Chapter 14

The next day's classes started with a double potions period with the Hufflepuff, while waiting for Snape outside the potions dungeon, Harry recalled everything he knew about Snape from his mother. He knew that Snape was his mother's friend before Hogwarts and also that Snape had an abusive father who was a muggle, which turned him into a bitter individual, Harry also knew that Snape had a rivalry with his father James as both had feelings for his mother Lily, Snape's dislike for James Potter turned into hatred when James and Lily started dating in sixth year after Lily ended her friendship with Snape after an incident during Fifth year OWLS and also regarding his choice of friends, friends who cursed and tormented Muggleborns. His mom had started dating his father after a friend of hers explained to her that the only Slytherins the Marauders pranked were those who were abusing Muggleborns as Dumbledore was too soft and didn't punish them and also James told her that the reason he disliked Snape was because he insulted James father which no Pureblood heir would tolerate and also because Snape was jealous of James popularity and wealth. Harry also knew that Snape was no innocent bystander in the pranks and gave back by using lethal curses and was also hell bent on getting the marauders into trouble and went as far as to venture into the shrieking shack during full moon and his father had to rescue Snape from a transformed Remus. Harry felt that the marauders were not innocent but Snape was not innocent either.Harry also knew that Snape didn't care what happened to Harry and his father as he had informed Dumbledore about the attempt on the Potters and Longbottom families and also requested Voldemort to spare his mother just so that his mother would survive so he could have her after her husband and child were killed. So Harry decided to be careful with Snape and keep his Occlumency shields at full force throughout the class. Snape came swooping into the class like a bat and after giving his customary speech about the greatness of potions and insulting the class he started taking roll call.

When he began taking roll call, Snape's eyes rested on Harry and softly said, " Ah, the new Potter. "

When Harry gazed into Snape's eyes he suddenly felt a subtle legilimency probe from Snape which he swatted aside as it was no match for his Occlumency shields and Snape didn't dare try sending another probe as he knew that if got caught trying to use legilimency on the heir of a Most ancient and noble house he would be sent straight to Azkaban. So he settled on trying to humiliate Harry, saying " Potter answer my questions, I want to see if you have inherited your mother's talent for potions or if you are a dunderhead like your father. "

" What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood? " Snape barked towards Harry.

Harry just blinked and said, " nothing professor you would just stink up the room but this is an important step in preparation of both the Draught of Living Death and the Clairvoyance elixir ", Harry promptly replied.

Snape's eyes narrowed, " where would you look if I asked you to find you a bezoar? "

Harry calmly replied, " in the stomach of a goat, professor and it is a cure to most common poisons. "

" What is the potion which requires lacewing flies, shredded boomslang skin, powdered bicorn horn and fluxweed? " Snape asked.

"Polyjuice potion, professor" Harry promptly replied.

" Which potion uses occamy egg shells and ashwinder eggs? " Snape asked feeling confident that Potter would not know the answer to this question as even NEWT students wouldn't know the answer to that question.

Much to his irritation, Harry calmly answered, "They are the main ingredients in preparation of Felix Felicis or also known as liquid luck and also in Buffalio's brain elixir which is a powerful wit sharpening potion".

" Well, why are you people not writing that down? "

Snape barked at the other students and they all scrambled to write down everything in their notes. Snape gave them the instructions to brew a simple potion to cure boils. He watched Potter like a hawk and his suspicions were confirmed

Potter used all the spells needed to get the best potion; spells that no first year was taught. Potter had charmed the rods to be self stirring, the fire was magically contolled including the temperature, a timer was set for the potion and a shield had been cast around his cauldron. Harry had learnt these spells from his mother after getting his wand. These spells were not taught to first years. Infact they were not taught till sixth year.

Snape watched as Potter meticulously and carefully cut his ingredients into equal parts as though he had done so a number of times. Not once did he look at the instructions on the board or In the potions textbook. He was also the first to finish as he filled the sample in a phial, charmed it to be unbreakable, stoppered it , labelled it with his name and submitted it to Snape. Seeing all this Snape was sure that Lily had tutored her son in potions as he had many of the same mannerisms as her when preparing potions.