Malfoy had experience with basic potions. The liquid in their shared cauldron turned a clear blue, the colour of a summer sky. His technique was solid.
Snape approached, his robes sweeping behind him, and inspected the work. He'd expected competence — purebloods were trained before coming to Hogwarts to avoid embarrassing their families. Most of them had previewed every subject except Charms before term started.
But Henry William's technique was different. Precise. Efficient. He'd known to take the cauldron off the flame before adding porcupine quills — a step most first-year students got wrong.
Hall bottled the result, uncorked it, sniffed, and sipped.
"You added moonstone," Snape stated.
"Yes, Professor."
"Moonstone can enhance potency. Few use it to shorten brewing time. Do you know why?"
"Because it catalyses the effects," Hall said. "If the potion isn't stabilised in time, it backfires. I know what I'm doing."
"Is your head filled with Wormwood Infusion?" Snape's voice dropped. "You think you're above the fundamentals?"
"I can do it."
Snape's expression turned murderous. He drew breath —
Acidic green smoke billowed from across the classroom.
Neville Longbottom stood frozen as his cauldron melted through its base, spilling potion onto the stone floor. It burned holes in shoes. Students scrambled onto stools. Neville was soaked in the failure, his arms covered in red, swollen sores as he screamed.
"Idiot!" Snape roared. With a sweep of his wand, he vanished the spill. "Get him to the hospital wing!"
While Snape was occupied, Hall moved.
He crossed to the materials cabinet, scanning the shelves with his B-Rank detection ability. His eyes landed on something unusual — a small, unlabelled herb tucked between standard ingredients.
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Glowing Herb. Harvested under a full moon during light rain. Rare. Expensive. Snape's personal stash, misplaced here by accident.
He grabbed it along with standard ingredients and returned to his workbench.
Malfoy tried to protest. Hall pointed him toward Zabini's station. "Go fix theirs. They're about to blow it up."
Zabini's potion was already emitting a distinctly sour odour.
Hall started his real experiment.
He'd had the idea years ago, back when he was still a Squib and all he could do was theorise. He'd lacked the ability then.
Now he had both the theory and the power.
But his cauldron was not the only one drawing attention.
Snape finished with Neville and turned.
His eyes found William at a fresh cauldron, the contents glowing with pale golden light.
"What are you doing?"
Snape's voice was dangerously quiet. The prefect election had degenerated into a brawl on his watch. His first-years were fighting in the corridors. Now this.
He raised his wand.
"Professor, I know what I'm doing." Hall didn't look up.
"I just heard a troll attempt to speak."
"It's almost done."
Snape stalked forward — then stopped.
Hall had dropped something into the cauldron. The liquid shimmered, and a soft fragrance rose from it. Night-blooming Gloom. Delicate. Beautiful.
"You used my Glowing Herb." Snape's voice was strangled. "Those are rare."
"Materials are meant to be used, Professor."
Hall stirred with his right hand. With his left, he sprinkled powdered bat spleen in a slow, deliberate spiral.
Snape went very still.
He knew that technique. It was advanced — work for older students, not first-year boys who should be learning to crush porcupine quills.
His rage cooled into something harder. More calculating.
"Since you're so arrogant, let's see what you actually produce."
He whipped around. "Potter! Why aren't you watching him? If William fails, you'll both lose points. Then you'll both spend a month scrubbing cauldrons by hand."
Harry, who'd been watching from a nearby table with wide eyes, went pale. "Professor, I don't know what he's doing."
Hall didn't flinch. "And if I succeed?"
"What do you want?"
"Unrestricted access to the Potions classroom and materials. I keep what I brew."
Malfoy inhaled sharply.
"Fine." Snape didn't believe he'd do it. No first-year should be capable. But the curiosity was eating at him now, stronger than his anger. "If you can actually produce something worthwhile."
He cast a reverse containment charm around Hall and Harry, trapping any potential explosion inside a shimmering barrier.
The classroom went silent. Students held their breath.
This was Severus Snape. The Potions Master their older siblings had warned them about. The man whose detentions involved scrubbing cauldrons and whose temper grew worse through the day.
And a first-year was facing him down.
Hall smiled at the bubbling cauldron.