Dunderhead - A Harry Potter story: Snape becomes Harry's mentor

Chapter 32: DUMBLEDORE THE SLYTHERIN

It was a large and beautiful clock that hung on the wall in Albus Dumbledore's office. Although it was not nearly as helpful as Molly Weasley's family clock; it did not tell the reader the whereabouts of their family or provide knowledge of their wellbeing. It was, without question, still a very beautiful clock though.

The rim was was made of silver and it glinted in an otherworldly way, but the background was the most interesting element. A dark gas swirled behind the clock's ornate numberings and clustered stars, moons, and suns decorously gathered around the surface area of the sphere. The small tick, tick, tick of the clock was light and soothing and it had calmed many a distraught first or second year caught in wrong-doing who had been sent to the headmaster. These students' last look of the clock as they left the headmaster's office were always a mixture of confusion, partly due to the lack of discipline they had received as they were left to question the bulge of sweets in their pockets, and partly due to the understanding manner in which they had been gently encouraged to evaluate their actions. 

Professor Dumbledore was looking at his clock and thinking about the events of the last few days. He had not yet checked on Severus yet and he was beginning to come to the decision that he really ought to go and see how his potions master was doing. Evidently the man had not yet committed murder, but Albus knew that this relief might not be without some harm being done later. Dumbledore knew when he had left Harry in Severus' care that the boy would not thrive, but he would suffer less than he had in the environment he had grown up in. 

Albus sighed and looked unseeingly at his desk where Minerva's note lay: 

Headmaster, following my earlier concerns, I have reason to think that one of our students has still not settled in. The issues that we discussed at the beginning of term are still prevalent, and I am starting to wonder if sending the child home might be a good idea. I would like to request that we have a meeting properly soon to discu-

And here the rest of the note was cut off by Dumbledore's letter from the Minister, Cornelius Fudge. Albus had read this letter twice already and had quickly replied to it with his usual efficiency, hoping that it was the last of Cornelius' angry threats about Albus' charge of the school. Professor Dumbledore had rather enough problems of his own to be dealing with at the moment. Not least of all the work in undoing Neville Longbottom's disaster. It was all very tiring... 

Or, at least the appearance to be kept up of seeming to be working it out was tiring. 

Severus often accused the headmaster of being entirely too Slytherin for a Gryffindor, and he was quite right. There was some satisfaction to be had in Severus' blindness to Dumbledore's deception this time because Albus had not done a thing to reverse the effects of Longbottom's potion. Well, he had done so much as to lead him to conclude, confidently, that the effects were not permanent: the children would be back to their normal selves in under a month. Some tutoring and extra classes would be in order once they had returned to their school timetable. Albus was aware of the importance that this year brought for Harry Potter's year group, what with the upcoming OWL exams, and he did not want a student to fail for a months lost attendance.

With these thoughts in mind, Professor Dumbledore deftly picked up his wand and flicked it at his office door. Unlocked, the door opened gently and Albus walked down his spiral staircase steps towards the dungeons, to Professor Snape's private chambers. Having decided that to use the fires to floo to Severus' rooms would have seemed impolite, and likely be received as an offensive presumption, Albus had taken the initiative to walk to Severus' rooms instead. He did not meet another soul on the way, such was the early hour of the morning. Despite this, Albus knew that Severus would likely have been up since two in the morning, as he was most nights. The sun had long since risen in the sky due to the summer's lighter season and Dumbledore knocked briskly on Severus' door with a light hand and waited to be allowed entrance.