The Severus Snape Saga-Book 1, the Sordid Hat

Chapter 2: Antics in the Alley

Two weeks later. Severus, Antonin, Bellatrix, Rodolphus and Augustus were strolling down the sidewalk in London following the Dolohovs and Snapes, who had agreed to take all the children. The weather was cool and breezy but sunny at the same time. It was just the kind of day when the sun tickled your back and the wind stopped you from laughing. In short, heaven.

Severus and Antonin were busily discussing Quidditch and debating about whether Puddlemere United or the Wimbourne Wasps were better. Bellatrix was busily snuggling up to Rodolphus, who was trying to convince Augustus that owl dung couldn't be used in potions.

"I'm telling you, Rodolphus, the only reason it isn't considered a viable potions ingredient is because nobody's USED it ye-!" protested Augustus, but Rodolphus cut him off.

"Do you know WHY nobody ever uses it?" asked Rodolphus. "Because Uric the Oddball used it in one of his experimental potions and started squawking like a Fwooper when he drank the potion, which was supposed to give him a good voice!"

"Rodolphus is right, Augustus," simpered Bellatrix, and then she added "He's ALWAYS right!"

"He is not!" snapped Augustus indignantly. "Just because you FANCY him, Bella, it's no reason to make him out to be a God!"

"I do NOT fancy Rodolphus!" hissed Bellatrix, though she had blushed furiously.

"If I had a sickle for every time you said that I'd be a millionaire," said Severus, flashing Bellatrix with a smug grin. She stuck out her tongue at him.

"Well, here we are." Severus heard the parents saying. He looked in the direction they were pointing and saw a damp, beaten up pub called the Leaky Cauldron. This was the entrance to Diagon Alley? It certainly didn't look impressive enough.

"Not terribly awe-inspiring, is it?" Severus whispered to Antonin, who looked at him like he'd gone nuts.

"Severus, you prat! If it were some kind of shimmering gateway don't you think the muggles would notice it?"

Severus mentally kicked himself. Of course! The entrance to the magical world had to be inconspicuous or the Muggles would just walk in. "Shall we go in, then?" he muttered sourly.

The inside of the pub was not terribly impressive either. A thick cloud of green smoke hovered around the ceiling and it was chock full of wizards who, compared to the Dolohovs and Snapes looked very shabby indeed. The bartender, a toothless old wizard, seemed to be the only one who noticed them and he shouted out "Vladimir Dolohov! What a surprise! Can I get you anything, old feller?" Mr. Dolohov frowned, apparently being called "old friend" by a toothless old barkeep was causing him intense suffering.

"I'm well enough, Tom," he said. "My usual, please!"

"Vlad, we haven't got time for drinks," hissed Mr. Snape.

"Calm down, Ed, I'm meeting someone," said Mr. Dolohov coolly.

"I'll say you are," said a soft voice from one of the tables and a young man with black hair and intense green eyes stood up and shook hands with Mr. Dolohov.

"Hello, Professor," said Vladimir. "Severus, Bellatrix, Antonin, Augustus, Rodolphus, I'd like you to meet your Potions teacher: Professor Riddle."

"A pleasure," said Professor Riddle, reaching down and shaking hands with each of the children in turn. Something about him made Severus uncomfortable but he returned the handshake and did his best to smile.

"Pleased to meet you, Professor," said Bellatrix, who was staring at Professor Riddle as if he were Adonis. But Professor Riddle seemed to be paying attention to Antonin and Severus.

"So," he said in a soft voice, "These will be the two I'm supposed to be teaching privately."

"Yes," said Mr. Dolohov curtly. "This one is my son Antonin and that one is Severus Snape, the other boy you'll be teaching."

Professor Riddle suddenly seemed quite frightening to Severus. He had given the two of them a thoroughly unpleasant smile which seemed to say "Mmmm, Fresh Meat." Severus didn't know what they were talking about, but Antonin seemed especially eager and returned Professor Riddle's smile.

Then it dawned on Severus. This was the professor who would be teaching Antonin the dark arts privately. But he had no idea that he too would be learning them until now. He'd never thought that his parents would think he needed private lessons in the dark arts but all the same he felt a little uncertain whether he wanted to be alone in a room with Professor Riddle.

"Mr. Dolohov, I have to tell you that there'll be one more boy learning the...er...curriculum from me. I'm afraid Salvius Malfoy has engaged me to teach his son, Lucius, the curriculum as well," Professor Riddle said to Antonin's father, who looked slightly angry.

"Dammit, I knew Malfoy wouldn't pass it up. I can only hope that the kids hit it off better with his son than he and I get along," he muttered. Severus' father was looking angry too.

"Malfoy's kids will be coming into close contact with my son?" he asked slightly dangerously. Professor Riddle made a 'calm down, sir' gesture.

"Don't worry, Mr. Snape, I'm sure that the boys will not have any problems. If they do, I will most certainly hear about it," he whispered and that seemed to be enough for Severus' father. In the meantime, Mr. Dolohov had picked up his drink and was stirring it feverishly with a straw.

"Then I suppose our business is settled, Professor Riddle," said Mr. Snape. Riddle bowed and returned to his table, where he began sipping a sickening looking drink.

"Come on, kids," said Mr. Snape as he and his wife swept off with the Dolohovs in tow. Severus didn't know what it was, but there was something about Professor Riddle, with his intense green eyes, hungry smile and deceivingly friendly face that just felt horridly controlled, and he noticed that the Professor seemed to make even his parents nervous.

The adults led them into a large courtyard with a few deserted trash bins and a large brick wall. Mr. Dolohov pulled out his wand and tapped the third brick from the top, second from the left and muttered Alohamora. The wall's bricks slowly began to break apart and in an instant it had disappeared, leaving them staring into a long alley with an army of wizards and wizarding children walking along it. Shops lined the alley and nearly everything known to wizard kind was sitting in the windows.

"Now then, Severus and Antonin, come with me," said Mr. Dolohov. "The rest of you, go with my wife and the Snapes and get your school things. We have a few...extracurricular materials to pick up."

With that, Mr. Dolohov seized Severus and Antonin by the hands and rounded a corner where he paused once to look at a sign which said "Knockturn Alley."

The entire atmosphere changed. Instead of the cheery bustle of Diagon alley, the atmosphere in Knockturn alley was one of dreariness. Everybody down the alley looked like they could be either hags or vampires and a few wore hoods pushed up so high you couldn't tell. Severus was just wishing he could bolt when...

"Vlad!" came a silky voice from down the alley and a tall, blonde wizard came hurrying toward them, followed by a blonde boy of about Antonin and Severus' own age.

Mr. Dolohov's aspect was distant at best. "Salvius," he said shortly. The other wizard appeared to be considerably less hostile, seizing Mr. Dolohov in an embrace and clapping him on the back. A few of the alley's denizens muttered and looked sideways but went on about their business.

"I take it you're here for the same reason I am: Extracurricular materials! I just finished getting Lucius'," said the blonde wizard. "Well, aren't you going to introduce me?" he asked, looking at Severus and Antonin.

"Sorry," said Mr. Dolohov, his distant manner somewhat less so, "This is my son, Antonin and his friend, Severus Snape. Severus, Antonin, Salvius Malfoy."

"A pleasure," said Mr. Malfoy brightly and then he nudged his son, "Well, don't be shy, Lucius, shake hands." The blonde boy seemed a bit awkward, but he stepped forward and shook Severus and Antonin's hands.

"So you're gonna be studying with us, eh?" asked Severus, interested.

"That's right," said the other boy somewhat doubtfully.

"What's it like having a dad who hugs people right in the middle of Knockturn alley?" asked Antonin in a low voice.

"Embarrassing. So you're Dolohov and Snape eh? Dad just found out from Professor Riddle that we'd be studying together. He's a little creepy, isn't he?" the other kid said.

"Creepy is an epic understatement," said Severus. "Did he look at you like you were a juicy steak too?"

"Yeah," said the boy, "I don't believe we've been formally introduced, I'm Lucius."

"Severus," said Severus, "And this is Antonin."

"Your dad doesn't think much of my dad, does he, Antonin?" asked Lucius softly.

"Call him Ant. It's more descriptive." Said Severus, being careful to avoid Antonin's elbow.

"And call him Sever. It's what I'm going to do to his head," said Antonin angrily. Lucius laughed.

After that the three of them spent some time getting to know each other. Lucius was a bit shy but he was nice enough even if he was a bit aloof at times. He certainly knew as much about the dark arts as Severus and loved Quidditch as much as Antonin so the three got along quite well.

In the meantime, Mr. Dolohov was dragging them from shop to shop, picking up all sorts of dodgy equipment like pickled Lethifold cloak and Dementor skulls. He also bought them each a hollow walking stick in which to keep their dark arts materials. Severus chose one with a menacing raven head, Antonin one with a black marble dementor as its head and Lucius a handsome jade snake one.

When they had finished in Knockturn alley, Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Dolohov led them back into Diagon Alley, which, compared to where they'd just left, seemed a trifle flighty. Mr. Dolohov, who had used all the money he had with him in Knockturn alley, took them to Gringotts, the wizarding bank, first.

The cart ride made Severus want to puke. It was like having your stomach go around corridors which led it deeper into agitation. Lucius actually kissed the ground when they reached the first vault, which belonged to the Dolohovs.

Nothing could have prepared Severus for the shining glory of the Dolohov vault. Vast amounts of precious stones and mountains of galleons met their eyes. At first Severus thought that all the Dolohov family had was galleons, but then he spotted five overflowing barrels of sickles in the corner and twenty such barrels of Knuts. Antonin, grinning at the sight of all of his familiy's money, filled his bag as high as he could.

The next stop was Lucius' vault. It, if that was possible, seemed to be even larger and more wealthy than the Dolohov's. Unlike the Dolohov's, however, the Malfoys had put some thought into the organization of their vault and rather than having all their gold lie all over the place, it was in massive crates which, when opened, gave off a radiant dancing light. Lucius filled his sack and then the final ride awaited.

Severus held his breath as they opened his family's vault and when it did open he was shocked. His vault was the largest of them all, a massive vaulted chamber with gold in such an abundance that he had to shield his eyes to look at it. He filled his sack with as much as he could carry, and then sat back in the cart awaiting their return to the surface.

Once they were back in Diagon Alley, they met up with Bellatrix, Rodolphus and Augustus again. But Bellatrix had a new girl trailing along with her. Unlike Bellatrix, this one's hair was platinum blonde and reflected the sun. She was obviously younger, however and Bellatrix introduced her as "My little sister, Narcissa."

Narcissa muttered hellos to Severus, Antonin and Lucius before turning away bashfully. Bellatrix gave Severus a meaningful look before asking "Who's your friend, Sev?"

"Oh, sorry, this is Lucius. Lucius Malfoy," he said, indicating Lucius to his three friends and the scared little girl.

"Oh, I've heard of the Malfoys," said Bellatrix enthusiastically. "Quite a good family, from what I've heard. How are you, Loosus?"

"Lucius," said Lucius firmly.

"Didn't I say that?" asked Bellatrix confusedly. Severus chuckled.

"I'm afraid not. I know my own name miss...." said Lucius suavely, extending his hand.

"Black," said Bellatrix. "Bellatrix Black." She put her hand in Lucius', but rather than shake it, he bowed low and kissed it. Rodolphus looked absolutely furious. Bellatrix looked stunned and she blushed scarlet.

"An absolute pleasure, Miss Black," said Lucius. Severus was starting to get the idea that Lucius was something of a ladies' man. Suave, well groomed and looking well dressed even in a simple Hogwarts uniform, he seemed as though he could arguably pass himself off as God's gift to women.

The next stop was Ollivander's wand works. Mr. Ollivander took Bellatrix first and set about measuring her while Severus, Antonin and Lucius got involved in a poisonous debate about whether it was legal to kick the Quaffle into the goal hoops. Rodolphus and Augustus were back to talking about Owl Dung in potions.

When Bellatrix had bought her wand (Oak and Dragon Heartstring, 7 inches), it was Rodolphus' turn. Rodolphus sat completely still while Mr. Ollivander measured him and managed to keep a little calm even when he flicked a wand he had been trying too hard and it soared out of his hand and hit Mr. Ollivander right between the eyes. Needless to say he didn't buy that one.

Rodolphus' wand took a deal of time to find, but at last he found the right one: Eucalyptus and Unicorn hair, 9 inches. When Rodolphus waved it, the wand sent out a shower of green and silver sparks which caused Mr. Ollivander's robes to catch on fire, which then needed to be stamped out. Amazingly Rodolphus kept his dignity.

Antonin didn't have half as bad a time as Rodolphus, though Severus didn't doubt he would have wanted to have just as much trouble. The first wand he tried (Oak and Phoenix feather, 8 inches) seemed to like him and Antonin only managed to upset a vase with the long tongue which his wand produced.

Then Lucius got up. Like Rodolphus, his took a long time to find but unlike Rodolphus he didn't manage to even scratch Mr. Ollivander until he got his wand. After about fourteen wands had been tried, Lucius picked up one which had fallen off the shelves and tried it.

The effect was terrifying. Out of the wand soared a huge green skull with a snake coming out of its mouth, which then vanished into smoke. Mr. Ollivander looked quite shaken at having seen Lucius' wand produce such a strange effect but after checking what kind it was (Maple and Dragon Heartstring, 11 inches) he sold Lucius the wand while muttering "Oh dear, oh dear...."

Augustus, if possible, had a worse time than Rodolphus. He tripped on Mr. Ollivander's ruler, almost knocking an entire shelf over. When he flicked the wands he almost always managed to hit something, Mr. Ollivander included, and when he got his wand it conjured a large green bird which squawked loudly and then attempted to peck Mr. Ollivander's eyes out. He was rushed out of the shop with a 6 inch Sequoia and Phoenix feather wand and urged not to come back.

Finally, it was Severus' turn. He walked over and sat down in Mr. Ollivander's chair while Mr. Ollivander measured him with the ruler. Severus wasn't sure he liked the old, white haired and somewhat frightening Mr. Ollivander in such close proximity to him, but he didn't want to start smashing things like Rodolphus and Augustus. When Mr. Ollivander had finished with the measurements, he bustled back into the shop and returned with a bundle of wands.

Severus picked one up and gave it a flick. Nothing happened. He tried another, but nothing happened. Gradually he went through the wands trying one after the other after the other but nothing happened. He was starting to get worried. What if he was a Squib or something? No, that couldn't be, but maybe he'd spent too much time with his father's wand, so none of these wands wanted him. He was just getting ready to panic when Mr. Ollivander looked him over, scratched his head, and then returned with a very long wand. "14 inches, pliable, contains...." he swallowed and then said in a low whisper "Basilisk tongue."

Severus took the wand, trembling. He knew that most wizards with Basilisk tongue wands were dark ones but if Mr. Ollivander thought he could use it then....

He felt the wand grow warm in his hands, he felt the strength harbored in it and he brought it down with a shower of sparks which formed themselves into the same shape as Lucius' effect. But it didn't stop there, the snake coming out of the Skull's mouth twisted itself around and ate the skull whole before rearing up into the stance associated with the Slytherin serpent. It then evaporated.

Mr. Ollivander was thoroughly shocked. "Who are you?" he asked in an accusatory tone. "My name is Severus Snape..." stuttered Severus, not sure what the effect had meant. "I-I'm just an eleven year old kid...." "AHA!" shouted Mr. Ollivander, his face full of savage triumph. "I knew it! A Snape! Only a Snape would use such a wand! Oh, I won't be glad to see what you get up to, young Master Severus. Ten galleons," he whistled madly while muttering "A Snape!"

Severus couldn't understand the expression on his parent's faces. He couldn't figure out whether it was rage or pride but Severus' father forked over the ten galleons before fixing Mr. Ollivander with a dangerous stare and sweeping out of the shop. Severus pulled out his new wand. It reassured him strangely, looking at it and realizing that this wand had been waiting specifically for HIM. He ran back and joined Bellatrix, Lucius, Rodolphus, Augustus and Antonin.

"So, what do you folks wanna do once we finish getting our school stuff?" asked Severus good-naturedly.

Bellatrix said "SHIT!" which made several jaws drop, but then she hissed, "My cousin's here!"

It was indeed true, Sirius Black, Bellatrix's cousin, was strolling up to them with an insufferable grin on his face. "Well, look who's here! It's Bell and some friends!" he shouted jovially, walking over and kissing Bellatrix on the cheek despite her vehement protestations. Lucius looked sick and angry.

"And you are?" he asked coldly when Sirius had finished pecking Bellatrix.

"Black. Sirius Black," replied Sirius, "And you?"

"Malfoy. Lucius Malfoy. Quite frankly, Mr. Black, I'm surprised at your behavior. No gentlemen would kiss a lady without her consent," hissed Lucius poisonously.

"This lady happens to be my cousin," said Sirius, returning Lucius' stony glance. "A Malfoy, eh? Well, you watch out. My family's not very friendly with your family."

"As a matter of fact, we are, Sirius. And you're a poor example of our family," Bellatrix snapped.

"Keep out of this, cous," Sirius growled. Severus stepped between him and Bellatrix.

"Or you'll do what?" Severus asked coldly.

"Hey! It's the building kid!" shouted Sirius with mock joviality. "How are you, Severus, or should I say Snivellus?"

"I'm fine," said Severus. "I'm just-" he was interrupted as a huge splash of water cascaded down on top of his head. He looked up to see a tall boy of his own age perched on the roof of a nearby shop grinning down at him through a couple of horn-rimmed glasses. In his hand he held a bucket.

"Hello, Mr. Killjoy!" shouted the bespectacled boy. Severus was still fuming at him, but he pointed his wand at his clothes and muttered "Caldario" which made his robes dry out instantly.

Antonin was looking up at the boy with a horribly expression. He pulled out his wand and snarled "Furnunculus!" The boy dodged the curse and laughed. "Is that the best you Snivelling Slytherins can do?" he asked arrogantly, pronouncing "slytherin" as if it simply added to the insult.

Severus was too quick for him, though. "Scelesti Sanguinium!" he roared, pointing his basilisk tongue wand at the boy. Almost instantly the boy choked and sputtered as his blood turned to pitch. He then began to make horrible gagging noises.

Sirius rounded on Severus furiously. "What have you done to him?" he snarled, drawing his own wand.

"What he deserved," Severus replied coldly, looking up at the boy who was now convulsing around and trying to scream for help.

"Finite Incantatem," said a female voice from nearby and Severus looked up to see a girl of the same age as Sirius and the other boy walking toward them with her wand out. "What is going on here?" she asked furiously, "What's the big idea of putting a curse like that on that poor guy?"

"That poor guy..." Lucius began, but the girl cut him off. "That's a powerful dark curse which some really evil wizards have used to torture innocent muggles! I would think some people would have the decency not to use it!"

This was news to Severus. He'd just done a powerfully evil dark curse? He thought the blood-to-pitch curse was a perfectly common way to get retribution. "Look, I didn't know that I was do-" he began, but once again the girl cut him off.

"Then where have you been, Grindenwald? Don't you know that scelesti sanguinium was one of the curses that contributed to the development of the Cruciatus curse?" she snapped.

"You say it like the Cruciatus curse is some kind of paragon of evil," said Antonin angrily. That was a mistake, the girl launched into another lecture.

"You mean you think it isn't? The Cruciatus curse is one of the most heavily punished curses in wizarding law. Just using it on a fellow human being can earn you a life sentence in Azkaban, it's so dark! And you're telling us you don't think it's evil?!" she shrieked.

Severus wasn't going to take this kind of lecture anymore. "And you are?" he asked the girl politely.

"Serena Acklebridge," she said shortly. "You?"

"Severus Snape," said Severus. He couldn't help admitting that this girl's manner really could take him aback.

"Oh, a Snape, that explains EVERYTHING!" she said with a false laugh. "Why, your dad CREATED the Cruciatus Curse! What am I thinking? Of course YOU think it's not evil!"

"Sev, your dad created the Cruciatus curse?" asked Antonin, impressed.

"It's not a good thing!" said the girl sharply. "Pardon me, we haven't been introduced. Serena Acklebridge."

"Antonin Dolohov," said Antonin, sounding as though he were addressing a stampeding herd of wildebeest. Sirius, Bellatrix's cousin, threw Snape a murderous glance but was obviously not going to try anything else with Serena around.

"Come on, James," he muttered. "Let's get out of here."

The other boy slid off the roof and walked away, throwing Severus a look that said quite clearly: "I'm gonna get you one day for that, Snape!"

Serena proved to be an interesting person, even if she was a bit touchy about the dark arts. The only problem was that she didn't know which house she wanted to be in. For Severus and his fanatically pro-slytherin friends, this was unheard of! The other houses were just asylums for weak minded fools.

"It's between Ravenclaw and Slytherin," she said. "I like the way the Ravenclaws are all so smart and know so much, but Slytherin really seems to be better in an all-around way. I just don't like the way they feel about Muggle-borns!"

"What, you mean you DON'T think that Muggle-born wizards are a disgrace to our name?" asked Rodolphus, who sounded genuinely stunned.

THAT was a mistake. Serena slapped Rodolphus across the face so forcefully that he fell backwards into some trash cans, causing a pair of terrified ghouls to run off.

"For YOUR information," she snapped, sounding terribly hurt. "I'M Muggle born!"

"You're a mudblood?" gasped Severus, not realizing what he'd just said. He too received a slap which sent him reeling.

"How DARE you! Can't believe...I knew people who supported Slytherin were ignorant and overly prejudiced! I thought you people might be nice but you're a bunch of bigoted Salazars!" she snarled at him, and stalked away crying.

"Sensitive, isn't she?" asked Antonin, who sounded quite glad to have escaped the kind of punishment that Severus and Rodolphus had received.

"More like ballistic," muttered Rodolphus. "Bloody mudblood."

"I didn't think muggle borns would be so...smart," murmured Bellatrix, who was staring after Serena in shock.

"Nah. Probably just a good memorizer. She could have read half that stuff in books," growled Rodolphus.

"She seemed alright, though," mused Severus. "I reckoned Muggle-borns would be a bunch of trolls!"

"As far as I can tell, she's got the temperament for one," said Lucius.

"I hope she's not in Slytherin," said Rodolphus. "I don't fancy having to put up with her for the next seven years."

"Not sure I want to either," said Severus guardedly.

"And calling us Salazars!" Augustus breathed furiously.

"Yeah, I mean Salazar Slytherin wasn't a bad man. In his times prejudice against muggles actually made sense. Using his name like an insult is really, really wrong," Bellatrix hissed.

"As far as I know, prejudice against muggles makes sense even now," said Lucius dryly.

"Well, yeah. But it really made sense then," said Bellatrix.

"Look, you guys, I don't like muggles anymore than you do, but I think it might be a good idea to apologize," Severus said, bracing himself for the coming storm.

"Apologize?!" Bellatrix gasped incredulously.

"It's her who should apologize to us, Sev," said Lucius.

"Yeah, I mean, sure we might have been a bit harsh about muggle-borns, but how should we know she was one?" asked Rodolphus angrily.

"Out of the question," Antonin said as though that closed the matter.

"Lucius is right, she ought to apologize to us. I mean, if she's such a saint then she ought to make the first move," stated Augustus as though he were reciting the golden rule.

But Severus was still not convinced. "I'll be back, you guys," he said and he hurried off down the street after Serena.

"What's up with him?" asked Antonin as Severus sprinted away.

"Sev's just going soft in his old age," said Bellatrix affectionately. "He'll come around."

"I hope so. Otherwise he runs the risk of not seeming like a proper Slytherin," said Lucius concernedly.

But Severus wasn't listening. He had caught up to Serena, who was now sitting on a bench in the leaky cauldron sniffling.

"Hey, you ok?" he asked gently as he pulled up a chair.

"What are you doing here?" she sniffed. "Come to insult me some more?"

"Look, I'm sorry my friends and I called you a mudblood but we've been brought up to believe that stuff," said Severus kindly. "Look, if it's any consolation, you don't seem anything like what we thought muggle-borns would be like."

"And what did you think we'd be like then?" asked Serena dangerously. Shit, thought Severus, I've put my foot in it now.

"Never mind," he said, hoping that would steer clear of the danger. Serena seemed to be too upset to press charges. "Look, where are your parents anyway?" he asked, deciding a change of subject was in order.

"My parents?" she asked tearfully and she burst into a fresh fit of choked sobs. "My parents don't want me to be their daughter anymore! They think I'm a demon!"

Oh great, thought Severus, now I've REALLY put my foot in it. All the same, he wanted to know why her parents thought that way. "Why?" he asked.

"Because they watch this American wretch on T.V. I think he's called Falwell or something..." she whimpered. "He keeps saying any kind of witchcraft is evil, but he's wrong! When I got the letter they thought it was a joke, but then this guy turned up at our house and told them I was going and there was nothing they could do about it and he turned the TV into a mule to show that magic was real and then....they threw me out! They called me Satan's daughter and a bunch of other horrible things!" she sobbed.

Severus reached out his hand and put it on her shoulder. "It's ok," he said. "I don't think you're a demon. And it's alright that you're muggle-born. But it was a bit wrong to call us Salazars back there. First off, Salazar Slytherin's ideas weren't bad for his time."

Serena looked at him furiously. "And WHY weren't they bad for his time? They were the ideas of a bigot!" she snarled. Severus soothed her. "Well, back then Muggles all hated magic. They lynched our kind, they hated magic more than he ever hated muggles. Salazar probably just saw one too many of his friends killed and it made him jaded. Some muggles are still like that. Look at your parents. No offense, but don't you think they'd love to kill people like us because they believe we're evil?" Severus finished, hoping, praying that Serena would comprehend what he was saying.

"Ok..." she whispered. "I guess you know what you're talking about then. Sorry, but I forgot, what is your name again?"

Severus grinned. "I'm Severus Snape," he said. "But you can call me Sev."

It took some coaxing to get Serena to come back and talk to the others again but as soon as she had overcome her feelings of anger and both sides had apologized (Rodolphus had done this extremely reluctantly), everything went like a dream. Bellatrix took Serena under her wing and even Lucius, who seemed to be unusually stiff around Muggle-borns, got into a conversation with her on the history of various curses. It was quite stunning that Serena, a muggle-born, knew more about the wizarding world than Severus and his friends. Antonin got into a heated argument with her about whether Durmstrang was older than Hogwarts which culminated in Serena fishing around in her book bag and pulling out a book on magical schools and showing that Durmstrang had in fact been founded seventeen years after Hogwarts. Antonin was a little stiff with her after that, but things got better.

SPLASH! They just got worse. This time it was Lucius who got caught under a bucket of water. Severus looked up furiously to see the back of a head with horribly untidy black hair scrambling out of sight. Lucius was livid. As he saw the boy round the corner, he pulled out his wand and roared "serpensortia!"

A long, black snake burst from Lucius' wand and launched itself at the boy, who screamed in fright and ran from the snake, which slithered after him. A minute later they heard the words "Viperam Incendio" and the abrupt absence of the sound of hissing. A second later a moderately tall man with black hair slicked back and a woman who also had black hair and a cheery smile rounded the corner. They were followed by the black haired boy.

"There they are, Mum! There they are, Dad!" he pointed an accusing finger at Severus, Serena, Lucius and company. The two adults moved forward.

"What's the idea of setting a snake on my son?" asked the father angrily.

"I don't know," said Lucius, who was still soaking. "What's the idea of tipping a bucket of water over on top of me?" Severus was surprised at his bravado. No other boy he'd met had spoken to parents this way.

"I think you're reacting to an unfortunate accident," said the father. "And setting a snake on my son is an over reaction even if it was intentional!"

"What's that, Potter?" came the voice of Lucius' father, who was hurrying toward the children with Snape's parents and Antonin's parents.

"What the devil? Oh, it's you, Malfoy," said the father. The mother wrinkled her nose.

"You're damned right it's me," said Salvius Malfoy, sounding dangerous. "Were you just accusing my boy of attacking your son?"

"He set a snake on James!" The mother snapped.

Mr. Malfoy turned on Lucius. "Is that true?" he asked.

Lucius looked up at him completely honestly and said "No."

"Well, then it must have been something else," said Mr. Malfoy.

"It was your son! He just admitted to it!" snapped the father.

"Rubbish, he just said he didn't. Are you calling my boy a liar?" asked Mr. Malfoy.

Severus decided to step in. "I did it, Mr. Malfoy," he said, trying to sound ashamed. But then he added, "But I did it because that kid turned a bucket of water over on Lucius."

"I've been meaning to ask why my son is soaking wet," said Mr. Malfoy dangerously. "Well, Potter?"

"My son did no such thing!" spat Potter.

"Are you calling my boy a liar?" asked Pravus Snape sinisterly. "Of course, if you want to really find out the truth, Potter, my wife is a very skilled Veritaserum maker. I've got some with me if you want me to interrogate these two."

Mr. Potter's face flushed. "No thanks, I'd rather not have my son treated like a criminal, Snape," he snarled. "I'll see you two gentlemen later." He strode away with his son in tow.

Mr. Dolohov was frowning. "The old Gryffindor rat," he spat. "Should have known he'd chicken out when faced with Veritaserum, Pravus."

"Yeah, well, I don't intend to have my boy called a liar by some muggle-loving Gryffindor," Pravus Snape hissed. He then noticed Serena. "Hello," he said good-naturedly. "I don't believe we've met, you must be a new friend of my son, Severus. I am Pravus Snape." Serena looked a little frightened but she shook hands with Mr. Snape anyway. "And you are?" he asked. "I'm Serena Acklebridge," she said in a small voice.

"Dad, can I talk to you about something?" asked Severus, suddenly realizing how dangerously close to catastrophe the situation was becoming.

"Sure, son," said Mr. Snape, shooting a look at his wife.

"Dad, Serena's muggle-born. She's an orphan too. Her parents kicked her out of their house because they thought she was a demon. I just thought you ought to know that she's really sensitive about her heritage so don't act like Muggles are animals. Please?" Severus whispered to his Dad. Mr. Snape looked at Serena in a whole new light now.

"Severus, are you sure she's....worthy of your friendship?" he asked.

"Yes, she knows more about our world than Lucius and Antonin put together," said Severus.

"And she's an orphan, you say?" asked Mr. Snape.

"Yes," replied Severus.

"Then there's only one solution," said Mr. Snape.

"What's that?" asked Severus.

"Don't ask questions, son. You'll find out soon enough."

Mr. Snape turned back to Serena. "Severus has just informed me that your parents are...not of our kind. Not only that, but he has also informed me that they disowned you," he said tenderly. The other parents looked shocked at this news.

"Disowned?" gasped Mr. Dolohov.

"But why?" demanded Mr. Malfoy.

"Poor dear!" exclaimed Mrs. Snape.

"Serena, you should have told us!" said Bellatrix emphatically.

"Are you alright, my dear?" asked Lucius.

"Tell me your parents' address and I'll go and tear them apart!" snarled Antonin.

Serena seemed genuinely shocked at all the attention she was getting.

"Would you mind if I had some time to think?" asked Mr. Snape impatiently. "Miss....Acklebridge was it?"

"That's right," said Serena timidly.

"Miss Acklebridge, would you be interested in entering the custody of the House of Snape?" asked Mr. Snape.

Serena gasped with amazement. Severus looked shocked himself, staring at her as if he was just seeing her for the first time.

"D-d'you mean would I like to live with you?" asked Serena as though she hardly dared to believe it.

"In a nutshell," said Pravus Snape kindly.

"I'd...I'd...I'd love to!" whispered Serena as though she were looking at God. Pravus looked very satisfied.

"Excellent," he said. "Where's your guide? You know, the one who showed you how to get here."

"He's sitting in that pub we came in through," said Serena. "What do you need with him?"

"I need him to alert Dumbledore that you will be living with us so he knows where to address his owls," said Mr. Snape.

"Don't you need to fill out adoption papers?" asked Serena.

"Codswallop," said Mr. Snape.

"What for?" asked Severus.

"No point in it," said Mr. Dolohov dismissively.

Severus grinned at Serena. "Welcome to the family, Serena!" he said.

"Whoa there, Severus, she isn't part of our family! She's just in our custody! Although, if she likes she can add Snape to the end of her surname," said Mrs. Snape.

"Now to see your guide..." said Mr. Snape.

"No need," said Mr. Dolohov lightly. "He looks like he's coming now."

Indeed, hurrying up the street came a wizard with the Hogwarts crest displayed proudly on his robes. He was heading for Serena.

"Miss Acklebridge!" he snapped, dusting her off. "Where have you been and what....oh, you've made friends. Excellent but isn't that...Pravus Snape?" the teacher's whole aspect changed. He was eyeing Mr. Snape with venom in his eyes. The same went for Mr. Snape.

"Well, well, Dalverry," said Mr. Snape, his lip curling unpleasantly.

"Pravus," said the teacher in return, contempt, derision and disdain all flickering in his eyes simultaneously.

"What subject do you teach at that school, pray? How to be an interfering prick?" asked Mr. Snape nastily.

"For your information, it's Defense against the Dark Arts and if any of your family is coming to our school it looks like many of our students will need that subject in particular."

"Severus," said Mr. Snape coldly, "This is Professor Dalverry Corlagon. He's going to be making a feeble attempt at teaching you how to defend yourself against the dark arts. But we both know that the only way to defend against them is to use them."

"You are wrong on that count, Pravus," snapped Corlagon. "What do you want, anyway?"

"Well, as of now I am adopting this child," said Pravus, indicating Serena. "So I need you to.."

"You're not adopting any child, Pravus. She'd be safer with Dementors than with you!" hissed Corlagon.

"I'm afraid you haven't got a say in the matter, Dalverry. You will tell Dumbledore that as of now he should send his owls for Serena Acklebridge to Casa Serpens, where she will be residing under the custody of myself and my charming wife."

Corlagon cast a dirty look at Pravus Snape and his wife and then hissed at Serena and Severus "I hope you enjoy Azkaban when you grow up!"

"Come on then, Miss Acklebridge," said Mr. Snape. "We had better be getting home."

"Acklebridge-Snape," said Serena. "If you don't mind."

"Severus, are you coming?" asked Mr. Snape.

"I'll catch up to you, Dad," said Severus.

"Well, hurry."

The Snapes, Dolohovs and Malfoys started walking in the opposite direction. As soon as they were out of earshot, Severus muttered "It's ok, Lily, you can come out now."

Lily Evans emerged from under an over-long black robe which she had kept herself concealed in.

"I thought your parents didn't like Muggle-borns, Severus," she said.

"They don't. Your guess is as good as mine why they adopted one," he replied.

"Are you sure it wouldn't be safe to introduce me?" she asked mischievously.

"No. You weren't disowned by your parents on charges of being a demon, Lily. They wouldn't have anything to do with you. I think they felt that since Serena wasn't accepted among Muggles she was worth it, but you would be a bit much."

"Whatever you say, Sev. Hey, shouldn't you be catching up?" she asked.

"Oh, right," said Severus, tearing his eyes away from Lily. "Well, nice seeing you again, Lil. Hopefully we'll be seeing more of each other at Hogwarts."

Lily laughed and skipped away. Severus watched her go.

Muggle-borns aren't so bad, he thought. Why do my parents distrust them?

And as Severus walked away, he didn't notice the black robed figure watching him silently from the shadows.

"Cozying up to Mudbloods can get you in trouble, boy," whispered the figure. "You'll find that out soon enough."

And with that, Professor Tom Marvolo Riddle turned and strode away down Knockturn alley.