Harry walked into the Slytherin Common Room after the party that night for his usual chat with the first years. The Prefects had already assembled them on the couches and provided stomach soothers for the ones that had eaten a few too many sweets. The children looked content, drowsy and relaxed.
"Hey all," Harry greeted them brightly.
"Good evening, Professor Potter," they chorused as the Prefects had instructed.
Harry glanced at the smirking Prefects and made a shooing gesture at them, returning their grin.
"I thought we'd do a quick introduction and I explain some of the rules before you go to bed," he smiled, "I am indeed Professor Potter, of course, your Head of House as well as your History of Magic Professor. That means that whenever you have a problem, you can come to me and we'll try to work it out together, alright?
Solemn faces nodded and he continued.
"I've heard your names at the Sorting, and of course our secretary, who happens to be my wife, provided me with this helpful list," he waved a piece of parchment covered in crayon.
"Unfortunately, my daughter got her tiny hands on it," he admitted ruefully, making the children giggle.
"Anyway, in the next week I will speak with all of you. I will send you all an invitation tomorrow morning. Also, I've made a few maps and directions for you so you won't get lost in this huge castle, but if you get lost somehow, ask a prefect or fellow student. If you ask them politely, the ghosts and paintings are always willing to help you out. Are any of you Muggleborn or Muggle raised?"
Two hands went up into the air. Harry smiled at them.
"So was I, raised by Muggles," he told them, "and I felt nearly overwhelmed my first weeks here. You have all gotten our 'Merlin, I've got Magic' booklet, haven't you?"
The two, a boy and a girl, nodded.
"Good. Still, once you are actually here you will undoubtedly run into things you don't expect or understand. That is perfectly normal, and you'll see that you will get used to it sooner than you think. This first week, the Prefects will help you, see you to your classes if necessary and answer your questions."
"Unlike the Gryffindors, we do not have shared dorm rooms anymore. Each has two separate areas, one for boys and one for girls. They consist of a small room for each of you, and a living room of sorts. You are expected to keep your own room tidy and take turns cleaning the living room. If I get complaints from the House Elves that you are not doing that, your entire group will get detention until everything is practically sterile. Ask the Third Year boys – they know exactly how fussy I can be about that."
"Lights out is at 10 for you, 11 on weekends. You must be in your dorm by nine during the week. If you ever need to stay up late to finish an assignment, tell a Prefect and you will be allowed to work in the Common Room. I expect that to be an exception, however. If it happens more than three times in a term we will have a chat about your study habits. You need your sleep. Especially in the first year doing magic will take a lot of energy. The more sleep deprived you become, the weaker your magic."
"When I studied here, professors were allowed to set assignments indiscriminately. Since then, we have made the rule that the professors discuss the homework they plan on setting in advance at the teacher meetings so you will be able to finish all assignments and still have free time. No one is perfect in every subject – at least not since my friend Hermione attended Hogwarts, so do help each other. Befriend a Ravenclaw, that's always a good idea."
He waited for the laughter to die before continuing on the topic.
"Mix with the other Houses. We have several clubs that you can join. See your fellow students as persons in their own right, with their own strengths and weaknesses rather than House stereotypes. You may have heard stories how Slytherins were regarded a decade and more ago. We do not want to return to that situation. We have worked hard to achieve a sense of unity in this school and want to keep it that way."
"You will come into conflicts with other students, of that I have no doubt. Where so many people live together, conflicts are bound to arise. Most of the time you will be able to work them out yourselves. That is good – it strengthens your character and teaches you to work with people you do not necessarily like, just as you will have to later in life. Conflicts should not escalate and descend into vendettas. Again, I am your Head of House, and I am here to help you, so come to me or talk to the Prefects."
"On a final note: Bullying is not allowed, not ever. If someone bullies you, come to me immediately, no matter who it is. If I catch you bullying someone else, you are in a world of trouble, because that is one thing I will not stand for."
He smiled warmly at the children. "I'm sure you will do fine and become excellent witches and wizards. Now, off to bed with you. You'll have an exciting day tomorrow. Goodnight all."
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When Harry came up to the Headmaster's tower to report that his Slytherins were doing fine, he wasn't awfully surprised to find Albus in front of a mirror showing a sleeping dark haired boy.
"Spying on him already, Albus?" he asked, half amused and half irritated.
"He is perfectly aware of what I am doing," the Headmaster replied, "The cheeky little brat even waved at me before he went to sleep."
"You know, you will have to let him go sometime," Harry reminded the old man, "He's not even left the castle. He's no further away than when he sleeps over with us."
"I know," Dumbledore sighed, "but look at him! He's going to Hogwarts again – my little boy. What if I can't change things for him, Harry? I can't bear to see him go through all that misery again…"
Harry looked stunned. Rarely did the Headmaster even suggest that Severus was anything but his grandson, the son of his former Potions Master.
"I haven't spoken to Luna yet, but I am certain she will do anything to make him happy in his new House," Harry smiled at the peacefully sleeping face, "things will be different because the school is different, you are different, and over the years Severus has become different. Does he look anything like that first year that was Sorted into Slytherin so long ago?"
"No," the Headmaster admitted, "he looks nothing like him."
"And this time, he's had a family to love him. A little unorthodox family, perhaps, but that is not uncommon after the war. Many children were raised in families that didn't have the typical Mum, Dad, kids setting. An unfortunate result of the war…" he sighed.
"Do you remember, when Severus was very small, you would sometimes wrap him in a blanket and hold him?"
Dumbledore smiled softly.
In the first two or three years after Severus's de-aging, he had often thought of and missed his son, his sharp intellect and sarcastic wit. Even though he had the child with him, their relationship would be far different from the bond he had with Severus. At times, when such thoughts overwhelmed him, he would go to the child's room and take the baby from his cot.
Harry had caught him more than once, sitting in the rocking chair in Severus's room, with the child sleeping in his arms, wrapped warmly in a blanket. Often the little hand would reach up in his sleep to grab a fistful of beard.
He remembered the innocent features, the long dark lashes resting lightly on the cheeks, the dark fluffy hair that smelled of baby shampoo. He would rock the baby for hours sometimes, breathing in his scent and swearing that his future would be bright and happy. That he would not allow his child to be hurt that much again.
Once or twice he had sat like that until dawn. Severus generally woke up at least once to sigh deeply, recognize his granddad and nestle into the warm robes and beard, his face almost hidden against Dumbledore's chest.
Even when the boy grew older, he had sometimes cuddled the child close when something – a smell, a thought, or a passing remark – reminded him of the child he had lost. Often Severus had protested and squirmed away, but when he was just like this – sleepy and feeling safe, he had allowed and even enjoyed his place in his granddad's arms, being rocked and sang to.
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The next morning, Severus woke up, a bit confused about the familiar-yet-different surroundings. Then it hit him. He was a Hogwarts student now! Excited, he jumped out of bed. Even though he'd been at Hogwarts all his life, now he would really learn magic! Some forms of it seemed to come instinctively to him, but Granddad had told him it would be best to wait in training that until he was in school. He stretched lazily. Yesterday evening, Professor Lovegood had given them their time tables. Transfiguration was first with…Professor McGonagall, as he had to get used to calling her. Then Defense Against the Dark Arts with Professor Lupin and in the afternoon Potions. He wouldn't have a class with Uncle Harry until Wednesday, that was too bad.
"Morning," Nicholas when he walked into the Common Room a little later, "we're waiting for the Prefects to take us all down to breakfast. They did give us this handy little maps, but they said the first time can be a bit overwhelming, so they'd take us down."
But they soon discovered that the Prefects weren't even necessary. Professor Lovegood had come to the Common Room herself.
"Goodmorning," she nearly sang, "isn't it a lovely day to start your education? I remember my own first day…but of course that is long ago. If you get lost, don't hesitate to ask anyone. The portraits and ghosts are all used to giving lost students directions…oh dear me, where IS my wand?"
Severus snickered. Aunt Luna often stuck her wand behind her ear but tended to forget about it later on.
"It's behind your ear, Professor," Nicholas politely pointed out.
"Oh yes, of course it is. Now, you all have your timetables and your bags? Maps and instructions how to get to each classroom? Lets go then."
Severus, of course, knew the castle inside out, but he was glad Aunt Luna didn't call him on that. It was going to be awkward enough being the Headmaster's grandson without being considered a tour guide by his classmates.
"So, you're the Headmaster's grandson, aren't you?" a girl named Natasha wanted to know.
"Yes," Severus replied, "That's just going to be wonderful the first time I get detention."
Around him, the other first years grimaced in sympathy and the issue was dispensed with. Following their eccentric Head of House and the Prefects to breakfast, they wondered what this first day would bring.
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Late that afternoon, when classes were over with, the Heads of House met in the Headmaster's tower.
"How is everything so far?" the old man twinkled happily.
"Fine," Minerva McGonagall responded, "My Gryffindors are doing well, and the first transfiguration classes were suitably stunned by my Animagus form. The children all did well enough – though I am concerned about Severus."
"I agree," Luna nodded, "Remus and Hermione have said the same thing."
"What? Is anything wrong with him?" Harry and Albus both asked in unison.
"Not at all. In fact, he did very well – the only one to transfigure his match into a needle. He earned Ravenclaw ten points for that," Minerva replied, "but that is exactly what worries me. Severus has his adult magic, Albus. We've tried to teach him to control it over the years, but now that he will actively be using it, it's like a muscle that's been neglected – soon it will be trained again, and he will have access to that formidable strength he had twelve years ago. He is so excited about learning magic, I'm afraid that telling him to slow down is not an option."
"According to Hermione, he is an absolutely brilliant potions student. Of course he still has to consult the books for instructions, as he does not remember the brewing process, but the genius he had, the instinctive knowledge, that is not lost," Luna reported. "If we can direct his attention mostly to that, something that requires no wandwaving and can easily be disguised as talent, I see no problems right now."
She beamed happily. "My Ravenclaws are doing fine. As usual, the First Years need some time to get to know their way around the castle, but they've done well so far. The ghosts are most helpful."
Albus snickered. "Well, just tell Severus to help them and they'll be fine. He knows his way around."
Luna shook her head decidedly. "I most certainly will not."
Considering the matter closed, she leaned back and waited for the next point on the agenda. When it didn't come, she glanced around at the shocked faces.
"Oh! You want to know why."
"If you please, Miss Lovegood," the Headmaster said in exasperation.
"It is the Prefect's job to help the younger students get around," Luna said calmly, "Severus is a first year, with an advantage, that is true but a first year none the less. If he decides to help out his fellow students he is to be commended for it, but I will not lay it on him as a duty. His school years must be as close to normal as possible. It will be hard enough already with all of us around him. That is why I propose, Headmaster, that all disciplinary actions concerning Severus will come to me, as his Head of House. His godfather and his granddad should be kept out of that as much as possible to prevent any more confusion of roles than what is already taking place."
For one moment it seemed the others would all jump up in protest, but then Harry spoke up. "I agree."
He shrugged. "Luna usually knows what she's doing."