Chapter 15
Moonlight poured like water across the interior of Hogwarts Castle. Barton sat motionless on a low stool, silently guarding the Portkey in front of him.
Suddenly, the domed hat before him trembled with several flashes of bright light! Barton rose swiftly, tapped the black hat once, then gripped it firmly with both hands.
After perhaps a few breaths' time, Lucian and his companions rapidly squeezed out from the miniature hat, expanding swiftly along some illusory passage.
*Thump.*
After landing lightly, Lucian let out a soft breath "No accidents, right? Barton."
"None, Master." The words had barely left his mouth when a knocking sound came from the door.
Knock* Knock*
It had the distinct texture of a wand rapping against wood; this was highly unusual—Lucian had already cast a Muffliato charm; no sound from outside should have been able to reach the room.
Unless the magic above had been dispelled.
Lucian glanced at Barton—it understood immediately, took the Portkey, and Disapparated without a sound.
"Relax. Put your wands away. This is Hogwarts."
Lucian calmed his two assistants and sent them off to their own tasks. He himself kept his wand in hand as he walked to the door, ready at any moment to cast "Draconifors Protego"
The door opened. Standing behind it was Snape, also holding his wand.
"Snape?" Lucian's brows furrowed, a trace of displeasure in his expression—casually dispelling the protective magic of someone else's residence was frankly quite rude.
Seeing that Lucian was unharmed, Snape lowered his wand. The soft flesh on either side of his somewhat plump chin folded into creases as he spoke in a leisurely, mocking tone "I noticed several extremely powerful magical fluctuations flashing through your rooms just now—Lucian, if I were you, I would be a little more careful."
"What do you mean?"
Snape turned his head to look down the corridor—the Great Hall lay hidden at the far end of his vision, swallowed in dark chaos, as though it might devour everything "Aren't you going to invite me in to sit?"
"…Come in."
Snape stepped into Lucian's office and casually surveyed the surroundings. Traces of magical fluctuation still lingered in the air, clearly an attempt to conceal something. The two assistants were pretending to read books, but Snape could feel their furtive glances.
Sure enough—they had definitely just gone somewhere to do something important.
"It's getting late. If you have something to say, say it quickly, Snape."
Seeing Lucian trying to drive him out right from the start, Snape didn't grow angry; on the contrary, he felt a certain dark amusement. 'So afraid of having his secrets exposed?'
"Not even offering me a cup of tea?" Snape's gaze settled on the large floor-to-ceiling window. In front of it stood a small round table with three chairs. Moonlight spilled across the tabletop, quiet and beautiful.
Almost drawn in, Snape sat down in the chair on the left as though he were the host, then gestured invitingly toward Lucian. In that moment, he faintly regained a trace of the elegance he had once possessed.
"Drinking tea under the moonlight with a middle-aged, overweight uncle? Only you could come up with that." Lucian shook his head, but still walked over and sat opposite Snape anyway.
"…"
Seeing Lucian attack his body structure and age before even sitting down properly, the corner of Snape's mouth twitched faintly. Still, he stubbornly refused to speak first.
After a brief silence, Lucian's gaze toward Snape softened slightly "…You really want to drink? Drinking tea late at night will affect your sleep."
"A tiny vial of Sleeping Draught solves that problem. What exactly are you dawdling about?"
"You come here pretending to be a kind benefactor with a warning, yet you won't even offer a guest a single cup of tea? Is this your idea of hospitality?"
Lucian sighed. He didn't know what game Snape was playing, but for the sake of maintaining basic colleague relations, he still gave the order "Barton, bring him a glass of iced lemon tea."
The house-elf Barton appeared silently—this time without dumping a lethal amount of sugar into it.
Snape gave a slight nod, seemingly somewhat satisfied, and finally spoke "You've recently been researching Dark Magic, haven't you? You only came to teach at the school because you were forced to. You have absolutely no interest in actually teaching students."
Lucian's gaze drifted out the window. A night raven had just landed among the trees and vanished into the shadows.
"Dumbledore told you?"
"That's not important. What matters is why—back then you were extremely opposed to Dark Magic. So why have you now set foot on this path?"
"That was more than ten years ago. You really want to dig this up now? I didn't realize you were so nostalgic."
Snape pressed his lips together and fell silent again. Moonlight fell across the side of his face, faintly revealing the melancholic air he had once carried.
Perhaps because the day's events had left his nerves taut and weary. Or perhaps because of the perfectly tranquil silence that now filled the air.
Suddenly Lucian felt a profound exhaustion.
Fine. Since he was already teaching at Hogwarts, some things simply could not be avoided. With that thought, he spoke calmly:
"I was never actually opposed to Dark Magic. I just felt that before building a solid foundation, there was no need to touch those things prematurely. Besides, my talent isn't particularly outstanding. Even fully mastering Charms and Transfiguration already takes all my energy and focus. Back then I didn't study Dark Magic not because I held some prejudice against it—I simply didn't want to scatter my attention. That's all."
"Energy not enough? That was your reason for refusing me?" Snape seemed to recall some unpleasant memories. "If I had taught you, those simple spells would have been effortless for you to master! Even learning Dark Magic wouldn't have—"
"That's different." Lucian shook his head. "If it isn't knowledge I reach through my own reasoning and understanding, not only does it bring no benefit—it actually pollutes my entire system of magic."
Seeing that Snape didn't seem convinced, Lucian continued "Moreover, you and James Potter's group were constantly at each other's throats. Cooperating with you to research Dark Magic would have meant picking a side—"
"So you were afraid?"
"—Afraid? Have you forgotten who it was that helped you out when you were at your most pathetic? And you couldn't even fulfill your benefactor's one simple request: to stop bothering me."
"…"
Snape felt he was on the verge of losing control. Since Lily's death, he had never experienced such intense emotional turbulence. His gaze unconsciously shifted to the iced tea in front of him. He seized the glass and gulped it down in large swallows.
"So that's why you refused me, refused to join Potter and the others? You were afraid that once you joined them, you'd inevitably have to stand against me?"
"No, that part didn't scare me."
"…" Snape drew a deep breath.
"I just found James and the rest too noisy, too childish. Spending every day bullying one gloomy, shut-in kid, never studying magic, only thinking about wandering around—I really didn't have time to waste on them."
Perhaps because of the ice, even though Snape didn't think Lucian's explanation was satisfactory, the sensation in his chest at this moment was an unbelievably clear and refreshing relief.
"Lucian, you left the school today, didn't you? I don't care what method you used. I only want to tell you one thing. Since I could sense that magical fluctuation, Dumbledore certainly can too. If you left the castle to secretly research the three Unforgivable Curses behind his back—"
Snape stood up to leave. Before opening the door, he added "Nothing that happens in this school can be hidden from Dumbledore. Not the ghosts, not the professors, not the students, not even the portraits hanging everywhere—they can all become his eyes and ears. If you're doing something dangerous, then—as I said at the beginning—you should be much more careful."
And as the door closed, a gloomy voice fell "This is my final piece of advice to you!"
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