Severus Snape, potions master at Hogwarts school of Witches and Wizardry stood stirring his cauldron of ingredients. "A little bit of goriown root and there. Perfect." Snape stood back admiring his work. The potion he had created was to replace some of the most recently used heart strengtheners potion for Madam Pomfry, the school nurse. Snape often helped Madam Pomfry with stocking her potions medical stores and really he didn't mind. After all it wasn't like she hadn't helped him greatly throughout his childhood, often the victim of bullying both at school and at home. She never ran out of patience for him even after he became a death eater. Always patient and willing to help at any time, provided Snape didn't let his pride get in the way of asking for aid.

Snape was awoken from his daydream with a sudden slam of his laboratory door. "Sir, sir!" A little blonde haired monster had entered the room asking for his immediate attention. Snape didn't mind the interruption of his godson at the best of times but it seemed that today was a particularly stressful day. "It's good to see you too Draco, now what has caused you to come bursting in here as if chased by a fire breathing ridgeback? You know my rules of knocking."

"I know sir," Draco panted. "But Potter, he has come to Hogwarts by flying car! I had to make the carriage run extra fast to get here. I had to tell you. Look it's here in the paper! He was seen by seven muggles. It's in the paper!" Draco smiled, hoping that maybe by telling his godfather of the latest escape of the wizarding world's golden hero he could possibly gain some appreciation from his godfather. "We will discuss this later Draco," Snape said almost dismissingly, "now go; I have important work to do."

Snape rolled up the newspaper as a person would to smack a dog on the nose and waited for Draco to leave the room and for his echoing footsteps to disappear from the area before turning off his heart strengtheners potion and leaving the room going directly to the headmaster. On the way he was greeted by two very exhausted boys, one with red hair, and the other, a lightning bolt scar. "Mr Weasley and Mr Potter, what a wonderful surprise," he said, "come with me." He led the two boys straight towards the headmaster's office. "Chocolate frogs" the password. What kind of a dim-witted password can that dotty old man come up with next? But Snape had other things to manage tonight.

"So a house elf shows up in my bedroom, we can't get through the barrier to platform at 9 and three quarters, we almost get killed by a tree, clearly someone doesn't want me here this year." said Harry as he mounted the stairs to the great hall with Ron following.

"Oh dear, we are in trouble," Argus Filch, cleaner of Hogwarts was the first to greet them with a sinister almost evil grin, "Take a look around boys, tonight might be the last you are in this castle." He then led them straight to Dumbledore's office and who was there...but Snape.

They entered the room together and Snape slapped the daily prophet in front of them.

"You were seen, by no less than seven muggles!" he pointed to the picture of the flying car in the paper, "Have you got any idea how serious this is? You have risked the exposure of our world. Not to mention the damage that you inflicted on a Womping Willow which has been on these grounds since before you were born."

"Honestly Professor Snape, I think it did more damage to us!" Ron stated blatantly and Snape started advancing on them.

"Silence!" he stated, "I assure you that if you were in Slytherin and your fate rested with me, the both of you would be on the way home...tonight!"

"I uh," Harry stuttered. Men who raised their voices at him always gave him a sense of fear, mixed in with dread and awaiting what the man is going to do with him. It was too much like...could you call that place home? With a cousin always bullying him, a timid but aggressive aunt and an uncle who used him as his own personal bobo doll. Harry learnt early that when a man acts like this you need to make yourself as small as possible and if he hits you down, you stay down.

"What it is sir...?" Ronald stated, trying to come up with a good excuse off the top of his head.

"The barrier wouldn't let us through!" Harry stated.

"No, I'll tell you what it is," Snape stated angrily "famous Harry Potter thinks that he is too good for the Hogwarts Express. You think that you deserve better treatment than that of the rest of the students don't you Mr Potter."

"No it's not like that!" Harry stated feeling rather upset by the sheer belief that somebody could possibly think that he would try to do something like this deliberately.

"It's not enough for you that you almost kill yourself nearing the end of last year Potter, you choose to take a flying car to school. Starting off with your attention seeking rather early I see. Detention at 7pm tomorrow. And if you were in my house, believe me, your parents would be called and you both would be out of Hogwarts before you could blink."

"But they are not!" came the voice of Albus Dumbledore, returning to his office with Minerva McGonagall, senior teacher, following him.

"Sir, I" Ronald stuttered. Hoping to get the first word in and maybe avoid a lot of punishment which was bound to come his way. How could he be so stupid to think that kind of thing would be alright? His parents were going to kill him! But in the heat of the moment it is so easy to allow yourself to get into all kinds of mischief. Even almost losing Harry out of the car door! He was more worried about what his parents would say about that than anything else! But he knew that Harry would never tell.

"Headmaster, these boys have deliberately disrespected the act of underage wizardry...as such..." Severus stated angrily pointing at the two boys.

"I am well aware of our bylaws Severus, having written quite a few of them myself. However as head of Gryffindor it is for Professor McGonigall to decide an appropriate punishment!" Professor Dumbledore stated. McGonagall looked down at the paper, which was still held by Snape, and then glared at the boys. "Explain yourselves both of you!" she demanded.

"What it is miss," Ronald started before Harry cut in with "it's my fault Professor. The barrier wouldn't let us through, so we thought the car..."

"That the car could transport you to Hogwarts. Did you think of what kind of calamity it could be if you were seen?" McGonagall asked "or the obliviation that would be needed to ensure that those poor innocent muggles are not scarred for life from your shenanigans? I have never seen such reckless behaviour before. You, Ronald Weasley, shall serve detention with Mr Filch for a week and you Harry Potter, shall serve your detention with..."

This was only interrupted by a sudden entrance of Gilderoy Lockheart, a goofy looking man, with a silly smile plastered on his face. Harry groaned, he knew who this was after his forced media coverage at Flourish and Blotts bookstore where his entrance to buy his wizard books for the next year had caused a mass of cameras and an arm around his shoulder with a forced smile. Subsequently it also landed him with a great deal of books for free which he had passed off to Ginny as a way to say thank you for rescuing me from my evil relatives these holidays gift.

"Harry my dear fellow, how did you get detention? Never mind you can serve it with me answering my fan mail." He stated.

"With Professor Lockheart," said a very disgruntled McGonigall, "you are both dismissed."

"Gilderoy, you should not undermine another professor whilst you are here," Dumbledore said.

"Sorry Albus," said Lockhart sheepishly, Dumbledore was fuming at the use of his first name in such a derogatory manner but always being one to keep the peace he merely offered another round of chocolate frogs. Snape sneered at them and walked from the room with his black cape billowing behind him. He went directly to his office and poured himself a glass of fire whisky from his liquor cabinet. He avoided his mahogany desk with his most recent marks from summer school for the dunderheads that didn't quite pass through the regular classes. He wished that Dumbledore hadn't brought in such a motion, not only do they have to often keep the students at the school during times of Christmas, but now he has lost some of his summer vacations to what Dumbledore deemed as "make up classes" for those who wish for a little more learning. Of course Hermoine Granger couldn't be happier when she heard of the motion and immediately joined herself up to every class she could be eligible for including some subjects that she never had talent for and most likely never would like Divinity and Muggle interpretations from a wizard point of view and Future readings for the gifted.

Snape sat down on a comfy leather lounge chair; he couldn't help but to smile at his pets. The two dogs curled up on a blanket on the couch together and the cat meowing for attention. He allowed it to come up and sit on his lap stroking it absent mindedly. "Oh Lily, what am I going to do with them?" he asked. The cat merely purred and snuggled into his lap.

(((Authors note: Yes the bat of the dungeons has pets in this story. I imagine him with two dogs, a kelpie/border collie/ blue heeler and a fox terrier/dachshund, an owl and a mixed breed black and white cat. They come handy to gather potions ingredients. More about them later)))

As he sipped his fire whisky he contemplated the situation and thought about how he felt that the boys had completely skipped punishment by being allowed to simply have a detention. He had given tougher punishments to his Slytherins for a lot less! The only thing he could think was that nobody had bothered to mention contacting the parents. As a responsible teacher of Hogwarts he believed that all parents should be in contact with the school for regular guidance of the students. A lot of parents believed that just because it was boarding school it was alright to simply dump the kids on the Hogwarts Express and then not think about them again until September. But Snape believed if parents were more involved with the curriculum it might make the parent/teacher/student relationship a lot better. Molly Weasley (Ron's mother) was always one to share this view. Snape smiled as he thought, maybe now would be a time that he should start putting that idea into action. Ok so maybe this was meant to be the headmaster's responsibility, but surely there couldn't be a problem with him calling her to talk about the contents of the local paper, she had probably read it already. Also she was a great friend. Smiling Snape stood and threw some flu into the fireplace. It turned green and he stuck his head into it and called.

"Molly, Molly are you home?" he asked.

"Oh hi Severus, come on through I am just doing the dishes," Molly said as she stood up from reading her book. The dishes were quite happily doing themselves in the sink under her supervision.

"No Molly, I think that this is something you should come through to me for, and bring today's daily prophet with you, I assume you get it delivered." Snape stated simply.

"Of course we do Severus and yeah you can borrow it if you like, but if all you want to do is borrow a paper why don't you get one from one of the students?" Molly asked in that mothering tone of voice known only too well to her children and husband alike.

"No Molly, that is not the problem," Snape stated, "come on through."

"Oh my goodness did something happen to the children?" Molly asked in a panicked voice.

"No, but there has been mischief," Snape stated.

"But the twins are always like that, I have suggested to Dumbledore that he should just tell me when there's a problem. I know how to deal with it," Molly stated picking up her wooden spoon and cancelling the spell on her dishes.

"No Molly," Snape said, "it was Ronald and Harry,"

"Harry? But he's always such a good boy."

"Well," Snape stated, "I guess this time he has taken after his father. Let's discuss this."

Molly Weasley stepped into the fireplace and through to Snape's office.

"So, tell me what has happened,"