It surprised him then when he looked to the back of the class the next day to find the boy neglecting his potion again as he slept, head down and eyes closed. The gall of it made Severus' temper boil over.

"POTTER!" The shout was loud and startled everybody as it echoed off the walls from the front of the room where Snape stood fuming, staring back at Harry.

Harry sat up, eyes wide again, angry that he had fallen asleep. He had skipped breakfast for a nap, and had skipped lunch for the same. Two forty minute naps just weren't doing it for him though and here he sat in trouble yet again.

Shit, shit, shit, Harry thought as Snape strode back to him, and Harry pushed his stool back to put some distance between himself and the man that was suddenly too close for comfort. Harry was breathing heavily and Snape didn't fail to notice.

"Detention tonight and tomorrow night for your defiance Potter, and you're to write a two foot essay on the importance of a good night's sleep and not rebelling against authority!" Not wanting to kick him out of class again so that he missed valuable learning time, Snape turned on his heel and strode back to the front of the room angrily, where he sat and stared at Harry for the rest of the class. Harry was so tense that he couldn't fall asleep if he tried, but he also didn't have much luck deciphering the instructions and properly piecing together the potion when somebody was staring at him so intently.

Detention that night went much as it had the night before, and Snape was again angered the next day to find Harry dozing in class. Much to the dismay of the Gryffindors around him, Snape deducted another 25 points for disrespect and sentenced him to yet another detention, this time to be served with Filch at lunch the next day.

Points Harry could handle losing, but precious sleeping time he could not, and was very upset as he left class that day.

"Get over yourself Potter," Dean said as he shoved past Harry roughly in the corridor, and Harry winced. They'd just returned to Hogwarts a few weeks before and he was still fairly bruised and tender from Uncle Vernon's going away gift. At first he had thought the bruises on his torso and back were what had been keeping him awake... if only that had been it he could have snuck some bruise balm from Pomfrey.

Harry drank three cups of coffee the next day at breakfast, knowing he faced detention with Filch at lunch and Detention with Snape after dinner. The coffee helped for a short while, but then he felt like he was slowly crashing and was even more tired than before. By three o'clock when it was time for Potions, Harry's nerves couldn't take another run in from Snape, especially when he knew he could no longer stay awake.

"Oy, Harry, where're you going?" Ron turned to look at him as he started going the opposite direction of the Dungeons.

"Bed," Harry said tiredly.

"But what about class? Hermione will have a fit."

"But at least Snape won't. I won't be able to keep my eyes open, and unless you want more points taken away..." he trailed off and Ron sighed.

"Go on then. I'll make up an excuse... I'll say you're barfing or something."

"Great," Harry muttered, half in sarcasm, half in relief. He left Ron in the hall and decided he couldn't wait to get all the way up to Gryffindor tower to sleep, so he found a dusty classroom on the second floor instead that he knew was never used, and sat in an empty desk, letting his head fall on his crossed arms. It was uncomfortable, but he barely noticed as he nodded off, his last thoughts of sparing the house from losing points.