After all...Under normal circumstances, First-year Gryffindors were not quite bold enough to do something that monumentally stupid.
"Miss Granger, do you think a few words of confession will lessen your guilt? Now you should truly begin worrying about how wretched your lives will be after expulsion!"
"I will personally write to your parents and tell them how their children ignored school rules and placed themselves and the school in grave danger!"
"In my opinion, your behavior fully deserves to be sent to Azkaban!" He glared at the three of them viciously, but unintentionally, a faint trace of worry leaked through his eyes.
How to put it.
After all, he knew the dangers of the Forbidden Forest better than anyone. Despite his profound dislike for Gryffindors, he did not want to see students come to harm… especially when one of them, a girl, was somewhat close to his nephew.
To be honest.
Even Snape himself couldn't quite explain what was happening to him. Lately, he had found his own House's Aurora increasingly irritating… yet this Gryffindor girl, Hermione, somehow seemed more pleasing to the eye.
Just as Snape frowned, wondering whether this sudden shift had anything to do with Ian, the age-old rule that "speak of the devil and he shall appear" once again proved true.
"Yes, Professor," Hermione said anxiously, tears welling in her eyes, "I don't expect you to forgive our mistakes, but please, at least go and save Ian."
Her voice trembled violently with worry for Ian's safety.
She didn't really understand how strong Ian was...but she did know how terrifying a Dragon could be. Moments ago, that roar had nearly shattered her courage. She couldn't imagine anyone, let alone a first-year like Ian, standing up to such a creature.
At this moment, Hermione's mind was filled with horrifying images of Ian being torn apart.
"What do you mean? Ian? Ian Prince?" Snape's expression turned sharply confused at her words. He looked at Hermione with a mix of uncertainty and suspicion.
"What does he have to do with this?"
A flicker of intense emotion crossed Snape's eyes.
"Hermione!"
Ron tugged nervously at her sleeve. In his mind, Snape had once been a Death Eater… who knew what kind of secrets were hidden in the Forbidden Forest, or whether Harry's and Ian's strange behaviors were somehow connected to this professor.
But Hermione no longer had the patience for Ron's wild guesses.
"Ian is in the Forbidden Forest too."
Hermione chose honesty, prioritizing her friend's life.
After all, a life was at stake.
Snape's expression froze instantly. Under the lantern light, his face visibly darkened once more, though not from anger.
"I'll punish him," Snape said flatly, his voice devoid of emotion, "but there's no need for you to worry."
He knew his nephew's capabilities well enough and wasn't genuinely concerned that Ian might truly be in danger in the Forbidden Forest.
The reason for his darkened expression was entirely different...he suspected Ian was likely out there shopping for potion ingredients. Snape could already foresee that his own supply of rare materials was about to become much harder to find.
It was true what they said: people in the same profession rarely got along… especially potion-makers.
Resources were limited, after all.
Right now, Snape just wanted to drag the three little wizards back to the castle and then head for the Forbidden Forest himself, hoping to scavenge whatever was left. Having to stay up late again was the real reason behind his perpetually foul mood.
"Now… back to the castle, all of you!"
His tone left no room for argument.
But when Hermione realized that the Slytherin Head of House didn't seem to care at all about Ian's safety, her anxiety only grew stronger.
"Professor, you have to go save Ian! He's still in the Forbidden Forest!" Hermione pressed on, trying to convince him despite the crushing pressure of his presence.
"Miss Granger," Snape said coldly, casting her a sharp glance, "reporting your own friends isn't a very admirable habit."
His already low opinion of her had dropped considerably.
Seeing this, Ron wanted to mutter something in protest… but his courage for the day had already been utterly spent.
In the end, he only complained silently in his heart about Snape's blatant favoritism. Everyone in Gryffindor already knew Ian was Snape's nephew...in fact, hardly any student in the entire school didn't know it.
After all…
During the previous school year, Ian had already gone around openly declaring his connection with Snape. So now, in Ron's eyes, Snape was simply favoring his own relative.
"He doesn't deserve to be a professor!"
Ron cursed inwardly.
However… He suddenly noticed Snape's cold gaze snap directly toward him. The icy look in the man's eyes made Ron's blood freeze. He stumbled back several steps, lowering his head in fright, yet he couldn't for the life of him figure out why Snape hated him so much.
Is it just because I'm from the Weasley family?
Ha! Clearly, someone didn't have a very happy childhood.
Ron's thoughts continued to run wild...Until Snape's boot came flying straight at him.
With a solid thud, Ron was kicked off his feet and landed hard on the ground with a painful yelp, groaning.
"Control your thoughts!"
Snape barked the warning, his tone as sharp as a whip.
"I have no time to waste with you brats."
Snape was about to act when Hermione once again ran up to him, face pale but utterly determined.
"Professor… Ian's in the Forbidden Forest. He's planning to challenge a Dragon… or maybe even more than one."
Her words struck like a lightning bolt, the air itself seeming to tremble with the shock.
Challenge a Dragon?
More than one? Was he trying to challenge an entire nest?!
"What?"
Snape's pupils contracted violently; the muscles in his face twitched uncontrollably. In over twenty years of teaching, he had never encountered a student this recklessly, pathologically insane.
Even though the troublemaker in question was his absurd nephew, Snape still found it unbelievable.
How dare he!
Snape's brow furrowed deeply.
Well...even though he had some understanding of Ian's unnatural strength, he still couldn't believe the boy capable of such madness. In fact, Snape was convinced Ian's personality was more suited to tricking someone else into going dragon hunting for him.
"Did he tell you this himself, or are you just guessing?"
Snape's eyes flickered sharply.
"Answer me!"
His voice carried a raw edge of urgency.
"We heard a dragon roar," Hermione said quickly. "Then Ian used magic to send us here… so it looked like he was heading off to challenge the Dragon."
"Take me to him!"
Snape's tone was full of immediate, furious decision. He seized Hermione by the back of her collar like she was a helpless kitten. Her startled scream mixed with Ron's and Neville's shouts as their voices echoed through the night.
"But, Professor, what about the other two..."
Hermione tried to protest, dangling in his grip.
"Let them feed the Dementors for all I care!" Snape roared furiously, dragging Hermione toward the Forbidden Forest. His black robes whipped behind him like the terrifying wings of a bat.
The brittle leaves underfoot cracked sharply, echoing through the forest path as they disappeared.
Ron and Neville stood frozen, watching the two figures vanish into the darkness.
"D-Dementors? Hogwarts has Dementors? That can't be right!" Neville stammered, eyes darting around in terror. Snape's words had clearly left him shattered.
"He's just trying to scare us," Ron said with a long, shaky sigh of relief. "Dementors only guard Azkaban."
He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, deeply relieved to have survived Snape's initial fury.
However… Cold sweat doesn't vanish; it merely moves.
When Ron looked up again, he saw Neville drenched in perspiration...far more terrified than even he had been when facing Snape.
"Relax! That bloody Slytherin bat's already gone!" Ron said, puffing up his chest a bit, using Snape's infamous nickname with false bravado.
"Th-th-there…"
Neville stuttered, trembling as he raised a shaking, accusatory finger.
Ron followed his gaze...and promptly fell back onto the ground.
Before them…
"Whooo… whooo…"
A Dementor drifted eerily just outside the castle walls. No… It wasn't patrolling.
It looked like it was fleeing… or desperately hiding… as if playing a deadly game of hide-and-seek… with something far more terrifying than itself.
(End of Chapter)
You can read ahead up to 110 chapters on my Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/darkshadow6395