Inspired by Alan Rickman's wonderful preformance as the Catipillar in the new movie Alice in Wonderland. Bahaha. ENJOY!!!! :)

Disclaimer: A mere Muggle such as I? I own nothing.

The Day the Potions Master Tuned into a Butterfly . . . . . . by Sidney James TD Lemon 1900

It was a gorgeous spring day at Hogwarts. The chills of winter had finally passed and the sun was beginning to warm up the grounds at last. It was indeed a most splendid day to be outside for a walk.

Or perhaps a broomstick ride…

No. A walk would do, Harry thought as he strolled out from the Great Hall. Everyone else seemed to think so as well, for it seemed like everyone was outside doing something to help stretch out their limbs which had been cooped up so long during those winter months.

As he slowly walked by the lake, keeping a watchful eye out for the great squid as well, a small smile crept onto the boy's face. For the first time in a long time, Harry Potter was not worrying about anything at all. Not a care in the bloody world, both Muggle and Wizarding. It was nice to just let his mind wander and-…

"Harry!" a frantic voice rang out, "Harry! HEY, HARRY!"

Harry's head hung a bit with a sigh. Well crap, that didn't last long. He looked up, shaking his untidy hair from his eyes and saw none other but his best friend Ron running at him from the castle. "Yeah?"

Ron skidded to a stop, panting wildly as if he had just been running for his life. As he tried to speak, he bent over to place his hands on his knees, head hanging down. "I…I…oh, Merlin, hang on a tick…" he wheezed as he tried to catch his breath.

"Everything alright?" Harry asked, now a bit anxious.

Finally, Ron brought his head up to look at his mate. Much to Harry's surprise, there was a great big grin on Ron's face. "Oh, everything is bloody fantastic!"

"Eh?"

"Come on!"

And without another word, the two were running back towards the castle, Ron took the lead, for Harry had absolutely no idea where they were going or why, but he was greatly intrigued. They ran through the corridors, not taking much notice as a few portraits shouted at them to slow down. "Ron!" Harry called, "Where are we going?"

"You'll see! Just trust me,"

Harry shook his head and continued his pace after his friend. As they came to the end of a corridor, the pair quickly rounded it, and Harry suddenly felt an awful chill as he ran straight through Nearly Headless Nick.

"I say, Mr. Potter!" he called out after him in his usual bravado. "Do watch where you are going!"

"Sorry, Nick!"

Finally, Ron skidded to a halt as he came in front of the Professor McGonagall classroom. "Here we are then," Ron panted, pointing his hand to the door.

Harry raised an eyebrow."The Transfiguaration room?"

"Just go in, mate. You're gonna love it."

Wearily, Harry pushed the door open, letting it creak as it slowly moved. Inside, he saw Professor McGonagall sitting at her desk, working on some parchment…and besides that, he saw nothing else that could possibly be of interest. She looked up, glancing at him from over the brim of her glasses. "Yes, Potter?"

"Er…"

Ron quickly stepped in beside him.

"Weasley!" the professor cried out when she saw him. "I told you to stop poking your head 'round here!"

"Look, Professor…you know their history…" Ron started out quickly, "Did you honestly think I wasn't going to show him this?"

"Show me what?" Harry huffed, beginning to get impatient.

McGonagall sighed, giving both of them her trademark glare…and then a small smile began to creep onto her face as she stood from her chair. "Very well." She waved her hand, gesturing Harry and Ron to follow, and led them over to the window. "I suppose this should make my end of the bet even better…" she chuckled quietly.

"Bet?" Harry inquired, still as puzzled as ever. Finally, she pointed to the top corner of the window, where Harry was quite sure he saw what looked to be a blue cocoon attached to the side. "…a caterpillar?"

Ron snorted, barely able to contain himself. "Not just any ol' caterpillar, mate."

As they observed, Harry still confused, he was greatly startled when he heard a sigh that sounded remarkably uncanny to that of his least favorite teacher that Hogwarts had to offer. "Dear lord, you did not bring him here…"

Harry quickly turned around, looking to see where the voice had come from. But the greasy ball of blackness was nowhere to be seen in the room. Just him and a sniggering Ron and McGonagall. Funny, he didn't think she was the sniggering type either…

And then it dawned upon him.

"…Snape!?" Harry whispered, staring at the cocoon in awe. Upon closer inspection, he could see that it wasn't simply a caterpillar in a cocoon…it was on the verge of becoming a blooming blue… "Butterfly! You're a butterfly!"

"No, Potter, I am a cocoon-…"

"Actually, Severus," McGonagall interjected, "You are nearly done phasing. You could break out of there at any time and extend those marvelous wings of yours…"

"Do shut up."

And with that, the three burst out laughing. "Why on earth is he a butterfly?" Harry asked with much delight.

McGonagall had to wipe a tear of joy from her eye before answering. "Slytherin lost to Hufflepuff yesterday, don't you recall?"

"Oh yeah, that was a glorious match," Harry and Ron both replied.

"Yes, well, Severus here was so sure that Slytherin would kick their arses-…pardon me- beat them, so he and I made a wager. If Slytherin won, I would had to have donned a Slytherin crest on a cape for a week, and if I won…well, I'm sure you can see the result."

A tiny huff came from the insect. "I would hardly call this part fair, showing me off like this," Snape sneered.

"You know what, I ought to put him on display in the Great Hall…"

"Don't…you…dare…"

"I think that's an excellent idea, Professor," Harry chuckled.

"I agree," Ron quickly seconded.

Snape curtly growled. "You two…"

"What? Whatchya gonna do? Bat your gorgeous wings at my cheek?" Ron barked.

Harry laughed and grabbed Ron's arm. "Oh! Maybe he'll tickle you with his little antennas…"

"You'll be next on my list," the creature sneered.

"List? What list? List of things to pollinate?! Ha!"

As much as McGonagall was enjoying her victory, she quickly shooed the two from the room while she prepared a glass cage for the Potions Master to dwell in for the remainder of his time as an insect. The two boys were absolutely rolling with laughter as they made their way back outside to enjoy their day.

"Think McGonagall is gonna display him in the Great Hall? I mean, could you imagine him fluttering away up there next to Dumbledore during dinner?"

"Oh, absolutely…"

Yes, it was a gloriously beautiful day indeed…