Hogwarts Study Panel

Chapter 268: A Stormy Night
Sheen was taken away by an unexpected person.

When the figure in the long, flowing black robe appeared, Harry and Ron seemed to hear their house points decreasing.

"Sheehan said he was going to stay at school for a month, and a professor would be coming to take him back to Hogwarts later, but who would have thought that it would be Professor Snape..."

Ron hid in the shadows of the shop, watching Professor Snape walk towards them.
“Harry, you were absolutely right not to apply for stay at school.”

Harry shrank back.

Just as he didn't know why Professor Snape was helping him against Quirrell, he also didn't know why Professor Snape hated him so much.

Professor Snape's behavior was shrouded in mystery.

"Do you think staying at Hogwarts is such an easy thing to do? Sheehan is the first person in Hogwarts' history to be granted permission to stay on campus!"

Hermione was also surprised, but when she heard Ron's arrogant words, she couldn't help but glare at them.

"Of course, he will still be the greatest of all time..."

Ron covered his mouth halfway through his sentence.

"what?"

Hermione followed up with a question.

"No, it's nothing."

Ron stammered a little.

Hermione's suspicious gaze lingered on his face, then she snorted and turned her head away.

On the streets of Diagon Alley.

The two professors looked at each other, as if they were performing some kind of special handover ceremony.

"He is undergoing Animagus transformation, Severus."

Professor McGonagall said calmly.

"I know."

Professor Snape's voice was as deep as ever.

"Until the steps before the storm..."

Professor McGonagall handed her a note, interrupting her before she could finish speaking.

"I'll take responsibility."

Professor Snape took it, his tone as if making a declaration.

"I will be back in two weeks, on a stormy night."

Professor McGonagall spoke slowly and deliberately, and for some reason she felt a little regretful that she had agreed to let Marcus stay for two more weeks.

Even though they hadn't spent time together for many years, it seemed that she was needed in many places beyond Hogwarts and McGonagall...

Sometimes the meaning of home changes as people live there.

As the sunset painted the sky, even during the time when the mysterious man remained dormant, she noticed that the world was becoming more and more beautiful.

"As for Felix Felicis, you decide when to tell the child."

After saying her last words, Professor McGonagall left without looking back.

Professor Snape turned and left, and Sheen quickly followed.

“Some fools, even if given the chance, they can’t seize it, don’t you think, Sean Green?”

Professor Snape said somberly.

"Am I allowed to drink Felix Felicis now?"

A mature voice came out.

Professor Snape suddenly lowered his head, staring coldly at Sheehan's brooch.

"Ah--"

Professor Snape glanced at it a couple more times, but didn't say anything for the time being.

"What did you see on the fourth floor...?"

He suddenly blurted out a sentence.

"Voldemort..."

Sheen quickly touched the brooch.

Professor Snape had stopped moving, his eyes blazing with barely suppressed rage, his voice trembling slightly:

"Ah—our Mr. Sheen Green always thinks his few simple and laughable tricks can accomplish anything earth-shattering... He doesn't even take the Mysterious Man seriously..."

Snape's cold, mocking voice rang out.

“Very well, then, for your courage, your confinement will begin on September 1st and last until… September 1st… without holidays, and…” Sheen stopped in his tracks, not speaking, while Professor Snape had not yet finished speaking.

“Every year.”

Sheen was a little confused.

Will you stay at Hogwarts every year?
Is there really such a good thing?
……

By the time they returned to Hogwarts, it was completely dark.

Snape was in such a bad mood that he couldn't imagine what would happen next.

The mysterious man is plotting a comeback, and his brutal methods against the wizards who stand in his way are well-known.

He originally thought the young wizard in front of him was just an organizer, but he never expected to face the mysterious person directly.

"Tell me everything you've done!"

In the cellar, Professor Snape cast a spell to prevent eavesdropping, and he spoke in a chilling tone.

Sheehan used the brooch to briefly explain Professor Quirrell's abnormality and how they eventually stopped him.

Fortunately, while the brooch can't hide the truth—because it reveals the thought process behind hiding the truth—Sheen can choose what to say.

He tried to minimize his presence, only describing Professor Quirrell's abnormality, his cry for help, and Dumbledore's expulsion of Voldemort.

"Who do you think you are?! Who do you think you've messed with?! You're ridiculously naive!"

Professor Snape practically roared.

He felt a chill run down his spine. The mysterious man had entered Hogwarts by attaching himself to the back of Quirrell's head, and what stopped him were Green and the others who had been inexplicably drawn into the situation.

His reason was the utterly ridiculous desire to help Quirrell?

Just because of a letter of recommendation?!
His trembling body suddenly calmed down in an instant, and he looked at the little wizard who was only two heads taller than the table with a heavy gaze.

Those green eyes were a rare sight in the gray-black cellar, and Snape was speechless for a moment.

He... is so stupid. Stupid people like that never end well.

"go out--"

He said one last thing.

As he finished speaking, a rumble of thunder came from afar, and a bolt of lightning ripped through the night sky.

"return!"

"Snape roared."

I don't know what he's angry about.

A storm is coming.

Through the cracks in the cellar, one could see the gloomy sky.

Sheen felt a second heartbeat, stronger than the first.

This means that the moment he has been waiting for has arrived.

In the instant the lightning ripped across the sky, he needed to immediately proceed to the location where the crystal vial was buried. If he had correctly completed all the previous steps, he would find a mouthful of blood-red potion inside.

"Where is it buried?"

The storm came too quickly, and Snape could only ask sternly.

“A note, Professor…”

Professor Snape was in a daze, and only then did he remember the note with the location written on it.

Given Minerva McGonagall's cautious style, that would be a place he would be very familiar with.

When he opened the note, he saw a glaring name.

Spider's End Alley.

He remained where he was. During the summer holidays at Hogwarts, he rarely returned there, and Minerva McGonagall would sometimes contact him via owl mail. But that didn't mean he was willing to let anyone break in.

"Follow me!"

He led Sheen quickly out of the castle.

This idiot is different after all.

At night, the rain and wind raged.

The rolling hills became indistinct, and Hogwarts was plunged into darkness.

During the journey, only Sheen's silently lit wand provided a sliver of light.

(End of this chapter)