Chapter 144: Snape's Potion
Lockhart noticed a subtle thing.
Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix's "Savior" title, promoted for over a decade, had a very useful aspect.
That is, for someone as luminous as Harry Potter, if you deliberately wished for your own existence to be obscured, people would truly only see the Savior on stage.
Snape exploited this.
The Ministry of Magic's full-scale operation to capture the criminal Corban Yaxley had been so immense, affecting all aspects of society. Once Corban was actually caught, the Ministry's propaganda and the reporters' chase for hot news further propelled Lockhart's reputation to an even more sensational degree.
But look at the reports from major newspapers and the Ministry's communiqués: Our Hero: Professor Lockhart and His Students.
Not once was Severus Snape mentioned.
This was intentional on Snape's part. He had his own mission and couldn't openly stand against Voldemort. Such a public profile would hinder his future as a spy.
Yes, he was still following his previous line of thinking.
To become a spy, infiltrate the Death Eater ranks, gather a large amount of intelligence on Voldemort—and then what? Hand this intelligence to Dumbledore, and then hope that this powerful wizard or "Savior" Harry Potter, aided by the Order of the Phoenix, would defeat Voldemort?
Snape had keenly felt that he was beginning to resist this approach.
Because, hope had already risen in his heart; he was starting to yearn to defeat Voldemort himself. Such an approach now seemed merely an escape, a continuation of his past cowardice.
Cowardice had made him lose Lily, cowardice had made him lose magic. In the end, he gained nothing, absolutely nothing.
He wasn't like Lockhart; he was a normal person, a normal person yearning for "success" as defined by the mundane world.
He longed for accomplishment and renown, otherwise he wouldn't have been moved by Lockhart's words to write a book, shaping his own authoritative image and vindicating his past life.
He also yearned for a complete life, otherwise he wouldn't have obsessed over losing Lily.
He simply lacked a bit of courage.
And now, he was beginning to crave courage, even if it was a little late.
But, he truly had changed. He actually genuinely felt it was only "a little late." Before, he only felt his life was over, that the coming days were meaningless. But with Lockhart's appearance, he slowly began to feel that his life might have only just begun.
He was only 32. He still had a future, even a future without Lily…
Lockhart was right.
If he wasn't willing, no one could force him. Sometimes he couldn't keep weakly deceiving himself; he truly had begun to yearn for his future life.
Even if the initial motivation for doing so was to gain more powerful magical ability, then to fight Voldemort, to avenge Lily.
This was a terrifying vortex.
Let go of Lily in his heart, step into the future, then he could gain the power to avenge Lily.
The logic was sound, but there was a problem—if he truly could let go of Lily in his heart and find meaning in life, then could he truly still be steadfast in avenging Lily?
This terrifying vortex ripped at him savagely.
Three days after returning to Hogwarts, Snape, deeply immersed in a life choice, standing at a crossroads, finally stopped brooding alone. For the first time, he tried to open his heart and ask his good friend Lockhart for his thoughts.
But he was wrong.
Lockhart wouldn't have any brilliant thoughts.
He wasn't some life guru.
"Hahahaha..." Lockhart laughed almost maniacally. "That's just how life is, you can never fully figure it out. It's always this push and pull, mate. That's life, understand?"
It was as good as saying nothing.
Snape got no answers.
So Lockhart gave an example: magic.
"Magic is inherently chaotic. Before young wizards enter Hogwarts and receive magical education, their magic can help them do anything, like making things float, or even flying themselves to the rooftop." (Just like Harry Potter.)
"But after entering school, they lose that ability. They learn the Levitation Charm, and some can't even make a feather float anymore."
"Why is this? Because we start to develop will in magic. It imbues magic with specific properties, causing it to become biased."
"This characteristic bias, at its most extreme state, is actually an Obscurus."
"See? From chaos to specific characteristics, from characteristics to extremes—don't you see? Pure extremity will only turn a wizard into a monster. This self-pulling, this push and pull, is the path to the soul's redemption."
Lockhart spread his hands. "Mate, this is life."
"It's inherently difficult, but that's the meaning of life!"
Snape fell silent, sitting blankly on the office windowsill, staring blankly out the window.
Lockhart didn't mind him, burying himself in the final revisions for the manuscript of Severus's Potions Classroom.
He had been regularly taking time to organize these manuscripts, including another book, Lord Voldemort: A Pure-Blood Supremacist with a Muggle Father? With more conversations and exchanges with Tom Riddle, he had accumulated a vast amount of material and ideas, and he was nearly finished.
"Oh, right."
Lockhart held up his quill, gesturing towards the simmering cauldron of seafood stew nearby. "What exactly is that thing? You've been busy with it for half a year. It seems like a good gimmick. Tell me about it; maybe we can include it in the book?"
Snape looked back at the cauldron, his expression complex. After a moment, he replied, "Life Unhinged—that's its name."
"???" Lockhart blinked. "What's it for?"
"A regret potion!" Snape scoffed. "You've heard that name before, right? From ancient times to the present, regret potions have been a field potions masters have longed to explore, but no one has ever successfully brewed one."
A regret potion?
Did such a thing truly exist in the world?
Lockhart put down his quill and curiously walked to the cauldron, looking down at the bubbling potion ingredients inside.
Honestly, helping to organize the Severus's Potions Classroom manuscript was also a learning process for him. Old Snape's book truly gave him an incredibly solid foundation in Potions.
This allowed him to instantly discern the complexity of the brew before him.
The changing colors of the potion, the complex magical currents, the constant shifting shapes within it made him feel like a high school student reading a calculus paper—he understood that it was profound, even if he didn't grasp the specifics.
"What are its effects?" he asked curiously.
"I don't know. I might never be able to successfully brew it," Snape exhaled deeply. "I don't even know what it's for."
He stood up and came to the cauldron, gently stirring it with his wand. After observing for a while, he poured some powder into it, watched the changes, then flicked his wand.
"This is the thirteenth regret potion I've attempted. Some failed in the past, some succeeded, but even the successful ones were useless; they still failed."
"Life Unhinged, the name of this 'regret potion,' is said to be able to penetrate the root of life, touch the realm of time, and reverse everything."
Lockhart's eyes lit up, and he quickly found parchment and a quill. "Yes, an excellent gimmick! It gives Severus's Potions Classroom an open ending, elevating the book's quality. Tell me in detail."
He gestured to the manuscript on the table. "Try to explain this potion with a difficulty level consistent with the end of the book, so readers can understand."
Snape resisted somewhat. "Write this content in? A regret potion is completely a fraud, fake!"
"Who knows?" Lockhart persuaded. "Mate, I've always stuck to this approach, teaching students unreservedly. Hey, guess what? I always get more interesting insights from them. Maybe you can't find the answer, but what if your readers do?"
He had always disagreed with the old saying from his previous life, "If you teach your apprentice everything, you starve your master." That only meant the master intended to rely solely on their current knowledge without further progress. Teaching isn't just about inheritance; it's also the superposition of two spiritual intellects, building ladders for each other.
Always maintain a student's mindset, never stop moving forward. Every improvement and flash of insight from a student allows the master to grow even more.
"Alright," Snape was persuaded.
He gestured for Lockhart to look into the cauldron, stirring the potion inside with his wand, carefully explaining each change to him.
Old Snape was actually a very reliable professor.
It's just that his teaching style only suited those with exceptional magical talent. Lockhart's talent was good, and he could keep up with this teaching pace.
Potions was an extremely fascinating subject.
It was a complex discipline, not just encompassing Herbology and Magical Creatures. Lockhart could even hear some elements of Transfiguration and Charms from Snape's explanations.
If one were to delve deeper, it would even require more of one's own understanding of magic.
This was also the root of Snape's constant ability to refine potions.
"Simply following potion recipes and steps won't work in the realm of advanced potions," Snape explained, trying to connect it to the content of Severus's Potions Classroom, gesturing with his wand. "The biggest difference between wizarding Potions and Muggle pharmacology is that we need to use wands."
"This doesn't just mean magic is involved; it also means we are involved, becoming an indispensable foundation for the potion's creation."
"Now you can understand, right? Our state of mind, our magical path, play an extremely crucial role in the potion's effect."
"Actually, the potion recipes young wizards encounter now are carefully chosen, not requiring too much in this regard. This helps young wizards master the basics quickly, but many wizards who stop here mistakenly believe that potions are just like this."
This was content Lockhart could understand.
The congruence between a wizard's magical path and magic itself—the principle was the same.
The conversation returned to the "Life Unhinged" potion before them. Snape began to seriously explain his philosophy of controlling magic. Lockhart tried to pick out content that wasn't too private to record, his eyes gleaming.
He began to form his own idea. "Hey, you know, what if this potion isn't working because you're brewing it wrong?"
"Hmm?" Snape narrowed his eyes, annoyed at the fellow daring to meddle in his area of expertise.
"Life Unhinged, yet your approach is control?" Lockhart gestured with both hands. "Of course, I don't know much about potions, but I understand magic. If you asked me to ponder a spell called 'Life Unhinged,' I would definitely let it enter an uncontrolled state."
Snape's brow furrowed. "That won't work in Potions. Letting a potion go out of control—you have no idea how terrible things could happen!"
Lockhart shrugged. "Lack of control is often the meaning of adventure. Magic will naturally blossom, and mystery will open itself up."
Neither of them could persuade the other, but this was merely an academic debate. Perhaps there was no right or wrong, only the choice of magical path.
Snape longed to control life, to prevent things from going awry, but alas, life cannot be controlled; it ultimately spiraled.
Lockhart yearned for adventure. Adventure often came with losing control, but he feared no loss of control, anticipating magic blossoming from it. Fortunately, he always succeeded.
Perhaps he was the one truly on the right path?
"I'll try it!" Snape finally said.
"???" Now it was Lockhart's turn to be stunned. He looked at him confused. "You'll try it?"
"Yes."
Snape gazed deeply at the bubbling potion in the cauldron. "I couldn't see the future. I'm beginning to yearn for it. Perhaps I should try to take a step of adventure, to try all possibilities."
"I'm willing to try it your way."
He couldn't remember when he started obsessing over regret potions. Perhaps it had been over a decade. He had brewed one after another, never succeeding.
So much so that by now, he was merely continuing out of habit, yet he no longer held any real expectation that the potion could actually be brewed successfully.
Perhaps it would never be brewed in his lifetime, he had always thought, clinging to a sliver of hope while truly being desperate.
So...
Why not try?
Whether it was potions, magic, or life, perhaps it was time for a change.
He quickly found some potion ingredients, calling Lockhart over to help him process them, guiding him through various techniques for preparing the ingredients. Soon, they had mixed a complex brew.
"Actually, this potion has been stagnant for several months. I know that if it continues like this, it will only end in failure. And the brew we're making now is meant to break this deadlock."
Snape had Lockhart write down the process he had just followed. "This is a potion brew I invented myself. It can break the balance during the potion-making process, revitalizing the potion."
As this brew was poured into the seafood potion in the cauldron, the liquid inside quickly began to boil, emitting vast amounts of strange, oily bubbles and a foul odor.
"Next..."
He waved his wand, clearing things in the office, tidying important items into cabinets protected by magic. He clutched a handful of potion powder, staring at the pot.
Lockhart swallowed, somewhat nervously watching the scene, his wand clutched tightly in his hand, ready to protect both himself and Snape from a potential explosion or other dreadful situation.
Boom!
As the powder was sprinkled in, the cauldron suddenly roared violently. The brew inside trembled rapidly as if containing a fire dragon. Eerie and profound magical light shot skyward, bathing the entire office in a shimmering glow.
A terrible repelling force filled the office, flinging surrounding tables and chairs against the walls. Lockhart and Snape were both forced into a corner.
The howling wind clawed and tore through the space like a demon.
"I never imagined such a change!"
Snape shouted excitedly, his eyes shining brightly, no longer holding their usual dark gloom, but filled with pure delight.
Yes, delight.
Just as Lockhart enjoyed magic, Snape was equally infatuated with potions.
"You're a madman too, Severus!"
Lockhart seized the chance to retort. Oh, it felt good; he had finally cursed him back. It felt great!
Snape didn't mind at all; he actually burst into hearty laughter, a frank, open laugh Lockhart had never seen before.
He raised his wand vigorously. "Gilderoy, you're right. Dark Arts are extreme; using them too much makes a wizard like a monster. Life always needs some push and pull!"
He resisted the fierce wind and repulsion step by step, walking towards the cauldron. "Life Unhinged. Sometimes, you have to let it get a little unhinged for us to truly find our place."
Lockhart braced himself against the wall behind him, nearly suffocating from the strong wind pushing against him, but he too burst into laughter. "Yes, yes, that's exactly how it should be!"
"Living numbly is meaningless! Dying numbly is even more foolish! Life should be allowed to blossom, to be spectacular. Such a passionate life is the most beautiful color of existence!"
"Even if it's fleeting because of it, what does that matter!"
He snatched up his wand, gripping it tightly, and slowly pushed forward against the powerful force. "Wait for me! Let me see what this seafood hotpot of yours tastes like!"
"It's a potion, you idiot!"
....
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