James's eyes went wide, his mouth slightly agape. Remus sucked in a sharp breath. Peter let out a short squeak of surprise, then quickly covered his mouth.
Sirius stood at the door, his body tense, fingers unconsciously curling into fists. He wanted to draw his wand but restrained the impulse.
Helping outsiders against his own brother, whether he won or lost, it wouldn't be honorable.
Besides, he knew that even if he joined in, they wouldn't win. Continuing the conflict would only make him look even worse.
Snape stared at the motionless red ribbon. He slowly turned his head to look at Regulus.
Lily's hand was still tugging at Snape's sleeve, but she had forgotten the action, simply staring in a daze.
Regulus finally looked up.
He glanced at James, his gaze as calm as if looking at a piece of furniture. Then he looked at the red ribbon. His right hand still held the quill; his left hand lightly gripped the wand and gave it a slight flick.
The red light went from vibrant to dim, from solid to transparent, and then disintegrated. Like melting ice, it broke down into countless tiny red specks of light.
The specks floated and swirled in the air before silently dissipating.
The process was neither fast nor slow; everyone saw it clearly.
The wand vanished abruptly from Regulus's hand. He placed his left hand back on the table, lowered his head, and continued writing notes. The quill moved across the paper, making a steady scratching sound.
It was as if nothing had just happened.
The silence lasted for at least ten seconds.
James Potter's hand still held his wand aloft, his posture rigid as a statue.
His eyes were wide open, the pupils behind his glasses reflecting empty air.
Right there, ten seconds ago, a complete Disarming Charm had been frozen, decomposed, and dissipated, as if it had never existed.
"You..." James's voice caught in his throat. He swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing. "What did you do?"
Regulus didn't answer. He didn't even look up at him again.
James clenched his fist, seemingly in the midst of some intense internal deliberation. He was furious at being ignored by Regulus, but ultimately, he didn't explode.
He knew, or rather, he had learned.
There was a brief mention in the appendix of The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1: theoretically, a wizard powerful enough could directly dismantle the structure of a lesser wizard's spell through magical interference.
The more knowledge one possessed, the more one understood what this represented.
James Potter loved pranks, was arrogant, and prejudiced against Slytherin, but he was certainly not stupid.
His father had taught him basic spell theory. He had seen adult wizards perform advanced magic. He had read books.
So he understood that the scene that had just unfolded before his eyes wasn't a first-year using a little trick. It was something beyond his imagination happening right in front of him.
And the person who performed it sat there quietly, as if he were an insignificant insect unworthy of notice.
James's fist clenched tighter, his wand digging into his palm. He wanted to say something provocative to save face, but his throat was dry, and he couldn't squeeze out a single word.
"What spell was that?" Remus's voice was very soft as he moved his body to block James.
"It wasn't a spell," Sirius spoke up. He walked into the compartment and stood beside James, his gaze falling on Regulus.
He hadn't expected Regulus to be capable of this. He knew it represented a level of superb skill, and it filled his heart with complex, indescribable emotions.
Perhaps it was some family secret he didn't know about?
"What do you mean?" James turned to look at him, his tone sour.
"It means you can't beat him," Sirius's voice was deliberately calm. Between his best friend and his brother, he didn't want to appear biased.
Then he added, "At least not right now. So, don't provoke him."
James opened his mouth to retort, but he looked at Regulus, then at the spot where the spell had vanished, and ultimately said nothing.
Regulus finally looked up at Sirius, gave a minute nod, and lowered his head again.
They left.
In the corridor, Lily Evans and Severus Snape were still standing there.
Lily's hand had let go of Snape's sleeve, but she still stood beside him, her green eyes wide, looking from Regulus to the spot where the spell had vanished.
Snape's expression was gloomier than usual. He stared at Regulus, his eyes full of wariness.
"Are you alright?" Lily spoke first, asking Regulus.
Regulus looked up, his gaze sweeping over Lily and Snape.
"Thank you for coming, although strictly speaking, Mr. Snape is the one who should be thanked. The spell was originally aimed at him."
Lily paused, not expecting him to say that, though it was indeed the truth. "No... I mean, it was nothing."
The corner of Snape's mouth twitched. He continued to stare at Regulus. "How did you do that?"
Regulus didn't answer. instead, he stood up to introduce himself.
"Before answering, perhaps we should introduce ourselves. I am Regulus Black."
"Black?" Lily's eyes widened slightly. "You are... Sirius Black's brother?"
Regulus nodded slightly, extending his right hand and shoulder slightly outward in a formal gesture.
"I am Lily Evans." Receiving confirmation, the name surprised her. Lily quietly took a deep breath.
Then her tone became more formal than before. "Second year, Gryffindor. This is Severus Snape, also second year, Slytherin."
Snape's lips pressed into a thin line. He only nodded slightly, his movement stiff.
Regulus nodded in greeting to both of them. "I know your names."
Lily blinked. "You know?"
"Professor Slughorn mentioned you," Regulus said, his tone as natural as stating a fact.
"He said there are two second-year students at Hogwarts whose talent in Potions far exceeds their peers: Lily Evans and Severus Snape. He suggested that if I had the chance, I should interact with you more."
Lily's face reddened slightly with happiness. Her eyes lit up, and her mouth curved into a sincere smile. "Really? Professor Slughorn said that?"
Snape's expression was much more complex. His chin lifted slightly, as if with pride at being recognized, but his eyes remained wary.
He was all too familiar with such words. "Talent far exceeding peers" sounded like praise, but in Slytherin, this phrase often came with a subtext: but your bloodline is unworthy of your talent.
"So you know who we are," Snape's voice was a bit dry as he steered the topic back. "But what did we just see? That was definitely not something a first-year should be able to do, Mr. Black?"
Regulus looked at him, knowing that the young Snape was sensitive, insecure, yet proud, a contradictory character.
Toward pure-bloods, he was wary, yet desperate to join them.
Regulus explained, "Spell analysis and magical interference. The principle isn't complicated, it just requires a very high degree of control precision."
Of course, there is also magical perception.
"How high?" Snape pressed.
Sensitive, insecure, proud, and impolite, Regulus noted silently in his heart. But he didn't mind; Snape was very valuable.
"High enough that most adult wizards can't do it," Regulus answered calmly. "I practiced for a long time."
Lily looked at him curiously. "At what age did you start practicing magic?"
"Since I can remember," Regulus said lightly. "We have a library at home."
The Black family library was indeed famous, or rather, every ancient family had its own collection.
But no amount of books could enable a child to master advanced spell techniques without a teacher.
However, Lily accepted this explanation because she came from a Muggle family. She didn't have a library at home, and she didn't know what pure-blood education was like.
She nodded, a bit more warmth in her green eyes. "So you're also... the kind of person who likes to learn."
"Learning is necessary," Regulus nodded in agreement. "For a wizard, knowledge is power."
Then he silently added in his heart, For Muggles, even more so.
This sentence made Snape raise an eyebrow slightly. He glanced at Regulus, the wariness in his eyes lessening a bit, replaced by some agreement.
"So," Snape asked, "which House do you plan to go to?"
"Slytherin," Regulus said without hesitation. "That is the family tradition."
Lily's expression dimmed slightly. She looked at Snape, then at Regulus, her lips moving, but finally said, "Slytherin... is not bad either. Severus is there."
At the same time, she thought, But there are also many people there who hate people like me.
Regulus understood. He simply nodded. "Every House has people worth learning from, and people not worth wasting time on."
This made Lily's expression brighten again. She smiled. "You're right. So, see you at the Sorting Ceremony?"
"See you at the Sorting Ceremony."
Lily tugged at Snape's sleeve. "We should go back, Severus."
Snape gave Regulus one last look, nodded, and then turned to leave. Lily waved to Regulus and followed him.
The compartment fell silent again.