Chapter 218: Professor Snape?
Dylan spent the entire morning in his lab. By lunchtime, when he arrived at the Great Hall, Ron and Harry had already started eating.
Neville waved to Dylan, and Dylan naturally sat down beside him. Ron was on his other side.
As soon as Dylan sat down, he felt like Ron kept glancing at him. He looked over, but Ron quickly averted his eyes. When Ron tried to sneak another peek for the nth time, Dylan turned his head and caught his eye.
Dylan narrowed his eyes. "Spit it out. Why do you keep looking at me?"
Caught in the act, Ron was a bit embarrassed. He scratched his head, unsure of what to say.
"Uh... well, Dylan, have you been interacting with people from other houses a little too much lately?"
Dylan's eyebrow twitched at this completely nonsensical question. What was he talking about? It was so confusing.
"When have I been interacting with people from other houses all the time?"
Ron cleared his throat and mumbled, "Like Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff..."
Dylan instantly realized Ron was talking about Luna and Cedric. But this was even weirder. He hadn't even talked to Luna much lately because of the recent school-wide lockdown. As for Cedric, he'd only occasionally run into him and say hello. That was it. How did that count as "frequent interaction"? And even if it was, so what?
Dylan looked at Ron with a baffled expression, as if he were looking at an idiot. "What are you trying to say?"
"Ahem! I'm trying to say that the honor of Gryffindor is something we should uphold!"
"Huh?"
Dylan was even more bewildered by Ron's statement. Was this guy under some kind of dark magic spell? Was he not quite right in the head? Could it be that during Potions class two days ago, Professor Snape had hit him on the head with his wand because he was so stupid, and while it seemed like a physical attack, Snape had secretly cast some dark curse on Ron?
Dylan suddenly thought that was a very real possibility.
"What on earth are you rambling on about?"
Ron put down his fork. "You don't know?"
"What am I supposed to know?"
Ron blinked. "You know, the Slytherins. They said their Seeker still hasn't fully recovered from his injury last time."
"So?" What did the Slytherin Seeker's injury have to do with him? It wasn't his fault. Wait, wasn't the Slytherin Seeker Malfoy? When did he get hurt?
"So the Slytherins used that as an excuse to say they couldn't participate in the Quidditch match."
"And?"
At this point, Harry, who was sitting across from Ron, spoke up. "Malfoy isn't actually badly hurt; they just don't want to play in the rain!"
Listening to Ron and Harry's one-by-one additions, Dylan roughly understood the situation.
"So you're saying because Malfoy claims to be injured, the Slytherins told the school they can't find a replacement Seeker for Malfoy in time, so the match has to be postponed?"
Ron nodded. "Yes, that's what I mean."
Dylan glared at him. "So what does that have to do with me frequently interacting with people from other houses?"
Ron said, "We were originally supposed to play against Slytherin. Now that Slytherin has requested a change of date, our opponent has switched from Slytherin to Hufflepuff!"
Dylan was getting a little impatient. "Hurry up, just say it all at once."
Ron shrank back. "We found out that the Hufflepuff Captain is Cedric, and you seem to be on very good terms with him lately. And you often go to the Hufflepuff kitchens to cook with Luna, so now all the Hufflepuff students know you."
"You're a Gryffindor student. If you get too close to them, are you going to cheer for them during the Quidditch match?"
Ron sped up, saying it all in one breath. "You've only known Cedric for a little while. Harry has been your friend since the first year! So have Fred and George!"
"You're obviously closer to us, and you're a Gryffindor student, so you..."
Dylan had a headache listening to this. He waved his hand, telling Ron to shut up. What was all this about? Anyone who didn't know would think he was some kind of heartless player with ten relationships going on at once.
He was just cooking with Luna and exploring the Hufflepuff secret ovens to see if he could find any other secret kitchen utensils. When he occasionally ran into Cedric, they'd say hello. That was so he could eventually develop Cedric into his confidant. Why did it sound so completely different coming out of Ron's mouth?
Besides, it was just a game. He wasn't even playing, so why was Ron telling him who he could cheer for?
"Stop right there. If the game starts, could I, a Gryffindor student, really go and sit in the Hufflepuff stands?"
Dylan rolled his eyes and placed a plate of sliced roast chicken in front of himself. The aroma of the fat filled the air, making him feel a lot better.
"Stop talking nonsense. When Harry goes out on the field, I'll be cheering for them."
Ron's mood improved a lot after getting Dylan's definitive answer. He said to Harry across from him, "See? I knew Dylan liked us best!"
Listening to the discussion of the little kids, Dylan shook his head secretly. They really were just a bunch of little kids. They even had to argue about who was friends with whom. In the adult world, what was the use of having friends? Would having friends help him with his experiments?
—If it was Cedric, maybe.
After all, once that guy got into the Ministry of Magic, with his father paving the way, he would eventually reach a high position. At that point, whatever Dylan wanted to do would be very convenient. Even if there were materials he couldn't get his hands on openly, Dylan could have Cedric help him get them directly.
—Although he could also have Delphini and the others acquire things for him secretly, it was much faster to get materials openly than it was to sneak around.
In the following days, Dylan continued to go to class, read, do experiments, and brew potions for Lupin as usual. The Quidditch match was also approaching. In these few days, Wood once again showed his sense of urgency to the fullest. Now he wasn't just dragging Harry out of bed in the morning and keeping him from returning to his dorm at night. Even during class, Wood would find Harry in the gaps between classes. He would constantly analyze various tactics with him and share all kinds of information he had somehow managed to get about the Hufflepuff players.
After three years of training and his performance in every match, Harry could be considered a formidable player on the Quidditch pitch for Gryffindor. Wood was like a mother hen, pouring almost all of his recent efforts into Harry. He even wished he could move Dylan into his dorm so he could live with Harry and give him endless advice and tactical discussions.
Also, with Harry as the Gryffindor Seeker, his opponent was originally Malfoy. But now, with Slytherin replaced by Hufflepuff, Harry was facing Hufflepuff's Quidditch Captain—Cedric. At this point, Dylan could understand why Ron had said all that nonsensical stuff to him. One reason was probably that Ron didn't want Harry to feel too much pressure. The other was the cliquish mentality of little kids.
This made Harry's life miserable lately. The professors wouldn't let Harry neglect his studies just because he was playing in a match. As a result, Harry not only had to endure Snape's taunts in class but also had to deal with the homework from all his subjects. In his free time, he also had to listen to Wood talk about Cedric's various habits.
One evening, when Dylan was reading in the dorm, he listened to what Wood was telling Harry. This guy really wanted to pick apart every single detail about Cedric and cram it into Harry's brain.
Dylan even suspected that Wood spent his days either tracking Harry or tracking Cedric, like a stalker. He probably knew exactly when Cedric went to the bathroom and when he passed gas, all to figure out if Cedric had eaten something wrong so they could gain an advantage in the match.
But since these things only bothered Harry and didn't affect Dylan at all, he couldn't truly appreciate Harry's "fulfilling" state of mind. Although he was also very fulfilled, it was a different kind of fulfillment.
This continued until the day before the Quidditch match. It was Friday, and students had classes. Wood took Harry away in the morning and didn't let him come back. As a result, Harry even missed what was arguably the most difficult Defence Against the Dark Arts class of the semester.
—Oh, no, he didn't miss it; he was late.
"Sorry, Professor."
Harry ran over, out of breath, and stood at the door, his face apologetic and embarrassed. But when he looked up, he didn't see Lupin; he saw his dear Potions Professor, and his expression crumbled even further.
"P-Professor Snape? What are you doing here? Where's Professor Lupin?"
Snape looked coldly at Harry standing in the doorway. "I'm afraid he's had a bit of an issue today, so..." Professor Snape's lips curled into a sneer. "For your tardiness, Gryffindor loses ten points!"
Harry was speechless. He had just been docked twenty points the day before for a mistake in Potions class, and now he was losing another ten! Good Lord! Why was Professor Snape subbing for Defence Against the Dark Arts? He would have even preferred Professor McGonagall!
"Go sit down, Potter—or are you planning to stand there like a statue, for all the students and staff to admire your breathtaking punctuality?"
Professor Snape narrowed his eyes, seeing Harry rooted to the spot. Harry snapped back to reality and rushed to his seat. He opened his mouth, wanting to explain, "Professor, I'm late because..."
Snape snorted, cutting him off directly. "Because you were waylaid by some great mission on your way to class? I suppose you were helping a troll with his necktie, or perhaps discussing divination with Filch's cat? Truly a star of tomorrow for Gryffindor! Even your tardiness is so uniquely staged."
"I hope your performance for the rest of the lesson doesn't make me regret allowing you to remain in this classroom."
Harry hadn't even finished a single sentence before Professor Snape's scathing sarcasm rained down on him. He didn't dare to speak again and simply kept quiet.
This is a nightmare! Harry silently complained about Wood in his head.
Dylan, sitting in the front row, listened to Professor Snape's taunts and raised an eyebrow slightly.
Oh, wow. Look at that sharp wit. He's getting better!
Dylan remembered that not long ago, after he had brewed the potion for Lupin and was handing it over to Professor Snape, he had shared a few tips with him on how to be truly insulting. He didn't expect those few words to raise Professor Snape's level so much.
"Maybe I should consider publishing a book? The title could be, 'How to Make Someone Snap in One Sentence.'"
Dylan naturally knew why Professor Snape was subbing for Defence Against the Dark Arts class. The full moon had just passed, and Lupin had just transformed. He was now weaker than a new mother, and today happened to be the day for his class.
So, of course, Professor Snape was subbing. As for why it was Professor Snape and not anyone else, it was at Lupin's request and Dumbledore's instruction. Dylan wasn't too interested in the specifics. He could tell by Professor Snape's bad mood that he was probably annoyed.
Though Professor Snape had always wanted to teach this subject, he definitely didn't want to sub for Lupin. He must have only reluctantly agreed after Dumbledore, that old troublemaker, mediated. Dylan guessed the situation was probably something like that.
"Professor, is Professor Lupin okay?" Harry asked, unable to stop himself from looking up at Snape after he sat down.
Snape was just about to start the lesson but was interrupted by Harry again. A cold stare instantly shot over. "He's fine. He's not in any mortal danger."
"But you, Potter, have interrupted the professor's class again Gryffindor, ten more points! If you interrupt me again, Gryffindor loses fifty points!"
Harry completely shut up. Professor Snape also slightly reined in the look of disappointment on his face but not by much. Dylan didn't know what he was disappointed about. Maybe it was because Lupin wasn't in mortal danger. Or maybe it was because Harry had stopped talking back, so he couldn't deduct any more points.
Perhaps it was a bit of both?