"Why did you invent such a useless potion as Cheering Potion..."
Pomona could not believe she heard herself say that.
"I wanted to make her happy," Snape replied, his voice already changed.
"Who is she?"
"Eileen, my mother." He asked in confusion, "What was that tone just now?"
"Nothing." She spoke with no small amount of bitterness, because at the time she had thought that "she" meant Lily.
"Damn it!" A curse came from outside the tightly locked door. Then she heard the person outside recite a string of words she had never heard before, and the lock sprang open.
Many students from the Muggle world found wizards ridiculous. They needed a spell like Alohomora just to open a simple door, especially the locks at Hogwarts, which looked like primitive medieval pin tumbler locks that even an amateur thief could easily pick. That Muggle way of thinking was difficult to change overnight.
Unless you had a giant's magical resistance, never touch anything of unknown origin carelessly. The magical world was full of objects that would curse you the moment you touched them. Necklaces, earrings, rings, even glasses could be dangerous. Enchanting a doorknocker to keep intruders out was common sense, and the difficulty and effect of a spell varied according to its target. Pomona was certain that was not something he had learned at school or from her. There was an even chance it was one of the Death Eater tricks he had learned from Voldemort.
Sure enough, the office door was pushed open, and in came the old bat, his face livid with rage. Two students happened to pass by the door as he entered, and he slammed it shut in front of them. The bang made the ornaments on the desk jump.
"What were you thinking?" He swept