"I would not be surprised in the slightest if that happened to be the case," Severus answered with a shake of his head. But he decided not to elaborate for the moment. No need to shove his dislike of animals in her face so soon, after all. She would probably discover that unfortunate trait quite soon enough.
He gave a quiet snigger when she mentioned playing safari with the colorful fictitious animals she claimed dwelt across the line. "I should like to see those photos some time, if you'd like to show me," he added, smiling. "And there is a hardware store," he suggested, raising his eyebrows. "Perhaps we can build some perches to attract the monkeys."
Severus nodded, with a quiet, "Obviously," when she said he was going about the stalking wrong. But then he shrugged again and added, "Well, she hasn't been here very long, so I can't say that she has established a pattern, as such, just yet." When she offered to help him, he leaned an elbow on the chair's arm, rubbing his chin with a finger as he pretended to consider it. "And how do I know you won't simply tip her off, so that she can avoid me?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.