‘Well then Mr Potter, can you tell me the main ingredients of a Forgetfulness Potion, please?’ said Slughorn, looking inquiringly at James.

‘Why ask when you already know?’ answered James with a cocky grin.

Most of the class laughed. Severus seethed. He thought he was so clever...

Harry Potter would be just like his father, of course. Pampered by his guardians and spoiled by every other person he met; worshipped for something he had not done – adored for an act of bravery that had been his mother’s. Which was why Severus was very much looking forward to his first Potions lesson with the first year Gryffindors and Slytherins. He would finally get back at James Potter after all those years he had bullied and tormented Severus.

(The thought of what Lily would say refused to cross his mind at all.)

He began the lesson by reading the register, savouring the moment when he could pause at Potter’s name and sneer ‘Our new – celebrity.’ Finally, he fired at the boy what would be his first shot at taking points off Gryffindor for cheek. ‘Potter, what would I get if I added powered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?’

The boy merely looked at him for a moment, but before Severus could indulge in his triumph, he answered ‘The Draught of Living Death, sir.’

Severus was taken aback but recovered quickly – perhaps his friend had whispered the answer to him, or it was something he had read last-minute at breakfast, and the Draught of Living Death was a famous potion anyway. It was nothing remarkable. ‘Very well. Tell me, if I asked you to find me a bezoar, where would you look?’

‘In the stomach of a goat.’

‘And what is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?’

‘Um... aren’t they the same thing, Professor?’

He hardly noticed Potter had just answered his question with another question. He was actually a little impressed. And not a cheeky word slipped in. Composing himself, he ignored Potter’s question and continued lecturing the rest of the class, but continued keeping an eye on the boy he had sworn to protect. He was not leaning on the chair’s back legs, or talking with his classmates, or even observing the world with a smug eye. He watched Severus with rapt attention, and Severus realised with a jolt he had not only Lily’s eyes but her hands and her cheeks. It was an effort to look away. He was only successful in regaining calm when the boy was long gone from sight.

It was probably just a fluke, he told himself. Potter had been eager to start school and had thusly read through his books – wait until they got to October and the real work began.

But as the weeks, and then the months went by, Potter prospered until Severus could say the boy had almost begun enjoying all of his classes, and especiallyPotions. The work he sent in was almost engaging for a Potter until Severus once found the words ‘Ten points to Gryffindor’ on the tip of his tongue before he hastily swallowed them back. He refused to suffer through favouring the son of James Potter in any way.

Sometime after the Christmas holidays when Severus was absorbed in improving the method of brewing a certain potion he had invented several years ago, he heard a small timid knock on his office door. Assuming it was a first-year Slytherin in need, he did not hesitate in opening the door and was very surprised to see Potter standing there with his Potions textbook in hand.

‘Is there something you need, Potter?’ Severus asked with a raised eyebrow, mustering up his most unwelcome tone.

‘Um... actually, I wanted to ask about our homework –‘

‘Twelve inches on the properties of salamander blood, Potter, is that too difficult for you to comprehend?’

‘No, but I wanted to ask –‘ He opened his textbook on a page he had marked and pointed to a passage detailing the ingredient’s particular use in a Wit-Sharpening Potion. ‘If the use of salamander blood neutralises the hyperactivity caused by lionfish spine, what is its use in the potion? Is it a misprint or is there something I’m missing?’

There was a short pause during which Severus stared at him.

‘S-sorry did I say something stupid, Professor?’

‘No,’ said Severus. ‘I simply didn’t expect such a brainwave from the offspring of James Potter.’

‘What about the son of Lily Potter?’ the boy asked suddenly. ‘I know she won an award for Potion-brewing at school once – Lily Evans – that’s why I wanted to do good in Potions.’

Inexplicably, Severus found a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. He still remembered that. Lily had been so proud, her emerald eyes shining with joy and satisfaction. She had blown Severus a kiss when she had seen him sitting in the crowd, a kiss he had been thrilled to receive.

‘Yes. That’s exactly what I would expect from the son of Lily Evans.’