The following day found Severus Snape in a fowler mood than ever. The dower man was certain that this year's crop of first years would be even more useless dunderheads than normal. He did not look forward to dragging Crabbe and Goyle through to the next seven years. Both boys were large and built like their fathers, but their intellect left something to be desired. While they may be attracted to power, and hold ambitions, the two were suited to be little other than large brutes. He knew the young Malfoy had ambition in spades, although the boy lacked subtlety. This was a problem as young Malfoy and young Potter seemed already determined enemies.
Harry on the other hand Severus knew had potential in him for what enmity laid between the boy's father and himself he would grant; James Potter was a powerful and intelligent wizard who was in the top three in every subject. Lily too had been brilliant and his preferred potions partner, and she too had ranked in the top three of their classes. The breakfast meal seemed to stretch on forever, and he desperately wanted to get on with the day. Owls quickly and adeptly swept into the great hall and began to deliver packages to the staff and students for usual morning mail. One beautiful golden barn owl brought a letter to the headmaster in his seat at the middle of the table. Albus Dumbledore slowly opened it and Severus watched as the man's eyes seemed to grow into gigantic saucers. Perhaps today would not be so bad, thought Severus.
Finally, the tables cleared of food and students and staff alike made their way out into the corridors of the school. Snape himself made his way to the dungeons to prepare for his third year Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw class.
Meanwhile, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley ran up the staircase heading to transfiguration the Gryffindor students first class of the day. The pair barely made it in time. The door, however, slammed shut with a loud bang and Professor McGonagall, who was nowhere to be seen at the moment, watched as she sat atop her desk in her animagus form. The tabby cat with black and grey stripes narrowed its eyes as it watched the two sit down in the only seats left in the room. Ron Weasley how seemed to lack the manners of his older brothers collapsed into his seat, while exclaiming, "We made it. Can you just see the look on old McGonagall's face if we had been late?" Harry, who had the subtlety of sitting down quietly and with fewer dramatics did not respond. He had his eyes on the tabby cat who was sitting suspiciously still on the teacher's desk.
It took Ron who obviously had not been paying attention at all to his surroundings by surprise when the cat suddenly leaped up from it's position on the desk and in mid-leap turned into the stern witch who was their head of house, Professor Minerva McGonagall. The redhead gaped, "that was bloody brilliant." Harry began to wonder if he had selected the wrong person to be his first friend. He tuned out the professor's response to Ron and began to consider the other boys in year. For the first time Harry was away from the Dursley's and they would not care about his marks since he was not outshining Dudley. The raven-haired wizard wanted to do well and make his mother and father proud assuming that they were watching from the other side. His assessment that Ron did not care about his classes was furthered as the boy clearly did not try ridiculously hard to turn his match into a needle. He had not even bothered to take notes Harry tried ridiculously hard to write down all of the steps that Professor McGonagall outlined for them. His concentration paid off as he could feel warmth build up in him and move through his body down his arm and through his wand and watched as his match turned from wooden to silver with a point at the end. Harry's needle lacked the eye for threading, but it was close. Harry looked around and saw only one other student was close. A bushy haired girl had one like Harry's. Laking anything else to do Harry began to walk around and attempt to help his classmates. A chubby little round-faced boy named Neville seemed to be trying hard but struggling. Harry went over and asked if he could help. Neville nodded his accent, and Harry took his wand arm and helped the boy aim. Then instructed Neville, "picture the match turning into a pointy silver needle and move your magic through from the image in your mind down your wand arm." The boy followed Harry's instructions and was astounded to open his eyes and find a pointy needle though slightly off from silver more of a grey really. Harry smiled and moved on.
Having recognized that Ron was not serious about school Harry walked down to the dungeons with Neville towards their first potions class. Severus watched as Potter took a seat next to the Longbottom boy. Snape proceeded to take roll by the time he reached Harry he chuckled, "ah yes, our new celebrity. Tell me Potter, what would you get if you added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?" Harry froze in panic his relatives had locked his school supplies in the cupboard under the stairs until they left to put him on the train. He had not even started his potions book yet. He barely caught Neville mouthing, "sleep." Deciding that that he should at least try and answer he said, "it's a sleeping aide, sir." Snape was taken aback that answer was not in the first-year text and had been meant to try and stump the boy to keep his cover among the Slytherins as one of their own, a death eater.
Severus moved on and put the assignment on the board at the front of the classroom, intoning, "instructions are on the board." Harry and Neville worked together as Neville explained what the different plant ingredients would do in the cure for boils. Harry prepared the ingredients and then they took turns stirring. There was little surprise when there was explosion from further back in the room Seamus and Ron's potion had exploded and covered Ron in red puss fill boils. They had obviously made a major mistake. Snape noticed too, "Idiot boy, you probably put the porcupine quills in too soon, and had not even moved it off the fire." Turning to Seamus the professor asked, "Why did you not stop him. Now take him to the infirmary." Harry and Neville with the rest of the class turned in their finished potions and started to leave. Snape looked up, "Potter a word." Harry walked back to the professor's desk and waited for what the teacher had to say. "It may seem that I am harsh and cruel and that is as it needs to be do not take it personally. Your mother was a friend although that cannot be common knowledge. There are those I must be careful of who wish you ill and their children are watching me so I cannot afford a misstep. You are dismissed."
Harry walked to the great hall for lunch and took a seat next to Neville who certainly had better table manners than Ron. The round-faced boy smiled, and they chatted amicably about the first couple of classes with their year mates that were present. Harry took that moment to turn to Neville and say, "thank you by the way my relatives kept my school stuff locked away from me until the train. I had no way of knowing that answer." Neville smiled, "Longbottoms and Potters are old allies I am pleased that we are taking up the tradition. Gran would have my head if I had left you out to dry like that."