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Rather than look in on the boy – and the Baron, too, no doubt – Severus retreated to the comfort of his quarters and a brand new bottle of firewhiskey. He cracked the seal on the bottle, thinking uncharitable thoughts about the Headmaster, who he had counted as a friend for more than a decade. And more than a friend, a mentor, a guiding hand . . .

Yet, Severus knew that Albus' ambivalence about Potter's plight was nothing new. Albus had, for many years, shunted to the side those issues he did not want to face, as though, if he ignored them, they would simply go away. Often times, for instance, it was the hard cases that ended up in Slytherin, for one reason or another. Those children who had managed to get through their first eleven years with less than the requisite amount of love or caring, or existed on more than their fair share of violence, often found companionship and loyalty among their peers in the House of the Snake. Severus' first rule, laid down on First Night for years now, ensured that.

And Albus, whatever rationale he used to delude himself behind those bright blue eyes, just turned his back in essence. Oh he said he did not wish to interfere in House issues, or get in the way where Severus was obviously far more skilled and already involved, but the truth was, he just did not want to acknowledge the problems so many of these children faced at home, because they were Slytherin problems.

Severus knocked back two fingers of the burning liquid, and poured another glass before he sank in front of the fire and watched the flames flicker and cast orange shadows in his rooms. He had hoped, despite all evidence to the contrary, that Albus would change his stance for Potter. But it was not to be.

Very well, then. As Albus was leaving the boy completely in Severus' hands, then Severus would take him up on the offer of autonomy. Completely.

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/3736151/20/