HP: It's a snake, not a badger.

Chapter 54 Opening Ceremony

The carriage soon came to a stop. Emeric gave his last words before getting off. They followed the crowd into the Great Hall, where it was time for the annual Sorting Ceremony.

Professor McGonagall placed a four-legged stool in front of the first-year students, and then placed a hat on the stool. The hat on the stool grew a mouth and began to sing.

The young wizards below the stage stared wide-eyed, astonished that the hat could sing, especially since it sang terribly. The older students sitting around the long table treated this event as a spectacle every year; they would even lie to their young wizards, telling them that the Sorting Ceremony involved fighting a dragon.

Whenever a new student joined their college, the upperclassmen at the long table would applaud to welcome them. Emeric wasn't particularly interested in this; he propped his head up and looked towards the professors' table, where Severus sat leisurely sipping his tea, leaning slightly to one side because Lockhart was sitting on the other.

Severus didn't even try to hide Lockhart's dislike. Professor Sprout, who was sitting next to him, considerately asked if he wanted to change seats. After Severus refused, Sprout moved his chair to the other side, gesturing for Severus to move over a bit. Clearly, Professor Sprout also found Lockhart's overly strong perfume a bit unbearable.

Severus deliberately ignored the gazes falling on him. In the past, he would glare at the culprit at this time and then be satisfied to see them tremble in fright. But not now. He had to give up this hobby. He had to ignore Emeric and let him give up on his own. What if this kid had some problem and liked to be mean to him?

Thinking of this, he turned to look at Dumbledore, who was speaking, glared at him fiercely, and cursed under his breath, "Damn old bee." What could Emeric have done wrong? He was just a child; it was all the adults' fault for corrupting him.

At this moment, Severus was completely unaware that his heart had already turned to Emerick. Dumbledore, who had been glared at, was unhappy. He hadn't done anything on the first day of school and was starting to wonder if Gellert had let something slip. He angrily twisted Gellert's waist.

Gellert, who had been inexplicably struck, could not vent his anger on Dumbledore, so he could only glare fiercely at Emeric. It must have been Emeric who caused this, but Emeric looked at him innocently, assuring him that it really wasn't him this time.

Severus was so angry when he saw Gellert glaring at Emeric that he decided to switch all of Dumbledore's Tooth-Strengthening Potions to a special version, an extra bitter and spicy one, which would surely leave a deep impression on Dumbledore.

As Dumbledore finished speaking, the banquet began, and all sorts of delicious food appeared on the table. Even the pickiest little snake buried his head in his food.

Compared to the lively atmosphere below, the professors' seat was much quieter. Only Lockhart's voice could be heard. The other professors were all staring at Severus, wanting to see what he would eat so they could order the same dishes.

"Fufu, curry omelet rice, a serving of fried pork chop, half a bowl of mashed potatoes, and a glass of lemon soda."

"Yes, Professor Snape, Fogg will have it ready and bring it up right away."

As soon as Fufu left, several more little elves appeared on the professors' table. All the professors except Lockhart ordered the same dishes as Severus, only in different portions.

"Doesn't anyone want to try Lockhart's signature cream stew? Many people who learned how to make it in my book 'Encountering Food' found it delicious."

Severus pretended not to hear; he had no desire to eat such a thing. That mouthful of mushy concoction at the Indian restaurant had made him never want to see that kind of unidentified object again. The other professors also pretended not to hear; after tasting Severus's pile of snacks, no one could question his authority on food.

Seeing that Lockhart was still talking, Sprout quickly tried to smooth things over, afraid that he would anger Severus. "Maybe we should wait until we have another chance, Professor Lockhart. We've already ordered our food, we can't waste it."

Feeling sorry for Severus, the witch pulled him to her seat, separating him from Lockhart. Flitwick and McGonagall, who were nearby, offered him some snacks.

Since the crackdown on campus atmosphere began last year, the students' malice towards Severus has reached their ears. These words angered even the usually good-tempered Sprout, not to mention the other two, and what followed was their affection for Severus.

At first, Severus tried to refuse, using harsh words to block their kindness. But he found that, for some reason, Emeric said something that made the elders even more amiable towards him. For a while, they would bring him back something from their weekend shopping trips. After accepting the snacks, Severus took out the snacks Emeric had hidden in his button and shared them with the others.

This almost softened McGonagall's heart. She felt that Severus, after all he had been through, was still a good kid who loved to share. She planned to go find Blood Man Barrow after dinner and have them keep a close eye on the little wizards who had been cursing last year, and make sure that none of them could curse Severus in front of her.

"Professor, your meal is here. Is there anything else you need?"

"That's all, thank you Fufu."

"Well then, Fufu will be going now. Enjoy your meal, Professor."

The fact that Fufu served the food meant that their meal was almost ready. All the professors tacitly put away the snacks that Severus had given them. Except for Dumbledore and his wife and Lockhart, everyone else at the professors' table ate exactly the same thing. Of course, the food they were eating was also made by Fufu, but it was ordered in advance and served only after the dinner started.

Emeric looked at Severus with a smile in his eyes, and the smile deepened when he saw the satisfied look in Severus's eyes.

"Brother Ellie, hurry up and eat, stop daydreaming, or it'll all be gone."

"Thank you, Draco."

Emeric stroked Draco's soft hair and joined the group eating. Severus felt the gazes on him disappear, and his slightly stiff body completely relaxed.

Meanwhile, Gellert, who was secretly observing them, seemed to have noticed something and nodded thoughtfully. He was preparing to make another bet with Dumbledore that night. They had both lost the last bet, but this time he felt that something was amiss and he was sure to win.

As the pleasant dinner time drew to a close, Dumbledore, as usual, began announcing the student no-go zones and the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor for the year.

Severus wanted to leave as soon as possible; he couldn't stand that peacock anymore and even wanted to provide Emeric with some potent medicine so he could deal with Lockhart immediately.

Sprout was also getting fed up and wanted to leave. Lockhart's tone made her very uncomfortable. She had never been around such a person before. The witch wanted to escape from this place.

Severus handed him a box of chocolates; if Sprout hadn't switched places with him, he would be the one suffering now. Finally, before they could reach their breaking point, the dinner ended.

Emeric followed the crowd back to the common room. It was a Slytherin tradition that each year had a prefect, chosen through a duel, who would help their headmaster manage the house and report to the cellars regularly.

The last point caught Emeric's eye; who could refuse? When Severus announced the start of the fourth-year selections, Emeric immediately went up and started fighting Demian.

"All petrified"

"Armor Protection"

"Eliminate your weapon"

"Flying sand and stones"

Demian was unsurprisingly sent flying, and in the ensuing tag-team battle, Emeric won so many times that no one dared to challenge him. Severus waited five minutes and, seeing no one challenge him, reluctantly tossed his badge to Emeric. He couldn't disrupt the order, but he also didn't really want to see Emeric.