To prevent Draco's jaw from dropping open in complete shock, Estelle gently kept the rest of the truth to herself. She decided not to mention that Belling Manor held many other kinds of ancient potions besides the one they had just discovered. The jinsi fruit alone had already left the young master speechless for a good long while, and she could see how wide his pale gray eyes had grown. There was no need to pile on even more surprises right now.
He had actually believed it was a poison apple when they first received it. To share the hardship with Stelle, he had forced himself to swallow the strange, dark fruit with great difficulty, making faces the whole time. If only he had known earlier what it really was… Draco let out a soft sigh full of regret. From now on, he silently promised himself, no matter what odd thing Mammon sent their way, he would eat it without a single second of hesitation.
Estelle read through the thick potion compendium very quickly, especially for a book that mostly had pictures and short explanations like an illustrated guide. Her small fingers turned the pages steadily, and in almost no time at all her eyes moved to the pile of books Draco had quickly hidden under the table. The boy was now sitting at the old wooden desk nearby, trying to calm his racing thoughts by reading the dry, boring words in "An Introduction to Potions." He had no idea what Estelle was quietly pulling out from right under his feet.
To be exact, it was a plain notebook tucked among the other heavy volumes. Its cover was a dull dark gray, so plain and uninteresting that it blended in with everything else around it. Curious as always, Estelle opened the first page. There, written in bold, dashing handwriting, were the words:
half-blood prince
[The half-blood prince]
Wow… that sounded so cool. Estelle gave this unusual pen name a big mental thumbs-up. It had a mysterious, strong feeling to it that made her smile softly to herself.
"Oh~ Stelle, what are you looking at…" A fluffy head of platinum hair suddenly leaned over her shoulder.
Draco stared at the line of fancy words and froze right where he stood. His face showed an expression so complicated that Estelle had never seen anything like it before. He blinked once, twice, and then…
"Hmm…"
"Uh…"
"Pfft… Hahahahaha!"
Finally Draco burst into loud, unstoppable laughter. His face turned bright red as he doubled over, holding his stomach because it had started to hurt from laughing so hard. The sound filled the quiet upstairs room and echoed off the walls.
"What's wrong?" Estelle tilted her head, looking at him with gentle confusion.
"Hahahahaha! Stelle! Who on earth would call themselves the half-blood prince!" Draco gasped between laughs. "Come on, I stopped calling myself a prince when I was only four years old!"
"This must be a notebook Godfather confiscated from some student! Hahahaha! The half-blood prince… how is that any different from calling yourself Muggle Princess or Pure-blood Queen? It is just too funny!"
The slightly unusual pen name had clearly touched one of Draco's few funny spots, and he could not stop. He laughed so hard he could barely stand straight, his shoulders shaking with every breath.
"Stelle, you do not actually think this name is cool, do you!"
"No, Brother, I just…"
"Hahahahahaha, then why are you not laughing with me!"
"Brother, I just wanted to say… maybe you should turn around now."
Estelle answered in a small, timid voice. Draco seemed to feel a cold stare on his back at that exact moment. The happy smile that had been stretching across his face slowly dropped away, leaving his mouth hanging open in sudden worry.
Laughter does not simply disappear; sometimes it just moves from one person to another.
But the small smile now resting on Snape's lips looked anything but friendly. It carried a sharp edge that made the air feel heavier.
"The gentlemanly Mr. Malfoy, the noble Miss Bellin," Snape said, his dark eyes fixed straight on the open notebook between them. "I assume both of you know that when you are guests in someone's home, you should not touch the host's private belongings without asking first."
"As for that incredibly childish and laughable 'half-blood prince' that Mr. Malfoy found so amusing… it happens to belong to your pitiful godfather."
Draco's pupils shook with surprise, and he tried to make his breathing as quiet as possible. He looked like he wanted to disappear into the floor. Even so, that same platinum head moved forward just a little, placing himself gently in front of Estelle to shield her.
"Godfather… I am sorry…" His voice came out as tiny as a mosquito's buzz.
Estelle also understood right away that Uncle Snape had never meant for them to open any of the books on that shelf. She felt the mistake settle heavily in her chest and lowered her head. "I am sorry too, Uncle Snape…"
The whole room grew strangely quiet, the kind of silence that made the air feel thick and uncomfortable.
"Since the two little monsters clearly have nothing better to do right now…" Snape continued in that calm but dangerous tone, "I suppose spending some time processing slugs will make your visit to Spinner's End much more… fulfilling."
Slugs?
Estelle was just about to open her mouth and ask what he meant, but from the corner of her eye she caught sight of Draco's completely devastated face. His shoulders had slumped, and his usual proud expression had melted away into pure dread. Hmm… this was definitely not going to be anything pleasant.
Down in the iron bucket the slugs squirmed lazily against one another. Their bodies glistened with thick, slimy coating that gave off a strong, unpleasant green smell. Even through the pair of gloves that were not very thick, Estelle could feel how slippery and cold they were every time she touched one.
"So disgusting…" she whispered under her breath. "But who would have guessed Godfather would give himself such a pen name…"
Draco glanced quickly toward Snape, who was now sitting at a table a short distance away, writing notes in his careful handwriting. When he saw that his godfather was not looking in their direction, Draco leaned closer and dared to whisper to Estelle.
From the way he moved, it was clear he had done this chore many times before. Draco visited Spinner's End every year, after all, and this was obviously not his first time getting caught and punished.
"Brother, I am really sorry I did not warn you sooner… And it was me who wanted to look at that potion compendium in the first place." Estelle did not try to hide her part in the trouble. She apologized with honest regret in her soft voice.
Draco refused to let her carry all the blame. He shook his head right away and said, "It is fine. Even if you had not been here, Godfather would have found something for me to do anyway."
The way he tried to comfort her sounded a little strange, but it still made Estelle feel a tiny bit better.
"Yes, grab it right here," Draco explained in a low, practiced tone. "While the slug is not paying attention, give it a quick, sharp pull, then flick the mucus into the other bucket before it can splatter everywhere."
He showed her exactly how with smooth, familiar movements. Estelle watched closely and tried to copy him, but her forehead stayed creased in a tight frown. It was not because the slugs were hard to handle. No, the real reason was the faint, shrill little cries that kept reaching her ears.
"Oh~ Little girl… be gentle…"
"Ah wula wula wula… Wula Slug King… the best!"
"We are going to die! We are going to die!"
"Wow wow wow wula wula wula…"
Estelle carefully picked up one of the plumpest slugs and held it close to her eyes, staring at it with growing uncertainty. The little creature wiggled in her gloved fingers.
"Put me down! How rude…"
Her misty blue eyes slowly grew brighter with wonder. So… these slugs actually had intelligence? It was just that, unlike Mammon and Pegasus, they could not speak human language in a clear, flowing way. Some of the smaller ones in the bucket only made soft "wula wula" sounds over and over.
"Hmm… gurgle… rurururu…"
While Draco and Snape were both busy and not paying attention, Estelle quietly tried to speak to the slugs in a gentle whisper. She wanted to calm them.
What she had clearly said was "don't move" and "I will be gentle."
Unfortunately, the message got completely mixed up.
The excited slugs passed the words along to one another, growing louder and more dramatic with every repetition. In just a few seconds the whole bucket knew the news: a powerful wizard strategist had arrived to lead them in an epic battle to destroy the evil potion master's territory once and for all.
Estelle's eyes widened in surprise. I am not! I did not mean that at all!
But it was already too late. The bewitched slugs had spread the story ten times over, and now every slimy body in the bucket was wriggling with sudden hope and rebellion.