Fixing the Future

Only days after Hadrian turned twenty-eight, the event he had been dreading hit. Abraxas Malfoy contracted Dragon Pox. He hated that the first letter he ever received from Lucius was to inform him that his father was ill. He hated that he had to pretend to be hopeful of Abraxas’s recovery to the man’s wife and son. But most of all, he hated that he knew Abraxas wouldn’t live to see his thirty-ninth birthday.

Midway through August, only a week before he would need to go to Hogwarts, Abraxas left the land of the living.

The next few days were a blur of assisting Lucius and Acacia in any way he could, on top of preparing for the incoming school year. Although he had seen Lucius quite a few times while helping him and his mother, Hadrian was surprised when, the day before he and Severus were to leave for Hogwarts, the man flooed him and asked to step through. He quickly granted access and stepped out of the way.

Once Lucius was through and ashes spelled off, Hadrian greeted, “Lord Malfoy, what can I do for you?”

The blonde smiled, “Please, call me Lucius. I apologize for not granting you the courtesy the day we met, as I should have. You were my father’s closest friend and have done much for me and my mother these past few days.”

“Hadrian, then,” he lightly smiled in return, gesturing for them to sit in the nearby couches of the sitting room.

“Thank you,” Lucius told him sincerely as he sat down, “I came because my father left this for you. It felt wrong sending it with an owl, and I had wanted to apologize for my previous behavior in person, so I decided to hand-deliver it.”

The twenty-year-old held out an envelope to him. On the top, Hadrian recognized Abraxas’s writing. He swallowed and took it but refrained from opening it. Luckily, Lucius didn’t expect him to.

“Thank you.”

The blonde nodded. For some reason, not wanting the man to leave right away, Hadrian spoke up, “Lucius, I was wondering if the political alliance between our families would continue.”

Lucius surprisingly nodded without even considering. It confused him, since he knew Lucius didn’t necessarily see him in a good light. Abraxas had said the blonde had come to respect him due to his actions against Dumbledore, but Hadrian knew that didn’t always translate into liking someone. The twenty-eight-year-old shook the thoughts off and listened to what Lucius had to say.

“I intend to, yes. My views are nearly identical to my father’s and I agree with most of your views as I understand them. I also know it is because of our families’ alliance that different proposals you and my father have made have passed since the factions tend to follow their leader’s stance.”*

“I had hoped you would say that,” Hadrian smiled, and held out a hand, “In that case, I look forward to working with you.”

“Likewise,” The other man shook his hand with a bright smile, “Well, Mother told me you were leaving for Hogwarts tomorrow, so I don’t want to be in the way. Thank you for agreeing to meet with me.”

Hadrian nodded, “Of course. It was a pleasure.”

Lucius nodded and left through the floo. As soon as the younger man was gone, Hadrian pushed the confusion over Lucius’s behavior towards him and turned to the letter Abraxas left for him.

Hadrian,

If you are reading this, then I am dead. Hopefully sometime after I wrote this letter, in the limited time I have left, I was able to ask you whether or not you are a time-traveler as I suspect you are (I was suspicious when you showed up out of nowhere using the name Peverell, but I was sure when you found the Dark Lord’s diary and had the knowledge of how to destroy it). If I did not, I eagerly await to hear your story in the afterlife, my friend. I am sure it is an interesting one.

However, revealing my knowledge of your time-traveling (which I assure you I told no one) is not the only reason I leave you with this letter (though I enjoyed picturing the look on your face upon reading what I have written so far). I left this letter for Lucius to deliver to you (yes, I specifically asked him to, but I sincerely hope he did so in person rather than through owl) because I have a request to make of you. Well, it is more of a hope than a request.

My hope is for you and my son to get along. Should the two of you succeed at this, there is a vault in Gringotts that will open for you (give this letter to Sharptooth and magic will allow you inside if the time is right – Lucius knows nothing of this). I assure you it does not have gold as I know you need none, but something I hope you both will appreciate if events occur as I hope they do.

I know Lucius has not always been very gracious to you, but he is no longer the boy who denied you the same courtesy you showed towards him. He dislikes you less than you think, and I only ask that you to give him a second chance.

I patiently wait for you to join me for tea once more.

Your friend,

Abraxas

For the first half of the letter, Hadrian had shaken his head in amusement at his friend. It was just like him to be just dramatic enough to reveal through a letter after his death that he had knowledge that, by all rights, he should have taken to his grave. Abraxas had the oddest sense of humor at times.

The remaining part of the letter had made him frown in confusion. The older blonde would have known that Hadrian would continue to try and get along with Lucius simply because he was his son. So, what change did Abraxas see in Lucius that led to him not only openly requesting him to get along with the young blonde, but also leaving something for them at Gringotts should they become friends. It was extremely odd.

“Dad?”

Hadrian snapped out of his thoughts, realizing he had been frowning at the letter in confusion for who knows how long, and looked over to his son.

“Are you okay?”

He smiled at his son, “I’m fine, Sev. Just a little confused.”

Severus glanced at the letter, “What was confusing?”

“Abraxas left me a letter that had an odd request for something he knew I would do either way, as well as a vault in Gringotts should I do it.”

“Maybe he just wanted to make sure you knew it was important to him.”

Hadrian nodded and looked at the letter again, “Perhaps. I guess I won’t know unless I do what he says.”

He sighed, already missing his friend. Severus’s hand entered his field of vision and squeezed his own hand. Hadrian looked up at his son. The boy seemed unsure of his actions, but they were clearly aimed towards comfort. He smiled, appreciating his son’s attempt, “Thank you, Sev.”

Severus nodded, but only let go after he had squeezed his hand one more time before changing the subject, “So, do we have everything ready for Hogwarts?”

“I’m pretty sure that’s supposed to be my line,” Hadrian pointed out, leading to Severus rolling his eyes and replying. The man allowed his mind to drift from the sadness of losing his friend, knowing he’d see the man again one day.

The next day, with his and Severus’s things shrunken in his pocket, Hadrian apparated with his son to Hogwarts. He looked up at the castle and smiled at the unmistakable feeling of coming home. This was the first time he was truly seeing the castle in broad daylight since time-traveling – he had vaguely seen it when sneaking in for the diadem and again when taking Severus to dinner in Hogsmeade, but he had been too focused on other things to appreciate it. While it had been many years since he stayed within the castle walls, he would always think of it as his first home.

~Now can I hunt in the stone nest?~

Hadrian smirked at Sayah’s question, wondering how often the little snake asked Severus that.

The boy rolled his eyes and responded, ~No. I told you, it is too dangerous.~

Saya huffed in response as they began to make their way.

They walked to the front gates in companionable silence. As they got closer, they saw a figure was waiting for them by the gate. Hadrian smiled when he recognized who it was. Upon reaching the open gates of Hogwarts, he greeted, “It’s good to see you, Minerva.”

“Good afternoon, Professor,” Severus politely greeted.

“Good afternoon. It is good to see the both of you as well,” she replied with a small quirk of her lips, “Now if you’ll follow me, I can lead you to your quarters. Dinner is in a few hours at the usual time, and our first staff meeting will be just afterwards, Hadrian.”

Hadrian nodded and he and Severus followed her. Upon entering the castle, however, Minerva stopped. In front of her stood a few of the other professors, all of whom Hadrian was surprised to realize he recognized. It was an odd feeling, knowing that he would be teaching with his former teachers who had no memory of him. He pushed the odd feeling aside and smirked, “This is quite the welcome party.”

He glanced over to see Minerva was pursing her lips in disapproval at her colleagues.

“Don’t look at us like that, Minerva. Had you not been the one to greet him, you’d be standing right here with us,” Poppy Pompfrey spoke up.

“Perhaps, but I would not have grouped together like a pack of eager puppies.”

Filius Flitwick shrugged, “We are all interested in meeting him and hoped to see him try and break the curse.”

“I am guessing that whether I succeed is the subject of a bet, then?” Hadrian asked them in amusement. He laughed when Flitwick and Pompfrey unashamedly nodded while Pomona Sprout and Horace Slughorn began trying to stutter explanations.** Minerva only looked back at him coolly, though her lip did twitch to the beginnings of a smile.

“Well, I wouldn’t want to disappoint. Shall we get through introductions before heading towards Hogwarts’ ward stone?”

“How do you know Hogwarts has a ward stone? Aren’t most wards used without one?” Severus asked him, seeming to draw the other professors’ attention for the first time.

“With a building as layered in wards as this, the wards need a way to stay connected for a long period of time. Without it, the wards can fade unless consistently strengthened. Most ancestral homes for long-standing magic families use ward stones for that reason,” Hadrian told him. His son nodded in understanding but otherwise didn’t say anything. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Flitwick nodding in agreement at his answer.

Minerva took that as her cue and quickly introduced him to the other three heads of houses and the mediwitch, before leading them out of the entrance hall. Hadrian was surprised – and mildly amused – when she led him to the third-floor corridor and only a few doors down from where Fluffy had been placed during his third year. Once inside, Minerva murmured a small incantation and the ward stone was revealed.

Hadrian crouched down and carefully analyzed the stone by feeling the wards attached to it as he asked, “So, who bet in my favor?”

“Filius, and Pomona. Poppy, Horace and I are skeptical that you will understand the curse better than the Curse-Breakers who previously were hired,” He could hear the slight amusement in Minerva’s voice as she replied.

The young man glanced up at the two hopefuls and smirked, “Since I appreciate your faith in me, I will bring a few homemade treats to tomorrow’s staff meeting for the two of you.”

Before either of them could insist that he didn’t need to do that, Severus spoke up again, “You won’t be able to change his mind and, trust me, you will be glad for it.”

Hadrian smiled up at his son, who rolled his eyes slightly. He looked back down at the ward stone and sat down on the floor next to it. He crossed his legs to get comfortable before beginning to mutter a few spells to identify exactly what the curse was. After confirming it was contained to the DADA position and was done in Parseltongue, Hadrian set aside his wand, took a steadying deep breath, and closed his eyes. He reached out with his magic and focused on the magic he identified as the curse before beginning to speak a counter-curse in Parseltongue. Hadrian ignored the gasps of surprise he heard from the other people in the room and Sayah’s hiss of curiosity. He felt his magic begin to pull the curse out of the wards until, finally, it was removed and destroyed. The young man stopped chanting and let out a breath. He slowly opened his eyes, ignoring the slight spinning of exhaustion from removing such a strong curse, and saw all the adults staring at him in shock, and Severus looking at him excitedly.

“Did you do it?” the boy asked.

Hadrian smirked at his son, “Do you doubt me?”

Severus rolled his eyes at him again, “Of course not, but I’ve never seen you use Parselmagic before and I don’t think I understood everything you said. Why did you call the curse ‘intended harmful magic’ instead of just saying curse?”

~Nest-mate was being as direct as possible since magic was involved.~

“Because some wards can be considered harmful in some perspectives – like the anti-Apparition Jinx – but only the curse was made with intention to harm, so calling it that made it easier to distinguish which piece of magic to remove,” the young man agreed with Sayah, being careful not to reveal her presence in case the professors’ shock turned to fear.

“Does Parselmagic need spells like we do normally, or is it all regular speaking with magic directed through your words in Parsel?”

Hadrian had to consider that question for a second before slowly replying, “It does not need spells in the way you mean. It is mostly intent behind the words, but the words you use must be as exact as possible to what you mean, or unexpected consequences occur. There is a theory that says we could potentially cast spells with regular speech in any language, but it would take extreme manipulation of magic, and therefore a very focused mind. I am inclined to believe it because Parselmagic feels much like that. However, Parsel is a magical language, making it easier to cast magic with. That is largely why I didn’t need my wand while using it, though I am able to do more wandless magic than most.”

The young Ravenclaw nodded thoughtfully

~Silly hatchling. I told you Nest-Mate was powerful.~

Hadrian saw his son roll his eyes at Sayah, but before the boy could ask another question that he was sure his son had, Slughorn slightly fearfully asked, “You both speak Parseltongue? But how? Only descendants of Salazar Slytherin are said to be able to do so!”

~Silly humans,~ Sayah his amusedly, peaking her head out from Severus’s wrists. Slughorn flinched back at the sight of her, but Minerva and Pompfrey only looked wary. Hadrian was amused to see Sprout and Flitwick both look at her with curiosity.

Severus frowned at the snake, ~You are supposed to stay hidden.~

~Why? These humans already know you are a speaker.~

~Because one is still afraid, and two are unsure,~ Hadrian hissed to the snake before looking at Slughorn, “That rumor is extremely incorrect. Parsel is very common in India, and Asia has quite a few Parselmouths themselves. Both places, as well as many others, cherish the language. As for how we can, I believe the gift derives from the Three Brothers as well as Slytherin, who joined families with the descendant of Cadmus to make the Gaunts. My family is a descendant of Ignotus much like the Potters are, but because we didn’t have a direct connection to Slytherin as well as the Three Brothers, it is far less common in the Potters and Peverells as it was the Gaunts, before they started in-breeding for blood-purity.”

“It is rare in your family, yet young Mr. Peverell inherited it from you,” Flitwick said curiously as he scrutinized Severus, who was stroking a grumbling Sayah. After a second the half-goblin nodded, “The blood adoption would make it more likely since you essentially gave your son the magic in your blood.”

The young man smiled at the Charms professor, not surprised that the half-goblin could tell they had done a blood adoption, “I had come to the same conclusion.”

“May I ask why you’ve hidden your gift, Mr. Peverell?” Minerva asked his son curiously.

Severus shrugged slightly, “Fearful reactions like Professor Slughorn’s mostly. When Dad and I found out I could speak, he told me that it was better to hide it for now, since Parseltongue is feared because of Voldemort. When he didn’t hide the language he was using, I figured he trusted you all enough to reveal himself, so I could too. Sayah, my snake, came to the same conclusion.”

Minerva then turned to Hadrian with a raised eyebrow, who shrugged, “It might be useful knowledge later on, and I just have a feeling I can trust the four of you. Now, Severus, come over here and help your old man up.”

Severus rolled his eyes at him but moved closer while muttering, “You’re only twenty-eight.”

Hadrian chuckled. Pompfrey, however, became instantly alert at him asking Severus for help up, “Are you alright, Lord Peverell?”

“Please, call me Hadrian. That goes for all of you. And yes, I am fine. Using Parselmagic for something as complicated as curse-breaking is a bit wearing. This curse was strong, so I had to put a bit of extra magic in. It is why I did not stand right away, but a pot of tea and a snack will have me fixed up in time for dinner,” he smiled at her once he was standing. She looked to be holding herself back from fretting, but Severus remaining close by to make sure he didn’t fall seemed to appease her some. Hadrian smirked slightly at his son, who only rolled his eyes again.

Minerva finally spoke up, “So, you removed the curse then?”

Hadrian nodded with a smirk when Pompfrey, Slughorn, and Minerva passed a few galleons over to the Flitwick and Sprout, who split the winnings. Minerva continued as if the exchange hadn’t occurred.

“Very well, I will have a House Elf bring you the standard contract before the staff meeting then. Though it would have been nice to have not had to deal with the yearly change in Defense Professor for the past seven years,” she sniffed slightly.

The young man laughed at how miffed she seemed to be about having to deal with the curse that entire time. He could only imagine how the Minerva of his own time, who dealt with it for just over thirty years, would have reacted to him removing the curse had he thought to do so before time traveling.

Severus then seemed to run out of patience to ask his questions because he spoke up, “Why is Parselmagic more draining?”

The young man’s lips twitching in amusement at his son’s love of knowledge, “Since it is a magical language, it taps into our cores even without casting. As soon as speaking becomes Parselmagic, it uses that connection to draw magic for the spells, which makes Parselmagic stronger than regular spells, but also more draining for long incantations. It is why, as I know you’ve read, Parselmagic is so effective with healing: small incantations with much more power allows injuries to heal faster.”

Severus nodded and asked another question. He heard Sayah grumble a bit at the lack of attention when he did so. A quick glance at the other professors saw them looking just as silently amused as he felt, while also seeming to be fascinated by their exchange. He wondered if his son was usually quieter with them as Hadrian knew his son to be in large crowds. Flitwick, however seemed less fascinated by their dynamic, and more a mix of proud of the Ravenclaw and just as curious as Severus. He was unsurprised when, after he had answered Severus, it was the half-goblin who asked the next question while Minerva tried to usher them all out of the room. Ravenclaws, he thought fondly.

“Raspberry Chocolate Puffs, as promised, for betting in my favor,” Hadrian presented to Filius and Pomona before the second staff meeting started, “Severus was a bit jealous until I told him he was allowed to have one before I brought the rest to you.”

“Thank you, Hadrian,” Pomona told him with a smile, “It smells and looks delicious.”

He smiled and looked at Horace, Poppy, and Minerva, who looked a bit put out at having lost the chance to try the pastries, and the other professors who were watching the exchange curiously. Taking pity on them he said, “I will provide the rest of you with a chance to try something I put together, the next time I am in the mood to bake.”

Before any of them could respond, the Herbology professor gasped, drawing everybody’s attention. She was staring at the dessert with wide eyes, and Filius was humming in delight as he ate his. Pomona swallowed and exclaimed, “This is absolutely delightful!”

Hadrian smiled, “Thank you.”

“Your son was correct when he said we would be glad for it. Why did you become a professor when you can make this?” Filius spoke up, barely looking up from the pastry.

“Cooking is more of a hobby, though I prefer to only do so much of it. Besides, if I baked any more than I already do, my son would most likely resemble a beachball with his sweet tooth. It is only because, according to him, I have spoiled him with my baking, ruining all other desserts for him, that he doesn’t eat dessert every night while school is in session.”

“I can completely understand the sentiment,” Filius agreed, still not looking up from his pastry.

The new professor laughed. Minerva took that as her cue to begin the meeting after another quick glance at the two professors. Hadrian was amused when Filius never put his fork down, even going back for a second pastry; Pomona tried to resist eating her own during the meeting, but was unable to stop herself from taking bites when she wasn’t speaking. It wasn’t until the full staff meeting ended and the heads of houses and Minerva stayed behind for their own meeting, that she began eating her own pastry uninhibited once more. Hadrian didn’t even try to hide his amusement at their actions, even as he asked advice from his colleagues for the upcoming year.

Two days before the students were set to arrive, Hadrian requested to be aboard the train when it brough the students. Minerva had raised an eyebrow questioningly but had allowed it easily enough. Contrary to the knowing looks he had received from a few of the other professors, he didn’t volunteer because his son was in attendance and had requested to ride the train like normal. Severus was going into his fourth year and could take care of himself (he pushed aside the lingering thought that outside of ousting Dumbledore, he hadn’t done anything directly about the bullying Regulus wrote to him about, hoping that Severus had still said nothing about it because it had lessened). Hadrian wanted to be on the train because he wanted to meet the Gryffindor Prefects before they got to the school.

The next day he sent a note to the Head Boy and Head Girl to inform the Gryffindor prefects that he wanted to meet with them on the train, before they arrived at Hogwarts. When the day in question arrived, Hadrian apparated himself and his son to the Platform, told Severus that he would see him at Hogwarts, and then slipped into the same compartment that Slughorn had used for the Slug Club meeting during Hadrian’s sixth year, knowing it wouldn’t be used. He then opened a book and settled in to wait for the Gryffindor Prefects.

They were about halfway to Hogwarts when the students in question came in to join him in the much larger compartment. Hadrian closed his book and smiled a small smile in greeting at the six students and introduced himself, “Ah, finally. Please, sit. As I am sure you are all wondering, my name is Hadrian Peverell, and I am to be your new Defense Professor and Head of House. I am afraid you will all have to introduce yourselves and I haven’t yet had the chance to put faces to the names.”

The boy that looked to be a seventh year frowned, “Uh, not to be rude, sir, but isn’t there a curse on the DADA position? How will you be our Head of House if you will not be here the next year?”

“Simple. I removed the curse,” he smiled. He enjoyed watching the six all stare at him in a mix of confusion, disbelief, and awe. He raised an eyebrow at them, “Introductions?”

The students quickly complied. When the introductions were finished, the sixth-year girl asked, “But how did you remove the curse, professor?”

Hadrian smirked, “That is a story for another time. Just know that the Headmistress fully expects me to be returning as I intend to. Now, for the reason I had you come here. I would like you to spread word to your housemates that there will be a mandatory meeting fifteen minutes after dinner has ended. Any who choose not to show up will have detention with me, where I will be telling the same things I plan to tell the entire house, and then they will write lines on what I am going to say. That being said, the meeting is intended for me to introduce myself, make a few of my expectations clear, and open up any questions. I expect the six of you to round up the house for the meeting on time. For the four of you that are fifth and sixth years, I intend to do this same meeting at the beginning of every year, but it will only be first years that the meeting is mandatory for so I expect you and future prefects to just round the first years up for the meeting next year after explaining how the dorms work. This year’s will be the only one that is mandatory for all years and not just first years due to this being my first year teaching. Understood?”

The students nodded, “Yes, sir.”

“Very good, you are free to go.”

They all nodded again and shuffled out of the door. Hadrian returned to reading his book for the rest of the train ride.

Fifteen minutes after dinner had finished, Hadrian gave the password to the Fat Lady and entered the Gryffindor Common Room. As soon as he entered, the students stopped talking and looked at him curiously. Hadrian nodded approvingly at his prefects, who had gathered their house together for the meeting, students sitting scattered throughout the room. He walked to the fireplace and stood in front of it so that everyone would be able to see him clearly.

“As the Headmistress introduced me at the welcoming feast, my name is Hadrian Peverell and I am going to be both your new Defense professor and Head of House. However, do not mistake the word new for being incompetent. I may be younger than the rest of the staff, but I have more than a decade’s worth more knowledge than any of you, and, should you need to be, I will punish you as you deserve. I will not coddle or indulge any of you. You will not be favored because you are of my house, but instead held at a higher expectation because I expect you all to bring pride to the noble house of Gryffindor in both grades and attitude,” Hadrian paused to take a breath and, seeing that he had their attention, he continued, “As you all know, Gryffindor is the house for those with courage, bravery, and nerve, all of which are commendable traits to have. However, their true meaning is often misunderstood. Courage is standing up against those committing wrong-doings which is why it takes a great deal of courage to stand up to your enemies, but a great deal more to stand up to your friends***; Bravery doesn’t mean you go looking for trouble**** because it is not the absence of fear, but the actions taken in the face of it; Nerve is a measure of a person’s courage and bravery in a demanding situation, not a face of over-confidence. Take that to heart, and you can prove the rumors of Gryffindors being brash, reckless, and arrogant to rest. Show traits of true courage, bravery, and nerve, and you will remind the other houses of the often-forgotten trait of this house: chivalry.”

Hadrian paused again as he looked around the room. Some students were nodding, and others looked thoughtful. There were a few that looked unimpressed, but he at least still had their attention. He internally nodded to himself and finished his speech.

“Now, that all said, curfew for first through fourth years is 9:00, and fifth through seventh years is 10:00. This week I will be calling each of you in for a meeting with me before sending you to Madam Pompfrey for a health check-up. I will post my office hours on the first day of classes, but I maintain an open-door policy: if my door is open, you are welcome to come in. Outside of office hours, I will be in the common room after dinner on Tuesdays and Thursdays to help with homework – I only have a mastery in Defense but I do have NEWTS in Herbology, Potions, Charms, Transfiguration, Muggle Studies, Arithmancy and Ancient Runes, so, while I encourage you to ask your other professors questions if you have them, I can help in those subjects should you choose to ask me. Any questions?”

After a moment of silence, a seventh year rose her hand. Hadrian nodded to her and she asked, “Why do all of this, the meeting and check-up and stuff, when Professor McGonagall never did when she was our head of house?”

“Seriously, it’s not like we need to be parented, and especially not by you,” Sirius loudly sneered. Hadrian looked at the boy and saw him glaring defiantly. He wondered if the defiance was because of what he had said or because of who he was.

“On the contrary, Mr. Black, with manners you have just shown, it seems like you do. Five points for lack of respect,” Hadrian raised his eyebrow at the boy, who went a bit red but didn’t reply when James, who seemed to be avoiding looking him in the eye, elbowed his friend in the ribs. Hadrian filed the two boys’ reactions to him away and turned back to the girl, “To answer your question Ms….”

“Fox. Angelica Fox, sir.”

Hadrian nodded, “Ms. Fox. With all respect to Professor McGonagall, she and I have different approaches. She was a good head of house, however, in light of the Dumbledore situation, I believe a more hands-on approach will prevent what happened from occurring again. By coming to you to lay out not only expectations but times you are welcome to come to me, I hope to convey that all of you can count on me. Even if that means I must stand up against a powerful Headmaster, much like Professor McGonagall had to do against Dumbledore.”

Some whispering ensued but he ignored it in favor of a younger boy, looking to be a third year, who rose his hand. Hadrian indicated him and the boy spoke, “Henry Jackson, sir. Did Professor Dumbledore do all of those things the paper said he did?”

“Yes,” More whispering while Lily rose her hand, “Ms. Evans?”

“What about the curse on the DADA position?”

“I removed it,” Hadrian told them simply. When a bunch of hands shot up in the air, “Yes, that means I am planning to stay longer than a year, no, I will not tell you how I did it yet.”

All but one hand went down, “Yes, Mr. Lupin?”

“You said yet, Professor?”

Hadrian smiled, “I did. The magic needed to break the curse is very complicated, and without a basic understanding of curse-breaking, is very dangerous should one of you get it in your head to try it. I intend to open up a club for an introductory to curse-breaking for third years and above. Should you join the club, you will hear the story when I am satisfied you understand why curse-breaking is dangerous.”

Whispering filled the room once more, but this time with an excited undertone.

“Any more questions?” When no more hands rose, Hadrian nodded, “Very well. I will see you all at breakfast in the morning.”

The young man left the common room as the Gryffindors began excitedly talking between themselves.

Over the next month, Hadrian settled into his position as Defense Professor and Head of Gryffindor House. When classes began, Hadrian was pleased that his introductory speech was as captivating as Professor Snape’s introduction to potions had been, according to the way Severus excitedly praised him after class. Outside of classes, during the first week Hadrian met with each of his Gryffindors in order to get to know them, then sent them to Madam Pompfrey to be checked out. He was glad to hear that there was no evidence of abuse on any of them, though there was a first year who needed nutrient potions due to malnourishment from family poverty. However, a few weeks later, Hadrian noticed a few small signs on a student not in his house that indicated they were being abused and had immediately, but gently, confronted them. He was now leaving the infirmary after getting Poppy’s assessment of that student, more than ready for the weekend. After finding an abused student, he just wanted to relax. Luckily, since the previous week had been mainly practicals, Hadrian had few papers to grade, leaving him with some time to begin planning on how to work for Creature Equality in the Wizengamot. He hoped Severus would also find some time to visit him this weekend as well.

Hadrian snapped out of his thoughts when he heard a commotion. He frowned when he saw nothing down the hall or behind him. The professor quickly walked forward in order to check the intersecting hallway ahead of him, and stopped when he found exactly what he was hoping never to see: James Potter and Sirius Black were cornering his son, who appeared to be wandless. Hadrian snapped out of his shock and furiously cast Expelliarmus at the two boys when Sirius lifted his wand to cast. He easily caught both of their wands as well as Severus’s wand, which James had been holding. The Gryffindors quickly spun around, the furious looks on their face turning into wariness once they saw who they were looking at.

“Professor, he cast at us, so we defended ourselves. We had just gotten his wand off of him when you–”

“When I came and interrupted you from casting at an unarmed opponent?” Hadrian angrily interrupted James, who had been the one brave enough to speak up, “An opponent who is bleeding and bruised while neither one of you seem to have a scratch on you, despite supposedly having been ambushed?”

It was then that Sirius spoke up with a sneer, “Goes to show what kind of Gryffindor you are. You believe your son over the house you are supposed to be the head of.”

Hadrian glared at the boy and coldly replied, “This has nothing to do with houses or my relations to Mr. Peverell, Mr. Black. Only the conduct I am seeing between students. Whether or not it happened as Mr. Potter said, I caught you attempting to cast on an unarmed student. That in itself is worth a month’s detention and the removal of fifty points from you as the one who was about to cast, and the same from Mr. Potter for not stopping you. If Mr. Peverell did as you say, he will be punished with the same. However, since you do not believe I can be objective, let us make a trip to the Headmistress’s office, shall we?”

The young man harshly indicated for the three to start moving towards the Headmistress’s office. Severus leaned down with a wince and picked up his bag before doing as he said. James clenched his jaw and moved while Sirius hesitated angrily, looking ready to tell him off, before following his friend. Hadrian followed the group of boys silently, wands still in his hand. He kept an eye on the three to make sure none of them did anything stupid but couldn’t help continuously glancing at Severus. His son was favoring his left side, indicating the bruised eye wasn’t the only thing that had been injured. Hadrian swallowed his worry and his anger as best he could, knowing they would just get in the way of fairly punishing the three students in front of him.

It didn’t take long for them to reach Minerva’s office, where he coldly told the Gargoyle the password. The guardian leapt aside, and the boys walked through the entrance and up to Minerva’s door. Once there, Hadrian knocked and led the way inside when Minerva called for them to come in. The Headmistress looked at him curiously before her eyes landed on the three boys following him. She quickly took their appearance in and narrowed her eyes at the visible injury on Severus before turning back to him.

Hadrian answered the silent question, “Headmistress, upon leaving Madam Pompfrey to return to my quarters, I found Misters Potter and Black cornering Mr. Peverell. Peverell was injured, and his wand was in Potter’s possession, when Black moved to cast on Peverell. I disarmed them, when Potter claimed Peverell had ambushed them. I questioned why they were going to cast on an unarmed opponent when Black accused me of favoring my son. I thought it prudent to bring them to see you in face of the accusation.”

Minerva nodded and turned to James, “Is what you told Professor Peverell true, Mr. Potter?”

“Yes, ma’am,” James quickly agreed, standing completely still. Hadrian narrowed his eyes at the boy while the Headmistress turned to Sirius.

“Mr. Black?”

“It’s exactly as James was trying to explain, Professor. We were only defending ourselves from him,” Sirius said, glaring at Severus.

The older woman finally turned to a blank-faced Severus, “Care to tell me your side, Mr. Peverell?”

Without looking away from Minerva, the Ravenclaw spoke up for the first time since Hadrian had found the boys, “I was on my way to my dad’s quarters from the library when Black came around a corner and surprised me–”

“That’s not true!” Sirius instantly defended himself.

“Mr. Black, you will be quiet, or I will have Professor Peverell put a silencing charm on you,” the Headmistress harshly spoke. Sirius shut up with a look of shock on his face. “Continue, Mr. Peverell.”

Severus easily did so, “Black came around a corner and surprised me with a punch to the face, causing me to slam hard into the corridor wall. Before I could do more than pull my wand, Potter cast Expelliarmus, taking my wand, and Flipendo, slamming me into the wall once more. They began insulting me, to which I responded with my own insults, angering them. Professor Peverell showed up and disarmed them just as Black lifted his wand to cast something at me.”

Minerva looked between the three boys in consideration for a minute before looking at Hadrian again, “You have their wands I presume?”

The young man nodded and passed them over to the Headmistress. She took them and cast Prior Incantato on each one. When she was done, she looked up at the three boys again, anger clear in her eyes.

“Mr. Potter, Mr. Black, twenty points each for lying to a professor. The last spells cast on Mr. Peverell’s wand is an an ink drying charm, which could not have been an attack. Meanwhile, Mr. Potter’s wand showed an Expelliarmus and Flipendo, and though Mr. Black’s wand had nothing useful, I can see the darkening bruises on his hand,” both Gryffindors opened their mouths to respond, but Minerva glared at them, quelling any outbursts. She then turned to Hadrian once more, “Just from what you had seen, what did you plan to punish them with?”

“A month’s detention and fifty points each.”

Minerva nodded and turned back to the James and Sirius, “A month’s detention and fifty points each for bullying another student, and another month’s detention and fifty points each for conspiring to attack an unarmed student. I am very disappointed in the both of you,” while the two spluttered in disbelief (obviously neither expected their former head of house to be so strict), she turned to Severus, “While I understand why you did it, I cannot condone it. Ten points for insulting other students.”

Severus nodded but otherwise didn’t respond.

“You are all dismissed.”

Hadrian watched as James and Sirius storm out of the office and couldn’t help but feel disappointed that this was who he was related to. While he knew they were still boys, the Professor hadn’t realized exactly how spoiled and mean the two were until now. It made him wonder, for what felt like the millionth time, how his mother ended up with James. Hadrian internally shook his head, knowing that thinking about it further was pointless.

“Severus,” he called out to his son, who had turned to leave the office at a much slower pace. The boy stopped at the door, only turning back enough to show he was listening, “I’ll meet you in my quarters.”

The Ravenclaw nodded and left the office. Hadrian sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, “Please tell me that’s the worst shape you’ve ever seen my son.”

“Do you want the truth?”

He clenched his jaw slightly before looking at Minerva and nodding. She shook her head sadly, “From what I have seen, he has looked worse, but I also don’t exactly know the extent of the bullying. Poppy knows more.”

Hadrian clenched his jaw again and nodded in understanding, “I better not leave my son waiting too long.”

As he turned to leave, Minerva’s words stopped him, “Severus will be okay, Hadrian. Between you being here and Dumbledore no longer preventing punishment, he will be okay.”

He nodded, “Thank you, Minerva.”

Hadrian then turned and left, making his way to his quarters. From the beginning, he had hoped that the bullying would not be as severe as it had been for Professor Snape since his Severus didn’t dress poorly from poverty, wasn’t sorted into Slytherin, and didn’t have the hooked nose and greasy hair. Watching Severus’s memories in his son’s first year hadn’t dashed the hope, and neither had Regulus’s letter over what was occurring, but seeing the bullying himself easily did so. As far as he could tell, it was just as bad, if not worse than in his original timeline. The only thing that Hadrian could think that would make this worse would be Snape’s worst memory.

The Defense Professor paused at the thought, realizing the memory could still happen, as well as Moony nearly killing Severus. He would need to start practicing with his Animagus form***** again – it had been years since he used it last – so that he would hopefully be able to better protect his son from the two worst events of Professor Snape’s life.

Resolved that he would do everything he could to minimize the bullying, Hadrian continued on his way to see his son.

When Severus saw his dad disarm his attackers, he couldn’t decide if he was more relieved or anxious. He was, of course, relieved because Potter and Black were unable to cast anything else for the moment. However, a part of him was also relieved that he no longer had to tell his dad that he had been hiding the bullying for the past year and a half. He was anxious for the same reason, though: he no longer had to tell his dad that he had been hiding the bullying, but now had to explain why he waited for Hadrian to witness it. Not wanting to face the conflicting emotions in front of Potter and Black, Severus shoved the feeling aside, and focused on his surroundings. He watched his dad get angry when the menaces accused him of favoritism, blankly walked to the Headmistress’s office, ignored Potter and Black’s lies, told Professor McGonagall the truth, listened to the bullies splutter in disbelief, and easily accepted the minor point loss for using insults. It wasn’t until his dad addressed him directly for the first time since the Gryffindors were caught did the conflicting feelings rise up again. Severus did his best to ignore them and quickly made his way to his dad’s quarters. When he made it inside, the boy moved to where he knew the bruise paste his dad made was hidden, letting the anxious relief rush through him.

Would his dad be angry he lied? Hurt that he kept it a secret? Now that he knew, would Hadrian be able to help keep the bullies at bay? Or would he only be able to clean up the aftermath, like he was doing today?

Severus sighed and grabbed the medicine off the shelf. He brought it with him to the couch and sat down, ignoring the pain in his side that flared at the movement and stared at the jar. He was already exhausted of dealing with Potter and Black, even though it had barely been a week. Hopefully, his dad’s presence and McGonagall’s punishments would make the pranks die down like they had for the end of first year and the beginning of second. Severus smiled slightly, imagining a school year with no pranks.

He removed his shirt before unscrewing the lid of the jar. He then scooped the paste onto his fingers and carefully began spreading the paste where he could feel the bruises. He winced at the twinges that twisting to reach caused him. Severus jumped when he heard the front door shut, hissing in pain as his side throbbed even worse at the movement. His dad then appeared in his line of sight, frown on his face. The man took the jar from his hands and sat next to him on the couch. He easily took over the movements without a word, allowing Severus’s side a respite from his position. They sat in silence and Severus felt the anxiety of the situation rise up again.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”

Hadrian nodded without looking up, “Regulus sent me a letter just before the Yule Break that I ousted Dumbledore. He told me about the bullying and Dumbledore preventing punishments. I thought getting rid of him would allow the professors to punish them while I tried to get the man’s trial to be as fair as possible.”

Severus frowned, realizing that was why the younger boy had acted odd when he had realized he needed to tell his dad about the bullying on the train home for the summer.

“He was just looking out for you. He was worried.”

The Ravenclaw nodded, “I know. I’m not mad at him. I would have done the same if our places reversed.”

Silence fell over them again. After a minute, Hadrian removed his hand and inspected Severus’s side. The man nodded approvingly before looking up and positioning Severus’s face with a gentle hand on his chin. Hadrian scooped out some more paste and gently began applying it to Severus’s black eye. He flinched slightly when his dad’s fingers first touched, but relaxed when he registered how gentle the touch was.

“Will you tell me what stopped you from telling me?”

Severus swallowed but admitted, “I didn’t want you to blame yourself since they started after you began trying to oust Dumbledore. And I didn’t think you would be able to do anything while he was in power still.”

“And after Dumbledore was gone?”

The boy shrugged, “I didn’t know how after keeping it from you.”

His dad nodded as he finished up with the medicine. Once he was done, he pulled the slick finger away, but not the one on his chin, and looked into his eyes. Severus swallowed again.

“Sev, if something like this happens again, I want you to tell me, whether or not you think I will be able to fix it. It’s my job to worry about you and try to do everything I can to protect you. Okay? As for blaming myself, you let me worry about stuff like that.”

“Do you blame yourself?” The Ravenclaw frowned. When Hadrian removed his hand but otherwise didn’t reply right away, he continued, “Dumbledore is the one who chose to look the other way and I know that. It’s not your fault. But do you blame yourself?”

Hadrian evaded the question, “I’m sorry I didn’t do more to stop it before, Severus.”

He shook his head, “No, I should have told you. If I had, maybe I wouldn’t be all bruised. It’s not your fault.”

“It’s not your fault either, Sev,” His dad smiled lightly, “Let’s say we blame Dumbledore and the two Gryffindors. Agreed?”

Severus smiled and nodded, feeling much more relieved now that he wasn’t hiding anything from his dad.

Lucius Malfoy was a proud man. He was not only a strong wizard, but also a pure-blood. He was a Malfoy.

However, he was not too proud to admit that he had not always been a good man. He had flaunted his lineage and power because he believed that that was all it took to be a good man. He disregarded non-purebloods and blood-traitors simply because he believed himself to be superior. He had snubbed neutrals because he believed they were cowards for not picking a side.

In essence, he disparaged people like Hadrian Peverell. Hadrian Peverell, who had near equal power to that of a Malfoy. Hadrian Peverell, who expertly sidestepped answering the question of whether he was a half-blood or a pure-blood. Hadrian Peverell, who proudly claimed to be part of the neutral faction – to the point that he actually led the grey. Hadrian Peverell, who blood adopted a half-blood for a son. Hadrian Peverell, who was a friend of his father’s, and a better man than he.

Lucius was not too proud to admit that it had taken much more than it should have for him to realize that.

He had slighted the first known Peverell since Iolanthe Peverell married into the Potter family (and his father’s friend no less), joined a Dark Lord who turned out to be both weak (by being mysteriously defeated) and a mad man (like his father warned him, though he didn’t realize until he felt the soul magic in the diary), and offended (disobeyed) his father countless times since Hadrian Peverell showed up before he realized that it was not Lord Peverell who was in the wrong.

It wasn’t until the very same Hadrian Peverell began a campaign against the magically, politically, and socially powerful Albus Dumbledore. In one fell swoop, the older man had not only gained the respect of the grey, most of the dark, and the more respectable members of the light, but also of Lucius himself. Without realizing it, Hadrian Peverell began to break every notion Lucius had of what it meant to be a good man (being the proud man that he is, Lucius hadn’t realized that is what had occurred until his father questioned his sudden shift in attitude towards Hadrian).

After that, Lucius paid much closer attention to Hadrian Peverell. By the time his father had contracted Dragon Pox, he was entranced by the other man. Hadrian was as charming and refined as any pureblood, but more genuine than any person Lucius had ever met. When the lord began helping him and his mother due to his father’s sickness, Lucius realized that it was with more than just admiration that he looked at Hadrian (which he suspected his father knew by the knowing looks, even on his death bed). It was because of his developing feelings, that Lucius couldn’t resist delivering his father’s letter to Hadrian in person (and finally apologizing for his appalling behavior when he was still a boy in action, if not age) after the man passed. It was because of those same feelings that he now found himself unable to look away from Hadrian as the lord presented the newest proposal for Creature Equality.

“… according to records from the DMLE, attacks by werewolves, vampires, and other so-called dark creatures have risen since the restrictions of these creatures has been placed. If we remove these restrictions–”

“As admirable as your desire for Creature Equality is,” Dumbledore interrupted Hadrian, “these restrictions cannot simply be removed. As there is with witches and wizards, there are both good and bad creatures. Those restrictions are there in response to monsters like Fenrir Greyback.”

“Which is why I intended to suggest that we remove these restrictions upon making a treaty with each different species of creature,” Hadrian coolly returned, without missing a beat, “While it could use some improvement, the Ministry has a working treaty with the Goblins, allowing peace between our two races. More treaties like that would allow both creatures and wizard kind to flourish–”

“And what of–”

“I am curious, Dumbledore,” Lucius spoke up, tired of the old man’s interruptions, “is it because you do not want wizard kind to flourish or you are against creatures that you keep interrupting Lord Peverell?”

Whispers spread through the Wizengamot at his insertion. Lucius ignored the glare from Dumbledore and looked over to Hadrian. The man almost imperceptibly smiled at him, causing Lucius’s heart to skip a beat. The older man looked away and continued with what he had been saying. The blonde swallowed down the thrill he felt at gaining such little attention from Hadrian. He internally sighed at how ridiculous he felt, even as he hoped to be able to gain much more attention from the man in the future. He was hopeless.

“Oh! I almost forgot!”

Madam Pince immediately shushed Lily, and, right as Severus looked up from his parchment, he saw the girl was blushing in embarrassment at her exclamation. He smirked in amusement and glanced over to see Remus and Regulus looking just as amused.

Remus asked, “What could have possibly caused you to shout in excitement in a library?”

“Shut up,” Lily told him. Severus laughed quietly causing the girl to smack his arm lightly. Regulus snorted at them.

The red head huffed but drew their attention back to what she recalled, “Anyways, I just remembered that my parents told me I can invite you guys over for Christmas. Yule break is only a month away, afterall.”

Panic immediately filled Severus like it had in Flourish and Blotts during the summer. Once again, Lily was asking him to visit Cokeworth, and he didn’t have a ready excuse to say no. This time was worse because there was nothing to improvise with like he had with his dad breaking the curse. What was he going to say? He wasn’t ready to share the truth, even to his best friends. Severus had long since buried his past – as much as Hadrian let him anyways – and he didn’t want to dig it up quite yet. The only option he could think of was to lie. He didn’t want to lie to them, but it was the only thing he could think to do. But what would his lie be? It had to be reasonable enough that Regulus, who almost always could tell when he was lying, didn’t catch him.

~Hatchling? Are you alright?~

Severus blinked upon hearing Sayah’s concern, and immediately reached over to his other wrist and stroked her scales to tell her he was fine.

He refocused on his friends just in time to hear Remus say, “I’ll have to ask my parents, but I don’t see either of them having an issue.”

“I don’t think I will be able to come. You know my parents aren’t the most tolerant,” Regulus grimaced.

Lily and Remus both nodded in understanding. The red head turned to him and asked, “What about you, Severus?”

“My dad was talking about taking a trip this Christmas. I think he said we would be coming back New Year’s Day, so I won’t be able to make it.”

Lily nodded, “Cool! Where are you going?”

Severus shrugged, hoping he looked casual, “I don’t know. He won’t tell me.”

Remus and Lily nodded in understanding and switched topics. Regulus had narrowed his eyes and was looking at him suspiciously, so Severus tried not to fidget. After a minute, the younger boy finally looked away and joined Remus and Lily’s conversation. The Ravenclaw felt relief fill him and allowed himself to join his friends’ conversation. He would need to go tell his dad about his fib so that he didn’t give Severus away. Hopefully, Hadrian would be willing to cover for him.

Hadrian looked up from his desk in surprise when his door was slammed open and a nervous Severus stood in his doorway. He could hear Sayah hissing soothingly from her position on Severus’s wrists, but his son didn’t seem to be listening to her. The man frowned and set his quill down as his son closed his office door.

Before he could ask what was wrong, the boy was speaking, “Lily invited me, Regulus, and Remus to celebrate Christmas and New Year’s at her house. I panicked and told her I couldn’t because you said we were going to travel but wouldn’t tell me where.”

The professor blinked at the rush of information, processing what Severus had just said. It seemed his son had panicked and lied to his friends about why he wouldn’t go to Cokeworth.

“Well–”

“I’m sorry, I just didn’t have a valid reason for saying no like last time and I didn’t want to say you wouldn’t let me go, so I said the first thing that popped into my head,” Severus interrupted him, swallowing nervously.

“Severus, it’s okay.”

The boy frowned, “You’re not mad at me for lying or–”

Hadrian shook his head before his son could list any other reason, “I know you only did it because you are afraid of telling your friends and of seeing Tobias. It’s okay to be afraid.”

Severus visibly relaxed at his words.

“As for what you told your friends,” Hadrian saw the boy tense up again, “It seems we are going to have to take a trip.”

The Ravenclaw blinked at him in surprise, “You’d… We… What?”

Hadrian laughed softly at his son’s speechlessness, “I can’t make my son into a liar, now can I? Besides, we don’t have plans for Yule this year, so we can travel for the entire break.”

“We aren’t going to the Malfoy Yule Ball?”

The professor shook his head again, “You know Lucius hasn’t always looked at me favorably.”

Severus frowned at him, “But I thought you said you’ve been slowly getting along since you ousted Dumbledore.”

“We have been, but Abraxas was always the one to invite us. Now that he is gone…” Hadrian shrugged. His son only frowned more so he changed the subject, “So, I was thinking we could go to France.”

The boy scrutinized him for a second before letting the subject change, “You just want to see if the French Abraxas taught you was genuine or if he was pranking you like he threatened.”

“Partly, yes,” Hadrian smiled, remembering his friend. Severus laughed at him, making the young man smile more. While he hoped Severus would tell at least Lily why he wouldn’t go to Cokeworth so that this wouldn’t happen again (this was the second time in less than six months after all), Hadrian knew he had to let the boy decide that on his own. Hopefully, his son would choose to tell Lily and his friends before they figured out that Severus was avoiding visiting Lily’s home. Hadrian shook the thought away and focused on what his son, who was now speaking excitedly of the places they could go in France.