The next morning was the first time Draco had woken up before Harry, a fact he was going to taunt his roommate with. Draco quickly changed his mind when he saw Harry's face.

"You look like Hell, Potter. Bad dream?"

Harry rubbed his eyes with a groan. "You could say that." His black hair perked out in all directions, the boy headed to the bathroom as he moved to shower.

After his shower, Harry and Draco left. They were tailed, of course, by Crabbe and Goyle. "Do you think I'm prepared enough for Potions?" Harry asked nervously, rubbing his arm. He felt twitchy whenever he thought about Snape's words on the first day.

"You read the first, second, and third year books twice each. In three days! You'll be fine, Potter." Draco rolled his eyes.

Harry sighed as he saw the Potions classroom door. "I just don't want to disappoint Professor Snape. He's not like the other professors; he's out Head of House too." Harry said as they approached the classroom. He and Draco walked inside and, Harry headed straight for the nearest table table, pulling out a chair and settling down.

"Professor Snape will be proud you're not only an hour early, but also have read all the books. Just watch." Draco grinned. He knew Snape better than anyone with him being his godfather.

Harry nodded and took a deep breath, pulling out the first-year potion textbook and rereading it during the hour. He didn't want to do bad. After all, Professor Snape had expressly stated that all Slytherins should read ahead.

Slowly, students started filing in. Harry continued to read, his gaze flicking over the top of the book every so often. The parts about basic healing balms were always fun to go over and review, with so many different interesting ingredients and methods to prepare them. He saw the other Slytherins coming in at a slow trickle, taking their seats quickly near Harry and Draco. It wasn't until five minutes before the bell that Harry saw the Gryffindors coming in with Ron at the front, laughing with Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnegan. The rest of them carefully took their seats.

The bell soon rung. Before the sound of the bell had faded, the door slammed closed. Professor Snape promptly appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. Harry had blinked, and he was suddenly at the desk at the front of the room. Standing over it and staring down at the students, he had quite a menacing appearance.

Harry could feel the man's gaze slide over him, making him shiver gently. As he did, Snape's face twisted in a harsh sneer.

"Ah. Harry Potter. Our newest… celebrity." Snape stepped from behind his desk, his robes swishing behind him. "Tell me, Potter. What do you get if you mix Wild Hortifer Root with powdered Asphodel?"

"A cut-soothing balm, sir. But if you add in Wormwood flowers during the process, it would increase effectiveness to make it able to be used on larger slashes." Harry remembered that part in Chapter 3 of the textbook, comparing different potion-based balms.

Snape's eyebrow rose, but he sneered again. "And what is the difference between Monksrobe and Queen Anne's Tears?"

"Both can be used to stabilize a potion that is too acidic, but Queen Anne's Tears is much more volatile and can make the potion explosive if it's not correctly measured. Regardless of this, Queen Anne's Tears is an excellent stabilizing agent for other volatile ingredients." Harry said quickly, remembering the statement in chapter six of the second-year potion textbook.

"Potter, your potion is about to explode. What should you do?"

"Put up multiple potion-grade shielding charms around the cauldron and turn off the heat immediately. If the potion is emitting fumes, then I should immediately activate the venting runes on the cauldron's heat source." A simple answer which was at the end of the first page of the textbook, not even the first chapter.

Snape sniffed, seemingly finished. "It seems you've actually opened your book before coming into class. Ten points to Slytherin. But five points from it for not having your potion ingredients ready and organized."

Harry was about to protest, seeing no one had their ingredients out, but clamped his mouth shut and nodded. Thankfully, he had experience with being silent with Aunt Petunia; that skill would be invaluable here. "Apologies, sir. I'll have my potions kit out and ready next time. It was my mistake."

At the second part of his comment, Snape's eyebrow raised once more for a split second, before he turned around and looked at the Gryffindors. "Finnegan! What do you get if you add a Draft of Soothing to a Poison of Serenity?"

Harry knew the answer to that as well. It was mentioned in chapter 4 which discussed the interactions between potions and poisons. He looked over, as Seamus seemed to have turned deathly pale, stuttering, "I-I don't know, sir."

"Ten points from Gryffindor. Ronald Weasley, what do you get if you add sliced turmeric root to an infusion of dittany?"

Ron was the next to turn pale white. "E-Essence of Dittany?"

Snape slammed his hand down on the table next to Ron. "You absolute dunderhead, you get the Draught of Numbness! Another ten points from Gryffindor!"

Harry saw the professor ask question after question to the Gryffindors. Draco smirked, and both Crabbe and Goyle snickered at the spectacle before them. Harry felt bad for the Gryffindors though. Didn't they come prepared at all?

After the sixth question to Lavender Brown, Snape stormed back to the front of the room. "As usual, the Slytherins have actually prepared for my class while you arrogant, dunderheaded, foolish Gryffindors haven't even opened the first page of your book. Potions is one of the most exacting and powerful arts in all of the Magical World."

Snape slammed his hands on his desk, making everyone jump. "To those with the skills, Potions are an art. I can teach you to bewitch the mind and befuddle the senses, to cure people inches from death, and to give voice to those who cannot talk. I can bottle fame, brew Glory… and those who are especially skilled with Potions can even move on to the ancient art of Alchemy, which can even render immortality."

The class murmured before a second slam to his desk caught everyone's attention in an instant. "But I will not waste my time on ignorant dunderheads!" Snape said, as he peered about. "Aurors, Healers, Wardbreakers, Enchanters, Apothecaries. All five of these jobs require you to get your potions NEWTs! And none of you in Gryffindor have even picked up your books! Potions are one of the most dangerous forms of magic for those who have little to no experience. A single mistake could cost you your life!

"Because of this, all Gryffindors will have three foot essays on the basic security procedures of potion making, due by next class!" The Gryffindors all groaned.

Ron spoke up. "You can't do that! That's as much work as a third year!"

"DETENTION, Mister Weasley, for speaking out against a Professor! And if anyone else complains about the work, then Gryffindors will be required to have five feet of an essay done by next week!"

Ron immediately clamped his mouth shut, glowering at Snape but remaining silent.

"Now, all of you step towards a cauldron, two to a group. The instructions on the board are on how to make a basic Itch Soothing Cream. How well your balm turns out will indicate your grade. Begin!"

Snape moved back to his desk, as the chalkboard shifted and detailed instructions appeared on the board. With that, Harry and Draco got to work at their shared cauldron. Harry's hands deftly moved the ingredients needed onto the table and prepared them, remembering the book's notes and details on how each was handled and prepared. All the while, Draco focused on stirring and watching the potion.

The room was quiet when suddenly Harry noticed a slight movement from the corner of his eye. Nott was a bit far from his cauldron, some hedgehog quills in his hand. Harry thought it was odd. The recipe they were using didn't call for hedgehog quills. Why would he be taking those from his potion kit?

It was then that Harry saw Nott flick his hand, and the quills arced over the heads of the students. Seeing it but unable to do anything about it, Harry saw with despair where they were headed; straight into the cauldron of Ron and Seamus. His mind seemed to process it quickly, reaching into his potion kit and grabbing the ground Pale Moon Salts, rushing over as he uncorked the bottle.

In slow motion, Harry saw Ron and Seamus's faces scrunch in horror as the quills dunked into the cauldron, immediately turning the gray mixture into a bright, angry red. It started frothing heavily, but then Harry shoved past Ron and Seamus and tossed in the Palemoon Salts.

At the last moment, the cauldron seemed about to explode. But the very second the salts made contact with the surface, the angry red color suddenly turned a pale mauve. Mere moments later, a huge glowing shield appeared over the cauldron, Snape's wand glowing with a ferocious magic.

"Potter! How dare you mess with another student's cauldron! Fifty points from Slytherin, and detention!"

Harry quickly stammered, trying to defend himself from the look of utter rage that was on Professor Snape's face. Harry knew what he had done was wrong, messing with another's cauldron in a potion lab. It was one of the worst things a potioneer could do to another! "B-but Professor, I-I only added in Pale M-moon salts to-"

"Pale Moon salts would have changed the acidity of the potion to become completely useless! Were you trying to sabotage, or are you just an imbecile?" Snape shouted, his face flush with anger.

Harry tried to stutter again, "B-but sir-"

However, help came from his friend when Ron looked up. "S-sir, something fell into our cauldron, and Potter managed to toss the salt in to stop it from exploding."

Snape walked over, the rage still evident on his face. "Of course a Gryffindor would cover for a Potter. A second detention, Mister Weasley."

Harry tried to hop in place to get the Professor's attention. "Sir, if you would just check the cauldron, you can see that-"

Snape sneered wickedly at Harry. "If I do, and it explodes after I remove the stasis shield? Would you harm all of the students in class, just for your own pride, Potter?" Snape's sheer malice in the last word startled Harry for a second before he replied.

"T-then…" Harry thought for a moment. "T-then you can expel me!"

Several of the students gasped at that, a murmur soon filling the room as Snape's sneer turned into a dark look. "Stupid boy. Fine, you wish to be expelled so quickly from Hogwarts, who am I to deny you? Or did you expect me not to call your little bluff?"

Grabbing Weasley, Finnegan, and Potter, Snape suddenly pulled them back behind him. He's still trying to protect us, Harry thought. He saw Snape flick his wrist, snapping the conduit of magic and connecting his wand to the shield as the magic glimmered and faded.

The cauldron hissed when the shield disappeared around it, threatening to burst. With a weak sound that was similar to a deflated thunderbolt, the cauldron cracked and shuddered warningly. It shook for a few seconds, but nothing leaked from the vibrating metal cauldron. Instead, the cauldron's contents solidified into a single, mauve-colored clump of jelly.

"Very well then, Mister Potter. It seems you were correct." Snape said through gritted teeth. "Your house points are returned, but your detention stands."

"Hey! He just proved he-" Ron stepped up, trying to defend Harry once more.

Snape sneered down at the red-haired boy. "He proved he corrected a mistake that happened from an unknown source, that was more than likely himself! Fame is not enough for you, but you had to stage a situation to play hero. Isn't that right, Potter? As I said, the detention stands."

Harry thought about speaking up, but his eyes flickered to Nott, who was fidgeting uncomfortably on his feet. If he spoke now, it would be Nott facing the consequences, not him. He remembered how Nott had been one of the first to show him kindness, welcoming him into Slytherin on that daunting first day.

Harry took a deep breath, closing his eyes before releasing it. He said not a word, instead hanging his head.

"That's what I thought." Snape sneered as Harry returned to his seat. "Back to work, all of you!" Professor Snape flicked his wand, vanishing the contents of Weasley and Finnegan's cauldron. "As for the two of you, start over." Ron and Seamus groaned at the extra work before starting over from the beginning.

"That could have gone better." Draco said as Harry moved to pick up his bag, setting the potion books inside. "Why didn't you tell Professor Snape who threw the hedgehog quills?"

Harry shook his head, slinging his bag over his shoulder. "I couldn't just rat out Nott. We're supposed to be family." Harry said. "Your House is your family, remember?"

Draco seemed surprised, but nodded.

Suddenly, Ron appeared by their side. "Thanks, Harry."

His thanks were curt and crisp. As soon as he gave them, he turned and went down the hall. Harry could see he looked annoyed for some reason. Seamus, however, frowned at Harry and turned away, catching up with Ron.

"What's their problem? You just saved their lives, and that's the thanks you get?" Draco said. "Typical Gryffindors."

Harry shook his head. "I bet Ron's just nervous over what happened or something. Let's go to the Library; maybe Hermione will be there again."

Draco rolled his eyes but moved to follow Harry. But then Snape's slender hand grabbed Harry's shoulder. "One moment. Go ahead, Draco. Mr. Potter will catch up." Hearing Professor Snape's voice from behind him, Harry gave Draco a pleadingly look.

Draco mouthed an apology before hurrying down the hall. Professor Snape closed the door. "Potter, your detention will be served on Saturday evening. It will be with Professor McGonagall instead of myself."

Harry looked at the gaunt man, blinking a few times. It took a few seconds for him to connect the dots. The realization hit him quickly as his eyes went wide. The Ritual! Had the detention been simply to give him an excuse to do the ritual with Professor McGonagall?

Harry opened his mouth to speak, but Snape waved to the door. "Out, Potter! I will have none of your cheek in response. Saturday evening at six with Professor McGonagall at her classroom."

Harry opened the door, moving to step out, only to turn back to look at Professor Snape for one last time. The Potion Professor thundered, a hand slamming into a table next to the door. "I said OUT!"

Harry quickly rushed from the room and closed the door behind him, mixed feelings sliding through him. He wasn't exactly sure what to think of Professor Snape.

A few hours of reading later, the evening was starting to fall. Hermione hadn't been to the Library, but Harry and Draco had found a few interesting books about magical familiars.

"So, it says here that Familiars don't need food and water, but instead subsist entirely off their owner's magic. They can eat, but it's mostly treats offered by their owner. Because of the requirement of magic for a familiar, when their owner dies, the familiar also dies." Draco read from the book.

Harry nodded, looking at the one he was reading. "There's nothing on how to actually identify a familiar, though, other than their characteristic extreme loyalty and intelligence." Harry said, reading directly from the book as he spoke.

"Not even a spell?" Draco asked, looking over Harry's shoulder at the book he had.

"Nope. None that are listed," Harry replied as he closed the book.

Harry sighed, while Draco closed his book with a light snapping sound, putting it back up onto the shelf. "Well, DOES your snake eat or drink?"

Harry considered the question carefully, gazing at the bookshelf behind them. He hadn't had Amber for long, but he had never actually seen her eat or drink before. She had taken a few tidbits from him when he offered. "I-I don't know. I've never seen her actually eat before other than the small things I've fed her. I can't believe I never thought about that."

"Too bad there's no Parselmouths around these days. That'd make things easy. Then you could just ask her," Draco said, rubbing his chin.

Harry paled, and quickly stammered out a response, laughing awkwardly as he did. "Y-yeah, that w-would, wouldn't it?"

The two spent a little while longer investigating familiars. Some time during that, Harry felt that pang of magic inside of him again, making him feel nauseous. He stopped and tried to relax, but there was that flash of pain once more. After a second, he groaned.

"You alright, Potter?" Draco asked, putting down the book he had been leafing through.

"Y-yeah, just… woozy. I think I'm hungry or something," Harry lied. He didn't want his friend to be worried, not when Draco wouldn't be able to do anything to help. This was a battle that he alone would have to fight.

"You want to head to dinner? Then we have to head to Astronomy," Draco asked as he closed the book he had been reading, returning it to its place on the shelves.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea." Harry groaned a second time, reaching up and putting the remaining books back before heading out with Draco.

After a satisfying meal, the two went up towards Astronomy. They found the sun setting and the stars starting to come out just as they arrived. It was a beautiful sight. The tower opened to the cool night air on all sides, revealing the sky, the mountains, and the Forbidden Forest in the distance. A light chill slid through the air, but the students were quite eager to experience their first lesson. Harry, of course, was the most eager.

Disappointment reigned when Harry found the class to be quite boring. The magical portions of Astronomy, Harry found out, were only introduced in the second year. The first year seemed to specifically be about learning constellations and how they moved, something Harry himself learned years prior in normal muggle school.

Idly taking notes on what the Astronomy Professor, Professor Sinestra, said, Harry found himself thinking. His overactive mind wandered as the class went on, pondering magic and the stars.

-Author's Notes-

And so we get to the first Potions class of the year! Snape was his normal self, but actually told some of his reasons why he is so harsh in the class. I am a fan of the idea that he's so strict because of how dangerous potions can be when handled by people who don't pay attention; I imagine Potions is a much more dangerous Chemistry class. At least in Chemistry you only have to be working around acid that can burn your skin away; imagine working with a plant that can cause your organs to melt or your eyeballs to fall out.

I think Snape is starting to realize Harry isn't exactly like his father. Harry is definately headstrong, but he isn't afraid to speak his mind. After all, a fox is a timid creature, but it knows when to fight back.

If any are interested in beta-reading this, please let me know via DM!

A special thanks to Angie for Beta reading this chapter.

Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling, not me.