"Late and still looking smug?" Snape let out a cold snort. "Slytherin, minus five points!"
Anyone with half a brain could see it — Snape was clearly targeting Marius Cloud.
But Marius didn't react in the slightest. Instead, he glanced around the room.
"Anyone got a pocket watch I could borrow?"
Immediately, a Slytherin girl's cheeks flushed pink.
"I have one, Mr. Cloud!" she said, almost tripping over her own words.
Marius casually took the watch from her, and several other girls—who had also been reaching for theirs—froze mid-motion, gritting their teeth in frustration.
Damn it! Her hand was way too fast!
Snape's face twitched. Marius's calm disregard for him was like a slap to the face, making him shake with barely contained anger. He was just about to lash out when Marius spoke up.
"Professor," Marius said, glancing at the watch with a perfectly polite smile, "I have some good news for you. You can take back those five points you were so heartbroken to lose… because according to the timetable, there's still one minute before class officially starts. Technically, I'm not late."
He returned the watch to the girl with a graceful nod. "Punctuality, after all, is one of the core traditions of nobility."
Heartbroken? Over five points?
I'm shaking because you're insufferable, not because I care about the points!
Snape's inner monologue was pure venom, but he couldn't exactly say that aloud. Instead, he shot Marius the dirtiest glare he could muster, gave another cold snort, and dropped the subject.
Marius, satisfied with successfully irritating Snape, handed back the watch. The girl's blush deepened as their fingers brushed.
-----
"I heard Snape has a terrible temper. How come he didn't scold Marius Cloud at all? Are all the Slytherins just covering for him because they're the same kind of snakes?" Ron muttered, utterly baffled. This wasn't the satisfying scene of Snape tearing into Marius that he had expected.
"Hmph," Hermione scoffed from behind him. "If you had the kind of strength that could make the entire school bow to you, maybe you'd get special treatment from Professor Snape too."
The little witch was still harboring resentment over Ron's comments about Marius the night before, and she wasn't letting it go anytime soon.
Ron's face flushed a shade of crimson that seemed to come naturally to him. He opened his mouth but quickly shut it again. After witnessing Marius's power firsthand, he couldn't think of a single comeback.
This is the kind of strength that shuts people up, he thought grimly.
"Alright, enough," Harry sighed, feeling like he spent half his life breaking up fights between his two best friends. He'd only just met Hermione and Ron this year, but he already considered them both important to him. The trouble was… they couldn't seem to last five minutes without clashing.
Yet whenever Marius Cloud was mentioned, Harry's chest filled with admiration.
That feeling had been there from the very start, but as Marius's exploits spread like wildfire through the school, Harry's admiration only grew deeper.
"We're the same age… so how can Mr. Cloud be that powerful? It's amazing…" Harry murmured to himself. "If I could have even half—no, a tenth—of his strength, I'd be happy."
Looking at how Slytherin treated Marius, Harry couldn't deny it — this was every young boy's dream: the respect, the reputation, the power.
"Don't belittle yourself like that, Harry," Ron said, either trying to comfort him or to convince himself. "You're the Chosen One! The one who defeated you-know-who! Ha! No one's matched that in years. What's Marius Cloud compared to that?"
Hermione's tone turned icy. "For someone who's accomplished nothing, you're the last person who should be criticizing Marius Cloud."
Ron's face flamed even redder, this time from anger.
Harry mumbled, "But the thing is… I don't even remember defeating Voldemort. I was so young back then…"
Snape's attention snapped toward them at the mention of Harry's name. Marius noticed it instantly — that sharp, predatory stare locking onto the boy.
Like black smoke sweeping across the room, Snape strode forward, clearly having found the perfect outlet for the frustration Marius had just caused him.
"Potter!" Snape barked suddenly. "If I were to add powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood, what would the result be?"
Powdered what into what now? Harry sneaked a glance at Ron, only to see the same blank look staring back. Hermione, on the other hand, shot her hand into the air so fast it was a wonder it didn't leave her body entirely.
"I… I don't know," Harry admitted.
Snape's lips curled into a sneer.
He ignored Hermione completely. "Alright then, another question. If I asked you to find me a bezoar, where would you look?"
Hermione's hand shot up again, higher than before, but Harry still had no clue what a bezoar even was. He avoided looking at Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle, who were practically shaking with laughter.
"I… don't know, either," Harry said.
"Do you ever read ahead before class? Hmm? Potter?" Snape's voice dripped with disdain.
Harry forced himself to meet those cold, penetrating eyes. Sure, he'd glanced through the textbook before, but Snape couldn't possibly expect him to remember every single word after just one read-through, could he?
"And what," Snape continued, "is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?"
Hermione's hand shot up yet again, now nearly touching the ceiling.
"I don't know," Harry mumbled, his voice growing smaller with each answer. Some students started snickering.
He risked a glance at Marius Cloud, who happened to be watching him. Despite the situation, Harry felt a strange flicker of happiness at being noticed — even if it wasn't for anything good.
Snape, however, was anything but pleased. "Tsk, tsk… seems fame doesn't amount to much after all."
He was talking about Harry's "Savior" reputation, but what Snape had clearly forgotten was that the most famous person in the entire classroom… wasn't Harry Potter at all.
It was Marius Cloud.
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T/N:
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