Disclaimer: Oh, come on, people! Does anybody really think I could come up with something as great as HP? If anybody does, I'm flattered, but here's a newsflash: I DIDN'T!

Severus absently called the register for his new First Year class, not fully paying attention to the names he was reading. As he did so, he ran his eyes over the kids.

Scared witless, all of them. Probably feverishly trying to block out the stories their elder brothers, sisters, friends, and relatives had told them about Professor Snape, the hook-nosed, bat-like, Potions master, who was the closest friend of old Tolley, the Head of Slytherin House.

Tonks sat in her seat near the back, with her fingers tying knots in her lap. Please don't call the register, please don't call the register, please don't –

"…call the register. Abbott?"

Jesus Christ! Would it kill these teachers to just miss out on one registration? It's bad enough being whispered about in the corridors, let alone having what I am announced every lesson.

"Y – y – yes."

Severus sighed, his eyes hard diamonds in the parchment-like skin of his face. It would have been worse if he had started shouting. The entire class immediately shrank back in their seats, cowering.

"Oh, Abbott. Abbott, Abbott, Abbott. There's something you seem to have forgotten. What is it, Abbott?" He had come closer now and was practically nose to nose with his unfortunate victim.

The chunky boy with mousy hair plastered to his scalp gulped.

"I don't know. Mr Snape, I mean, Professor. No, I mean, Professor Snape."

It came out as barely more than a whisper.

"Let's refresh your memory, shall we?" Snape said, so quietly you could hardly hear him. Then he simply smiled; but it was a merciless, shark-like smile. If you could call it one, anyway. It was more a parting of the lips, than a smile.

He stopped parting his lips (there was no way Tonks could think of it as a smile, even if it did sound a little weird). Instead his face became cold, and his voice suddenly became a roar as he straightened up and started pacing the room, walking up and down the rows of desks.

"I will not tolerate disrespect in this classroom. I will not tolerate rudeness, carelessness, ignorance or apathy! When you address me, you address me as sir, and when I or another teacher enters the room, you will be up on your feet until you are given permission to sit! All work must be neatly presented, or you will do it again until I am satisfied! Is that clear?"

The silence muffled them like blanket. No one moved or spoke.

"I said, is that clear?"

There were a few squeaks from those who were furthest away from him.

Severus glared at the rest of the class until a ragged chorus replied, "Yes, sir."

Tonks, who had been crossing her fingers, toes, eyes, and anything that could be crossed (as well as everything else), breathed a sigh of relief as the Potions master seemed about to start the lesson, but she was too soon.

Severus, who was congratulating himself on a class well-terrified, and thus obedient, remembered the register open on his desk.

"Now, if I may continue…"

Tonks swore under her breath as he came to the T's.

"Trimble?"

"Here, Sir."

"Tell?"

"Here, Sir."

Really, thought Severus irritably. They might have put at least one interesting one in my class. It's almost as if – Then his mind stopped in mid-sentence. The next name was Tonks

Tonks was the name of that muggle Andromeda Black had married. Their child had been important, a Metamorphmagus, he believed. If he was completely honest with himself, Severus had tried to stay out of it. His father – Anyway, the Dark One had made a lot of fuss about that one.

Of course, Albus and his most powerful allies had taken care of it, but Severus wondered, sometimes, if any of them really trusted him, their most important double agent. Well, it was in the very nature of a spy to be untrustworthy. Severus' mouth twisted in the parody of a smile. He would prove himself to all of them. Someday.

Suddenly, he realised he was gazing into space in the middle of a lesson. The students were staring at him with a mixture of curiosity and fear. He didn't blame them. From their point of view, it could have looked like anything. A teacher, who was known to be interested in the Dark Arts, suddenly breaking off in the middle of registration to sit stock still doing nothing. For all they knew, he could have been under the Imperious Curse.

These kids had grown up in a world fraught with danger and death. They had been taught protection spells, charms and potions since before they could talk. They probably couldn't remember a time when you couldn't go anywhere alone, or where you didn't have to activate wards when you returned from school. In fact, they would all be used to reading the papers and discovering their friends and relatives had been murdered or tortured until they could bear it no longer.

If they ever survived into adulthood, Severus would be prepared to bet that most of them would never completely trust anyone again.

Suddenly, he was overcome with a terrible, nameless fear. He slammed the register shut and hurried from the room, calling over his should as he did so, to read and then copy out the first page of the textbook.

The first page of the textbook? What the hell is on that page? It doesn't matter. Something's wrong. I can feel it.

Sorry it was so short! I promise the next chappie will be longer! I know that this bit was mainly from Snape's POV, but I had to put it in otherwise it wouldn't make any sense later on. Bear with me, please!

Thanks to the people who reviewed, and to those who didn't – WHY THE HELL NOT! Get reviewing – it's really great when you read them (It makes me feel loved…). And I don't mind flames so if you think the story's awful, tell me so! I want to know what people think!

Just a few points which I want to clear up:

I set this part of the story about six months to a year before Harry did his thing and walloped Voldy, where Snape is working for Dumbledore. I spent a while working out whether the dates match and I'm pretty sure they do. For the purposes of this story, I'm saying that Voldy's been in power for about eight to ten years. Please note: I do not particularly care if HPATPS states clearly that it was only two years. I want that little mental monologue from Snape, and I will get it in somewhere. Hmmm…Apparation. Not available on Hogwarts Airlines. Oh, screw it. Ah well, just pretend that…Hogwarts' Apparation shield/thing is down because…um…well, it's down, okay! The first few chapters were quite detailed (more like verging on ridiculously, if I'm honest with myself), and if I carry on doing a single day in each chapter like I am, its going to end up being about two hundred chapters of nothing much. After introducing all the characters etc, I'm only going to do the important parts. I usually forget to put in disclaimers, so if you don't see one, just don't pay any attention. I'll realise after a few weeks and put one in. Speaking of disclaimers… scrolls to top of page, then starts banging head on keyboard It's going in now, I promise!