A/N: Sorry this one took so long! I had trouble getting everything to fit together right. I hope you like it!

Thanks for reading and reviewing!

I don't own Harry Potter.

Lessons

"You know what's weird about being in Gryffindor?" Sirius asked as they climbed through the portrait hole to go to breakfast.

"What?" Remus asked.

"Sharing a common room with Mudbloods. That would never happen at home."

Remus stopped so suddenly that James and Peter walked into him, both stumbling.

"What did you say?" James asked.

"I said that it's weird to share a common room with Mudbloods," Sirius repeated.

"Sirius," Remus said faintly, "you can't say things like that!"

"What do you mean?" Sirius frowned. "I mean it. People like them would never be allowed in my house." He grinned. "It's fun to know how upset my parents would be about it."

"No, Sirius, that's not what he means," James said.

"What do you mean?" Sirius asked, frowning.

"They mean that you can't use that word," Peter said.

"What word? Mudblood?"

"That one," Peter affirmed.

"How else do you talk about people whose parents are Muggles?"

"You call them Muggle-born," James said. "Sirius, that's a really, really awful word you used."

"You didn't know?" Peter asked quietly, watching Sirius' frown deepen.

"No," Sirius said slowly, "I didn't."

Remus nodded. "Just … don't use it anymore, okay?"

"Gryffindors don't say that," James added.

"Polite society doesn't say that," Peter said, his voice still quite low.

Sirius ran his hand through his hair. "I'm sorry, guys. I really didn't know."

"Hey, that's why we're in school, right?" James said, punching his shoulder. "To learn."

Sirius grinned. "Yeah," he said. "It's time to learn everything I never would have at home."

"So?" Severus asked eagerly. "What did you think of it?"

"It was … kind of dull," Lily admitted, hating that she hadn't enjoyed Severus' favorite subject.

As she had feared, his face fell. "You didn't like Potions?"

"Well … all we did was listen to a lecture and take notes," Lily said.

Severus nodded, his face clearing. "That's right. The first lesson is all about learning how to brew potions. Just wait until the next one – just wait. You'll love it. You'll see." His face lit up with a smile. "Watching the potion change as you add the ingredients … it's the most amazing thing I've ever seen."

Lily coaxed forth a smile. "I'm sure I'll like it better."

"You will," Severus said confidently. "I liked Charms," he added, knowing that it had been Lily's favorite class to date.

Her face lit up. "Isn't it fun? Isn't Professor Flitwick adorable?"

"He's nice," Severus said. "And, he seems like a good teacher."

"They all do."

Severus made a face. "I don't know about Professor Bruno. I really thought Defense Against the Dark Arts would be more … exciting."

Lily shrugged. "Some of the Gryffindor boys said the same thing. I didn't mind it, though. I don't know anything about it."

Severus made a face at her reference to the other boys in her House. "I know enough to know that it's supposed to be a better class than that."

"I still feel behind," Lily admitted. "I don't know anything about any of these classes. I didn't know anything about any of this at all before you told me. I still can't believe that this is my life now."

"You're not really behind. None of us knew exactly what Hogwarts would be like." Severus grinned. "But, now that you're here … just wait. It's only going to get better."

"Good morning, Gryffindors."

"Good morning, Professor Slughorn."

He smiled at them and clapped his hands together in front of him. "Well! After our last lesson, I'm sure you're all well-prepared to start brewing a potion, eh? I thought we'd start off this year with a simple Sleeping Draught. So, if you'll open your books to page 10, you'll see a list of all the ingredients you'll need, as well as the procedures. Please start by reading what it says."

He paused as the students began flipping through their books to find the right page. Within moments, their heads were bent over the open books. As they began to look up again, he smiled at them.

"Any questions about the procedure?"

Silence rang through the classroom.

"Good, good. Now, all of the ingredients you'll need that you don't already have in your Potions kits are here in the student cupboard. Please take a moment to assemble your ingredients."

As Lily began laying out the ingredients in the order she would need them, a sense of familiarity came over her. She looked at Dana, who was working at her table.

"I feel like I've done this before."

Dana frowned. "How? This is only our second lesson."

"I know," Lily said. "It's weird."

"Once you have your ingredients prepared, you may begin," Professor Slughorn said. "Follow the procedure as it is written in your book."

Lily shrugged and lit the fire under her cauldron, working to bring it to the level specified in the book. Slughorn made his way around the room, checking to make sure that no one was in danger of letting their fire get away from them.

Lily read over page ten again, and began slowly adding her ingredients, carefully slicing and mixing as instructed. Within minutes, her potion began to take shape in her cauldron.

"Oh!" she exclaimed as she stirred it. "Look, Dana! Is this what it's supposed to look like?"

Dana looked into Lily's cauldron. "Mine is more green than yours. Is yours right?"

"I don't know," Lily said. Concern crossed her face. "Am I doing it wrong?"

"Maybe I am," Dana said. "My mum is really good at making potions. I always wanted to help when I was little, but she'd never let me." She looked back into her cauldron glumly. "If this is wrong, it's all her fault for never letting me help."

"Well, my mum never …" Lily trailed off, her eyes lighting up. "Dana! That's why I feel like I've done this before!"

"What do you mean?"

"It's just like cooking! Petunia and I started helping our mum cook as soon as we were tall enough to see the counter." She smiled. "I'm going to like this class. I know it."

"More work, less chatter," Professor Slughorn said as he joined Lily and Dana. "Let's see, let's see …" He bent over their cauldrons. "Stir more gently, Miss Morgan," he said. "That will set your potion right. And, Miss Evans …" His eyes widened. "This is beautiful! Exceptionally well done! Have you been practicing your potion skills at home?"

"No, sir," Lily said. "I've only ever cooked – it's very similar."

"She's Muggle-born," Dana said helpfully.

"Muggle-born," he repeated, smiling at her. "Miss Evans, I'm hosting a dinner party next Friday evening in my office. Do you think you'd like to attend?"

"Yes, of course," Lily said, surprised by the sudden invitation.

"Excellent, excellent." He leaned closer. "And, if you can convince Mr. Black to join us, I'd greatly appreciate it."

Winking at her, he continued on to check on Olivia and Kathleen's potions.

"Aren't you fancy?" Dana said, grinning at her. "Are you going to talk Sirius into going for him?"

Lily made a face. "No, thank you. I'm sure it'll be more fun without him."

"I don't see why you'd turn him down," James said as they boys made their way to lunch after Potions. "He's just trying to be nice."

"He's Head of Slytherin," Sirius said. "I don't want anything to do with him."

"I think you're doing the right thing," Peter said supportively. "I don't trust him."

James laughed. "That's just because he said your potion was terrible."

"It sort of was, Peter," Sirius said. "I'll give you a hand next time."

"Would you?" Peter asked. He made a face. "I can't believe he gave me extra homework. That's so unfair!"

"I don't think I like Potions," Remus said. "Slughorn's fine, but it's just kind of boring, standing around, mixing stuff together."

"How can you say that?" Sirius said. "I thought it was good fun."

"Because you were good at it," James said with a laugh.

"You weren't bad."

"Yeah, but you were better." James shifted his bag on his shoulder. "I'll have to study extra-hard to keep up with you in that class."

Sirius winked at him. "You do that. Just try to catch me."

James grinned. "I accept the challenge."

"And, I look forward to defeating you."

Remus and Peter exchanged a glance. It was shaping up to be an interesting year.

"You were right!"

Severus looked up as Lily ran up to him in the courtyard, where he was studying for his next Transfiguration lesson. "About what?" he asked, closing his book.

"Potions was so much fun today! We got to make a Sleeping Draught! Mine put the hedgehog right to sleep."

Severus smiled at her. "I knew you'd like it. Isn't Professor Slughorn great?"

Lily nodded. "He said my potion was beautiful. He even invited me to dinner next week! Isn't that great? Are you going to go?"

Severus looked stunned. "Dinner?"

"Yeah … in his office. He even told me to …" Her face fell as she realized why her friend was so quiet. "You … weren't invited?"

Severus shook his head. "I've heard that Slughorn has a special club of students – all handpicked, all … brilliant." He looked away. "I'm sure you'll have fun."

Lily touched his hand, bringing his startled eyes back to her face. "I wish you were going, too." She bit her lip. "Maybe … maybe next time, you can come. I'll talk to him."

"No," Severus said forcefully. "Don't do that."

"Why not?"

"I want to get in myself – not because he's doing a favor to you. I'll just work harder, that's all."

"I'm sure you'll be able to come next time," Lily said. She saw Olivia and Dana waving to her from across the courtyard. "I promised my friends I'd study with them in the library. I've got to go meet them."

Severus nodded. "I'll see you later."

Lily smiled. "See you!"

She ran across the courtyard to meet the girls, unaware of the way Severus watched her retreating back.

"Who were you talking to, Lily?" Dana asked as she joined them.

"Severus," Lily said.

"Her boy-friend," Olivia said in a sing-song voice.

"He's not my boyfriend," Lily said. "He's just a friend."

"He's a Slytherin," Dana said.

"Yeah, I know," Lily said. "That's what he really wanted. Even before we got to Hogwarts, he was talking about being in Slytherin."

Dana and Olivia exchanged a look.

"What?" Lily asked.

"I know there's a lot you don't understand about wizards, Lily," Olivia said. "But, being in Slytherin …"

"What?" Lily asked, quickly becoming frustrated.

"Slytherins have a reputation for not liking anyone who isn't a pureblood wizard," Dana said carefully. "It's just a little odd that one of them would befriend …"

"Me?" Lily asked, flinching slightly. She was clearly stung by their words.

"I don't mean it like that!" Dana exclaimed.

"You need to talk to Sirius," Olivia said. "I have a feeling he can explain it better than we can."

"Sirius?" Lily repeated. "No, thanks. He's too annoying to talk to."

"Yeah, but …" Dana looked at Olivia.

"He's the first of his family to not be in Slytherin," Olivia said. "He can explain the way they think a lot better than we can."

Lily bit her lip, weighing her decision. "Oh, okay," she finally said. "But, if he's too annoying, I'm leaving the conversation."

They had only been in school for a few days when they learned that Potions was not the only subject that gave Peter trouble. Although he was becoming a friend to James as quickly as Remus and Sirius were, he was not nearly as quick or as talented as the others. The boys had offered to help him, but James and Sirius quickly regretted their generosity. Only Remus never lost patience with him.

"I don't know how you do it," James said, flopping into the chair next to Remus in the common room. He had just returned from tutoring Peter in the library.

"Nice hair," Remus smiled.

James reached up to touch his hair. It was always untidy, no matter what he or his mother did to it, but now it was sticking straight up, a result of James running his hands through it in frustration.

"Look, James," Remus began, "Peter's not as clever as you."

"Or you," James interrupted. "Don't sell yourself short, Remus."

Remus waved his comment aside. "We can't all be good at everything. Some people need more help than others. I'm glad I can help Peter."

"I'm glad I can help," James said quickly. "I just wish he'd catch on a bit faster."

Remus sighed, convinced his words hadn't helped to change his friend's attitude.

"Where is Peter?" he asked.

"He and Sirius stayed in the library to go over some Potions notes," James replied. "I'm sure they'll be back soon."

Remus nodded. James had the patience of a saint compared to Sirius' ability to tolerate Peter's lack of knowledge. Impatient by nature, Sirius would generally give up on Peter within fifteen minutes.

As if on cue, the portrait hole swung open, and Peter and Sirius walked through it. They both looked a little disgruntled as they made their way to where James and Remus were sitting.

"Nice hair," Sirius said sarcastically, sitting down next to James.

James shrugged. "It's not going to get any better."

Remus smiled. "How'd the studying go?"

Sirius shot him a glare. "Oh, just great," he replied.

Peter clasped his hands together. "Look, I know you guys must hate tutoring me. I can do it all on my own if you'd rather not bother."

Sirius felt a surge of hope, but Remus quickly extinguished it.

"Don't be silly," he said. "We don't mind helping you."

"Yeah, let's be honest, Peter," James said. "You need our help. Besides, I think it's helpful to go over everything with you. That way we learn it better, too."

Remus and Sirius both turned to look at James in surprise. Remus was impressed. Perhaps his words had made a difference in James' attitude. Sirius looked like he was struggling between admiration and annoyance. He didn't understand how James and Remus could be so patient with Peter, and sometimes he wish he could be. But at the same time, James and Remus had just roped him into tutoring Peter indefinitely.

"Sirius?"

All four boys looked up as Lily joined them. Her hands were clasped in front of her as though she were nervous.

"Hey, Lily," Sirius said. "What's up?"

"I wanted to talk to you for a minute." She glanced around at the other boys. "Alone."

Sirius' eyebrows shot up. "Okay," he said slowly, standing to walk to a secluded area of the common room with her.

James looked at Remus and Peter. "What's that all about?"

"No idea," Peter said.

Remus shrugged. "I've never seen them talk before."

"I was under the impression that her majesty didn't think too highly of us," James said.

"Her majesty?" Peter repeated, chuckling.

"Yeah," James said. "Haven't you seen the way she is? She's always acting like she's better than the rest of us – like she's too good to talk to us."

"I don't know," Remus said. "She's really close with the other girls."

"Yeah, but she completely ignores the rest of us!"

"She's not so bad," Remus said.

"She's not as good as she thinks, either."

Remus looked at James sharply, wondering what it was about Lily that had him so upset. Unless…

"James, can you go over my Transfiguration essay with me?" Remus asked.

He had a feeling that digging deeper into the conversation about Lily would leave James quite embarrassed. A change of topic – and, the distraction of James' best subject – seemed to be the safest way to go.

"What's up?" Sirius asked again as he and Lily sat down together.

"I was talking to the girls the other day, and they thought that you might be able to help me with something," she said.

"Okay."

"You know that I'm Muggle-born, right?"

"Yeah, I knew that."

"Well, I have a friend who's a Slytherin," Lily said. "And, Dana and Olivia said that it's weird that he'd be friends with … me. But, they were doing a really terrible job of explaining why, but they said you'd get it." She took a deep breath. "Can you tell me … what Slytherin is all about?"

Sirius exhaled. "They're right, you know. Slytherins don't usually want anything to do with anyone who isn't a pureblood. They call everyone else Mudblood – it means that your blood is dirty because it's been mixed with non-magical blood." His face twisted slightly. "I just learned the other day that it's a really, really awful word. If anyone calls you that, Lily, ever … Don't let them get away with it."

Lily's face fell. "So, that means that –"

"I don't know of another word for it," Sirius said.

"But, the idea behind it …"

"Oh, that. It doesn't mean anything, really, unless you believe it," Sirius said. "My family have all been in Slytherin. They believe in purity of blood above everything else. They really hate Muggles. It's just … how they think."

"It's like racism, I guess."

"What's that?"

"The same basic thing. It's what we have in the Muggle world. Some people hate others because they're black or another race – anything but what they are themselves."

"Huh," Sirius said. "Yeah, sounds pretty similar. Bear in mind, it can get violent. People like my family – not my parents, of course, they're too squeamish – will torture Muggles for fun. They'll go after any other non-purebloods, too."

Lily's face twisted. "That's horrible."

"Yeah," Sirius said. "That's why James and I came down so hard on your friend on the train," he added. "We've lived in this world our whole lives. Anyone who wants to be in Slytherin … well, we can kind of assume why."

Lily nodded slowly and stood up. "Thanks, Sirius."

He nodded. "You're welcome."