Snape appearing here was the worst possible news.
It meant Gryffindor's good days were officially over.
"Ten points from Gryffindor, Potter." That familiar tone made Harry's whole body stiffen.
Snape said in that deeply unpleasant voice, "Detention tonight."
"Snape?" Harry blurted out automatically when he saw that sallow, long face.
"It seems you still haven't learned basic manners," Snape said, lifting his eyelids just enough to glare. "Five more points for disrespecting a professor."
Harry was doubled over, clutching his stomach after Malfoy had landed two punches, dry heaving against the wall.
He would swear on anything that if he actually vomited, Snape would absolutely deduct more points for "dirtying the floor."
He glared viciously at Malfoy.
Malfoy folded his arms and gave him a silent, taunting smile.
"He started it!" Harry protested. "Malfoy came over looking for trouble!"
"I have eyes, Potter," Snape said mockingly. "I clearly saw you rushing at him like a mad dog."
Holding back his fury, Harry headed toward the Great Hall.
Hermione helped Ron up—Ron had tried to jump in earlier but had ended up getting head-butted in the forehead by the back of Harry's skull.
Snape's lips curled upward slightly—he looked to be in an excellent mood.
Malfoy returned to the Slytherin table and immediately announced that Harry Potter's good days were officially over.
"Snape's finally come out of his office."
After being publicly shut down on the first day of term for the Defense Against the Dark Arts position, Snape had gone on strike for an entire month.
Now that he was back, it meant Potions class would return to his control.
Slughorn entered the Great Hall, his large belly wobbling as he approached the Slytherin table.
"Oh, wonderful, you're all here." Slughorn looked quite pleased.
He called out warmly, "How about joining me for dinner this evening? Malfoy, Miss Greengrass, Zabini—and of course, if John can make it, I'd be delighted."
He was eager to collect these promising "treasures."
Blaise immediately raised his hand. "Will Ginny Weasley be there?"
Slughorn chuckled. "How did you know? I already invited the lovely Miss Ginny Weasley on my way here."
That was it—Blaise looked like he wanted to sprint to Slughorn's office right away.
Malfoy was less thrilled. Miss Greengrass? That'd be Daphne.. What about Astoria?
But then Slughorn turned to the sisters sitting together and said, "I would be absolutely delighted if both Miss Greengrasses could honor me with their presence."
"Both of us?" Astoria pointed at herself, stunned. "I can go too?"
"Of course," Slughorn said warmly. "Your performance on the Quidditch pitch was truly impressive."
Astoria's showing during tryouts had completely won over the sharp-eyed Headmaster, and Malfoy suddenly found Slughorn far more agreeable.
Slughorn gave the sisters a slight bow and moved on to invite others.
John saw him heading toward the Gryffindor table and stopping Harry and his friends.
"Amazing, Asto. I knew you'd get an invitation." Malfoy really was two-faced—one attitude in public, another in private.
He cheerfully congratulated Astoria and even reached out, almost attempting a head-pat, but Daphne's murderous glare forced him to abort immediately.
"John, are you going?" Daphne asked.
"I've got things to do," John said, not explaining what those things were. "Keep an eye on Blaise. I swear he's acting like he's chugged a whole bottle of Amortentia."
At that, Daphne looked toward the overly excited Blaise.
In matters of romance, the boy was as reckless as a rutting monkey.
If John weren't an alchemist capable of verifying Blaise wasn't under a love potion, he might've suspected the boy had been dosed at some point.
Blaise's antics were already spreading across the table at alarming speed.
Evening came, and it was time for the gathering.
Slughorn was now Headmaster, so his authority had grown, though he hadn't taken things too far.
He had rearranged the furniture in his office, setting a round table in the center.
A sand timer sat on his desk, green sand trickling steadily downward.
The invited students arrived. Of the trio, only Hermione came.
Harry skipped it under the pretext of detention, and Ron—of course—hadn't been invited at all.
Several students attended.
Gryffindor's new Keeper, Cormac McLaggen, and Ginny Weasley.
Malfoy, the Greengrass sisters, and Blaise.
There was also a witch named Melinda Bobbin, one of Daphne's roommates, whose family owned a major chain of apothecaries.
A notorious chatterbox, Ernie Macmillan, was also brought along—for reasons Slughorn alone seemed to understand.
A Headmaster hosting a private dinner for students sounded absurd, but Slughorn was precisely the sort of man who would do it.
He glanced around the room and immediately noticed his two favorite students weren't there.
Still, he presented an assortment of magically chilled, never-melting ice cream—colorful, studded with nuts, and irresistibly delicious-looking.
The banquet concluded.
McLaggen tried flirting with Hermione and was promptly rejected, leaving her deeply uncomfortable.
Blaise tried showering Ginny with attention, was rejected as well, and nearly got hit with a Bat-Bogey Hex for his trouble.
Malfoy made a move on Astoria—she didn't refuse, but Daphne threatened to hang him up in the common room.
Ernie, ever the chatterbox, enthusiastically chatted away with Slughorn, while Melinda carried her usual air of melancholy.
After the dinner ended, Malfoy was indeed hung from the Slytherin common room's fireplace mantle.
Whether it helped digestion was unclear.
Hearing Daphne recount the scene, John couldn't help laughing.
He raised his wand to bring Malfoy down, then folded up the Evening Prophet.
"Have a cup of hot mulled wine. It'll help you sleep better."
He set the paper on the table. The bold headline on the front page read:
"Ancient Pure-blood Family: Rozier Residence Attacked"
…
Monday.
It was destined to be a bloody day.
John increased the Zouwu's exercise load during Care of Magical Creatures, hoping to burn off the excess energy that came with its mating season.
Hagrid had originally wanted to find a suitable creature for crossbreeding experiments with the Zouwu, but when John saw he had chosen a Manticore, he decided it was better not to let humanity slip any further.
Hagrid's honest, bumbling exterior almost made John forget—this was a man who specialized in crossbreeding experiments.
Blast-Ended Skrewts were a brand-new species Hagrid had created through hybridization.
The Zouwu, blissfully unaware that its dignity had just been saved, happily chased after the bouncing furball.
John used Levitation Charm to grab the furball and toss it toward Grawp. Grawp gripped his club and swung hard, sending the ball soaring across the forest.
Seeing it fly so far, Grawp danced in excitement.
With the Zouwu keeping him active, Grawp had even stopped his tree-pulling habit.
The morning class ended in this energetic chaos.
After a quick stop at the Constellation Society, John returned to the Great Hall and saw Gryffindor's hourglass at the top while Slytherin had dropped to third place.
Malfoy stormed into the Hall, livid. He'd lost a full twenty points in Defense Against the Dark Arts.
Even idiots like Goyle and Crabbe had managed to get points deducted.
By the afternoon—
In the dungeon classroom, the rotund Slughorn finally didn't have to teach anymore.
The moment Snape entered, the air pressure in the room seemed to drop.
He swept his gaze across the classroom and noticed John wasn't there.
He chose to ignore it.
The pressure on the Gryffindors intensified—they were desperately trying not to make mistakes.
And naturally, the harder they tried, the more mistakes they made.
When Ron added a piece of horseradish, his hand trembled slightly.
The Laughing Potion in his cauldron began bubbling violently, releasing steam that caused anyone who inhaled it to burst into uncontrollable laughter.
The entire classroom erupted with laughter, as if they weren't in Snape's class at all.
The result was that when John visited the Great Hall again, Gryffindor's hourglass had dropped significantly, while Slytherin had climbed up behind them.
Then came the second Defense Against the Dark Arts class—Slytherin dropped again, Gryffindor rose.
Second Potions class—Gryffindor dropped, Slytherin rose.
At this point, even the dullest student could see the undercurrent between the two professors.
For instance, Sirius would crack jokes in class mocking a certain greasy-haired, large-nosed professor.
Snape, in response, brewed a potion that could treat fractures—and made sure to note that it worked especially well on the left ribs.
The jab was aimed at someone who'd had his ribs kicked in more than once—while conveniently docking Gryffindor more points.
Under such fierce competition, the two houses' scores shifted constantly.
John remarked, "If George and Fred were here, they'd definitely start a betting pool to see who laughs last."
This back-and-forth rivalry continued until October, when they made their first Hogsmeade trip of the school year.
Almost no one stayed behind—everyone was afraid of being caught by either of the two professors and losing points over nothing.
Even Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, innocent bystanders in this feud, left the castle in droves.
The castle instantly became quiet and empty.
________
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