When Harry reluctantly followed the other first years through the large doors of the Great Hall for the second time in his life, his gaze was primarily fixated on the glowing floating candles towards the ceiling. Until it became uncomfortable for his neck and he feared tripping over his own robes in front of everyone. He then stared at the floor for the rest of the walk towards the front near the staff table. Harry deliberately avoided the gaze of anyone he passed and shivered with continued nervousness when he paused again, seeing the sorting hat that rested on its stool beside Professor McGonagall. She held that dreaded list of names upon the important roll of parchment in her hand.

Headmaster Dumbledore rose from his seat at the center of the staff table and spoke to the entire hall of students and staff. Harry didn't hear him; his mind was still buzzing with fears and “Jaden Royce” who he was supposed to be. He avoided looking at anyone familiar, too scared of how he might react if he saw Hagrid, Ron, Hermione, Dumbledore or anyone else he knew. When Harry did lift his gaze, he looked over at the staff table until his browned eyes met with the darker, cold-looking orbs belonging to Professor Snape. Harry stared at his least favourite teacher and waited for the glare or brief pain in his forehead...it never happened and there had been no hatred, only curiosity and boredom.

'Now, when I call your name you will come forward and place the sorting hat on your head, then you will be sorted into your house.' McGonagall explained, capturing Harry's nervous attention again. He glanced at an equally anxious Kevin beside him and felt a little relieved that at least he had someone friendly with him during the terrible moment.

'Blake Alden!' McGonagall called.

A boy towards Harry's right emerged, keeping his gaze towards the floor similar to how had Harry minutes ago. He looked to be blushing at the attention as he made his way to the stool and sat down.

'RAVENCLAW!'

The table next to the Slytherins (who were to Harry's furtherest left), cheered and clapped as the still blushing Blake Alden went to join them. Harry fidgeted on his feet and groaned when the next name was called. So much for his reassuring company.

'Kevin Antron!' McGonagall said.

'Wish me luck!' Kevin whispered with a pale face to Harry and approached the stool. Harry watched his new sort-of friend and crossed his fingers behind his back. Please be Gryffindor...please be Gryffindor like me! 

'SLYTHERIN!'

Merlin's mouldy underwear! Harry cursed in his mind and sighed sadly as he watched Kevin smile. He gave Harry a wave before he hurried to sit with the last house Harry wanted to be in and despised. He tried not to glare as Kevin sat beside Draco Malfoy, though the pair hardly acknowledged each other beyond two seconds.

'Ellis Biscombe!'

Harry hated the ceremony and wished it was all done with before they had to come to Hogwarts, though that would prove rather challenging, because it was so nerve-wrecking and he was going through it a second time. In attempt to ease his mood and pass the time, Harry tried to guess what house his new classmates might end up in. Such as Ellis Biscombe, who had marched straight over to the hat and sat down. She seemed eager to know which house she was in and was not too worried about the entire ordeal. He had seen her smile at him in greeting as she'd politely moved by him. Harry was sure she was in Gryffindor, or maybe even Hufflepuff.

'SLYTHERIN!'

Harry was surprised as Ellis took off the hat and went to join Kevin. He frowned and figured that looks alone were even less to go by than he'd realised. He sighed with dread as a small Colin Creevey became a Gryffindor and an energetic Belle Eathorne went to Ravenclaw. Curtis Glasson was looking towards the Slytherin table as his name was called, having almost missed McGonagall's words because he had been waving to an older boy there. Harry guessed Curtis might go to Slytherin as well, since the third year boy looked to be his brother. And he was right; yet another Slytherin was declared by the sorting hat.

'Adam Grayson!'

Harry noticed that the tanned boy behind him who had just been called was one he'd sat with in the boat; the black-haired and dark-eyed boy who had ignored him and Kevin entirely. He couldn't say he was surprised when he too went to Slytherin.

'Kody Harvey!'

Harry wouldn't say he was getting bored, with all his dread and nervousness, but his mind did feel rather numb and disconnected from the scene. He felt a bit tired and wanted to sit with his friends at the Gryffindor table. He was tempted to look, just once, to see if they were there.

'HUFFLEPUFF!'

Maybe one little peak? Surely Ron's red hair won't be too hard to spot? It was unavoidable to come across his friends again, yet maybe now was not the best time. Or it could be the only other time he'd have the nerve.

Fidgeting on his feet some more, Harry watched and pondered to himself as Tyler Harvey became a Ravenclaw and Casey Kinver a Hufflepuff. The other boy who had sat with Harry, Kevin and Adam on the boat turned out to be a boy named Alvin Locke. He'd nodded with greeting so he was friendlier than Adam, who had gone to Slytherin, yet Harry had given up trying to guess houses. He was still surprised when Alvin was declared a Gryffindor.

'Excuse me. You seem bothered by something.' A girl spoke to him in a dreamy tone. He glanced at her, startled by the voice at his side, and wasn't sure what to say. Of all people and moments, why was this classmate talking to him? Harry's confusion faded as he only offered her a shrug in reply and looked back at the front.

'Luna Lovegood!'

'That would be me.' The girl smiled as she moved passed Harry and stepped up to the stool.She offered McGonagall a smile as she sat down, letting the hat fall over her blonde head, though it only remained there for a few seconds.

'RAVENCLAW!'

Harry looked along the staff table anxiously, his heart skipped a beat and his stomach felt heavy as he saw Hagrid and Dumbledore amongst the Professors that he knew and didn't. Sighing, Harry really tried to focus on the sorting when really all he could think of were possible ways to escape it.

'Jezzica Newth!' A chubby girl with curly hair and glasses was called up next.

Harry realised that McGonagall was up to 'N' and he was at 'R', so surely his turn would be soon? A sickening feeling emerged as his hands felt sweaty and Harry continued to feel the urge to flee. The crowd of unsorted classmates around him began to thin. Though the wait felt to have taken hours...suddenly it was his turn.

'Jaden Royce!'

His name was called. Well, not HIS name...but it meant all the same to the rest. With a shaking posture, Harry walked the few feet that felt like a mile to the stool. He shuddered and sat underneath the hat, waiting and dreading for a reply. Then something happened that had certainly not occurred last time.

There was no voice, no pondering and no choice...only a singular decision declared to the entire room barely two seconds after the worn old hat had touched his head.

'SLYTHERIN!'

Harry knew it then, as his whole body felt cold and weak...he wasn't home. He was in a living nightmare. One that had started as a spreading dread emerged as a sickening discomfort that took residence in his stomach. His knees weak and his throat constricting, yet Harry knew he had to move. Carefully, in case he would collapse, Harry rose from the stool and allowed McGonagall to retrieve the hat. He glanced around the room once, ignoring the cheers from his least-favourite house, as he expected to hear gasps from those who knew him and stares from the rest. Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary; Jaden Royce had been placed into Slytherin, what was so alarming about that?

Swallowing, Harry made his way to the Slytherin table with no ounce of rushing and didn't want to sit down. A smile from Kevin, who had saved him a seat, was motivation enough as Harry finally sank onto the wooden seat. He expected it to feel less comfortable and colder than the Gryffindor one had, but ultimately is was just a seat. Harry felt that the odd sight of Slytherin house clapping and greeting his arrival was going to be stuck in his mind for quite some time. 

The rest of the sorting seemed to go by in a blink, likely because his anticipation had faded and there were not as many students after the letter 'R'. Zoee Tallack became a Gryffindor, a tomboyish girl Serene Ursell sat across from Harry as a Slytherin, soon joined by a boy Harry instantly didn't like, Traise Vellacott, though Draco appeared to be more interested in Traise's arrival than he had the rest.

'Ginevra Weasley!'

Harry smiled a little as he watched Ginny be sorted. Hers took longer than he had expected, given how fast Ron's had been, but she was soon declared a Gryffindor like her brothers had before her. He made the mistake of watching her approach the cheering table and a mass of red hair became obvious. Harry ducked his head quickly and gripped the edges of his chair, his eyes closed for a second as he tried to erase the image of the cheering twins and clapping Ron, who had been sitting with a grinning Hermione.

His friends were here, there was no denying that, and they did not appear to miss him at all.

The last two first years to be sorted were Slytherins. Two girls. One who was Chinese and wore a serious expression though it contradicted her colourful hair clips. Her name was Ann Windle and she was nothing like the last girl sorted right after her, Kelsey Worlegan, because that girl already annoyed Harry...there was just something about the way she acted that made him think Kelsey was snobby and irritating.

And at long last, what felt to have taken all night, the Sorting Ceremony was over and dinner begun after a few nonsense words from Dumbledore.

'I'm glad we're in the same house, Jaden.' Kevin smiled at Harry's right while he reached for some chicken.

Harry glanced at the food and decided to give in to his hunger as he too began to serve himself chicken with potatoes. 'Yeah.' Harry replied only to not give himself away.

The truth was that he felt more miserable than he had before, if that was actually possible. He was not a Slytherin! Yet there he sat, nervously amongst those he had spent the past year hating. Draco Malfoy was several spaces away and out of his hearing range, but the over-confident blonde bully was still there and now Harry would be sharing a common room with him.Terrific.

As the meal progressed, Harry noticed that people had changed places, especially Curtis who had gone to sit with his third-year brother, Mack, further along the table. Harry had Kevin to his right as they faced the rest of the hall and the two girls on the seat opposite them; Ellis the girl who had smiled at him before and Chinese Ann, who was seated directly across from Kevin.

'I think, if we're going to be sharing dorms or attending classes together, that we should at least be able to remember each others names.' The friendly girl with light brown hair and blue eyes – Ellis – spoke first. 'I'm Ellis Biscombe, pureblood.' She said, apparently deciding to start with herself though no one had actually agreed to her idea yet.

'I really enjoy Quidditch and can't wait to learn more about Charms since it was my mother's favourite class while she was here.' She added. 'What about you?' Ellis glanced at Kevin.

'Oh, um...' Kevin had to swallow his food first. 'I'm Kevin Antron.' He thought about what to tell them. 'I don't know that to say, really...I don't know much of what to expect, but I think it's great so far. I can't wait to experience it all and learn to use magic.' He smiled.

'Ann Windle.' The black-haired Chinese girl sighed. 'Pureblood. I live in England with my father. I don't have much to comment with classes or sport, but I do wish we could add more colour to our uniform.' She said while re-adjusting a bright purple clip in her hair.

Harry gulped and almost forgot to speak when the three looked at him and his mind fought for something to tell them. The truth would be easier, yet how much of it should he really tell?

'Jaden Royce.' He said the name he was adapting to using instead of his own. 'I live with my adoptive mother and little brother.' Harry remembered and frowned at his recollections about Slytherins and their obsessions with blood purity, yet he did not want to be become a scorned outsider right away. 'My parents were a witch and wizard, though they died when I was a baby. I lived with relatives until I was adopted recently.' He felt the need to add something else in case he'd already said too much. 'And I love Quidditch.'

'I'm sorry to hear about your parents.' Ann told him with sad eyes, making him wonder why his brief story had saddened the otherwise serious girl so quickly.

'Yeah.' Kevin and Ellis nodded with agreement, though only showing sympathy in their expressions as the served themselves more food.

Harry exhaled with relief as no further comments occurred, though he noticed Ellis watching him carefully and that made him nervous once again. Whatever was on her mind, however, Ellis chose not to share it with them as the meal progressed and ended.

Another speech from Dumbledore was tuned out by Harry until reality crashed into his focus again when a prefect called the first year Slytherins. It was time to head to the Slytherin common room and their dormitories. Harry felt nothing but lingering dread and...fear. Perhaps because Harry knew he had no hope of feeling safe living in the dungeons with Slytherins where Snape would also be not far away in the place Harry considered enemy grounds.

Ironically, he compared the feeling of entering the Slytherin common room to what it must feel like to be thrown into a pit of concealed, slithering snakes.

The common room wasn't what he had expected though, besides the general darker and green tones. There were no bloody chains on the walls, no stashed skeletons or suspicious items of doom lying around. There were sofas, armchairs, tables, bookcases, a fireplace and other items that were very Slytherin yet otherwise not unlike the Gryffindor common room in terms of purpose. It was a bit bigger, though, and the windows showed proof of the common room being under the lake as rumoured. That did not make Harry feel any calmer, yet overall it was not as horrible nor as grandly evil as he had been expecting.

The prefect explained where their dormitories were and that their belongings had already been brought down. It was all Harry wanted to know so he could finally flee and hide somewhere until this day passed. And in the process of taking a step to do exactly that, Harry barely suppressed a yelp when a black figure burst into the room. He was relieved that he was not the only one who was startled by the sudden entrance of Professor Snape. He doubted the others felt anything other than surprise, unlike Harry, who loathed the man.

Edging to the corner near the entrance to the corridor leading to the dormitories (he was not stupid enough to try to escape while Snape was there), Harry wasn't listening to the Professor as his head pounded with his fear of discovery. Snape had a way of causing great inconvenience and misery to Harry so he was determined to evade the man as much as possible in case Snape realised he was an imposter in his own house. That would not end well at all for Harry or Jaden.

If quizzed during a matter of life and death, Harry would not even have a clue as to what Snape had been talking about - that's how anxious he was to stay away from the man and keep himself calm while fighting the desire to run as far and fast as he could. He doubted it would make much difference, since Snape was probably lecturing about not getting caught breaking rules and how to pick on Gryffindors.

After several excruciating minutes, Snape turned and left the common room, allowing Harry the chance to bolt to his dormitory.

Diving for the middle bed, Harry buried himself under the covers like a small child scared of a nightmare. He just lay there. Harry heard two others joining him in the room but didn't care. He wanted this nightmare to end so he could return to HIS life, his friends, his house and most of all...sanity.

Harry rolled over onto his stomach and while still being covered by his sheets, he buried his face into his pillow and tried not to let his emotions get the better of him. His entire life was gone and he was someone else. A Slytherin without his friends or anything familiar, besides magic and a teacher who hated him.

Harry was lost and just wanted to scream to everyone that he was Harry Potter. Yet no one would believe him, just as the letter-writing and situation-causing person had told him.

Without realising his own exhaustion, Harry's eyes closed against the smooth material of the white pillow. His mind began to drift to the life he missed as he lay under his unfamiliar sheets in a room he felt like an alien inside while being in denial about a house he didn't feel he belonged to. 

Sleep won over his emotional exhaustion until many hours later he woke to someone yelling a name.

'Jaden!'

Harry jerked awake and sat upright, letting the sheet fall from his head as he looked over at Kevin. His memories were intact as he had just been dreaming about them, but the day already felt so dramatically different from the last. Kevin, the friendly and amusing friend he had met on the train, seemed like someone less trustworthy and kind as Harry saw the other boy dressed in his school uniform – complete with the Slytherin tie and crest.

'C'mon, we're gonna to be late!' Kevin stressed. 'We missed breakfast but Adam got us our timetables.' He thrust a piece of parchment in front of Harry.

Double Potions was exactly the last thing Harry wanted to face that day, yet he was glad it was after lunch though he didn't fancy being late for Transfiguration either. Again.

Harry, knowing that his own turmoil had to wait, tossed off his sheet and hurried to dress in his uniform and robes. Grabbing his bag and the required necessities for class, Harry tried to ignore Kevin's urging nearby. He paused in front of the mirror and stared not at his slightly-familiar appearance that was still not his own, but the sight of his tie and crest that he itched to tear from his attire. He felt like he was betraying Gryffindor and himself though Kevin did not allow him a spare second to dwell on it.

'Let's go!' Kevin hopped from foot to foot until Harry hurried after him.

Unlike the previous year with Ron, Harry knew the way to the Transfiguration classroom and by mere minutes he had saved them both from being late. Exhaling with relief, Harry sank dramatically into a seat near the middle right side of the room. Kevin sat beside him looking just as winded and thankful. Harry saw the tabby cat sitting on the desk and knew what to expect, yet said nothing as he got out his equipment and waited for the lesson to begin.

With his wandering mind and stressed mood, the only thing Harry really learned in an hour was that his room mate Curtis should never set foot inside that classroom. Transfiguration was certainly a skill that seemed to end in chaos without Curtis even raising his wand. It was amusing to see that Professor McGonagall appeared to agree.

Mostly there was a lot of note-taking during that class, in which Harry had little trouble with as he had done it all before. He felt no guilt about being a year ahead of his classmates in terms of knowledge of the material, because Harry wasn't paying as much attention to it. He was thinking about where the real Harry Potter was, because so far there were no whispers about the real him and everything seemed to be normal around Hogwarts.

The sound of the bell broke Harry from his thoughts and within moments he was standing outside the classroom with Kevin, their arms filled with books, and each unsure about where to go next. They were due in Charms shortly yet while Kevin felt a little confused about how to get to the classroom, Harry just wanted to go back to his bed and hide again.

'Which way is it?' Kevin frowned as he shifted the weight of his textbooks.

Sighing, Harry pointed out the direction and reluctantly followed his friend to their next class. He hadn't been thinking about them for once, yet as Harry and Kevin stepped into another corridor there was a big shock and disorientation for Harry, who bumped into another student because of his lack of focus on his surroundings.

'Oh, sorry!' Harry said quickly and looked up to see who it was.

He hadn't expected to recognise the person but his chest felt injured and laced with ice when he saw Ron standing before him with Hermione and Neville on either side.

'Well, watch it!' Ron frowned back at him, not looking too pleased though Harry hadn't knocked him very hard. Harry was confused at first, until he remembered that he didn't look anything like Harry Potter. He was a Slytherin stranger to Ron.

'He said he was sorry.' Kevin said to Ron as he tugged at Harry's sleeve. 'C'mon, we don't want to be late for Charms.'

Harry wasn't aware of commanding his feet to move until Kevin had successfully led him away from the group of Hufflepuff and Gryffindor second years who appeared to be on their way outside, likely for Herbology.

He felt terrible again and sank into the nearest seat in the Charms classroom.Ellis joined his side while Kevin was at his left. They paid little attention to him and were more interested in Professor Flitwick; Harry was glad because he had no way of explaining his distracted state to them.

It had finally happened, much sooner than he had expected, yet Harry wished he hadn't seen friends when he had been entirely unprepared for it. Hermione's arms had been loaded with books as his and Kevin's had been, though it wasn't at all a surprise to Harry who was used to seeing her buried in her reading.

Ron and Neville had looked as they always did and it only made it worse. They appeared to be going about their business as usual and not missing him at all, which further urged Harry's further determined to find out the truth. Did he no longer exist? He'd hadn't seen a copy of himself with them so surely it wasn't just a matter of switching places? But then, why did his friends seem to lack such concern?

Questions addled his brain and filled his thoughts the entire lesson in Charms, in which he copied down a few notes when he could but otherwise cared nothing for.

Harry tried to focus, really he did, but even with Ellis constantly making scratching sounds with her quill with all the notes she took and Kevin frequently causing the pair to worry about how easily he almost spilled his ink bottle each time he went to use it, Harry's mind was simply elsewhere and he was unable to concentrate.

-- 

Walking out of the Charms classroom with Ellis and Kevin was much different than entering it. Harry was determined now, to find out something about where the real him was, as he marched towards the Great Hall. Ellis and Kevin were distracted as they conversed with each other so Harry didn't have to face their curiosity as he had to quickly re-direct his attention from the Gryffindor table to the Slytherin one.

He had momentarily forgotten which house he was supposed to be sitting at as Jaden Royce not Harry Potter.

'Hello.' Harry said awkwardly to a fourth year Slytherin boy with dark hair that he carefully sat beside. The boy nodded once and returned to checking over his own timetable.

'I'm new here, so I was wondering if I might ask you something?' Harry risked the question and waited anxiously for the hex or glare that may follow.

'What?' The boy sighed and looked over at him with annoyance but a willingness to listen, which spurred Harry onwards.

'Harry Potter.' He said and checked that the name was recognised. With a relief, the boy seemed to be familiar with the name so he did still exist, somewhere. 'He goes here, doesn't he?' Harry felt weird to be talking abut himself in such a way but it was necessary to get the answers he wanted.

'Used to.' The boy nodded and glanced back at his timetable. 'Doesn't anymore.'

'Why not?' Harry spoke a little too loudly and blushed at the disapproval he received from several others nearby. 'I mean...what happened?'

'Beats me.' The fourth year shrugged. 'Potter and two of his Gryffindor friends did something stupid last year and had a confrontation of some sort with our previous Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, who turned out to be evil or whatever. Potter was found unconscious and is in Saint Mungo's. He hasn't woken since though seems unharmed, from what I heard.'

Harry didn't say or ask anything else. To do so would either turn into a frenzy for details or cause suspicion towards his interest.

When he'd faced Voldemort at the end of the previous school year, Harry had fallen unconscious and was now in hospital? Well, it was better than someone else being in his place yet it concerned Harry deeply. Had Voldemort done this? Will he ever be able to switch back? What if he never woke up? Even with the new information, Harry felt less stressed yet further lost than he had before. He decided that he had to get to Saint Mungo's and see for himself...but how? The only time when such a thing could even be possible was when he was “home” for the break and Christmas wasn't for another three months!

Groaning with defeat, Harry figured he'd worry about it later but for now he had to get a grip on being Jaden. People were going to get very suspicious soon if he didn't try to behave more normally and focusing in class was the first step.

Plus, he had Potions next and if Harry did what he had in Transfiguration and Charms...he shuddered at the thought of what Snape might do. Though he was dressed as a Slytherin and not the hated Harry Potter, he still doubted that it would make much difference if Snape caught him daydreaming or scribbling on his parchment during Potions. As far as Harry had seen, Snape never punished Slytherin students and even though he forced himself to realise that temporarily he was one of them...Harry still did not want to be the first Slytherin to noticeably get in trouble with Professor Snape. If anything would make him a hated outsider in Slytherin, Harry was convinced that something like that would certainly do the trick.

Harry was also convinced that the hatred Snape felt for him was so strong that even looking like someone else would not shield him from it. Though a part of him was so desperate for some normalcy in his life that Harry hoped Snape would realise the truth. No one would believe Harry if he told them, but he felt confident that Snape wouldn't receive the same scepticism, especially not from Dumbledore.

It was that small, dreading hope that Harry clung to as he and Kevin chose their seats in the Potions classroom not long later. Harry wished he had paid more attention to the seating arrangement as Kevin picked the middle of the first row for them to sit in. Taking the seat to Harry's left as usual, Kevin seemed at ease along with the other Slytherins whereas it was notable that the Gryffindors were on edge, naturally.

'Do you think that brewing Potions is anything like cooking?' Kevin asked Harry.

'Hm? Oh, I guess.' Harry shrugged.

With his equipment ready and body tense, Harry gripped his seat and waited with steady breathing for it to happen. Seconds passed and there was almost silence, until the door banged open and footsteps were heard. Even with his attempt to brace himself, Harry had still been startled enough to nearly fall out of his chair, just like the rest of his classmates.

Snape began with the exact sort of speech as he had the previous year, minus the horrible questions he had fired at Harry. The man stood at the front of the classroom and Harry refused to look at him, thinking he still needed a moment to prepare himself. Exhaling as Snape moved to sit at his desk, Harry waited with anticipation as the roll was called.

'Jaden Royce.'

Harry's head snapped up so fast he was surprised he hadn't hurt his neck. Looking over at the desk, he saw that Professor Snape was staring at him, no doubt surprised by his abrupt reaction and waiting for a confirmation.

'Here, sir.' Harry gulped.

He waited, watched and braced himself...yet Snape merely lowered his gaze and continued with the role calling. Finishing with the annoying Kelsey as usual, Snape then explained another thing or two about Potions before he gave instructions to their task which also appeared on the board at the front of the classroom. He rose from his desk and began to pace the room, making Harry further anxious when he could not keep the man in his line of sight. He turned once in his seat, watching as Snape seemed to hover more around the Gryffindors. Harry exhaled with inaudible relief and set to work on his potion, which he actually remembered quite well. He recalled a lot from that first lesson, as horrible as it had been.

When he looked over his shoulder again, Harry spotted Ginny working with a boy on either side of her; he hardly recognised them to be Colin and Alvin. Snape caught his curiosity and looked at him with a raised an eyebrow. Flushing with panic and embarrassment, Harry turned back around and buried himself in his task of re-reading his instructions before he proceeded with his potion.

He waited for something to happen but it never did.

Thinking he was safe, Harry mentally lectured himself as he was determined to not blow up his cauldron and place himself on the list of people Snape paid extra yet despising attention to. He was proud of himself too, by twenty minutes into the lesson, because Harry had done an excellent job with his potion compared to his classmates. It was then that he felt a bit bad for having done the lesson before, yet Harry might actually impress Snape this time (though he strongly doubted it) and that caused his guilt to fade.

He had to let his potion sit for a while; Harry sighed with relief and stepped back to savour the sight of his perfect potion, which was such a rare occurrence for him in that classroom. He glanced around and noticed that Kevin was having a little trouble and Ellis was re-reading a line of instruction with a contemptible frown on her face. Her potion seemed passable enough but Harry didn't want Kevin to get into trouble.

Unaware of the shadow looming over him, Harry nudged his friend and whispered to him.

'The skin will react badly to the mucus if you don't cut it fine enough.'

'How do you know?' Kevin winced. 'It's not written here...' He grabbed his book again, desperate to find answers within it.

'Trust me, Kev...it will.' Harry spoke as quickly as he could, even using a nickname to speed his speech along. Kevin either didn't notice or didn't mind. 'And afterwards stir it counter-clockwise once more than it tells you to.'

Kevin, worried that he was going to fail, glanced once at Harry's flawless potion before he nodded and obeyed. His murky blue potion soon turned pale and Harry exhaled with relief, feeling he had saved his new friend from the wrath of Snape.

Shifting to check on his own potion, Harry paused and noticed that his desk was a little darker than it should be. Withholding a gasp, he spun around and noticed Snape standing there, looking at him with narrowed eyes and then glance at his potion.

'You have achieved admirable progress for your first lesson, Mr Royce. A rare occurrence in this classroom, I assure you.' Snape said.

Harry almost choked on his own oxygen at the compliment.

'Five points to Slytherin.' He added and walked away to glare at a Gryffindor girl who had just dropped her knife and ingredient onto the floor in her clumsiness.

Kevin and Ellis also looked pleased at the house point gain that Harry felt he had cheated for. Though, he would forever savour the memory of Snape giving him five house points, even if it went to Slytherin and Harry was the only one who would ever realise the truth in the situation, at least for now. He half wanted to be Harry Potter again just to see the look on Snape's face, though it would likely end badly but for that moment it might be worth it.

Returning to his potion, Harry worked in a better mood and clearer head than he had all day. He couldn't explain it and didn't dare to try, but there was something about being around Snape that enabled him to be more in control, even if Harry was still on edge about what the man might do if he became distracted.

With several minutes left in the lesson, Harry placed his potion into a vial and stoppered it, feeling relieved and proud as it was exactly as the book and instructions said it should be. He placed it on Snape's desk and returned to his bench to clean up. To keep himself busy, he also assisted Ellis and Kevin with cleaning up their areas as well.

Determined to leave the classroom yet not wanting to lose the focused environment, Harry waited until the bell finally rung and Snape dismissed them. Harry snatched his bag but halted when he'd made a move to join his friends heading for the direction of the door.

'Mr Royce.' Snape said. 'A moment, if you will.'

'I'll meet you back in the common room.' Kevin whispered as he and Ellis nodded once and left. Harry felt betrayed and nervous as he stood there with his back to Snape as he pondered turning around or making a run for it.

Did Snape know?

'I am quite astounded with the result of your potion, Mr Royce.' Snape said as Harry slowly turned to face him.

With an exhale, Harry dropped his bag onto his seat and stepped closer, nodding his head to show that he was listening. He noticed the narrow-eyed expression on Snape's face and realised the professor wasn't too terribly hard to read when he wasn't glaring hatefully in Harry's direction.

'Oh, you're wondering why I did so well.' Harry winced. 'I...I don't know, sir.' He shrugged and had no answer to give.

'Is there a notable relative in your family with credentials or surpassing skill in the subject?' Snape offered and the lack of anger caused Harry to look over at him again, surprised.

'I...' Harry paused and considered the truth, thinking that Snape would know if he was lying anyway and didn't want to risk it. 'I'm not a pureblood, sir.' He sighed and glanced at the bench, picking at the surface with his nail as he spoke. 'My mother is a muggleborn and my father a pureblood. I don't know if they were good at Potions because they died before I could remember them. My other relatives were muggles, until I was adopted recently.' Harry confessed before realising who he was talking to. He looked up quickly to notice a reaction but saw none.

Maybe Snape wasn't much easier to read after all.

'I read over my textbook, sir...and I was interested in Potions.' Harry said the truth, though it was what he did the year before, not this second time around. 'I don't have an explanation, sir.' He was going to add that he hadn't cheated yet it might register as a lie when he felt as though he had.

'You are not in trouble, Mr Royce.' Snape said. 'On the contrary, I am merely curious towards your obvious skill in which so few first years have demonstrated during their first lesson.'

To Harry, however, it still sounded like a possible accusation, therefore he was determined to make Snape believe him regardless of the actual truth. But how? He'd have to say something smart in relation to Potions and all he could think of was the quizzing session he'd had in his real first lesson.

'I don't think I'm that talented, sir.' Harry said. 'It's like...knowing that a bezoar is a stone taken from the stomach of a goat can also be from reading and memory skills rather than Potion-making talents.' He shrugged and hoped that was passable enough. 'You set the instructions and I merely followed them.'

A glimpse of something else in Snape's disguised expression hinted to Harry that he had just made a mistake with his words. He had finally told a noticeable lie and the Professor had clearly spotted it.

'I do not appreciate being lied to, Mr Royce.' Snape approached Harry and stood over him in his usual intimidating manner. 'You informed Mr Antron to add an extra counter-clockwise stir in attempt to assist in the rectification of his potion. Such an instruction, despite your claim, was not listed on the board nor in your textbook.' His eyes narrowed again.

'How would you proceed to explain that, Mr Royce?'

'Uh...' Harry wasn't sure.

He gulped and his mind panicked, not sure what to say or how to act to ward away the suspicion or possible anger. And suddenly, as though being sorted to Slytherin had granted him new capabilities, he thought of something to say that was both risky yet his only shred of hope.

'We all have our secrets, don't we, sir?' Harry said. 'Can I please keep mine?' He even added politeness and anything that might help him. 'I didn't know I was going to do that well, honest, but it was fair and I just tried really hard to...' Harry looked away, not sure if his words were true yet at some point during the lesson he had wanted, just once, for Snape to see that he could brew a potion really well, even if it was as Jaden.

'I was hoping you would see my potential.' He though his words sounded Slytherin-like and got the point across.

'Very well, Mr Royce.' Snape nodded. 'I stated that you are not in trouble and that fact remains true. You will receive top marks for this task. You are dismissed.' He nodded.

Harry could not help it, but hearing from Snape that he had received top marks for a potion cause a grin to form on his face in a way that made him understand Hermione a little more. From any other teacher it was a “well done” compliment. To hear it from Snape had an impact on Harry in a way he didn't understand.

'Thank you, sir.' Harry nodded and retrieved his bag. He walked to the door and paused, turning back to stare at Snape. 'Sir, um...I was wondering...did you, I mean do you really hate Harry Potter?' He dared to ask.

'Though I hardly consider it any of your concern, Mr Royce...' Snape frowned. 'Mr Potter was nothing but a nuisance, spoiled-brat of a Gryffindor, however...even so, I find myself incapable of truly loathing a student even if I may wish one dead.' He said. 'Where does you interest in Mr Potter lie?'

'It's just...he's not here and no one seems to care.' Harry answered. 'I saw his friends earlier, and they seem themselves. I was just curious, that's all.'

'Those who do not appear to care may simply be proficient at concealing their emotions, Mr Royce.' Snape said in a strange tone. 'One must never judge by what they see. There are more successful liars out there than yourself.'

'Yes, sir.' Harry nodded and wondered what Snape had meant by his words. 'Thanks again, sir.' Harry added.

He left the classroom, feeling a bit disorientated by the very short time it took to reach his common room, even after taking a few wrong turns. Snape knew he had been lying, but about what? And what would Snape know about people who care yet would conceal such emotions?

Harry was displeased to notice that he had accumulated more questions that afternoon than he had awoken with that morning.