Chapter Five
Getting Everyone On Board
New House at Hogwarts! Name Undetermined!
Deputy Headmaster Hermione Weasley confirmed rumors that a fifth house of Hogwarts has been formed after the Sorting Hat, a school artifact which once belonged to Godric Gryffindor, unexpectedly Sorted students into five equal groups instead of four. Headmaster Severus Snape and his staff immediately made changes to adapt to the situation, and have secured a previously unused portion of the castle to be renovated into the new houserooms with temporary quarters already provided over the weekend. When queried about whether or not the Sorting Hat itself might have been broken in some way, Professor Weasley responded that, "The Sorting Hat was acting within the best interests of Hogwarts, and; "The truth of the matter is that Hogwarts has been needing additional houses for some time, and has been discussed on a regular basis due to increased population within the school, forcing us to add rooms to existing houses and hire more staff up until now. We believe that Gryffindor must have foreseen the necessity of adding more houses down the line, and therefore charmed the Hat to respond in such a way after reaching a certain capacity."
The Letter to the Editor page, it seemed, wasn't as kind.
I find it highly unlikely that something as unsophisticated as a hat charmed to sort students into the appropriate houses is capable of exhibiting so much independent thought that would be needed to determine when the right time to add another house is. It is more likely that the current headmaster manipulated said item to save himself the headache of presenting such a proposal to both the board and the alumni committee. If that is not the case, the Sorting Hat is probably defective in some way and should, for the safety of our students, be turned into the Artifacts Department to be analyzed by a team of professional Items Experts. ~ A Concerned Alumnus
"Unsophisticated? Defective?" Severus said out loud when he read it, then winced in pain at the last line, knowing that wouldn't go well at all when Jennifer saw it. Did they do that on purpose just to rile her up? And why exactly did they seem to be pushing for Artifacts to look at it in the first place, especially since Otto Delaney would certainly only confirm any thoughts Jennifer had on the matter. He pondered who the author might be, not to mention his true motive. Was it a concern? Was it an attempt to rile up the Traditionalists? Why did he get the strange suspicion there was more to it than that?
Severus heard movement in the nursery and quickly folded up the paper, wondering if he could distract Jennifer from the editorial or if he should even try. As he was still pondering it, Serendipity ran in dressed for daycare, followed closely behind by her mother.
"Good morning, Severus! Is that the newspaper in your lap?" Jennifer asked. "Did Ron's story get out about the new house?"
"Yes, so it did. Would you like a raisin scone, Serendipity?" Severus asked.
"Yes, please," Serendipity said.
"I take it there was something unfavorable on the Letter to the Editor page again," Jennifer said, squinting at how Severus was much more interested in helping Seren with her cream than he was talking about the newspaper.
"Whatever gave you that idea?" Severus asked.
"Because ever since the Oracle shut down, that's been where all the criticism has been. Why does Ron even publish all that nastiness anyway?" she scowled. Seeing she wasn't about to let it go, Severus sighed and reluctantly handed her the newspaper.
"Because as an honest newspaper man, he understands that it's important to show all political viewpoints whether he personally agrees with them or not," Severus pointed out. "Not to mention that if he stopped printing them, they'd probably try forming their own newspaper again... or worse, their own Wiztel station."
"Don't get me started on that Wiztel thing..." but then paused as she read the letter. "Unsophisticated? Defective? Professional Items Expert? Is that some way of saying I'm not a professional?" Jennifer steamed. Severus picked up Serendipity when he saw the girl's alarmed reaction to her mother going off the rails again. "I am the leading Items Expert in the whole damn country!"
"Jennifer, you're raising your voice again," Severus warned. Jennifer glanced at Serendipity and stomped to the back room so that she could scream at the mirror. "There now, Mummy's alright, finish your breakfast," he told her. They were both nearly done before Jennifer came back in again, calmer but still with a very irritated expression. "Let me take her downstairs, Jennifer. Why don't you finish breakfast? You don't have an early class, so you have time."
"True, but I need to set up the Items classroom for Items I," she said grumpily. Severus poured her a cup of coffee anyway before taking Serendipity down to the daycare room.
By the time he had gotten back, she had turned around in her chair and was staring at the Sorting Hat with a frown. It seemed quite dormant, but its wrinkles still looked very much as if it had a mouth and eyes despite being closed. There was a chiming noise coming from his desk that Jennifer seemed to be going out of her way to ignore.
"I see you've only managed one bite and half a cup... why are you looking at the Hat like that?"
"I was wondering if perhaps the person in the paper didn't have a point. Maybe it is defective somehow," Jennifer mused.
"One moment," Severus said, wondering what she was up to this time as he sat at the desk and picked up the School Mirror. "Yes? Good morning, Aurelius," Severus said, his eyes quickly towards Jennifer. "While I'm unwilling to do that directly, I shall certainly pass along your message. Have a good day," he added, setting the mirror down. "Aurelius wants me to tell you that whatever your plans are concerning the Sorting Hat, you should stop planning it, since it would jeopardize Quintin's Secret," he informed her.
"Yes, about that," Jennifer said, turning back around to find that her coffee was cold and she set it down again. "I find it odd that what happened at the Sorting Ceremony didn't seem to trouble Aurelius in any way."
"I'll admit that I noticed that myself," Severus replied.
"I think I want to look at the Sorting Hat later, Severus. Just to be safe... just to make sure it hasn't been tampered with," Jennifer said.
"Despite the warning?" Severus asked.
"Warning or not, considering the tone of that letter, someone is likely to show up at some point asking my opinion on whether the Sorting Hat is working right, and it wouldn't exactly be professional of me to respond if I haven't even looked it over yet, would it?" Jennifer reasoned. "Besides, Quintin is far from a child anymore, and he's going to need to learn how to protect himself from the likes of the Maxens, just as I have. If I accidentally reveal this secret of theirs, it isn't exactly the end of the world, is it?"
"We have no way of knowing," Severus said seriously, but then glanced at the Hat and back again. "Even so, you have made some very good points. Let us address both of the concerns. You may run some basic tests on the Sorting Hat to make certain it's working properly, and I will see about having Aurelius begin teaching him some regular blocking techniques. I have a board meeting this evening, so you'll need to have another spotter."
"That's no trouble, I'm sure Laura or Andrew can do it," Jennifer assured him, then grew thoughtful. "Do you suppose anyone is going to bring up that letter during the board meeting tonight?"
"I'd be more surprised if they didn't," Severus admitted, sitting down to look over his notes for the evening.
It had been difficult for some of the Traditionalists leaving the board to find replacements; the party had grown weaker and weaker over time, never recovering from the prominent members lost during Bagman's Retaliation, or from the Disappearance and presumed death of Amadeus Longbottom, his fortunes left to a Malfoy family who had long termed Reformist. Even when a party leader finally emerged, it was not without its problems; neither Worley, his sister, or her husband had ever attended Hogwarts, thus disqualifying them for the board position. Their father had no interest in interfering with such petty trivialities, too busy reestablishing his business interests and land holdings to reclaim his former title. Still, there were some families unaffiliated with either Bagman or Maxen that had managed to weather the political storm. That left three traditionalists left on the school board, Slytherin one and all; Horus Crumb, Theresa Meyers, and Janders Box, the latter being the most moderate of the three. Stella Hauk and Charlie Weasley were often in the middle; although Stella typically voted traditionalist and Charlie often voted reformist. But Severus knew he could count on them both to consider matters carefully no matter what the politics and make an honest decision. That left Eric, Tonks, Minerva, Norman Balmweed, Mandria Shea-Gaffney, and Angela Greisley, creating enough of a wall that most objections were in the details and compromises were negotiated without bloodshed.
There were, it seemed, a fair number of 'concerned parents' that seemed to be hovering just outside in the lobby, traditionalists one and all, but none of them seemed interested in approaching as Severus made his way in. They all gave him cool nods as if protesting the change simply by being there, knowing there was little they could do about it directly.
Severus stepped inside to find the board was already seated at the table, Horus specifically looking incredibly annoyed while Theresa stopped mid-sentence as if she had found it unappealing to continue whatever argument she was making.
"Good evening. I hope your week has been less hectic than mine," Severus said evenly. Eric looked amused.
"I highly doubt anyone can claim to have a week as hectic as yours, from what we've been hearing," Eric agreed. "Having students Sorted into a brand new house came as a shock to all of us."
"Yes, to me as well, although I had been considering it from some years... since we had to add extra rooms and sections to all of the houses, as a matter of fact," Severus replied. "I therefore take partial blame for not being ready for it, and allowing my school to get the point where that Sorting Hat's charm forced the issue. Professor Weasley has been trying to persuade me to add a house since the year before the first baby boom. And to be perfectly honest, I had been overwhelmed by the prospect since I knew how much that would entail."
"That's quite an admission," Charlie replied. "And I know that's something you don't normally do. But I can't help but be a bit worried about just how spontaneous this was. After all, no new houses have been added in well over a thousand years..."
"Then don't you think it's about time?" Severus interrupted. Charlie hesitated. "As large as the school has grown over the years, we've already had to make dozens of changes, including nearly doubling the number of staff. Because of those improvements, we've been able to insure that our students get a quality education within the classroom and keep class sizes down. But while we've added extensions and assistants to the four current houses, can we really say we're giving them the same quality experience outside of the classroom? I believe the Sorting Hat acted within the best interests of the students, and my staff wasted little time afterwards jumping in to make sure they were well taken care of. They added another dining table within minutes of their Sorting, and then used their different talents and expertise to put together rooms for them that are safe and comfortable."
"That's commendable and all, but I still don't understand why you didn't stop the ceremony when the Sorting Hat began malfunctioning," Horus Crumb said. "Why didn't you simply intervene when it stopped working and Sort them yourself into the appropriate houses, rather than let it continue to disrupt the Sorting Ceremony?"
"I do not believe the Sorting Hat was malfunctioning in any way. I believe the Sorting Hat was, as always, acting within the best interests of the school," Severus explained evenly.
"It is a magic item, nothing more," Horus reminded him. "It may be considered an Artifact because of school traditions, but it is still just an animated item doing a rudimentary job."
"Spoken like someone who has never handled that Hat, nor touched it other than wearing it mere seconds on the head," Severus replied. "I understand why there are some who have that opinion. I remember making similar remarks about both the gargoyles and paintings in the castle. But what I have come to understand is that all of the different Artifacts in Hogwarts, animated or otherwise, tend to become symbiotic with the castle. They are apart of the Ancient Magic that has been instilled within it from the beginning. Therefore, I firmly believe that the Sorting Hat acted in the best interests of Hogwarts," he said firmly. "However, since we're aware that some wizards outside of the castle without knowledge of that fact have expressed some concern, Professor Craw is planning to give the Sorting Hat a check-up to ease everyone's mind on the subject."
"Perhaps it might be prudent to have someone a bit more neutral look at it?" Horus suggested. "No offense meant, Professor, because I believe that Jennifer is a spectacular teacher, but there will be many who will immediately conjecture that her report may be biased."
"Then I will find them offensive instead, considering Jennifer has never done anything that would call into question her professional integrity," Severus said icily.
"How about we stop before this ends up turning into a wizard's duel?" Tonks quickly suggested.
"Yes, Tonks is right... Horus, regardless of the circumstances, now that the school has decided to accept the Hat's decision to start a new house, I think it's much too late to turn back now," Eric replied. "I understand that many of us would have liked a chance to debate a new house, or at the very least, prepare the budget so that the students and support staff are properly funded. I also believe it would be quite damaging at this point to reverse it, not that we technically have the authority to even do so," he informed them. "But for the sake of the public record, let's go ahead and vote our opinions. "All in favor?" he inquired, and eight hands went up. "All opposed?" he added, and four went up, with Charlie Weasley joining Crumb, Meyers, and Box for the dissent.
"Thus recorded, let's consider the matter closed, and start discussing what changes are going to need to make to the budget to accommodate this. Severus, I believe Anna Black mentioned something about a fundraising effort?"
When Severus got back to the castle, he went to Jennifer's sitting room to find her working on class material, recounting what had happened when he first got to the board meeting.
"So Charlie decided to vote against it?" Jennifer asked, a little surprised by that.
"I wonder if there isn't an echo of what happened with Hector and Lionel in that," Severus replied. "Charlie was never happy about the fact that his twin grandsons were Sorted into different houses."
"But Hector's been doing so well in Hufflepuff!" Jennifer protested.
"Yes, I agree," Severus replied. "But it would seem that as accepting as Weasleys are, they are no happier about children being out of Gryffindor as some of the other families are when it comes to their children being out of Slytherin... not that they would ever acknowledge that as a problem. I know certain families tend to run in certain houses... you'd be as shocked as anyone if ever a Morris, Glass, or Balmweed ended up in any other house but Ravenclaw."
"True, it would be a shock," Jennifer said with an amused smile. "But what matters is what is best for the child, regardless of what house they're in."
"Precisely," Severus agreed. "To be honest, I wasn't bothered by Charlie voting against it, really, especially since the board has no say in this. I'll admit Crumb got under my skin a time or two... once for suggesting we have someone unbiased check the Hat, and the other for implying that the Hat is nothing more than a charmed item."
"Isn't it in a way?" Jennifer asked herself. Severus frowned at her.
"Is the Rogue Painting just a charmed item to you?" He challenged her. "How about Sashassin the Gargoyle, or any of the other statues for that matter... when you get in a row with the Ravenclaw statue, does it seem like just a charmed item to you?"
"An incredibly annoying and frustrating one, but yes, in that case," Jennifer said. Severus gazed at her. "I'll admit that you're right that there are paintings here which are special to me, and not just that one... and yes, it's been proven time and again that the Rogue is capable of independent thought, not to mention some other paintings who I doubt are as asleep as they pretend to be."
"Yes, thanks for the hint, I've already guessed that one," Severus replied. "I suppose, in a way, the Hat is similar in that respect. Something in its enchantment must mimic its owner in some way. If it were nothing but a Sorting item, how is it that it can make those rhymes every year, and even use them to display defiance on occasion? And even if that can be explained... how could a simple Sorting object play peek-a-boo or tell stories to our children at night?" he asked, Jennifer laughing softly at that. "Not to mention all of those afternoons playing with Quintin, helping him with his adventures and even teaching him vocabulary and spelling and god knows what else? I'll readily admit that I don't know exactly how it works. All I know is that despite logic and reasoning, there is a part of me that believes it does have a soul of some kind, considering what I've witnessed when Quintin and the Hat are together." Jennifer watched his memories for a moment and then smiled softly when she picked up something else.
"Severus, if you miss him, why don't you invite him to lunch or something? Breakfast even," Jennifer suggested.
"One doesn't ask a Hat to lunch."
"Now you know perfectly well I meant Quintin, stop being silly," Jennifer chided him.
"How did he do today?" Severus inquired.
"Let's see... Arcadia said he seemed disengaged in her class, but I expect he was just bored. Rose said he seemed to enjoy Herbology, but there was some trouble when the Elf Willow decided to make its way over and peer in the windows to see how he was doing... she says Quintin rather reminds him of her when he started in school."
"Yes, alright," Severus said when he saw Jennifer's amused expression.
"That's it, really. They have their open period after lunch and they don't have last bell because they have Astronomy tonight, her early class," Jennifer said. "From what the paintings told me, he took some of his mates out to the tennis court to give them some lessons. I suppose they must have noticed it behind the greenhouses during Herbology and decided to go over there, although I gather from what Rus was thinking in Items that they're going to invite Quintin to the Owls. Rus thinks he's lonely."
"With that horde of students following him about and hanging on his every word? Impressing every student he meets and making friends with every one? How could he possibly be lonely?" Severus asked incredulously.
"Because he's just as much a Craw as he is a Snape, and he misses his family," Jennifer explained with a smile. Severus sighed at that.
"How can he miss us when we're in the same building?" Severus asked.
"How can you?" Jennifer asked knowingly. "Come now, Severus, he may have grown up here, but it's his first time dealing with our professional side, and it's our first time not having him next door."
"Technically speaking, that room is still next door, and it has a door connected to ours for emergencies," Severus added good measure. "Very well, I'll accept that it is going to take all of us some time to adjust to his being a Hogwarts student. Even Seren has been asking for him often enough, and Rasputin keeps wandering off to check on him. But let's give him more time to get used to all of these new experiences before we ask him up, since it's evident that we all need to adjust."
"Personally, I'm not sure it's a good idea to wait, Severus. I think it'll be worse for him if we let it go too long. He reminds me of me in a way. I never stopped missing my family when I was off at school," Jennifer admitted.
"And yet you managed perfectly well until Christmas just like everyone else."
"Thanksgiving actually," Jennifer said, and Severus stared at her stoically. "Yes, fine, that wasn't the point. I just hope that he doesn't get the impression that he still can't come to us just because we're treating him like every other student. I worry that he may think we're intentionally cutting him off for other reasons than giving him space."
"He hasn't even been a student here a full week, Jennifer. Give him some time to adjust," Severus said firmly.
"Yes, alright," Jennifer said with a sigh. "So did they approve the auction? You never said," Jennifer pointed out.
"Yes, we'll have it just before Christmas, when people are in a mood more likely to spend," Severus said, but Jennifer frowned at that.
"Maybe we should set a family budget for Christmas now while it's still salvageable," Jennifer suggested, remembering how much they spent the last time they had an auction.
"Do you think we'd actually stick to it?" Severus inquired.
"No, that's what worries me," Jennifer said. "Just promise me that you're not going to try to finance the new house single-handedly, Severus."
"Unlikely at best," Severus promised. Jennifer gazed at him like she didn't quite believe him.