The next morning, the trio hurried down to breakfast. Their conversation the night before had sent them to bed later than anyone else and they had slept too long. When they arrived at their usual places at the Gryffindor table, they saw that McGonagall was already handing out the schedules for the coming year. She looked at them disapprovingly, but gave them their schedules without a word. The three friends looked them over.

"Oh, no! First thing on Monday mornings is Double Potions!" Harry groaned. "I can't do this, why first thing?"

Hermione looked slightly amused. "Really, Harry. You've faced down Voldemort four times and you're moaning about Double Potions?"

Harry glared at her. "I didn't exactly have much choice about facing Voldemort, you know, and he's not the Professor who hates you whom you've suddenly found out," Harry leaned in and whispered the rest, "is your father!"

Hermione replied, "I suppose you're right, but still, you've got to face him eventually. Might as well get it over with now."

Ron nodded. "Yeah, Harry. You're a Gryffindor, remember? Brave, daring, all that..."

Harry sighed and rolled his eyes, but he nodded and smiled a little at his friends. "I suppose you're right. Well, we'd better go or we'll be late. I don't want to make things any worse than they already are."

***

Snape watched as the Infamous Three (as he'd dubbed them) walked in. Granger looked as self-assured as usual, Weasley kept sending nervous glances his way, and Potter wasn't looking in his direction at all, in fact, he was looking everywhere but in his direction. Snape's eyes narrowed, well, he'd see how the boy did today.

Snape stepped forward and addressed his class, "Today you will be making Dreamless Sleep Potion. It is fairly complex, and if the ingredients are not prepared and added exactly as the instructions specify then exploding cauldrons shall be the least of your worries." Snape looked at Neville as he spoke the last phrase. "The instructions are on page 75 of your textbook, get to work."

Harry was rather relieved that they would be making Dreamless Sleep Potion; he'd been studying the theory behind the potion during the summer in the hopes that he would have an opportunity to make some while the Dursleys were away. His nightmares were very bad sometimes. Unfortunately, he'd never been given the opportunity, but he was still certain that he would have no problems brewing the potion. In fact, he had it memorized by now and he set to work, expertly preparing the ingredients and his cauldron.

Snape noticed that Potter hadn't yet taken out his textbook but was simply gathering the ingredients and setting to work. He was just about to break his promise to himself to ignore the boy and make a scathing remark, when he noticed that Potter was doing exactly what he was supposed to do, the ingredients were prepared almost perfectly (the boy definitely needed improvement in that area, and yet he wasn't so far off that the potion would be affected), and he was adding them to the mix in the proper order and at the proper time. Snape stopped and watched Potter work, he was surprised and more than a little impressed as Potter had never before shown any true aptitude for potions. He remembered the comments Potter had made when he'd seen the boy and his friends at Diagon Alley. Perhaps Potter hadn't been exaggerating after all.

Snape's musings were interrupted by a horrid smell coming from Neville's part of the room, and he stalked over and quickly extinguished Neville's fire while yelling at him for not following the directions exactly. "Twenty points from Gryffindor, Longbottom! If your cauldron had boiled over the entire class would be in an enchanted sleep for the next three months!" Snape continued in this manner for a few more minutes before he finished by telling Neville that he had a detention.

Harry was too busy with the middle stages of his potion to really pay attention to what was going on, Snape noticed. Normally when he yelled at Neville there were several indignant glares coming from the corner of the Infamous Three, today only Weasley and Granger were glaring, but Potter was working. Snape ignored them and walked around the classroom, observing everyone's progress.

Harry noticed that his professor was doing his best to ignore him, as he hadn't said a word to him the entire class session while normally by this point several insults would have already been sent his way. Harry wondered about this, but he quickly put it aside to continue working on his potion, now that things were finally starting to come together for him in this class he didn't want to mess it up by losing his concentration. When he was about three-quarters of the way through the potion, after the incident involving Neville's potion, Harry felt a presence above him.

"Cheating, Potter? Or perhaps you find yourself above using your textbook and think you can simply make do on your own? Just like your father," came Snape's voice.

Harry simply looked at him, he was careful to keep any expression from crossing his face. Snape, however, noticed that when he'd started the taunting Harry's eyes had flashed first with annoyance, then anger, and finally there was a hint of amusement after he'd made the comment regarding Harry's father. Mentally, he kicked himself, no matter what the boy's reaction was to Lily's letter, hearing the last comment regarding James, when in fact the two of them both knew who Harry's father really was, had to be amusing, though in a rather twisted way.

Harry watched his professor as the man tried to process Harry's unusual reaction. He found the sight rather comical, but he was careful to keep this off of his face. Instead, he decided to turn back to his potion. He did so, leaving Snape dumbfounded. Finally, Snape gave up, and he snapped, "Detention, Potter. Eight o'clock tomorrow night." Harry simply nodded and continued working as Snape stalked away.

***

At two minutes until eight in the evening Harry was standing in front of the Potions classroom trying to work up the nerve to actually go in and face his father -- he would be alone with him for the first time since their conversation the previous week. He wondered if his hasty declaration would be brought up, and he rather hoped it wouldn't be.

At two minutes until eight in the evening Snape was sitting at his desk in the potions classroom thinking about the fact that very soon he would be alone with his son for the first time since their conversation the previous week. Though he would never admit it, he was actually feeling a tad apprehensive. He'd been contemplating the truce Harry had offered to him and the motives behind it. Was it possible that the boy wanted to acknowledge him as his father? The sound of the door opening startled him from his reverie; Harry had come for his detention.

At exactly eight, Harry decided that he could put off entering the classroom no longer, not unless he wanted another detention that is. He opened the door and entered the classroom.

Snape sighed as he watched Harry hesitantly enter the classroom, and he wondered what had possessed him to give the boy detention. Well, now he was stuck with him. "Don't just stand there, Potter. Come in," Snape commanded.

Harry walked forward a few more steps and stopped in front of Snape's desk. "Yes, sir?" he asked.

Snape thought quickly, what should he have the boy do? Ah, yes... "You will be redoing the potion you made in class today. This time, Granger won't be here to help you." Snape walked over to one of the bookshelves and grabbed the fifth year textbook, "Here," he said, "page 75." Then he sat back down at his desk and returned to grading the summer assignments that had been handed in.

Harry sighed as he accepted the book from Snape. The man was clearly set on having things continue as they had before the letters from his mother. Very well, then. Though that still didn't mean he had to use a book that he didn't need to make a potion that he now knew he could very well make in his sleep. Harry set the book down on a desk and set to work.

Twenty minutes went by and the student was still hard at work while the potions master observed, unbidden and unnoticed. Snape watched as Harry once again set to work on the potion without using the book, his cuts were surer this time, but that was the only change. He considered this as he watched. He had never truly thought that Granger had assisted the boy, and this proved that he was correct. Something had happened; something had changed. Suddenly, he spoke, "Potter."

Harry looked up. "Yes, Professor?"

"Why do you know how to make that potion?" Snape asked suspiciously.

Harry looked uneasy as he replied, "I studied it over the summer."

"Why?" the question was made without malice, and a hint of true curiosity came through, much to Snape's dismay.

Harry looked everywhere but at his professor. "I was bored," he replied.

Snape didn't believe him, there had been just a slight shift in tone to indicate that the boy was actually questioning whether he'd accept that answer or not. "Try again," he said.

Harry sighed. "I wanted to make it."

Again Snape pushed, "And why was that?" When there was no response he said in a warning tone, "Mr Potter, I asked you a question."

"So that I could get some sleep at night," came the reluctant and quiet response.

Snape was surprised, though later he would admit that he shouldn't have been, he felt a little silly but he had to ask, "Why can't you sleep at night?"

When he heard the word 'Why' leave his professor's lips again Harry smiled slightly, it was enough to make him decide to trust a little. "Because I have nightmares, sir."

Snape breathed a sigh of relief, finally something he could respond to with something other than 'Why?' "Of what?" he asked instead.

Harry looked down. "The third task," he mumbled.

Snape looked surprised and a little disgusted. "I should have known," he said to himself.

Harry's head came up, he sent a hard look to his professor. "Why should you have known? For that matter, why should you even care?" he asked, perhaps disrespectfully, but Harry was annoyed by Snape's response.

Snape was taken aback by Harry's reponse. 'When had the boy become Harry instead of Potter?' he wondered to himself. For a few short moments he stared at the boy, then he gave a small frown. "I don't know why," he finally said. His answer surprised himself as well as Harry. He didn't know why he suddenly cared to know the answers to the questions he'd forced the boy to answer. Deciding that he would rather not dwell on the question, or where the answers would lead him, he changed the subject. "Detention is over, Mr Potter. You clearly do know how to brew this particular potion. We'll see how you do at our next class session."

Harry looked up, he was more than a little surprised. "Yes, sir," he finally said, "Good night." He left then, leaving a very confused potions master behind.

***

The next morning at breakfast Harry received a note. He recognized the handwriting instantly and opened it with a certain amount of dread.

Mr Potter,

Your offer is accepted.

Harry's eyes widened briefly, but he nodded shortly in response to the note just in case Snape was watching. As he tucked it safely away, he wondered where things would go from there.