Disclaimer: JKR created the world and characters I'm writing about. Additionally, Snape's speech to the students in this chapter includes some exact wording from his first Potions class speech in JKR's books.

Emily watched her husband come in from the fifth year Potions class on Friday afternoon. He slumped in his chair and pinched his nose between his eyes. Emily stood to come to him, but he held up his hand and she sat down in the chair across from his.

“I had to give the entire Slytherin fifth year class detentions and deducted ten points each, in front of the Gryffindors, no less. The ringleaders are younger brothers and sisters of people like Yaxley and Runcorn, who want to do me an ill turn. They managed to blow up the store cupboard. The cupboard was repaired easily enough, but they destroyed the entire term's worth of ingredients.”

He sat up and looked at his wife. “I don't know if I can do this. These kids are capable of the work. They knew just how to cause the explosion without permanently damaging the cupboard.”

“Why did they do it?”

“I kept them after class and they made some comments about my marriage to a blood traitor. Plus, they know I don't have full status with the Death Eaters and some of their families have put them up to making me suffer. I have to figure out what to do with them by tomorrow morning. Maybe I should go to Dumbledore and tell him it's all off. If I don't know what to do with the difficult students in my own house, how will I deal with McGonagall's lot when they act up?”

Emily went over and sat on Severus's lap. She put her fingers in his hair and started rubbing his head. “You're just overtaxed right now,” she said. “I know that you're more Slytherin than that. You are just what those students need. You will figure out how to turn this group into your faithful followers. In the meanwhile, I'm surprised they don't realize how they should fear you. Perhaps it's too long since you sent Nott and Rosier to the hospital wing.”

“I see what you mean,” Severus said, although he was actually looking at the opening in her robe. Emily must have recently fed the baby and not fastened up yet. He put his arms around her and allowed her to comfort him some more.

---

The Slytherin fifth years came into the dungeon with folded arms and belligerent attitudes. At exactly the moment appointed, the door slammed shut and the last students needed to step a bit lively in order to not get hit by it. Professor Snape indicated silently that they should all sit down and they did. He fixed them with a cold and unyielding stare and they sat quietly, every eye upon him.

He started speaking, so quietly that they had to lean forward to hear. “You are here to learn, and I to teach, the subtle art of potion making. It requires great discipline, which you seem to lack. You are also the first class of students who will graduate from Slytherin House with me as your Head of House. As your future Head, as of today, I am greatly disappointed due to this lack of discipline. Slytherin House is known for being cunning and resourceful, not for buffoonish pranks. You can achieve greatness, and I can teach you how, but we must work together.”

He stepped into the middle of the classroom. “For today, you will work to prepare the ingredients you destroyed yesterday so that we can complete our course this year. There is a different item on each desk. If you are unsure as to the proper preparation of your item, please ask. Any student improperly preparing his or her item will continue in detention until I am satisfied. You may begin.”

He walked quietly through the room, inspecting the work of the students and assessing strengths and weaknesses as he went. Some merely had to chop leaves or grind roots in a mortar and pestle. Those he had assessed to be the ringleaders had to prepare flobberworms or extract bobotuber pus. A quiet buzz started within the room. It was allowable as long as it was productive, but the professor listened to the various conversations for potential trouble. At one point he heard some snickers and a whispered comment about “marrying Sirius Black's leavings.”

Without a thought, he roared, “Silence!” as he cast a silent Langlock upon the student speaking. He walked up to the student who had spoken and stood before him, his eyes menacingly cold, now.

“I suppose, Watkins, you are referring to Mrs. Snape?” The student nodded. “That's another twenty points from Slytherin. Let this be a lesson for all of you,” Severus said to the class at large. “I would prefer that our house be known for respect toward women at all times and in all circumstances. Failing that, I will just make one requirement clear.” He looked around the room again and again every eye was upon him. “You will at all times be respectful toward Mrs. Snape. I suggest it as a precautionary measure for yourselves as well as because I demand it. She is a fully certified witch of great talent who will soon be a certified Healer. You wouldn't want to have difficulties at St. Mungo's because you had gotten off on the wrong foot with her, would you?” All ten students shook their heads.

Professor Snape walked back to his desk. “I see some of you have completed your tasks. You may bring them up to me as you finish.” He sat at his desk and watched at the students with a bored glare. Fortunately they all prepared their ingredients properly and he would not have to schedule more detentions over this incident. As Watkins left the room, Snape flicked his wand to release the student's tongue.

---

“I've been hearing from parents this week, my boy. You've definitely made a mark.” Professor Slughorn was sitting in the Snape sitting room and enjoying a brandy poured by his host.

Severus thought for a moment. “Horace, I intend to win the House Cup every year, if possible. I need to start by getting the older students to be more disciplined and to act more like Slytherins. I don't complain, but they've run a little wild for several years. Being pure-blood is not an automatic guarantee of success.”

“That's quite true, my lad, quite true. I'm not sure I would have made quite so many waves the first week, though. It's going to be rough sailing for a while.”

“Only until Slytherin House is well ahead in points by the first Hogsmeade weekend.”

“I'll remember to point that out as I reply to ten sets of parents.”

“Just between you and me, Horace, this particular punishment has the distinct advantage that if I happen to severely discipline students from other houses, one can point to last Saturday and note that I don't shy away from punishing my own students.”

“Why, Severus, that's a very Slytherin approach,” said Slughorn, holding out his empty snifter.

---

Severus grudgingly adapted to teaching, learning to introduce the students to the first principles before moving them on to increasingly higher work. He found that the second and third year students needed review work on such things before they could be properly introduced to the work of their own year.

Professor Snape was destined never to be a student favorite. Students had a tendency to melt away whenever he came through the hallways with his trademark stern look and swirling robes. A stray comment or movement would frequently earn a cold glare, and occasionally before the culprit knew what was happening, he was caught in a Body-Bind Curse or Silencing Charm. There was no hope, if he was in a corridor, of him missing anything. Snape's eyes and ears caught everything that happened in his presence and his wand hand could move in a blur.

Eventually, Severus found that he even enjoyed the work, in his way. The occasional glimmer of success in students who usually showed low aptitude gave him great satisfaction. He enjoyed the trust and respect of the younger children who came to him for guidance. The O.W.L. classes were not up to the level he would wish, but he found the prospect of teaching them to be more challenging than troubling.

Most of the students in Slytherin House discussed the detention given by Snape and were only too happy to participate quietly in class, improving the overall marks of Slytherin House and quickly gathering enough house points to overcome the first week's deficit. Professor Snape held occasional meetings with groups of students from his house where he was able to assess the wellbeing of the students and encourage them in those behaviors best suited to their natural inclinations and achieving their goals.

He was frequently busy on Saturdays, overseeing detentions of those intransigent Slytherins who refused to accede to his program. Before long they were joined by Gryffindors who interpreted the new Slytherin attitude to be docility. They quickly learned better but did not learn to stop trying. Snape always seemed to know when the fights were brewing and could end them faster than they began. Having seen the new Potion Professor's willingness to punish his own students, Professor McGonagall could only shrug when her students came to her in indignation. Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws were a bit more restrained in their behavior but were punished whenever Professor Snape saw fit, which was often enough.

When Professor Snape could no longer justify the restocking of potions ingredients, he set them to work cleaning hopelessly dirty cauldrons, or removing stains from the ceiling, floor, and desks. On days when the detentions were inconvenient for himself or his family, Snape scheduled them in the Hospital Wing, where Madam Pomfrey almost always had bedpans and other containers to clean of their odious contents. He also scheduled some of those detentions with Argus Filch, who looked upon Snape's relationship to the student body with gratified eyes.

All in all, Severus Snape felt that he was coming to himself as that first school year passed. As a student he slunk through the hallways cautiously, listening and looking for every danger. As a Professor he still attended to every sight and sound around him but could now walk boldly and know that he would be obeyed and even feared as necessary.

In the classroom Professor Snape was no longer the subject of envious derision for knowing far too much, but was feared as a teacher who knew every step that the students took correctly or incorrectly. He was soon admired by the younger and a few of the older members of his house for his show of strength in the school. What he didn't expect was the adoration of the Ravenclaws and higher-scoring students of all houses who appreciated the level of scholarship he encouraged them to attain. Most startling of all was the discovery that if he didn't have a wife and ethics, he could have easily found ways to while away the cold nights.

The only trouble in his life, if it was a trouble, was that his wife frequently had to work odd shifts, leaving him to more cold nights than he would like. Although he found it easier to sleep at night knowing that at some point she would slide into bed with him, he still had difficulty getting to sleep and staying asleep when she wasn't there. Fortunately when she worked at night she left the baby with him, which was a comfort.

When they moved to Hogwarts, Hope had reached the age of smiles and flirting and learned instinctively how to wrap her father around her finger. She quickly became a favorite amongst the rest of the staff as well, who would pass her up and down the staff table during dinner as Severus ate his. Late at night, he would give her a bottle and she would snuggle right up against him and neither would move until Emily came home and woke them up.