Severus' Daughter: Year One
Chapter 18: Sortings and Feasts
Severus sat in his usual spot at the staff table in the Great Hall. His mother was going to be sat on one side of him, when she had finished sorting the first years, and between him and Filius was Regulus, who looked rather happy to be there, much to Albus' chagrin. But the Castle, thankfully, added another seat to the table for Regulus since he insisted on coming with Severus. Not that Severus minded, of course, he needed the man close, especially when he was in close proximity to his… to Albus… Dumbledore.
They were getting looks, from the staff and the students, who were clearly pondering why the strict potion's master had an unknown man next to him, who was happy to be there. But Severus couldn't bring himself to care as he sought comfort in the warmth of the body next to him and the hand that held his under the table. He was also busy trying to breathe, to remain calm rather than letting the anxiety, the pain, and everything else overwhelm him more than it was already doing so. Though he didn't seem to be having much luck.
Dumbledore seemed to be trying to get his attention from his spot two chairs away, but Severus kept his focus on the sea of students in front of him.
He couldn't talk to the man. It was hard enough being in the same room as him, without having to actually talk to him.
His hand shook as he reached for his goblet of deep red wine, and took a slow sip, allowing the alcohol to burn away some of the pain. And he took a deep breath of relief as his mother finally led the first years in and Albus' attention was brought to them, his grandfatherly act being plastered on as he smiled at them all. And Severus' lips twitched slightly as he saw his daughter making her way towards the stool, a boy he thought might be Neville Longbottom next to her, both smiling as they chattered away quietly.
"He had better not hurt her or I will pummel him to the ground," Regulus muttered dangerously, and Severus' lips twitched again at the words, his stomach bursting into flutters.
Rosalie smiled at him and his lips tugged up at the sides as he looked at her, her little wink hinting that maybe she had planned something, he just hoped it wasn't too much for him to handle.
The sorting started and he watched as the students were sorted into their Houses, waiting as patiently as he could for his daughter to be sorted.
"Evans, Rosalie," Minerva said and he sat forward slightly in anticipation as his little girl made her way to the stool and sat down.
Minerva placed the Hat on Rosie's head and they waited, his patience wearing thin the longer the sorting drew on.
"HUFFLEPUFF," the Sorting Hat said, and the Hall burst into cheers, the Hufflepuffs being the loudest, along with Pomona, Severus clapped also, smiling in relief as she jumped up and made her way over to the table.
Severus was amused as he saw Dumbledore's eyebrows crinkle in frustration. They did so even more as Neville Longbottom was also sorted into Hufflepuff.
Everyone was confused as Draco Malfoy smirked at being sorted into Hufflepuff himself, and made his way over to the cheering table, sitting opposite Rosalie and Neville and joining their conversation happily.
Rosalie winked at Severus again and he sighed in relief and amusement as he realised that was what she had planned. And he had to admit to himself it was genius. Hufflepuffs were always underestimated, he had thought. But they also tended to have the traits of all the Houses fairly equally, and they weren't afraid to use them, but because they valued loyalty and hard work more they were sorted there. It allowed them a lot of leeway as people would think them weak, or useless, or other such rubbish, but really they were smart, ambitious, and brave all rolled into one. For the most part anyway. And they would use those traits as they saw fit, being proud of all of them, rather than just the bits that fit into their House like the others tended to do.
Those three would now be underestimated, and would be able to fly under the radar of almost everyone, for the most part. They would be able to truly be themselves, and embrace all the parts of them that the other Houses wouldn't allow them to embrace. They would be able to use that to their advantage, too, against the Headmaster, the teachers, and the other students. And he was proud of them for coming up with it.
He saw Lee Jordan, and the Weasley twins, making their way over to the group of three, all beaming and congratulating them with hugs, smiles and laughs. And he thought it a weird bunch of friends, to be honest, especially the Weasleys and Draco, but he couldn't complain. They would all be loyal to each other, protect each other, teach each other, and help each other in any way they could. He knew it. Although he was a tad annoyed that all his daughter's friends were boys, but he was sure she would easily be able to become friends with her female housemates.
"If any of them hurt her, they will all be pummelled to the ground," Regulus muttered again, squeezing Severus' hand, and Severus smiled briefly.
"Indeed," Severus said.
Dumbledore seemed to be trying to stop himself from bursting out in anger as he watched the three Gryffindors happily sit and talk with the three new Hufflepuffs. Minerva chuckled as she took her seat.
The old man struggled through his welcoming speech, which amused the three of them greatly, and soon everyone was digging into their food. Severus kept an eye on Rosalie, and perhaps that was why, as she was looking at the teachers sitting at the staff table he saw her clutch her scar and grimace in pain as she glanced at Quirrell. She quickly looked away as her friends asked if she was okay, and the pain seemed to diminish rather quickly.
And yet there was still pain shooting through Severus' heart as he looked between his daughter and the DADA professor. The one who had come back from his year away from the school wearing a turban, carrying garlic with him, and terrified of vampires, and yet should not cause his baby's scar any pain.
"It's okay, Sev. We'll look into it, I promise," Regulus whispered to him calmly, though there was an edge of concern in it as he also looked between the teacher and Rosalie.
Severus just nodded, trying to forget everything again as he tried to eat something more substantial than what he had managed the last few weeks. Although it was quite the challenge.
It wasn't too long before the students were heading off to their dorms.
"Severus, my boy, would you care to join me in my office for a chat? You missed the staff meeting and I would like the opportunity to catch you up," Dumbledore said as calmly as he could manage.
"I also missed the staff meeting, Albus. Am I not invited?" Minerva said with a sneer on her face as she looked at him.
"Minerva, you have been teaching here a lot longer than Severus has, you know the drill by now, I should think," Dumbledore said.
"Severus has been teaching here for over a decade now, I should think he also knows the drill by now," she said sternly, "Now I suggest you leave my son alone. He doesn't want to speak to you, and he has the right not to do so. He knows what he's doing and if there is anything he needs to know, or needs help with, he can come to me or one of the other members of staff. You may be his employer, but so long as he does his job he doesn't need to speak to you," she said fiercely.
"Minerva, my dear, I am also his father, and I would like to speak to him,"
"Don't you 'my dear' me, Albus. Not after everything you've done. You leave my family alone or we will leave and never return, do you hear me? No person worthy of the title of 'father' would ever do any of the things you have done,"
The other staff members were watching on in shock and concern. Severus was shaking slightly as he stood from his spot and started making his way out of the Hall, Regulus walking next to him.
"Severus, please, we need to talk," Dumbledore said.
Severus took a deep, shaky breath and turned to face the man.
"I have nothing to say to you," Severus said, "If it were up to me I wouldn't be here right now, and neither would my daughter. But alas, it was far too late for us to switch schools. But if you try anything with her, or her friends, we will leave. I know what I'm doing. I don't need a recap of the same staff meeting we have before the start of every school year. I don't need to hear you complain about my daughter's House placement. I don't need to hear you complain about me bringing my partner with me because it might make the students uncomfortable to see that their professor has a personal life," he rolled his eyes, "I don't need any of it. I don't need you. I don't want you. I just want peace, and I want back all the things I missed because of you. I want to be as far away from you as possible, and I am sure that one day, somehow, I will be, and so will my family. So please, leave me alone," and then he was gone, storming through the Halls until he reached his quarters, and he stood in the centre of his living room unsure of what to do.
He didn't realise he was shaking until he felt Regulus' arms loop around him and pull him gently close. Severus leaned his head on the other man's shoulder, soaking up the warmth and comfort that was being offered as he breathed, trying to get a hold of his emotions and thoughts. And memories.
"We'll be okay, Sev, I promise. I will do whatever I can to make sure of it. I won't leave your side the whole time. And he can't do too much given how much he values his reputation. We all have portkeys to take us home in an emergency. And we are all smart enough to be able to find more evidence on things he has done, and come up with ways to bring him down, one day. We'll be okay. You'll be okay. And I am so very proud of you, my love," Regulus said softly, "I also really love how our Little Snake completely fucked things up for him,"
Severus chuckled, "Indeed,"
"I mean, her, Neville Longbottom, and Draco Malfoy in Hufflepuff of all places. Absolutely genius. I think she deserves a reward for the trouble she has caused the old coot," Regulus chuckled.
"Hm," Severus hummed, smiling slightly.
"We'll be okay, Sev," Regulus said, kissing Severus' hair gently, "No matter what it takes, all of us will be okay. I'll make sure of it. We'll figure everything out, together. And get through it all, together. Always,"
"Always," Severus whispered.
He just wished he could believe it.
Hiya, how are you all?
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and the surprises (I guess) within. Hufflepuff for the win for three, somewhat unexpected people. But hey, I am a Hufflepuff, and I feel like the best House needs some representation ;) So... what do you think is going to happen next? Where do you think this story is going? What are you thinking you will see? What are you hoping to see, even if it is just something small? I would love to know your thoughts.
Anywho, I posted an essay/petition where I (un)officially explain why I think I should be cast as my favourite character, Severus Snape, in the new HBO series, despite the fact that I am a woman. It would mean a lot if you went and read it, but no pressure. It isn't going to lead to anything, unless, by some miracle, it goes viral, but it was fun to write. It is on my AO3, Maraudering_Paige. Feel free to go and check it out.
Also, I am working on some Spotify playlists for my fanfics, so if you can think of any songs you think work with the stories as they are so far, or where you think they are going, or songs that give you the vibes you get from the stories, then please do let me know and I will give them a listen, then potentially add them to the playlists. If you would like to go and give them a listen as they are now then you can find me on Spotify under the name Maraudering_Paige. They aren't that long at the moment, but we are making progress and I will continue adding to them the more music I listen to and when I have the time to do so. But still, if you can think of any relevant songs then do let me know.
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I also now have a TikTok and an Instagram for my fanfic writing escapades. The username is maraudering_paige on both of them so feel free to follow me, and we shall see how often and what kinds of content I can post when I can. But it is another way for me to keep you all up to date if you don't have Facebook and such, and for me to spread the word about other things I am working on and things I want to do and such. So yeah, feel free to join me on those if you are able.
And finally, if you like poems, then I write them and I have started a where you can read 1 or more poems every month depending on how many I have the time to post. You also get access to information about my original books I am working on before anyone else. And you get your name listed in the acknowledgements section of any book I publish whilst you are a Patron. For £2.22 a month. If you would like to join me over there and read some rants I call poems, and get updates on original work, then you may. My username over there is Paige_Makepeace. No pressure, by the way, you certainly do not have to if you can't or don't want to. I understand. I just thought it would be a cool thing to try. Any money made from this will go towards helping me write and publish the original novels I am working on. Including the one I am hoping to publish first which is a slow-burn, witchy, bisexual/lesbian enemies to lovers book. You will also be able to read the first draft of the first chapter of my book, so, if you are interested in doing that then feel free to go and subscribe if you want to.
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Kind regards,
Paige xx