Professor Snape was, without question, one of the most tragic figures in the original story.
Though he was a good man, he spent most of his life misunderstood as a ruthless Death Eater.
Only after his death did the truth finally come to light.
Only then did everyone realise that he had been secretly protecting Harry Potter…
And protecting Hogwarts all along.
Even the questions he was using to embarrass Harry now carried a hidden meaning.
I will always love your mother.
No matter how much your father hated me…
I will always protect you.
Unfortunately, given his position, Snape could never say those words aloud.
Harry, meanwhile, was still too young and too influenced by his own preconceptions to understand Snape’s intentions.
At that moment, Snape gave a cold sneer.
“So…” “It seems your reputation exceeds your ability.” “Tell me, Potter…” “Do you never bother reading your textbooks before class?” Harry bit his lip.
“I’m sorry, Professor.” “But…
Hermione knows the answers.” “Why don’t you ask her instead?” Hermione finally couldn’t hold herself back.
She jumped to her feet.
“Powdered root of asphodel added to an infusion of wormwood produces a powerful sleeping potion known as the Draught of Living Death!” “A bezoar is found in the stomach of a goat and acts as an antidote to most poisons.” “And monkshood and wolfsbane are actually the same plant.
They’re both common names for aconite.” Hermione answered all three questions flawlessly.
Yet Snape showed no sign of approval.
Expressionless, he said, “Harry Potter.” “One point from Gryffindor for speaking disrespectfully to a professor.” “Hermione Granger.” “Five points from Gryffindor.” Hermione stared at him in disbelief.
“Why?” “Did I answer incorrectly?” “Your answers were excellent, Miss Granger,” Snape replied coolly.
“But I did not give you permission to answer.” “You disrupted my lesson.” Hermione sat back down, cheeks puffed with indignation.
At the back of the classroom, Draco Malfoy wore an unmistakably smug expression.
Snape returned to the front and continued teaching.
Throughout the lesson, he repeatedly called on Gryffindor students to answer particularly difficult questions.
Everyone had heard rumours that Snape favoured Slytherin.
Now they knew the rumours were true.
“Next…” “We’ll brew a simple potion for treating burns.” “The required ingredients are dried nettles, crushed snake fangs, and porcupine quills.” “Pair up.” “The first pair to finish correctly will earn ten House points.” Brewing potions required absolute precision.
One mistake at any stage could produce disastrous consequences.
At best…
The ingredients would be wasted.
At worst…
Someone could lose their life.
Despite carefully copying down every instruction, mistakes quickly began appearing throughout the classroom.
Snape’s furious shouting echoed from one table to another.
By the middle of the lesson, only two pairs had escaped his wrath.
Charlotte and Hermione.
And Draco Malfoy with Gregory Goyle.
Charlotte worked like a perfectly calibrated machine.
Every step…
Every measurement…
Every stir…
Was executed flawlessly.
Meanwhile, Snape seemed unusually attentive towards Malfoy.
He personally corrected Malfoy’s measurements and warned him whenever he was about to make a mistake.
Malfoy shot Charlotte a triumphant look.
Let’s see how you beat me this time, filthy Mudblood.
“Ahhh!” A scream suddenly rang through the classroom.
Neville Longbottom and Seamus Finnigan had ruined their potion.
The cauldron overflowed, spilling bubbling green liquid across the floor.
The corrosive potion immediately burned holes through several students’ shoes.
Neville himself fared even worse.
The acidic liquid had splashed all over him.
Snape hurried over.
With a wave of his wand, both the ruined cauldron and the spilled potion vanished instantly.
Then he rounded on Neville.
“You idiot!” “Did you add the porcupine quills before removing the cauldron from the fire?” “Is your head made of wood?” “I’ve warned you about this repeatedly!” “Five points from Gryffindor!” As Neville, on the verge of tears, was escorted to the hospital wing…
Malfoy sneered at Harry.
“Typical Gryffindor.” “You can’t even brew such a simple potion.” “Maybe you should stop coming to Potions altogether.” “I’ve finished.” Charlotte’s calm voice suddenly echoed through the classroom.
Everyone looked over in surprise.
Charlotte was holding a clear glass bottle.
Inside were three-quarters of a bottle of emerald-green potion.
Snape crossed the room in only a few strides.
Without a word, he snatched the bottle from Charlotte’s hand.
He uncorked it and took a careful sniff.
Then he lifted Charlotte’s cauldron, dipped a finger into the remaining potion, and examined it closely.
Finally, he nodded.
“Excellent.” “Charlotte Elvis is the first student to complete the Burn-Healing Paste successfully.” “Ten points to Ravenclaw.” Ding!
Congratulations!
The host has successfully brewed a perfect Burn-Healing Paste.
Reward: Skill Points ×1.
Charlotte blinked.
No record this time…
After thinking about it, however, it made perfect sense.
Unlike Transfiguration…
He had absolutely no foundation in Potions before today.
He had succeeded purely through talent.
Children raised in wizarding families often encountered basic potion-making long before entering Hogwarts.
Naturally, some of them would have learned faster.
Meanwhile…
Malfoy’s face froze.
Impossible…
He still had nearly a third of the brewing process left.
How had Charlotte already finished?
Professor Snape has been helping me the entire time!
He must have cheated!
Just as Malfoy was about to shout the accusation…
He looked up— Only to find Snape staring at him with an icy expression.
Malfoy swallowed nervously.
I lost…
Even with Professor Snape helping me…
Surely he isn’t going to give me detention…
The thought made his hands tremble.
The porcupine quills slipped from his fingers— Straight into the cauldron.
Oh no!
Malfoy’s eyes widened.
Before he could react— Boom!
A cloud of thick black smoke exploded from the cauldron.
His pale face and neatly combed blond hair were instantly stained pitch black.
The entire classroom burst into laughter.
“Silence!” Snape barked.
Then he looked at the thoroughly miserable Malfoy.
“Draco Malfoy.” “Ten points from Slytherin.” “Report to my office after class.” “Detention.” With that, Snape gathered his black robes around himself and swept out of the classroom like a gust of wind.
Malfoy wiped soot from his face before storming over to Charlotte.
“Just you wait!” “You filthy Mudblood!” “I’ll make you regret this!” The moment the slur left his mouth, most of the students frowned in disgust.
Charlotte, however, remained completely calm.
“If you can’t even outperform a ‘Mudblood,’ what gives you the right to act so arrogant?” “You’d better hurry along.” “Wouldn’t want to keep Professor Snape waiting.” “After all…” “Detention isn’t something a noble young Master Malfoy should be late for.” “Y-You…” “I challenge you to a duel!” Malfoy was practically shaking with rage.
If his face hadn’t already been covered in black soot…
It would undoubtedly have turned scarlet.
Charlotte smiled faintly.
“That can wait until you’ve finished your detention.”