HP Dual Masters and I had a blast in Hogwarts.

Chapter 315 The Day of Discharge

I carefully folded the parchment and tucked it into my sleeve pocket. Suddenly, Mingyue perked up her ears and pointed at Harry and the other two.

Following his gaze, one could see Harry, Hermione, and the other two surrounded Ron. Hermione's wand tip held a wisp of shimmering gold powder, while Ron's face was flushed, and the tips of his ears turned bright pink at a visible speed.

"Fred! George!" Hermione's scream, mixed with the twins' triumphant laughter, exploded down the corridor. "You used the Beautification Charm on Ron again? This time the side effect is his ears changing color?!"

Sirius took off his sunglasses and waved them, his eyes practically overflowing with laughter: "See? Now that's what you call 'vitality'." He waved his newly opened licorice wand at me, "In comparison, that bubbling green soup in the dungeon seems rather warm and cozy."

Draco leaned against a stone pillar, slowly polishing his wand, his platinum hair fluttering in the breeze. "Mr. Black, are you sure that's not Professor Snape's modified Veritaserum? I saw him pour three poison tentacles into the cauldron in the Potions classroom last week."

Before the words were finished, a muffled sound suddenly came from the direction of the cellar, and even the stone slabs in the corridor trembled.

Mingyue, her hair standing on end, jumped onto the windowsill, her golden-blue heterochromatic eyes fixed on the billowing dark green smoke below—the smoke was eerily condensing into the outline of Snape's furrowed brows, before disappearing into the twilight with a "bang."

"It seems the poison tentacles are more powerful than expected." Theodore pushed up his glasses, pulled out his notebook, and quickly jotted down notes. "Last week, the professor added moonstone powder to the crucible, and combined with today's energy fluctuations..."

Hermione suddenly grabbed Harry's arm and pointed her wand at the castle tower: "Look! The telescope lens is changing color!" Everyone looked in the direction of her voice and saw that the originally silvery-white lens was being stained in a spiral shape with a fang-like turquoise color, and the refracted light spots were twisting into eerie runes on the wall.

Ron's pink ears suddenly twitched violently, and he pointed towards the cellar, stammering, "I...I think I heard the cauldron talking!"

Sirius held the broken licorice wand between his teeth, the Marauder's Map already unfolded in his palm: "Interesting. It seems Snape's new formula has successfully awakened the magical resonance at Hogwarts."

He traced the flashing red dots on the map with his fingertip, then suddenly raised an eyebrow at Draco. "Want to bet five times that the impact of this potion incident can reach the girls' restroom on the third floor?"

Draco sneered, tapped his wand lightly, and conjured a quill and parchment out of thin air: "I bet ten, Professor McGonagall's Transfiguration classroom will be the first to suffer."

Before he could finish speaking, the chandelier above his head suddenly shook violently, and the crystal pendants fell off, scattering fluorescent green sparks on the ground.

Suddenly, Mingyue darted back from the window onto my shoulder, her claws gripping my collar tightly.

Following its gaze, I saw Severus's black robes emerging from the cellar staircase. The inky flames dancing at the tip of his wand stained half of his face with a bluish-gray hue, and the sticky substance hanging from his cuffs corroded the stone slabs, creating sizzling pits.

Black hair stained with an unknown substance clung to his pale forehead, and his usually crisp robe was wrinkled like crumpled parchment.

When those icy black eyes swept over everyone, Harry hurriedly hid his wand behind his back, Hermione's spellbook fell to the ground with a "thud," and even Fred and George unusually fell silent.

Everyone else instinctively held their breath, but Sirius and I were the only ones watching him. Sirius pushed his sunglasses up to his head, his gray eyes shining brightly, and he whistled a sharp whistle while biting his licorice wand.

He deliberately brandished his wand, the tip flicking up a wisp of drifting slime: "Professor Snape, your new look is very much like a Potions Master!"

I just smiled and looked at the disheveled Severus, asking, "Is this a celebration of my departure from the medical wing?"

I soothed Mingyue's bristling tail and stroked his violently trembling back with my fingertips.

When Severus's gaze swept over me, I smiled at him and said, "Professor, your welcoming ceremony is quite unique. Do you need help cleaning the cauldron?"

Severus's jaw tightened, and the flame at the tip of his wand suddenly surged, scorching the mold on the stone wall.

“No need.” His voice, like that of someone boiling water from the bottom of a poisoned cauldron, hissed with a teeth-grinding sizzle, and the sticky hem of his robe suddenly fluttered without wind. “If you think the corridors of Hogwarts are places for idle chatter—”

“We certainly don’t think so, but Professor Snape, the slime on your body seems to be corroding the floor. If Mr. Filch sees this…” Before he could finish speaking, Sirius had already pulled out his wand and pointed it at the ground. Silver-blue water appeared out of thin air and washed away the sizzling corrosion pits.

The man in the black robe suddenly turned to me, the dark flames making the emotions churning in his eyes even more obscure and unpredictable.

He raised his hand and pulled the hair stuck to his face, his knuckles, coated with medicine, turning an eerie bluish-purple: "Ayers, your injuries are almost healed, aren't they?"

Fred suddenly burst out laughing, and George quickly covered his mouth. The two exchanged glances that seemed to say, "Is the professor showing concern for someone?"

Hermione glanced at me furtively as she crouched down to pick up the spellbook, her eyes sparkling—she had clearly noticed this unusual care as well.

I blinked, deliberately making my tone a bit teasing: "So this is a surprise you specially prepared? To tell me not to take any more risks by ruining my image?"

Severus slammed his wand heavily on the ground, splashing water from the stone slabs, but he ultimately did not refute it.

Sirius whistled as he approached, flicking a sticky drop of slime through the air with his wand: "Seriously, Snape, do you need our help cleaning up? The Weasleys' new Cleansing Charm is guaranteed to be ten times faster than your old-fashioned spells."

"Get out." Severus practically spat out the word through gritted teeth, flicked the hem of his robe, and turned to leave.

I hurried forward and, before he disappeared, grabbed the scorched cuff of his sleeve and whispered, "I'll come find you tonight."

Just as he turned to look at me, the flame flickered, casting a swaying shadow between us.

Those cold, black eyes stared at me for a long time. Snape snorted and his wand traced complex trajectories in the air.

All the suspended crystal fragments suddenly retreated back to their original positions, and the corrosion marks on the floor were covered by silvery incantations.

As he turned, the gust of wind from his black robes overturned the parchment of the bet in Draco's hand. Before leaving, he tossed out, "Black, you owe me five months' worth of wolfsbane potion ingredients."

“I’m not going to default on my debts,” Sirius retorted casually.

After Severus's black robes had completely disappeared around the corner, George suddenly poked his head out from behind his armor: "I swear I just saw the professor's ears turn red!"

Hermione blushed and was about to retort, but was interrupted by Harry's sudden exclamation as he pointed to the tower: "Look! Professor McGonagall's office is emitting rainbow-colored smoke!"

Sirius brandished his half-broken licorice wand, his eyes gleaming with the smug light of a triumphant prank: "Looks like someone's prophecy has come true—Draco."

Draco's expression changed drastically. He reached out to grab the parchment that had been blown away, but only managed to grab a handful of air.

He glared at Sirius, furious and embarrassed: "It must have been you! You were the one who put those rainbow smoke effects on us!"

Sirius shrugged, tossing the last piece of his licorice wand into his mouth. "A bet's a bet, Malfoy. I remember you saying the Malfoys never renege on their debts?"

Fred and George appeared out of nowhere, magically producing an extravagant pink pointed hat adorned with dangling pom-poms: "As agreed, the loser has to wear this!"

Draco's face turned bright red, and he gripped his wand tightly in his hand.

Just as the atmosphere was getting tense, I suddenly spoke up: "Alright, stop being so cheeky. Don't you guys have any classes today?"

These words were like a bucket of cold water poured over them, leaving everyone stunned.

Hermione pulled out her pocket watch and exclaimed, "Good heavens! It's Sirius's Defense Against the Dark Arts class!"

Harry frantically searched for the parchment, oblivious to the ink spreading across his robes.

Sirius leisurely pushed his sunglasses back up on his nose, but upon seeing everyone's panicked expressions, he suddenly burst into laughter: "Hurry up, you little brats! Those who are late have to help me tidy up the Boggart!"

The trio immediately grabbed Sirius and ran towards the classroom, his laughter mingling with the fluttering of his black robes, echoing down the corridor.

Before I could react, Fred and George grabbed my arms from either side.

"Hurry up! We're going to be late for Potions class!" Fred's wand conjured two fireworks out of nowhere. "If Professor Snape sees us getting into class later than him, Ayers, you'll be fine, but we'll both be in big trouble..."

“He’ll turn us into ingredients for a shrinking potion!” George said, dashing forward with incredible speed.

I was caught in the middle of them and could only stumble and run along with them.

The moon yelped in discontent on my shoulder, its claws gripping my cloak tightly.

As I turned the corner, I instinctively looked back.

Draco was still standing there, his pink hat askew on his head, glaringly conspicuous in the twilight.

He angrily ripped off his hat, and with a wave of his wand, transformed it into a sky full of silver snakes, but his movements suddenly froze when he saw my gaze.

The school bell rang in the distance, long and resonant.

I gave him a helpless smile, then turned and followed the twins as they disappeared down the corridor.

The air still seemed to carry the burnt smell of the potion accident, mixed with the sweet scent of the honeydew that Fred had secretly given me. Everything indicated that this was destined to be an eventful day.

As the three of us, panting heavily, burst through the door of the potions classroom, the steam rising from the cauldrons mingled with the twilight filtering through the windowpanes.

Fred exaggeratedly clutched his back and gasped for breath, while George magically produced three chairs and arranged them in an exaggerated 'victory formation' in the back row.

I had just placed the moon on the windowsill, and it had just coiled up there, when Severus's black robe swept across the doorframe, the sticky hem brushing the floor, leaving a trail of sizzling burn marks.

His black hair hung messily over his forehead, and the dark flame flickering at the tip of his wand was dimmer than before.

When those icy black eyes swept over the three of us, George secretly pushed the firework box hidden under the table further in.

"Looks like someone finds the beds in the Medical Wing too comfortable and needs an extra potion to perk them up." His voice was laced with a hissing sound like a viper flicking its tongue, and with a tap of his wand, all the cauldrons simultaneously burst into a ghostly blue flame.

I noticed the new scorch marks on his cuffs, indicating that he had clearly dealt with something before rushing to the classroom.

Seeing how hastily he dressed to get to class, I felt a pang of sympathy for him.

When our eyes met, he suddenly slammed his textbook down on the podium, making the bottles and jars clang: "Today we're making a love potion. If anyone dares to blow up the crucible like last time—" He glanced meaningfully at the twins, "then prepare to brew the potion with your own slugs."

Just as Fred was about to retort, a piercing meow suddenly came from outside the window.

Everyone turned their heads at once, and saw Professor McGonagall's tabby cat darting past the window with its fur standing on end, its tail tip still sticky with rainbow-colored slime.

Severus's jaw tightened instantly, and his wand unconsciously traced the trajectory of a defensive spell in the air.

This subtle movement did not escape my notice—it seems that Professor McGonagall has a grudge against Severus this time, and it is far more troublesome than he has shown.

“Ayers!” He suddenly called my name, the dark flames making the turbulent emotions in his eyes even more obscure. “Since you think you’ve recovered quickly enough, you’ll be in charge of supervising the Weasley brothers. If even a wisp of black smoke comes out of their cauldrons, deduct ten points from Gryffindor.”

Very good~ Very Severus-like. I, the person involved, won't get points deducted, but Fred and George definitely will.

I suppressed a laugh as I watched the twins' expressions instantly crumble.

Fred clutched his chest dramatically, while George whispered in my ear, "This is just settling a personal score! The last explosion was clearly caused by the crucible itself..." His words trailed off.

Severus's black robes billowed as he turned, creating a gust of wind. The flame at the tip of his wand suddenly surged three inches, instantly burning the potion recipe on the blackboard to ashes.

“Five more points—” he said without turning his head, his silver snakeskin sleeves billowing up with the movement, revealing half of his bluish-purple wrist, “for some people’s noisy tinnitus therapy.”

Fred and George remained frozen in their seats, their twin-like tacit understanding now manifesting as synchronized blank expressions.

I secretly poked George with my wand and quickly wrote on the parchment: See? He even has ears on the back of his head.

Severus suddenly spun around, the hem of his robe brushing against the nearest crucible rack, causing the glassware to clink together with a crisp sound.

“Now,” he drawled, his dark eyes sweeping over everyone before finally settling on me, “who can tell me the essential difference between aphrodisiacs and love potions?”

I met his scrutinizing gaze, my fingertips unconsciously tracing the engravings on my wand, when I suddenly noticed that the silver runes remaining on his cuff were mysteriously shrinking.

“Aphrodisiacs create intense obsession,” I paused, looking at the dark flames flickering in his eyes, “while love potions… are a complete control over one’s will.”

Severus snorted and tapped his wand lightly; my parchment suddenly floated up.

When he reached out to catch it, his knuckles, still wet with medicine, brushed against the paper, leaving a bluish-purple mark.

"Looks like the sleeping potion from the medical wing didn't corrupt your brain." He tossed the paper back onto the table, and as he turned, the gust of wind from his black robes flipped over the textbooks of the students in the front row. "Start brewing. Any mistakes will become your owls' breakfast tomorrow."