I now have a Beta. They are currently working through the old chapter and trying to fix my mistakes.

There are two or three more chapters before things will slow down so I will post them and my Beat will hopefully be able to sort through them. After that I will be having them beta any new chapters before posting them.

Also just a heads up there is a part in this chapter that might be a 'trigger' (I think that is what people call it) for some people. It is just a reference to when Harry was still in Muggle education but I understand some people might have an issue with it. If this is the case I am sorry bit it just fit in with how I think some people would react to being around a kid so much smarter then them.

Enjoy :)

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Disclaimer: I own nothing :(

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Beta: alexis. metoyer. 1

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Chapter 4- How to Show up a Teacher

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Harry didn't leave his room the next day, only moving from one compartment of his trunk to another while Poe kept watch for him. He didn't notice that he hadn't eaten since the day before, or that he was hungry at all. All he did was read his books, practice his spells, make potions, and add new spells to his Grimoire.

It was very relaxing.

There were no annoying children trying to talk to him, or adults complaining about his attitude problems. It was just Harry, Poe, and his work.

However, the next day would be the start of the School term, and as much as he wanted to stay in his room to continue his self-study, Harry knew if he stayed someone would be sent to find him. So with Poe once again perched on his shoulder, he made his way down to the Great Hall for 7:30 am after getting some last minute practice in.

Unlike the last time he had been there, the Hall was full by the time he arrived. He saw the eyes of the students following him as he walked to his table; he heard the muttering and whispers. Did they actually think he was deaf? It was like they weren't even trying to hide the fact that they were talking about him.

Just one more reason why he hate children. Muggle or Magical, it seemed they were all the same. When he was in Muggle education, he was talked about because he was better than everyone else- even when compared to people far older than him. Here, it was because he was famous without knowing it; famous for something his parents had probably done when he was a baby. How would they react when they found out he was already two years ahead academically?

He kept his eyes forward as he walked, laughing inside his head when he noticed Poe glaring at anyone that openly stared at him for too long. Honestly, sometimes it was like the raven was his mother… it wasn't a bad feeling.

When he reached the table, there was a sheet of paper already waiting for him by his seat. After a quick glance, Harry realized it was his timetable.

8am-11am - Potions X 2 (Ravenclaw & Hufflepuff & Peverell)

11:10am-12:10pm – History of Magic (Gryffindor & Slytherin & Peverell)

12pm-1pm – Lunch

1pm-2:30pm – Transfiguration (Hufflepuff & Gryffindor & Peverell)

2:35pm-3:35pm – Herbology (Slytherin & Gryffindor & Peverell)

3:45pm-5pm – Charms (Ravenclaw & Gryffindor & Peverell)

Considering he was the only member of the Peverell House, it seemed a little pointless to add the name to the timetable. He was only joining other classes anyway, so it didn't really matter one way or another.

The main difference between today and the rest of the week was that he only had History of Magic today. The rest of the week was Defence Against the Dark Arts with Hufflepuff and Slytherin, as well as Astronomy Friday night with Ravenclaw and Gryffindor. There were other variations of the same classes, but always with the same houses.

At least he only had two classes to deal with the Gryffindor/Slytherin rivalry, one being History, so they wouldn't have a chance to be throwing spells at each other. It seemed because he wasn't in any of the four houses, they were trying to have him interact with each. Though there was a noticeable lean towards Gryffindor.

He suspected Dumbledore had been the one to plan that. While not knowing him well, the old wizard struck Harry as the sort that thought it important to be around people and make friends. A shame, really, because from what he had heard and read, the man was brilliant. If he didn't waste his time on other people, who knew what else he would have achieved by this point? Forcing him to interact with one of the most open and emotionally driven Houses was clearly an attempt to get Harry to open up more.

After taking his seat, Harry instantly took one of the pieces of bacon that had appeared with his plate and offered it to Poe. She gave a small caw and took it straight away before he started eating himself. As he was eating, Harry idly noticed that the plate seemed to be filled with things he was craving or wanted, so he resolved to find out how it worked later.

When he was done, Harry left without a word and quickly made his way towards the dungeon. After asking a painting for directions to the classroom, he discovered that the secret passageway he found the first day actually took him to a corridor away from where he was going.

Harry also wondered why a school would need a dungeon, but wasn't really bothered by it. He assumed it was only a dungeon in name, and was actually the castle's foundations along with an emergency escape/hiding area in case of an attack.

Despite the torches on the walls casting light into the otherwise pitch darkness, the dungeons were very cold and damp. Harry was forced to walk around several puddles that had formed from drips in the roof, and the walls seemed to have a thin layer of slime coating them. There was also the smell of mold thick in the air, even though he couldn't actually see any.

Clearly, the dungeons extended under the Black Lake. This only helped to prove his theory that there were escape tunnels that led away from Hogwarts hidden somewhere. Why else would the dungeons branch out so far from the castle?

He felt Poe shifting on his shoulder slightly, the Raven's head moving in every direction as if keeping watch for an attack. Not that Harry could blame her; the entire atmosphere was a horror movie waiting to happen. Harry honestly wouldn't be surprised if someone jumped out from around a corner with a butcher's knife screaming bloody murder.

When he finally reached his destination, he found that he was the first person to arrive. The empty classroom was very quiet without anyone else there. Each empty table seemed big enough to seat three people and still have room for a cauldron, as well as some space to work with ingredients without getting in anyone else's way. Harry had a bad feeling that this meant they would be forced to work together. At the front of the room was a large blackboard with a desk next to it for the Professor; which currently had several piles of parchment on it. The walls were also lined with cabinets filled with every kind of Potion ingredient possible- all of them bottled and ready for use.

After taking a quick look around, he moved to take a seat at a table at the very back right corner of the room. He pulled out a notebook and pen before placing them on the table in front of him, his level 4 Potions book in his hand as he read.

As the other students started to arrive, none seemed to notice his presence in the corner. They all moved to sit with the new friends they had made over the last few days since arriving. When the trickle of bodies stopped, Harry looked up from his book to do a quick headcount and smirked when he saw that there was an odd number, meaning he didn't have to work with someone else.

It was at that moment that the classroom doors were thrown open and Snape came into the room, his robes billowing behind him as he walked straight for his desk. He turned to face the now silent classroom with a sneer on his lips and his eyes seemed to instantly find Harry's half lidded and bored gaze at the back of the room.

Harry was half expecting for the man to try and call him out on his lack of robe, seeing as he was dressed in a black shirt and blue jeans, but instead he turned his attention to the whole class and began to speak.

"There will be no foolish wand waving, or silly incantations in this class. As such, I doubt many of you will be able to appreciate the art that is Potions making, or grasp its true potential. In this room I can teach you to bewitch the mind and ensnare the senses; I can teach you to bottle fame, brew glory, and even put a stopper in death. That is assuming you are better than the usual dunderheads I have to deal with each year, which I highly doubt…" Snape said with an annoyed tone in his voice.

His words seemed to have the desired effect on the students, having grabbed their attention up until the end.

For his part, Harry actually found himself agreeing with the man in some respect. From what he had read and the few potions he had brewed, they seemed to be very volatile as well as versatile- wizards had a potion for almost everything.

While the man was speaking, Poe had jumped from his shoulder and landed on the table in front of him. Harry had started running a finger along her neck idly as he leaned his head on the other hand with his elbow on the desk. The book had he been reading was face down on the empty seat next to him.

Poe's movement seemed to draw Snape's attention, and his eyes moved from the raven to Harry himself several times before locking onto Harry.

"Mr. Potter, our new…celebrity…" Snape said with a sneer.

Harry showed no other sign that he was listening other than moving his eyes from Poe to Snape, his eyelids still drooped. This only seemed to get under the man's skin even more.

"What is that bird doing in my classroom?" asked Snape.

"There are no rules against her being here, Professor. Poe simply wanted to stay with me. Is that a problem?" He knew the man didn't have any right to force him to send Poe away, and if he pushed to do so, Harry would just start spouting Hogwarts' rules until Snape gave up. Things like that usually worked to get adults to shut up- from what Harry had seen, anyway.

Harry waited for a moment as the man seemed to be trying to think of a way to get to him or to send Poe away, only for him to take a different route instead. A route that the man had no chance of winning.

"Where, Mr. Potter, would you look if I asked you to find me a bezoar?" asked Snape with a smirk, clearly thinking he would catch Harry off guard by the suddenness of the question.

"The stomach of a goat," Harry stated blandly, as if it were obvious. The fact that there was no pause between the question and Harry's answer seemed to throw the man off, but to his credit, he recovered quicker than most others that had tried this with Harry in the past.

"What is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?" Snape rattled off, the smirk now gone.

"Nothing. They are the same plant," Harry answered without missing a beat.

"What is the key ingredient in the Boil Cure Potion?" snapped Snape. It was obvious that he was starting to lose his temper.

"Horned Slugs."

Bored once again, Harry turned his attention back to Poe. Snape continued in a calmer voice, "What is the brewing duration of the Polyjuice Potion?" Harry actually looked up at the man again before answering, and he saw that Snape's eyes were now narrowed.

"One Lunar cycle, or a month in layman's terms."

"What is the key ingredient in the Draught of Living Death?"

"Mandrake Root soaked in the water that was used to boil a Belladonna flower."

"What is the brewing duration of the Wolfsbane Potion, and how can it be shortened?"

"12 lunar cycles, or one year in simple terms. This is because it needs to be left in the light of the full moon 12 times for 1 hour while the moon is at its peak. This can be reduced to a period of 12 days by adding one Moonstone each night at midnight for the said twelve days, which replicates the 12 full moons it needs to mature. However, by doing this the Potion has been proven to be less effective. Unlike the yearlong brewed potion that can last for a year before spoiling and can be brewed in large quantities, the shorter brewed Potion only lasts for a month before spoiling with only enough for four size 3 Vials. This would get a single werewolf through the four days of 1 lunar cycle in which the moon is strong enough to force them to change," answered Harry, going into extra detail to prove a point.

By this point, every head in the classroom was moving back and forth between Harry and Snape with their mouths getting lower and lower by the second. He could see a few Ravenclaws rapidly flicking through their Potions book with confused expressions while they looked for the answers. Harry knew for a fact that the last three questions were not in there.

Two of the questions had been in the grade 3 Potion book, and the last was in the Grade 4 he was currently reading. He wasn't sure if Snape was testing him, or just trying to catch him out on a question, but after the last one where Harry had gone into extreme detail, he seemed too shocked to think of anything more to ask him.

Without another word Snape turned away from Harry and waved his wand at the backboard, the instructions for the Boil Cure Potion appearing in white chalk.

"You will have until the end of the lesson to complete the Potion on the board; try not to melt your cauldrons before then," Snape called in a slightly distracted voice as he sat behind his desk.

The rest of Potions had been quiet for Harry. The other students were busy concentrating while Snape kept sending him odd looks as if unsure what to think. After practising so much before even arriving at Hogwarts, the Boil Cure Potion was nothing to him, and he was able to brew it without even paying attention.

This turned out to be a good thing because when one of the Hufflepuffs at the table in front of him almost added his ingredients in the wrong order, Harry was about to stop him before the cauldron exploded. A bastard he may be, but Harry wasn't going to do nothing and let the guy get covered in boils because he didn't know what he was doing. Especially when he was in the possible splash zone.

He had also seen a few Ravenclaws working to try and keep up with him, eyes darting from their own potions to his regularly. Hopefully, they would learn quickly not to compete with him; he didn't want a repeat of…that incident.

A few years ago while Harry was in Muggle education, there had been a girl in one of his classes named Mary Green. She was 17, with above average intelligence and quite used to being the smartest person in the room. Unfortunately, she was also an over-achiever and very competitive- and then Harry was thrown into the equation. He had outdone her in everything without effort, and since he was younger and smarter and nothing she did had helped close the gap between them, she had eventually snapped under the pressure and tried to kill herself.

It was one of the only things Harry could honestly say he regretted happening. It was actually what had driven him to study Behavioural Psychology in the first place; he wanted to try and avoid something like that happening again. Harry would need to keep a close eye on the Ravenclaws in case any started to show signs of cracking.

He finished his potion with time to spare and poured some into a size 2 vial before taking it to the front of the class. Snape took one look at it and frowned before telling him to clean his cauldron and leave.

Harry didn't wait to be told twice.

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After his first lesson of History of Magic, Harry had come to the conclusion that he was going to learn nothing from attending the class and that his time would be better spent doing almost anything else. The ghost teaching it, Professor Binns, had only repeated word for word the exact paragraphs in the first year history book. He didn't even take attendance.

Most of the class had fallen asleep listening to his dull droning voice, and the few that stayed awake like himself had looked bored to tears. In fact, the only people that had been able to stay awake besides him were Hermione and two Slytherins; a blonde girl named Daphne and a dark skinned boy named Blaise.

At least that Draco prat didn't try and approach him again. He seemed to be keeping his distance for the moment. Harry was amused to see he still had an imprint of his Grimoire on his face. He was, however, forced to listen to a red headed Gryffindor boy named Ron talk about Quidditch until he fell asleep, followed by his loud snoring.

After the first twenty minutes, Harry had pulled a book out and started reading, seeing no point in listening to a ghost repeat the words from a book he had already read.

At least he had Transfiguration to look forward to next. Even if the subject seemed to have little to no use in real life, it would be fascinating to learn. After all, the changes you made with a spell were only temporary without Runes added to lock them in, and even then it only worked on non-living things.

He somehow ended up with Hermione and Neville tagging along with him when he left the Great Hall to make his way to the classroom. Although, at least the girl seemed to have learned not to talk his ear off about stupid things by this point. Instead of telling him about what she knew from reading the books on Transfiguration, she asked him about several things she wasn't sure about.

It seemed to him that the girl had given up trying to compete with him before really starting, which was for the best. Now she was trying to use him as a sound board to help herself, something he didn't actually mind so long as she didn't do it while he was reading or ask stupid questions.

Neville, for the most part, was just listening to them without comment.

Hermione was actually in the middle of asking him a question as they walked into the room, all three taking a seat near the front of the class. None of them noticed the cat sitting on the front desk watching them intently.

"I still don't understand why size always needs to be considered before a transfiguration. The books I read didn't really go into much detail, so I assumed it was covered in a later year?" Hermione asked as she put her books on the table.

"You're right- it is covered briefly in the second year curriculum along with explaining why it is pointless to transfigure food from other objects. The reason you need to consider size before a transfiguration is because you can only 'stretch' the object you are changing so much before it is unable to get any bigger," Harry explained. "For example, you can change a matchstick into a pin because they are the same size, but if you tried to turn it into a chair it wouldn't work because the object is too small."

"But then what if you worked your way up? Turn a chair into something slightly bigger, then change it again and again until it is the size you want?" asked Hermione.

"It still wouldn't work because you still only have the matter that makes up the chair to work from, regardless of the size you change it to. Think of it as an elastic band; you can only stretch it so far before it either snaps back or breaks. However, contrary to this, you can transfigure a larger object into something smaller without restriction, but it takes more power," Harry said.

Hermione had a slight frown on her face but seemed to understand what he was saying.

"I guess that makes sense…the more strain you put on the object the more it will fight the spell," she said more to herself than Harry.

"Correct. Although, there is also a spell based in charms that can affect the size and mass of an object without limits on the base material. Which is why if you enlarge an object before you attempt to transfigure it into something else, it will work, but the effects of the spell are shorter and require more power to accomplish."

After that, the two fell silent as Harry started getting his things out and Hermione mulled over what she had been told. Neville just looked very confused about the whole conversation and seemed to decide to just sit quietly and wait for McGonagall to arrive.

It was while he was doing this that Harry took notice of the tabby cat staring at him. Narrowing his eyes as Poe shifted slightly on his shoulder, his head tilted to the side slightly as he examined the feline. A small smirk crossed his lips.

"Hello, Professor. I almost didn't recognise you in that form," Harry said with his eyes locked onto the cat.

"Harry, who are you- whoa!" started Neville, only to cut off mid-sentence when the cat jumped off of the desk and changed into McGonagall mid-air. The elder witch landed on her feet gracefully before moving to stand in front of their desk.

Her face had an expression of curiosity and slight confusion as she looked at Harry, as if trying to understand something.

"Well done for noticing me, Mr. Potter. 20 points for noticing, and another 20 for explaining Size Theory in Transfiguration to Miss Granger. However, I must ask how you were able to do such a fine job of explaining a second- bordering on third- year subject to Miss Granger? Or how you recognised me for that matter?" asked McGonagall in her usually stern voice.

His face was still set in its usual bored expression as he shrugged and pulled another book out of his bag to hand to McGonagall. She accepted it without question, and it was about two seconds later after she looked at the title that her eyes widened slightly. She turned to face him again with a frown.

"Why exactly do you have a Grade 3 Transfiguration book, Mr. Potter?" she asked in a slightly less stern, but far more confused voice.

"I bought it, along with several others, while at Diagon Alley. After reading the Grade 1 and 2, it seemed like the next logical step," Harry answered with a shrug.

"And you understood it all?"

"Yes. While the idea of converting one object to another seemed an impossibility to me at first, I soon found the subject interesting enough to look deeper into," Harry said. "Transfiguration, while limited in its uses outside of most fields, is an interesting study on its own considering how many laws of Nature it breaks. Once I understood the base concept of the magic itself, the spells and terminology were simple enough to follow."

For a moment, the Professor seemed to be debating something inside her own head before reluctantly handing him the book back, "Indeed…we will see if you are as skilled in practice as you appear to be in theory, Mr. Potter." Without another word, McGonagall turned to address the whole class, a wave of her wand sending matchsticks floating to land on the tables in front of them as she spoke,

"Transfiguration is a complicated subject and can be very dangerous if used improperly," she began. "I will only give you one warning: if I see any students misbehaving in my class, you will be out of it altogether. Do I make myself clear?" Her eyes moved to stare each student down for them all to acknowledge her statement before she continued,

"Now, I am assuming that all of you have at least read the first two chapters of your Transfiguration book from the assigned reading list you received with your Hogwarts letter, which would explain the matchsticks currently sitting in front of you. By the end of this lesson I expect you all to have been able to make at least some progress into turning your match into a needle. While I do not expect all of you to be able to complete the spell, some should at least be capable of changing the shape, even if not the material." She then went into a brief explanation of the wand movements and how to pronounce the spell properly, answering any questions asked before motioning them to try the spell.

Harry could only sigh in boredom, having already practiced everything from the first year book. The 1st year at Hogwarts seemed to be mostly built on theoretical learning, with only a few spells to get them used to casting. This meant that there wasn't much to practice, and Harry had been able to cast most of the spells he would be learning that year.

There was also the fact that unlike the others in his class, Harry did not have a Wand, but a Grimoire. This meant that while the words themselves were the same, Harry did not need the wand movements, but the Arithmancy instead. This was basically the magical equivalent of muggle physics.

While taking his time turning the pages in his Grimoire to the correct spell, Harry picked up his needle in his left hand and held it in front of his face. Concentrating on what he wanted the matchstick to change into, he then spoke the spell clearly.

The glow from the chain was barely noticeable this time, considering how little magic it took to power the spell. In one fluid movement, the matchstick in his fingers shifted into a perfect needle that he then dropped onto the desk without a care.

Ignoring the gasp from his right that Hermione gave off when she saw this, as well as Neville's wide eyes and open mouth, Harry opened his Transfiguration Grade 3 book and started reading.

Unfortunately, this only lasted for less than a minute before McGonagall returned after hearing Hermione gasp. The stern woman frowned slightly at the sight of the needle in front of him. With a wave of her wand it returned to a matchstick and her voice cut across his reading, forcing him to pay attention to what she was saying.

"Mr. Potter, please repeat the spell; I would like to see you cast it with my own eyes," the professor said.

Seeing as his Grimoire was still open to the right page, Harry shrugged and brought his book down before taking the matchstick again and speaking the spell. The matchstick once again shifted into a needle.

This only seemed to cause McGonagall's frown to deepen slightly, "You have done this spell before, haven't you Mr. Potter?" It was more of a statement than anything, but Harry replied without care anyway.

"You gave us two days before classes started; I spent half of the first day wandering the castle and the rest practicing."

"I see…and just how many spells have you 'practiced'?" asked the stern witch with narrowed eyes.

"I have almost finished the first year spell work since most of it is theoretical," Harry stated. "There wasn't much to practice. Second year should not take long as it is also mostly theoretical, but third year will probably take more time. That has more of the practical aspects of spell work."

He gave another small shrug, his voice remaining the same flat tone the whole time. Harry did take note of McGonagall's expression before it was hidden again behind her usual stern face, though her eyes still showed her shock. It was the same reaction his teachers usually gave when they started to realise he wasn't a normal child- a mix of shock and slight wonder.

He had to give the old witch credit though, she was better at hiding it than most.

Clearing her throat slightly, McGonagall seemed to shake off her reaction completely, "I see…Mr. Potter, for now you may either continue to read or help your fellow students until the end of the lesson. And another 10 points for getting the spell right the first time." She turned away and made her way to a different part of the classroom to offer her help to another student.

Closing his Grimoire, Harry was about to start reading his Grade 3 Transfiguration book again when Hermione finally seemed to snap out of her shock, immediately bombarding him with questions, her own work forgotten for the moment.

"How did you do that?" she asked, Neville leaning over slightly to hear his answer, too.

Harry just let out a sigh and put his book down, realising that he was unlikely to be able to read it until he answered her questions.

"It's called 'magic'. I used a spell," Harry stated dryly.

"You didn't even use a wand! That's not possible, you need a wand to cast spells!" Hermione exclaimed, her words getting more and more distressed as she went on.

"Actually, you're wrong about that. You don't need a wand, per say, you just need a Magical Focus to help shape your magic into a form where it can be manipulated. I use a Grimoire instead of a wand," Harry explained as he held up said Grimoire in one hand and waved it in front of her face.

Her eyes followed its movement for a moment before she turned her attention back to Harry himself, "If that is true, then why have I never heard of it? Mr. Ollivander never said anything about using something other than a wand to use magic," she asked in a calmer tone.

Harry just raised an eyebrow at her before picking his book back up, sensing that the conversation was drawing to an end. "Did you ask him about alternatives?" asked Harry instead of answering.

Hermione didn't have any way to respond and instead turned back to her matchstick with renewed determination.

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