Hogwarts classes began mercilessly early the next morning.
For the first-year Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs, the first lesson was History of Magic. In the classroom, the ghost professor Binns recounted the Giant Wars in a droning, lullaby-like voice. Warm sunlight streamed in through the windows, enough to make even the most alert person drowsy. Lin Yanqing forced himself to take notes. He could vaguely sense that, at the other end of the soul bond, Snape seemed to be in a similarly hypnotized state, though his impatience was far stronger—clearly, this future Potions genius had little interest in history that required rote memorization.
"Host, perk up! (○｀ 3′○)" System Cub popped up an emoji in his mind of a little figure pinching its own cheeks hard. "Don't forget your mission! You only have three days!"
Lin Yanqing rubbed his brow. The mission... how was he supposed to do it? Walk straight to the Slytherin table and hand Snape a bag of ingredients in front of everyone? He could practically imagine how the other boy would flay him alive with his eyes.
After lunch came Charms class, shared with Gryffindor. Professor Flitwick stood atop a stack of books to call attendance. When he read out "Lin Yanqing," he happily welcomed his Eastern magical bloodline. Today's lesson was the Levitation Charm—"Wingardium Leviosa."
James Potter and Sirius Black had already sent their feathers flying about for a while, but they still could not control them steadily. Hermione Granger (Note: this should be a typo; Hermione had not yet been born in the Marauders' era)... no, Lily Evans's feather had already risen gracefully into the air and remained there steadily for several seconds, earning Professor Flitwick's praise.
Lin Yanqing composed himself, waved his wand, and clearly recited the incantation. Perhaps because his soul had been strengthened by transmigration, or perhaps because the trace amount of magical power he shared through his contract with Snape was taking effect, he felt his magic flow unusually smoothly. The feather before him floated up lightly and hovered steadily in the air, even bobbing up and down with the slightest movements of his wand.
"Excellent! Five points to Ravenclaw!" Professor Flitwick praised in his squeaky voice. "Perfect control, Mr. Lin!"
Several Ravenclaw students looked at him admiringly, and even a few Gryffindors glanced over. Lin Yanqing noticed Lily give him a friendly smile, while James curled his lip from across the room, seemingly unconvinced.
Through the contract, he vaguely sensed an extremely faint ripple from afar. It seemed to be a flicker of surprise from Snape, but it vanished quickly, replaced by a deeper silence. Snape was probably attending some other class right now.
The opportunity did not come until the afternoon of the second day. The timetable showed that the first-year Ravenclaws and Slytherins had Potions class together.
The Potions classroom was underground, far colder than the castle above. Glass jars lined the walls, containing specimens of various animals and plants preserved in liquid, giving off a strange mixture of odors. Snape was already seated beside a cauldron near the front, with no one beside him. Clearly, no one was willing to approach this gloomy first-year voluntarily.
Professor Slughorn began in his booming voice, his large belly thrust forward. "Potions is a precise and fascinating science... its influence can far surpass some flashy charms..." His gaze swept over the students, lingering especially on Lily, a half-blood with outstanding talent, and Lin Yanqing, with his rare Eastern bloodline. When he saw Snape, curiosity appeared in his eyes—this child had displayed astonishing talent for Potions during the entrance examination.
Today, they were learning a simple potion for treating boils. After Slughorn explained the procedure, the students began working busily.
Lin Yanqing deliberately chose a workstation not far from Snape. He noticed that Snape's movements were exceptionally smooth. His handling of dried nettles and crushing of snake fangs were precise and efficient, far surpassing the flustered students around him, even more standard than Slughorn's own demonstration. Those large hands that might have seemed clumsy in Defense Against the Dark Arts were remarkably nimble when handling ingredients.
However, while boiling horned slugs, Lin Yanqing saw Snape frown slightly and glance at the few porcupine quills remaining beside his cauldron—they looked somewhat shriveled, of poor quality. This seemed to be a small mistake on his part, or perhaps a problem with the ingredients themselves.
Now!
Lin Yanqing's heartbeat quickened slightly. He took a deep breath and, while Professor Slughorn turned to guide another Hufflepuff student who had burned through the bottom of his cauldron, quickly took several high-quality porcupine quills from his own ingredient bag. They were plump and sharply pointed. Using a sheet of parchment as a mat, he quietly placed them in the corner of Snape's workstation.
Snape's movements abruptly halted. His cold gaze swept toward him at once, filled with wariness and accusation.
Lin Yanqing did not dare meet his eyes. He immediately turned back and pretended to focus on his own potion, which could barely be called a success, his palms beginning to sweat. He hurriedly arranged his words in his mind, trying to make the coming conversation sound less deliberate.
"I... I brought extra," he said in a low voice, making sure only the two of them could hear. He tried to sound casual, as though it were an offhand gesture. "These... look like they're in better condition."
Snape said nothing. He merely stared at the porcupine quills, then looked up at Lin Yanqing's potion, whose color was only barely passable. The suspicion in his eyes was almost tangible. Would someone with mediocre Potions skills just so happen to bring extra, higher-quality ingredients—the very ones he needed?
"Mission complete! Reward issued! ヽ(??▽?)ノ" The system's cheerful notification sounded. Lin Yanqing felt the weight of several additional ingredients and the touch of a few gold coins in the inner pocket of his robes.
Snape's frown deepened. He had clearly sensed Lin Yanqing's fleeting moment of relief as well. He was silent for several seconds. Just as Lin Yanqing thought he would sweep the ingredients straight into the rubbish bin, Snape gathered up the porcupine quills in an incredibly swift, nearly invisible motion and replaced his shriveled ones with them.
He did not thank him, nor did he spare him even a glance. Yet during the following steps, Lin Yanqing could clearly sense through the contract that a tiny, almost imperceptible crack had appeared in that intense rejection and hostility—a pure satisfaction with the high-quality ingredients, along with a deeper confusion.
What exactly did this Ravenclaw want? To curry favor? To spy on him? Or did he have some other motive? This unreadable feeling made Snape deeply uncomfortable, but for now, the high-quality ingredients had indeed brought his nearly finished potion close to perfection.
When Professor Slughorn strolled over and inspected Snape's cauldron, he let out an exclamation. "Perfect! Absolutely perfect! The color, consistency, and smell are all flawless! Ten points to Slytherin! Oh, Severus, my boy, you're simply a genius!" His plump face was piled with smiles as he lavishly praised Snape.
The corner of Snape's mouth twitched almost imperceptibly. Perhaps it could be called an exceedingly faint hint of pride, but it quickly disappeared beneath his usual gloom. Several nearby Slytherin students also cast looks mixed with surprise and scrutiny.
The bell rang. Snape swiftly bottled his potion, handed it to Slughorn, then packed up without wasting a moment. Like a black bat, he silently slipped out of the classroom without looking at Lin Yanqing once.
But Lin Yanqing was not discouraged. Sensing the emotion coming from the other end of the soul bond—still cold, yet missing some of its sharp killing intent—he quietly let out a breath.
The first step, though difficult and full of misunderstandings, had finally been taken. The "bridge" he had offered, though tiny and unacknowledged, had indeed been built.
However, he also knew clearly that this was only the beginning. Snape's suspicion was like the toughest armor. To truly reach what lay within, he would need more patience, more opportunities, and... perhaps a deeper influence from the contract itself that he had yet to realize.
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