(A/N: If you haven't read the prequel to this: The Half Blood Prince and the Puffapod, the following story will make little sense. Please read that before proceeding. All good now? So, the story shall continue! As you know, people mature with age, so chances are the next addition to the story (which will simply be another chapter in this piece, you don't need to worry about another story altogether) may lead the rating to go up from a tender K to a rugged T. Before each chapter will come a rating for the following story (for example this one is rated K) and you can determine on your own whether or not to read. The overall rating will be the highest it gets across the chapters, so if it changes to M and you aren't up to it, just stick to the K chapters and you should be fine, although you may encounter plot holes.)

Rated: K

The Cyprari Family

First week of School, 1980

"Now that you have become familiar with the Babbling Beverage, proceed to the closet in an orderly fashion to retrieve the ingredients." As students began to shuffle over to the cupboard, the potions master added. "Only get the required amount, no more no less." Preparing his own cauldron for the class's brewing session; Professor Snape spotted an immobile mass of curly golden hair connected to a Hufflepuff's robes. The girl under inspection was looking over a book, immersed in its contents. Deciding this was a proper occasion for some scolding, the newly titled professor began his walk over to the distracted teenager.

"... add ten drops of morning dew, stir clockwise twice, throw in some powdered asphodel and wait three minutes until the potion is done. The color should be a light lilac." After reviewing the assigned potion for the third time, the blonde looked up to see her teacher squinting his eyes at her. "Is there a problem sir?" The seated fourth year straightened her skirt, as if it had gained a wrinkle since she last adjusted it.

"Care to inform me as to why you aren't gathering your potions materials." He looked at the brown eyed girl with his typical stern expression. However, something about her seemed familiar, so he had yet to proceed to negative speculation on her aptitude.

The witch simply reached into her rucksack and retrieved a small leather box. Upon opening it, Professor Snape saw average potions ingredients alongside fresh flora, carefully organized and bagged into separate compartments based on alphabetical order. "I have some already." The girl pulled out the required materials and placed them on her desk. As her neighbor rejoined her, the difference between their garden ingredients was clear. While the plant cuttings from the supply closet had dried up, slightly degrading their potency, the Hufflepuff's were fresh as if cut only a few days ago.

Immediately, foul play was suggested. Potions ingredients were something students either bought on their own during visits to Hogsmeade, brought from home, or purchased at the beginning of the year during their trip to Diagon Alley; and most store bought ingredients were fairly dried out before being sold in order to increase shelf life. "Did you sneak these away from the Greenhouse? Steal them from Professor Sprout?" The dark haired teacher squinted his eyes and placed an emphasis on 'sneak' and 'steal', hoping to entice the student to tell the truth.

"No, sir." The brown eyed girl twirled a small ringlet of hair with her index finger before explaining. "I grew them myself. I talked to Professor Sprout at the end of last year, asking if I could utilize one of the old greenhouses for my studies. She said yes, and over summer, I began cultivating a garden to transplant here in the autumn. It's a rather tight fit and in need of some serious repairs, but it still works wonders for the plant life." Her glimmering brown eyes met his stone cold black ones. As he revved up for a rebuttal she moved the twirling finger to her cheek. "Say Professor, do you remember me?"

Not expecting her query, Snape thought back to his earlier thought of having met the girl before. Glancing at her eyes, he could not place the witch's identity before he made a realization. "You've charmed yourself. Blonde hair and brown eyes are a very rare combination. Your hair color is charmed blonde, otherwise I would recognize you." He seemed somewhat pleased with himself, granting the girl sight of a narcissistic smirk.

"Close." Retrieving a 12.5" rigid walnut wand with a unicorn hair core, the fourth year tapped her temple, dispelling a charm she had cast earlier in the morning. Her light brown irises faded away to be replaced with a mismatched set of dark brown and bright blue. "How about now Professor Snape?" The fourth year let the teacher retrieve his old memories before recoloring her eyes once more. "Simple glamour charm to help me blend in a bit better, helps with some more judgmental peers as well."

"Linnaea Cyprari." He would have trouble forgetting the girl's name after her help back in his final year as a student at Hogwarts. Not only did her puffapod beans cause a boost in his already exceptional grade, but the interaction between the two of them also softened Lily's opinion of his character. Even though she had married Potter since their graduation and bore his son a little more than a month ago, the age old friends of Sev and Lily were still close.

"Hey, Sis." A male brunette with similar brown eyes, although probably natural, approached Linnaea's desk. An immediate note was made on behalf of the professor; this boy was in Ravenclaw. Already Severus's mind began to process the situation. This potions class was part of the required curriculum for fourth years and held no repeat students who had failed earlier. Thus the boy in question was of the same age, denoting that either the duo were step siblings born of two different mothers or fraternal twins. "Can I have some of that asphodel? I'll lend you my mortar and pestle if you do, I know how rubbish you are at that powder spell." Looking at the instructing professor, the brother explained. "Turns it to soot she does."

The Hufflepuff extended her arm to deliver a bag of the requested flower before it was snatched from her by Snape. Opening the container, he retrieved a cutting of the flora before placing it in a vial, "puldrify." A yellow light emitted from the tip of his wand and the flower became powder before their eyes. "For that spell you want to make large circles with your hand and small circles with the tip of your wand. It can be tricky but not impossible." Turning to the sibling, Snape asked. "Your name?"

"Laverne Cyprari," The boy stood up straighter to address the professor.

"In the future Mr. Cyprari, offer help to your peers rather than blackmail them into assisting you. As for the asphodel, there is plenty in the closet for students to make use of." Laverne's face fell as he made his way to the closet.

"Is he your twin or a step brother?" Curiosity provoked the potions master to ask the student.

"Twin, only way there are more than one Cyprari in a generation." Linnaea watched as her brother sat on the opposite end of the room following retrieving his ingredients. "Always a competition when there are multiple siblings in our family. Only one gets to carry on the family name, continue our pureblood legacy. The others get some money thrown at them, assistance in acquiring a job, and a legal last name change. Already I've slipped up quite a bit; it would take a half dozen miracles for me to gain the upper hand." Looking at the ingredients in the leather case, the free spirited blonde picked up a puffapod bean and tossed it on her desk, watching with childlike amusement as a flower bloomed on the spot. "I'm content however." Returning her glamoured eyes to her teacher she grinned. "My future is an open one, his is straight and narrow."

"Why are you so positive about being tossed out of a prestigious bloodline?" Snape's upper lip quirked in near anger at her giving up so quickly. "It's an advantage in life you should fight for."

"I'm not losing my heritage, simply allowing it to be overlooked." Shrugging her shoulders Linnaea continued. "Besides, if I let my blood carry me through life, how can I differentiate between what I am capable of accomplishing as a witch, and what my family name does for me?"

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