Author's Note: I am hesitant to continue posting this. I understand people don't like OCs and that it may not have much of an audience. But, I really do love this story and it's my first go at fanfiction. So, I decided to continue posting it in hopes, someone somewhere will enjoy it. I think my dialogue is accurate, but if I put some Americanisms in there unwittingly, I'm sorry! Ok, Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own it, JK Rowling does. If I did, I wouldn't be getting ready to grade papers right now on a Saturday night.

Chapter 2- What not to do in Potions Class

Ron, Harry and Hermione also got sorted into Gryffindor. Today was the first day of classes, and Sarah was getting dressed. Looking in the mirror, she put a maroon ribbon in her hair. Her mother had packed a handful of maroon ribbons in her trunk calling it a "hunch". Although when unpacking, Sarah also found, buried deep within her trunk, some dark green ribbons with a note in her mom's even handwriting. It read "my hunches are sometimes wrong" which she assumed meant that her mom thought it was a possibility she could be sorted into Slytherin. She was thankful when the sorting hat put her in Gryffindor so she could stay clear of Draco Malfoy. That boy infuriated her!

Last night, the twins secretly taught Sarah a hex after she told them what a prat Malfoy was being. He had come up to her at dinner…

"You're a poor excuse for a Black. Gryffindor indeed. Some say Gryffindors are brave. Too bad your father was such a coward." Malfoy sneered.

Harry and Ron had jumped up in outrage. Harry, of course, knew nothing about Sarah's father, but Ron knew that Sirius Black was in Azkaban, the wizard prison.

They were about to hurl themselves at him, when the man with the black eyes passed by. "Move along Draco" he commanded, before glaring at Harry and Ron.

Later, Sarah told Harry, Ron, and the twins what little she knew about her father. She also filled the twins in on the Malfoy incident. Upon hearing this, the twins took her aside and taught her a simple hex that would turn Malfoy's hair maroon. It took several tries, but Sarah finally got it. She was prepared if Malfoy decided to bother her today.

Sarah studied herself in the mirror, making sure she looked alright. She was nervous about the first day of classes, but she was excited to discover what they would be like. All she knew was that Malfoy better not mess with her today.

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Morning classes went well for the most part. Hermione answered way too many questions to the chagrin of Ron, Harry and Sarah and well, to put it frankly, everyone else. Sarah knew most of the answers from what her mum made her study over this summer, but she knew better than to answer more than one of them. Nobody likes a know it all after all.

That afternoon, they had double potions with the black eyed man. The twins had warned her about Snape, but she wasn't prepared for just how awful he truly was. After talking about "ensnaring the senses" or something stupid like that, he berated Harry on not knowing the answers to certain questions.

"Why would Harry know the answers to the questions anyways?" Sarah thought as her temper started rising listening to Snape. "He was raised by muggles who hate wizards." She had found that piece of information early on in her conversations with Harry. She thought he was trying to make her feel better about her dad by telling her about his relatives.

"Clearly, celebrity isn't everything." Snape sneered.

Up until that point, Sarah had been sitting and doing an admirable job controlling her rising temper as Snape hounded Harry. But at the last line, the straw broke.

Before Sarah could stop herself, she blurted out, "Harry never said he knew the answers! If you knew him, you would know that he doesn't think himself as a celebrity. Hermione knows the answers, why don't you ask her?"

Snape's eyes narrowed at Sarah's outburst. "Detention Black. 7:00 pm."

Behind her, Malfoy snickered and said under his breath, but loud enough for Sarah and everyone else to hear, "Stupid, bloody Gryffindor. Sticking up for the little Potter who can't stick up from himself. Oh, your father would be so proud. Oh, wait. I forgot. Maybe not." He laughed.

Harry put his hand on Sarah's arm, but it was too late. She yanked out her wand and perfectly executed the hex the twins had taught her. As Malfoy's hair turned maroon, Sarah coolly said, "who's laughing now Malfoy?" But as she turned back around, she saw the look on Snape's face.

"Maybe hexing Malfoy in front of his head of house in the middle of potions class after I angered Snape wasn't the best idea." Sarah grimly thought.

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Severus Snape stared at the clock. 6:55 pm. He was disgusted. He had expected that Black may have some of her father's personality, but what he saw today reminded him solely of Sirius Black. How he hated Black the Father! After class, he marched straight up to Albus Dumbledore to tell him of the incident. And all the old coot could say is that maybe Sarah felt provoked. At that Snape lost his temper and started ranting for ten minutes on how much he hated Sirius Black and how Potter the kid and Black the kid are going to be just like their obnoxious fathers.

Dumbledore let him fume. When Snape had nothing left to say, he gently put a hand on Severus's shoulder. "While I know what Sarah did today was wrong, don't let one incident prejudice you against her. Sarah is not Sirius Black. Harry is not James Potter. And you must remember who their mothers are. Grace and Lily were two of the most loving, kindest, brightest witches at Hogwarts in their day. Both Sarah and Harry need you Severus."

Severus couldn't deny the truth in what Dumbledore had said. But after he left Albus's office, his anger took back over. He couldn't let go of the past that easily. Because of Lily, he would protect Harry to his death, but Grace also betrayed him when she married Black. It was hard to get past that.

There was a knock on the door. "Enter" Snape barked.

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Sarah slowly opened the door. "Come here." Snape firmly commanded. His gaze was hard as Sarah approached him. When Sarah got in trouble at home, there was always an underlying gentleness in the way that Grace disciplined her. Even though she could definitely be firm, Sarah understood that her mum loved her. After today, Sarah knew that Snape hated her. Sarah felt her heart skip a beat as Snape motioned for her to sit in front of his desk. He had been grading essays, and as she sat, he quietly laid his quill aside.

Snape looked at the girl. "She looks like Grace. Tough on the outside but beneath it, she is falling apart." he thought.

He stared at her for a few moments before asking, "Do tell me Miss Black. How long have you been at Hogwarts?"

"One day." Sarah managed to answer, slightly twisting her hands together.

"And in that one day, you earned yourself detention. Why are you here with me in detention Black?"

Sarah had expected the question. She had thought a lot about the best way to approach this detention. She had decided that while she thought Snape was a royal pain in the behind, she should be respectful lest she get in more trouble. She was not a fool after all. "Well, sir, I lost my temper. I was disrespectful to you."

"And…" He raised his eyebrow.

"I hexed Malfoy. But Professor…" Sarah started to argue. She would take credit for being inappropriate to Snape (though she thought she was right to say something- he had been completely unfair to Harry), but she would not get in trouble for hexing Malfoy. He deserved it.

"THERE ARE NO EXCUSES FOR HEXING SOMEONE!"

"Even if…" Sarah tried to reason.

"THAT'S ENOUGH! If you were in my house, in addition to this detention, you would be confined to your dorm room for the next three weeks. But be that as it may, you are not. Professor McGonagall and Headmaster Dumbledore seem to think that it was a one time lapse of judgment and that they should be lenient since it is your first day." He paused and stared at her harshly.

"But rest assured, if you ever speak to me that way or hex another student in the middle of my class, the consequences will be dire."

He pointed to a pile of about 100 cauldrons. "There are a pile of dirty cauldrons. Wash them without magic." He said coldly as he picked back up his quill and continued grading his essays.

As he graded, Snape looked up to watch Sarah as she worked. At points her nose wrinkled up from the unpleasantness, but she worked hard. She looked young and vulnerable, so much like her mother. This afternoon, all he could see was her father, however, tonight, all he could see was Grace and that was unbearable.

About 2 hours later, Sarah whispered, "I'm done sir."

Snape walked over to the cauldrons to inspect them. "Good enough. You can go."

"Thank you sir." Sarah turned to walk to the door.

"Black."

Sarah turned half way around. "Sir?"

"Your hex today was perfectly executed. When did you learn how to do that?"

Sarah hesitated "last night."

"You have never done that before?" Severus raised his eyebrows.

"No Sir."

"I see. Don't do it again." he said sternly.

When Black left, Snape thought about what she had said. "She does have potential, if only we can get her temper under control. What am I saying? I have nothing to do with it." And with that Snape proceeded to finish marking the summer essays. He rolled his eyes as Fred Weasley used the word "propensity" half a dozen times in his essay. Between the Weasley twins and Black and Potter, it was going to be a long year.