Re: part 2 And I'd like to do a little more than just slap Snape, actually. ;-) Don't we all? ;)
Granger is the comfortably well-off child of professionals and Harry is independently wealthy. Granger is constantly rubbing everyone's nose in how much she knows. They know Fred and George, the ultimate black-market profiteers. Yet the only way they can think of to get supplies is to steal them from an improverished school teacher after creating a potentially lethal incident in the classroom as a diversion? They create black market potions, and receive nothing but praise from Dumbles and McGonagall?
Oh please! They are CHILDREN. Children do these things. They don't think rationally. They certainly never think about how much Severus earns as a teacher (and being impoverished is mere assumption). At that age, they don't know how to get these ingredients, outside of telling anyone. They don't let Fred and George in, they do these things in secret. D. and M.'s actions are a different matter. Looked at it this way, none of the books makes any sense, since they should never have encouraged Harry in his endeavours. But then, it was all training for the sacrifical lamb, with collateral damage accepted, wasn't it?
Harry didn't provoke Severus one bit in their first Potions class. Severus set the tone between them, he didn't have to do that. It was not a great thing he did there. Harry was a little boy, unattentive, cheeky, stupid - like most little boys are. And if Severus had taken the time to observe him a bit - and his beloved Draco - he'd have seen that the celebrated Potter was actually rather modest, and that the envious Malfoy was a mirror image of James.
Uhm- how did we get here? Right... my chapter. Scratches head... ;)