Disclaimer: Everything you recognize from Harry Potter is property of J.K. Rowling. All characters, spells, and other such . . . things which you do not recognize are products of my overactive and sometimes disturbing imagination.

Chapter Edited? YES

Betas: LivingStoneLily. Thank you very much!

Chapter 4 - Newly Found Knowledge

Severus watched closely as Potter left the room, the boy having trouble walking straight from being tired. When Potter finally managed to leave the room, Severus put down the bottle he was filling and moved to close the door for no other reason than habit. Checking the time, he realized that it was nearly midnight. He shook his head. The only reason it took as long as it did to make the simple, two hour potion was that the boy would ask very specific questions about specific steps. Nearly every step, actually; he was seemingly eager to know as much about the potion as humanly possible.

It was strange. Severus never saw Potter as a student eager to learn. In fact, he had always seemed lazy, barely taking notes and nearly falling asleep during class. Perhaps he had underestimated the boy or the change was recent. There was also the temperament change. Severus had expected Potter to return to his previous behavior before now, but he had rarely been the cocky boy he had been at school. In fact, the few times his behavior would be considered rude was when Severus himself said something to provoke him; he knew that it seemed to be some sort of defense mechanism.

I wonder what they did to that boy, he thought, thinking of the Dursleys. If they were capable of locking him in a room with no food for weeks, what else did they do to him? Severus couldn't quite place what he was feeling, but there was a part of him that felt Potter was hiding something; barking out when he was hurt . . . Severus did have to admit that he did the same at times, always determined that the opposing party didn't see that what they were doing was getting to him. And as the headmaster often pointed out, it didn't often work.

But Potter still managed to play the arrogant, rule breaking marauder his father was well known for being.

Looking at the clock, Severus saw that it was only one minute to midnight. He was unusually tired for that time of day, so he quickly finished bottling the Drandans potion with a yawn. He was putting the bottles on a low side table for later use when he felt something drift past his head and fall to the floor. An envelope. He bent down slowly, hesitant to pick it up. After a few revealing charms, he reluctantly picked it up and turned it over. It was a letter. His name was written neatly – boldly – on the envelope and his breath hitched. He hadn't seen that handwriting in almost seventeen years, but he still remembered every detail of it.

Severus was even more hesitant to open the letter than he was to pick it up. Why would Lily set a letter to be sent to him fifteen years after she died? Why fifteen, and not three or four? Why at all? He had seen her once since they graduated from Hogwarts and that was . . . he put the thought from his mind. Slowly, he turned the envelope over and took out the letter. After a moment, he unfolded the crisp pages and read.

Severus,

You probably won't like what I am about to tell you, but please believe me that I have my reasons. I know you don't like long-winded explanations, so I will get to the point.

My son, Harry Potter, is actually your son. I did the necessary tests before he was born that proved he was. I was scared to think what James would think. No, I was terrified. But after I thought about it some, I realized there was no point in telling anyone. It wouldn't benefit you to have a child with a muggleborn, and it would have killed James to know, so I put a charm on Harry before he was born. I made it so he'd look like he was the son of James, not you.

If by the unfortunate chance you are reading this, that means James and I are dead. But that also means a week ago, on Harry's sixteenth birthday, the charm started to wear off. The charm was complicated, and needed to be cast twice in order to be permanent, once before he was born, which was done, and once before his sixteenth birthday. Since I am dead, the final charm could not have been cast because no one else knows. The results will not be immediate. It will take a full year to completely wear off.

I have spelled a letter to be sent to Harry on midnight on his sixteenth birthday, so he would have known for a week already by the time you receive this.

I am sorry, Severus. For everything.

Love Always,

Lily

Harry woke, groggy. It was still dark in the room, so he willed himself back to a dreamless sleep . . .

He opened his eyes to nothing but white. He blinked to clear his vision and he found himself still surrounded by white, but the room around him was clear. He was in a room – a library – that was completely white. It felt familiar . . .

All of a sudden he knew what he was supposed to do. Kicking the table leg as he walked past, he walked to a barely used part of the library and looked over the books.

"I see you managed to work it out on your own. Good," the Voice said and then it was quiet again. Angry, looked over the titles at his eye level. Potions . . . Potions . . . Potions . . . He looked at the row below. Still Potions. All the shelves below were. Looking around at other shelves, he found none of them to have the same pull as this one, so he looked up. On the shelves just above his reach were books that were obviously Dark Arts books. He was slightly drawn to those books, but as they were . . .

He grabbed one of the Potions books and nearly ran to his table, threw the book down so it was open, and began reading. The same stuff, over and over again . . .

Harry woke with a start as a shadow swept over him and he blinked repeatedly in an attempt to become used to the light. It was strange how he felt he should be used to it already and as the shadow left the room, he covered his face with his pillow, tired of the brightness. When his stomach growled, he slowly sat halfway up with his elbows and squinted at the clock. The clock was a blur even with the squint so he grudgingly sat up and reached over for his glasses from the table. Putting them on, he checked the time again. Six O'clock. Early, but as he was hungry he decided food was more important than sleeping. He slept enough this summer. Harry stood, got dressed, then started toward the door.

Suddenly, he remembered what day it was. A week after my birthday, he thought grimly, counting the days just to be sure. That meant Snape would have gotten the letter this morning unless the entire thing was a prank. Harry's insides churned. He was just starting to get along with the man. Well, a silent truce, if nothing else, but Harry wasn't sure whether or not he wanted it to be a prank. And he didn't know how Snape would react.

Quietly, Harry snuck down to the kitchen and took out a frying pan, and then went to the refrigerator and found some bacon and eggs since his mush was finished. At first, he only took out enough for himself, but decided better of it and took out what he thought would be enough for Snape, also. The last thing he want to do was get on his bad side. He didn't care if Snape talked to him. In fact, he didn't think he wanted him to. Even if the man was his father, he had to admit still didn't like the man very much. So I've been telling myself, he thought bitterly, putting down the eggs with a bit too much force.

Transferring the eggs to the frying pan and picking out the shells, he finished making breakfast, set most of it aside and sat down to eat.

Harry just finished eating when Snape came into the room. He had been hoping that he would have been finished before the professor came in, but of course it wouldn't be that way. Harry felt as if he had the worst luck sometimes. Leaving the plate of extra food on the middle of the table, Harry got up to wash his own plate and put it away, along with the bowl that he'd been using for his mush and the pan he cooked breakfast in. The entire time, he avoided looking at Snape but felt the eyes of the Potions Master follow him around, which caused him to nearly drop the dishes several times.

Severus watched the boy wash his dishes and the pan with disinterest, a bit of anger, wonder, and . . . something hiding just above his own perception. It wasn't usual for Potter to be up this early and . . . he glanced at the plate of eggs and bacon in the center of the table – I don't see Potter as someone who regularly makes breakfast for others, he thought. Was Potter trying to get on his good side? Severus sneered to himself, coming to the conclusion that he knew he had received the letter this morning.

And the letter meant the boy knew he was his father the entire time he was at headquarters and he hadn't said word – or even made references – to their relationship. It also might have been the entire reason he had been behaving himself the past week.

Severus decided then that he wasn't going to say anything about it. He would leave it to the boy to bring it up. He hadn't yet, so Potter was most likely not wanting any sort of relationship between them.

And I hope he doesn't, he thought. He didn't need that kind of burden, especially one that involved caring for a boy he disliked during a war he was deeply immersed in. And if the child didn't believe they were kin, who was he to disillusion him? Lily . . . Lily, the liar, never intended to tell him, and he never intended to be a father to anyone. He never wanted children. Simple as that.

The anger he was pushing aside burst at that thought and Severus roughly took the plate of food from the center of the table, grabbed a fork from the drawer before slamming the draw closed and sitting to eat. Nibbling on the cooling food, he watched as Potter clumsily cleaned up after himself, obviously making a point to ignore him. Severus made a stab at his eggs, knowing he was only lying to himself. Feeling satisfied with the lie for now, he looked down at the food he was eating as Potter started toward the door.

Luck wasn't on his side, Severus decided as an owl arrived and landed on Potter's shoulder, carrying a parcel. Potter took it and the owl left. Severus watched as the boy sighed, staring at the package he now held. Against all of his wishes, Potter sat down on the opposite end of the table, turned as far away from him as he could, and continued to stare down.

Harry looked down at the bundle that was now on the table. It was from Hermione, he knew that from the handwriting. He had realized he was still tired after he finished cleaning, but at the moment he still felt too exhausted to even open the letter attached to the top. Yawning, he finally managed to rip the envelope from the parcel and pull out the letter.

Hi Harry!

I haven't heard from you recently, but I got an owl from Ron yesterday saying that you're not at your relatives anymore and that you haven't been getting any of our letters until this week. Hope you're during alright and that it wasn't too horrible with the Dursleys.

Anyway, I've been keeping in contact with most of the DA this summer. They keep mentioning how they want the group to continue this year and several others have written to me saying they would also like to join. Since I hadn't heard from you and I couldn't get your opinion, I owled Headmaster Dumbledore with the request that it become an official school club, and he thought it was an excellent idea. He said he would talk to you in person sometime this week.

I'm sorry I started this without talking to you first, but we only have less than a month left before school starts again and I thought it best if we have everything settled before then. I owled everyone from DA last year and everyone who showed recent interest to ask for suggestions. The parcel is filled with letters from those who wish to join. I sent them to you, hoping you'd teach everyone again this year. There are quite a few more than last year, so I hope it's not too much.

I'm trying to persuade my parents to let me visit sometime. If nothing else, we should be able to see each other when we go shopping for school. Take care!

Love,

Hermione

Harry shook his head and opened the parcel in front of him. Letters spilled out, and many ended up on the floor.

"Fan mail?" came a sneer from across the table. Harry shook his head. He didn't want to answer, but it was as if he couldn't help a verbal response.

"No," Harry said as he bent down to pick up the letters that had fallen on the floor. He tried to stack them in several neat piles, to no avail, and ended up sorting them by those he knew and those he didn't. The unknown pile was daunting, but it also gave him a project to work on. Feeling the initiative, he began opening and skimming the letters.

By the 40th letter, Harry no longer had the energy to go through the rest. Hermione seemed to have gone through them all already, so why did she send them all to me? Couldn't she have written up a list herself?

Most of the ones Harry didn't know were from other houses. Even Slytherin, which surprised him. Of course, most of them were from younger years, so perhaps it wasn't that surprising.

Just as Harry had willed himself the energy to open another one, Harry heard the floo from the other room, and he looked toward the door expectantly. Then he remembered it wasn't even eight in the morning and wondered who would be calling at that time of day.

"Ah, I was hoping to find both of you here," commented Dumbledore, walking into the kitchen and sitting between him and Snape. Harry saw Snape stab the last bit of egg on and his plate and put it in his mouth, all while glaring at the headmaster. Harry himself just stared at him blankly and briefly wondered if Dumbledore knew – somehow – that him and Snape were related. Then he remembered that Hermione had told him in the letter Dumbledore would be coming. But so early?

"Mr. Potter," Dumbledore said, turning to him, "I'm told you would like to continue the Defense Association this year,"

"Er, sir . . ." Harry began, wondering what exactly Hermione had told him, "I just found out about it today, myself, actually," he finally replied, indicating the piles of parchment around him.

"Hmm. Interesting," the old man said, stroking his long beard. "Well, as I told Ms. Granger, I feel it is a great idea. Of course, as it would be an official Hogwarts club, a professor would be required to supervise. I was first thinking of suggesting our new Defense teacher for the job, but since it will be her first year teaching, it would be unreasonable and a bit too much to ask for such things. Severus," he seem to interject, turning to the man who had just stood up and deposited his dirty dish in the sink. "How would you feel about the responsibility? I know you are busy during the school year, but you wouldn't have to attend all of their meetings. Substitutes could be used if you find yourself busy during a meeting night."

"I would prefer to have nothing to do with anything which that insufferable boy is running," Snape said abruptly and Harry felt a burn in his eyes. Forcing the feeling back, he couldn't help fighting back.

"It's not like anyone would want you to," he snapped at Snape.

"Mr. Potter," said Dumbledore, the warning strong in his voice. Harry looked down at his lap and then up at Snape, who turned abruptly and left the kitchen before he could mutter a half-meant apology. Harry had to admit, though, that he felt he wanted to apologize. He wanted . . .

Harry closed his eyes slowly and then opened them. Just wanting to forget what happened, he turned to Dumbledore and changed the subject a bit. "Why do you think it will be a good idea, sir? Do you think the new defense teacher won't teach us?"

"Oh, she'll teach you well, dear child. She was an extremely good student and knows what she is going to teach," the headmaster answered, although he could still hear disappointment in his voice.

"Then why . . .?" Harry interrupted.

"Because some people don't learn the material as well as others in the time frame of a class, I think a defense study group would work out well, especially during these times." Harry just sat there, looking at his lap. He couldn't argue that point.

"Yeah, I guess you are right. Those who didn't grasp the spells at first got good at them during the meetings," he answered.

"And everyone who was in the D.A. passed their defense O.W.L.," Dumbledore pointed out. The two sat in silence and Harry's eyes trailed to the door Snape exited. He just had this strong urge to talk to the potions professor yet he wanted to stay as far away from him as possible. "Professor Snape would be a good choice of a supervisor for the club, Mr. Potter. I suggest you talk with him." Harry didn't bothering looking up at the man. He knew what those blue eyes would hold, so he continued absent-mindedly examine his hands in his lap.

"Sir, there are a lot of people who are interested in joining the D.A. this year," Harry finally said to break the silence that had fallen between them. "I didn't count, but I think it is at least a hundred. I thought last year's group was big, but it was pretty easy to keep control. It was necessary to be serious at the meetings. It was real tense, because there was so much to hide from Umbridge and everyone was scared. But this year, I don't think it will be like that. I mean, I'm sure the Room of Requirement would be able to hold that many people, but it was hard keeping an eye on everyone last year, making sure no one got hurt and that they were doing what they were supposed to, and that wasn't even half of the number of people that would be joining this year."

"Merely something to work around, my boy," Dumbledore replied. "But there was something I was wondering; how were you able to spread the news of meetings without any suspicious behavior?" Harry finally looked up at this comment and smiled, his mind finally torn from thinking about the professor.

"I'll show you," he said, then ran out of the room to get his spelled galleon and the two extras he had in his trunk. He didn't notice Snape standing near the stairs, arms crossed and a deadly look in his eyes.

Glaring at Potter as he passed, Severus' attention was diverted when Albus came into the room from the kitchen.

"Severus?"

"Just like his . . ." Severus trailed off. He couldn't really say that anymore, could he? Because the boy was nothing like his father. He was everything like James Potter. "I have no wish to spend more time with Potter than necessary," he continued. "The boy has no sense of responsibility or respect."

"You are the best for the job, Severus," the headmaster said quietly. "And you would have the chance to teach defense."

"Why this?" he asked bitterly, quietly. "Why the club, but not the Defense professor position? Every year, I apply and every year you say 'not yet'. Do you not trust me as much as you claim?"

"I trust you Severus," Albus said, stepping close to him, the old man's eyes unreadable. "I would not leave you in the house alone with Harry Potter if I did not. But it isn't time, not yet."

"Why not?" Severus asked quietly, his head down, yet near Dumbledore's ear. "Why not?"

"It takes time to isolate a curse that isn't on an object, Severus. You should understand that."

"The curse . . ." Severus said, a small question in his voice.

"You don't believe there is one?"

"It seems to me to be unlikely," he answered.

"Even so, I would like to be sure." Dumbledore took a few steps back.

"And you couldn't tell me this before?"

"You are very persistent," he said vaguely, not quite answering the question, as usual.

It took Harry a few minutes to find the coins because they were loose on the bottom on his trunk, but when he did find them, he ran back down stairs. His excitement dwindled a bit when he came to the bottom and saw Dumbledore and Snape in the living room, talking, because it meant he would have to talk to them both. Tentatively, he walked toward the two professors and held the coins up to show Dumbledore. When the headmaster held his hand out, Harry dropped the two extra coins into his hand.

"It was Hermione's idea, really," Harry started explaining. "We knew we couldn't have a set meeting time because it would be too easy to follow, and word of mouth was too risky of being overheard. That, and too much intermingling of the houses would probably have made Umbridge suspicious because everyone didn't normally talk with each other. So everyone got a fake galleon," he continued, indicating the two coins, "and were taught how to read the coded engraving around the side, which tells the day and time of the meeting. Each week, I would change the day and time on my coin with a spell," he said, holding up his own coin. "The coins are connected, so when I changed mine, the others would also change, and if they had it on them, like in a pocket, they could feel it burn, so they'd know the time changed."

"And where did she get this idea?" Snape asked, his voice a low hiss. "It sounds dangerously close to how the Dark Mark works." Harry saw Dumbledore glance at the Potions Master.

"Yes, sir. That's where she said she got the idea," replied Harry, looking down, not wanting to look into the man's eyes. He couldn't.

"Clever girl, that Ms. Granger," stated Dumbledore, and Harry nodded. "Well, I must be off. I have business I must get to, which is why I came here early. Harry, Severus, please think about it. You'll be helping a lot of students." With that, he left the professor and student in silence.

Harry glanced sideways at Snape before quickly leaving for the kitchen. After talking with Dumbledore, he once again had the energy to work on organizing the DA. Seeing the piles of letters, though, Harry changed his mind and decided to take a nap instead.

Severus watched as the boy left for the kitchen and was about to go upstairs when Potter suddenly came from the kitchen and went upstairs himself. Not wanting to be near him, as childish as he felt that was, Severus went to the kitchen instead. Not in the for any specific purpose, he fingered one of the letters, unfolding it and skimming the illegible contents before dropping it back on the table.

Perhaps it wouldn't be too bad, he thought silently after quite a while of staring at the letters. He was no longer spying, so that freed a bit of time and he would have quite a bit of control over what the students learned.

And I could teach that brat to behave, he growled. And be close to Potter during the year to keep an eye on him, but he told himself it was only because he didn't want a hundred of Hogwarts students to be killed by wayward curses.

If he comes to me and asks, Severus decided, calming down only to remember the comment the boy made after Severus himself had insulted him.

He found himself in the darkness, feeling out of place. He reached his hands into the darkness and he found himself sitting at a table. Having something solid to hold onto, he wouldn't let it out of his grip for the fear of falling. It felt like an eternity before there were any signs that he wasn't completely alone.

"You are failing," a Voice said, deep and soft. "Fix it."

"Fix what?" he asked.

"Fix it," was all the Voice said and he sighed, knowing he was going to be trapped in the darkness until he knew what he was going to do. That how they did things.

When Harry finally woke, it was still light in his room and he found he had forgotten to take off his glasses before falling asleep. Remembering Dumbledore's visit, he stood and went back down to the kitchen, not expecting Snape to still be there. Unfortunately, he realized when he looked at the clock, it was just after noon, so of course Snape would be in the kitchen. He hovered in the doorway where Snape seemed to not have noticed him yet. Gathering courage, he walked to the table and sat down, a notebook in hand.

Harry looked at the pile of letters from his fellow students and decided that he should organize them, somehow, before make his decision when he knew what he was dealing with. He collected the parchments and the coins he deposited on the table and went to the library, deciding against lunch at that moment in order to avoid Snape.

In the library, he tore out four pieces of paper and labeled each as Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Slytherin and then began sorting the names, putting the known ones in the corresponding piles after copying down the names. The ones he didn't know, he put in a separate pile. I'll ask someone about those later. A professor will know, he thought, but he still didn't want to talk to Snape, despite the nearly overwhelming need to talk to the man.

Why did Dumbledore want Snape to supervise the group, anyway? Dumbledore knew that they didn't like each other, yet he kept putting them together, set on his decision. What use would it be? Everyone thought he was horrible! Looking down at the list of names, Harry counted. There were 112 students he knew which houses they belonged to and another fifteen he didn't. Harry groaned, covering his face with his hands and sliding down in the chair. It would be extremely hard to teach that many at once! Even the Dueling Club in second year didn't get that many people and Lockhart was 'teaching' it.

Just then, the answer came to him and he sat up fast. Snape did tend to make people obey him. That would be an upside. If they didn't behave, they'd have Snape to answer to, and no one wants that. But if Snape had to be at meetings, a lot of people would drop out. Aside for the Slytherins, no one really liked Snape that much. Respected, maybe, but he had yet to meet one Gryffindor who liked the man.

He looked down at the list again and thought it over. If someone really wanted to be in the D.A., they wouldn't care who was running it as long as they were learning, right? After he, he like defense even after all the horrible professors they've had. It would be a way of finding people who really cared or wanted help. That was an upside.

And it was rumored that Snape knew a lot about the Dark Arts. Who else would be a better advisor as to what defense spells to study? As much as Harry didn't like him, they could learn so much from him, if the man wasn't harassing him constantly. And at this point, that was all Harry really cared about. He wanted to learn as much as he could, especially if it was something could help save his life.

All these thoughts kept running through his head when a voice behind him gave him a start.

"In the library again, Potter," Snape said with a flat, unreadable voice. "You have most likely spent more time in the library this summer than all your years at Hogwarts." Harry turned around in his chair and studied Snape, wanting to spit verbal fire back. He was able to keep himself calm, though, and Snape spoke again. "The Room of Requirement. How did you find it?" After a moment, Harry answered.

"I asked Dobby if he knew of a place where we could practice without being found and without it seeming suspicious. This was after we couldn't think of any place. We thought about the Shrieking Shack, but it would have been too difficult to get everyone there without getting caught. The secret passage that would have been big enough for everyone was caved in, so that left that out." Harry stopped, not knowing what else to say.

"I see. Knowing how to get information is just as important as knowing the information itself. Sometimes even more important." Harry stared at Snape, whose expression slowly changed from neutral to a solid glare. Was that some sort of compliment? he thought, stunned. Harry quickly thought over the advantages and disadvantages of Snape supervising the D.A., and the benefits finally won out the war that had invaded Harry's mind. He knew Ron wouldn't like it one bit, but Hermione would see the advantage of it, of course. She didn't like how Snape treated most of his students, but she respected him for how much he knew.

"Er, sir . . ." Harry started as Snape turn toward the door.

"Yes?" he paused, but didn't turn around.

"Sir, I . . . I'm sorry about . . . what I said before, about there being no one who would want you to teach them. I was angry . . . I . . . would like you to help with the DA . . . if you would?"

Severus turned around slowly and simply stared into the boy's eyes. That was the last thing he expected to come from the boy's mouth. Potter was actually asking him to watch over that little group of his? He knew he told himself he would if Potter asked his, but it sounded if the boy wanted him to. The apology sounded sincere, but . . .

"Why, Potter? What good would it do? What reasons do you have?" he asked, not wanting to believe he was being honest.

"Er . . . several reasons, sir." Potter paused and Severus was tempted to verbally coerce the boy to continue with a few harsh words. "D-Headmaster Dumbledore said you like Defense and I heard know a lot about it, too, so if there are questions, you would be there to answer. You are . . . er . . . you know, strict, which would be necessary with so many people; students are . . . afraid to disobey you. And it'd be a good way to filter out those who just want to join for . . . reasons other to learn." Severus listen as Potter stumbled through his explanation. "Those who really want to be in the D.A. won't care if the supervisor is you, even if they don't like you."

"Like you?" he asked, his voice sounding bitter unintentionally.

"Wh . . . no," the boy stuttered. "There's plenty of people!" he continued, obviously getting his courage back. "Those who followed me to the ministry last year," Potter paused at this, looked down, and seemed to be reliving memories. "Ron might not like it, but he'll listen in the end. Possibly most the Slytherins who want to join." Snape raised an eyebrow again at this. "Most of last year's D.A., at least the ones who are interested in rejoining. . . I really can't say for sure on anything else."

"And what would I get from this? Another hour with a bunch of insufferable dunderheads like you?" he asked, and Potter shrugged.

"I'm not sure, sir," Potter replied, not looking up, and stopped at that.

"I will think about it," Severus said so it wouldn't seem as if he had already decided.

"Okay, thanks, sir," Harry replied and then he went back to his lists. Glancing at the list of names which haven't been sorted, he turned back to Snape, glad that he hadn't already started to walk away because he knew he wouldn't call him back if he had. "Er, sir? Do you think you could help me sort these people into the correct houses?" he asked, sort of waving the list around. Snape took the list roughly and began listing off names and houses.

Ten minutes later, they had all hundred-some names sorted into House and Year – not just House -- which made a lot more sense. Harry shook his head at the lists. They were all fourth year and up, thank Merlin, which made things easier.

"At least there isn't anyone under fourth year." Once again Harry shook his head.

"What?" Snape asked, turning his attention from the Slytherin list to him.

"This is getting more complicated every time it starts to get easier. The D.A. might have to be split into levels."

"That would make sense," Snape agreed, and Harry saw the man look at him, as if determining how much he was worth. "I have decided that I will help with your little club," Snape finally relented.

"Thank you, professor. That will help a lot," he said, relaxing a bit. He was going to try to talk more, but Snape cut in.

"Now, I have potions to stock. I do not wish to be disturbed," Snape curtly said and he left immediately.