Their first day at Hogwarts was a Sunday, which Harry and Hermione spent going through the castle to find where all of their classrooms were, not wanting to get lost and be late for their classes. Getting that worked out, they then went to check out the library, and had to drag themselves away for their afternoon tea with Severus. Harry didn't have a problem with Ron yet, he had woken up before the boy and was certain he wouldn't have had the foresight to do as he and Hermione had.
It was their first day of classes now and the pair were ecstatic as their first ever class of their schooling life was Potions. They were the first ones there, their fellow students still munching away at their food, though there had been some questioning looks thrown their way by the other Gryffindors. When Severus finally showed up, he chuckled and shook his head, "A little eager aren't we? The other lions will think you've gone batty for wanting to get to one of my classes. Might as well come in and help me set up."
"Great," the duo bagged their books and eagerly followed their friend and professor into his room, "This is awesome."
They hadn't seen the classroom the previous day, having eaten in Severus' private quarters, and despite the dank look, it was wonderful in their eyes. The professor laughed again, "Wonderful. Place your bags at the front desk; I want to keep an eye on you two troublemakers."
"Who? Us?" They tried to pull of innocence but failed.
"Yes, I remember watching you give those bullies what they deserved, and was damned proud of it," Severus handed them a sheet of parchment, "I wrote out the potion we'll be working on today for you both. Recognise it?"
He hadn't written what the potion was, wanting to test the pair, "It's a Boil-Cure Potion, simple enough to make as long as you follow the instructions to the letter."
"10 points to Gryffindor," the man shuddered lightly, "Haven't ever said that before, very odd feeling."
The young pair rolled their eyes and continued setting up their things. Severus left for a moment, and brought in the other students, most of whom looked on at the already present pair with disdain or horror. Harry and Hermione could instantly see the difference with the man, and weren't at all surprised when he slammed his hand onto his desk.
"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion-making. As there is little foolish wand waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect most of you to truly understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind and ensnaring the senses… I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, and put a stopper on death- if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach. Weasley, what is the difference between monkshood and Wolfsbane?"
The wizard looked like a doe in a car's headlights, "Uh…"
"Fine, where would I find a bezoar?"
"Hmm…"
"What would asphodel and wormwood create when together?"
This time Ron just sat there dumbstruck, bringing many snickers from the Slytherins in the class. Severus internally laughed, knowing that the boy was one of Albus' spies, but simply turned to face Harry and spied a way to get him and Hermione in his known good books, "Potter, first answer."
"Wolfsbane and monkshood are the same plant, they are also called aconite sir," Harry answered swiftly.
"Correct. Granger, second and third?"
"A bezoar is a stone taken from the stomach of a goat and it will save you from most potions. As for what asphodel and wormwood make, it is sleeping potion known as the Draught of the Living Dead, sir."
Severus nodded, "Wonders, two Gryffindors with brains, this is interesting. Everyone, the potion is on the board; I will be testing them on your partners at the end of the lesson. Start."
The two up the front didn't even need their recipe, they had read it often enough in their textbooks to know from memory, and easily were ahead of everyone else. By the time their potion was nearing the shimmering blue that meant it was finished, the pair knew that Weasley was going to cause his partner a lot of pain, and Neville Longbottom, Ron's partner, was going to do the same back at him, if the bright green was any evidence. Bottling and sealing their potions, Harry and Hermione began cleaning up their little mess.
Severus spotted them heading to his desk and subtly smiled, "Yes?"
"We've finished our potions sir," they passed over the vials.
"Good colour, now the test," this was the part he was dreading, he never liked causing the two of them pain, but he swiped a small amount of a Boil Potion onto their hands before dripping the potions on them, watching the boils heal instantly, "Perfectly done. Top marks and 10 points each to you. Finish up and head off to your next class."
"Thank you professor," the Gryffindors said before doing as he said.
They slowly made their way to their next class, a Defence double, talking to themselves about the class they had just finished, excited and not wanting to wait for their next one. In the classroom, Severus ended up sending Weasley, Neville, plus two of his Slytherins, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, to the Hospital Wing after their potions caused serious problems, sighing the entire time, wanting to go back to training his young wards instead of dealing with idiots.