Parchment

"Hmm... Moaning Myrtle, thank you for telling me about this, it was very helpful." Snape felt a little regretful. If only her talent for language was as good as Ron's.

However, he was still very satisfied with the harvest from this trip. Even if he had to ask Dumbledore to be a "doorman" later, he at least had a suitable excuse.

"Will you come to my bathroom to see me again?" Moaning Myrtle said sadly as Snape walked towards the door. "This is the first time anyone has talked to me so much."

"We will meet again," Snape said. He would definitely come back here, so that wasn't a lie.

"Goodbye," Moaning Myrtle said wistfully.

Snape grasped the handle and pulled the bathroom door open a narrow crack.

Just as he was about to peek out to see if anyone was in the corridor, the hairs on the back of his neck suddenly stood on end, and a strong sense of crisis washed over him.

Without time to think, he rolled sharply to the side, disregarding the filth and standing water on the floor.

The moment he rolled away, with a loud "bang," the door was violently shoved open, and a searing red light streaked through the air.

The spell hit the already mottled mirror. With a "crash," shards scattered across the floor.

"Ah—" a sharp female voice rang out. Moaning Myrtle pressed herself against the wall in terror, her eyes wide.

"Murder! There's murder in the bathroom! Murder!"

"Stupefy!"

A gust of wind rushed in, continuing to cast spells.

The spell missed slightly, shattering the toilet behind Snape. A jet of water erupted, flooding the surrounding floor.

It was James Potter's voice!

But Snape couldn't see anyone. James must be wearing that Invisibility Cloak!

Snape flipped over on the spot, quickly got up, and darted behind the sink, drawing his wand to retaliate.

"Sectumsempra—Sectumsempra!"

With a bang, the candle holder near the door instantly twisted and fell to the ground.

The candle heads rolled into the standing water, and with a faint "puff," the flame flickered and died.

The bathroom plunged into darkness.

Spells flew everywhere, whistling through the air.

"Stop it! Stop it!" Moaning Myrtle shrieked, her voice echoing in the pitch-black bathroom. "My bathroom! Stop it! Don't fight anymore!"

"Petrificus Totalus!" Snape waved his wand frantically.

Suddenly, the spell aimed at him stopped, and then he heard something fall with a plop into the puddle.

"Lumos."

Using the light from his wand, Snape reached out and felt around on the ground.

Finally, he found an invisible raised area above the floor.

He yanked off the transparent Invisibility Cloak covering James, and Snape saw that detestable face.

James lay on his back on the wet ground, his mouth wide open, completely unable to move.

After kicking the wand that had fallen beside James far away, Snape looked down and examined him closely.

"Potter, how dare you come looking for me alone?"

"How should I reward your bravery?" he stared into James's eyes, "Let me guess, how did you know I was here."

"Before, how did you know Lily and I were together in Slughorn's office..." Snape emphasized Lily's name.

He bent down and searched James's robe pockets.

"What good stuff is this?"

Snape held a blank Parchment with only a few creases in his hand, looking at James playfully.

"Mr. Potter, why do you carry a blank Parchment with you?"

Then, he walked to a working toilet, pressed the flush button on the cistern, so James wouldn't hear what came next.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." He tapped the Parchment lightly with his wand, lowering his voice.

A small black dot was moving towards Moaning Myrtle's lavatory.

"Prank complete." Snape tapped the map again with his wand tip, and the map immediately turned blank.

"Alright, it's about time." He put the Parchment into his robe and looked at Moaning Myrtle, "Moaning Myrtle, we're friends, right?"

Moaning Myrtle was still hiding in the corner, sobbing softly.

Hearing Snape's words, she looked up in surprise, her face full of disbelief: "Ah... you want to be friends with me?"

"Why not?" Snape said.

At this moment, the door burst open behind him: Professor McGonagall rushed in, wand raised.

She was wearing a checked dressing gown and a hairnet, her face very stern.

"Snape, what are you doing here in the middle of the night?"

She saw James lying on the ground again: "Potter! What is this all about?!"

"Professor, I was chatting with Moaning Myrtle here, and Potter suddenly attacked me--"

"--Yes, I can testify to that." Moaning Myrtle happily somersaulted in the air, "Severus and I were having a party, and he burst in and ruined my bathroom. Professor McGonagall, look at this mess!"

"Silence," Professor McGonagall said sternly as she released James from the petrification spell, "and you be quiet too, Potter."

"Wandering around in the middle of the night, casting spells on classmates!" Her lips were pale, and her voice was filled with icy anger, "You two, come with me to see the Headmaster!"

They silently followed Professor McGonagall down the moonlit corridor.

Arriving on the Eighth Floor, after turning a corner, Professor McGonagall stopped in front of a hideous, giant Stone Monster.

This was the second time Snape had been here this year. Last time, besides James, Remus Lupin, who was pale, had also come.

"Lemon Drops." Professor McGonagall said.

The Stone Monster suddenly came alive, jumped to the side, and the wall behind it split in half, revealing a moving Spiral Staircase. The staircase was slowly moving upwards, like an escalator.

The three of them passed through the gap in the wall, and as soon as they stepped onto the stone stairs, they heard a rumble behind them, and the wall closed again.

The staircase rotated in circles, rising higher and higher, finally taking them to a gleaming Oak Door, on which was a Gargoyle-shaped Brass Knocker.

Although it was almost midnight, voices could be heard from inside the room, a chaotic murmur, as if Dumbledore was entertaining at least a dozen people.

Professor McGonagall tapped the Gargoyle knocker three times. The voices suddenly stopped, as if switched off.

The door opened automatically, and she led Snape and James inside.

It was a spacious, beautiful circular room, filled with various comical little sounds.

The room was dimly lit, and the strange silver instruments on the tables hummed and whirred, emitting wisps of smoke.

Portraits of past Headmasters on the walls snored in their frames, their chests rising and falling gently.

Behind the door, a Large Bird, as big as a swan, with beautiful golden-red feathers, perched on a stand, swaying its long tail feathers and blinking at them kindly.