:A/N: - OK, so here's what happened. my chapters within my main document weren't matching up w/ the chapter lables on the drop down menu. i couldn't figure it out for like 3 days... but today i finally figured out what it was - i just... labled chapter 7 wrong. i skipped it. and chapter 8 got labled chapter 7... which explains a LOT - so... the first version of "chapter 7" i thought was really cute, and sort of a staple to the plot - so i added it into the other chapter 7... this was easier than deleting all the chapters - renaming them in word, then reposting them & everyone w/ alerts ending up w/ A ZILLION emails from :new chapter of l ying eyes by kenz3b: or some crap like that. so - hope this is ok w/ everyone - i'm going to work twice as hard here to get the latest chapter up for all my loyal readers - you guys rock my life.

Pre-Chapter 7

The next day dawned much too soon for Lexie. Now not only was she no longer looking forward to her first lesson with Snape, she also had the unhappy thought of a detention with him on Friday night of all nights. Before she knew it, she was making her way back to the dungeons for Potions.

"Well… so much for keeping a low profile." Lexie thought to herself as she stood waiting outside of Snape's dungeon classroom the next afternoon. It would certainly prove difficult to keep Snape from noticing her in class now. But Lexie wasn't defeated just yet. She was determined to complete her mission, by any means necessary. So she'd have to try a different approach.

Her thoughts were cut short as the heavy wooden door banged open and Snape stood before them, hand still on the door. His gaze swept over the class which was queued up in front of him. "Inside." He said simply. He turned, his robes swishing behind him dramatically as he made his way back inside.

Lexie took a seat with her roommates in the middle of the room. Apparently they were sharing her desire to stay out of the spotlight in Snape's class today. Particularly after the trouble they'd landed themselves in last night. Though, Dru didn't actually remember their run-in with Snape, she'd been filled in as soon as they managed to bring her back to the world of the living. Dru had taken it worst of all. She hated confrontation and was far and away the meekest of the roommates. Natasha was simply disgusted that Lexie had scraped a detention with Snape while she got stuck with, "the filthy half-giant" as she referred to Hagrid. Lexie was irritated with the whole situation, but figured she could use her detention with Snape to try to find out if what Natasha had said about him last night was true.

There was a distinct possibility that Natasha was making up the entire story about Snape recruiting students as Death Eaters. It was possible because Natasha enjoyed being the center of attention and most especially in situations that were action-packed or dramatic. However… why would she make up a story that just so happened to be the same suspicion that her boss was harboring? The answer was, that it probably wasn't a story at all. The answer was that Sophie probably was right about Snape all along. And the sooner she could prove it the sooner she'd be able to finish the mission and get out of this school.

Snape began his lecture as though continuing from the day before. Lexie was slightly lost at the beginning, but 20 minutes into the lesson, she was completely confident that she was up to speed. Once Snape had explained the ingredients needed to make a Draught of the Living Dead potion, he waved his hand carelessly and directions appeared on the chalkboard in his slanted scrawl. "You have 90 minutes… begin." He said lazily as he settled himself down in the chair behind his desk.

Her mind was working overtime as she considered every possible angle she could work to get Snape to slip up in front of her. "I could always brew up a bit of Polyjuice potion… kidnap Natasha and see if she could get Snape to tell her who he was training to be a Death Eater…" Lexie said as she added the last of her ingredients in. "But that won't work unless he thinks she's trustworthy enough to let her in on that. And well… that's doubtful seeing that I'm not sure he likes her much more than he likes me. Well… I could always try seducing him… uggghh… no. Let's not go there." She thought vaguely as she adjusted the flame under her cauldron. "Hm… I have to be proactive. But what's the best way?" she continued to think stirring her potion thoughtlessly. With every seventh counter clockwise stir, she added in a clockwise one and before she'd realized what she was doing, she'd filled her flask, corked it, labeled it and placed it on Snape's desk.

Lexie was still mumbling inside her head potential ideas when Snape's voice awoke her. "Through already?" He asked skeptically, tilting his head to look up at her from his seat.

Lexie nodded.

Snape raised his brow slightly, "Well then… I'm sure you wouldn't mind if we tested it?" he asked purposefully.

She shrugged, indifferently, not speculating on what or who he planned to test it on.

"Gather round everyone." Snape said standing up and retrieving a teaspoon from the cupboard behind his desk. Lexie looked around frantically, wondering what exactly he was up to. He handed the teaspoon to Lexie and picked up her flask; meaning that the test subject was to be her. "Miss Bane here has completed her potion in an extraordinarily brief amount of time… so…" he said, sounding as though Christmas had come early, "We shall see just how much she actually learned from her previous Potionsmaster." He said, his eyes looking hungry and eager.

Lexie's mouth was suddenly bone dry. "But… but what if it's wrong? What if it poisons me?"

"If it's wrong… why did you turn it in?" he asked savagely, uncorking the flask of her potion. Lexie's prior confidence had gone out the window. She swallowed hard and held out the teaspoon for Snape to pour her potion onto. Her hand was shaking so badly that Snape had to take hold of the handle of the spoon himself to steady it. The Slytherins, including her roommates, looked anxious. The Gryffindors who were sharing her lesson looked frightened and they all waited with baited breath as the spoon moved slowly to Lexie's mouth.

Once again, her eyes were locked with Snape's as she put the teaspoon to her lips. He was staring at them intently. She gulped down the potion, hoping that if it wasn't correct, and it did poison her, that someone would at least make an attempt to get the medi-witch before she croaked.

Natasha and Dru watched eagerly from just behind their roommate. Lexie swallowed again. Then suddenly, without warning, she collapsed. The entire class gasped in shock. Snape's arms shot out and caught her before her head smacked the corner of the desk. He jerked his head at his chair and it rolled itself over to him. "Is she going to be ok!" asked one Gryffindor girl sounding panicked. He laid the unconscious Lexie into the chair and turned around to his cupboard once again, clearly ignoring the girl's concern. He pulled out a glass vile with a powder blue looking potion inside it. He gripped Lexie's chin and opened her mouth slightly to pour the antidote inside. He tilted her head backwards and let it drain down her throat. He took a step back from her and waited. Though he didn't show it, outwardly, he was just as curious to find out if Lexie's potion had worked as the students were. If it did, and she woke up within one minute of ingesting the antidote, then her concoction of a rather difficult potion was most impressive indeed.

Just then, 45 seconds after Snape had dumped the antidote down her throat, Lexie drew in a gasp and sat up strait. The effects of the Draught of the Living Dead were extreme. The drinker all but stopped breathing and his or her heartbeat slowed to nearly a halt. Waking up was the most difficult part, to find yourself suddenly drawing the cold air into your lungs and being alive once again… Snape new the sensation well.

He was therefore not surprised to see Lexie reflexively grab her chest and throat. The feel of sucking in an entire breath of cold air stung the nose, air passageways and stabbed the lungs painfully. She coughed and gasped for another thirty seconds in which Snape watched her intently for side effects. Her eyes and nose leaked uncontrollably. Finally she calmed. But upon calming, she looked furiously up at Snape.

"Well done." Snape said curtly. "That's enough for today. Bring your flasks to my desk, make sure your name is on them and get out of my sight." He said waving his hand toward the door.

Chapter 7

As Saturday arrived, Lexie was sure that all the clocks within the school were moving twice as fast as usual. Everything she wanted to put off seemed to be there before she could mentally prepare herself for them.

Lexie had barely blinked her eyes and it was Saturday afternoon and all she had to look forward to was an evening in detention with Snape. Dread mounted as the hour drew nearer when Lexie would have to make her way to Snape's dungeon office where she'd been directed to meet him.

When the time came, she stood outside for a moment before knocking to compose herself. After a few deep breaths and assuring herself that she'd emerge from his office a few hours later, unscathed (or so she'd hoped), she tapped softly on the heavy wooden door.

She heard his voice from within call, "Enter." She swung the door open and stepped cautiously inside. He was sitting characteristically behind his desk, quill in hand, pouring over a large stack of yellow looking parchment; presumably essays he'd bombarded all of his students with earlier in the week. Lexie got some small bit of satisfaction in knowing that for as much agony as Snape's lengthy, tedious essays caused her and her classmates, they still proved to be something of a hassle for Snape himself.

Snape made one more scribble on the top essay and tossed it aside. "Good evening Miss Bane." He said sardonically

Lexie gulped, remembering why she was there, she responded to him promptly, "Good evening Professor." She said quietly.

Snape's office was like no other teacher's office she'd ever seen. His desk was not a rectangle shape but instead a half circle. A stone fireplace stood to the left of the desk, but it was cold and uninviting with no fire in the hearth. 'Heaven forbid we make the place a bit more cheery..." Lexie thought to herself as her eyes continued to rove around the room. There were shelves upon shelves on the walls; all with great glass jars sitting on them. The jars all contained something different, something obscure or grotesque, suspended in different shades of poisonous looking liquid. There was also a rather elaborate bookshelf to the right of the desk. It had books of all sizes, all leather-bound and antique looking. She'd been correct in thinking privately that Snape did a lot of reading in his spare time...

'That is, when he's not out carousing around in Knockturn with Death Eaters or choking someone in an alleyway."... no she hadn't forgotten that night. The fear that he'd struck into her heart still remained. She found it incredible that when he had first approached her he seemed charming, charismatic in fact. But then, only moments later, it was as though he'd been possessed by some sort of demon. His demeanor had changed so suddenly... his ability to go from gentleman to Death Eater in seconds was certainly worrisome. A characteristic found in psyc patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder... neither of which she was ruling out in Snape, just yet anyway. However, it was also a characteristic of most undercover agents... spies.

"For your detention, I thought perhaps we would start off with re-labeling all of the antidotes I have in my personal stores," he gestured at a shelf over her shoulder, on which sat nearly fifty tiny glass vials. "And since you are such an above average potionsmaker, if you are unable to read the labels, surely you will be able to figure out what they are by their color and scent. On the table in front of my desk is a quill, ink well and labels. You have until midnight. You may begin." He instructed, his voice soft and dangerous, yet still sounding relatively civil.

Lexie thought it would be in her best interest to not piss him off during this detention. She very much preferred the quiet, ominous Snape to the violent, angry Snape.

To her horror, Snape didn't return to his desk. Instead, he took up post leaning against it, facing her and watching her as she began the tedious assignment he'd set her. It was enough pressure to have to correctly re-label antidotes,for she was sure that Snape, like her previous Potionsmaster, had to use them on students frequently; but the pressure escalated unpleasantly with Severus Snape staring at her while she worked.

"Are you going to make a habit of causing trouble for me Miss Bane?" he asked curiously.

This statement startled her and she looked up, still holding a vial in her left hand. "No sir." She said instantly.

"Indeed?" he asked questioningly. "Well… you're not off to a very good start then if you're planning on being teacher's pet." He said.

Lexie couldn't think of anything to say so she didn't reply. Once again, Snape took to prowling around her in his annoyingly threatening manner. "As we're here so that I can get to know my newest student a bit better, why don't you tell me a little about yourself…" he paused directly behind her.

Lexie gulped. "What do you wanna know?" she asked tentatively, fearing for the first time that she'd have to tell Snape a boldface lie.

He surveyed her thoughtfully, folding his arms across his chest. "For starters, what brought you to Hogwarts?" he said simply.

"Well…" Lexie began, stalling for time. "I was adopted by a Muggle woman when I was just a small child. They tell me that my parents dropped me off at a monastery with some lame excuse about not being able to take care of me properly." She said holding a vial up to the light as to better examine it's contents. "I grew up here… went to primary school. Then my mother decided to move us to the States. She had a good job offer that required us to live abroad. She said she was doing 'what was best for us.'" Lexie said, frowning. She still wasn't convinced that moving a ten-year-old overseas, away from everything she knew, her home, her friends, her culture, was in their best interest. "A year later, I got my letter. Not knowing the difference between the magic schools, I responded to the letter sent to me from the magic school in the states and… off I went. It was around the same time that I started making inquiries about my real parents. My mother wouldn't tell me much about them. Said she didn't have the answers I was looking for. She said all of my answers were in London." Lexie said bitterly as she slapped a label on a vial containing an acid green liquid. "I came of age back in May. So I decided it was time to get some answers. Cuz I certainly wasn't getting them in rural Pennsylvania, that's for damn sure. So I moved over here just before school started." She said, startled that she had, without realizing it, told Snape pretty much her whole life story. Not, perhaps, the person she would've chosen to divulge all this personal information to under normal circumstances.

Snape was silent for a moment, in which Lexie continued to peruse the test tubes for some that she recognized. "And… how exactly do you plan on obtaining the information you seek?" he asked.

Lexie looked up at him. He was staring at her, his eyes hooded and curious. After locking eyes with him for a moment, she tore her stare away and back to her work, with the sudden sensation that she wasn't sure she liked the intense way he was looking at her. "I… don't know really. Guess I never really thought it through. It just seemed like I'd never know who I was while I was living a thousand miles away from where I came from. I figured getting back to my roots was a good place to start." she said, feeling completely foolish and childish for thinking that such a plan could work, for, in reality, she had moved here, (once she'd graduated magic school) on the offhand chance she'd discover something about herself that she hadn't known before.

"Perhaps," Snape said unexpectedly, taking Lexie off guard. "You may want to start with the local monasteries."

Lexie looked up sharply at him, her eyebrows knitted together in bewilderment.

"You said that's where your parents left you?" He asked, though it was not a question. Lexie nodded. "Well then, it seems a logical place to start."

There wasn't a word in Lexie's vocabulary that could accurately describe the astonishment she was feeling at that moment. "Maybe you're right. I'll think about it." She said simply again locking eyes with her teacher.

"Do." He replied.

Lexie worked quietly for another few minutes before Snape spoke again. "What exactly do you aspire to do once you are through with school?" he asked.

Lexie faltered. While she was in school, she'd only 'aspired' to be one thing; an Auror. But that probably wasn't the right thing to blurt out to an accused Death Eater, one whom she was supposed to be digging up information on. "Well… I like Potions. Perhaps I could go into alchemy." She said, trying hard to make it sound like a throwaway suggestion. She was sure he'd shoot her down anyway.

"What is it you enjoy so much about Potions?" he asked, sounding skeptical, as though no one in their right mind should actually enjoy brewing Potions.

"Why do you ask?" Lexie responded.

"Not many students would name Potions as their favorite class. They find it to be too tedious. Not something that you can breeze through if you are fooling around during class." He answered.

Lexie sighed. "When I was growing up… my mother worked a lot. It was just the two of us. We never had much. I mean, we had enough, I never complained. I knew she worked really hard to make life good for me and all… but she was away almost all the time. She had to take a second job to make ends meet. So I was on my own over the summers and while I was home from school on breaks. We never really spent much time together. Add to that the fact that I wasn't an American, I mean, none of the American students really wanted to mix with someone from Britain. So it wasn't like I had an abundance of friends. I guess you could say I was a loner. I went to class, came back to the common room, did my homework and went to bed. I wasn't exactly a little social butterfly. The few friends I did make were too busy trying to get boyfriends and get approval from the popular crowd to really be any company to me. I couldn't depend on them. I learned early… that the only person I could really depend on was myself. But Potions aren't like people, you know?" she said, not waiting for a response. "It doesn't matter what kind of mood you're in, what you're wearing, who you're going out with… if you follow the directions, the result is always the same. You can't count on other people to always act the same… but you can always bank on the fact that a potion will. If you just follow the instructions, add the right ingredients, at the right time, in the right order and amounts… you can always count on a potion to do just what you want it to." she said, scratching 'Shrinking solution' on a vial with cool blue liquid in it.

Snape was staring at her as though she had just sprouted another head. His head was swimming at the wisdom that this young girl had just spouted off. He'd never heard anyone else so perfectly compare potion making to life. No one else, except a seventeen year old Severus Snape. "That's very wise."

She looked back up at him. One of her dark curls was draping down over her eye. She placed the test tube she was holding into the shelf. She raised her tiny hand up and brushed the hairs out of her long eyelashes. "Thank you sir." She replied, her cheeks flushed pink and he would've sworn that he'd caught a hint of a smile.

He looked at her for a moment longer, contemplating the insight spoken from this student. She spoke as though she had many more years behind her than only seventeen. She had a mature outlook on the world, much more so than the rest of the students in her year and Snape was surprised, but pleasantly.

"Very well then." He said simply, uncrossing his arms. He stepped stealthily around the edge of his desk. "Carry on. Only three more happy hours left." He said cynically as he took his seat again.

Lexie watched him pick up his quill and dip it skillfully into his ink well. It wasn't until she heard his quill scratch a large letter F on the top sheet of parchment that she stopped looking at him and returned to her own work. It wasn't exactly the route she would've chosen to begin her research on Snape… she would've preferred it if he had been the one spilling his guts to her on their first evening of one-on-one conversation. However, Rome wasn't built in a day. Perhaps she'd have to bait him a little first before she could expect him to confide anything in her. Lure him into a sense of false security. Then again, perhaps he never would. But she was no longer just the random new student in his house. She now had a name, a face and a past.