Henrietta Potter And The Slytherin Child - (A 'Henrietta Potter' sequel) || D.M

1 - His Father's Eyes

A/N: This is book two, so if you haven't read book one yet - please go back do so! Thank you!

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"Mum, who was that man you were talking to?"

My eyes briefly met Ron's and he raised an eyebrow.

"Just an old school friend," I explained to my son, "it's been a while since we've seen one another."

"Was he in Gryffindor too?"

I heard Ron let out a loud guffaw, which he quickly tried to disguise as a cough.

"No, Al, he was a Slytherin."

A look crossed Albus's face, and I could tell he was worried about something.

"Mum, what if- what if I'm in Slytherin?" his voice shook as if he was saying a swear word.

I crouched down so that Albus's face was slightly above my own. I looked into his fearful grey eyes.

"Albus Severus," I said quietly, "you were named for two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I ever knew."

And the other guilted me into it, I added silently.

In fact, thinking about it, Snape had probably cared for me more than Dumbledore had after all that time.

But then it just would have been cruel to first name a child Severus.

I often thought about how much Snape had been obsessed with my mother, how he must have felt when he saw her in me. It really did not explain why he was fucking rude to me all those years. Oh well.

"But just say-"

"-then Slytherin house will have gained an excellent student, won't it?" I cut in, starting to feel irritated. "It doesn't matter to me, Al. But if it matters to you, you'll be able to choose Gryffindor over Slytherin. The Sorting Hat takes your choice into account."

"Really?"

"It did for me," I said smugly.

"I actually think your mother would have made an excellent Slytherin - she has all the qualities." Ron said. "Ow!"

I had stood up and hit him very hard.

Ron scowled at me, rubbing his arm. "See! You're just proving my point now!

The doors started slamming all along the scarlet train, and parents swarmed forwards for final kisses and to shout last minute reminders. Albus jumped into the carriage and I closed the door behind him, my heart suddenly feeling heavy at the thought of being separated from my only child.

I ran alongside the train as it began to move, desperate to spend every remaining second looking at my son's pale, excited face.

"Be a good boy, Al!" I called, my voice choking slightly as the train picked up speed, gliding my son away from me. "I love you!"

I stopped running and stood, waving frantically as the train disappeared from view. The smile was still on my face, despite it feeling like I was suffering a bereavement.

"He'll be all right," Hermione murmured in my ear, "they both will."

"I just don't know what I'm going to do with myself without him," I sighed. The thought of returning home to an empty house night after night filled me with dread.