Chapter 21: Snape's Helplessness

Hermione seemed to have forgotten that her right hand was still raised high in the air. Her mouth hung open, her eyes swirling with a mix of emotions. Half of it was shock that someone would dare speak out in Snape's class without raising their hand. The other half was regret that someone had beaten her to answering Snape's question. Daphne felt her neck stiffen, unable to predict what Professor Snape's reaction would be. Would he explode in anger and deduct points from their own house? That didn't seem like his usual style. Or would he, perhaps, praise a student from his own house and award points? But this student was clearly disrupting the class, especially when Snape was targeting someone from another house. Daphne now deeply regretted freezing for half a second—why hadn't she stopped Edward? This guy's behavior was just too unpredictable! If the head of their house really lost his temper, Edward might not be the only one in trouble! The two main figures in the scene, Snape and Harry, both turned their gazes toward Edward. Harry had been holding back for a while, itching to snap, "Hermione knows the answer—why don't you ask her?" But before he could get the words out, Edward had already jumped in and answered the question. Now Harry was a bit confused, even wondering for a fleeting moment if Snape's question had been directed at Edward instead of him. How else could Edward have answered so smoothly? Snape's face darkened, practically dripping with gloom, his black robes making him look even more like an old bat. Edward Bedivere! You again! He couldn't understand it, nor had he ever anticipated that the student causing him the most trouble since the start of the term wouldn't be the famous Harry Potter, or even a Gryffindor, but someone from his own house! On the very first day, on the train, Edward had already put Malfoy in his place—though, to be fair, Malfoy had brought that on himself. But now, to openly disrupt his class, speaking out of turn without permission and bailing out Potter? How did the Sorting Hat ever place such a reckless fool in Slytherin?! "If I'm not mistaken, your last name is Bedivere, not Potter, correct?" Snape said slowly, his eyes narrowing as he finally spoke. "How dare you disrupt my class?" He strode over to Edward, practically nose-to-nose with him. "Be quiet!" After some thought, he decided against deducting points from Slytherin. House matters could be dealt with privately. "Professor, I didn't mean to disrupt the class," Edward said, meeting Snape's gaze without a hint of fear in his voice. "I just thought you asked the wrong person." "As you said, among all the first-years—no, all the students in this school—no one is more famous than Harry Potter." "That fame might be an honor, but to me, it's more of a burden. I'm sure you haven't forgotten that in the fight against Voldemort—" A collective gasp filled the room at the mention of the name, and even the muscles in Snape's right cheek twitched. "—Harry's father and mother sacrificed their lives." "He should've grown up in our world from the moment he was born, but sadly, he had neither the ability nor the opportunity." "So, I think you should pick a fairer target for your questions, not the orphan of heroes who saved the entire wizarding world but has only been part of it for less than a month, sir." Edward explained his reasoning calmly, not forgetting to add the respectful "sir" at the end. The other students looked at Edward with eyes full of pity. No student at this school had ever dared talk back to Snape like that, whether they were a first-year or a seventh-year, no matter their house. Even Slytherins wouldn't get off lightly. In fact, being in Snape's own house might make it worse—you'd have to live under his watch for seven years. If he only deducted points, that might be considered merciful. Malfoy was practically covering his mouth to keep from laughing out loud. Whether or not he bought Edward's speech, just talking back to a teacher like that was enough to land Edward in detention every week for the rest of the term. Snape fell silent. Of everything Edward had said, only a few words stuck with him, stirring memories long buried. "Harry's mother, sacrificed." That bright-eyed, radiant girl—Lily Evans, who had shone like the sun in his life—was gone forever. The image of himself holding Lily's cold body, sobbing on the floor, was a nightmare he'd never forget. Snape stared into Edward's eyes and, unexpectedly, noticed they were green. Green eyes, again. Lily's, Harry's, and now Edward's green eyes seemed to overlap across time in Snape's mind. He even shook his head slightly, a faint, almost imperceptible trace of softness flickering in his eyes. Edward, standing so close, caught that fleeting shift in emotion. But it lasted only a moment. "Very well, very well," Snape said. "Since Mr. Bedivere is so eager to help others, I hope you'll see it through. Come to my office after six tonight to help prepare materials for next week's lessons." "Until the end of the term." With that, he turned to Harry. Aside from those green eyes, every part of that smug face—every feature—irritated him! And that scar on his forehead. Every time Snape saw it, it dragged him back to that hopeless night, reminding him that Lily was gone forever. His softened heart froze over once more. "As for you, Potter, I assume your skin isn't thick enough to let others fight your battles?" Snape's voice dripped with disdain. "Because you didn't prepare for class, two points from Gryffindor." "And you, foolish girl, sit down!" he barked at Hermione, then swept his gaze over the class. "While Mr. Bedivere just disrupted the lesson, didn't you hear that everything he said was correct? Why isn't anyone writing this down? I won't repeat myself!" In the wake of Snape's roar, the students snapped out of their daze, and the classroom filled with the rustle of parchment. But their focus wasn't on taking notes. Helping Snape prepare teaching materials every week? That's it? That was the punishment for talking back and disrupting the class? Not even a point deduction! Even if Snape favored Slytherin, that was usually in conflicts between houses. This time, Edward had challenged him directly. Malfoy's expression was uglier than if he'd been crying. He felt like Snape didn't even know him—Edward was clearly the one Snape truly favored! As for himself? He felt like a clown. read more inpatreon ilham20