Potions and Snitches
Snape and Harry Gen Fanfiction Archive

Author's Chapter Notes:
This chapter is dedicated to Lady Lily, who gave me many inspirations and ideas. Without her, the last couple of chapters wouldn’t have been possible. Thanks!
First Day of Teaching and Marauders’ Thoughts

The next morning after breakfast found Harry and Severus in the DADA room, waiting anxiously for the first class to come in. Thankfully, they only had to worry about sixth and seventh years, as the Dueling Club had been devised for senior years in the first place. Because of this, they only had two classes per day rather than four, which was a welcome relief.

The door flew open as students began to walk in. Fortunately, they had the Ravenclaw-Hufflepuff class at the moment. The Gryffindor-Slytherin class would attend after lunch. Harry personally thought that was a blessing, as he didn’t think he could take a crowd of Gryffindors AND Slytherins on a Monday morning.

The class passed quickly and uneventfully, and the two houses quickly adjusted to the two new “professor”, although a few Ravenclaws were miffed at the fact that they hadn’t been the ones chosen as substitutes.

However, Harry should have known that the quiet wouldn’t last long. After a quick, private lunch (provided by the House Elves), the Gryffindors and Slytherins headed in. James Potter froze at the sight of Severus Snape, standing in front of the class along with Harry.

“Snivellus!” the boy sneered. “What the hell are you doing up there?”

“Professor Darkice and I are the substitutes for Professor Longnight, Potter,” Severus returned with a glare of his own.

“WHAT?!” This time, it was Sirius who spoke. “Who the hell would recommend that little Death-Eater in training?”

Before Severus could retort, Harry cut in. His eyes blazed with suppressed fury. “Twenty points from Gryffindor,” he said in a barely-controlled voice.

“Harry!” James said in shock. “Why are you helping that little snake? He’s a---“

His voice was cut off abruptly as the windows suddenly exploded. “Sit down, Mr. Potter,” Harry ground out, hands curled into fists. “Otherwise, I won’t take responsibilities for my actions.”

James immediately went quiet as he remembered the time when Harry had managed to kill over a dozen Death Eaters with wandless magic. He did not want to be the next one to test the boy’s temper. What did get him curious, however, was why was Harry protecting a Slytherin?

Severus too, was feeling puzzled. This was the first time that someone else had ever stood up for him ---well, except for those rare occasions with Lily Evans--- and what confused him the most was that that person was a Gryffindor. Why would Harry turn against his own house just to defend him? Whatever the reason a part of him warmed at the knowledge that someone was willing to stand by him, yet another part of him protested: he didn’t need pity. The protective part won out as he hissed angrily at Harry, “I don’t need your protection!”

Harry smiled despite his tone. “I don’t pity you,” he said quietly, understanding exactly the way Severus was feeling.

The Slytherin looked up, a glint of surprise on his face, but it was gone as soon as it had appeared, causing Harry to wonder whether he had just imagined it.

The rest of the lesson passed uneventfully, or at least, as uneventful as a DADA lesson could get with Severus Snape as teacher and the Marauders as students. There were a few occasions where James and Sirius tried to hex Severus, but Harry successfully blocked all of them with a solid shield charm. By the end of class, he was suitably worn out and at the end of his reserves.

When dinner finally ended and he headed up to his Common Room, Harry wished for nothing more than to crawl into bed and go straight to sleep. However, he walked through the portrait hole only to find himself eye-to-eye with one pissed off Sirius Black.

“What do you want?” He asked tiredly, feeling a headache coming on. He’d have to look through his trunk for a headache potion later.

“ME??” Sirius exploded. “ME? YOU GO AND STICK UP FOR SNAPE IN FRONT OF THE WHOLE DADA CLASS AND YOU HAVE THE NERVE TO ASK ME WHAT I WANT? WELL, I’LL TELL YOU WHAT I WANT: I WANT TO KNOW WHAT THE HELL HAS GOTTEN INTO YOU! WHY THE HELL DID YOU HUMILIATE ME AND JAMES IN FRONT OF THE WHOLE CLASS JUST FOR THAT STUPID, GOOD-FOR-NOTHING, DEATH-EATER IN TRAINING!” By then, Remus was insistently elbowing the boy, but Sirius paid him no mind. The furious Gryffindor didn’t seem to notice the fact that several people ---Harry, Draco, and Hermione, in fact----- were getting steadily angrier. “YOU’RE A GRYFFINDOR FOR HEAVEN’S SAKE, AN HONOURABLE GRYFFINDOR, NOT A NO-GOOD SLYTHERIN SNAKE! DIDN’T YOUR PARENTS TEACH YOU ANYTHING? IF YOU-----“

“ENOUGH!” Harry burst out angrily, his emerald eyes flashing dangerously. “Don’t you DARE presume anything about my parents!” His voice was ice, dripping with venom; his tone, steel, cold and unforgiving. “You accuse me of humiliating you in front of the class, yet you give no mind to the fact that you did the exact same thing to Severus. That in itself gives you no reason to complain. If you, for some reason, think that this makes you “great honorable Gryffindors”, then let me assure you, you are entirely wrong. If you behave in such a conceding manner, then you are no better than the Death Eaters themselves.” Ignoring the sputtering behind him, he turned and walked up the stairs to the boys’ dorms. “It’s late, I’m tired, and I seen more reason for me to stay here and communicate with you if you refuse to speak reasonably. Good night.” With that, he disappeared from sight.

There was a moment of stunned silence before Sirius jumped up and started ranting again. “How dare he say that I’m just like any Slytherin? I’m a Gryffindor, not a snake-in-the-grass. Damn it, this is all Snivellus’ fault. Those slimy Slytherin---“

Draco immediately responded, defending both his Head of House and his House’s honour. “That’s where you’re wrong, Sirius Black,” he said quietly. “You vigilently deny that you have any resemblance to Slytherins, that all Slytherins are arrogant bastards. But you fail to see the fact that Slytherins, much like Gryffindors, are only human. We too have emotions, although we express it much differently. That fact fails to make Slytherins any more inhuman than Gryffindors.”

“Yes it does!” Sirius argued. “They’re slimy Death Eaters and deserve to be put in Azkaban!”

There was a mometn of utter silence at this declaration.

It was a while before Draco spoke again. This time, however, there was no forgivingness, no emotion at all in lhis voice --- only harsh coldness. “That, Black is what makes you no batter than Death Eaters themselves.” Ignoring the other’s sputterings of disbelief, he continued. “Death Eaters believe that all Muggles and Muggleborns are lower than dirt, and deserve to be killed for no reason. Their desire to torture and to make others suffer is what makes Death Eaters evil, for their prejudice prevents them from seeing the world clearly. You are not so different after all, Black. True, some SLytherins may be cruel and nasty, but I would say that few actually deserve to be put in Azkaban. Your judgement si clouded by hate and prejudice, and that is what makes you exactly like the Death Eaters.” Draco stopped, breathing in deeply. Feeling that he had said his piece for the night, he turned and headed towards the staircase. “It’s late, and I’m going to bed. I hope, Black, that you think about what I’ve said.” With that, he left.

It was Hermione who finally broke the long silence that followed. “You know,” he said lightly, trying to break up the tension. “I think we should be getting to bed. It’s getting rather late.” She yawned slightly. “Coming, guys?”

Remus, following her lead, also stood up. “Come on, everyone,” he said, walking towards the stairs Harry and Draco had disappeared up earlier. “Let’s go. Bedtime.”

With a mumble fo good night, everyone stood up, Hermione going into the girls’ dorms while everyone else headed into the boys’ dorms. Ron peered at Harry’s and Draco’s beds, but apparently, they were already asleep. With a sigh, he, along with the others, crawled into their respective beds.

Somewhere outside, a lone owled hooted into the darkness.

------PETER’S POV--------

Peter shifted restlessly on his bed. Try as he might, he just couldn’t seem to fall asleep. He sighed quietly before giving up. There was no way he was going to sleep anytime soon.

As he sat there motionlessly in the darkness, his mind wandered to the four strangers that had settled into his life. There was Ron Westerly -----stubborn and fun-loving, much like Sirius------, Hermione Granger -------------strict and intelligent, strangely reminiscent of Professor McGonagall---------, Draco Darkice ---------cunning and clever with his perfect blond looks-------, and finally, Harry Darkice. Quiet, but fiercely protective.

Peter sighed. There was something about the boy, perhaps his powerful demeanor or maybe his hidden strength...---- Peter wasn’t sure, but something made him feel almost... attached to the other boy. He marveled at Harry’s bravery, his evident loyalty, his strength of the will; each quality shown so clearly during times of danger. He remembered how Harry had jumped in front of the Cruciatus curse intended for James, how determined he had been to protect his loved ones. Peter couldn’t help but admire the dark-haired boy.

For some uncanny reason though, he got the impression that Harry and his friends disliked him. Peter couldn’t be sure, but it was the small things that made him wonder ------ The coolness in Harry’s voice when he spoke; The glare from Ron behind his back; The hesitance in Hermione’s voice when she spoke to him.....

Peter gave a sigh of defeat. His eyes stared into the darkness of the room as he desperately asked himself---- what had he done? What had he done to make the others hate him so? All he had ever wanted was to fit in, to be a good friend that others could rely on. Try as he might, he couldn’t figure out what he had done wrong.

He fell asleep pondering the question.

------END OF PETER’S POV-----------

-------REMUS’ POV--------

Remus shifted slightly in bed, amber eyes peering off into the darkness. Unable to sleep, he sat up quietly before pulling open the curtains surrounding his bed. Even with his enhanced werewolf vision, he could only make out the shapes of other beds scattered in a semi-circular shape around the dorm. Somewhere off in the distance, he could hear an hour hooting mournfully.

He signed, leaning back in bed. His mind wandered to the four strangers that had walked into his life. In particular, Harry Darkice.

There was something about the boy, something about him that was so utterly familiar... but Remus couldn’t place it. It was almost as if the two of them had met before, perhaps in another time, another life. But... there was no way such a thing could happen. Right?

Remus knew that the boy and his friends were hiding something from him and the rest of the Marauders. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that they had fit into their group like second nature, or perhaps it was the coldness they treated Peter with, as if Wormtail had done something the rest of them weren’t aware of. Whatever it was, Remus was worried.

He leaned back onto his pillow with a sigh, knowing that it wouldn’t do him any good if he stayed up all night and wasn’t able to get up the next morning. However, it was a very long time before he managed to get to sleep.

----------END OF REMUS’ POV---------

--------SIRIUS’ POV--------------

Sirius sighed before sitting up. After shifting around his bed for about half an hour, he had to admit defeat: for some unknown reason, he just wasn’t able to fall asleep. His mind was to busy concentrating on the scene that had occurred earlier.

Harry and Draco had both accused him of behaving like Death Eaters. Sirius inwardly shivered at the thought. Normally, he would just forget about such incidents and tell himself that such a silly thing couldn’t possibly happen. However, there was something about the way Harry had spoken, something about Draco’s tone of voice that made him rethink their statement. Could they have been correct?

When Harry had first told him that he was behaving exactly like the Slytherins, Sirius had been furious. How dare the boy accuse him of such a crime? He had ignored him, telling himself that such was thing wasn’t possible. But then, Draco had spoken, and the blond had managed to point out evidence that had never occurred to him before. But what really bothered him the most, however, was the fact that he knew deep in his heart, that Draco was right. Both Harry and Draco had been right. As much as he hated admitting it, he HAD been foolish, insulting Snive---- Snape in front of the entire class. True, the ill-tempered boy WAS a nasty Slytherin, but Draco did have a point: Slytherins couldn’t be ALL nasty, and even Snape had to have SOME emotions under the layers of grease and all.

Sirius sighed. The incident earlier had hit him deep in the heart, for he knew that the one thing he feared was to be turned into the ones he himself hated the most. The thought that he would ever work for someone like Voldemort sickened him to the core.

“I am not a Death Eater,” he whispered fiercely. He would not become anything like one, even if it meant he had to be nice to Snivellus. No matter what happened, he wouldn’t be changed.

Sirius leaned back into his bed, his eyes glaring fiercely into the darkness. As he finally drifted off to sleep, he vowed to himself: He would NEVER become a Death Eater. Ever.

Chapter End Notes:
Well, that was that --- and I hope the ending was suitable, for once. grins Anyways, PLEASE review, I look forward to getting your comments. Any ideas given are much appreciated!

Greatest thanks,

Firestar

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