing with your voice." Dumbledore chortled at his own joke. It was well known that Snape's singing voice was like fingernails on a chalk board.

 Snape was unamused. "Here's hoping the walls only have ears in your favor, Headmaster. Is that all?"

Dumbledore nodded, that twinkle in his eye, and Snape left the headmasters office. As he shut the door, he caught a Hufflepuff peering around one of the suits of armor at him. "Five points from Hufflepuff, Maggie, for suspicious behavior and spying on the headmaster."

She scurried away and Snape's day seemed a bit brighter again.