In Character
Chapter 4
Borya was back again. If it had been any other student, Severus would have owled Borya's parents about his horrendous behavioral problem years ago. As it was no one was quite sure who his parents were or if he even had any. He'd shown up as a first year, explaining that he'd traveled all the way from Siberia just to attend the finest wizarding school in existence. Snape had had his suspicions, but Darius had charmed everyone else. He hated mudbloods, he claimed to be descended from an aristocratic Russian wizarding family, and most importantly he had enough money to buy God and pay for his own tuition.
In all the timeBorya hadbeen a student at Slytherin, Severus hadn't seenhim receive a single piece of mail, nor send one out. And yet he went somewhere on every holiday.
Borya was cleaning cauldrons as punishment for Snape. He had so much practice at this, though, that he could make every cauldron in Severus' collection spotless in under an hour. After he finishes, Severus mused, he will have to extract frog dung.
The problem was that Borya was practiced at that as well. In fact, Borya had suffered through every punishment Severus could devise dozens of times, and he always jauntily walked away with a cocky smile on his face. Maybe, thought Severus, as he watched Borya put away the last cauldron, it's time to put this brat to good use.
Borya leaned nonchalantly against the counter, grinning. "So…what's next?"
Severus eyed him, not really sure he wanted to do this. The little bastard is cocky enough as it is. If I have him make potions for me, he'll start to think we're equals. He'll be fucking insufferable.
Borya opened his mouth to speak again, but Severus cut him off, barking, "You have an hour to prepare and brew the antidote to the Draught of the Living Death. After that hour is through you will drink some Draught, even if I have to force it down your throat, so you best brew it perfectly."
Severus allowed himself a small smirk of victory as Borya's eyes widened in fear, for once losing his sanctimonious, arrogant smirk. "Although," admitted Severus, slipping into the menacing, silky baritone he used to love, "I must tell you that it doesn't matter to me in the slightest how this exercise goes. If you brew it perfectly, I will gain a relatively competent potions assistant. If you don't…well, then I'll be rid of the most infuriating student I've had since Harry Potter himself!"
Silence descended upon the room as Severus gazed calmly at Borya, who stared back in shock. "You'd better go," Severus sneered, "you have an hour, starting thirty seconds ago,"