After an entire holiday apart, Harry seemed to have plenty to say to Charles—especially since, thanks to Charles's earlier hint, they had finally confirmed that the item Dumbledore was hiding in the third-floor corridor was none other than the legendary Philosopher's Stone.
And, according to what they knew, that stone was actually brought here by Charles himself.
Now, Harry looked like a child eager to show off his discovery—hoping, more than anything, for a word of praise from Charles. Among all the staff at Hogwarts, the two people he felt closest to were Hagrid and Professor Gold.
"Professor, we found—"
But before he could finish, Snape interrupted.
The greasy-haired bat of the dungeons pushed open the half-closed door of Charles's office with his usual dark scowl.
"Charles Gold, you—"
He seemed surprised to find Harry there. Whatever he had originally intended to say got stuck halfway out of his throat. His expression twisted into something complicated, but his tone only grew more unpleasant as his gaze landed on Harry.
Harry, however, didn't back down. He glared right back at Snape with those defiant emerald-green eyes. Ever since the last Quidditch match, he had harbored a deep hatred toward Snape—and in his mind, Snape was definitely the one scheming after the Philosopher's Stone.
Just you wait, evil Snape! I'll be watching you every step of the way—you won't get your hands on it!
Snape visibly flinched under that resentful stare. Those eyes—so much like hers—brought back memories he wanted desperately to forget. The day Lily had turned her back on him, she had looked at him with that same expression of disgust.
"P—Potter! Why are you here?" Snape demanded, forcing his breathing to steady. As a master of Occlumency, he was usually an expert at hiding emotion—but right now, his temper was slipping.
"I don't think that's any of your business. I came to see Professor Gold," Harry shot back, his voice firm.
Hogwarts doesn't belong to you, Snape, he thought furiously. You don't get to decide where I can go!
"Out—" Snape barked, invoking all the authority of a professor to drive him away.
Charles, who had been watching with mild amusement—enjoying their love-hate squabbling—immediately frowned.
This was his office, after all. If anyone got to issue orders here, it wasn't Severus Snape.
"Hold it, Snape," Charles said coolly, cutting him off without hesitation. "First of all, you should've knocked before barging in. Set a better example for your students. And another thing—did you even read the teaching manuals I gave you? Intimidating students with your title isn't exactly the behavior of a good professor."
Snape's eyes narrowed dangerously. He turned his dark gaze on Charles, practically radiating fury.
Harry, on the other hand, felt immensely satisfied.
Watching Snape get chewed out was better than catching the Golden Snitch.
Snape, however, didn't lose control. Instead, he let out a low, humorless chuckle. "I thought those books were only good for lighting the fireplace. But you—" His eyes swept over Charles mockingly. "You look surprisingly well. I take it you were too afraid to drink the potion I gave you?"
Charles twitched a little at the corner of his mouth. Of course he hadn't trusted that gift. Whatever Snape had brewed might not have been lethal, but it definitely wasn't pleasant.
Both men knew the "gift" had been nothing more than a petty jab at the other. But to Harry—listening from the side—the words carried a completely different meaning.
Snape… tried to poison Professor Gold?!
His eyes went wide in horror, his face freezing as though he had just uncovered a terrible secret.
Snape wants to kill Professor Gold? No… this can't be a dream!
But the more he thought about it, the more it made sense.
Snape did have a criminal record—he had nearly killed him before, hadn't he? So of course he'd try to take out a professor too!
Harry's thoughts spiraled. He needed to think—no, he needed someone smarter to help him think.
"Professor!" he blurted suddenly. "I—I just remembered something important—I have to go!"
Before Charles or Snape could stop him, Harry bolted for the door, calling back over his shoulder, "Hang in there, Professor! I'll save you!"
I'll come up with a plan soon—just stay alive until then! he told himself fiercely, clenching his fists as he ran.
Charles and Snape exchanged puzzled looks, both wondering what on earth the boy was up to this time. Still, for Snape, it was almost a relief—at least now that meddlesome brat was gone, and he could speak freely.
"Why isn't Harry back yet?" Ron groaned, hugging Inferno in his arms. "This is so boring. I wanted to take him for a walk, but Dumbledore had to go and make that stupid new rule."
After Christmas, Hogwarts had introduced a new school regulation: No releasing Pokémon in hallways or classrooms. Pokémon walks are allowed only on weekends by the Black Lake.
So now, the only thing Ron could do was sit in the common room, cuddling his Pokémon for comfort.
"It's about time," Hermione snapped, crossing her arms. "Do you even realize what chaos you caused? Pokémon duels in the corridors, pranks on poor Filch, and you even used moves to attack Professor Quirrell from behind!"
"But nine times out of ten, that was Fred and George!" Ron protested weakly. "They should be the ones getting punished!"
Not that he was innocent—he'd been there watching, cheering them on the whole time.
Still, could you really blame them? Quirrell's turban smelled awful!
"Shame they didn't hit him," Ron added under his breath.
Just then, Harry burst into the common room, panting heavily.
"Harry! You're back! What did Professor Gold say?" Ron asked immediately.
"You look like you've seen a ghost," Hermione said, frowning.
"Sn—Snape's trying to poison Professor Gold!" Harry blurted out at the top of his lungs.
The entire common room fell silent. Every Gryffindor turned to stare at him.
Oddly enough, most of them didn't look shocked—if anything, they seemed to think, Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later.
Hermione nearly fainted. "Harry, you can't just say that without proof! If this turns out to be a misunderstanding, we'll lose even more points!"
"Honestly," Ron said gravely, "I've suspected it for ages. Remember all those stories? Snape once got beaten up by Professor Gold—he must be out for revenge!"
He spoke loudly enough for everyone to hear, and within moments, half the common room had already accepted it as gospel truth.
Gryffindors were never ones to question a good rumor.
Hermione grabbed both boys by the sleeves and dragged them into a quiet corner. "Keep your voices down! Tell me exactly what happened!"
"I went to see the professor, and then Snape barged in—he looked furious, like he was about to challenge him to a duel. But of course he couldn't win," Harry said, embellishing wildly. "He mentioned giving Professor Gold a potion and said he didn't dare drink it. I'm sure it was poison! Snape's a sneaky git—he probably wanted to weaken the professor before humiliating him!"
"That's horrible!" Ron said, completely convinced.
Given his personal bias against Snape, it wasn't hard to believe.
"But Dumbledore wouldn't allow that," Hermione protested weakly.
"Wouldn't he?" Ron shot back. "Don't forget—Snape nearly killed Harry once!"
That shut Hermione right up.
"I think Snape's got another motive," Harry said firmly. "Remember how he snuck into the third-floor corridor? He's probably trying to defeat Professor Gold to get the secret to passing that floor's protections! Good thing Professor Gold didn't drink the potion. He must've suspected Snape all along—but he's only pretending to tolerate him because Dumbledore still trusts him."
(End of Chapter)