Harry ran almost all the way to the Potions classroom. He stopped just around the corner and closed his eyes. He couldn’t turn up to potions with the wrong face – Snape would have kittens. Although, Harry admitted somewhat reluctantly, it might be funny to watch Snape having kittens, especially if he was the cause.  

Concentrating very hard Harry was pleased to find out he could easily change back to what he surmised as his ‘normal’ Potter face. Hefting his school bags onto his shoulders Harry marched towards the potions classroom with a new purpose.  

Ron and Hermione weren’t waiting by the door, but Draco Malfoy was and he was looking particularly smug. “Not going so well in paradise, eh Potter?” Draco drawled glancing at his perfect fingernails. “Weasel and Buck-tooth leave you in favour of snogging in the corner?”   

Harry felt his face heat up as Draco and his retinue of Slytherins sniggered at his expense. 

“I don’t suppose you’ve ever snogged a girl,” Pansy put in.

“Feel sorry for the poor lass,” Millicent put in. Harry thought that was a little unfair coming from the unattractive Slytherin. 

Harry felt his face heating until it was a tell tale crimson. Draco sniffed dismissively.  

“Shut up Malfoy,” Harry snapped irritably. “Just because you’ve had all the Slytherin girls sometime in the storage cupboards doesn’t mean it is a trend we all want to follow.”  

“My, my, my. Potter has a comeback!” Zabini chortled slapping a slacked faced Draco on the back.  

Harry crossed his arms against his chest and glared at the Slytherins through his lashes.  

“Hello Harry,” Neville cried breathlessly. Harry nearly cheered as the slightly clumsy Gryffindor saved the day. “I thought I was going to be late. Professor... Harry you’re a tad pale. Are you feeling okay?”

Harry blinked stunned. Had he forgotten to change something? He glanced over at the Slytherins and noticed Zabini was eying him suspiciously. Harry looked down at his hands and realised with a jolt they weren’t his Potter hands. Shoving his pale, elegant hands into his pockets Harry turned to Neville. 

“Hey Neville,” Harry said with false cheerfulness. “Yeah, I’m alright, I just skipped lunch that’s all.” 

“You really shouldn’t skip lunch, Harry,” Neville remarked shaking his head. “You’re too skinny.” 

Harry glowered at Malfoy as the Slytherins all had a good laugh at his expense. “Thank you mum,” Harry snapped in Neville’s direction. 

“You’ve been unusually snappy lately,” Neville put in quietly. “Are you sure everything is okay? Percy wasn’t too hard on yah was he?” 

Harry wished he had the guts to shut Neville up then and there. He didn’t want to think about pompous Percy Weasley, who chewed him up because his Gryffindor tie was not perfect this morning and his shoelaces were unevenly tied. Percy had loudly claimed that morning that Harry was a disgrace to the Gryffindor name and that if he had lived in Godric Gryffindor’s time, the founder would have flayed him alive. Hermione had proudly told him that Percy got that information from Hogwarts: A Morbid Medieval History. Harry had made the mistake of telling Percy that he doubted the authenticity of his statement. Percy had then grabbed his ear and pulled Harry to a secluded spot... Harry didn’t want to think about what happened next. 

“It’s fine, Nev,” Harry muttered. “I wish everyone would just let it drop.” 

Ron and Hermione turned up with the rest of Gryffindors just as Snape swept the door open.  “Instructions are on the board.” 

Harry filed in after his friends and pulled out his ingredients carefully. He flipped his book open and pulled out his cauldron and lit it quickly. He chopped and diced ingredients carefully for twenty minutes before realising that he couldn’t quite see the board as well as he normally did. He always had to squint at the board to read Snape’s jagged handwriting but today it was nearly impossible to decipher. Had his eyes suddenly worsened over the summer? Sighing heavily Harry took his glasses off and rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration. He froze and then blinked before dropping his glasses in shock. He could see perfectly without his glasses on. 

“Problem, Mr. Potter?” Snape inquired suddenly appearing at Harry’s elbow. “Or are we still trying to locate the nearest brain cell?” 

“Er.. no sir,” Harry mumbled still staring ahead in befuddlement. He wished he had corrected his eye sight years ago! Snape stared at Harry and then to the board in what any normal person would call bemusement.

“Then why aren’t we working, Potter?”

“I.. I... I seem to be having some difficulties with my eyes, professor,” Harry managed to mumble. “I’ll cope, thank you sir.” 

“Hmm...” Snape murmured stepping away to stare heatedly into Neville’s cauldron. “Ten points from Gryffindor.” 

Harry stared up at Snape confused. “For not following simple directions: GET TO WORK!” 

Harry bent down and picked up his glasses and shoved them into his pockets. For the remainder of the day Harry decided he wouldn’t wear the awful contraptions. 

Harry worked happily for the next half an hour until he heard a voice. He dropped both his mortar and pestle as he heard the eerie voice. The marble instruments clattered to the ground noisily making the heads of Slytherins and Gryffindors snap up to stare at him. Harry however was too preoccupied with the voice to notice that he had an audience. 

“Rip... kill... kill... taste flesh.... let me kill..” 

“POTTER!” Snape’s angry snarl tore through Harry’s trance. “Look at this mess.”

“That voice... did you hear that voice...” Harry murmured. 

“Potter if I wanted to hear you babbling nonsense I would have feed you my babbling beverage.” 

“Someone’s going to kill someone!” Harry exclaimed fearfully looking at Snape for any confirmation that he too heard the voice. “Silence!” Snape demanded glancing around the class whom was already muttering about Potter’s strange outburst. Snape took in the pale, shaking form of the young Gryffindor and was pleased to note the lad was not stupid enough to keep blathering. Snape restrained a shiver of dread creeping up his spine and spun back onto the class. “Back to work!” he barked. Harry, the Potions Master noted with an air of annoyance didn’t move a muscle. His too bright green eyes were as round as saucers and he was sure that he could see beads of sweat dripping down the boy’s brow. 

“Zabini, Nott escort Potter here to the infirmary and make sure he gets there!” Snape snapped, painfully aware the class’ attention had snapped straight back to him. “Potter, detention. Wasting precious class time when you are ill enough not to be here.” 

“Yes sir,” Harry managed to mumble through a lump in his throat.  Snape stared at his two Slytherins. Messers Nott and Zabini had to be two of the more astute Slytherins to realise Snape wanted Potter escorted to the infirmary and nothing more. 

“And fifty points from Gryffindor for wasting my time!” Snape added in as an afterthought as Harry and his escort reached the door.

Zabini and Nott chuckled. “Come on, Potter,” Zabini said curling his long fingers around Harry’s upper arm. “You really don’t look crash hot.” 

Harry glared at the Slytherin balefully. Nott bent down stiffly and retrieved Harry’s belongings and deftly avoided a well-aimed kick from Ron Weasley’s direction. Flanked by two Slytherins, Harry had no choice but to go to the infirmary. He would have gone to the Gryffindor Common Room if he’d had the chance and he would have been able to talk any of his Gryffindor year mates into doing so. However he didn’t think the Slytherins would let him and he didn’t want to show them where Gryffindor Tower was... not that the slippery serpents couldn’t find out if they really wanted to. 

“I thought what you did today in Defence was brilliant,” Zabini stated, obviously trying to start a conversation on the way to the infirmary. Harry snorted in reply.

“The idiot didn’t understand. Used too many big words.” Nott rolled his eyes.

“Still, for a Gryffie it was not too bad. You weren’t, however, very covert about it.” 

“I wasn’t trying to be covert,” Harry muttered. “I was trying to protest!” 

“Failed splendidly then,” Zabini grinned. “Although, you did make a right idiot out of him.” 

Harry eyed the Slytherins suspiciously. “What do you want?” 

Nott slapped his palm across his heart and pretended to flail about as if he was injured. “Ouch that hurt!” 

Harry furrowed his brow in confusion at Nott’s antics and chanced a glance at Zabini, who was smirking at him knowingly. “Snape wants you safely delivered to the infirmary without any wayward adventures on the side... and to the infirmary you go.”  

 “There’s naught wrong with him,” Harry heard Pomfrey state. He had been sitting on his bed in the infirmary since being dumped there by Nott and Zabini. Intrigued and slightly bored Harry slipped from the bed and tip toed a little closer in order to eavesdrop. 

“The boy is hearing voices that by rights he should not be,” Snape’s voice hissed. “You cannot possibly say that there is nothing wrong with that!” 

“What is this all about Severus?” Pomfrey inquired sounding quiet put out. 

“How are you going to explain this to him then?” Snape returned. 

“You heard the voice?” Pomfrey sounded surprised. 

“Of course I heard,” Snape all but snarled.  

Pomfrey didn’t say anything for a while. “Perhaps you should say nothing to him.” 

“Nothing!” Snape sounded like he was choking. “That child does not know when to give up. Mark my words well Poppy... he’ll be investigating all too soon. He’s already questioning his parentage for Merlin’s sake.” 

“He’s a lonely little boy, Severus,” Pomfrey admonished softly. “Of course he wants some real family members.” 

“Family is overrated if you ask me,” Snape snarled stomping out of the infirmary. 

“Well good thing I didn’t ask you Severus Snape,” Pomfrey said sauntering away into the private domain of her office.