Harry strongly agreed, but seeing Ivan relentlessly feeding Bertie Bott's beans to Scabbers, he couldn't help but speak up.
"Ivan, if you keep feeding him like that, Scabbers is going to burst."
Hearing Harry say this, Hermione, who had been about to ask another question, also shifted her attention to the rat in Ron's hand.
The once-scrawny rat with matted fur now looked completely different.
After getting covered in dust from its frantic dash around the dormitory, Scabbers had been given a thorough cleaning by Ron with a brush. Combined with the constant feeding over the past few days, he was now noticeably a little fatter.
"How could he? This is a normal amount of food. Scabbers was getting too thin before; he should be getting extra meals!" Ivan insisted, once again holding a bean out to Scabbers's mouth.
"Besides, this is also my way of apologizing," Ivan added.
Scabbers, however, showed no signs of accepting the apology. He glared angrily at Ivan, arrogantly batting his hand away with a tiny paw.
Only when Scabbers realized his little paws were no match for Ivan's strength did he finally take a bite of the bean offered to him.
After all, he seemed to think, it's right at my mouth. No matter how angry I am, I still have to eat, right?
And it's not like I can resist anyway...
Hmm... actually, if you taste them carefully, besides a few odd ones, these beans are quite tasty...
Noticing the weakening resistance from Scabbers, Ivan couldn't help but marvel at how, after so many years of hiding, Peter Pettigrew's mindset had become so resilient, even if he was useless at everything else.
Just a few nights ago, he had been hunted by the person he feared most, yet after just one night, he was able to feast heartily again.
Even if that pursuit had only been in a dream...
But this also meant that Peter Pettigrew didn't know about the obscure dark spell, the Fear Spell. Perhaps he just thought Ivan had used some magic to turn his sweet dream into a nightmare...
After all, there was no reason for a young wizard like Ivan to know about the events of eleven years ago, let alone that Sirius Black's Animagus form was a black dog.
"What if he gets too fat?" Ron asked with some concern, looking at the "special attention" Ivan was giving Scabbers.
"It's fine. Scabbers doesn't have to deliver mail. Fattening him up will also keep him from running around," Ivan said reassuringly.
Ivan thought to himself that if it weren't for Peter Pettigrew, Voldemort's plan for resurrection would never have succeeded so easily.
When the time came, he would fatten Scabbers up into a ball. Ivan wanted to see if Scabbers could still run when being chased by Crookshanks and Sirius Black.
Chatting amongst themselves, the group headed towards the dungeons where the Potions classroom was located.
By the time they walked into the classroom, Harry and Ron were a few degrees more convinced of the rumor that Snape was a dark wizard.
The classroom wasn't large, but the atmosphere was gloomy and terrifying. Glass jars lined the walls, filled with blue-green liquids. In some, you could vaguely see the bodies of animals submerged within.
Coupled with the fact that the classroom was located in the dungeons, if Ivan didn't know this was Hogwarts, he would have thought it was some dark wizard's secret laboratory.
"Let's get to our seats, quick! We have to be careful this lesson!" Ron said.
At this point, Ron no longer had any doubt about what George had told him. He hurriedly pulled Ivan, Harry, and Hermione into their seats, lest they give Snape a reason to deduct points.
However, Ivan knew in his heart that even if they behaved perfectly for the entire lesson, Snape would still invent a reason to find fault with them.
BANG~
Just as the young wizards from both houses had settled down, the gloomy door was suddenly thrown open with force. The sound of the door slamming against the wall echoed relentlessly in the classroom.
A moment later, a gaunt figure walked in from the doorway. His sallow skin was hidden beneath a long, black cloak, and his cold eyes swept over the students, pausing only briefly when they landed on Harry. His hooked nose made him look like a giant, humanoid bat...
Snape strode to the front of the class. With a wave of his wand, the curtains on the windows drew themselves shut. Without the sunlight filtering into the dungeon classroom, the room immediately became much darker.
As the light dimmed, Ivan clearly noticed Snape's tense expression relax slightly.
After doing all this, the Potions master picked up the register and surveyed the young wizards, who were all intimidated by his presence.
"I will now be taking attendance. I hope no one dares to play the disappearing act in my class!"
Snape's low voice began to echo in the classroom. The usually mischievous students were all dead silent. At this moment, only Draco Malfoy of Slytherin could manage a smile.
"Neville Longbottom."
"Ivan Hals..."
...
"Harry Potter..."
When he read Harry's name, there was a slight fluctuation in Snape's otherwise flat tone.
"Ah... yes. I almost forgot," Snape said, his face expressionless, but his words seemed to carry a hint of sarcasm. "We have a new celebrity in our school!"
Upon hearing this, the surrounding students all looked towards Harry. Draco and his two cronies were even snickering amongst themselves.
Being targeted for no reason made Harry feel uncomfortable, but what he didn't know was that this was only the beginning.
Snape turned his head away from Harry and addressed everyone.
"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion-making."
"As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes..."
Snape paused here, then continued in a mesmerized tone.
"...the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses... I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death — if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach."
After his long speech, Snape suddenly spoke again.
"Potter! What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"
Harry was completely blank.
What was asphodel? And what was wormwood?
Harry looked pleadingly at Ron, who was equally blank. Hermione, on the other hand, had her hand raised high in the air, but unfortunately, Snape pretended not to see it.
Ivan was too far away. He could only open his mouth and silently form the words "Draught of Living Death" and "sleeping potion."
Harry was getting anxious, but Snape's piercing gaze made him afraid to look towards Ivan for too long. Naturally, he couldn't guess what Ivan was mouthing. After a long moment, he could only force out a few words.
"I don't know, Professor!"
Ivan helplessly put a hand to his forehead. He had tried his best.
Even if he had told Harry the answer beforehand, it would have been useless. Unless Harry could memorize every single book about Potions, Snape would have plenty of ways to target him.