1973
“Legilimens.”
Hadrian tried to enter Severus’s mind but encountered a wall. He swiftly looked for a way in, not being so harsh as to hurt his son, but he wasn’t gentle either. The boy needed to be aware of what it felt like to have someone invade with the intention to hurt, even if they would be much worse than he was feeling when Hadrian did it. The young man had already taught him what it felt like to have someone try and slip in secretly by trying to enter his son’s mind without telling him over the past few weeks. Luckily, as expected, Severus was a natural Occlumens so he had been able to throw Hadrian out before he was able to get any information.
Suddenly, Hadrian found a weak area in Severus’s wall and was able to break in. He was assaulted by some of Severus’s memories – growing up with Hadrian; meeting Remus, Lily, and Regulus; getting bullied by Sirius and James; cooking with Hadrian; studying with his friends. However, it didn’t take Hadrian long to notice some memories were missing, such as any time talking Parseltongue with Sayah, before Severus left Cokesworth, and any memories since New Year’s. Had he not known Severus as well, Hadrian might not have noticed as quickly as he did.
The man pulled out of Severus’s head and blinked as he returned to his own mind. He smiled at his son, “That was great! The best you’ve done yet. Having a wall before the ‘shareable’ memories was very creative and misleading. If I was anyone else, I might not have noticed that you had hidden other memories.”
Severus smiled in triumph before frowning, “So you could tell that those weren’t everything?”
“Yes,” Hadrian nodded, “The blocks missing were too big. Not a single memory from before you were six is suspicious. Same with everything after New Year’s this year. While it may not be… comfortable, you need some of those memories in your ruse to be there for a better deception. I would have checked your defenses for the hidden memories, but you’ve blocked or thrown me out enough times before we began practicing deception that I know those will be more than formidable.”
“Does that mean…” Severus swallowed and hid behind his hair, “Will I not be able to hide Tobias?”
“Not completely,” Hadrian softly told him. As much as he wished Severus didn’t have bad memories like that, there was nothing he could do about them except just being there for his son, “I can help you hide the worst of it, Severus, but I need you to tell me why you are hiding them.”
His son bit his lip for a second before slowly clarifying, “I don’t want anyone who I haven’t given permission to, to know about what he did,” Severus looked up at him suddenly, “It’s not because I am ashamed like you are thinking. He is the worst part of my life and nobody has the right to those memories but me.”
Hadrian nodded, relieved. If Severus wasn’t ashamed, then his son had mostly accepted what his early childhood was like. That was much healthier and safer for the boy than just hiding them away. Even if Severus was still afraid of Tobias like Hadrian thought he might be, since Severus wasn’t ashamed, his past couldn’t be used against him.
“Alright. Then I would suggest putting any of the better memories of that time in your deception. Perhaps any good memories with your mother? Random things you did, even if alone, could work too, but if you have any memories of Tobias you are willing to share, that would be best. Same idea for the other blocks of missing time: only hide the most important or personal things,” Severus nodded his understanding and Hadrian smiled, “We can continue to practice to make sure your deception is believable, but other than that you have officially learned all that I can teach you. As I’ve told you before, you are a natural so if you keep practicing, you will soon have better shields than mine ever will be.”
His son tilted his head in consideration, “Does this mean you will tell me why you are after Dumbledore?”
The young man nodded and took a sip of the tea they had ordered earlier, glad he had thought to put a heating charm on it. He didn’t particularly want to involve Severus at all, but a promise was a promise. Bolstered with the comfort of tea, Hadrian took a breath and began to explain, “You know that Dumbledore defeated Grindelwald, correct?”
Severus nodded.
“What you don’t know is that before that, the two used to be in love. Before Grindelwald rose to power, but after he was expelled from Dumstrang, he and Dumbledore lived in the same town: Godric’s Hollow. Dumbledore was eighteen, Grindelwald sixteen, and they both had plans of grandeur. However, years earlier, Dumbledore’s sister, Ariana, had been hurt by some muggle boys when they saw her doing magic. This led to their father killing the boys and being sent to Azkaban and Ariana suppressing her magic, causing their mother to move them to Godric’s Hollow. The year Grindelwald and Dumbledore met, Ariana had an ‘episode’; she lost control of her suppressed magic, killing their mother. Dumbledore’s younger brother, Aberforth, was still in school at the time, but wanted to leave Hogwarts to take care of Ariana. He knew of Dumbledore’s plans of grandeur because, ever since he had met Grindelwald, Dumbledore had been ignoring his siblings, which is why Aberforth didn’t trust his brother to take care of his sister. Dumbledore refused to let Aberforth drop out of school, seeing it as his duty to take care of Ariana. At the same time Grindelwald became angry that Dumbledore was no longer planning to join him in their plans. This led to a confrontation between Aberforth, Grindelwald, and Dumbledore, and a duel between the three began. Somewhere while the duel was going, Ariana was killed by a stray spell. Grindelwald ran, while Aberforth blamed his brother, and Dumbledore also found himself to blame. So, Grindelwald began to build a power base by himself and Dumbledore began teaching Transfiguration at Hogwarts. During that time, though, Dumbledore never stopped loving Grindelwald. Eventually, as you know, Dumbledore was forced to fight Grindelwald, despite his feelings. The Headmaster was proclaimed a hero after defeating Grindelwald and locking him away, even as he mourned both Ariana and what he had to do to Grindelwald. Because of his defeat of a dark lord, Dumbledore was expected to lead the wizarding world. In his effort to prevent both what happened with Ariana and to keep another Dark Lord from rising, Dumbledore developed both a bias and a blindness: he judges those who seem to have an ambition to rival Grindelwald’s as dark, and refuses to believe that a family can’t resolve their ‘differences’… even if those differences are abuse.”
Hadrian closed his eyes as he remembered begging the Headmaster not to send him back to the Dursleys at the end of his first year. He remembered seeing Professor Snape doing the same when he was a boy in the memories the man had given him when he was dying from Nagini’s bite. He remembered the memory that Dumbledore never meant him to see during their lessons in sixth year of the look on Tom Riddle’s face when Armando Dippet denied the boy his escape from the orphanage after the man allowed himself to be convinced by Dumbledore that Riddle was exaggerating. He remembered all the times he saw Slytherins treated unfairly while in school, even if he hadn’t understood it at the time, and then like criminals outside of school. But most of all, he remembered the divide between the dark and the light after Voldemort was defeated in 1998, which was exasperated by the light’s use of Dumbledore’s ideals and biases against the dark. Hadrian took a shaky breath and tried to push the memories away. They were his driving force behind ousting Dumbledore, but they were just as painful to think about as they had been eight years ago when he first left his timeline. Hadrian swallowed and opened his eyes to look at his son once more.
Severus had a frown on his face, eyes filled with concern, but whatever the boy saw on his face seemed to stop him from asking the question Hadrian was sure his son was burning to ask. He was grateful it seemed his son was going to refrain, because he was not yet ready to tell Severus of his time traveling – of the sadness and horror he experienced when he was just older than his son’s age. One day he would, but it definitely wasn’t going to be today.
During Hadrian’s tale of Dumbledore’s past, Severus had been captivated. He had no idea that the Headmaster had such an interesting history outside of defeating Grindelwald. It was a slightly disturbing past, but still interesting.
At least he thought it was interesting until his dad revealed that it was due to his past that some students were favored more than others. In a strange sort of logic, Severus could even understand why Gryffindors were the man’s favorite – they were the most carefree house, considering Ravenclaw’s pursuit of knowledge and Hufflepuff’s ideal of hard work, either of which could lead to the ambition the old man feared (and of course Slytherin was literally the house of the ambitious, so there was no point even wondering why they were the least favored). It was made even worse when Hadrian said Dumbledore was willing to send kids back to abusive homes because of what happened with his sister. The thought made him sick. Severus probably would have been one of those kids had Hadrian never found him. He clenched his teeth as he wondered exactly how many of his fellow students are one of those kids. Severus could definitely understand his dad’s desire to oust Dumbledore.
While all of this was going through his head, Severus watched as his dad closed his eyes as a pained look came over his face. It confused him. Dumbledore’s actions are disturbing, but he couldn’t think of a reason for Hadrian to seem so personally affected by it. As far as he knew, his dad had never had direct contact with the Headmaster besides confronting the man in Severus’s first year, or perhaps during Wizengamot sessions. Unless… maybe his dad was abused when he was young?
Severus swallowed at the thought. Hadrian had never talked about his childhood. It would explain all the times, especially when he was younger and fresh from Cokesworth, that the man seemed to understand him in a way nobody else ever had been able to. If he was abused, Hadrian is one of the few adults who could truly understand. It also partially explained some – though not all – of his dad’s more paranoid habits.
Hadrian took a shaky breath, pulling Severus out of his thoughts. He watched the man come out of whatever memory or thoughts he had been stuck in and open his eyes. Severus had never wanted to ask if his conclusions were right so much, but he didn’t. The pained look on Hadrian’s face was gone, but he could still see it lingering in the man’s eyes. Maybe… maybe one day his dad would be able to share with him.
He internally nodded to himself as he moved his thoughts back to the issue at hand, “I want to help.”
His dad blinked in surprise before frowning. Severus quickly continued, not letting Hadrian say anything until he explained, “I would have been one of those kids that Dumbledore sent back had you not found me. Who knows how many others are in that situation because they weren’t lucky enough to have you stumble upon them. It’s not right what Dumbledore is doing. I want to help.”
Hadrian was still frowning as he considered what he had said. Obviously, his dad didn’t want him involved, but at least he was considering it.
“How do you propose to do so?”
“I can send you memories of Dumbledore’s favoritism, talk to some people at school and recruit them to do the same. All subtly, of course, so no one gets singled out by Dumbledore supporters. Regulus will agree to help, and he’ll be able to get some Slytherins to acquiesce that I won’t be able to, considering my blood status.”
His dad looked down, thinking for a second before slowly nodding and looking back up, “Alright. If you’re sure.”
“Yes,” Severus nodded in determination.
Amusement flashed across his dad’s eyes, but before he could react to it, his dad looked at him seriously, “Promise me you will keep me in the loop at all times. You inform me of who you recruit beforehand if possible, and you tell me if anybody gives you trouble. I don’t care if it’s a student, a professor, or even Dumbledore himself. You tell me.”
Severus swallowed, knowing he should tell his dad about Potter and Black. He pushed the thought away, not wanting to admit that he had been hiding it, “I promise.”
Hadrian relaxed, lips curling in a small smile before hugging him. The man whispered into his hair, “I am so proud of you.”
The boy smiled and hugged his dad back. He was proud of his dad too. Between the two of them, Severus was sure they’d be able get rid of Dumbledore in no time.
“All in favor?”
Hadrian watched as Dumbledore and a few of his followers raised their lighted wands.
“All against?”
The young man raised his wand with a majority of the Wizengamot and had to swallow a smirk. Dumbledore looked rather put out, glaring at him for a split second before quickly turning away.
“The proposal for a creature registry is dismissed. That concludes the August 1973 Wizengamot session.”
Hadrian remained in his seat, watching the members of the Wizengamot leave their seats and begin to mingle. He wasn’t sure exactly why the old man wanted the registry, but he obviously hadn’t been expecting Hadrian to turn it against him so easily. Hadrian had been surprised when Dumbledore had suggested the registry – he thought the man had nothing against creatures considering Remus Lupin was currently at Hogwarts. However, the Headmaster had proposed it and then tried to make it seem as if the registry would be beneficial. When Hadrian and those in the Wizengamot with hidden creature blood – he had seen enough nervous glances and fidgeting during the debate to know there were some who had mixed blood – could clearly see that if the registry passed, those with creature blood would be discriminated against, possibly even worse than werewolves were currently. He knew Dumbledore was smart enough to know that, which made him wonder about the man’s true views on creatures – perhaps he saw them in the same light as he saw those with ambition? But then why bring Remus into the school? Was it a part of a plan to seem like he isn’t anti-creature even while promoting registries? It was something to consider.
On the bright side, Hadrian would be able to report the attempt to pass a registry to the goblins in order to appease them. They were getting a bit impatient for him to make good on their deal when they destroyed the horcruxes, but this would convince them of his belief that ousting Dumbledore was important for creature equality.
The young man nodded slightly to himself as he finally rose from his seat to make his way over to Abraxas and Arcturus. He was surprised to be stopped by the leader of the neutral party, Avery Fawley*, “Lord Peverell.”
“Lord Fawley,” Hadrian shook the man’s hand in greeting, intrigued over why the man was seeking him out. He had met and talked to Fawley due to the other man’s status as leader of the neutral faction, but there was very little contact between them usually.
“You’ve stirred up quite the fuss with your actions against Dumbledore, you know.”
Hadrian smirked slightly, “Have I?”
Fawley snorted softly, obviously amused, “Indeed. It is because of your actions that the neutral faction has agreed to officially make you leader of the neutral faction next session.”
The twenty-seven-year-old blinked at the burnet in surprise, only just stopping himself from gaping at the other man. He had never had the intention to become a leader within the Wizengamot, not yet really thinking past ousting Dumbledore from Hogwarts and working for creature equality.
Seeming to sense his shock, Fawley broke the silence that had descended between them. “You’ve gained more support for this campaign of your then you realize. Outside of the light and the few exceptions within the neutral party, there are not many who care for Dumbledore; He has warped the light ideals, pushing many of us to a darker leaning neutrality similar to yourself. Though, until you, no one has had the determination to stand up to the defeater of Grindelwald. If you are willing to do that, many of us are curious to see what else you can do with the backing of the grey side. I just thought I’d give you a heads up before it is announced next month. Now, I must go. It’s been a pleasure.”
“Indeed,” Hadrian weakly replied before Fawley walked away. He watched the older man go, still in shock over this new development. Though unexpected, being leader of the grey side would be helpful in his mission. Once the idea had set in anyways.
“Hadrian.”
The young man blinked and turned to see Abraxas and Arcturus looking at him curiously. By the amusement in Arcturus’s eyes and concern in Abraxas’s, they must have been trying to get his attention longer than he realized.
Without needing to be prompted, Hadrian answered their silent question, “Apparently, as of next month, I will be the leader of the neutral faction.”
A slow smirk appeared on Abraxas’s face as Arcturus wordlessly passed a few galleons to the blonde. Hadrian narrowed his eyes at the two.
Seeing the look on his face, Abraxas’s smirk grew wider, “It’s about time they gave you the leadership. While Fawley has done well, the grey needed somebody a bit more outspoken.”
“You bet on whether they would make me head of the grey?”
“Considering you are the only one with the nerve to go against Dumbledore, it was only a question of when they promoted you to head of the neutral faction. I had my money on Fawley resisting his loss of power for a while,” Arcturus drawled.
Hadrian shook his head, lips twitching in amusement. He turned to trek out of the ministry and to the apparition point. The older men followed without missing a beat, “Are we still on for tea at yours, Arcturus?”
“Of course. Regulus is staying with me for the remainder of the summer so your welcome to invite Severus along after you change out of your Wizengamot robes.”
The young man nodded his head in agreement, knowing his son would be delighted to be able to see Regulus, despite having seen each other plenty of times this summer, usually with Regulus coming to visit them at the cottage.
Arcturus then turned to the blonde, “Abraxas, will Lucius be joining us?”
He listened to Abraxas’s reply but otherwise kept quiet, mind still on the implications of being a leader within the Wizengamot. With his position, he would be able to call on magic to judge the validity of Dumbledore residing in the Chief Warlock position. However, he would have to wait until the man was out of his spot as Headmaster because, until he was removed, Dumbledore had too much power and supporters for the call of judgement to be approved of by the Wizarding World. If the old man’s reputation remained intact after being ousting from Hogwarts, Hadrian would be able to use his new position to call on magic to judge Dumbledore’s validity to the position and it would be more accepted due to his recent removal as Headmaster of Hogwarts; if it didn’t, the minister would take over the position of Chief Warlock for a year before calling on magic to choose a new Chief Warlock. Once Dumbledore was no longer Chief Warlock, he would be left with a single seat from his family and his position as leader of the light, making Hadrian’s position of leader of the grey put them on equal footing. While not planned, Hadrian could see the benefits in becoming a leader of the neutral faction.
Hadrian nodded to himself as he said a quick goodbye to his friends and apparated home to pick up his son before going to Arcturus’s place for tea.
Severus was not surprised when his third year began much the same way as returning from winter hols for second year had. He joined Lily in the train compartment she saved with Regulus not far behind him. Not ten minutes after the train pulled out of the station, Potter and Black decided to barge in and throw around insults. They left a few minutes later after a threat from Lily, but before they made it to Hogwarts, the menaces were able to send a biting jinx at the book he had been reading, nearly causing him to lose a finger. As it was, once they got to Hogwarts, he had to go to the infirmary to have Madam Pomfrey repair his still-bleeding finger, who told him he was lucky a nerve wasn’t severed – which would have warranted a trip to St. Mungos – with the position of the bite. Despite Remus quickly sending counter-curses and trying to get Black and Potter to back off, their actions and attitude continued, even getting worse, for the next several months.
Strangely enough, Severus suspected the so-called ‘Marauders’ – as he found out they had dubbed themselves sometime in the last year and a half – were beginning to get on some of the professors’ nerves as well. When a professor was nearby during a prank, the resigned look they had adopted during the end of the previous school year was now one of clear frustration. He suspected that they wanted to punish Black and Potter but knew that any punishments would be lessened, so they had no choice but to let the attitude continue. Severus enjoyed watching them snap at Black and Potter a few times, even if all it did was confuse the menaces momentarily before they brushed it off and planned another prank.
Even more surprising was when he noticed that the professor most bothered by the pair of Gryffindors was the head of Gryffindor herself. Professor McGonagall looked ready to hex the two more often than not and bore an even more terrifying look of fury when she was looking at Dumbledore recently. Usually McGonagall was rather doting and a little lenient on her Gryffindors – though she was fair overall – and typically agreed with most of what the Headmaster said, save for a few instances. It made Severus wonder if it was his dad’s campaign – which was still being printed in the Prophet at least once a month, if not more – that has changed her attitude, or if it was something else.
Severus shook his head at himself. It seemed like wishful thinking, and with him in charge of recruiting and protecting students who were helping him and his dad remained protected, he didn’t have time to worry about what his professors were doing.
“Hey, Snivellus! Catch!”
The dark-haired boy whipped his head up to see what looked like a muggle rubber ball swiftly heading for him. Before he could dodge it, the ball smacked into his chest making the breath rush out of his lungs. The ball burned against his chest as it hit, locking his legs together which caused him to lose his balance before he could worry about why the ball hitting him had burned.** His head struck the ground hard and Severus momentarily worried he would lose consciousness as his vision began to blur. Luckily, his vision cleared up after a moment. He vaguely heard someone yelling and he groaned and moved to sit up as the loud noise caused his head to pound. The area where the ball had burned throbbed at the movement. Severus winced and looked down at his chest while carefully prodding the back of his head where he a bump was already forming. The robes covering his chest was burned through, revealing the white button up sans tie he wore underneath; he would be unsurprised if his chest was in a similar state as his robes despite whatever spell that had been on the ball not touching him long enough to burn through his shirt.
“Are you alright, Mr. Peverell?”
Severus looked up to see the professor he had just been thinking about, looking at him with a mix of frustration and concern. Behind her, he could see Remus glaring at Black and Potter as he forcefully pushed the two into McGonagall’s office a little ways down the hall. A part of him internally smirked in vindication, knowing the type of lecture they’d be getting from their head of house; McGonagall’s lectures were notorious among the student body and nobody wanted to be subjected to one – not even Dumbledore if rumors of him fleeing the woman’s office were to be believed.
The bigger part of him outwardly sighed tiredly, resigned to the treatment and the lack of true punishment, as he pulled his gaze away from his tormentors to stand from his spot on the floor, “I’m fine, Professor.”
Contrary to his statement, Severus swayed from dizziness. The Ravenclaw felt a strong grip on his shoulder keeping him from falling over. It took him a moment to realize that the surprisingly strong grip had come from McGonagall.
“You were saying?”
Severus blinked and looked up at his professor to see her raising an eyebrow at him. The expression reminded him of the one his dad gave him when he thought Severus was being particularly stubborn. The dark-haired boy swallowed at the look, knowing he wasn’t going to get away that easy.
“Come with me. I’ll escort you to Madam Pompfrey to make sure you don’t collapse while you avoid the hospital wing,” she told him curtly. Severus blushed slightly but didn’t respond considering the accuracy of her statement. When she was seemed sure he wouldn’t fall over, McGonagall removed her hand from his shoulder and led the way down the hall, “I am sure Mr. Lupin will make Misters Potter and Black wish I wasn’t so willing to let them stew for a bit.”
Severus’s lips twitched as he imagined Remus berating his friends like he has seen the other boy do before. While he, luckily, hadn’t been a witness to a McGonagall lecture, Severus was sure Remus’s lectures rivaled hers. The thirteen-year-old struggled not to laugh as he pictured Remus and McGonagall lecturing Black and Potter together.
“How long have the pranks been liable to cause injury, Mr. Peverell?”
The question pulled him out of his thoughts, causing him to look over at his professor to look at her consideringly. The scorn in her voice when she said the word ‘pranks’ was unexpected. While it had become clear that she was upset with the lack of punishment towards the two, Severus wouldn’t have anticipated the sneer towards the pranks themselves. It made him wonder what she would do if told her the truth, “They’ve always been cruel, but they’ve gotten worse with Dumbledore refusing to punish them.”
Severus watched as her expression darkened. Perhaps… perhaps the Deputy Headmistress was more on their side than Severus had ever given her credit for. It was with that in mind that, after a long silent walk through the castle, upon seeing the doors to the infirmary, Severus decided to explain Black and Potter’s bullying some, “Originally, they mostly targeted me because of my friendship with Lily and Remus. There are a few other things Remus thinks plays a role, but mostly the jealousy. Now, they are still jealous, but are even more vicious because of my dad’s campaign against Dumbledore. I think…”
The boy glanced over at her nervously before swallowing and continuing, “I think Dumbledore knows their reasons which is part of the reason he isn’t punishing them.”
The Transfiguration professor nodded but remained silent. Just outside of the infirmary doors, she turned to him, “Mr. Peverell, I would like to apologize for the Hogwarts staff’s inability to protect you from bullying. I assure you that the professors, especially your head of house, are doing their best to fix the issue. Thank you for trusting me.”
Severus nodded, slightly wincing at the movement, understanding that she was thanking him for the explanation. His professor accepted the silent response and led him into the infirmary and to an empty bed before fetching Poppy. He couldn’t help but wonder what the woman would do with the information he provided. A small spark of hope flared in him that the professors were more reliable than he had previously given them credit for.
Minerva McGonagall was a stern woman. Between her Scottish upbringing and growing up as the role model for her two younger brothers, it wasn’t hard to understand why she was similar to her father in that aspect. It was because of her stern nature that she was… unhappy with Albus Dumbledore’s actions. Or rather, inactions would be more correct.
Admittedly, she knew she had become a bit lenient with her Gryffindors within the last few years. After nineteen years of teaching, a bit of fondness for the students of her house was expected to slightly interfere her interactions with them. However, Minerva had not realized how lenient she had become until faced with pranksters James Potter and Sirius Black.
During a staff meeting just before boys’ first Hallowe’en at Hogwarts, Filius Flitwick had brought to her attention that the two had begun targeting a Ravenclaw boy, Severus Peverell, more than any other student. Ever the protector of his Claws, Filius confronted her about her lax punishments as both a colleague and friend. Concerned that she had begun to favor any students, Minerva paid close attention to her lions’ punishments, trying to correct her behavior, especially the punishments concerning actions taken against Mr. Peverell. It was then that she noticed the Headmaster’s own favoring of the Gryffindor students. Before she could point it out to the man, however, the students came back from winter break, and Albus started treating the students in a fairer manner. She had been unable to figured out where the change came from but was glad that she hadn’t needed to be the one to talk to the Headmaster about it.
For the following year, Minerva was delighted to see house unity encouraged as students were treated more fairly by her and the other professors than she could ever remember. But then, halfway through the previous school year, Hadrian Peverell began a campaign against Albus. He accused the Headmaster of biases against dark witches and wizards, perceiving them to be evil, without providing any evidence against them.*** Lord Peverell labeled Albus as untrustworthy because of the man’s prejudice against Slytherins and those with high ambition, leading the man to use his position as Headmaster and Chief Warlock to unfairly accuse wizards of being Dark. With the campaign against him, Albus stopped enforcing punishments against Gryffindor students, even going so far as to soften well-deserved punishments – especially those of James Potter and Sirius Black.
After being unable to prevent the Headmaster’s renewal of favoring her house, she had become increasingly angry with Albus’s inaction against the bullying by her lions, particularly towards Severus Peverell. She and the other professors, but especially Filius (who’s easy-going manner had become more serious than Minerva has ever seen him in the past twenty years, due to the situation most effecting one of his Claws), had become frustrated with their punishments being lessened and points being given back even though they were rightfully taken.
To make matters worse, at the end of Misters Potter, Black, and Peverell’s second year, the Headmaster had once again not allowed her to seek help for students who were revealed to being abused. That year it was a first year Gryffindor and a third year Hufflepuff. It was not the first time the man had argued that the abuse must be a “misunderstanding” since their families “must surely love them”. Minerva suspected that if Albus was continued to be Headmaster, they wouldn’t be the last either. When both students – now in second year and fourth year respectively – returned, she and Pomona Sprout**** ushered the two to Poppy as soon as the welcoming feast was over. She watched sadly as the matron repaired the two students broken bodies, promising them that she was doing everything she could as Deputy Headmistress to prevent them from being sent back.
It was with the anger at Albus’s refusal to accept the sad fact that abuse exists and they needed to protect the children revealed to have been abused, and the man’s favoritism of Gryffindor and doing nothing about the bullying two of her lions were committing, that made her furious when she once again found Misters Potter and Black sending a very dangerous ‘prank’ that Remus Lupin was unable to stop at one Severus Peverell. Minerva had just exited her office with the intent to have tea with Filius when a shout drew her attention down the hall. She watched as Sirius Black threw a rubber ball Mr. Peverell, who had only noticed the other boys and so was unable to dodge the object flying at him, causing him to cry out in pain and fall backwards, head hitting the ground with a loud thud. Minerva had quickly made her way over, interrupting Mr. Lupin’s angry tirade, sending him to escort the other two boys to her office while she moved to check on the Ravenclaw who was already sitting up from his position. She saw the burned hole in the boy’s robes and the wince when the dark-haired boy prodded at the back of his head and became extremely concerned when the Mr. Peverell’s only outward reaction was a tired sigh and dismissal of his injuries. Between the reaction and the boy’s swaying upon standing, Minerva insisted on escorting him to Poppy. When the boy admitted that the cruelty was largely due to Albus’s inactions, anger filled her. She had not truly understood how bad her lions had become and this prank was the first she had caught them injuring another student, and not just humiliating them or destroying homework or other possessions. Those were serious, of course, but injuring someone was unacceptable. And the way Mr. Peverell made it sound, this wasn’t the first time he was injured either. She clenched her teeth and glared at the stone wall at the end of the hall in an effort to keep her anger from showing too much on her face. She suspected that she wasn’t very successful.
Minerva did everything she could to keep her anger at bay for the rest of the walk to the hospital wing, resulting in a silent walk between the two of them. When the doors to hospital were visible, the usually quiet boy walking next to her surprised her by breaking the silence to tell her that one of the reasons to their bullying was because of his father’s campaign. The jealousy she expected, but in an effort to support the Headmaster? It made her even more furious, especially with Mr. Peverell’s admission of suspecting the old man to know about the reason for the increase in bullying. She was unable to do more than nod in response, the realization making her even more determined to help protect her students from bullies both in and outside of the school. In fact, it was looking more and more like they needed to be protected from Albus Dumbledore himself. Minerva swallowed at the implication while thanking the Ravenclaw, more determined than ever to get the protection her students – not just her Gryffindors – needed. Even if that meant removing Dumbledore. But first, she had a few lions waiting in her office that needed to be set straight.
Hadrian was sitting at a desk in the library in the cottage, contemplating his next move against Dumbledore when an owl tapped at the window. He absentmindedly let the bird in, mind still half-considering his next steps. One little push, and Hadrian knew he would be able to have the Headmaster out of Hogwarts, even if he remained in his position within the Wizengamot and the ICW. Between the evidence Severus had sent him showing the man’s favoring of Gryffindor house above all others, and gaining the support of witches and wizards Dumbledore had previously labeled as Dark, he could almost taste the victory of ousting the old man from his position in Hogwarts.
At the same time, there were not quite enough people – both in and out of the Wizengamot – who were convinced that a little bias was a good reason for ousting the Headmaster. None of them truly understood how detrimental the biases were to their world.
Hadrian drew himself out of his thoughts when his visitor gently pecked at his fingers. His lips twitched in amusement before he stroked the bird’s feathers. That was when he realized that the owl was a Hogwarts owl. Hadrian frowned and removed the letter from the bird and murmured a thank you. He passed over a slice of cold toast that he had not finished when he got distracted by paperwork and thoughts of Dumbledore earlier. The owl hooted after eating the piece and took off out the window as Hadrian examined the penmanship. He vaguely recognized the writing but couldn’t place it. It wasn’t Severus’s and he was fairly sure it wasn’t Dumbledore’s either.
Suspicious as to who in Hogwarts would be sending him mail, Hadrian cast a few detection charms before opening the letter when they came back clear.
Lord Hadrian Peverell,
In my experience, a letter from me is often concerning to parents, so I will start off by informing you that your son is fine. Young Mr. Peverell is doing excellent in his classes, as expected by his previous two years at Hogwarts.
Now that any concern has been eased, I move on to the purpose of my letter. I write not to discuss your son, but to inquire about a meeting between the two of us. Recent events have opened my eyes to a few truths, some of which I believe will be interesting to you considering what has been published in the Prophet recently. I assure you that I have no desire to convince you out of your recent campaign as many might believe I would. Quite the opposite in fact. It is because of this that I request a confidential meeting at your convenience of time and place this weekend.
I eagerly await your reply,
Minerva McGonagall
Hadrian blinked and read the letter again. He had never suspected Minerva McGonagall might be an ally against Dumbledore, but the letter suggested otherwise. She had not only assured that she wasn’t attempting to sway him away from his campaign but had implied that she had information against the man. Between her request for a confidential meeting and her lack of signing her name as the Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts, it was clear that she had not informed the Headmaster of her intention to meet with him.
Unless of course the letter was a ruse to lure him into a trap. However, Hadrian doubted the Transfiguration professor would be willing to help Dumbledore with such a scheme – his position against Dumbledore or not – and her leaving the time and place up to him indicated that it was sincere. Afterall, it was nearly impossible to lay a trap unless you knew where the meeting would take place.
The young man pushed his paranoia away and read the letter one more time. The only way to find out if McGonagall was sincere in her offer to aid his campaign was to meet with her. Comforted by his knowledge of her stern but fair nature, Hadrian picked up a piece of parchment and a quill to send an agreement with a time and place to the unexpected missive.
The floo flared bright green before Minerva McGonagall stepped out gracefully. She wore immaculate dark green robes with her hair in a tight bun, reminiscent of Hadrian’s memory of his sorting. A small part of him relaxed at the familiar sight of his Transfiguration professor and head of house, even if she was clearly younger and had no memory of him. Hadrian hadn’t realized how comforting her presence had become, despite how close he had become with the woman in the wake of defeating Voldemort in his original timeline.
“Professor McGonagall,” Hadrian greeted her with a smile, “I hope your trip here went smoothly.”
The older woman nodded in greeting, “Lord Peverell. Thank you for agreeing to meet with me.”
“Of course. Please, sit down. I apologize for having to postpone our meeting slightly, but I had prior meetings planned with other lords. I know it is close to the end of term, so I hope my delay wasn’t too much trouble for you.”
“It was no issue,” she waved him off as she took a seat in the chair closest to the fireplace.
Hadrian took a seat on the couch close to the chair and served tea for the two of them. Once they both had a cup of tea in hand, he asked, “So what can I do for you, Professor?”
“From what I understand from the papers, you are against the Headmaster because of his bias,” the twenty-seven-year-old nodded at the not-quite-a-question as he took a sip of his tea. McGonagall tapped a finger against her teacup, almost as if fortifying her resolve, before continuing, “May I ask why?”
The man tilted his head in consideration, for a moment. He could see no reason as to deny the older woman, so he decided to tell her the truth, “Dumbledore’s biases are encouraging hatred within the Wizarding World. In a community as small as ours, we cannot afford to be divided by something as trivial as accusing one another of being evil, simply for differing in opinion. That is not to say that there are not bad witches and wizards, but if people are judged by the sorting of their house, their ambition, or even their magical inclinations, we will not survive. I simply wish to work to end those biases. As the Headmaster is one of the worst as far as prejudice goes, I hope to remove him from positions that will encourage his hatred within others.”
The professor considered him for a moment. Seeming to come to some sort of decision, she nodded, “I am not one for politics, Lord Peverell. I love to teach and will continue to do so for as long as I am able and have no intention to become involved within politics,” McGonagall looked down to glare at her tea, “That being said, I also fear the spread of the prejudice you speak of and have witnessed first-hand the irrational violence that ensues from it. I have had enough of watching Albus allow my lions to get away with far too much, leading to two in particular becoming bullies – two that I am sure you have heard plenty about from your son.”
“Indeed,” Hadrian agreed, wondering if something had happened between the two and his son recently. He hadn’t heard much about them past Severus’s usual complaints of their tossing insults, but the professor’s statement made him think that there was more to the situation than he was aware of. Hadrian pushed the thought aside for later consideration.
“Had it only been the Headmaster’s tendency to favor my house, I am sorry to say that I may not have approached you,” the older woman continued, “As it is, Albus’s actions are far more dire than a few biases, no matter how damaging they may be, and is the main reason for me to seek you out.”
Hadrian frowned slightly as he watched McGonagall tighten her grip on her teacup in anger. She brought her gaze back up to his, rage clear in her eyes. The man couldn’t help but be grateful that he was not the target of such anger. She slowly reached into her robes and pulled out a vial that Hadrian immediately recognized to be memories.
“In this vial, I have placed memories of not only Albus’s favoring my house by undermining the punishments rightfully given by other professors, leading to our inability to curb unacceptable behavior, but also of the man denying sanctuary to children who have been discovered to be abused.”
The dark-haired man’s eyes widened in shock. While he knew that abused students were not being helped, he never imagined that anybody would be able to prove it was because of Dumbledore. The professor continued talking despite the shock he knew was on his face.
“I would like for you to use these memories to get Albus out of the Headmaster’s seat, as I have become convinced that unless he is removed, students will continue to be sent back to dangerous environments. Can I trust you do this, Lord Peverell?”
“Yes,” Hadrian replied without hesitation.
McGonagall considered him for a moment, as she had earlier. Whatever she found on his face seemed to satisfy her as she carefully passed the vial of her memories over. Hadrian gently took the vial in hand. After staring at them for a moment, he tucked them away into his robes and looked up at the professor.
He swallowed and cleared his throat, “I do believe that you should call me Hadrian. Without your help I imagine I would need to work to ousting Dumbledore for another year at the least, and so I would be honored if you would address me as a friend.”
“Very well. You may call me Minerva.”
Hadrian smiled at the older woman. Excited that the end was within sight, he stood and moved to the cabinet that he hid his single bottle of Fire Whiskey. He pulled it out and poured a small drink for himself as well as McGonagall. The man walked back over to the woman, handing her one of the drinks. Hadrian raised his own, “To ousting Dumbledore and protecting the students.”
The professor’s lips twitched but she returned the cheer, clinking her glass with his, “To protecting the students.”
They both downed the small drink in celebration.
For the next week, Hadrian rushed around, getting everything ready for his (hopefully) final action against Dumbledore. He had watched the memories Minerva had given him, appalled by the number of students being sent back to their abusive homes. It was a far greater number than he expected. It was because of that, Hadrian had to be careful to set up a confidential meeting with the school board as well the Wizengamot in order to protect those students when the memories were revealed. It was the day before winter break began, so Hadrian was even more frantic to get the meeting planned; he didn’t want Dumbledore to be able to return to the Headmaster position following Yule. So focused on getting everything he needed together, he was startled by an owl.
Hadrian was shocked and a little concerned upon receiving a letter from Regulus Black. Over the past summer, the boy had visited Severus as much as he could, in an effort to escape his parents and brother. Hadrian didn’t really blame the boy, and neither did Arcturus when he learned of the frequency in which Hadrian and Severus saw Regulus. It had led to Arcturus offering his youngest grandson a place in his home at the end of the summer. However, as much as he got along with his son’s friend, Hadrian never imagined he would be exchanging letters with him.
So, with more than a little curiosity he read the contents of the unexpected letter. To say he was furious upon reading it would be an understatement.
Apparently, Dumbledore has been allowing his two little Gryffindors to get away with – no, encouraging them to bully Severus since January. For almost an entire year, James and Sirius have been attacking his son and they haven’t received a single detention! Ruining homework! Biting jinxes! Burning Curses! And those were only a few of the example of what has been occurring since Severus’s third year began, according to Regulus! Who knows what else the boy was leaving out! Or even what Severus has hidden from his friend!
That thought stopped Hadrian cold. Since the second half of his son’s second year, Severus has been bullied and he didn’t tell Hadrian. Why wouldn’t the boy talk to him about it? Especially since it seemed to be so much worse than the first time?
A small breeze coming from the open window fluttered the papers on his desk. Hadrian closed his eyes and swallowed, immediately realizing his son’s thought process. In retaliation to his attacks, Dumbledore allowed James and Sirius to get away with bullying because their main target has always been Severus. Perhaps the boys even told his son their reasoning for their actions when they taunted him. His son no doubt thought Hadrian would be unable to help due to the campaign against Dumbledore and decided to keep it from him.
Hadrian pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. He wished his son didn’t feel the need to hide it from him, even if Hadrian had truly not been able to do anything (which he highly doubted between his ability to go to the school board). At the very least, he could have charmed some jewelry for protection against the worst of the attacks – in fact, Hadrian was kicking himself for not having done so after the first bullying occurrence.
The young man took a deep breath and looked down at the paperwork still laid out in front of him. He glanced down at Regulus’s letter, still clutched in his hand, feeling determination fill him once more. He would not allow Dumbledore to slip out of facing the consequences of all of his actions. Hadrian added the letter into the pile of many others he would be using for evidence. The man then quickly penned a letter thanking Regulus and reassuring him that he would handle the situation. He also promised not to oust the boy to Severus, knowing Regulus only came to him in his worry for his friend.
After Dumbledore was ousted, Hadrian would be sure to confront Severus about not telling him about the bullying.
Severus carefully clutched at his nose, trying to prevent blood from getting on his clothes. He ignored Sayah’s concerned hissing from her spot hidden around his neck. She had slithered from his wrist to hide under his hair not long after he started bleeding. The boy was more occupied by the throbbing in his nose that was slowly beginning to give him a headache to listen to her concerned ranting.
As he opened the train compartment door that he could see his friends in, the three all looked up at him. Lily gasped and quickly stood up and gently pulled his hand away to take a look at his broken nose. She dabbed at the blood with a conjured handkerchief, causing him to wince. After a moment, Remus pulled her away so that he could sit down. Severus shook his head when Remus offered the handkerchief to him. The other boy frowned at him, but he just ignored it and pulled out his wand. Now that he wasn’t in danger of any dizziness from standing, Severus cast an Episkey on his bleeding nose, groaning at the feeling of his nose being fixed. Madam Pompfrey had taught him the spell when she offered a few lessons on basic healing after his multiple unfortunate returns to the hospital wing, and he was extremely glad for it. If she hadn’t, he would have had to deal with explaining how he broke his nose to his dad. Remus offered the handkerchief again, but this time Severus accepted it.
From behind the fabric, he could see Regulus frowning in concern at him, “What happened?”
“The menaces were saw me on my way back from the bathroom, caught me with a tripping jinx,” he sighed.
Lily and Remus both growled in response. If he wasn’t so tired of the treatment, Severus might have felt touched at their obvious anger at Black and Potter. As it was, he just held the handkerchief to his fixed-but-still-bleeding nose. He closed his eyes and let his head tilt back to lean against the wall behind him.
“This is unacceptable! You are bleeding! And it’s hardly the first time!”
~She’s right, hatchling! You should be angry they caused harm!~
“It’s not likely to change anytime soon so there is no point in getting angry,” Severus tiredly told the two females without opening his eyes.
“But Severus–”
“Just let it go, Lily.”
Outside of Sayah’s grumbling hisses, silence filled the compartment. He didn’t need to look to know that Lily opened her mouth to retort, but Remus stopped her. Severus knew his friends well enough to know the girl wouldn’t just let it go and the other Gryffindor wouldn’t want to push him. Regulus was probably still frowning at him, trying to decide the best response. Before anyone could say anything more, they felt the train beginning to slow, signaling their approaching arrival to the platform.
A few moments later, Severus felt his nose become stuffy, signaling that the bleeding had finally stopped. He pulled the handkerchief from his face, carefully he prodded at his nose, wincing at the soreness and the dull throb the action sent to his head, but was satisfied to feel that his Episkey had correctly fixed his nose. A gentle prod at his arm had Severus finally opening his eyes to look at the boy next to him. Regulus gently pulled his hand away and looked at his nose critically. Seeming satisfied that there was no lasting damage, the younger boy pulled out his wand and quietly cast a cleaning charm.
Having not expected the action, Severus blinked in surprise before softly saying, “Thank you.”
Regulus just nodded in response. They felt the train finally screech to a stop. Severus glanced out the window confirming that they had arrived at the platform. He felt a small amount of relief fill him. For the next few weeks, he would be bully free. As always, he knew he’d miss his friends for the small break, but at least he’d finally be able to relax for a bit.
“I have a feeling you won’t have to worry about those two for much longer, Severus,” Regulus told him, seeming to have picked up his mood.
Severus looked over at his friend at the same time Remus spoke up, “What makes you say that? Unless the professors start actually punishing James and Sirius, I don’t see either of them stopping no matter what any of us do.”
Regulus shrugged, “Just a feeling.”
Severus frowned. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Lily mirroring his reaction; Obviously she also thought their was more to the younger boy’s statement. She opened her mouth to question Regulus, but the boy beat them to it.
“Come on, our parents will be looking for us if we don’t get off soon.”
Deciding to let it go, Severus decided to follow the Slytherin out of the compartment. As they made their way off the train, he couldn’t help but remain tense, one hand on his wand. He fully expected Potter and Black to try and cast one more prank before they all de-boarded. However, when the small group made it off the train and no prank came, Severus lightened. Finally, temporary freedom from the two had arrived. Excitement began to fill him at the thought while he searched the crowd for his dad much like his friends.
Right as his eyes landed on the man, his friends saw their own parents. They all quickly said their goodbyes and parted ways for the holidays. Severus moved through the crowd and towards his dad, who was beaming at him; the boy couldn’t help a small snort at the way Hadrian wore his heart on his sleeve sometimes. When he got close, as he always did, the older man pulled him into a bear hug. After the awful term he had, Severus melted into the embrace; he had really missed his dad’s hugs.
When he finally pulled away, Hadrian was frowning at him in concern, “Are you okay, Sev?”
“I am now,” he truthfully replied.
His dad seemed both relieved and concerned at the response, but luckily let it go. He did leave an arm around Severus’s shoulders. The boy relished in the comfort, letting a small smile slip onto his face, unable to contain the excitement he felt at going home.