The comeback is not yet complete but the signs are pointing at yet another twist in Aberdeen’s remarkable season.
It feels as if the word rollercoaster has been used so often to describe the Dons’ campaign that the club should have its own theme park at this point.
But there is little doubt the white knuckle ride that comes with being an Aberdeen fan is gathering pace again ahead of a thrilling finale.
A second cup semi-final of the season beckons for the men in red while the Dons are also showing they are up for the fight for third place after finding some momentum again.
A team which was seemingly unbeatable for three months then could not buy a win from mid-November to February in the league has now suffered just one defeat in their last five matches, a 5-1 loss at Celtic Park.
Even when not playing well, they somehow dragged themselves off the floor to land two late punches in a 2-2 draw with Dundee United at Pittodrie a week ago.
Given how frustrating an afternoon it was, Kevin Nisbet’s equaliser felt as good as a win for the home side.
That much was clear from the way Aberdeen swatted Queen’s Park aside with ease in their 4-1 win in Saturday’s Scottish Cup quarter-final at Pittodrie.
Cup tie was smooth sailing for the Dons
From the moment Nisbet opened the scoring with his fifth goal in six games, the conquerors of Rangers in the last round seldom looked like repeating the feat against Jimmy Thelin’s Dons.
By half-time it was 3-0 to the home side and the tie was effectively over.
It’s been a while since a win has looked so perfunctory and straightforward for Aberdeen.
That the Dons should cruise to a place in the semi-final is the strongest sign yet that Aberdeen are getting back to the sort of performance which earned them so many plaudits at the start of the season.
Thelin will be pleased and, hopeful, but with all due respect to the Spiders, bigger tests lie ahead for Aberdeen than the one they faced from their Championship opponents on Saturday.
Banishing the ghosts of their Hampden mauling by Celtic in the League Cup is a must for the Dons.
As defeats go, Aberdeen’s first of the season, a 6-0 humbling by the Hoops, remains arguably their lowest point of the campaign.
A redemption tale of securing a place in the showpiece finale to the Scottish season would go a long way to making amends.
Race for Europe is heating up
But before the semi-final next month lies some massive matches for Thelin and his players.
Two points separate three teams in the race for third place and with it guaranteed group stage football in Europe next season should Celtic win the Scottish Cup.
Aberdeen were so far ahead in November it should have been little more than a formality – but even though their lead has evaporated the Dons are still firmly in the hunt.
Credit where it’s due to Hibernian in particular, their rise from the ashes has been every bit as impressive as the Dons’ collapse.
But this race is far from over.
The picture will become much clearer in the next four games where the Dons finish the regulation 33-game part of their season against St Johnstone, Motherwell, Ross County and Rangers.
In this unpredictable of seasons there is a sense of irony that the Gers are the only team with nothing but pride to play for in Aberdeen’s next four matches.
From top six, Europe and league survival, the Premiership is going to be one big melting pot of drama in the next two months.
Aberdeen, though, are bubbling along nicely again.
Conversation