Regulus of Hogwarts: Lord of the Stars

At Hogwarts, James and Sirius's bullying of Snape became almost a regular occurrence, even having a fixed audience.

That was not an occasional friction, nor was it a petty squabble between young wizards; it cannot be explained away as mere youthful arrogance.

It was a continuous and premeditated bullying, even one fueled by a sense of superiority.

Bullying is an absolute fact, and there is no reason to defend them. It is bullying, it is atrocity.

James's reason was simply because Snape existed; he looked down on Snape's background and temperament, as well as his interest in dark magic.

James gave his bullying behavior a veneer of justice, a veneer that claimed he would become a Death Eater and study dark magic.

But what lies beneath the surface is not so complicated; he bullies Snape because he enjoys bullying Snape.

He bullied Snape because of his arrogance, his dislike of him, his enjoyment of dominance, and the recognition he received when he displayed his power in front of his friends.

Justice is a later packaging; violence and force come first.

Snape has also made the first move, but less often; most of the time, it's James who initiates the provocation.

The Marauders' behavior toward Snape included giving him the derogatory nickname "Snotty."

Use Marauder's Map to monitor his every move, and specifically target him when he is alone.

As for the Shrieking Shack incident, Sirius tricked Snape into meeting Lupin, who turned into a werewolf on the night of the full moon. James eventually rescued him, but his motive was fear of his friend being expelled, which had nothing to do with kindness.

Lily rushed over to stop them, calling James an arrogant, rude, and despicable bully who preys on the weak. In front of everyone, James threatened Lily that he would only release her if she went on a date with him.

In a fit of extreme humiliation and anger, Snape said to Lily, "I don't need a stinking little mudblood like her to help me."

Lily broke off all ties with him from then on.

But in this relationship, Snape was the one being bullied.

After graduation, Snape voluntarily joined Voldemort's side, becoming a Death Eater and revealing Trelawney's prophecy to Voldemort.

He knew the prophecy was directed at the Potter family, but he still spoke it, until Voldemort was about to kill Lily, at which point he broke down and regretted it.

On the other hand, James completely changed after he grew up. He was no longer arrogant or bullying, and became a responsible husband and father.

When Voldemort came to kill them, he stood in front of them even without a wand, telling Lily and Harry to run, and he was killed by the Killing Curse.

But that happened later.

Things are different now, because of Regulus, the future has become uncertain.

At least during their time on campus, James was the initiator and main perpetrator of bullying, while Snape was a long-term victim of bullying.

However, Regulus was completely uninterested in these matters. What did it matter to him who bullied whom?

Anyway, no one dares to bully him, let alone bully him.

In fact, all the young wizards at Hogwarts should be grateful that he wasn't like James Potter, who spent all his energy causing trouble for others.

His gaze never falls that low.

It's not that I have any principled aversion to bullying, it's just that there are more important things to do right now.

As for who to bully or harass, Death Eaters will be good targets when we have enough power in the future.

Regulus glanced at Lily.

The little witch looked troubled, her brows furrowed slightly and her lips pursed, as if waiting for his answer.

He didn't know when it started, but she began to ask him not only about magic, but also about her troubles in life.

It's as if he has the answers to everything, and as if she believes everything he says.

Regulus himself wasn't quite sure when he developed this habit, but it's what it is now.

pretty good.

Regulus knew what Lily was asking; she was looking at the matter in terms of right and wrong.

Who bullies, who is bullied, who should be blamed, and who should be pitied?

She wanted to figure out if James and Sirius had any reason for doing this, and whether that reason was valid.

She wanted to put all of this within a moral framework, seeking a moral explanation, which is also how most people view the issue.

But Regulus didn't see it that way.

Why could Jaime keep doing this? Because he had power, so he could bully people, and no one around could stop him.

This is not a moral issue; it is a result of the distribution of power and is determined by circumstances. It has nothing to do with why.

The reason why Snape could only passively take hits is the same thing: he had power, but he couldn't use it.

His research into dark magic was incredibly powerful among young wizards, but he was also a sensible person.

He wanted recognition and to showcase his talent to the professor. He knew his situation: dark magic could not be used openly.

He is not Hermes; Hermes doesn't care about these things.

But he cares, so when he's bullied, he can only let himself be bullied.

This was his own choice, and also a limitation of his situation. More importantly, he couldn't defeat four opponents by himself.

This was his own choice, and also a limitation of his situation. More importantly, he couldn't defeat four opponents by himself.

This is what truly matters in this matter; right and wrong are labels that were attached later, while power is the underlying logic.

Regulus wouldn't turn this into a moral lesson, nor could he talk to Lily about it; she didn't need an answer right now.

All she wanted was direction, instructions on how to do it.

But Sirius Black is involved in this.

That guy who looked so bitter and resentful in Grimmauld Place had indeed put in a lot of effort to practice magic during the holidays and made considerable progress.

But at Hogwarts, he still spent his time bullying others.

Regulus didn't know exactly how Sirius spent his time at school, whether he practiced diligently, or whether he continued to improve his skills.

Looking back now, at least he didn't spend all his time improving himself; he still had time to play around.

He didn't want to see Sirius wasting his time.

They clearly have talent, but they don't use it properly. What kind of future can they have if they keep acting like this?

Such a waste.

They'd already practiced so much, and all that enthusiasm during the holiday just vanished once they got back to school.

He needed to find something meaningful for Sirius to do, and having Lily teach him a lesson would be much more interesting than him doing it himself.

Regulus snapped out of his reverie, looked at Lily gently, and didn't say whether James and Sirius were right or wrong, whether Snape was pitiful or not, or how this matter should be evaluated.

He simply asked, "Do you want to be able to stop something like this from happening again on your own?"

Lily paused for a moment, then her eyes lit up, as if someone had lit a lamp in her heart.

But it lit up for a moment, then dimmed again. She lowered her head, opened her palms, clenched them, opened them again, and clenched them again.

She felt powerless. She wondered why, in all the past times, she had only spoken up to stop them instead of taking action.

She wasn't cowardly, nor was she afraid of trouble, but she knew she couldn't win.

That feeling of helplessness wasn't new; every time she saw Sephiroth cornered in the corridor, she wanted to rush over, but...

She raised her head again and looked at Regulus.

He remained the same: gentle, patient, and tolerant.

Listening to her talk about her troubles, I didn't find it annoying or boring; I just waited patiently without the slightest impatience.

It was a strange feeling; it was as if no matter what she said, he would listen to it all and then give her an answer.

Lily unconsciously pouted, her voice softening: "I've thought about it, but..."

"Afraid your strength isn't enough?" Regulus asked with a smile in his eyes.

She gave a soft "hmm".

Regulus looked at her gently, a smile playing on his lips. "Am I not teaching you?"

Lily looked at him with her green eyes.

"Let's practice some more," he said. "How can we not beat a few of them?"

Lily didn't speak. She lowered her head, the tips of her ears turned slightly red, the corners of her mouth twitched upwards, then pressed them down again, and her fingers secretly clenched the hem of her robe.

"Do you believe in yourself?" Regulus asked.

He paused, then asked again, "Do you believe me?"

Lily suddenly raised her head, and the hesitation in her green eyes was swept away by something, leaving them bright and clear.

Her tone was decisive and without hesitation: "I believe you."

She spoke very quickly, as if afraid that speaking slowly would make her seem insincere.

Regulus nodded in satisfaction.

Then Lily hesitated for a moment, her lips twitched, and her tone was a little uncertain: "But... Sirius is there."

The name Sirius Black came out of her mouth with a hint of awkwardness. She usually referred to the Gryffindor Black as "Black" and never in a very friendly tone.

But now she was facing another Blake, and she couldn't call him that. Using his name to distinguish him still felt a little strange.

Regulus's tone remained unchanged: "Ah, I know."

Lily's eyes widened: "Then why are you still—"

Regulus paused for a moment, then frowned slightly, his expression revealing a hint of inexplicable distress.

He looked at Lily, his tone as if he were talking about something very troublesome: "Him? I don't know what he's busy with all day. He doesn't do anything productive."

He continued, "I'm a Slytherin, so it's not really my place to deal with him. Could you teach him a lesson for me?"

Lily paused for a moment, looking at him suspiciously, her gaze sweeping over his face as if to confirm whether he was serious.

Regulus looked at her too, his expression serious, with a hint of helplessness.

She thought for a moment, her lips curved into a smile, her eyes crinkled into a smile, and finally she burst out laughing.

She straightened her chest, patted it forcefully, and said in a clear voice, "No problem, leave it to me."

Regulus chuckled as well: "It's still early to wait until you've mastered it."

Lily pouted, unconvinced, but didn't argue; she knew it was still early.

Regulus continued, "Next time we'll practice Guardian Angel. You can practice Manipulation on your own when you get back. You can use feathers or water, take your time."

Lily was full of energy, her face beaming with a smile. She gave a loud "Mmm," her eyes shining brightly, and she looked much more cheerful than when she came in.

The two left the abandoned classroom. The corridor was quiet, and the torchlight cast shadows on the stone walls.

Lily walked towards the Gryffindor Tower, took two steps, turned back, and waved: "See you next time."

Regulus turned and walked in another direction.

Sirius practiced at home for the holiday and made significant progress, but in his opinion, he still has a long way to go.

But this is not the point.

The main problem is that Sirius doesn't study or practice properly; he just does useless things all day.

The more fun you have now, the more you'll regret it later. Once you've chosen a side, you have to be prepared.

When war comes, those who lack strength will find it too late for regrets.

We need to give him some excitement.

If we train Lily, she can teach those good-for-nothings bullies a lesson with her own abilities when they encounter them in the future.

Potter and his friends held no place in Regulus's eyes, but Sirius still hoped he could improve.

Being lectured by Lily should have some effect on him.

It's certainly embarrassing, but it's even more important to let him know that others are making progress while he's stuck in the same place.

That feeling is probably much worse than getting beaten up.

As for Snape, with his insecure and sensitive nature, when he was bullied, it was always Lily who came to his rescue. Even when he could only take the beating, Lily single-handedly took care of Potter and the others.

That scene—

Regulus's lips twitched; Snape's expression was going to be quite amusing.

That would definitely be incredibly awkward. Perhaps "I don't need your help" and "thank you" would be fighting in your mind, and in the end you wouldn't be able to say anything, and you would leave with a gloomy face.

Lily probably doesn't care; she just did what she wanted to do.

As for James Potter, the arrogant young master, it would be interesting if he were taught a lesson by a Muggle-born witch whom he currently looks down upon.

This is probably the most incomprehensible thing he encountered at Hogwarts.

Regulus continued onward; this was something to look forward to.