The summer air in London was utterly different from the coolness of Hogwarts Castle, thick with the scent of car exhaust and city dust. Lin Yanqing had been settled in an empty flat belonging to a distant relative—a background identity arranged by the system. It was quiet, tidy, and... unbearably lonely.
He used the place as a temporary base, devoting most of his time to two things: studying the [Beginner Legilimency] skill book in depth, and carefully gathering basic potion ingredients through limited channels, in preparation for "unexpected needs." His magic lay dormant in the Muggle World, but the soul bond connecting him to somewhere far away remained like a live wire, constantly reminding him of the existence of another world.
For the first few weeks, Spinner's End was unusually "quiet." It was not that no emotions came through, but those emotions... were like stagnant water deliberately muddied, then forcibly suppressed. Through the contract, Lin Yanqing could continually sense a low, gloomy oppression that had nearly become background noise, occasionally interrupted by sharp waves brimming with hatred, only to be brutally pressed down again by an even stronger will.
Snape was enduring.
Enduring everything brought by the place he called "home."
One night in mid-July, as Lin Yanqing meditated and attempted to construct Legilimency's mental barrier, an unprecedented and violent emotional impact suddenly slammed through the contract like a tsunami!
It was not mere anger or gloom, but... fear. The rawest fear of a twelve-year-old boy, mixed with physical pain, extreme humiliation, and rage on the verge of spiraling out of control!
Immediately afterward came a powerful, uncontrollable surge of magic, as though a storm was brewing at its center!
Lin Yanqing jolted awake from his meditation, his heart pounding wildly. He understood almost at once—something had happened at Spinner's End! Snape had run into real trouble, most likely involving his Muggle father, and his magic was on the verge of going berserk!
"Host! The bound target's vital signs are fluctuating violently! Risk of magical loss of control is extremely high! (;?Д?i|!)" System Cub shrieked its warning.
Almost at the same moment the system alarm sounded, Lin Yanqing felt the familiar cold, precise force "guide" the hand holding his wand again! But unlike the clear one-word command in the Forbidden Forest last time, what came through now were intensely chaotic yet strongly directed fragments of thought—"Book... potion... calm..."
In his muddled state of mind, Snape had instinctively sent a plea for help through the contract to the only "resource" he could possibly rely on, and the only one he knew of! He needed a Potions Book, or directly, a calming potion!
Lin Yanqing did not hesitate for a moment. He rushed to his desk, where there sat a small cloth bag he had prepared before the holiday and expanded with an Undetectable Extension Charm. It contained some basic, durable potion ingredients and portions of common potion recipes he had copied out by hand. He quickly dug out several sprigs of dried lavender with calming properties, a small piece of valerian root, and the page of notes he had copied down containing the simplest calming draught recipe.
But how was he supposed to send them over?
Just as panic seized him, the force guiding his hand appeared once more. This time, it pointed toward the empty ceramic vase beside his desk, which he used to practice Transfiguration. At the same time, an even fainter thought came through, as if it had been squeezed out with every last ounce of strength: "...Accio... marker..."
The Summoning Charm? A marker?
Understanding dawned on Lin Yanqing. He immediately picked up the recipe page and ingredients and stuffed them into a small cloth bag. Then he raised his wand at the ceramic vase, focusing all his attention as he imagined Snape's location and the "marker" where the items had to be delivered—
"Accio!"
He had no idea whether it would work. This was a modified application of a Summoning Charm across an enormous distance, with an unclear target—far beyond the capabilities of a first-year student. Yet the instant he spoke the spell, he felt that his magic had not been released in isolation. Instead, it was greatly amplified and guided by the contract bond! His own magic resonated strangely through the void with Snape's chaotic yet powerful magic!
"Whoosh—"
The small cloth bag in his hand vanished instantly.
Almost at the same time, the magical fluctuations from Spinner's End that had been on the verge of exploding seemed to be violently punctured, beginning to subside slowly and with difficulty. The intense fear and humiliation did not disappear, but the destructive frenzy mixed within them was gradually replaced by a bottomless, icy deadness.
He had received it. And he had used what was sent to temporarily bring the situation under control.
Lin Yanqing collapsed onto the floor, drained of strength, cold sweat soaking through his back. In that moment, he had felt as if nearly all his magic had been sucked dry. Long-distance magical transfer, especially forced transfer through the contract channel, consumed an enormous amount of power.
Over the following days, Spinner's End sank completely into an unsettling silence. It was no longer oppression, but a kind of... emptiness, as if every trace of life had been drained away. Lin Yanqing could feel that Snape was still "there," but his emotional signals were as faint as a dying candle in the wind.
Not until a week later did an incredibly faint ripple of magic, carrying a probing intent, lightly touch the contract bond like a tentative test.
Lin Yanqing sensed it immediately. He did not respond with emotion. Instead, he tried to calmly send over the "feeling" of the thin mental barrier he had only just managed to construct.
It was a silent exchange. He was telling the other boy: I have mastered defenses. I will not pry into your mind at will.
The magical ripple on the other end paused for a moment, then slowly withdrew and returned to silence.
But that brief contact had been extraordinarily meaningful. This was Snape's first initiative "test" of the channel after the crisis. He had not sent a note or issued a command. He had merely confirmed that the connection still existed, and that... Lin Yanqing seemed to possess a basic sense of "boundaries."
August passed in a wary, undisturbed quiet. Lin Yanqing's Legilimency steadily grew more proficient. Though he was still far from reaching any profound level, he could at least ensure that his core thoughts could not be easily sensed. He also began previewing his second-year Charms textbook and continued using the System Cub's limited functions to gather information.
One week before the end of the summer holiday, while cleaning the flat, Lin Yanqing found a small parcel that had appeared conspicuously beneath the doormat—there was no trace of an owl delivery, as though it had materialized out of thin air.
The parcel was wrapped in ordinary brown paper. There was not a single word inside, only a small bottle of... exceptionally high-quality essence of dittany. It was precisely the finest kind, missing from the ingredient package he had prepared earlier.
Lin Yanqing picked up the bottle of essence of dittany. Its glass still carried the faintest trace of a cold, underground cellar. He understood at once.
This was not gratitude. The word gratitude would never appear in Severus Snape's vocabulary.
This was "settling accounts." It was a cold, equivalent exchange for that "necessary" assistance during the summer. He had received the recipes and ingredients Lin Yanqing provided, however basic they had been. Now, he was returning the favor with a finished product of greater value.
In this way, he maintained the purely "transactional" relationship he had defined unilaterally, owing nothing at all.
Lin Yanqing silently put away the bottle of essence of dittany.
He knew that when the Hogwarts Express set off once more, their relationship would enter a new school year bearing the complex, icy mark left by this summer. The boy hiding in the shadows of Spinner's End might have become even more closed off, but he had also come to understand more clearly that this bond he despised might, in a desperate situation... truly become a lifeline.
No matter how unwilling he was to admit it.
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