Terry knew that children were more aware of things than adults thought, and he'd heard some of the comments going around about Severus. He'd hoped that Faustus hadn't heard the more acerbic rumors, but from the intelligence he knew the boy had, he wasn't going to bet on it.
He reached out and stroked a hand over Faustus' hair. Something about this child touched him, and he found he wanted to make things better. "That must be hard for you," he said quietly. "I'm sorry you have to hear those things. No child should have to. Have you spoken to your father about them? Asked him to explain things?"
Ben looked over from feeding Bob a few sandwich scraps and said, "I told Faus we can put salamanders in the Gryffindors' cereal. And that he can come play outside with me and the big kids sometime, then maybe they won't talk about him." He beamed at his suggestion, and Terry laughed. His son was so innocent, and everyone was his friend right now.
"That's a good idea, though if asked I will deny all knowledge of salamanders," Terry teased, winking at Faustus, and then sobered. "Have you mentioned any of this to your father? I think you should. You may still have to eat in the Great Hall, but maybe you'll see an improvement in other areas."