"Let's give you two shots today, then another in a week, and the final one on the twenty-first day. After that, you shouldn't have to worry."
"Thank you..."
After being given two injections, Snape thanked him—a rare thing indeed.
Harry carefully disposed of the medical waste, then sternly went over all the precautions for after the vaccinations. Snape just stared blankly at him and nodded.
So much like her. He and Lily.
At first, Snape had thought Harry only had his mother's eyes. Everything else about him—his looks and personality—was exactly like his bastard of a father.
But the more time he spent with Harry, the more he saw that Harry's talent for Potions was even greater than Lily's.
Whenever Harry focused on preparing a potion like he was now, Snape was reminded of the girl who had once been so confident in Potions Class.
Though the boy kept insisting that what he did was some kind of inscrutable "science," Snape had always been certain it was Lily's talent, passed down to her child.
"All right, I've treated the wound. Now... let's talk about something else." Once everything had been put away, Harry's expression gradually grew serious. "Professor, did you know that a Pure-blood Family sent a House-elf to sneak into Hogwarts and secretly get revenge on Hermione and me?"
"Who would dare?!"
Snape's roar boomed through the room, unlike his usual sharp reprimands. Magic surged around him, and in an instant, the small Staff Room was filled with murderous intent!
Snape was furious!
He was certainly gloomy and caustic, and every day he looked as if the whole world owed him money. But Snape's emotions rarely stirred at all, and he hardly ever truly lost his temper.
This time, however, when Snape heard someone intended to hurt Harry, he was genuinely angry!
Someone had actually dared to harm Lily's son?
That was the one thing Snape could never tolerate—not now!
Normally, Snape shouldn't have let his emotions show so openly... if Harry were still the naïve child from the original story, unable to tell good people from bad.
But things were different now. Snape had watched Harry and Dumbledore cross wits several times, and he knew Harry might understand a great deal about what had happened between him and Lily.
There was no need to keep up an act in front of a boy as shrewd as Harry.
He could show Harry both his hatred of the boy's father, which had made him hate the son by association, and his love for the boy's mother, which had made him love her son by association. He could show him both without holding back!
And that suited Harry just fine. He didn't want Snape to keep wearing a villain's mask while secretly playing the hero, like in the movies he'd seen.
That had to be exhausting~
Snape could openly dislike Harry; Harry didn't care. As long as Snape was willing to lend him a hand when it mattered, that was enough.
"Don't get so angry just yet." Harry raised a hand, calming Snape's fury. "The people from the Pure-blood Family may be awful, but that House-elf isn't a bad sort. So I'd like you to help me find him. I want to thank him in person."
Harry had never been overflowing with saintly compassion. If someone like Malfoy crossed him, he'd have no hesitation about cracking them over the head with a brick.
But when it came to the House-elf who had "kidnapped" Hermione, he felt mostly grateful.
Hermione had been taken away for nearly an entire afternoon. The elf could have done any number of things that would have left Harry regretting it for the rest of his life. But in the end, at the risk of disobeying its master, it had chosen to let her go.
And that wasn't all. Using the House-elves' unique magic, it had brought Hermione to Harry at the very last moment!
Every one of those things was more than enough to make Harry grateful.
That was why Harry wanted to put an end to the matter once and for all. He wanted to meet the House-elf, and he also hoped to find a way to spare it its master's abuse and punishment after the job was done...
More importantly, of course, he wanted to find out which family had sent it!
That was the real reason Harry had come to Snape for help. At Hogwarts, the only person who would help him without question and could also talk to the Pure-blood Families was the promising young Slytherin Head of House!
(p.s. Actually, Snape's bite wound counted as a severe, category-three exposure. Besides the Rabies Vaccine, he should also have received an immunoglobulin injection. But the injection process is complicated, and explaining it would take up a lot of space, so I've left that out here.
Also... the following is terrible English~)
Snape: Who dares?!!
### The Mirror Has Other Uses (10/10)
"I'll handle this. As long as that person is still operating at Hogwarts, they won't escape me!"
Snape agreed to Harry's request without a moment's hesitation.
He made his promise with absolute confidence, as if no one could possibly stand in his way.
"Once you find the House-elf, I'll also have to ask you to contact the Pure-blood Family behind it and warn them to stop bothering Hermione and me!"
Harry's tone grew a little indignant as he brought it up.
"I reported what I knew about the House-elf to Headmaster Dumbledore a long time ago, but for some reason he never did anything. In the end, Hermione was taken away for an entire afternoon! The outcome was a blessing in disguise, but I don't want to count on him to sort this out again. I can only ask you to handle it too."
Honestly, if Harry put himself in Dumbledore's shoes, he could come up with a hundred reasons for him to have held back, and every single one would be for Harry's own good.
But Harry wouldn't accept a single one!
The incident had also sounded a sudden alarm in Harry's mind, reminding him once again that... for him and Hermione, Hogwarts was far more dangerous than the real world!
After all, Harry himself decided whether the real world was dangerous, and he could do pretty much whatever he wanted without worrying about the consequences.
But at Hogwarts, other people decided whether he and Hermione were in danger.
In some people's eyes, all the "danger" at Hogwarts was under control, and Harry had to be a good boy and follow the rules.
So, since dropping out was no longer an option and he definitely wasn't a good boy, Harry had to plan ahead.
For example... gradually turning Professor Snape, who might belong to Old Dumbledore's camp, into someone who played by his rules~
"I see... No matter what that Pure-blood Family's name is, they won't bother you again!" Snape considered it for a moment, then gave his answer readily.
He was certain Harry wouldn't lie about something like this, and he felt a little resentment of his own... toward the Pure-blood Family, of course, but also toward Dumbledore.
"Is there anything else you need?" Perhaps Snape thought Harry's situation was "rather miserable," so he asked, more as a formality than anything else.
"Hmm, anything else..."
Harry raised an eyebrow.
And Snape suddenly regretted asking.
To him, the little brat's face clearly read, "I'm going to take advantage of this and ask for more"~
"You know that mirror in the abandoned classroom on the fifth floor, right? I'm pretty interested in it. Could you find somewhere secluded and hide it for me~"
"You mean the Mirror of Erised?" Snape was taken aback, then warned him with a cold expression. "Granger, I have to remind you that you may see your heart's deepest desires in that mirror, but they're only desires! Everything in the mirror is an illusion. It will never become real..."
"Professor Snape, do you know why I came to you for help instead of going straight to Headmaster Dumbledore?" Harry shook his head dismissively, even putting on a hurt expression. "I thought you wouldn't lecture me like he does..."
"..."
Snape paused, then immediately realized he'd let concern cloud his judgment.
A boy as sharp as Harry had already seen the Mirror of Erised and figured out how it worked, along with its drawbacks. So what was there to worry about?
Besides, it had been a long time since he'd seen her...
"I'll find a proper place to hide that thing." Snape sounded deeply reluctant, the words squeezed out through gritted teeth...
But in his heart, he was honest~
Only, he'd guessed wrong.
Dumbledore, too—even the one from the original story—had guessed wrong.
Harry didn't need the Mirror of Erised because he hoped to see his deceased parents whenever he wanted. He needed it to become stronger!
After looking into that mirror last time, Harry had found that fragments of unfamiliar memories had appeared in his mind. Those memories had once left him mentally drained, and had seriously hampered the Obscurus when he faced the Troll.
But once everything was over and Harry had fully recovered, he realized that his overall strength had risen by more than a single level!!
He felt his mental power had grown stronger, and his hearing had become sharper. He could listen to the flow of magic more clearly than before.
He could cast spells faster, and their effects were more perfect. Even the power of his Obscurus had undergone an almost qualitative leap!
All of this was the result of his mental power being shattered and then rebuilt after the fragments of memory had battered him.
That was why Harry thought that if he looked into the mirror a few more times, he might grow even stronger.
Besides, the mirror clearly wanted to reveal something to him.
That day, Harry had only seen the outline of a blonde girl. He was sure there was more to what the mirror showed.
And the person in the mirror might be important to him, too!
As for the other reason...
Harry was also curious about what would happen if he moved the Mirror of Erised ahead of time. How would Old Dumbledore set up the final obstacle then?
He couldn't wait to see Dumbledore's reaction~
Would he be frank and ask Harry to return it, or would he let Harry take the mirror and pretend nothing had happened?
In Harry's view, Old Dumbledore's next move might inadvertently reveal the Sorcerer's Stone's true location!
After reaching a general understanding with Snape, Harry's life returned to normal. But the school suddenly grew lively.
A popular team sport, beloved at Hogwarts and throughout the Wizarding World, was about to begin...
Harry meant Quidditch.
The weather was cold in early November, but the chill couldn't dampen the students' enthusiasm for Quidditch. Especially on the day of the match between Gryffindor House and Slytherin House, nearly everyone at Hogwarts turned out to watch. Almost all the staff and students went to the pitch.
Harry was no exception. He wasn't interested in Quidditch at all, but Hermione wanted to see what it was like, so he went along with her.
The match was on Saturday, which brought back memories of his old school insisting on holding sports days on weekends, and his workplace scheduling team-building outings for holidays... Somehow, he felt a little nostalgic~
On the vast pitch, Madam Hooch took her place first as referee. Then the players from Gryffindor House and Slytherin House entered in turn and lined up on either side of her, glaring at each other.
One thing should be mentioned here: unless there were special circumstances like the ones in the original story, first-year students couldn't join their House Quidditch teams. Everyone playing in this match was at least a second-year student.
So apart from the Weasley Brothers, whom Harry knew through Ron, he didn't recognize a single one of the other players.
As for which of the Weasley Twins was Fred and which was George, Harry still hadn't managed to tell them apart~
"Listen, I expect everyone to play fair and honestly! Now, mount your Flying Broomsticks!"
After a brief pre-match speech, Madam Hooch told the teams the match would begin in three seconds.
A sharp whistle sounded, and every broom on the pitch shot into the sky at once!
The Quidditch Match had begun!
(p.s. Whew, that's ten updates on the first day done. Tomorrow there'll be another burst of ten, whether anyone celebrates it or I'm just celebrating by myself. I'm happy to be serialized either way.
Actually, I'm glad I released today's plot all at once. If I'd released it in separate installments like before, it might have left me feeling down for several days. The overall tone is rather frustrating, because this section is about "making peace": the protagonist and Hermione start to see eye to eye; the protagonist formally comes into contact with Snape; and Old Dumbledore, acting on assumptions, causes trouble for the protagonist, and so on. With all these things piling up, the protagonist can grow in a meaningful way—not just in strength, but more importantly, in his thinking.
Maybe it's my own bad taste, but the protagonists I write aren't perfect people. I often want to show how a protagonist would really behave in a particular situation, and, most importantly, how his thinking changes after different experiences.
Take Harry, for instance. After everything he's been through, it wouldn't be realistic to expect him to take all these school affairs in stride and become a well-liked, polite, obedient, well-behaved student. In his eyes, causing a huge mess, getting expelled, and not being killed for it—that's the proper way forward.
And "getting expelled" is just a stand-in for what the protagonist wants. What he really wants, as he's always insisted, is freedom and equality.
But after all this trouble, he definitely won't keep hoping Old Dumbledore will suddenly come to his senses. His way of doing things will change, especially with Hermione... Heh heh, that's all~)
### Chapter 68: Even the Eyes Had Mutated All of a Sudden (1/10)
"Yeah! This is fantastic! I've always wanted to see a real Quidditch Match!"
Beside Harry, Hermione kept shouting excitedly... He really had no idea why Hermione, whose athletic ability wasn't particularly strong, was so excited~
"Did you know, Harry? The most eye-catching thing in a Quidditch Match is the Golden Snitch! Catching it earns you 150 points, and the match ends immediately!"
She kept applauding and cheering, and she also kept rattling off the rules of Quidditch that she'd read in books.
Looking at Hermione like this, Harry smiled on the outside while wondering helplessly to himself how he could temporarily shut her excited little mouth~
"But the rules are strange. If the score difference is over 150 points, catching the Golden Snitch means the losing side loses the match... But scoring with a Quaffle is only worth ten points. Do score differences like that really happen in actual matches?" Watching the teams' scores rise and fall, Hermione furrowed her brow in confusion.
"It's actually pretty easy to get a lead of more than fifteen goals." After briefly surveying the situation on the pitch, Harry said calmly, "You just have to take out the other team's Keeper."
Before you continue