Brewing Medicine

That answer, cheeky yet composed, was clearly beyond Severus Snape's expectations.

He froze for a second, then raised his chin slightly and scrutinized the student who had "provoked" him time and again.

"Most unpleasant."

Snape thought to himself, a flicker of old memories passing through his hollow black eyes. After several seconds of silence, he spoke slowly, his face openly twisted with disgust.

"Grindelwald, you remind me of someone. He was rude, arrogant, and ignorant."

He paused, then straightened up.

"I hope you can surprise me."

"I will, Professor Snape. I'll do my best."

Klein bowed slightly, his manner neither servile nor overbearing.

"Very well."

Snape gave a sinister smile, apparently quite satisfied with the answer.

"Now—"

His expression suddenly hardened, and he turned to look at the Slytherin and Gryffindor first-years who were still staring blankly.

"Why aren't you writing down the answers to those questions?"

His words seemed to flip a switch. The frozen first-years all snapped out of it, and the scratch of quills on parchment instantly filled the classroom.

Snape gave Klein a long look, then returned to the front of the classroom.

"Potter, for talking back to a professor, Gryffindor will lose one point. As for Grindelwald, you've earned Slytherin five points. But if your potion doesn't satisfy me, your detention will be extended from one week to a month."

He jotted down a few notes with his quill, his tone flat and indisputable. Then he told everyone to open their copies of Magical Potions and Elixirs to page six and begin brewing today's potion in pairs: a simple remedy for scabies.

As it happened, Klein was paired with Daphne Greengrass, who had beautiful blond hair.

"Klein, thank you—thank you for the chocolate."

As she weighed the snake fangs, Daphne thanked him in a low voice, gripping the brass weights tightly. She seemed a little nervous.

"It was nothing, Daphne. Also, you've added too many snake fangs."

Klein looked a little helpless as he helped his nervous classmate weigh out the right amount of ingredients.

Then he set up the cauldron, lit the fire, added the prepared ingredients one by one, and stirred.

His movements were steady and precise, like those of a finely calibrated machine.

"Hmm."

Snape, who had been keeping a discreet eye on Klein, twitched the corner of his mouth.

"Flobberworm mucus, venomous fangs, porcupine quills, cicada shells. Ha. Brewing Potions really is interesting."

If the allure of Alchemy was "equivalent exchange," then the allure of Potions was probably "endless transformation." Klein stirred the contents of the cauldron with a smile. The bubbles rising with a gurgle put him in a very good mood.

"Klein, you really are a genius."

Since Klein had brewed the potion all by himself, Daphne had nothing to do but help him with preparations, such as getting the bottles ready. Watching the potion gradually turn the deep purple described in the book, she spoke with a hint of envy.

"I'm all right."

Klein smiled casually.

"I wish I were like you. Maybe then I could..."

Daphne muttered so quietly only she could hear, her expression a little downcast.

"What was that?"

Klein blinked and tilted his head, listening.

"Oh, nothing. I mean, look, the potion's ready. Let's bottle it."

When she realized Klein had moved so close to her, Daphne jumped and quickly stepped back. But she soon realized that she had been rude, and her face flushed. Stammering, she grabbed a crystal vial, trying to ease the awkwardness.

"Crash."

The sound of shattering glass came from nearby.

"Miss Parkinson, be more careful!"

Snape drawled, casting a cold look toward the disturbance.

"I'm sorry, Professor Snape."

Pansy lowered her head, her face hidden from view.

Draco, her partner, frowned and looked thoroughly disgusted.

"I was rude. I should have known everyone had secrets of their own."

Klein smiled and took the crystal vial from the girl's hand.

"Sorry."

Daphne clutched her robe, her voice barely audible.

"Hey, you're a young lady from the Greengrass family. Look at Draco, then look at Pansy. 'Sorry' isn't what they say to me most often."

After carefully bottling every last drop of the potion, Klein winked at the girl beside him.

Most Slytherin students came from Pure-blood families. Daphne's Greengrass family, like the Malfoy family, held a high standing in certain circles.

"Heh."

Daphne laughed, her nervousness fading without her noticing. Looking at Klein's face, she asked with interest, "What about you, Klein? You've never told me about your family."

"Me?"

Klein was unusually taken aback. Then his expression returned to normal, and he answered lightly, "I don't have a family."

"Oh, I'm sorry!"

Daphne's smile vanished at once, and she looked flustered.

"I shouldn't have brought it up!"

"Don't worry about it. I recently found a distant great-aunt. She's a very interesting person, and she's been very kind to me."

Thinking of Bathilda Bagshot's deeply lined yet incredibly kind face, Klein's gaze softened.

"That's nice."

Unsure what else to say, Daphne could only follow his lead.

"You must come visit Godric's Hollow sometime. I'll do everything I can to make you welcome. But for now, let's ask our 'impartial' head of house to grade our potion."

Daphne was still only a little girl, with a fragile heart. Klein smiled, deftly shifted the conversation away from the heavy subject, and raised his hand to catch Snape's attention as he patrolled the classroom.

"Grindelwald, it seems you and Miss Greengrass work quite quickly."

Snape drifted over to their desk like a giant bat and took the bottle of deep-purple potion. He pulled out the cork and held the bottle beneath his hooked nose. His expression visibly darkened as he sniffed.

"Hmm."

Daphne's heart leaped into her throat. She nervously clutched the green trim of her robe.

Could there be something wrong with the potion?

"Not bad."

In the end, Snape couldn't find a single fault, so he had no choice but to give them full marks, his face dark with reluctance.

"Then your detention will last one week, Grindelwald, starting tonight."

He put the potion away, fixed his gaze on Klein's sapphire-blue eyes, and spoke coolly.