Summary

Severus, the quiet and misunderstood boy, never really thought much of the sorting. It wasn't like he was some pure blood. He didn't particularly have much by way of ambition, and in truth would have been perfectly content doing just about anything that would allow him to move away from his miserable home in Spinner's End, where his muggle father beat him and his mom. There was cunning there, though, and a rage that welled up inside him that ached for release, for a target. But when the hat touched his head, hesitating for what seemed like an eon to his adolescent perception, he saw a path split in two. One led to a familiar, comfortable darkness, and the other to fog. Whispering in his head, he was given the choice. This time, he stepped toward the unknown.

"Ravenclaw!" The hat shouted.

Chapter 1

Severus opened his tightly shut eyes to see the table of blue and bronze cheering for his placement. He looked toward the Slytherin table filled with curious eyes; he was supposed to be there, wasn't he? He glances toward Gryffindor to see Lily clapping, her smile as bright as the sun when we met in the flowers on Spinner's End. He felt his cheeks warm, giving her a small, timid wave, before sitting down at his table.

Sitting beside an odd, wild haired blond boy, seemingly close to his age though possibly a year older, he glances at something he is writing furiously within a tattered journal.

THE SORTING HAT – LEGILIMENS?

Severus blinks at the scrawling notes, and the boy notices. He tilts his head and writes at the top of the page: I am Xeno.

When Severus tries to respond with his name, Xeno taps his ears, whirring, shimmering ear plugs clearly humming into his ear, indicating he was unable to hear. Severus takes the quill, and writes a quickly scrawled, Severus.

Xeno peers at the name, and crosses out all letters except the first 3. Sev. Severus shrugs and looks back at the table, as a very pretty, golden-haired girl sets herself gracefully into the seat in front of him. "Pandora Longbottom." She offers her hand while taking a quick gulp of pumpkin juice. Xeno looks up from his scribbles and stares for a few moments, then returns to his journal without a word.

"Uh, Sev." He says in return, figuring that if he's going to be given a nickname, maybe he will make more friends this way. He shakes her hand.

She nods and gives him a slight smile, opening up a book that appeared in her hand, reading while taking small bites of food. The other first years are more like Severus, confused and unsure of what to do with their hands. The stereotypes were true? Peering down the table, everyone had a book or parchment out, reading or scrawling. A few had cards and runes in front of them, with their food off to the side. Severus went slightly pale, was the hat wrong? He glanced over at the Gryffindor table, where Lily and other first years are babbling and giggling excitedly. Lily catches his eyes and gives him a warm smile and a wave, and just like that, Severus releases a soft, relaxed breath. It would be okay.

Gryffindor and Ravenclaw towers were on different sides of the castle, so as soon as they leave the Great Hall, Severus waves to Lily and says goodnight before following the Prefects up the winding, changing, stairwell to Ravenclaw Tower.

The bronze eagle sculpture moves, preening its metal feathers before they approach.

"To enter, you must answer this riddle." The voice is deep and intimidating for a bird. The prefects look back at the first years, reassuring them that he begins with simpler riddles and gets progressively more difficult through the year.

A muggle born girl with thick glasses chirps, "Like the New York Times Crossword!" The other witches and wizards look at her curiously. She quickly quiets herself, taking a step back slightly, almost like she is hoping she will vanish into the spiral staircase.

The bronze sculpture peers at her. "Mary Taylor." The small girl gulps. "Answer true and the others may enter without answering tonight."

Severus looks back at her, pitying her. That's a lot of pressure for one girl.

The sculpture squawks as she nods hesitantly. "I spin without legs, travel without feet, I guide without a voice, but I do have a hand. What am I?"

Mary blinks and her lips tighten, thinking about the riddle before her. After a long minute, she pipes up. "A compass?"

"Right you are, young lady." The door opens. The other students smile at Mary and lead her inside as she takes fast, shallow breaths. The anxiety fighting its way out of her, she leans against the wall as they enter, closing her eyes in relief, keeping herself from hyperventilating.

Severus stops next to her and gives her a small wave. "Good job, Mary." He says quietly.

She opens her eyes and smiles weakly. "Does he do that… every time?"

Severus shrugs. "First time. Hopefully not…" He gives her an encouraging smile and runs up the steps to his bedroom, collapsing on his bed without even bothering to undress.

The first day of classes goes off well, though he only had 2 classes in which he shared with Lily, which was greatly distressing. He wasn't good at socializing, though at breakfast, he sat with Xeno, Pandora, and Mary, discussing their first classes and for which they were most excited. Pandora was taking an Ancient Runes class in which she had already read the text, as she says, years ago, so she was pretty sure she'd be bored out of her skull. Mary expressed that she was most nervous about Potions, and excited for transfiguration. Xeno explained that Care of Magical Creatures was likely going to be his favorite this year, with a close second being herbology. Severus wasn't sure, really, what would be his favorite.

"I'm excited for… transfiguration, I think." He peeks over at the Gryffindor table. "I have a friend in that class, in Gryffindor."

Xeno chuckles. "It's always fun to be in classes with the block heads."

Pandora scolds him and looks back at Severus. "I think it's important to make friends outside of this house. Who else are we going to experiment on?" She smirks.

"Pragmatic, Pan." Xeno admits. "I heard that Alastor Moody, who graduated… 10 years ago? Turned one of his friends into a gerbil as a prank."

"Oh! That's a legend but I don't believe it. Surely he'd have been expelled." She objects. "If he had been caught." She quickly adds.

Xeno shrugs and finishes his tea, glancing at Severus. "Do you need help finding potions?" Mary and Severus nod quickly, grateful for the help, and he stands to help guide them.

Severus stands and follows, giving a wave to Lily on his way out, and she mouths, "See you later!" in a way that put him immediately at ease. She wasn't going to forget him now that she had new friends.

Mary was quiet on the way, and Severus tried to strike a conversation. "So, your parents are muggles, right?"

Mary nods, slightly embarrassed. "Yes… getting the letter was very surprising. I didn't understand what it meant at all, but Professor Dumbledore came to talk to us, to help. What about you?"

"Ah… my mother's a witch, father's a muggle." Severus says uncomfortably. "It's awkward." He rolls his shoulders.

Xeno looks back at them and chuckles. "Both of you could get an easy score in muggle studies, that's what I'd do."

"How are you in Ravenclaw?" Severus asks, a bit rudely. "Wouldn't you want to learn new things?"

Xeno shrugs, "The most interesting lessons are never the ones taught in these classrooms." He grins and points down the hall. "Potions with Slughorn is down this hallway to your right. He also always has the same 3 potions out to test you first years. The answers are: Polyjuice potion, amortentia, and veritaserum. Get those house points." He winks and runs off.

Mary swallows. Severus peers after him suspiciously. "I feel like he is tricking us into making mistakes."

Mary cringes a bit. "I am not risking it."

Severus hums slightly and walks into the classroom, opening his book to read what each of those potions look like – before seeing them. These potions were not listed in the first year books, so he walks to the shelves and take a few extras to look at them. After he found Polyjuice and Veritaserum, without the recipes which made him scowl, he figured that he may be able to recognize them. He slips a few of the more advanced books into his bag for some reading later. He was pretty sure this was going to be a breeze.

Mary asked if it would be okay if she sat with him, and he nodded. Realizing that the two of them were… well, relative outcasts, her being a muggle-born and him being… him, it seemed like the smartest move.

Slughorn walks into the classroom, a minute late, and summons three potions. Predictable. Severus narrows his eyes and peers at them, to get a closer look. Sure enough, the Polyjuice potion looked like it was meant to; chunky and grey. Like Nan's stew. He grimaced. The other two… he couldn't be sure. But one smelled like the meadow back home, under the tree, the wild flowers… ink and fresh parchment.

Severus swallows, shaking his head from the distraction. Slughorn asks the question, pointing toward the Polyjuice. Severus raises his hand, the only hand in the air. Mary looks at him to be sure he knows what he's doing. He answers and is correct. 5 points to Ravenclaw!

He quickly scrawls on his parchment. "Next is veritaserum." Mary swallows, and steels herself. Slughorn points to it and she raises her hand timidly. She answers quietly, and impressed Slughorn claps. "So well done for a muggle born! Very good!" She sinks back into her chair embarrassed. Severus scratches out the answer on his notes. Destroy the evidence. 10 points to Ravenclaw!

Slughorn points at the final potion and goes around the room, asking what it smells like to the whole of the class. Everyone's answer is different, but each one is pleasant. Mary took a large waft and closes her eyes, picking apart the scents. "Cinnamon fried dough, pistachio ice cream, and carnations…"

When he asks what it is, Severus raises his hand. "Amortentia." He says confidently, gaining another 5 points for his house. The rest of the class was mostly lecture, and the homework was to review the potion they'd be making in the next class on Wednesday. Severus looked at Mary as they were packing up. "We should practice the potion before Wednesday, if we have time." Mary nods quickly. "Yes, please."

As they make their way to Transfiguration, Mary stays close to Severus. She is quiet, and Severus doesn't speak either. Maybe that's what their friendship would be… comfortable silence to slake the loneliness. Still, Severus knew that at least at this point, he should be the one helping her. He wasn't really sure why, exactly, he cared. He was raised in a way that seemed to only validate his concerns about muggles. His mother had married his father despite the fact that she was a pure blood witch, and he was the only pathway Severus had had to learning about muggles. That pathway was filled with drunkards and thieves, and Severus could not see what his mother must have seen in him.

Still, Sev's two closest friends currently were, as he was taught, mudbloods. In fact, that he hadn't been sorted into Slytherin made him question those choices. He worried that his mother would be angry with him, which is why he didn't bother writing. His mother and father were always angry… about everything. They fought over everything and over nothing, from money to alcohol to what the weather was like. Sev had very little by way of money, and he had only eaten three meals a day, that he could remember, when he went to stay with his Nan. At home, there was very little for him.

Except for Lily, of course. Meeting her was a memory that couldn't be corrupted. He felt peace with her, and loved, even in just a friendly way. She didn't make fun of his clothes that barely fit, she would offer him candy under the tree, and he would tell her stories of all of the magical things that were going to happen as soon as they went to Hogwarts. He told her about unicorns and dementors, wands and potions, a world unlike this one which held the key to a better life. It was a fanciful design of his own making, the idea that just leaving to a new place would solve all of his problems and make him happy, but he clung to it, in the darkness, nursing his bruises from his drunk father.

His reverie was cut short as they entered McGonagall's classroom, the tabby cat sitting eerily still on her desk. Sev moved to a table where Lily was already sitting, nearby the other Gryffindors who peered at him with mischievous eyes. One snorted a laugh as he said hello to Lily, and he tried to ignore it.

"Sev!" Lily whispered excitedly. "Sit here!" She pointed to the one remaining seat next to her.

Severus almost took it, immediately, but then remembered Mary. Severus glanced back at her, but then shrugged. "Lily, this is Mary." He coaxed her up near them. "She's muggle born too… thought you should meet…" He flashed her a small, shy smile before sitting at the table nearby, giving Mary and Lily a chance to talk, become friends. He did regret the choice, as he wanted to sit next to Lily so badly, but Mary needed it. He glanced at them chatting quietly before the tabby cat transformed into their professor, which quieted everyone down immediately. The serious woman began her lesson, explaining for what the discipline of Transfiguration was used. Severus was enthralled immediately. It was scientific and logical, and likely challenging. He hoped that he could excel in this class. He paid rapt attention until it was disrupted by Professor Cosima Edgecomb, the head of Ravenclaw. She said something to Professor McGonagall which made her frown and look directly at Severus.

He swallowed. Was he in trouble? Maybe he wasn't supposed to take the books from Slughorn's room. Maybe… the hat made a mistake and he wasn't supposed to be sorted into Ravenclaw? Maybe Xeno ratted him out and he was going to get detention for cheating…

Sev got paler, and when he was summoned from his seat, his legs shook. Whatever happened, he could not get expelled. He'd rather anything but that. "Take your things." Professor Edgecomb directed. "You will not be coming back today." He did as he was told.

He walked out of the room, glancing back at Lily and Mary who watched him with concern. Tears welled in his eyes. How embarrassing… He sniffed and tried to hold them back. Unsure of what even to say as the door closed behind him. Professor Dumbledore stood waiting outside, and Edgecomb placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Severus, it's a pleasure to meet you." Dumbledore said softly. "Please follow me…"

They walked into an empty classroom and asked him to take a seat. He did so, placing his book bag down. "I… don't know what I did, I'm sorry… Please don't expel me… Or if you do, I will work… in the kitchens?" He babbled quietly.

Dumbledore chuckled softly and sat down in front of him, Edgecomb standing by his side. "Oh, don't worry, you won't have to work in the kitchens." He peered over his half moon glasses. "Severus, I am very sorry to interrupt your first day of classes. I know Professor McGonagall holds a very fascinating lecture. We thought it would be best to take you aside now, before you are to go to the Great Hall…" He sighs and glances at Edgecomb.

Edgecomb piped up. "We received a letter this morning from the Evans' household. They weren't sure if we received the news… the muggle news." She clarified. "Your father… well, your mother… She passed away last night."