Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

Heir

Chapter Six-

"Firs' years this way!" Hagrid was calling, and Harry eagerly followed the sound of Hagrid's voice. He couldn't wait... he didn't even know how they'd be making their way over to Hogwarts. Tom had kept that part of things very quiet, which meant that it was a surprise that Harry would enjoy. Tom always kept things that he thought Harry would enjoy a secret, and Harry adored that about Tom.

Ron and Draco were less excited, but Harry imagined that was probably because they were both purebloods who had grown up in the wizarding world. They probably had a better idea of what was coming. Well, aside from Ron's question about facing a troll, which had obviously not amused Draco. And was hopefully not the case. Tom coming out for the Sorting ceremony would be a disaster, and Harry knew that he wouldn't be able to stop him from manifesting if he were to actually be facing something so dangerous as a troll.

And then he spotted the edge of the lake, with its dock full of canoes, and a bright smile broke over his face. Boats!

"Have you ever ridden on a boat before?" Draco asked him as they stepped into the canoes which would hold four of them. One of the two hulking brutes that had stood guard outside of their door joined them, filling the boat just before a girl with bushy hair and slightly larger than normal front teeth could do so.

"Once," Harry said. "Twice, technically." He fought the urge to bounce in place. Tom would definitely not approve of such behavior. And Tom was, of course, the consummate Slytherin. He would do well to do what Tom wanted, at least until he'd established himself within the wizarding world. But they were in these adorable boats, and Tom hadn't even warned him that he'd be getting to try out a boat! How could Harry be anything less than excited? "Neither time was exactly fun, but I bet this time will be better."

"I'm sure that it will be," Draco said, and then the boats were moving without any of them even having to row. But there was no motor, no anything to make them go. Except, of course, for magic itself. Which only made it better, because now the boats were moving and he didn't have to do any work.

Harry settled back into the boat with a small, satisfied sigh. He was already feeling quite at home, perhaps for the first time ever. How could he not be, surrounded by dozens of children just like him? ~There's nobody quite like you, Harry,~ Tom murmured, and a warm feeling of approval that Harry hadn't felt in such a long time welled within Harry.

Harry closed his eyes and savored the feeling even as he answered, ~You're just saying that Tom. I'm sure there are dozens of wizards out there that could have taken my place. It was just luck that you wound up with me rather than any of them.~

~In truth, from what little I can recall of the prophecy which ruined both of our lives, there was indeed another child available,~ Tom mused.

Harry was very surprised by the sudden hot flare of jealousy within him. ~But you didn't pick that other child. You chose me. Are you...~ Harry hesitated, then continued bravely, ~Are you glad you chose me?~ He knew that Tom liked him, because Tom had to like him for all that he'd done for Harry over the years. But to find out that there was another who could have taken his place... what if Tom didn't really like him all that much?

~Of course I am. If I had to be defeated by anybody, I'm glad it was you.~ Harry felt that approval curling around him again and he shivered a bit. It felt so good, Tom's approval. He would do... well, okay, he wouldn't do just anything for Tom's approval, but he thought that maybe he'd do quite a bit.

But wasn't that only natural? Tom had practically raised him, done more for him than his Aunt and Uncle ever had. It was only right that Harry should look at Tom as a father figure, and should want to please him. That Tom had once upon a time been a murdering sociopath who had tried to kill him probably made the whole thing a bit unhealthy, but Harry thought that they were rather a unique circumstance.

"Harry?" Draco was saying, and Harry forced himself to open his eyes. "Are you well?" the blond asked, one immaculately sculpted brow raising in question.

Harry snickered at the expression. "I'm fine," he answered, "Just a bit tired. It's been a long day already, and it's only just begun!" There were other excuses he could have used, such as seasickness or even that he was savoring the boat ride, but neither one made nearly as much sense as being tired. And, that had the advantage of not even being a lie.

It was so hard to remember that there were actual people out there in the world that wanted to interact with him. For so long it had just been him and Tom that it was... well, it wasn't impossible to remember that Draco and Ron were there and that of course they would want attention. Harry didn't believe that anything was truly impossible, except for things like bringing back the dead, but they could be difficult. It wasn't going to be an easy thing at all for Harry to get used to no longer being able to just lose himself in his own mind with Tom for a few hours.

But then, as he adjusted to Hogwarts and to being around his own kind and to having real friends rather than just Tom, Harry assumed that it would get easier. ~They aren't quite your friends, you know,~ Tom pointed out, and there was a hint of something in his voice that made Harry immediately focus his entire attention on the spirit once more.

~Don't be jealous, Tom,~ Harry begged. ~Of course they're not actually my friends, not yet, but they will be. And I... I want to have real friends. Which isn't to say that you aren't great, because you really are, but... but I deserve to have some real friends as well as you, don't I?~ Harry was trembling with the thought of displeasing Tom, of making Tom go away. He hadn't worried about that in so very long, and he supposed maybe he'd taken the spirit for granted. After all, there was no saying that Tom couldn't choose to just go back to sleep and leave Harry all alone in his head once more.

~I'm not going to leave you,~ Tom muttered. ~I'm just being a grouchy old man. Now pay attention, child. You're about to see Hogwarts for the first time.~

Which wasn't quite true, since Harry knew that he'd seen bits of Hogwarts from Tom's head before. But this would be his first full view of the castle, and that was something to be savored. And he'd also missed the majority of the boat ride, but that was okay. There would be other boat rides, but it wasn't often that Harry had the chance to reassure Tom. But with Tom now reassured, and the boat just about to come out from under the overpass, Harry pulled himself back out of his own mind. He smiled to alleviate Ron and Draco's concerned looks and waited for only a moment before the view of the castle was taking his breath away.

"It's beautiful," Harry breathed. And it really, really was. It was perfect against the dark sky, all lit up like stars and... yeah. Perfect. Even the fact that it almost looked like it could fall off the cliff at any moment only made it that much more impressive, because it was clearly magic keeping it there. Tom always saved the best surprises for last, Harry thought, and sent Tom a burst of affection. Because he didn't do that enough for the spirit.

"She is, isn't she?" Ron asked. And then he spoiled the serenity of the moment with the question, "So if you don't think we have to fight a troll, what do you think we have to do?"

Draco rolled his eyes. They were docking, now, and stepping carefully out of the boats. One girl slipped, and almost fell into the lake, but Hagrid caught her before she could get too close to the water. "Honestly, Ron, all we have to do is put on a hat, and it'll tell us what house is best for us. It isn't difficult at all."

"Oh, is that all? That doesn't sound difficult at all! I wonder why my brothers would have..." Ron trailed off, as though realizing something. Then he flushed and shook his head.

"What?" Harry asked, as they walked up the path to the school. They were met at the door by a severe looking older witch, her hair pulled back into a tight, salt and pepper bun. From there Hagrid left them, and Professor McGonagall took over.

"They lied to me," Ron said. "I don't know why I expected different of Fred and George. More fool me, I guess," he said glumly. "They're always playing tricks on people, and I guess I was just another easy mark."

"I'm sure they don't mean to be cruel," Harry offered, and then fell silent as Ron shot him a dark look. Harry sighed, then muttered, "Well, I mean, I would hope that they didn't. But I don't know them, so maybe they're just rotten."

"To the core," Ron muttered.

~Harry, I need your attention again,~ Tom said suddenly, just a touch of discomfort in his voice.

~What is it?~ Harry asked, immediately focusing on the once Dark Lord. ~Is there a problem?~

~There is, and I'm an idiot. The Sorting Hat, the thing that's going to sort you to your House? It reads minds. I'm going to have to go completely dark in here, because I don't trust the hat not to confess everything of note to Dumbledore. Your task is going to be to keep yourself from thinking about me as much as possible.~

~But Tom, that's like saying not to think of the pink elephant! All I'll be doing now is thinking about how I'm not supposed to be thinking about you!~ Harry protested. Because Tom was almost always in his thoughts, Harry wasn't even sure how to block the Hat off from Tom, if one even could.

Tom let out an irritated hiss. ~You've a point,~ he muttered. ~Then fine. We'll try something else. I'm going to attempt to present you as a natural Occlumens. That's going to make you look a bit more suspicious to the Headmaster, but no more than the Hat reporting my presence. What that means is that the next time you present yourself to the Headmaster, you'll have to catch his gaze at least once so that we can cement in his mind that you are, in fact, a natural and that the Sorting wasn't a fluke.~

~So what you're telling me is that I don't really have anything to worry about because you're going to take care of this?~ Harry asked after puzzling his way through Tom's rather rambling sentence. He must be nervous, because it wasn't like the Dark Lord to ramble otherwise.

~In a word, yes,~ Tom said flatly. ~Now let me focus. And pay attention, you're about to be moving into the Great Hall.~

There were two ghosts drifting from the room, but Harry's attention was captivated by the doors opening, and Professor McGonagall leading them into the Great Hall for the first time. Again, it wasn't really anything that Harry hadn't seen before, but there was something just so exciting about being here in person for the first time. About standing in the same spot that Tom had stood, while he waited to find out what house he'd go to. Well, close to the same spot, anyway.

The Hall was every bit as huge as Tom's memories had made it out to be, and Harry was captivated by it. The enchanted ceiling was absolutely fascinating, and as the Sorting Hat began some strange song, Harry asked Tom, ~Do you know how to enchant ceilings like the Great Hall?~

~Didn't I just say I need to focus?~ Tom snapped. At the flare of hurt his words caused, Tom muttered, ~Yes, actually, I do. It's terribly advanced and not something I can teach until you have a background knowledge of Runes. Maybe when you're older we can get around to it.~

Harry frowned. ~Why is it always when I'm older?~ he complained, not expecting an answer. Tom never answered when he was whining, and Harry knew enough about himself to know that question was the very definition of a whine. But then the Sorting Hat was finishing its song, and the Sorting was beginning, and Harry's attention was caught by the ceremony. Tom had never shown him a Sorting before. Probably because Tom thought it was boring, and Tom didn't like to show Harry boring things.

Abbot, Hannah, was called up to the little stool where Professor McGonagall handed her the hat to be placed upon her head. She sat there silently for almost a moment before the Hat shouted out, "HUFFLEPUFF!" and she scampered off to the table under the yellow and black banner.

Harry watched the rest of the Sorting with no small amount of fascination. That one little hat could know so much about the minds of the wizards it was working with, well, it was both awe inspiring and terrifying all at once. Harry didn't like the thought of a non-living object being able to read his mind quite like that. Really, he wasn't fond of any being having that sort of power, but he supposed he didn't have a choice so long as he wanted to attend Hogwarts.

As he watched, Crabbe, Vincent went to Gryffindor, followed shortly by the other brute from the train, Goyle, Gregory. That was... strange. ~They should have gone to Slytherin,~ Tom protested. ~Both of their fathers were in Slytherin, and I know that they would have raised their sons to be very similar. I think the Headmaster's hand is involved here, and that concerns me. He must already suspect what house you're going to.~

In no time at all it was Draco's turn, and the hat had barely touched his head when it was bellowing out "SLYTHERIN!"

Draco turned and nodded at both Harry and Ron before walking off to sit with his new house. And then, after a few more students went, Harry's name was called. He heard the whispers starting up as he walked up to the stool, but ignored them. Let them talk. For the most part, he didn't care what any of them said.

Hmm? What's this I see? Mr. Potter, I can't seem to get too far into your mind, a soft voice whispered in Harry's ear. It wasn't quite like anything Harry had ever heard before.

Sorry? he thought at the voice in question. I'm not really sure what's going on here, or why you can't see into my mind, he thought apologetically. Is there a question or something I need to answer? I'm not really sure how this Sorting thing works.

Well, it's been a very long time since a natural Occlumens sat me upon their head. You'll need to lower your shields just a... ahh, yes, there we go. Indeed, I can see that the Headmaster was quite right. There's really only one house meant for somebody like you, Mr. Potter. Watch your back; your secret is safe with me. For you, Mr. Potter, it had better be "SLYTHERIN!"

Harry was forcing himself to fake a smile as he hopped down from the school and handed the hat back to Professor McGonagall. She looked as though she'd swallowed a lemon sideways. ~Did the Hat notice you?~ he asked Tom urgently.

~I don't know,~ Tom responded. ~If he did, there's not much we can do about it now. I suppose we can only hope, and I'll attempt to make some contingency plans. For now, pay attention to the Sorting.~

~Where do you think Ron will wind up?~ Harry asked cautiously.

~He'll go to Gryffindor,~ Tom whispered confidently as Harry took a seat next to Draco. The whole hall was in an uproar over his Sorting, but Harry didn't actually care. He'd gone exactly where Tom wanted him to, and Draco was so obviously pleased that they'd been Sorted together that he didn't care what the rest of the world thought. After all, where had the rest of wizarding Britain been when he'd needed them when he was five? Nowhere, that's where.

~You don't know that,~ Harry said in answer to Tom's confidence. He watched as the Professor clearly in charge of the Sorting managed to restore order to the rowdy group of students. It was a difficult task, but eventually the Sorting began once more.

Ron's name was called after a few other students, and Harry offered his other friend... acquaintance, if he was going to go by Tom's rules, a smile of encouragement. No matter what house Ron ended up in, Harry was determined to still be his friend. He rather liked the other boy, even if he was sort of obsessed with showing his brothers up in one way or another. For that matter, wouldn't that ambition qualify him for Slytherin?

"The Hat's been on his head for an awfully long time," Draco whispered about two minutes later. The rest of the hall had fallen silent, with the occasional break caused by a shifting student or a cough or a little giggle as the silence drew on. Even Professor McGonagall looked impatient when the Hat finally yelled out, "SLYTHERIN!" at the top of it's lungs.

There was a beat of total silence as Ron slid the hat from his head and trotted over to join both Harry and Draco, and then one of two identical redheads over at the Gryffindor table shouted out, "Bloody Hell, Ronnikins, mum's gonna go spare!"

The third redhead was going red in the face and cuffed the one that had spoken on the back of the head. "You idiot!" the prefect shouted. "If you get a detention before the first day of classes, Mum'll kill you! Mum and Dad won't care what house Ron got Sorted into!"

"Mr. Weasley! If classes were in session I'd deduct points for that remark! As it stands, you'll serve detention with me first thing tomorrow evening!" Professor McGonagall shouted, and returned to the Sorting as though nothing out of the ordinary had even happened.

But Ron whispered to them, once the food had appeared and they were all enjoying gorging themselves, "I think I'm the first Weasley ever to Sort to Slytherin. Mum's gonna be pissed, Fred was right about that."

"Even so, I'm glad you've been Sorted with us," Harry offered.

Draco sniffed. "Who cares if the Blood Traitors are angry with you? Now that you've joined Slytherin, we'll be able to educate you on the proper behavior of a Pureblood such as yourself."

It was a testament to Ron's maturity that he didn't go off on Draco for insulting his family in such a way. Or rather, the credit went to Harry, who distracted Ron by sneaking a second piece of tart onto Ron's plate just before he exploded on Draco.

ooOOooOOoo

Severus Snape had been blissfully ignorant of what the coming year would be throwing in his direction. Oh, yes, he had absolutely been aware that it would be yet another year filled with incompetent fools that could no more brew a proper potion than they could take flight without the aid of a broom, but he'd forgotten the joys that would be heaped upon his person this particular school year.

He'd forgotten that this would be the year when the offspring of Lily and that... that man came to Hogwarts.

He'd managed to keep forgetting that one small fact until such time as the boy himself walked into the Great Hall, a somewhat glazed look in those heartbreakingly familiar green eyes of his. The rest of him, though, that was all James, and Severus fought down a vicious sneer at the sight of the wire-rimmed glasses and the messy black hair, even the vacant look in his eyes. Of course the child would be as incompetent, as foolish, as the father had been. The insult was a reflexive, hateful response, and one that Lily once upon a time would have said was beneath him.

But Lily wasn't here. She was dead, presumably defending the rotten little snot standing waiting to be Sorted, and Severus could not possibly forgive the child in question for living when Lily had not. Lily had once been a very dear friend, and, though she had chosen her fate by siding against the Dark Lord, Severus still mourned her loss.

She never would have understood the choices he'd made, but still...

He closed his eyes, forced himself to breathe deeply, tried to remember that the child, Harry Potter, was most certainly not his father. Of course, he could be worse. He'd been raised a celebrity, unlike James. Harry Potter would most likely have all of his father's arrogance and none of his mother's gentleness. He would be a nightmare student, and Severus would undoubtedly be the only Professor to understand what it meant. The others would all no doubt be blinded by the boy's shining celebrity status.

It was a disgrace in the making, and Severus sneered as the Sorting began. As though there was any doubt where Potter would go. As a matter of fact...

Severus eyed the nervous group of first years with a practiced gaze. There were several students that he could tell easily what house they would go to, starting with Potter himself. Another Weasley, of course, also destined for Gryffindor. Didn't that family ever stop breeding? And oh, yes, there was the Malfoy heir, no doubt going to Slytherin. Lucius wouldn't have it any other way. There was Parkinson, also doubtlessly headed towards his own house, and a Bones who had the look of a Hufflepuff about her.

The Sorting held no surprises at all anymore, a fact which could almost disappoint Severus. He recalled them being at least somewhat exciting when he was in school.

His first two surprises came with the sorting of Crabbe, Vincent and Goyle, Gregory. He'd known both of the boys' fathers, and would have assumed them to be coming to his house. But no, both wound up in Gryffindor instead, a fact which made him frown in confusion. Gryffindor? He hadn't thought them to be particularly qualified for the house, but the Sorting Hat knew best he supposed. The Sorting continued with no other surprises for several names.

Malfoy's name was called, then, and of course he went right to Slytherin the moment the hat touched his head. Severus was unsurprised by the designation, and offered the child a nod. The nod was not seen, however, as it appeared that the boy was looking elsewhere in the line, matching gazes with... Potter? Now what could possibly be going on there?

Somewhat intrigued, Severus leaned forward a bit and watched the next bit of the ceremony. When Potter's name was called, the child strode forward confidently and settled the hat onto his head with ease. The hat sat there for only a few heartbeats before shouting out, "SLYTHERIN!" and making the entire hall go insane.

Potter didn't seem to notice a bit of it, moving swiftly over to join Malfoy at the end of the table despite several upper years making discrete gestures indicating that the child should come and join them. His house was behaving admirably considering the celebrity they'd just gained. Rather than joining in the startled shouts of surprise that the rest of the hall was indulging in, his upper years were merely looking smug, as though they'd known this was coming the entire time.

Severus sat back in his chair, a small huff of surprise leaving his lips. He hadn't expected that. Hadn't expected that at all, and he wasn't entirely sure what to make of such a thing. Neither Lily nor James would have ever been Sorted into Slytherin, so there was clearly something very wrong going on here. He chanced a look over at the Headmaster, only to spot a swiftly hidden frown of consternation on the generally genial man's face.

How curious. It seemed as though there was something of a mystery to be worked through this year. And Severus absolutely adored mysteries.

But Severus had little time to consider the mystery Potter presented, because there was yet another surprise waiting for him. The Weasley boy, a sure fit for Gryffindor, went to his own house instead. That was... that was rather surprising in and of itself. Even more surprising was that the child looked pleased by his Sorting, and even more surprising than that was that the boy ran to sit with Malfoy and Potter, who both looked positively gleeful to have him there.

This... this was the start of something terrible, Severus was certain. A Weasley and Potter not only in his house but consorting with a Malfoy? Severus was almost positive that was a sign of the end of days.

ooOOooOOoo

Full in a way that he'd rarely been despite Tom's best efforts, Harry followed the rest of the students down into the dungeons for the night. It was an exciting thing, to be here at Hogwarts for his very first night, although Tom was being awfully quiet in his head right now. Which was okay, because that meant that he'd actually be able to pay attention to the prefects and the directions they were going in and everything else he would need to know about Hogwarts.

Tom stirred himself enough to point out, ~It isn't as though I'd let you get lost,~ in a rather irritated tone.

Harry responded with, ~But I don't want to just rely on you for directions all the time. I should learn my own way around.~

Tom had no response to that, and Harry was glad to not be distracted as he took in his first in person sight of the Slytherin Common Room. It was much as Tom remembered it, a large, open space with quite a few low backed black and green couches strewn around the room. There was a fireplace in the middle of the farthest wall, and bits of moss growing on the stone walls. There were green lights that lit the room nicely, and if Harry looked up at one of the far skylights, he could see water. Tom had mentioned that the dungeons expanded under the lake, but he'd failed to mention that you could actually see the lake from within the Common Room. Harry thought it might be quite nice to be able to sit under there and watch the lake from below while doing homework.

He tore his attention away from the dark bottom of the lake on the far side of the room when he noticed that the prefects were gesturing everybody to take their seats on the low couches scattered throughout. Once they had, an upper year wearing the badge of a prefect stepped forward. He had shoulder length brown hair and cold blue eyes that surveyed the first years rather impartially. Harry didn't care for the look of him at all.

"My name, for those of you who don't know, is Alexander Bennet. I am your sixth year prefect, and as such it is my duty to look after all first years. Please, do try not to make my job any harder than it might already be. I realize that it may be difficult for you, but I do ask that you all make your best attempts at it. I already have enough studying to do without mopping up your messes."

He fell silent, studying each of the first years with a scrutiny that made Harry fidget uncomfortably. "No fidgeting!" he barked out, and Harry stilled immediately. "A Slytherin does not fidget," the prefect said, not knowing that Tom was echoing him within Harry's head. "They do not fidget. They do not twiddle their thumbs. They do not cavort in the hallways like hooligans. They do not disgrace their house in any way that one can imagine, be it large or small. We are your family for the next seven years of your lives. You wouldn't want to disgrace your families, would you?"

~I'm the first prefect to have given that speech,~ Tom said smugly within Harry's mind, and Harry had to bite down a smile.

He waited until there was a round of softly whispered 'no's' from every first year in the room before continuing with, "Excellent. Now, our password currently is snake in the grass. Do not forget it. If you forget it, you will not be helped in by any upper years until five minutes after curfew, and if you are caught out after curfew, you will serve detention. If you are caught by a professor other than Professor Snape, you can be assured you will face consequences from the rest of the house as well. Our password will change every fortnight, and you will be able to see each new one posted on the bulletin board just in between the boy's and girl's dormitories."

He stopped once more, looking at all of them with hard eyes, and asked rather severely, "Now, were there any questions?" When there were none, he dismissed them with a simple, "The morning will come soon, so off to bed with the lot of you," and a wave of his hand.

Harry, Ron, and Draco made their way up to their dormitory, labelled by a shiny silver plaque as the first year boys dormitory, along with a boy named Blaise Zabini, and another boy by the name of Theodore Nott. "I just realized that Crabbe and Goyle weren't Sorted along with us," Draco said with a frown. "Which house did they wind up in?" There was a peculiar relief in his tone, and Harry added that to the mental file of odd things about Draco that would need investigating. He didn't have any such file on Ron just yet.

~That's because with a Weasley you get exactly what you see,~ Tom snarked.

"Gryffindor," Zabini said as he flung himself onto his bed, neatly labelled and with his things already on it. "No offense to them, but I'm glad we've got Weasley and Potter instead. Those two looked thicker than oaks." The tone to his voice gave away the insult of the statement, and Harry frowned at him.

Tom prodded the back of his mind as he opened his mouth to speak, and Harry let out a small sigh and fell silent. It wouldn't do to make enemies his very first night here. He chose instead to focus on his very own bed, and the fact that he was exhausted, and Minerva purring and waiting eagerly for him. He changed into his pajamas, settled onto his bed, and hauled his kitten into his lap, a smile coming to his face.

"You didn't bring an owl, Harry?" Draco asked as he too chose to settle into his bed. "They're dead useful."

"I didn't really have anyone to write to," Harry responded, even as exhaustion began to settle over him like a thick blanket. He let out a yawn, and didn't quite catch anybody's response, if there even was one. Bennet was right, the morning would come very soon, and Harry was so excited to be attending his first set of classes. But the excitement was no match for exhaustion, and Harry found himself dropping off to sleep much earlier than he'd intended.

ooOOooOOoo

Severus was settled into his room and studying a potion's manuscript when there was a soft, discreet tapping at the door. He wasn't an idiot; he could guess who was in the hallway and he wasn't necessarily looking forward to the conversation. But he didn't have much of a choice, so he stood and opened the door, and yes, it was the Headmaster on the other side.

"Albus," he said with a nod, and stepped back. He gave a welcoming gesture, and before too long the Headmaster was settled into his sitting room, a steaming cup of tea in his hand. Once Severus had settled himself as well he said flatly, "This is of course about the Potter boy." There was absolutely no doubt in his mind that was the case.

His suspicions were confirmed when the Headmaster's head dipped in a shallow nod. "Indeed, Severus." The man took a deep breath, followed by a sip of his tea, and then he said finally, "Not many know this, in fact, the number is currently limited to myself, Hagrid, and the boy and his family. But I think that you deserve to know, because I need you to watch the boy very carefully for me."

"Whatever you think that I need to know, Albus," Severus answered obediently. He had the feeling that he wasn't going to like whatever it was that Albus had to say, and imagined that it probably had something to do with why the boy had been Sorted to his house.

"We cannot be sure if it was accidental, though I cannot imagine it being anything but. He's awfully young to have managed to do it on purpose, not to mention that he'd never had any formal training at the time of the incident. On the other hand, certain comments from his aunt have led me to believe that the entire thing was very much on purpose, a fact which concerns me greatly." Albus paused for a breath.

"Albus, what concerns you greatly?" Severus asked, growing impatient. He only had so many hours to finish up reading his manuscript before he had to be in bed for classes tomorrow, after all, and the Headmaster would chatter for hours when given the chance.

"Harry Potter killed his Uncle just before Hagrid took him to Diagon Alley this summer," the Headmaster said gravely. "That, combined with the sorting into Slytherin has me a bit concerned."

Severus frowned at the information. "How did he..." Severus trailed off and gestured delicately with one hand.

"The way that Petunia Dursley described it made it seem to be a wandless, wordless killing curse." Albus was frowning, and settled his teacup down on the table, only half finished. "Severus, I shouldn't have to tell you that I'm very concerned."

"No, I understand. I'll be sure to keep an eye on him for you, Albus, and bring anything suspicious to your attention at once." Severus studied his own teacup pensively until Albus cleared his throat. When he looked up, the Headmaster was standing.

"I'll leave you to your thoughts, then," Albus murmured, and showed himself out of the room.

Severus left his potion's manuscript on the table, forgotten, as he allowed himself to be lost in thought. Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, son of Lily and James Potter, celebrity, Slytherin, and apparently a killer as well.

Very interesting.