Hogwarts Study Panel

Chapter 474, Section 472: New Identity
“You are worried, Severus.”

Dumbledore wore a purple robe with a star tattooed on one corner.

Snape gave him a cold glance and didn't say anything.

"You shouldn't be teaching him these things."

Dumbledore then spoke slowly.

“This is not for you to tell me what to do, Dumbledore.”

Snape gave a sneer.

"I know, but you should trust me."

Dumbledore appears to have compromised.

"Trust you? Dumbledore, when have you ever trusted me?"

Snape coldly abandoned his anger.

"Anytime".

Dumbledore seemed to need no thought.

"Anytime? Ha... But I know nothing about it... The Dark Lord's power is weakening, he'll notice, and when he notices all this, do you know what he'll do? That fool doesn't have any marks or magic on him—are you planning to kill him?!"

Snape questioned angrily, staring at Dumbledore as if he were a thief or a robber.

“He will come back, I never deny that. But Hogwarts will always be the safest place.”

Dumbledore's words carried a calm confidence.

"Ah……"

Snape scoffed.

“You still don’t trust me, you don’t trust anyone, but I trust you, we all trust you. Severus.”

Dumbledore sighed.

“You won’t tell me anything, yet you expect me to trust you, Dumbledore. Don’t take everything for granted.”

Snape said viciously.

“The point is not that I don’t trust you, Severus. We both have things we should know, and things we don’t need to know, or even can’t know.”

Dumbledore said.

"Do you think you deserve to know everything? Or does he deserve to know everything? If you think so, then you should agree with what I'm doing now."

"Snape said dismissively."

"No, I never thought I knew everything. Most of the time, I knew nothing and had no skills."

"But you've crossed the line, Severus. That's not something he should be touching."

Dumbledore lowered his eyes.

"You want him to be exposed to the most dangerous things, you want him to deal with the most dangerous people, but you don't teach him, you don't even tell him..."

"Do you want me to watch him die, Dumbledore?!"

Snape roared in fury.

"He's only twelve years old—Dumbledore—must his life be included in your plans—"

Dumbledore fell silent; he was powerless to refute.

The cold wind in the cellar was blowing constantly, and the sky outside the window was changing rapidly, from a velvety deep blue to a gloomy gray.

It's raining in Scotland.

It's been raining non-stop here.

“Severus…this is not my decision.”

Dumbledore spoke slowly.

“Then it’s up to me. I will teach him everything, I will keep him in Hogwarts as much as possible, and when he has to face something, I will let him rebel as much as possible.”

"Snape said in a hoarse voice."

“Rebellion…that’s our mission, Severus. Not his. Don’t you understand?”
Our expectations, the mission we are to accomplish, have nothing to do with him.

Dumbledore seemed to be admonishing someone. "What do you mean?"

“You shouldn’t have taught him that knowledge; he doesn’t need that kind of power.”

"You think he's the next Dumbledore?"

"No, he is the only Sheen Green, he will be stronger than me, stronger than all of us... He doesn't need anyone to guide him, he will find his own way, and all we have to do is wait. If possible, we should impart knowledge to him so that he can save some time, rather than trying to walk for him."

Severus, you've crossed the line. Your children don't need you to guide them.

After Dumbledore finished speaking, he fell silent again, gazing out the window where water droplets were gathering into a streak.

"Your expectations of him are too high."

Snape suddenly understood.

But the word "child" sounded like a whispered voice, as if a painful fog obscured his vision, and Dumbledore's words seemed to take a very long time to reach his ears.

"On the contrary, I am constantly thinking about whether I have underestimated the child."

Dumbledore sighed.

"what do you mean……"

Snape suddenly realized.

"Let him choose for himself; if he wants to learn something, let him learn it."

Most wizards are taught what magic to learn, but he has to choose for himself, because his path is longer than ours. No one can help him.

As Dumbledore spoke, the fireplace had gone out sometime earlier.

The last scent of firewood lingered in the air, spreading along with the dampness of the cellar.

"I have one last question..."

Snape was eventually persuaded; he desperately wanted "him" to have the power to protect himself, but in Dumbledore's eyes, such power was hardly worthy of consideration.

"If that's what you think, why do you always keep him by your side?"

Snape stared coldly at Dumbledore, as if trying to find any trace of the old wizard's lie in the wrinkles around his eyes.

But to his great surprise, there were no lies in it, only an awkwardness that was being tried to be concealed.

“I never thought of doing this. If possible, I, like you, would like these things to stay completely unrelated to him.”

Severus, tell me, if time can solve all our problems, is it still necessary for us to take risks?

Dumbledore spoke candidly, with a rare hint of embarrassment.

Snape was completely convinced, but he was also completely furious.

“I feel the same way as you, Severus. I am both pleased with the problems that have been solved and worried about the unexpected events to come.”

I don't object to anything you've done; I signed that detention declaration, and I thought you would understand me.

Dumbledore seemed very sad.

“Sheen Green…”

Snape was practically gritting his teeth.

He thought Dumbledore was behind it all, but the little boat was sailing on its own. He had always known that, but he had never been so annoyed.

"Don't corrupt the child's soul, don't test him, even if he can withstand the test."

Dumbledore prepared to leave, a kind smile still lingering on his lips before he departed.

"Oh, and don't forget to fill in the supporting documentation, Siever, so that the board of trustees has a reason to support the summer lockdown."

"Humph--"

Snape snorted.

He placed a piece of parchment on the table, on which the words "Potions Teaching Assistant" and "Summer Training" were faintly visible.

These words also naturally reminded Snape of the Magical Creatures class next semester, and he was somewhat annoyed that he couldn't have the two classes clashing.

"Oh, good idea. I don't think Hagrid is to blame."

Dumbledore jokingly picked up the parchment.

(End of this chapter)