"It feels a bit strange without Dobby around," Pandora said, setting down the instrument in her hand. "I've actually grown rather fond of that little elf who loves freedom and work so much."
"Severus," Lily stood opposite her, frowning as she looked at Snape. "You still refuse to tell us what exactly happened to Dobby?" She took a deep breath. "You're not dabbling in any dangerous Dark Magic, are you?"
"You've both already gone to see Professor Dumbledore," Snape shrugged, walking to the long table and beginning to organize the potion ingredients Dobby usually handled. "He has vouched for me." Using the flat side of a silver dagger, he pressed down on a handful of Sleeping Beans. "And as the Professor told you, I'm bound to secrecy."
"But not even with us?" Lily asked anxiously. "I'm also a-"
"-Of course I trust you," Snape cut her off quickly. When he lifted his head and saw the two concerned faces before him, his expression softened unconsciously. "But this is for your own safety. I don't want you getting involved in these matters."
Pandora suddenly stepped forward. Her pale silver eyes fixed on him, glimmering with worry.
"If you're the one taking the risk, how can I not worry?" She slipped off the opal bracelet Snape had once given her. "Here. You wear it. I haven't used it for a long time."
Snape froze. Awkwardly scratching his hair, he felt a wave of guilt rise inside him.
"Don't worry," he straightened his back, a confident smile spreading across his face. "Come on, trust me. Don't you see who I am? Hogwarts' youngest Potions prodigy, the Duelling Championship winner, the President of the Student Council-"
He deliberately elongated his tone, only to see Pandora roll her eyes. "Anyway," he changed the subject, pointing toward the somewhat cluttered workbench, "do you two need another house-elf to help with chores? I can go to the kitchens and find one for you."
"No need," Lily shook her head. "We don't want to find someone to replace Dobby's work while he's petrified."
"Even though we don't know exactly what happened," Pandora nodded in agreement, "at least you said Dobby saved you. I'm not about to make him lose his job for that."
"Oh, fine." Snape replied, his gaze drifting unconsciously toward the wooden door. "When Dobby comes back, we must throw him a grand welcome party."
Coming back to his senses, he took Pandora's hand and slipped the bracelet back onto her wrist.
After a moment, Lily suddenly slapped her forehead. "The One Heart Society's event is about to start, Severus. We're supposed to do a sharing session today."
"What?" Snape lifted his head, only now remembering that it had already been over a week since he'd founded that club.
"There's an event tonight," Pandora said, pulling a crumpled piece of parchment from her pocket. "I'll be going too. Barty asked us to share our O.W.L. experiences with the other students." Lowering her head, she quickly scanned the parchment, her lips moving soundlessly.
"Seems fine. Let's do this," she murmured to herself, tucking the parchment away and giving Lily a little cheer-up gesture.
"Studying?" Snape couldn't help but say. "That's what your gatherings are about? How boring."
"You'll know when you go," Pandora glanced at him. "Coming with us?"
"You're the president," Lily said. "Aside from the first meeting, you haven't attended a single event since. You can't keep leaving everything to Barty and Abbott."
Snape smirked. It was true. Ever since founding the One Heart Society at the Duelling Club, he had tossed all the organization work to young Barty and Abbott. Thinking about it now, he did feel a little guilty.
"All right, I should check it out," he agreed. "I wonder how Barty's been doing."
"He's been doing great," Pandora said as she packed her bag. She pulled out two silver, star-shaped badges engraved with the number "1."
"Here. For you." She handed one to Snape. "Now about a quarter of the school has joined our club. To be precise, almost all Muggle-born wizards are part of it."
"You even have badges?" Snape said, surprised as he watched Pandora and Lily pin theirs to their robes. "How come I've never seen you wear them before?"
"That was Barty's idea," Lily said. "He had them made just a few days ago. Cost him quite a few Galleons too."
"All right, then I'll wear mine as well." Snape pinned the badge to his chest. "So where are they, oh, where are we holding the event?"
"A classroom on the second floor," Lily replied, walking toward the exit of the Room of Requirement. "Abbott got Professor Dumbledore's permission for it."
As they walked down the corridor, they passed several younger students. Each of them greeted Snape and his companions respectfully.
He nodded in acknowledgment, noticing that they, too, wore the same badges on their chests.
"Even first-years?" he asked quietly.
"Barty says to start them young," Lily explained with a laugh. "He's arranged different activities for each year group."
When they pushed open the classroom door on the second floor, Snape found the room far more spacious than it appeared from the outside, it was clearly under the effects of a space-expansion charm. More than twenty fourth- and fifth-year students sat together without feeling crowded.
Barty Crouch Jr. was already standing on the podium, his golden hair gleaming under the light. Beside him stood Abbott, both looking radiant and full of energy.
When they spotted Snape and the others, their eyes lit up and they hurried over immediately.
"Severus!" Abbott exclaimed, hugging him warmly, his voice slightly raised with excitement. "You finally came!"
"I thought you'd forgotten about us," Barty said, embracing Snape as well. "Come on, you're hosting tonight."
"No way," Snape waved his hands quickly. "You know I hate this kind of thing. I'm just here as a regular member tonight."
"But you're the founder," Barty insisted. "Everyone wants to hear you speak."
"I'll leave it to you," Snape said, finding a seat. "You've already handled so many meetings. I just want to see what you've all been up to."
"All right," Barty sighed, finally giving in. "But at least say a few words later."
At that moment, a small figure squeezed through the crowd.
"S–Snape... senpai!" came a stammering voice. Snape turned to see Quirrell looking at him with excitement. "I'm so happy you came!"
"Quirrell?" Snape asked. "What are you doing at an O.W.L. study session? You're only a first-year."
"I come whenever I can," Quirrell said, his face flushing red. "Even though tonight's event is for fourth and fifth years." He rubbed his fingers nervously. "I really like it here. Barty-senpai said I could come."
"Of course," Snape said, patting his shoulder. "I'm glad you do."
Lily and Pandora exchanged a glance, then offered, "Severus, why don't you sit with Quirrell? We'll sit behind you."
When everyone finally quieted down, Barty walked to the center of the podium. "Everyone," he said, gesturing toward Snape, "let's welcome our founder, Severus Snape!"
Applause erupted. Snape had no choice but to stand and nod in acknowledgment. He noticed the admiration in the students' eyes, something he didn't quite understand.
"I haven't even done anything," he thought. "Except for Quirrell, maybe they should be wary of me, but why are they all so enthusiastic?"
When Quirrell's hands finally stopped clapping, Barty announced, "We have three segments tonight."
Abbott waved his wand, and with a bang, a huge cake appeared in the middle of the classroom. Frosting on the top read, Happy Birthday, Ed!
"First, we're celebrating Ed Smith's birthday," Barty continued. "Then we'll have life-sharing, and finally, O.W.L. exam discussions."
As soon as he finished speaking, the candles lit themselves, and a chaotic rendition of the birthday song filled the room. The Muggle-born boy named Ed looked utterly shocked, his eyes turning red with emotion.
"Think of this school as your home, and of us as your brothers and sisters," Abbott said kindly, placing a birthday hat on Ed's head. "Now make a wish."
After the cheers, Abbott waved his wand again, slicing the cake and sending pieces to everyone.
Snape accepted a large slice that had been summoned with an Accio and immediately exchanged it with Quirrell's.
"This one's for you," Snape said, eating his cake while asking, "How have you been lately? Anyone still picking on you?"
"Only during the first few days," Quirrell mumbled through a mouthful of cake, shaking his head. "Ever since I joined the One Heart Society, not anymore." He swallowed, lowering his voice. "Barty-senpai even stood up for me once and taught two Ravenclaw students a lesson."
"That's great, Quirrell," Snape said with a smile. "By the way, when you reach third year, I recommend taking Professor Charity Burbage's Muggle Studies class..."
After the birthday celebration, Barty invited a few students to share updates about their lives. To everyone's surprise, one fifth-year Hufflepuff boy took the opportunity to confess his feelings to the girl sitting beside him, and she actually accepted.
The classroom burst into cheers and applause once again.
Swept up in the mood, Snape joined the clapping, until he suddenly felt someone pinch him hard on the back.
He inhaled sharply in pain and turned around at once, only to see Lily and Pandora still cheering for the young couple, leaving him no clue who the culprit was.
When he turned back, slightly annoyed, Barty had already written on the blackboard: "Complete Analysis of O.W.L. Syllabus and 100 Must-Practice Questions Before the Exam."
"Most of you here are either half-bloods or Muggle-borns," Barty said, his tone turning solemn as his voice echoed through the room, "or pure-bloods whose families have fallen on hard times."
"You may not realize yet how important this exam really is," he paused, scanning the faces before him. "But it determines whether you can take N.E.W.T.-level courses, and your grades in these two levels of study will directly shape your future after graduation."
The room was silent.
Barty continued, "Those born to prominent families, like I once was, are taught the importance of these exams from an early age and receive targeted training."
"Compared to them, we're already far behind." His voice rang out, clear and powerful. "And compared to the Muggle world, the wizarding world is even more brutal. We must start working now to prepare for the future."
"Many of you have been bullied by pure-bloods like me." His tone grew sharper. "But thanks to Severus Snape, we've united. Things have begun to change at school."
"But," he flicked his wand, and the Ministry of Magic's insignia appeared in midair, "if we want to protect ourselves and our friends from being bullied even after graduation, we must strive for better positions!"
"Maybe one day, you'll realize, they already hold high offices in the Ministry, they already possess significant wealth." His gaze swept across the students. "But when all else is equal, when they have no reason to reject us unfairly, don't forget, you are wizards and witches."
As he lifted his wand again, Snape sat frozen in astonishment.
Where had Barty learned all this? He was practically giving the Society a clear political vision.
Afterward, Lily and Pandora took turns speaking about study methods and exam strategies for Potions and Charms.
By the time the event ended, night had already fallen.
Students left in small groups. Each one who passed Snape, Barty, and Abbott stopped to thank them sincerely before heading out.
Snape noticed that Barty could call every student by name, and even knew about their families and academic difficulties.
"With the wizarding world's population being so small," Snape thought, "if this keeps up, forget old Barty, even the entire Ministry might not be able to rival young Barty one day."
When the last student left, Snape asked, "Barty, where did you learn all that?"
"Heh," Barty chuckled sheepishly. "After hearing how you used Muggle tools to make potions, I got inspired and secretly bought a few Muggle books. They explain things so thoroughly. I never expected they'd done so much research in these areas..."
"You did great," Snape said admiringly, patting him on the shoulder. "Why don't you just be our president? You're already running everything anyway."
Unexpectedly, the smile vanished from Barty's face. He suddenly grew serious.
"The One Heart Society will only ever have one president, and that's you, Severus." His blue eyes locked firmly on Snape's. "Please don't ever say that again."
"Oh... all right." Snape was moved despite himself. "Good comrades," he thought. "No problem," he said aloud. "Let's head back."
He resolved silently that he would start devoting more effort to the club from now on. Nurturing young wizards was not something to neglect.
The three of them descended the stairs together.
In the entrance hall, through the tall windows, Snape saw the silver light of the full moon spilling across the castle's stone walls.
Something suddenly occurred to him.
"You two go on ahead," he said to his companions. "I need to step out for a bit."
They looked at him in puzzlement, but Snape merely shook his head, signaling that he'd go alone.
Outside, it was utterly still, not even a breeze stirring.
Under the bright moonlight, the Whomping Willow stood motionless, looking completely harmless.