Soul of Ice

2. Potions

Over the next decade, Severus dedicated himself solely to his new position at Hogwarts. To his dismay, most of the children were imbeciles, and he spent most of his time attempting to prevent them causing disasters. He tried his best to push aside all thoughts of the child that might be his, and as September 1991 came around, Severus began to dread the arrival of the newest bunch of dunderheads even more so than usual. How would he manage having Lucius' son, Lily's son and Persephone's daughter in the same class?

As the first-years filed in for their sorting ceremony, Severus watched them carefully while feigning disinterest. Draco stood out like a sore thumb with his pale blonde hair, flanked either side by two larger, surly-looking boys.

There was a red-haired boy - no doubt another Weasley - and next to him was a girl with extremely bushy hair talking animatedly. And with them, unmistakably, was the Potter boy.

For a moment, Severus thought he was looking at James. The boy was an exact replica of his father. Rumours said he had a scar on his forehead in the shape of a lightning bolt, but at this distance it was imperceptible. Albus had told him that the boy's eyes were green like Lily's, but those too were too far to discern. All Severus saw was James Potter come again.

He watched the boy carefully, almost missing Draco being sorted into Slytherin within moments of the hat being lowered onto his tiny little head. He knew Persephone's girl was somewhere within the throng, but something in his gut warned him not to look for her. He would see her when her name was announced.

A thought crossed his mind. He had been so careful not to name her in his mind, lest she become more to him than he wished before they'd even met. He barely gave a thought to her first name, let alone her second.

This would be the moment of truth, he supposed. Either his surname would be called out, or someone else's, and he would know the truth at last.

He braced himself. If Minerva called up Snape, Abigail, the entire castle would know the truth. All eyes would turn to him, and he would have to pretend to be disinterested. The girl would surely be confused... unless she knew already. Persephone had been so determined to keep him from the child's life - would she have told her who he was?

Two girls, twins apparently, were sorted into separate houses. Then, Severus heard a name he wasn't expecting.

"Payne, Abigail."

Of course. He should have known Persephone would give the girl her own name. Severus' eyes snapped away from the boy to the girl extracting herself from the crowd of first years. She had something of her mother about her, but in stark contrast to Persephone's blonde, the girl's hair was a dark black.

Just like his.

The hat pondered. Severus waited anxiously. Would she be a Slytherin like her mother, like himself? Did he even want her to be a Slytherin? Teaching her was one thing, but to be her Head of House...

He felt both relief and disappointment when she was sorted into Gryffindor. He wouldn't have to be her Head after all. But it was rather embarrassing for the Head of Slytherin to have a child in Gryffindor.

She's not mine, he told himself sternly. Even if she were biologically his - which was still uncertain - Persephone had made it plain he was to stay away. She was Persephone's daughter, and that was all he needed to know.

He was just going to ignore her, he decided. If he'd wanted to be a father to her, he would have done so all those years ago in Persephone's house. She was just another student.

The first potions class went as poorly as he expected. Potter proved to be as insolent as his father, Longbottom had wasted no time in making a fool of himself, and almost every child had made some foolish mistake in an extremely simple potion. The only students to make a concoction even remotely acceptable were Draco and Abigail. Payne, he reminded himself. You are not familiar with her.