After that little incident, the actual lesson officially began.
For the first Potions class, Snape taught them how to brew a simple Cure for Boils.
The general process involved placing dried nettles and crushed snake fangs into the cauldron to simmer together, then adding porcupine quills after removing it from the fire.
The key to brewing potions was timing.
In that regard, Snape truly deserved his reputation as a Potions Master.
His explanations were very clear.
After that came the practical portion of the lesson, which once again became Hermione’s personal showcase.
Her excellent memory allowed her to process every ingredient and brew the potion exactly according to Snape’s instructions without the slightest mistake.
Snape patrolled around the classroom, mocking every student except those from Slytherin.
His saliva practically flew everywhere as he spoke, like a showerhead spraying venom in every direction.
The Gryffindor students received especially special attention.
Just before class ended, Hermione successfully brewed an excellent quality Cure for Boils.
Snape picked it up, examined it carefully, and even smelled it.
Without saying a word, he merely nodded to indicate that it had passed.
Expecting him to praise a Gryffindor student was harder than asking him to die.
“Mr. Hefis, perhaps your ears are stuffed with Gillyweed. I distinctly said to remove the cauldron from the fire when the potion turned pale green.”
Fel’s potion had also turned out fairly well.
After being showered with Snape’s venom twice, he finally managed to brew a qualified Cure for Boils.
“Good heavens! Neville Longbottom! I told you to add the porcupine quills after taking the cauldron off the fire!”
Fel turned around and saw enormous bubbles rising from Neville’s potion.
With a loud pop, they burst, splashing Neville’s face and the clothes of the students beside him.
Countless red boils immediately appeared across Neville’s face.
Snape pulled out his wand.
“Scourgify!”
The spilled potion on the table and the splashes covering the nearby students instantly disappeared.
Furious, Snape ordered Seamus to escort Neville to the Hospital Wing, where Madam Poppy Pomfrey was.
“Because of certain students’ stupidity, Gryffindor will lose five points!”
By the end of class, only a little over a dozen students had barely completed their potions, and Harry was among them.
After enduring an entire lesson, Harry felt as though he had practically drowned in Snape’s flying spit.
He was completely overwhelmed.
Even though he had managed to produce a barely acceptable potion, Snape still mocked him without mercy.
Harry swore this would become both his least favorite class and his least favorite professor.
“Don’t let it bother you, Harry. Snape is Slytherin’s Head of House.”
“My brothers told me that besides Slytherin, he targets students from every other house, constantly deducting points so Slytherin can win the House Cup!” Ron said indignantly.
Harry could not help laughing, and his mood immediately improved.
However, Fel felt somewhat depressed.
So far, both in Transfiguration and Potions, he could indeed be considered talented, but compared with Hermione, there was still a considerable gap.
He always felt that there was some hidden talent within himself that had yet to be awakened.
After thinking it over, Fel decided it did not really matter.
What belonged to Hermione was also his.
These subjects were only supplementary anyway, and from the very beginning, he had never planned on mastering every course seriously.
As long as his Charms were powerful enough…
Fel casually touched the left sleeve of his school robe.
His wand was hidden inside the pocket sewn into it, allowing him to draw it instantly with his right hand.
When the neighbors stockpile food, I’ll stockpile guns.
Then my neighbors become my food supply.
Unlike Professor McGonagall, Snape was not so easygoing.
He immediately assigned four inches of parchment as homework, requiring everyone to analyze the precautions involved in brewing the Cure for Boils.
When class ended, it was only four o’clock.
Harry and Ron walked back toward the dormitory in a daze, needing some time to recover emotionally.
Fel turned to Hermione and said, “I’m going to ask Professor McGonagall about the truth regarding my mother. Do you want to come?”
Hermione was practically family to him, so she naturally had the right to know these things.
Hermione pursed her lips.
“No, Fel. I think it’s better if you go alone. If there’s anything I’m allowed to know, you can tell me afterward.”
Fel nodded.
“Hermione, you can go to the library first, finish the homework, and borrow some other books while you’re there.”
“I’ve heard Hogwarts’ library has the largest and most complete collection of magical books in the wizarding world. I’ll come find you there afterward.”
The moment books were mentioned, Hermione immediately became energetic.
She excitedly nodded, took Fel’s school bag, and hurried away.
After running several yards, Hermione suddenly turned back.
“Fel, no matter what happens, you still have your family, and you also have… me.”
Her cheeks flushed slightly as she spoke hesitantly.
“You know… Dad and Mum have always considered you part of the family.”
Fel smiled.
“Of course. We’ll always be family!”
…
Professor McGonagall’s office was on quite a high floor. The source of this chapter is g.com.
After spending some time searching, Fel finally found it.
Knock, knock, knock!
“Come in!” Professor McGonagall’s voice came from inside.
“Oh, Fel. Are you… here to ask about your mother?”
Seeing Fel enter, Professor McGonagall put down her pen and stood up to greet him.
“Yes, Professor,” Fel replied with a nod.
“This… is a rather long story. Sit down first, Fel.”
Professor McGonagall gestured for Fel to sit on the sofa by the wall before taking the seat beside him.
She gathered her thoughts, wondering where to begin.
“Fel, you are not a Muggle born wizard. You are a half blood wizard. Your mother, Isa Bella, was a witch.”
“Of course, after graduating and marrying your father, she changed her surname and became Isa Hefis.”
Fel nodded.
“I know. Wizards wouldn’t remember an ordinary Muggle. Mr. Ollivander said he remembered my mother coming to buy her wand.”
Professor McGonagall let out a sigh.
“She was one of my finest students, but when you were six years old, she met with an accident…”
“No, I shouldn’t call it an accident. It was murder.”
Fel’s eyes immediately became razor sharp, and his brows furrowed deeply, but he did not interrupt Professor McGonagall.
“You must understand one thing, Fel. Not every wizard is a good person.”
“More than a decade ago, there appeared an incredibly powerful and evil Dark Wizard whose beliefs placed pure blood above everything else. He wanted to rule the wizarding world and even sought to eliminate those who were not pure blood.”
Fel nodded.
“You Know Who.”
According to Dumbledore in the original story, Voldemort was the strongest and most dangerous Dark Wizard in recorded history.
In terms of raw power alone, he had surpassed the previous Dark Lord, Gellert Grindelwald, although his personal charisma fell far short of Grindelwald’s.
Voldemort had enchanted his own name so that anyone who spoke it could be detected.
Fel wisely chose to refer to him as You Know Who.
Professor McGonagall still looked haunted by those memories.
“Those were dark times. Many Dark Wizards followed him, and countless people lost friends and family.”
“But fortunately, he failed. I don’t know exactly how he was defeated. You’ve probably heard that Harry defeated You Know Who, but I don’t know the details. In any case, after that night, You Know Who disappeared.”
“But although You Know Who disappeared, the people who followed him, the ones we call Death Eaters, did not.”
Professor McGonagall’s expression became solemn.
“Some Death Eaters switched sides and successfully cleared their names, while others resisted until the very end. It took years to capture and hunt them down.”
She looked directly at Fel.
“Isa wasn’t only one of my finest students. She was also our comrade, helping us fight against the Death Eaters.”
“Dumbledore and I had already decided to invite Isa to join our organization, but just before that…”