The Last Slytherin - Chapter 7

As everyone settled down and waited for Professor Snape, all of a sudden, Prof. Snape entered the classroom as if he’s in a hurry.

Just like Prof. Flitwick, he took a roll call after his introduction is over. He stopped at Harry’s name and spoke sarcastically, “ah, yes. Harry Potter, our new celebrity”.

Malfoy along with Crabbe and Goyle sniggered behind their hands. He stopped laughing after Neal nudged him and gestured him to stop. Meanwhile, Snape continued to take roll call and stopped at Neal’s name. “Slytherin”.

“yes”. Snape then said, “Dumbledore told me your situation. Well, as the head of your house, I won’t be that strict compared to others. Your pet is allowed to roam here provides that it will not disturb the class.

Neal replied, “its alright professor. The school and the ministry have allowed it to come with me. That’s enough for me”. Snape nodded, “good, then”. Ron whispered to Harry, “you see that? Prof. Snape is always partial to his house”.

After the roll call is over, Snape stared at everyone while Ron and Harry are whispering with each other.

He spoke in a low voice and yet everyone in the room heard him perfectly saying, “As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic.

I don’t expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through the human veins, bewitching the minds, ensnaring the senses…

I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, and even stopper death if you aren’t as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach”.

His eyes narrowed at Ron who is still whispering something to Harry. Hermoine nudged him and gestured with her face to look at the front. As he looked towards the Professor, he found Snape is looking at him silently.

Ron felt nervous but then unexpectedly, Snape called out, “Potter”. As Harry was surprised, Snape suddenly asked a question, “What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood”.

While Harry and Ron were stumped by the sudden question, Neal and Hermoine’s hands shot in the air. Snape pointed Neal, “Slytherin”. Neal replied, “they make a powerful sleeping potion known as the Draught of Living Death”.

Snape nodded, “good, a point to Slytherin”. Once again, he looked at Harry and sneered, “I guess fame clearly isn’t everything”.

“Ok, let’s try again. Potter, where would you look If I told you to find me a bezoar?”. Hermoine’s hand shot up in the air and she almost stood up just so she could get a chance to answer.

But as Harry was once again speechless, Snape pointed Neal who just raised his hand slightly, “Slytherin”. Neal answered, “Bezoar is a stone taken from the stomach of a Goat and it will save you from most of the poisons”.

Snape nodded, “good. Unlike someone who only relies upon nothing but fame, it seems you went through the books for once. Two points to Slytherin”. Malfoy felt happy as they earned three points in Snape’s class while Harry got scolded.

Harry thought that it will finally stop but at that moment he realized that Snape didn’t just dislike him, he hates him. “Potter, one more last question. What is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?”.

While Hermoine’s hand is quivering in the air, Harry asked him, “why don’t you ask Hermoine. I think she knows the answer”. As a few people laughed, Snape snapped at Hermoine who stood to answer, “Sit down”.

He looked at Neal who was writing something and asked, “Slytherin, what are you doing?”. Neal replied, “I’m copying down the things you have asked and writing down the answers to them”.

Snape asked, “so, I guess you knew the answer to the last question?”. Neal answered, “they are the same plant which is also called aconite”. Snape nodded, “a point to Slytherin”. Then he looked at all over the class, “well, why aren’t you copying that down?”.

While everyone continued copying it down with their Quills, Snape said, “A point will be taken from Gryffindor for your cheek, Potter”.

And so, nightmares began for Harry in the Potions class while Neal is enjoying the class as he is receiving far less attention than he expected thanks to Harry.

As the lesson continued with them being told to concoct an actual potion, Neal became nervous as he never had concocted a potion before. Not to mention, everything is going fine for him. He can’t afford to make Snape unhappy and get bad in his books.

Then Snape told everyone to pick a partner. While he was going to ask Malfoy to be his helper, Daphne asked him to be her partner. It made him relieved as he doesn’t need to take all the blame if something goes wrong with the process.

He stood beside her and asked, “Is this your first time?”. Daphne nodded. Neal smiled, “well, you don’t seem nervous as you should”. She replied, “Ah, it’s fine. Professor Snape seems to be well interested in Potter. Even if we make mistakes, we’ll still be criticized a lot less than them”.

Neal smiled and looked at the Brewing instructions for the Boil Cure potion.

“Ok, give me the snake fangs. I’ll crush it into a fine powder while you prepare all the necessary equipment”.

Neal added 6 snake fangs to mortar and used his strength to crush them into powder with the help of Pestle.

Daphne then said, “Ok, so, add four measurements of it to the cauldron”. Neal did as she said. Then she heated the mixture to 250 for 10 seconds.

While both were harmoniously working together and completed the potion within an hour, soon, a disaster is going to appear at Neville’s table. A pink smoke raised from the cauldron which indicated it’s complete.

Snape stopped at them and checked the cauldron. He nodded, “well done, Slytherin, Greengrass. Five points to Slytherin”.

As they both gave one hand high-five to each other, it made Hermoine frustrated as she wasn’t able to complete first and made a slight mistake which earned her scolding from the Professor.

Later, after Hermoine and Draco completed their potions successively, Harry and Ron’s is on the way to finally get completed after several mistakes

Just then, Neville and Seamus blew up their cauldron and the hot potion was spilled out everywhere which disturbed the process of Harry’s too who is standing nearby to him.

Snape snarled, “Idiot boy. You added the porcupine quills before taking the cauldron off the fire, didn’t you?”. After clearing away all the mess, he looked at Harry, “as for you, while everyone is standing very far from each other, why did you stand near them and ruined your potion?.

Two points from Gryffindor for intentionally wasting the ingredients”. While Harry is about to argue, Ron stopped him as it would get far worse and they will lose more points if he started to talk back to him.

Gryffindors silently left the class in depression for losing 3 points while Slytherins excitedly left the class for gaining 10 points.

As the Slytherin dormitories were near the class, Neal and others went straight to the common room and sat there.

30 minutes later, Neal went to the grounds with others for Flying classes with an excitement. Daphne asked, “you seem excited for this class?”. He replied, “I always wanted to sit in the airplane back in the muggle world but never got the chance. That’s why I’m excited to fly in the air for the first time. Did you ride on the broom before?”. She replied, “well, of course. I have”.

Then he turned aside and asked, “how about you, Draco?”. He boasted, “of course I have. I practiced riding on a broom and playing Quidditch ever since I was a child”. When Neal was about to ask what is Quidditch,

Professor Ronalda Hooch gathered everyone, “what you all waiting for. Standby the broomstick. Come on, hurry up”.

Unlike other classes where it’s a joint class with one house every time, Flying classes along with the History of Magic and Transfiguration were attended by everyone at once.

Madam. Hooch said, “stick out your hand and say up”. As Harry, Draco, and Daphne made it in the first try, Neal too tried. But to his surprise, just as he raised his hand and looked at the broomstick, it jumped into his hand on its own without him saying “UP”.