[Chapter Size: 2300 Words.]
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Harry's anger was fully unleashed.
He completely ignored Amanda's actions, rushing straight to Snape's desk. He grabbed it with both hands and glared at Snape from across it.
"Potter, who taught you to speak back to your teachers? Hm, it seems you are exactly like your father. You inherited his personality entirely, a simple-minded, muscle-brained megalomaniac. I truly don't know how the Sorting Hat placed a slug like you in Slytherin…"
Snape watched Harry coldly, his words listing Harry's faults like bullets fired from a gun.
Harry lowered his head. His black hair fell over his eyes, revealing only a face flushed with fury, the veins on his forehead standing out sharply.
Amanda and Draco exchanged a look, instantly understanding each other's thoughts. But just as they were about to step forward, Harry lowered his head further and murmured a single sentence.
"Professor, I have something I'd like to give you."
Amanda froze in surprise. Draco did as well.
"What is he thinking?" Draco whispered, mimicking his own voice in a dramatic tone.
Amanda shrugged and murmured back.
"How would I know?"
As soon as Harry finished speaking, he magically pulled a bottle from inside his robes. It didn't look like a hair-restoring potion or anything similar, but rather a Muggle bottle of shampoo.
Amanda assumed Harry had brought it from the Dursleys' house.
Draco's eyes widened. "By Merlin's beard! So that's why you ran back to the dormitory during dinner…"
"Um… actually, I brought a few extra with me when term started, thinking you might find them useful, Professor."
Harry looked at Snape expectantly, his face still flushed, as if it were on fire, whether from anger or embarrassment, it was hard to tell.
His thick lashes fluttered slightly, and his emerald-green eyes shone so brightly they seemed almost liquid. Snape's expression froze, as if he had turned to stone, staring at Harry without blinking.
His face remained cold and unreadable. Harry couldn't help swallowing.
Amanda and Draco both felt a surge of worry for him. They exchanged another look.
Amanda pointed toward the door, and Draco nodded solemnly. They lifted their feet in unison and slowly backed away.
Prepare to evacuate this office unnoticed before Snape's oppressive presence crushes you.
After what felt like an eternity, Snape's eyebrows twitched upward abruptly. He turned away at once and bent down to inspect the potion simmering in the cauldron.
A few strands of hair fell from his shoulders, partially concealing his pale, gaunt face.
"Do not expect preferential treatment by giving gifts to professors. And besides, a rapid hair-smoothing solution is far superior to this kind of shampoo used by Muggles."
He did not restrain himself from belittling Harry once again. The light in Harry's bright green eyes dimmed instantly.
"I'm sorry, Professor…" Harry said dejectedly.
"Thank you for your kindness, Potter," Snape said quietly, his voice low and muffled.
It felt like being enveloped in a cloud of potion mist. Instantly, Harry's mouth stretched all the way to his ears.
…
"Did you hear that? Did you hear that? Amanda, did you hear it? Draco, did you hear it? Snape actually said thank you! Thank you…"
On the way back to the Slytherin common room, Harry kept repeating the same phrases over and over. From time to time, he would even run happily around them, chirping like a little bird.
No, actually, that wasn't quite right. It would be more accurate to describe him as a buzzing bee.
Although Amanda and Draco had also been deeply shocked by Snape's response, they were already fed up with the situation thanks to Harry's relentless enthusiasm.
"Harry, if you say that one more time, I will use the Tongue-Tying Curse on you."
Amanda drew her wand and pointed it at him.
"No!"
Harry raised his hands and quickly hid behind Draco.
"I won't say anything else, I won't, I swear. But aren't you both surprised?"
Draco pursed his lips.
"Snape's reaction… honestly shocked me. After all, the Snape, famous for his sharp tongue, has never spoken politely to my father."
Amanda was thinking the same thing.
It was unclear whether it was Harry's green eyes that caused this reaction, or if it was simply the first time in many years that someone other than Lily had truly cared about him.
"But it seems like a good thing," Amanda said, patting Harry on the shoulder.
"Harry, the mission of winning Snape's favor and learning some secret potion-brewing techniques from him is officially entrusted to you."
As soon as they returned to the Slytherin common room, they found several younger students gathered around the notice board at the foot of the stairs, completely blocking the passage.
Amanda stretched out her hand and helplessly pushed her way through the crowd.
Blaise was also squeezed in among them. When he noticed the trio, he turned around and shouted,
"Draco, come take a look! I guarantee you'll be interested!"
"What?" Draco glanced casually at the board, but his eyes immediately locked onto it.
"Harry, Amanda, look!"
Following his gaze, Amanda tiptoed forward, peering over the heads of several students. A simple notice was pinned to the board, and beneath it was a photograph of an older student riding a broomstick.
The student was flying through the sky, waving cheerfully at them and even blowing a kiss.
…
Notice
Starting next week, every Thursday afternoon, Slytherin and Gryffindor classes will have Flying lessons together.
Rolanda Hooch
September 8, 1991
…
"We're going to have Flying class!" Harry shouted excitedly.
Amanda felt relieved to see that he had finally stopped repeating Snape's words. Instead, he launched into an enthusiastic discussion about Quidditch, constantly asking Amanda and Draco about every detail of flying on a broomstick.
Amanda shrugged. "I don't think there's anything to worry about. Just let it go, and things will work out naturally."
Harry looked a little uneasy. "Let it go? You're a genius at this sort of thing. You should ask Draco."
Amanda immediately let out a sigh of relief. Fortunately, Draco found the situation quite enjoyable.
He lifted his chin proudly, first praising his own flying skills and then, like an experienced Quidditch player, enthusiastically pointing out several precautions Harry should take when flying a broom.
"First, after you get on the broom, you have to push off hard. The stronger, the better."
Harry nodded, looking as though he understood.
"Draco… what if I push off and it doesn't lift?"
"Hm… I suppose your flying skills are definitely worse than mine, but I don't believe even a fool like Neville would be unable to take off."
Amanda sat on the dark green velvet sofa in the common room, resting her chin on her hand as she listened to Draco's eloquent lecture.
She couldn't help wondering what expression would appear on Draco's face when he discovered that Harry was also a flying prodigy during Thursday's Flying lesson.
It would probably be even more astonishing than the wide range of flavors in Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans.
Although it was unlikely that the Slytherin Quidditch team would recruit more first-years at the moment, given the outstanding abilities of its current players, it was reasonable to assume that the two of them might end up playing Quidditch together in their second year.
She recalled that in the original story, Draco joined the Slytherin Quidditch team in his second year by sponsoring each member with a Nimbus 2001, though his own flying talent had always been quite impressive as well.
Sometimes it was hard to imagine that Draco, who had loved causing trouble and making life difficult for the main trio in the original story, was actually a diligent student who valued friendship and carried a strong sense of responsibility.
Thinking back on the original plot, Draco had also been a Slytherin prefect. He excelled at Quidditch, achieved outstanding grades in Potions, even made it into the advanced Potions class, and his overall academic performance was second only to Hermione's. On top of that, he was always surrounded by a large group of friends.
That was probably why it was easy to view Harry through the biased lens of his archenemy.
Still, it had to be admitted that, at least objectively speaking, Draco was an excellent student.
…
Whether it was psychological or not, Amanda felt that students from the other Houses had become noticeably friendlier toward them after receiving Lucius's gift that morning.
At the very least, they were no longer followed by whispered curses and insults like those that had accompanied them when they returned from the Forbidden Forest on Saturday. Back then, whenever they turned a corner in the corridor, they would often see people spitting angrily behind their backs.
The attitude of Draco and his family proved one thing: Draco had definitely not been harmed by her and Harry.
It was unclear whether this was because the Hufflepuffs were simply too honest and upright, or because they had been influenced by Cedric.
In any case, one morning on the way to class, a Hufflepuff boy ran up to the three of them, his face flushed. He bowed deeply and shouted, "I'm sorry!"
They barely had time to get a good look at him before he hurried off to the other side of the corridor.
On another occasion, during lunch in the Great Hall, Lavender Brown hurried over to the Slytherin table to ask Amanda a few questions.
"Um… Merlin, we have some questions for you. We thought it would be better if you answered them yourselves. What happened to you in the Forbidden Forest that day? What exactly happened to Malfoy?"
She looked a little nervous, occasionally glancing toward the Patil twins and several other students whose names Amanda didn't recognize. The Patil sisters quickly gave her an encouraging thumbs-up.
"Students from Gryffindor and Ravenclaw are very curious about it, uh… but they're too scared to come over."
"Professor Snape forbade us from telling anyone about it. Draco was injured… It was a terrible scheme by a Dark wizard. We barely escaped death. However, there are a few things I can tell you."
Amanda leaned closer, and Lavender instinctively took a step back.
"Come here." Amanda beckoned to her.
Lavender hesitated for a moment, then glanced back at the Gryffindor table before finally stepping closer.
"Tell them to be careful of Professor Quirrell, but don't spread this around."
Amanda whispered in her ear.
"Professor Quirrell?"
Lavender swallowed hard.
"Yes. You know… it's not that we're certain. We don't have proof, and neither do the professors."
Lavender stole a glance toward Professor Quirrell, who was eating at the staff table, but Amanda blocked her line of sight with a hand.
"Don't look. You'll draw his attention. This must not be told to anyone, and you can't say I told you. Just be careful of him, understood?"
She deliberately emphasized the words be careful.
Lavender nodded solemnly.
"Thank you, Merlin. I'll make sure everyone remembers."
Amanda reiterated that she must keep it secret and act discreetly.
"I understand, and…" Lavender hesitated. "Although we Gryffindors don't like Malfoy very much, considering what he suffered at the hands of a Dark wizard, please pass along our condolences."
She glanced at Draco, her expression torn between conflict and sympathy.
"Alright. Thank you," Amanda replied.
After several days of taking Snape's potions, combined with Lucius bombarding him with every imaginable tonic and restorative draught, Draco had nearly fully recovered.
Once Lavender left, Harry took a bite of his minced meat pie and asked, "Amanda, didn't Snape forbid us from saying any of that?"
"Well, I didn't say anything specific. I only quietly warned them to be careful around Professor Quirrell." Amanda shrugged.
Harry still looked puzzled. "But we don't have any proof pointing to Professor Quirrell."
"Then we become rumor-spreaders, and not entirely without basis." Amanda smiled mysteriously.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lavender hurry back to Gryffindor and whisper something urgently into the Patil twins' ears. Their expressions changed dramatically in an instant.
Confusion, doubt, and fear crossed their faces, and soon they couldn't help whispering to the students beside them.
"This way," Amanda said softly, "by drawing the attention of most students to Professor Quirrell, someone will inevitably keep an eye on him for us, making it much harder for him to slip away and do certain things."
Draco dipped a finger into the pea gravy and nodded. "After all, we have plenty of other matters to handle, and the Godfather is very busy. He can't keep watch on Professor Quirrell all the time."
Harry nodded, then remembered something else.
"But… he could take advantage of the night, when everyone is asleep, to carry out his plan."
"That's the only concern, but the Boss seems to be in charge of part of the night patrols, so we can relax for now," Draco said.
Amanda tightened her grip on the Philosopher's Ring and checked the books and parchments she needed to bring that afternoon.
"After what happened in the Forbidden Forest, the professors will certainly be on high alert. We don't need to worry too much for the time being."
For the next period, they would finally be able to enjoy some peace. But on Halloween night, Quirrell would likely still cause trouble.
After all, everyone would be preparing for the feast, and no one would be keeping an eye on Professor Quirrell. Not even Filch would choose to skip the banquet just to patrol the castle.
This was the day Hogwarts was at its least vigilant, and the perfect opportunity for Quirrell to strike.
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