Chapter 3

Since they hadn't met Hannah before, Harry and Alex introduced themselves to her, who was quite frankly in awe of meeting the Boys Who Lived. Once the initial shock was over, she became her natural bubbly self and started chatting with the rest. Several minutes later, the door was rudely opened and a boy with red hair and freckles looked at them and said, "Can I sit here? Everywhere else is full."

Alex had the urge to tell that since it was a magical train, there was no way it could be full, but a squeeze of his hand by his brother told him to hold his tongue. After all, their mother had specifically told them not to come off as snobs.

"Sure," said Harry calmly. "Take a seat."

The boy couldn't hide his glee as he sat down next to Alex. "I'm Ron, by the way. Ron Weasley."

Everyone nodded and introduced themselves. "Susan Bones"; "Hannah Abbott"; "Neville Longbottom"; "Daphne Greengrass"; "Alexander Potter"; "Hadrian Potter."

"Are you really?" asked Ron, ignoring everyone else, gawking at Harry and Alex. "Do you really have that, that -"

"That what?" asked Harry, though he knew what the boy was talking about. The reason their parents didn't want to take them to St Mungo's for any check-up was because one of the helpers had blabbed to the media about their scars. So it had spread like wildfire that the boys survived the killing curse with only scars on their foreheads and nothing more.

"Scar," he whispered dramatically, as though it was a big secret.

"Oh, yes," said Alex brightly. "My brother pushed me off my broom last week and I have a scar on my butt; do you want to see it?"

"Yeah!" said Ron, only to realise later what the boy had said, his ears turning red in embarrassment as people laughed. Harry smirked at his brother's antics.

"So, which House do you think you'll be sorted into?" asked Ron, trying to steer the conversation. He wanted to be best friends with the Potter twins, so he concentrated on talking to them, but unfortunately, one of them had gone to sit next to Greengrass and started talking to her about Charms of all things.

Alex looked at his brother in amusement. He knew that Harry couldn't handle such conversations for too long and it was only a matter of time before he lost patience. He and Neville locked eyes and snickered, no doubt sharing an inside joke which Ron couldn't understand.

"I think I'll either be Gryffindor or Slytherin," said Alex, relaxing and stretching his legs in the process, adjusting his bangs which had fallen elegantly over his eyes. "My brother might be in Gryffindor or Ravenclaw."

"Slytherin?" shouted Ron, looking scandalised. "B-but you're the Boys Who Lived! You can't go to the house of snakes!"

Daphne snorted and shook her head. "I think you should attend to your fanboy first," she whispered to Harry.

"Nah," muttered Harry. "Let my brother handle it. Besides, I have to handle something else to handle when the time comes."

"Which is what?" asked Daphne curiously, but her question was answered when the door was yanked open rudely by a boy who was flanked by two boys who looked like goons.

"I'm looking for the Potter twins," said Draco pompously. "Will that be you two?"

Harry smirked. "Oh, how nice to meet you again," he said in an amused voice. "I'm shocked that you don't recognise us, Draco."

Draco had a look of confusion on his face when Alex smirked back and said, "Oh, come on little dragon. Don't you recognise us? I mean, you called us mudbloods and said we couldn't afford clothes, Heir Malfoy."

Draco went pale as he looked at the smirking faces of the twins. "That was you?" he whispered.

"Of course it was," said Harry with a smile. "Did you think we have been confined to our manor our whole lives? We have been to every carnival, music concert, shopping district and restaurant. Just because we go under heavy glamour doesn't mean we aren't there."

"How has life been, dear Draco?" asked Alex with fake concern. "I heard that you were betrothed to the Mr Crabbe and Mr Goyle. These two wouldn't be your future husbands, would they?"

"Really?" asked Neville in shock. "Why didn't you tell me, Alex? Congratulations, Draco!" he said, beaming at the boy. "I guess you can stop begging Daphne and Susan for betrothal contracts now."

"Over my dead body" muttered Daphne, making the others chuckle. Draco was too shocked to react, so Harry went over and patted the boy's cheek. "It was very nice to see you, Mr Malfoy. Please accept the greetings of the Heirs of the Most Ancient and Noble Houses of Potter and Ashwood. See you at school, cousin."

With that, he closed the door after firing a mild banishing charm on them. With a flick of his wand, he locked the door.

"Oh, that was brilliant," said Susan, wiping tears of happiness. "He has been annoying me for months now. It's nice to take him down a peg or two."

"That was brilliant, mate!" said Ron. "You both clearly belong in Gryffindor."

Harry and Alex shrugged and went back to doing what they were doing. The lunch trolley came by and they bought several sweets for themselves and hours later, the train pulled up at Hogsmeade station.

"First years follow me!" said a loud voice. Harry and Alex reinforced their Occlumency shields which they had learnt since they were little. It was something James and insisted they learn and it also helped Harry with his scar. Besides, it was expected for any Heir to be trained in the basics of the art.

They walked down the path with their friends, feeling nervous. People still hadn't started openly gawking at them because of the darkness. They sat on the boat and went to the castle. There, they found Professor McGonagall standing in front of them. Both Harry and Alex smiled at her; their parents had told them many stories about her and even though they hadn't been able to meet her, they knew that she had a soft spot for them both.

HP*POWER OF TWO*HP

Minerva McGonagall looked at the first years as she gave them the usual speech. Mentally, she was sad that there were only forty students in this year's batch. You-Know-Who's reign of terror had decreased the number of students to one-quarter of the expected number and that was the least estimate. She looked at their bright, excited and nervous faces and smiled internally. She really loved doing this every year. Her eyes narrowed as she spotted two very adorable black haired and green eyed twins who were beaming at her. Even though she tried, she couldn't help but let a tiny smile grace her lips and by the grin the two were now sporting, she knew that the boys had thought they had won. Well, she would show them. If she could handle James Potter and Sirius Black, and later Fred and George Weasley, she could most definitely handle Harry and Alex Potter.

HP*POWER OF TWO*HP

After making McGonagall smile at them, Harry and Alex were more relaxed, trying to not pay attention to the stares all around them. Just then, Draco decided to show his move again.

"So it's true then" he announced, leaning on Goyle. "Hadrian and Alexander Potter have come to Hogwarts."

He went forward and pointed to his thugs behind him. "This is Crabbe and this is Goyle. And I'm Malfoy. Draco Malfoy."

Ron Weasley snickered and Draco rounded on him. "You think my name is funny, do you?" he shot back. "You do mind if I asked yours? Red hair, hand me down robes; you must be a Weasley" he spat. "You'll soon find that some wizarding families are better than others. You don't want to make friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there."

With that, he held out his hand. Harry knew that refusing to shake his hand was completely unacceptable in pureblood culture, even if he didn't like Malfoy. He looked at his brother and saw a small smirk on his face. So Harry smiled brightly and took the boy's hand and after shaking it, to everyone's shock, he kissed the boy's knuckles.

"Hadrian Potter, the Heir Potter," he said, smiling. "Oh, your hand is so incredibly soft; what is your secret, dear Draco?"

Malfoy went pink in the face as Alex was doing his best not to laugh. Oh, how he loved it when Harry was all sardonic and sarcastic like this. He couldn't wait to tell Padfoot. The old dog would surely find this hilarious!

Just as people snickered, Professor McGonagall reappeared and she too looked like she was fighting to maintain control of her smile. "They're ready for you now," she said. "Follow me."

When they entered the Great Hall, Harry was enthralled by the sheer amount of magic in the room; he could actually feel it. The lightning charms were in full brightness mode while several hundred candles were lit, just for authenticity. He was told that those candles were lit only on special days. As they walked by, they saw hundreds of students looking at them, but he doubted they could see them in the crowd. They stopped in front of the Sorting Hat, who sang its song. Alex rolled his eyes when he heard Weasley say something about fighting a troll. The sorting started soon. Susan and Hannah were sorted into Hufflepuff; Daphne was sorted into Slytherin; a bushy haired girl called Hermione Granger was sorted into Gryffindor; Neville too into Gryffindor; a pair of Indian twins were sorted into Gryffindor and Ravenclaw each and suddenly, Alex swallowed in fear. What if he and Harry weren't sorted into the same House? He didn't want to leave his brother alone. He really wanted both of them to be in the same House. He was fidgeting so much that he barely heard McGonagall call out –

"Potter, Alexander"

Alex felt his hand being gently squeezed and looked at the smiling face of his older brother. With a deep breath, he stepped forward, ignoring the whispers coming from the rest of the people in the hall. He sat on the stool and put the hat on. Harry, on the other hand, was looking with narrowed eyes at the Headmaster, who seemed to have leaned forward in anticipation. He and his brother had been warned about Professor Dumbledore. They would have to be careful.

"Hmm, difficult," said a voice in Alex's ear. "You are very loyal to your family, especially to your older brother, so Hufflepuff is a yes. You are smart, certainly, but I don't think Ravenclaw is for you. You certainly don't lack bravery, but I think Slytherin is the best match for you, don't you agree?"

"No, Hat, please don't," said Alex, shutting his eyes. "I don't have anything against Slytherin, but we already have a lot of attention shown towards us, and as much as I hate it, Slytherin won't help. I just want to be with my brother, please, I beg of you."

"Your loyalty towards your brother is very admirable, young Potter," said the Hat.
"Better be – GRYFFINDOR!"

The table on the right exploded with cheers as Alex calmly removed the hat and sat next to Neville, ignoring the cheers as he calmed himself. McGonagall waited for the cheers to die down and said, "Potter, Hadrian"

Harry calmly went forward with a blank expression on his face which he learnt from his mother and sat on the stool. As the hat was placed on his head, he heard a voice.

"Oh, you are unique, aren't you, young Potter?" the hat whispered. "Such undying love and loyalty to your family is amazing. You and your brother surely are special. Hufflepuff would do, but I don't think you would be very comfortable there. Ravenclaw is perfect for you as you have a thirst for knowledge, and you are also quite cunning like your brother, so Slytherin is a go. But your biggest trait is no doubt your strength and courage and your natural ability as a leader. You and your brother need to work as a team, so you have to be together. GRYFFINDOR!"

The red and gold table exploded in cheers again as Harry took his seat next to his brother as Alex breathed a sigh of relief. No one observed Dumbledore's eyes twinkling more than usual or Snape's scowl which was more pronounced than normal. Once the sorting was done, Dumbledore stood up and said, "Let the feast begin!"

Alex happily filled his plate with fatty food, but to his despair, Harry slapped his hand away and filled the other half with vegetables.

"Oh, come on, Harry," whined Alex. "It's a feast. Aren't we supposed to eat unhealthy food?"

Harry smirked. "If you eat that, I won't stop you from eating dessert. If not, say goodbye to the Treacle tart." Their mother had told Harry to do everything in his power to ensure that Alex ate his vegetables every day.

"You wouldn't!" said Alex horrified.

"I think we both know that I would," said Harry as he smirked. Shaking his head in frustration, Alex looked towards the staff table. He could spot several teachers which his parents had described. There was Professor Dumbledore; McGonagall was there next to him; Sprout was the Herbology teacher; then was Flitwick, his mother's Charms mentor, followed by several other teachers for different subjects until his eyes landed on a hook-nosed man who was glaring at him.

"Look at Snape" muttered Alex.

Harry looked up and saw the hook-nosed man who he recognised as Snape, glaring at him. He frowned; it looks like his father was right. The man did carry a grudge. He and Alex knew about their history of course. Snape had been a git, being friends with the wannabe Death Eaters at school and had been a horrible bully to the other kids along with his friends, though no one could prove it. That's why James and Sirius had taken it upon themselves to even the score, not to mention the conflict had become personal after Snape had repeatedly insulted James' family. Lily had been friends with Snape since they were kids, but it had ended at the end of their fifth year. While Lily hoped Snape wouldn't treat her kids badly, James knew better. Just as Harry looked at the person next to Snape whose back was turned towards the students, there was a sharp pain in his scar.

Harry hissed in pain, clutching his scar, but the pain receded soon. Alex turned to look at him worriedly. "Harry, what happened?" he whispered.

"Scar," he muttered. Alex looked worried, so Harry continued and said, "It's nothing. I must have imagined it."

"I don't think so," said Alex flatly. "We're calling mum right after dinner and telling her about it."

"I don't think-"

"Didn't she expressly tell you to call her in case there was pain?" whispered Alex angrily.

Harry sighed. "Fine," he said, though he didn't want to worry his parents. He knew the lightning shaped scar wasn't an ordinary magical scar like the one of Alex's forehead. His mother had scanned him several times over the years, trying to decipher it so as to know what caused him pain.

Once dessert was over, Dumbledore stood up and said, "Welcome all to another year at Hogwarts. I would like to tell the first years that the forest in the grounds is forbidden to all students and the older students should remember that by now as well. The other announcement for this year is that the third-floor corridor, on the right-hand side, is out of bounds for all those who don't wish to die a most painful death. Thank you."

Harry and Alex looked at each other bemused. "Did he -"

"I think he did" finished Alex.

Just then, they were interrupted by another pair of twins, who introduced themselves as Fred and George Weasley and the four started talking about pranks. But it was not to last, as they were soon following another Weasley who led them to Gryffindor Tower. Once he pointed out the dorms to them, he left, leaving the first years to head to their dorms. Harry, Alex and Neville entered the dorm and were impressed by the large room. There were six four poster beds, along with a walk in cupboard for each, no doubt expanded, and a desk for each of them as well. Harry immediately grabbed the bed near the window at the corner, with Alex right next to him. Once they unpacked, they waited for the rest of them to go to sleep. After fifteen minutes, Alex got down from his bed and opened the curtains to Harry's bed and crawled in. Harry flicked his wand to his hand and put up the standard secrecy spells.

He then took out a mirror from his bag and said, "Lily Potter"

After a few seconds, the boys saw the smiling faces of their parents. "Hey boys," said James. "From the colours on the walls I'd say you were both sorted into Gryffindor."

"Damn" muttered Alex. "And here I thought I could convince him we were sorted into Slytherin."

James snorted. "With the four of you, it's something I have been conditioning myself for the past five years, so it wouldn't have surprised me," he said grimly.

"Mum, there was a slight problem at the feast," said Harry nervously.

"What is it, Harry?" asked Lily worriedly.

"My scar hurt for a few seconds" he answered, biting his lip.

Silence followed this declaration as Lily and James looked at each other worriedly. They still were nowhere close to finding out what exactly Harry's scar was, but the pain was something they didn't like.

"Thank you for telling us this, son," said James. "Your mother will see if she can do something about it."

"Alex, keep an eye on him for tonight," said Lily.

"Guys, it's fine," said Harry defensively as his face burned in embarrassment.

"Harry, we're not doing it to embarrass you," said Lily patiently. "There is a serious about of dark magic around your scar. I have secretly consulted several people who specialise in dark magic and I'm no closer to finding out what it is. Whenever your scar hurts, you get horrible nightmares and they don't affect you as long as you have one of us nearby. Your brother doesn't mind, so what's the problem?"

"We're family, Harry," said James patiently. "You have no reason to be embarrassed in front of us, especially not in front of your brother."

Harry took a deep breath and nodded. He knew from past experience that they were right. They spoke for another five minutes and then deactivated the mirror. Harry turned to find his twin brother staring back at him with raised eyebrows.

"You have never been embarrassed to sleep in the same bed before," said Alex, his eyes narrowed. "What caused this sudden change?"

Harry fidgeted and pointed to the others in the dorm. Alex sighed; Harry was scared that others would find out that there was something wrong with his scar, which made him seek comfort on such nights from his brother so that it didn't trouble him with horrible nightmares.

"If that's your problem, then I don't mind going back to my bed," said Alex sarcastically. "Once you wake up screaming and sweating, we'll see what is more embarrassing."

Harry glared at his brother but sighed in resignation. "I'm sorry" he muttered.

Alex chuckled. "It's fine," he said. "I would have done the same thing in your place. Come on, I'm sleepy."

After casting some other charms to let them know if anyone got up before them and another alarm charm to wake them up in the morning, then Harry went to sleep, with Alex hugging him from the side, hoping that the nightmares would stop haunting his brother.

HP*POWER OF TWO*HP

The next morning, Harry woke up refreshed, finding himself tangled in his brother's arms. He stretched and shook his brother awake. He was really grateful to his brother as, without a family member, the previous night would have been horrible. His nightmares were usually filled with cold laughter and green light and sounds of his parents and brother screaming for their lives. It was quite traumatic for a child. Once they both were awake, they put on a pair of magical running shoes and headed outside. Since it was six in the morning, curfew had been lifted. They stepped out of the castle into the cool morning breeze and ran around the lake. Their father had ensured that they were physically fit, so they had been exercising since the time they were seven. After an hour of running, the tired boys returned to the tower to take a shower. They sighed in relief as the hot water soothed their aching muscles. Once they were done, they wrapped a towel around their waist and entered the dorm to find the rest of them still sleeping. From past experience, they knew that Neville was not a morning person.

Alex grinned as he went over to Neville. He cast a silencing charm and bent close to his ear and shouted, "WAKE UP NEVILLE!"

Harry chuckled. This certainly was more fun when he was watching it rather than when he was the victim. He tapped the trunk and one of the three compartments opened, showing the several uniforms he had inside it. He picked out one of them and removed a pair of boxer briefs and leather boots. Once done, he removed the towel covering him and dressed while the rest of the boys woke up with a groan. Even before the others were done, he and Alex were ready and headed to the Great Hall for breakfast.

When they entered, they saw Susan already there as well, talking to Daphne who was sitting at the Hufflepuff table.

"Good morning," said Harry as he sat next to Daphne with his brother sitting next to Susan. "How was last night?"

"Annoying," said Daphne as she took a bite of her eggs. "The drama queen Malfoy has been going on and on about how he's the most powerful in the House and how everyone should listen to him and what not. He also said that the two of you were blood traitors and that he would show you your place."

"That's nothing out of the ordinary," said Alex. Soon, they were joined by a sleepy Neville and Hannah as well.

"Good morning, Neville," said Susan brightly, making the boy growl at her as other others laughed. Neville hated getting up in the morning.

"They shouldn't have our classes so soon," said Neville as he yawned. "They should start at noon."

"I'm afraid we won't get rid of our timings just to accommodate you, Mr Longbottom," said a voice. They turned to find an amused Professor McGonagall standing behind them, handing out timetables.

"Here you go," she said, giving them the timetables. "Now, Mr and Mr Potter," she said sternly. "I know exactly what you two are capable of as I received a letter from your mother. Just remember that I handled your father and godfather so there is not a trick in the book that I don't know. Behave yourselves or you will be in trouble."

"Oh, come on Professor," said Alex, pouting cutely. "You can't honestly think we would do something like that, do you? We're innocent in everything!" he said, making his green eyes big and wide, showing his innocence.

Harry too beamed at her and said, "Besides Professor" he said, smiling with the same innocence as he brother. "We are the next generation. The old book won't be used anymore; we'll just create a new one!"

Minerva looked exasperated, but couldn't help but smile at them; they really were incredibly adorable.

"I'm told that you are the less troublesome twin," she said, looking at Harry, secretly hoping she was indeed talking to Harry as they both looked identical. "Do try to keep your brother in line, will you?"

"Oh, Professor," said Harry, shaking his head in amusement. "You can't believe everything you head from mum."

"Besides," said Alex

"We are-"

"-a team!"

"Our troublemaking-"

"-is done"

"together" they chorused, making the Gryffindors nearby groan along with Professor McGonagall.

"Great" she muttered moving away from them. "Now there are four of them. Merlin help us all."

They had already finished breakfast as a majority of them arrived. Just as Snape descended from the staff table, heading towards them, no doubt to tell Daphne to never socialise with others, Harry simply grabbed Daphne's hand and led her out as the rest followed, leaving Snape snarling in anger. Harry wasn't going to let that man interfere; Daphne was his best friend and no one could say anything about that.

"He's not going to stop, you know," said Daphne, not at all bothered by their intertwined hands.

"I know," said Harry calmly. "But if he starts to trouble you, just say that he is interfering in the alliance of the Ancient families; that should shut him up. If even that doesn't filter through his brain, just remind him that he himself had a Gryffindor friend until the end of his fifth year. Besides, any harassment would be nullified with one letter to Neville's grandmother; she's the chairman of the Board of Governors."

"How did you and Alex not get sorted into Slytherin?" asked Daphne in amusement.

"Oh, I had to beg it not to" piped in Alex from behind them. "But had I chosen Slytherin, Harry definitely would have been sorted there too."

Harry nodded in agreement as they headed for class.

HP*POWER OF TWO*HP

The first class was Herbology they had with the Hufflepuffs. Professor Sprout was a warm and kind lady and Neville was already shining in his first class. Harry and Alex knew that it was his favourite subject; in fact, the majority of his birthday gifts involved some plant cutting or the other. While Harry didn't enjoy this much, Alex was very interested as his first love was potions. Alex had spent a lot of time with their mother just observing her as Lily would prepare several different potions at the same time. It had given him the bright idea to create a potion when he was seven years old without any practice or supervision. Needless to say, Alex had been grounded for two weeks after the disaster.

Harry, on the other hand, preferred wanded subjects like Defence and Transfiguration. Both the brothers had inherited the love of Charms from their mother, but that's where their interests branched out. Harry wanted to be an International Duelling Champion while Alex wanted to win the International Potion-making Championship. Both boys were clearly very ambitious for their future.

After cleaning themselves off, they headed to Transfiguration for their class with the Ravenclaws. When Harry and Alex entered the class, they saw a tabby cat sitting on the desk. They smirked at each other and went towards the cat. The cat's eyes narrowed as they neared her and gave a squawk of surprise as Harry picked her up.

"Oh, aren't you an adorable little kitty," cooed Alex, petting the obviously irate cat.

"I think she wants a bath, little brother," said Harry brightly, making the cat meow in confusion.

"Too right, big brother; Aguamenti!" said Alex.

The cat screeched and dived out of the way as a jet of water flew from Alex's wand, drenching Harry in water, making the boy glare at his brother.

To everyone's shock, the cat morphed into Professor McGonagall who glared at the boys.

"Whose bright idea was to conjure water at me?" she hissed.

Harry and Alex's eyes went wide as they immediately pointed their hands at the other.

"It's his fault, Professor, I swear," said Alex.

"Uh uh, I'm the good twin, don't you remember Professor?" said Harry hopefully.

"This is your fault!" said Alex.

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"Aguamenti!" said Harry as a jet of water flew from his wand and impacted his shocked brother, drenching him to the bone.

"Now see what you did!" said Alex angrily.

"You shouldn't have done it to me first!" said Harry.

"That was your idea, idiot!"

"ENOUGH!" said Professor McGonagall, as the entire class roared with laughter, except for a girl who looked at them disapprovingly.

"I can't believe this!" said Professor McGonagall. "I would think that eleven-year-old boys would have some sense of maturity to not act like five-year-old kids! On the first day! Five points from Gryffindor for disrupting class. Take a seat you two or I shall write to your mother."

Grumbling, the two boys took a seat next to each other, not speaking to the other. "And five points each for casting a charm taught in the sixth year" she added, making Harry and Alex look up in surprise.

With a smile, they dried themselves off with a flick of their wand as the class began. They looked at each other and smirked. The year certainly had started off well.

HP*POWER OF TWO*HP

"Did you see them?"

"They are so CUTE!"

"I know; I just want to hug the life out of them!"

"You should have seen them in McGonagall's class; one of the first years told me about it."

"Do you think they'll mind if I give them a kiss on the cheek?"

"They are the most adorable pair of twins I have ever seen!"

These were the reactions from the majority of the school over the next few days. Albus Dumbledore had still yet to call them to his office, and James and Lily were surprised by that. Charms was as good as their mother had told them. History of Magic was boring, but Harry and Alex had taken to reading it on their own instead of listening to Binns talk about Goblin rebellions; after all, there was a ton more to magical history than just the goblins. Astronomy was okay, but Defence was quite below par. In fact, Harry was sure that his scar hurt more in the presence of the Defence teacher, but he didn't say anything. That had resulted in horrible nightmares for the past two days with him waking up screaming and sweating until Alex had found out about it last night when checking up on him. Needless to say, Alex was very pissed off with his twin brother right now and hadn't spoken to him all morning.

When they finally entered the Potions class, Harry went to sit next to Daphne who smiled slightly at him while Alex sat next to Neville. People scowled as them as it was an unstated rule that Gryffindors and Slytherins didn't mingle together, but within the first few days, the Potter twins had broken all those unsaid rules by talking to people from all four Houses.

When Snape entered the room with a bang, his eyes narrowed as he saw the elder Potter again sitting next to the Greengrass Heiress. He knew that Lucius had his eyes on the Greengrass fortune in the future, so he decided to separate them immediately.

"Potter, get up; come sit in front of me. Mr Malfoy, please sit next to Miss Greengrass," he snapped.

Two pairs of green eyes and one pair of blue eyes narrowed as he said this. Harry shrugged and with a flick of his wand, his cauldron and other equipment were moved to the first bench while Draco manually shifted it, until Professor Snape decided to help him.

"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of Potion making. As there is little wand waving here many of you would find it hard to believe this is magic. I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death - if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach" he said.

Alex raised his eyebrows. It looked like Padfoot was right; Snape was a drama queen. Potions was his favourite subject and it looked like he wasn't going to enjoy it as long as Snape was the teacher.

"Potter!" said Snape suddenly. "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

The class remained silent, except for a girl who was excitedly raising her hand, so Snape's lip curled. "It looks like our two resident dunderhead celebrities can't hear. Five points from Gryffindor."

"Forgive me, Professor," said Harry calmly. "But there are currently two Potters in this class. We didn't know which Potter you were addressing. How were we to answer your question?"

But Snape acted as though he didn't hear it and his lips curled.

Harry simply raised his eyebrows as he leaned back in his chair, with his arms folded across his chest, looking at the man expectantly. Snape looked at the other brat who had mirrored his brother's expression and position. The way they sat, the way they answered, everything reminded him of that bastard James Potter so he looked back at the elder brat and said, "Can you answer the question now, Potter?"

"They are two of five main ingredients in preparing the Draught of Living Death," said Harry calmly.

"Oh?" asked Snape with a smirk. "I dare say you know the other three?"

"Of course, Professor" answered Alex, knowing that his brother didn't know the answer. "The others are Valerian root, Sopophorous bean and sloth brain."

"I didn't ask you, Potter," said Snape testily. "Five points from Gryffindor."

"But you only said Potter, not specifying which one," said Alex with his eyebrows raised. "I was under the impression that the question was posed to either one of us."

"Really?" asked Snape dangerously, moving towards Alex. "In that case, Mr Alexander Potter, why don't you tell me where you would look if I asked you to find me a bezoar?"

"In my mother's potions cabinet," replied Alex calmly, ignoring the girl behind him standing up so that she could answer. "Or more specifically, the stomach of a goat."

At the mention of his mother, Snape's face became red, probably because this was the son Lily had with James Potter.

"What is the difference, Potter, between monkshood and wolfsbane?" he asked with gritted teeth.

"They are the same plant which is also known as Aconite" replied Alex. "Neville here can grow them very well."

"Which is the potion that requires Lacewing flies, powdered bicorn horn, shredded boomslang skin and Fluxweed?"

"Polyjuice potion" replied Alex promptly.

"Which potion uses powdered moonstone and syrup of hellebore?" asked Snape, his face turning red with anger.

"The Draught of Peace," said Alex with a slight smirk.

The smirk looked so much like James Potter's that Snape lost it. "Which potion uses Occamy eggshell and Ashwinder eggs?" he asked with gritted teeth.

Alex remained quiet. He knew this because he had been fascinated by it just a few months ago when his mother had mentioned the Felix Felicis, but he knew answering it would do no good. He and Harry might be Gryffindors, but that didn't mean they wouldn't have done well in Slytherin.

"I don't know sir," he replied. Even the girl behind him didn't know the answer. Snape looked down with triumph on his face as he said, "Clearly, fame isn't everything."

"If you say so," said Harry. "But clearly, a first year knowing so much about Potions would deserve fifty points from any sensible teacher."

Snape looked back and snarled at the brat. How dare he insult him?

"Ten points from Gryffindor, Potter, for your cheek," he said. "It looks like both of you have inherited your father's big head and stupidity just as I thought."

Two pairs of green eyes flashed as they heard that as many others in the room exchanged glances. Insulting a Lord of a Most Ancient and Noble House like that in public without a viable reason wouldn't do Snape any good. But then again, this man was protected personally by Albus Dumbledore.

The class progressed with Snape assigning them a potion to cure boils. Having done it before, Harry calmly finished it alone, while Alex worked on the potion with Neville. Harry could see Daphne getting very agitated with Malfoy working with her. He would have to do something about that.

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That night, after everyone had gone to bed, Harry fidgeted and went over to his brother. He separated the curtains and crawled into bed with him.

"What are you doing here?" said Alex coldly.

"I'm sorry," said Harry softly.

"You should be," said a female voice, and Harry turned to look at the mirror which had the furious face of his mother on it.

"I can see from your bloodshot eyes that you haven't slept for the past two days, don't deny it," said Lily angrily. "Is your pride more important than your health? How many times have I told you that we are dealing with dark magic of unknown origin? The pain has increased and as has the frequency of the nightmares. You two get up before the rest, so what's your problem, Harry?"

Harry sighed and ran his hand through his silky black hair. "I'm sorry mum. I didn't want to trouble Alex anymore" he said sincerely.

"That's my problem," said Alex. "And you are more important to me. Can you stop acting like a prat already?"

"Fine," said Harry exasperated. "Goodnight, mum"

"Goodnight boys," said Lily. "Sweet dreams. Love you."

"Love you" they chorused as the mirror went blank.

"Act like an idiot again and all bets are off," said Alex angrily. "I'm trying to help you here, you know."

"Again, I'm sorry" whispered Harry as he crawled next to his twin, hugging him from the side as Alex hugged him back. After two nights of nightmares, he finally went to sleep peacefully.

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