"(Y/n)! (Y/n)! Wake up! We're gonna be late to potions!" Said Corinne.

I snapped my eyes open. Potions...with Snape. My cheeks grew hot at the thought of him. I think my crush got worse. I quickly got dressed into new robes (because I had immediately passed out last night) and grabbed my stuff.

"Let's go!" I said cheerily.

We quickly stopped at the great hall and snagged some bagels. Shoving them into our mouths, we reached potions class just on time. I sat down at my assigned table and breathed in and out. I'd made it. I brought my attention to the front of the room where Professor Snape was standing.

"Now class.....today we will be brewing the draught of living death. Read last classes lecture notes to guide you and go to page 221 for instructions." He quickly flicked his wand and the objectives for the class wrote themselves on the board in white chalk. I flipped the soft pages of my textbook

Get ingredients measured and cut correctly

Follow the steps

Complete potion

I thought that was fairly simple. I quickly grabbed my ingredients:

1/2 a flobberworm

2 leaves of asphodel

2 petals of poppy

1 cup of gillywater

A centimeter of lacewing

A dash of powdered serpent bone

I set my ingredients out on my table (it's right in the front of the classroom so I usually take good notes). Thankfully, my partner was sick so I had the entire desk to myself this class. I added my ingredients carefully and mixed clockwise, then counterclockwise, then clockwise again. Suddenly, my potion began to rapidly over boil. I panicked. Oh my Merlin what do I do? I quickly saw some unicorn horn shavings and added them in. Thankfully, the boiling reduced. I let my heart rate reduce and I continued. I added the powdered serpent bone and stirred thoroughly. The potion now was pitch black and had a slight foul smell.

SNAPE POV

I was observing my class making sure they didn't blow anything up or something. I heard some unnatural bubbling and it was coming from (l/n)'s cauldron. I was going to walk over there and make some snide remark about her potion making skills, but I was surprised to see her pick up unicorn horn shavings and carefully add them in. Clever. Not just anyone knows that Unicorns have a healing effect. It's not as strong as a Phoenix's, but is good for generally sized cuts and burns. Her potion died down and returned to normal. She breathed a sigh a relief and continued. Mildly impressed by this Gryffindor I muttered quietly,

"5 points to Gryffindor."

YOUR POV

Everything was going great until Professor Snape asked for a volunteer for the testing of the potion. My insides knotted and curled themselves to the point it was getting hard to breathe normally. I didn't want to fail. No no no....I couldn't. Not in front of him.

"(L/n)." He said in his usual monotone. "Gather 'round." He told the class as they started to swamp the table.

The Professor quickly grabbed an old lizard (a newt, to be precise) and a dropper. He handed them over to me. I dipped the dropper into the potion and let the liquid gather inside of it. Then I fed it to the newt. There was a few gasps and the students all watched intently on what happened.

Holy Hippogriff. Is it gonna work? The newt froze for a second. Then it started to shrivel up...and that's when it all went wrong. It started to get younger and younger until....well, it never existed. After the shocking few seconds, some of my classmates started to turn and laugh, ridiculing my potion skills. Whispers were traded and sniggers were shot abroad. Professor Snape looked at me. Then the class. Then back at me. Sparks were shooting in my body, tempting to freeze me in place.

"Clearly, (l/n). You have been ignoring this class and my teachings, resulting in undeniable failure. You used to much of the potion resulting in the opposite effect." Said Snape. "Nonetheless, most Gryffindors are like this: arrogant and selfish." The words stung at your heart.

His black eyes bore into mine making me feel very, very, insignificant and small. I was just another girl...with another hopeless crush. Tears started to well up in my eyes. Before Snape could realize what was happening, I ran out of the classroom without looking back. I ran to the girls bathroom, slammed the stall door, and cried. After what seemed hours, I gained whatever courage I could muster and went back to the dungeons. One of the paintings even wished me good luck. Wow. I must've messed up horribly this time....I finally reached the oak door and opened it. I walked in, praying that he wasn't here and that I could just go on with my day.

"What are you doing in my classroom this time of day, (l/n)? People will think you're up to something, especially after you ran so recklessly out of my class." Snape's voice drawled from the doorway.

"U-uh. Uhm..." I stuttered whilst turning around. "W-well I h-had t-to g-get the r-rest of m-my s-stuff P-Professor."

"Ah, yes. After you so recklessly ran out of my classroom? I remember that ." he paused for a second. "Detention, six o'clock (y/l/n). Do not be late."

I nodded my head. I deserved it. You couldn't run out of class like that. Even I knew it. Grabbing my things, I ran out of the classroom to charms. Professor Flitwick greeted me with warm smile. Even if I was a few minutes late, he understood. I was one of his best students....I think. Well, probably. Nonetheless, I sat down and opened my textbook to the selected page number and practiced, taking notes on the spell.

Hours overlapped onto hours and the day was soon complete. I flopped onto my dormitory bed when I saw a note on my bed. It read:

(Y/N),

DON'T FORGET YOU HAVE DETENTION WITH SNAPE LATER AT 6:00

DON'T BE LATE

-yourself

I quickly grabbed my book bag and ran like a fox fleeing from a hound, all the way down to the dungeons. I opened the hard, dark brown oak door and walked into the classroom. Of course, nothing ever went my way, so I tripped on the leg of a stool and face planted on the stony floor. I looked up and saw Professor Snape leaning over me.

He raised his eyebrow slightly.

I got off the floor. "So, what's my assignment Professor?" I was actually wondering what it was. I hoped it wouldn't be that bad. Then again, Professor Snape wasn't the most merciful teacher. I stood there waiting for him to speak.

SNAPE POV

Hm. What to give as a punishment. Well, I already had the cauldrons scheduled for two very special students....and my desk doesn't need to be organized. I glanced at my supplies closet. Perhaps...I thought. Perhaps. I turned towards the (l/n) girl.

"Organise my storage closet. Do not break anything (l/n). I do not want my things destroyed with your fumbling clumsiness." I walked over to the closet and unlocked it for her.

She walked in and begun her task. In the meanwhile, I had to grade these papers on the uses of a bezoar. I sat down at my desk, my chair grinding against the hard floor.

YOUR POV

I began to clean and organise. This storage room was very unorganized and needed desperate cleaning. I picked up and set everything down so I could clean the shelves from dust. Then, I wiped off all the container's glass surfaces and sorted them by solids, liquids, and liquid solids. It looked amazing. I climbed up the ladder and put the last jar of Asphodel back into its column. Unfortunately, my sneaker caught onto the ladder rung of the way down. I ended up tipping the ladder backwards with me on it and crashing onto the stone floor. I felt something hot and sticky pour over my eye and blind me. I blinked frantically trying to get it out. It started to hurt to breathe and my head was throbbing. Well, I had just fallen (with a ladder on me) about six to seven feet onto a hard surface. I managed to get untangled from the ladder. I stumbled out of the supplies closet and went to the sink near the back of the classroom and vigorously splashed water into my eye and onto my face.

"Miss (l/n), why aren't you organis-" He saw my blood red eye and walked over. "Stupid Gryffindor. I gave you one simple task. Is breaking things all you can do?!" He snapped.

I stayed quiet with a shade of shame covering me.

He told me to sit down and to not attempt anything 'brave'.

"Why can't I go to the hospital wing?" I said dizzily.

"Pomfrey is busy, and you will probably pass out from blood loss before you reach her." He replied shortly.

He handed me a cup of a foul smelling potion. Did every potion have to smell bad? Oh well.... He continued to watch as I put it to my lips and swallow it down. I felt a warm, glowy feeling spread throughout my body. I imagined it to be a honey gold or bronze. Slowly, the gash in my head closed and all that was left was a small, pale scar. Even the blood in my eye was cleared up. I could see perfectly.

"Thank you, Professor." I said. I handed him back the cup.

He took it and put it away. "You are dismissed, (L/n)." He said without looking at me.

I began to walk out before I stopped at the door. "I'll see you tomorrow Professor." My words were loud enough so that only he could hear them. I continued to walk out the door, my shoe steps echoing in the damp hallway.

I picked up my bag (still feeling like I was glowing inside) and headed back to Gryfindor Tower. I got into my maroon sheets and covers and looked at the up at the red velvet drape that covered my bed.

I stared up at the ceiling letting my thoughts drift. The thought of a certain cloaked professor often entertained my mind. His velvety voice floated my imagination as though he was right next to me. The smell of the dungeons: musty, potions being brewed, and a faint trace of spice. Why did everyone think so little of him? All people deserve a chance. At least, that's what I think. Even the cranky professor. I mean, what made him so mean all the time? There must be some reason....Maybe it had to do with his past? I sighed to myself. I would never know. Why? Because that certain Professor would never tell me. I suddenly heard a noise: it was Rebecca and June.

"What are you guys coming from?" I asked groggily. "I was about to fall asleep.." I halfheartedly mumbled.

"Detension with Snape." June spat bitterly. "I hate him."

Rebecca nodded sharply in agreement.

They both started to change into their sleep-wear mumbling things about Snape and other Professors.

My mind slowly worked, like an old clock ticking. Rebecca and June weren't in the same class....but they had detention together. In fact, all the students who got detention in one class would go to the detention giving teacher with anyone else who earned detention from them that day. But...that didn't add up. I got detention from Snape too, but I wasn't in the same detention as them. Weird....then the thought struck me. I looked at Rebecca and June: they were exhaughsted and their hands were swollen.

"Hey guys...What did you do during detention?" I innocently asked (cough, yeah right, cough).

June let out a groan. "We scrubbed cauldrons. It was horrible. We did ask if we could clean his storage, but-"

"- he said no." Finished Rebecca with a sneer.

"Wow, that must've been horrible." I sympathized.

That means I was right: Snape is being kinder to me. It doesn't show to other people becasue he schedueled a different detention and had me do something easier. I mentally slapped myself. (Y/n). Get a hold of yourself. This is probably some weird mistake. But it was a sliver of hope just the same.