"Potter, Albus," Professor McGonagall read out.

The Great Hall remained quiet. Nineteen years after the fall of Lord Voldemort the name Potter still turned heads, but given that Albus' brother James was by now in third year, the novelty had more or less worn off. Albus stumbled forward, a look of terrified determination splashed across his face. He was perhaps a little taller and better fed than Harry had been at the same age, but even so the similarities were remarkable. He had the same tousled black hair and bright green eyes as his father- even the same expression. The only obvious difference was that Albus did not wear glasses. And, of course, that he had no lightning scar.

He sat down heavily on the stool and lifted the Sorting Hat onto his head. At the Gryffindor table James fidgeted nervously and cracked his knuckles, earning him a frown from his Prefect cousin, Victoire. James had his namesake's hazel eyes, glasses and Marauder's smirk but Weasley freckles and a powerful build similar to his uncle Charlie's.

Moments stretched into minutes – this was the longest deliberation time yet this year. And then, finally-

"SLYTHERIN!"

For a moment, the hall was filled with heavy, open-mouthed silence, but it quickly dissolved into furious whispering as Harry Potter's second son stood up, his knees visibly shaking, and made his way slowly to the Slytherin table. More than half of his housemates did not join in the welcome but levelled stony gazes on him without a word. Foremost among these was Scorpius Malfoy – himself only just sorted – a thin faced boy with cold grey eyes and white blonde hair that fell below his shoulders.

Desperately seeking reassurance, Albus scanned the hall for familiar faces. He knew without needing to look that there were none at his own table. He caught James' eye for a moment, but James quickly looked away, his expression unreadable. Feeling more scared and unwanted by the second, Albus huddled in his chair and tried to make himself invisible. He didn't even look up as he heard Rose Weasley, his cousin and best friend, being proclaimed a Gryffindor. Instead, he concentrated his attention on the roast potatoes that appeared in front of him and tried to ignore the way the familiar sound of Rose's laughter somehow carried from the other side of the hall.

...

But as the months passed, Albus (who had by now been rechristened Allie by his friends, a nickname that only Rose had used before) surprised himself by settling into his new surroundings with relative ease. He found that while a certain number of Slytherins (mostly those with parents or grandparents in Azkaban) went out of their way to be unpleasant to him, most simply kept their distance and others again treated him like any other teenager. James, while avoiding him for the first few days, returned to his usual self once the letters of reassurance arrived from home.

There were eight first year Slytherins in total; three girls and five boys. The girls were Ingrid Devereux, Beatrice Bulstrode and Viviana Nott. Ingrid and Beatrice tended to keep to themselves, but Viviana and her twin brother Avery quickly became two of Allie's closest friends. Both twins had brown hair and something of the stringy look that had characterised their father Theodore. Viviana was sharp-tongued, vivacious and an incorrigible flirt, while Avery was quiet and nimble with eyes that flickered constantly, taking note of every detail.

Avery aside, the other boys were Wesley Macnair, Jago Fortescue, Gabriel Yates and – of course – Scorpius Malfoy. Macnair hated him and showed it, while Fortescue was civil but unpleasant. Gabriel, however, was another ally and quickly became the leader of their little quartet. His family was pureblood but had only recently become wealthy, which caused some Slytherins to look down on him. He was handsome with ruffled flaxen hair and charm oozing from every pore. He was not above smooth-talking the teachers and only McGonagall seemed completely immune to his flattery. Slughorn, of course, adored him.

The surprise, though, was Scorpius. Given the history between their families, Allie had fully expected him to be as full of bile as Macnair and he was at first, but as both boys began to relax Scorpius became less antagonistic- largely due to Avery. Although Scorpius spent most of his time with Jago Fortescue, whom he had known all his life, he got on better with Avery and occasionally hung around with their group, with the result that by the end of first year Scorpius and Allie almost considered themselves friends, or friendly acquaintances at least.

The following September Allie's sister Lily was placed in Gryffindor. Over the summer holidays, Allie's Slytherin membership had become something of a joke among their family and friends, but he still felt a pang when he saw them all together at the Gryffindor table. He felt as close to them as he ever had, but during term-time he rarely saw them. Although relations between Slytherin and the other houses were less strained than they had been in his parents' time, people remained wary. It was easier to stay within the confines of his own house - it wasn't worth facing down the entirety of Gryffindor house for a word or two with James, or Rose, or his sister. Better to just accept the separation and keep those friendships for the holidays.

...

Severus Snape shifted restlessly in his frame. It bored him, this life, if it could be called that. Dumbledore alone of the other portraits was content to talk to himbuteven he spent most of his time dozing in his armchair. Minerva McGonagall was somewhat friendlier than she had been when he was alive, but as the current Headmistress she had little time for small talk. He sighed and stared out the window, waiting. Today, at least, might bring something of interest. Minerva was bringing the new 5th year prefects up to her office for briefing and if nothing else he could ruminate on how far the Slytherin standards had slipped in the years since he was Head of House.

And speak of the devil... Minerva and the eight brats, who didn't even try to pretend they weren't staring as they entered the office. Snape sneered at them and the Hufflepuff girl took a step backwards. A minor victory, he thought. How pathetic that this was the only form of amusement he had left.

One by one, Minerva called them forward so that she could enchant their badges with the powers to award alter house points and assign detentions. Some years previously there had been some trouble with stolen badges, so now each as enchanted for the individual prefect. As a system, Snape felt it was lacking in elegance, but it wasn't as though he had been consulted on the matter. It was galling to have a permanent view of Hogwarts' centre of administration and yet no say whatsoever in how things were done.

Gryffindor first, of course. Even the saintly Minerva was not above favouritism, though she would have been quick to deny it.

"Peakes, Felix Ivan."

"Weasley, Rose Hermione."

That was unsurprising. With distaste, he noted that the Weasley girl had the same smug confidence that he had so disliked in her mother. Hufflepuff next.

"Bletchley, Emily Marie."

"McMillan, Gareth Ernest."

Nothing of interest there. Ravenclaw now.

"Fletcher, Dominique Sophie."

"Scamander, Othello Xenophilius Neville."

Snape smirked at that. The lad seemed entirely composed of elbows and knees, and looked as incompetent as both his namesakes combined. But then he would expect no less from the son of that Lovegood oddity. Last he heard she had been hunting for nargles in the Bermuda Triangle. It was a wonder the boy had made it to Hogwarts at all.

But now, finally, the Slytherins. At least here there was the possibility of talent, although unfortunately it was still unlikely. No doubt the staff would be wary of giving authority to any Slytherin who showed real promise.

"Nott, Viviana Petronelle."

Predictable...

"Potter," in Slytherin? Snape was so incredulous he almost missed the rest of the announcement "-Albus Severus."

Despite himself, Snape let a small sound of shock escape. Minerva cast him an amused look from the corner of her eye, but his mind was already elsewhere, his thoughts racing. A Potter in Slytherin was strange enough, but the idea of Harry Potter actually naming a son after him was almost laughable. Their mutual hatred was, and had always been, undeniable. Surely even now Potter knew his motives he could not possibly have gone so far in the opposite direction? But it would seem he had.

Incredulous, Snape fixed his eye on the boy in question. Snape could see a certain family resemblance, but without glasses the similarities were less pronounced than they might have been. Oddly, Snape found that Albus Potter reminded him less of his father or grandfather than of a young Tom Riddle. The green and silver serpent on his robes certainly did nothing to dispel the notion, although Snape was quite sure that one would never have seen broken comb teeth in the Dark Lord's hair, at any age.

As Potter stepped forward to receive his badge he looked up, meeting Snape's gaze. To his infinite chagrin, Snape's painted heart stuttered. The boy had Lily's emerald eyes and – unlike Harry- Albus could never have been mistaken for James. That was something. His name on Lily Evans bloodline, on a child with her eyes, without the face of the man who had stolen her from him. And, presumably, without his obnoxious Gryffindor personality. Snape felt a delicious twinge of glee as he imagined how James Potter would have reacted to the thought of a Slytherin grandchild.

By the time Snape surfaced from his reverie, Minerva had almost finished her briefing. She dismissed them with firm instructions to return directly to their dormitories, but stopped Potter as he headed for the door.

"One moment Potter," she said in an undertone. "Wait here until I return and don't touch anything. I won't be long." She swept out of the room after the students, throwing Snape a pointed look as she went. Snape knew what she meant by it, as did the boy, for the moment the door closed behind her he locked eyes with his namesake.

"I know who you are."

It was a simple statement, not a question or accusation. Part of Snape, indeed, suspected that the boy was telling him that there was no need to explain. But there were things to be said, presumably, although none sprang to mind.

"And you... Albus Potter, isn't it?"

"Albus Severus Potter," he said softly, inclining his head.

"Son of Harry, grandson of James, I take it."

"Son of Ginny, grandson of Molly, Arthur and Lily. But yes."

"What prompted your father to name a son after his most hated teacher, I wonder?"

"He is not so prejudiced that he can't recognise bravery when he sees it. He knows what you did for him."

In spite of himself, Snape winced slightly at those words. Albus saw it, and immediately caught the meaning.

"My apologies- not for him. For Lily."

"Do not patronise me boy, or try to pretend that you understand the situation. It is further beyond the capabilities of your tiny mind than you could ever comprehend."

"Is it though?" Albus took a step forward, regarding Snape with cool interest. "I am not all that like my father, or indeed my grandfather, as I suspect you have already noticed. I love my family, of course, but there are differences... You are speaking, for instance, to the first Slytherin Potter in recorded history."

"That goes some way towards recommending you, certainly."

"They never told me very much about you, I'm afraid. You can guess, I think, that giving me your name was a mark of my father's respect for your actions, rather than that he particularly warmed to your personality."

"The feeling was mutual, I assure you."

"And yet... I wonder, Professor, if I should tell you this? It will probably only irritate you further. But on the day I first left for Hogwarts, I asked my father, Harry Potter, what would happen if I was in Slytherin. My brother, James, had been teasing me about the possibility and I was afraid of the house's dark reputation. And you know what he said? 'Albus Severus, you were named for two Hogwarts headmasters. One was a Slytherin, and the bravest man I ever knew.'" Allie paused, smirking. "Mind you, he also told me that the hat would take my choices into account. I think he was somewhat surprised when he heard the news."

"Why did you not choose Gryffindor?"

"I was going to, at first. But when I sat on the stool I suddenly realised how stupid it would be to choose the house of the brave just because I was afraid. The hat didn't seem too keen on the idea anyway. I think it may have been persuadable to Ravenclaw, but if I had insisted on Gryffindor I would probably still be arguing with it. Besides," he grinned. "There's a certain glamour in going over to the Dark Side."

"I'm glad you think so," said Snape sourly.

Albus shrugged, looking a little uncomfortable. "It hasn't exactly been easy. But I can't imagine belonging anywhere else. Slytherins don't see things in black and white the way the other houses do."

For a long time, neither said anything. Snape was deep in thought, while Albus (completely disregarding McGonagall's instructions) was poking interestedly at the contents of a walnut cupboard behind the Headmistress' desk.

"You don't look like them," Snape said eventually.

"I used to," Albus replied. "When I was younger. Now though, people tend to see someone else entirely. I think the Slytherin membership encourages them."

"Tom Riddle."

Albus nodded. "You're not the first."

"You shouldn't show that it upsets you," Snape said, and Albus looked up, surprised. "People will use it against you. For what it's worth, though..." Snape hesitated. "I find it easier to tolerate my name on a boy who looks like an influential Slytherin, rather than an arrogant Gryffindor."

Albus chuckled, then sobered again. "I'm like my father in one respect though. I have Lily Evans' eyes."

"Yes," Snape said heavily. "That you do, Albus."

Albus swiftly closed the cupboard and arranged his features into a look of angelic innocence as McGonagall's footsteps were heard on the stairs outside.

"Please Sir," he said. "Call me Allie."