Severus lamented his unlucky stars that he was seated next to Quirinus Quirrell for the opening feast. The cowardly fool was insufferable. How was a wizard who was too scared of his own shadow to speak a full sentence without stuttering at all qualified to teach the next generation of students how to defend themselves against the next great threat? Severus would give the entire Prince vault to see the mewling coward come face to face with the Dark Lord.
The older students were filing into the great hall, and Severus entertained himself by playing up his sneers of disgust aimed at specific students, taking great joy whenever one jumped or flinched under his scrutiny.
One of the Weasley twins, so his unending annoyance, gave Severus a mock salute, and Severus made a mental note to take extra house points from the pair, and devise the most painfully boring detention possible, for their first infraction of the year. Merlin knew, he wouldn't have to wait long.
Severus was nervous about this year's sorting. He had decided to tell Albus that Potter had encountered the Malfoys in Diagon Alley, but he had not disclosed the extent or full nature of the interaction. Lucius Malfoy had been floo calling him almost every day to coordinate efforts in grooming Potter to the dark side, and Severus had not had the mental energy to fight with the headmaster over the best way to proceed. He was one wrong move from his cover being blown. Maintaining Malfoy's trust had to be his number one priority for the time being. Albus would understand. He hoped.
He had no doubt that everyone else at the head table fully expected Potter to prance into the hall and breeze into Gryffindor in record time. The anticipation from Minerva McGonagall and Hagrid had been palpable all day, and Albus' damned eyes had not stopped twinkling. If the brat got his way, and went Slytherin, as Severus was uncomfortably confident that he would, he was going to cause quite the uproar.
Finally, the first years began filing into the room.
Potter, the menace, smiled shyly and waved at Severus as they lined up in front of the staff table. Severus carefully kept his frown in place, as he received a few incredulous looks from teachers and students alike. Quirrell shifted nervously beside him. Severus took a measured sip of his regrettably non-alcoholic pumpkin juice.
The Sorting Hat launched into song, which Severus tuned out entirely, as usual. There were only so many variations of 'Welcome to Hogwarts, these are the Houses, please don't cry if you get stuck in Hufflepuff' that he could handle.
The sorting commenced, and Severus watched the backs of Potter and Malfoys' heads as the two stood closely together, and whispered quietly back and forth. If they thought they could get away with being so disrespectful and disruptive in his class, they had a rude awakening in store for them. He had promised Potter to treat him fairly, and he intended to keep his word. Slytherin favoritism would not be appreciated by Potter, he suspected, as it would be indistinguishable from Boy-Who-Lived favoritism, and he would not let the boy pick and choose when he wanted to play by the rules.
The little first years trickled to their respective tables as they were sorted, and Severus kept a critical eye on this year's Slytherin crop. Davis and Greengrass appeared to already be friends, as did the two lumbering oafs, Goyle and Crabbe. The Greengrass family had a history of academic excellence, but Severus grimaced at the prospect of having to drag the young Crabbe and Goyle through to graduation. Bulstrode was a bit of an outlier. She kept to herself, as she sat heavily at the Slytherin table, and neither of her parents stood out strongly in Severus' mind. He would have to be careful to ensure she did not fall through the cracks.
When Draco Malfoy's name was called, he adopted a juvenile version of his father's arrogant swagger as he walked up to the stool. The hat barely touched his posh little blonde head before it declared: SLYTHERIN!
Malfoy strode over to the Slytherin table as he was coming home, and slid in easily next to Davis. Goyle looked slighted at Malfoy's inattention, and Severus wondered if they were already friends, and if Draco had decided to ignore the large boy for a more profitable friendship in Potter. He desperately hoped that his house would not be fraught with interpersonal drama this early into term.
Nott and Parkinson joined Slytherin in short order, Nott sitting next to Goyle, with Parkinson sitting next to Malfoy, but with an empty space between them, clearly saved for Potter.
"POTTER, HARRY!" Minerva called loudly, and Potter shuffled to the stool serenaded by a cacophony of whispers. The entire hall seemed to hold its breath, as the hat slipped over his small head, and silence rang out.
The moment stretched out, and nervous tension rose in the room like a heavy fog. Severus was beginning to believe that the brat was drawing it out on purpose, when the sorting hat bellowed: SLYTHERIN!
Quirinus choked beside him, and Severus idly slapped the man on the back. Slytherin table erupted into applause, and shouts of "We got Potter!" "Way to go, Potter", while the rest of the hall remained stony still.
Severus began a slow clap, skirting the edge between polite and sarcastic, jolting the other Professors to join in, uncertainly.
Whispers broke out along the other three house tables, ranging from confused, to angry, to afraid.
Minerva cleared her throat and called the next name, but people hardly even noticed as the remaining students were sorted out. Everyone was staring at Potter, who was sitting between Malfoy and Parkinson, valiantly attempting to meld invisibly into Malfoy's side.
Severus chanced a glance at the headmaster. He was frowning deeply, his lips pinched, and his left hand stroking his beard as he stared at Potter as if attempting to read his mind.
Potter was too busy staring resolutely at his empty plate to give the headmaster anything remotely resembling eye contact, but Severus felt a nervous lurch in his gut, regardless.
He should not have added emphasis to Albus' concerns of resentment driving young wizards to the dark.
Severus had not even contemplated the possibility that Dumbledore might see the Boy-Who-Lived as a potential threat. The other students, sure, Hogwarts was nothing if not a top-tier rumor mill, but the headmaster, himself?
Suddenly, Potter's obvious friendship with the Malfoy heir, as well as his oozing ambition, took on a more sinister light. Severus could see what it must look like, without the proper context.
Potter's only saving grace was that he did not seem to have inherited his father's penchant for bullying. Cruel pranks that were dismissed as 'boys being boys' when draped in crimson and gold were often interpreted as malicious when shrouded in silver and green. Self-defense became retaliation. Seeking justice became revenge. Severus could only hope that Potter managed to keep his nose clean, and focused on his studies, to the exclusion of all else. Judging by the myriad of glares focused on Potter from the other tables, Gryffindor in particular, that did not seem likely.
Severus took another drink, and massaged his temples.
This did not bode well.