After Class

"Very good."

Snape looked at Harry, then at Hermione, and finally at Sean. "Your answer was thorough and accurate. I will award Slytherin five points.

At the same time, Potter! Because you talked back to a teacher just now, I will deduct one point from Gryffindor. Miss Granger, for standing without permission, I will likewise deduct one point from Gryffindor. I hope that next time, you will understand not to be so eager to display your meager knowledge when I have not called upon you."

Having said that, Snape ignored Hermione's disbelieving expression, turned, and returned to the podium. He began teaching everyone how to brew Itching Potion.

Although Sean already knew Itching Potion by heart, he did not relax in the slightest. He knew that Snape, as one of the rare Potions masters in the Magical World, had his own understanding of many potions. Though he would not openly share those insights, he revealed bits and pieces of them during class. Even that was an enormous gain for Sean.

Using the textbook as a foundation, combining his grandfather Gavin's notes with the little extras Snape slipped into his lessons, and comparing all three against one another, Sean eagerly absorbed every kind of knowledge about Potions.

Like Transfiguration Class, the latter half of Potions Class was devoted to practical work.

They worked in pairs, with each group given a Cauldron and a set of ingredients for Itching Potion.

Sean's knowledge of brewing potions was extensive only in theory; he had never actually practiced it. His cooking experience from his previous life merely allowed him to control the Cauldron and the fire beneath it with relative composure. Everything else had to be learned bit by bit.

Gurgle, gurgle...

The potion in the Cauldron was slightly viscous. When Sean added the Viper's Tooth Powder, it quickly turned yellow-green. After a brief stir, the yellow-green liquid became a clear emerald green.

Next came the final ingredient, Porcupine Quills. Once they were added and processed slightly, the Itching Potion would be complete.

Watching Sean handle each ingredient with remarkable precision and brew the potion step by step, Blaise could not help feeling fortunate that he had become friends with Sean. While everyone else had been brewing, apart from Sean and Malfoy, every student had received Snape's harsh criticism. Not even the Slytherins were spared.

Among them, Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom bore the brunt of it. The former because Snape hated Harry, and the latter simply because he kept making mistakes.

Of course, the person criticized most severely was actually a Slytherin.

Millicent Bulstrode!

Perhaps because she had failed to answer properly earlier, Snape's opinion of Millicent was extremely low. He showed her little mercy when criticizing her. On top of that, Millicent truly had only average talent in Potions. If Harry and Neville had not served as targets and drawn most of Snape's fire, Millicent might have been blasted to pieces by Snape's scolding.

Carefully placing the Porcupine Quills into her Cauldron, Millicent held in a breath of frustration. She wanted to be the first to finish brewing her potion and wash away her earlier humiliation. However, in her haste, she overlooked the importance of timing in potion-making. When she put the Porcupine Quills into the Cauldron, not only had the previous ingredients not fully fused together, she had also forgotten to remove the Cauldron from the fire first.

Thus, the instant Millicent dropped the Porcupine Quills into the Cauldron, the potion inside exploded as though someone had tossed in a firecracker. Thick, murky yellow-green liquid splashed everywhere. Most of it landed on Millicent, and huge red, swollen boils instantly erupted across her body. From a distance, Millicent's figure seemed to swell up out of nowhere. The pain made her cry out loudly, tears and snot streaming down her face.

"Idiot!"

Snape reached Millicent in a few strides. With a wave of his Wand, the spilled potion on the floor and tables vanished at once. Then he glanced at Millicent's injuries and at the one or two boils that had appeared on some of the others nearby. "Those who are injured, take Bulstrode to the hospital wing upstairs! A Slytherin making such a low-level mistake in Potions Class is simply unheard of!"

Pansy and Goyle were injured as well. They immediately took Millicent out of the classroom, and Pansy's face bore an obvious expression of disgust.

Watching the three leave, Snape turned to the others and said sharply, "Millicent forgot to take her Cauldron off the fire before adding the Porcupine Quills. That is a major taboo when brewing Itching Potion. I do not wish to see anyone else make the same mistake!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Snape looked at Harry. "Potter, Millicent was taken to the hospital wing because of her mistake, yet you were standing there laughing. Because you lack solidarity, I will deduct one point from Gryffindor!"

"That's not fair. Harry wasn't laughing at Millicent, we were only..."

"Weasley! Talking back to a teacher. One point from Gryffindor!"

After two points were deducted in a row, Harry instinctively wanted to argue, but Ron grabbed him and whispered, "Don't say anything else. Snape doesn't make sense. He seems to really discriminate against Gryffindor, and he hates you even more. Don't let him deduct any more points."

As Harry and Ron fell silent, Sean gave the potion in his Cauldron a slight stir. A puff of white smoke rose, revealing a pot of transparent pale-green liquid. Sean carefully poured it into a container. At the instant the final drop fell inside, Snape reached out, picked up the container, and gave it a slight sniff. At last, a trace of satisfaction appeared on his face.

"A passable Itching Potion. Five points to Slytherin!"

Sean looked at Snape. He had earned twenty points in this class alone, and with the five points from Transfiguration Class earlier, he had already recovered half of the fifty points deducted from him. If this did not reflect Snape's favoritism, Sean himself would not believe it.

As group after group of Young Wizards finished their potions, Potions Class finally came to an end.

Perhaps because Millicent had gone first, Neville, who should have made a mistake, somehow made it safely to the end of class, though the potion he brewed was still indescribable.

After class, the Young Wizards hurried out of the classroom, afraid to remain there even a moment longer. Even Malfoy was no exception.

Sean, on the other hand, was among the last few to leave.

Just as Sean was about to say goodbye to Snape, he heard the other man speak. "Sean, I was partly responsible for the fifty points deducted from you earlier, though I had not expected you to come to Slytherin at the time...

The points awarded today were partly because of your excellence, and partly as compensation from me. In the future, points will not be awarded so frequently, nor will there be so many at a time. Conduct yourself accordingly."

With that, Snape said no more. Instead, he left before Sean and Blaise, his black robes billowing behind him as he swiftly vanished from Sean's sight.

Please bookmark, vote, and keep reading. Thank you, everyone.