The Forgotten Twin - (Harry Potter fanfic)

◇•Lessons in Family•◇

Layla was excited to have her first lesson with her dad. All she talked about on break time was the Potions class. She told about it to Draco, Harry and Ron, they were already sick of it, specially Ron.

"Then heat it for about fi-" she said, talking about her favorite potion.

"Shut up about Potions already!" shouted Ron, interrupting her.

Layla stopped talking almost immediately. She looked at Ron for a moment and then looked down.

"Sorry..." she said.

Then looked at Harry. He was listening and finding it interesting. He looked at Ron and gestured at Layla. He didn't get it and crossed his arms. Layla stared at Ron for a bit, then nodded a thank you at Harry and left the room.

While going through the corridors, she encountered a Ravenclaw running and crying. They bumped into each other.

"Ow!"

"Oh my! I- I'm so sorry uh..." said the Ravenclaw girl.

Layla and the girl were on the ground.

"No, no, it's my fault, I wasn't looking!" said Layla.

She got up and helped the Ravenclaw do the same.

"Thank you..." she said

"No problem!"

"I'm June, by the way..." said the other

"I'm Layla!"

They looked at each other and smiled. Layla asked what happened.

"I saw you were crying..." she said

"Well..." said June. "My 'friend' told me I wasn't her friend anymore just because I am a muggle born... she called me a 'mudblood'."

"A MUDBLOOD!?" asked Layla, in shock. She had never heard that word coming from a person younger or the same age as her.

"Yes... What does that mean?" she asked

"Oh, that uh... it's not important- What is important is that I am paying a visit to that 'friend' of yours." Layla said. She told June to meet her at lunch, because she was going to potions now.

Layla headed to the dungeons to Potions class. She entered with the rest of the students and sat on the edge of the Slytherin balcony to be close to the Gryffindors, specially Harry who as also on the edge. Layla grinned at her dad and he did the same.

"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion making." he began. "Many of you will have difficulties in understanding that this is also magic, even though there are no foolish magic wands being shaken in the air. The delicate power of every liquid, it's spirit, it can create an illusion to your senses... I can teach how to bewitch the mind, how to bottle fame, brew glory, how to put a stopper in death... But only if you're not the group of incompetents that I usually have a students."

Everyone was silent. Harry exchanged looks with Ron and Layla looked excited.

"Potter" Snape called. "What would I get if I mixed crushed asphodel root with an infusion of wormwood?

Layla was whispering 'Draught of the Living Dead' while raising her hand.

"Uh... I don't know, professor..." he said.

Draco laughed at him and Layla kicked his leg from under the table. He looked at her, surprised, but stopped laughing.

Snape smirked. "Of course, fame isn't everything in life, is it?" he said, sarcastically. "Let's try again, Potter, where would you look if I asked you to bring me a bezoar?"

Layla whispered many times 'Goat's stomach' and had her hand up, but yet, Harry looked deaf and her father blind.

"I don't... know, professor" he answered

"I knew you wouldn't open a single book before school. Did you, Potter?" Snape asked. "What's the difference between the monkshood and the wolfsbane?"

"I don't know!" said Harry "But, I believe Layla and Hermione know the answer. Why don't you ask them?

Everyone was laughing at him except Layla and a Gryffindor girl, who Layla identified as Hermione.

"For your information, Potter, the mix crushed asphodel root and an infusion of absinthe results in a powerful soporific (?) potion called the Draught of the Living Dead and the Bezoar is-" started Hermione, being cut-off by Layla

"A STONE..." Layla shouted, taking Hermione's spotlight "taken from the inside of a goat's stomach!" She was impressed by that Gryffindor girl. How could she know it all in one summer? "As for monkshood and the wolfsbane, they're the same. It's also known as aconite."

Hermione shooted her last shot. "Why is no one taking notes about it!?" she shouted.

Layla and Hermione looked at each other, surprised and happy that they weren't the only ones who knew something in their year. Everyone in the classroom started to look for quills and parchment.

"And that leads to" said Snape "1 point from Gryffindor for your cheek, Potter."

Layla looked at her father. That wasn't the same Severus Snape she had always known... Why did he act like that?

Snape put them in groups of two to brew a simple minor healing potion. Harry got with Ron and Layla was with Draco. Hermione was with a short boy called Neville. There were two students, that Draco had told Layla that they are friends of his and that they are trust worth, Pansy Parkinson and Blaze Zabini, who were a pair too. Neville got the potion wrong and had pimples all over his face.

"Take him to the infirmary, Granger" Severus said, the phrase looked like it was a thrown object. "And you, Potter, you wanted to look good didn't you? Why didn't you warn him to put the porcupine quills before taking the cauldron off the fire?"

Harry glanced furiously at Snape. Layla looked at Draco who was being silly and not making the potion. That moment she realised: that boy was not work material...

The Potions teacher looked at his daughter who was staring at him while doing the potion. Draco faked to pay attention to the weird mix she was making. She was staring at her dad with an indignant interest.

"As you can see, their potion has the exact same colour I mentioned earlier. Try to be like these two, do not be idiots!" warned Severus, after glancing proudly at his daughter.

Layla, on the other side, rolled her eyes. Snape didn't know what happened, but he thought of asking when class was over.

At the end of class, everyone got out, but the teacher called Layla.

"What is it?" asked Layla, with a face of disdain.

"What is it!? You were glancing and staring at me with an angry look and rolling your eyes! Are you out of your mind, young lady? If I must remind you, I am your father!" he spoke, with a slight look of concern on his face

"Exactly! That's the point! You are my father and I have never seen you act like this!" she yelled "You were so mean to Harry and didn't even care when Hermione and I knew the answer to all of your questions! You didn't even give a single point to Slytherin or Gryffindor for the answers me and Hermione gave!" she had a mad look on her face, but her eyes showed a tiny tear about to fall.

Severus was silent. His daughter left to her dorms and he just stood there. Maybe she was right... but those idiot Gryffindor kids didn't even deserve a single point from him. He had already decided.