บท 122: Chapter 122: Snape's Little Classroom
Slytherin.
At 8 o'clock in the morning, the common room was rather quiet, with only first and second-year students present. It was quite rare not to have classes this early in the morning.
In a corner of the common room, Ino sat quietly on the sofa. Beside him were two old books and a purse with the Gringotts emblem.
These two books were borrowed from Pansy earlier, concerning the Freezing Charm and the Snow-Making Spell, while the purse contained melted gold.
Today's goal was to pay Pansy the rent and return the books.
When he had no money, he had no choice. But now that he had a bag of gold coins left by Jacob, it would be immoral not to repay.
As for the books on the Freezing Charm and the Snow-Making Spell, he had skimmed through them and found that the contents were very superficial, not delving into the principles of the spells but rather just some practical tips.
What he lacked the least now were tips on controlling ice and snow. For instance, humans need to learn swimming techniques, but fish in the water? Swimming is an innate instinct.
So he planned to return these two books as well, to avoid another situation like last time, where he borrowed them for several months and forgot to return them, which was quite embarrassing.
Meanwhile, in the Slytherin girls' dormitory.
Upon hearing a first-year girl come in to deliver a message, Pansy immediately put on her robe and walked out of the dormitory.
"Don't you wear makeup?" Daphne, lying on the bed, looked at Pansy helplessly, feeling that some people just didn't get it.
"No need! I'm not that Mudblood witch from Gryffindor. Compared to a pretty face, I think Ino values capable girls more."
Although she said this, Pansy still casually picked up a bottle of perfume from the dressing table and sprayed herself a few times on her way out.
...
In the common room.
"Good morning! Sorry to bother you so early." Ino stood up, apologetically looking at Pansy.
Hearing this, Pansy showed a faint smile, "It's okay, and I usually don't sleep in. I'm just idle in the dormitory."
"Alright then! I have some matters to discuss and I was afraid I might forget." Ino said as he placed the purse and books on the small table in the common room.
"There's about three pounds of gold here, to repay the rent I owed. The excess can be considered as interest."
Three pounds of gold, compared to the exchange rate he got at Gringotts, 145 Galleons per ounce, calculated to be just under 7,000 Galleons. The extra was considered a token of appreciation, as it was rare to find anyone selling Hogsmeade property through regular channels.
Contrary to his expectations, Pansy accepted the purse without any hesitation.
"I'll take the money, but if you need it in the future, you can always come to me."
"Ha, sure!" Ino laughed, and smoothly transitioned to the next topic, "And these two books, I've finished reading them, so I'm returning them to you. Thank you."
...
Both matters were resolved in less than fifteen minutes.
On the sofa, watching Pansy leave, Ino felt more and more that she was reliable. She handled things efficiently, without delay, and without superficial politeness or courtesy.
He even noticed that Pansy had a few traces of Professor McGonagall's decisiveness in her, acting swiftly and decisively.
Of course, Pansy appeared much softer than Professor McGonagall. Although he knew this was just a composed and reserved facade, it made interactions much easier.
"Returning Pansy's books is done, now it's time for Professor Snape..." Ino looked at the clock in the common room. It was 8:30 in the morning, half an hour before the first class.
This was just enough time for him to have breakfast in the Great Hall and then return to catch the end of Potions class, to return the Half-Blood Prince's notes.
...
Potions classroom.
After a class ended and the young wizards filed out, the classroom fell into temporary silence.
"Knock, knock!"
Although the classroom door was open, Ino chose to knock first.
Snape looked expressionlessly toward the door, and upon seeing who it was, switched to a mocking tone:
"Finally willing to spare a bit of attention for Potions class? Has Transfiguration lost its charm for you? Mr. Best Newcomer Award Winner Swinburne."
"Uh..." Ino instantly felt a headache. Professor McGonagall probably said something, although she never mentioned it in front of the students.
But judging from Snape's tone, McGonagall must have talked about it in the staff room.
"Professor... I'm actually here to return a book."
After some hesitation, Ino decided to be honest. Returning the notes early would save him the embarrassment of forgetting. Forgetting to return borrowed items was mortifying.
"Hah! I take back what I said earlier. It seems someone is unwilling to spare any attention at all. That's fine, you can focus on learning Transfiguration." Snape's tone became even more mocking.
Despite the mockery, this was a good sign. Given Snape's personality, saying so much was actually a silent acknowledgment.
Similarly, Ino noticed that Snape's face had a bit more vitality these days. But now was not the time to think about that. The priority was to return the book and hopefully dispel Snape's bias.
"Professor, you misunderstand! I've copied all the notes, and I even made a special trip to Hogsmeade to buy 'Advanced Potion-Making'."
Upon hearing this explanation, Snape uncharacteristically refrained from further mocking. He pointed to the desk, "Leave it here. If there's nothing else, you may leave."
Hearing this, Ino put down the notes but did not leave immediately.
"Professor, I want to learn how to brew Felix Felicis. It would be very useful to me."
"Felix Felicis?" Snape was about to mock again but fell silent upon seeing Ino's serious expression.
"Go learn how to handle potion ingredients first," Snape said calmly:
"Distilling, extracting, slicing, fermenting, purifying, calcining, moistening... When you can do all of these properly, come back to me for Felix Felicis."
"Understood, Professor!" Ino nodded seriously.
He understood that this was not a brush-off; it was genuine teaching.
As he prepared to leave, Snape's voice came again.
"Every Tuesday, from 7 to 9 pm, I have a lot of ingredients that need processing!"
"I will be there on time!" Ino turned around, bowed slightly to Snape, and performed a bow.
It's important to remember the kindness of others, and he willingly gave this bow.
A private class from a contemporary Potions Master was something many sought but couldn't obtain, even with money. After all, Potions Masters had no shortage of wealth.
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