41 41) The Liquid Luck and I don't give a fu*k

Horace looked at the group of students he had finally reigned in after the whole fiasco between Severus and Sirius Black. Severus had handled the situation pretty much as he thought with the ex Black Heir.

"The potions present here, now who can tell me about them?", he asked looking at the NEWTs students of his.

There were many hands raised, some among the Gryffindors and some among the Ravenclaws. The Slytherins knew that Slughorn would give priority to other houses for answer so they didn't bothered to raise theirs. Horace even saw Miss Granger who too had her hand raised and was looking at him expectantly.

"Miss Granger, could you please tell the answers to the people present here?", Slughorn asked her with a smile on his face, as she had been behaving too enthusiastic about it.

"Yes Professor, the first potion is the Polyjuice Potion, a potion which helps someone to transform into others, while the second one is Veritaserum; the strongest truth potion known to the wizarding world and the last is Amortentia, the most powerful love potion, which leads the person to have the scent of what they liked most when inhaled it", Hermione explained fastly to the Professor who smiled at the right answer.

"Thirty points to Gryffindor for a right well detailed answer!", Slughorn exclaimed as he awarded points amonng the cheers of the Gryffindors present there.

Hermione blushed a little at the whole praise being showered to her. Marlene congratulated her with a side hug, "that was so awesome Hermione!" Hermione felt a little overwhelmed by it, while she had been congratulated in the past by her housemates. This applause and cheers for her dwarfed the old ones, it made her realise a little about how tense and great the rivalry between the two houses were here from her own time.

"Now this little vial which I have here in my hands contains a potion called as 'Felix felicis'. The potion is also known as the liquid luck. Just a single sip of it and whatever endeavours you want to try, you will find it to be successful. The use of this potion is however banned in tournaments and sports competitions. A very tough potion to make even by seasoned Potion Makers and Masters as a single step would cause disastrous consequences", Slughorn spoke up garnering everyone's attentions to him bar Severus's which confused him as he should be very interested in it considering his talents and interests in potions.

"Whoever brews a perfect 'Draught of Living Death' will get this little vial of Felix Felicis potion as his prize. But remember it's use in tournaments and competitions is banned and you may face repercussions if you do so", Slughorn warned looking at the students.

Since the sixth year students too could participate in this 'Triwizard Tournament', it was going to be a mess dealing with the publicity of someone being caught using Felix Felicis.

"Now off you go everyone!", Slughorn said as he looked at them and called for the starting. He had already written the page numbers on the board so it was going to be a relief for someone who couldn't find them.

Severus meanwhile looked at the ingredients he was collecting meticulously. This was going to show him if the Golden Trio had arrived here after their fifth or sixth year. A slight shuffle of ingredients which he did deliberately led him to an interesting sight of Harry Potter indicating Ronald Weasley about the sopophorus beans and showing him the flat side of his dagger. It proved him that they had arrived here after him killing Dumbledore as there was no way he knew that information without pursuing the potions book.

This complicated things but nothing that he wouldn't be able to deal with. Most of the changes in him would be alluded to the butterfly effect, Dumbledore and Granger would believe that and if both of them believed that, then Potter and Weasley would too believe it as they were hardly brains of their group in most situations.

Just because there was one alternative method to prepare something didn't meant that there was no other method also. While he didn't needed the vial of liquid luck as he could brew 'Felix Felicis' himself, it didn't meant that he will let it slip out of his hands. It was a useful little thing and the last thing he wanted to be in the hands of Harry Pottah.

No he would simply win it just so that it would not fall into the hands of Marauders or Golden Trio as he didn't wanted the vial to be wasted on something which was hardly worth for.

He had experimented more on potions and everything and while he knew that Harry Potter possessed one good method to brew it, there were many other methods to brew it which would give different potions of different thickness and texture.

He will go for another way which was a little harmful as there was a risk of his potion turning to acid and melting the cauldron if he didn't stirred it rightly at the right time. The time for the potion was less and it would be prepared 7 minutes earlier than his own stolen method which Potter was going to use. Fucking cheaters, he thought inwardly as he lit up the flame and started to brew it.

Laena Greengrass was meanwhile preparing the ingredients when she saw her partner litting up the flame. The sight of him cutting the ingredients with half attention on them and cauldron was something which she had seen many times in her school life.

It had been a shame that Jennifer didn't signed up for the Potions class letting her to be free of a partner now. But Prince was also a nice partner too if one considered his skill in potions, besides she hadn't missed the subtle hint in Slughorn telling her and everyone about his newfound status.

House Prince were the darkest house of Magical Italy and she didn't knew how Slughorn believed him to be a useful ally for her. He hanged around with Mulciber and everyone who aspired to be Death Eaters, how could he wanted to be neutral if his companions were notorious for their beliefs. She could only speculate one thing that Slughorn knew something about him that she didn't knew.

"You are staring at me for past two minutes, Greengrass", he muttered silkily whose sheer smoothness surprised her. Severus hadn't missed the looks Alice shot at Greengrass at her staring at his side face with interest and calculation in her blue eyes.

"Sorry", Laena muttered and she composed herself from her stupid behaviour. The only thing which made her act out was when she thought about the future of her own house. Her father was on his last days and with Aston, her twin brother being a squib and disowned from her family all the matters left to her. Her father wanted her to have an ideal consort for her and the future of their Noble house.

From her corner of her eye, she saw him throwing one after another ingredients into the cauldron. Or at least it felt throwing to her. Some things which he did could only be pulled by him as she composed and started her work, while she could hardly win the potions with prodigies working besides her. Her pride would not allow her to lose, even without trying her best.

Ten minutes later of the two hour long class, she took the sopophorus beans and tried to cut it like 95 percent of the students in the class which led it to shoot fastly towards her partner's stomach. With a sudden motion of his arm, she saw him catching the bean with his left hand as he stirred the potion with his right already passing that stage.

He placed the bean on the table and spoke up, "instead of trying to cut it, use the flat side of your dagger or knife to crush it. The juice is released better this way", he finished softly as he didn't even bothered to look her way.

Laena nodded and she was a little pissed that he even didn't bothered to look her way during his explanation as if he found her not valuable a little in his eyes. She didn't knew that his social skills were piss poor.

Laena tried the method and surprisingly the method yielded results nicely as she found squeezing juice into the cauldron much more than she thought the bean possessed.

Time passed and Severus finished his potion, thankfully he had managed to save his potion from becoming acid as he turned off the flame and let it cool down. There was still 7 minutes left for the timelimit as he looked at his partner turning to his left meanwhile spotting Alice too in the same direction who was brewing her potion with a careful gaze. While she did got the basics clear, there was still much things that had yet to be perfected by her. Nonetheless her skills had improved greatly during the time of long summer.

Slughorn called time out as he started to check the potions of everyone.

He checked Lily Evans's potions first; one of his favourite students, "a good one Miss Evans. Only a little left from its perfect state", he complimented as he praised her with a huge smile on his face and walked forward to the next students.

"A single shade away from the perfect one Miss Granger, you truly are a prodigy!", Slughorn gushed as he looked at the potion made by hers. He didn't knew that it was because she remembered some of the instructions from the book of Half Blood Prince.

He tested out much more samples, some of which were good, average and fair in his opinion. It wasn't until he reached Mr Potter's cauldron that he found the perfect batch of 'Draught of Living Death' which he had seen a student make in his entire career. In fact it was so potent that it could put all of them to a long sleep just with a single drop of it. Mr Whitby's potion was also perfect along with Mr Potter and both of them were new students, it made him wonder about the level of their homeschooling.

"Mr Potter, Mr Whitby; the perfect batch of this potion which I have seen any student make in my whole career. Take thirty points each for the potions alone children", he gushed out as he put a leaf in the potions testing it out. Yes, he had indeed found three new members for his club.

He continued testing and reached the cauldrons of Severus and Laena.

Miss Greengrass's potion was near more better than Miss Granger's in potency but the thickness of potion was a very slight off than it should have been.

"A near perfect one from you too Miss Greengrass. Your potion was only away from its perfect state due to the slight delay by you in adding Valerian Roots", he praised Miss Greengrass and gave her a wide smile of appreciation to which she returned her own small smile.

He passed her cauldron and looked at one of his most skilled students. His eyes popped out at the sheer potency as he saw the leaf falling and disintegrating.

"The perfect among the perfects. Its potency a little more than Mr Potter and Mr Whitby's, perhaps the finest batch of the potion till now. Enough to be used and sold not to mention you finishing of your potion, seven minutes earlier of the time limit", Slughorn commented as he looked at his student with a happy smile on his face as he congratulated him.

"The clear winner of today!", Slughorn commented as he took the little vial and gave it to Severus who just accepted it calmly without a smile or frown on his face.

It seemed Severus just hadn't changed his name and looks. There was an improvement in his skills too which Horace hadn't failed to recognize.

The class ended and Severus let Laena walk away first, being a gentleman as he walked over to the group of Slytherin boys of his dorm.

"That was one hell of a class!", Mulciber exclaimed, first Prince humilated Sirius Black and then he managed to steal the prize directly from the Gryffindors nose. What a start of the day, not to mention the kick in the ass which he gave to Sirius Black when he had collided with their table.

"The face of Black was a sight to see when he was trounced!", John nodded excitedly looking at Severus with a smile as he clapped his shoulders congratulating him on the feat.

They had just walked through the doors of the class with the other members of the class. Severus spotted Alice walking with Pandora as she travelled with the girl.

"Snivellus, you will pay for what you did!", came an angry voice and everyone who were going to their next class stopped at the enraged words knowing fully well the drama they were going to see.

"Pottah!"He sighed as he turned around with his group of Slytherin boys looking at the Marauders who were there with Golden Trio and the rest of the Gryffindors. Lily Evans was talking furiously with Remus Lupin about something possibly to not let make the Marauders a scene here.

"You are a persistent pest you know", Severus commented with a sigh as he took a look at the enraged faces of Sirius Black and James Potter who was enraged about his wand being taken by Slughorn.

"James, let it go", Remus tried to calm him down as Harry was busy doing the same with Sirius.

"No Moony, what he said to Sirius was cruel. He will pay for what he did. He just got away because there was authority of Slughorn there", James replied looking at him angrily.

"James, even what he said to Sirius was cruel but you engaging him won't make it right", Hermione insisted instantly looking at the man whom he had started to consider her friend now after this long summer.

"Excuse me, but who the hell are you?", Severus asked with a small amused smirk looking at her. While he did knew the girl, it was all to fun to rile her up along with her companions.

"Her name is Hermione Granger and she is a far better person than you are", Ron spoke up jumping as usual to defend Hermione. He did knew that teenage Snape was a Death Eater in making considering he called Harry's mother a 'mudblood'. He didn't wanted him to call Hermione a 'mudblood' here

"Ahh jumping in to defend the young maiden. Perhaps you have a little romantic interest in her considering the speed and the vehemence with which you defend her. It's certainly not brotherly or mere friendly, I must say it pleases my heart to see and hear of young love like this nowdays", Severus drawled out gaining chuckles from the Slytherin present there. Leave it to Snape to make the most of the situation and spot everything out and embarass the person with it.

Ron immediately became enraged and a little embarrassed as he took out his wand. He had thought that only Malfoy could get under his skin like this but no Severus Snape or 'Prince' whatever the bastard was had surpassed that little shit Malfoy.

"Ron No!", Harry shouted at his best friend and the reddened face of Hermione Granger who was too mortified to do anything among the laughs aimed at her.

While a part of Harry wanted to join them in their fray, he didn't wanted things to escalate here.

"I will give you a chance Pottah, you said you couldn't do because of authority there", Severus said with a calm look with cold eyes devoid of any emotion on his face. "John, will you help me by not reporting anything here to anyone?", he asked looking at the Slytherin Prefect besides him with a small happy smile on his face which conveyed the deadliness present in him.

"Laena, will you do the same?", he asked calmly to the female Prefect who was looking at everything from the sidelines with girls of Slytherin and her group.

Laena nodded instantly knowing what she would be risking if she denied.

"Remus leave me!", James asked angrily to Remus who was holding him back by grabbing him physically.

Sirius was not saying anything but his face was full of pure hatred for the Slytherin infront of him. If looks could kill, Severus Prince would be dead a thousand times now.

Remus Lupin was however determined to not let things escalate. The situation could go worse if things came to spells, while the Marauders and James cousin and his friends were skilled wizards, their enemies were also skilled along to face them.

"Thought it", Severus commented as he saw Lupin restraining James while the latter's son was restraining his 'Godfather'.

"What is happening there!", an enraged voice came from the classroom as Slughorn came out enraged and the students started to leave the place hurriedly. Severus walked along with others as he mixed in the group along with his dormmates who were having happy smiles on their faces.

He didn't gave a fuck about Marauders or Golden Trio.

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This chapter is around 2.9K words making it the longest chapter till now.

Let's cross 1K powerstones this week and break the records of 878 powerstones till now. The next chapter will be in two days and I have been hoping to make the chapters near 1.5 K to 2K in words. Tell me about your opinion on this.

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