Chapter 387: Snape's Notes
Chapter 387: Snape's Notes
"This class wasn't easy, was it?"
Sherlock crossed his arms and watched as Snape collected and organized the potions before leaving the classroom.
Snape glanced at him but didn't look back, heading to his office with the potions in hand.
Sherlock didn't mind Snape's attitude and followed him, all the way to Snape's office.
Only here could they speak more freely.
"Let me guess, who's been watching you? The kid from the Malfoy family?"
Sherlock lounged in a chair as if he were at home, watching Snape tinker with the bottles and vials.
Snape's voice remained cold, but at least he wasn't letting Sherlock do all the talking.
"It's not just him. Many are watching how I treat Potter."
"Did he summon you?"
"Yesterday afternoon, he set a time for me to meet him this weekend evening."
Sherlock asked, a bit puzzled.
"Actually, I'm quite curious about why Voldemort would trust you again. In my impression, he's the most suspicious person there is."
"He's never trusted anyone", Snape said flatly. "He claims those around him are his friends, but in reality, he doesn't even consider them worthy of being his servants."
"Only because of his confidence does the group of Death Eaters exist. Even if someone like Lucius or Karkaroff has betrayed him before, as long as they are still useful, the Dark Lord will give them another chance."
"It's the same for me. My current role and usefulness are greater than most of those around him, so he still proclaims his 'trust' in me, even though he's not sure if I remain loyal to him."
Sherlock shrugged.
"Sounds like your position by his side will be dangerous. If he thinks you're no longer useful or that your death would benefit him more, he'll kill you."
After putting away the students' potions, Snape sat down. His face remained as gloomy as ever, never seeming to lighten.
But Sherlock had seen him otherwise, with tears and snot streaming like a flood.
"Everyone around him is in the same boat. Do you really care about this?" he said coldly.
Sherlock still had the heart to jest.
"Maybe you didn't care before, but since Lily's soul appeared, you haven't truly spoken to her yet, right? Dying with that regret, are you really okay with that?"
Like a jammed machine gun, Snape was stumped by Sherlock's words.
He couldn't say anything and finally pulled out a notebook from his drawer, throwing it at Sherlock.
"Take it and go."
Sherlock had no intention of pushing Snape to the breaking point. He took the coverless notebook, stood up, and said earnestly to the still sullen Old Bat:
"I'm not trying to upset you. I just want you to realize that staying alive still has meaning, doesn't it?"
After saying that, he turned and left the office.
Only the middle-aged wizard remained, his expression calm under the light, silently staring at the chair where Sherlock had been sitting, his thoughts unknown.
After dinner that day, Harry knocked on the door of Sherlock's office right on time.
Before Harry arrived, Sherlock had already prepared and was waiting for him.
The desk was cleared of all items, and the coat stand and chairs had been moved to the side. Harry immediately noticed the difference when he entered the office.
"Sit down, Harry. I know you must have a lot of questions."
Sherlock waved his hand lightly, and a chair appeared behind Harry.
"Actually, the reason I called you here is quite simple. It's to address the possibility Dumbledore mentioned. Since you can see Voldemort's perspective in your dreams, there's a chance that Voldemort might be able to see yours as well."
"To that end, he specifically asked me to take the time to teach you a magic called Occlumency."
Harry's face showed a puzzled expression when he heard the name of the magic.
This magic was quite advanced, so much so that Harry had never even heard of it before.
"Though it's not easy to learn, the purpose of Occlumency is quite simple: to protect your mind and sever the connection between you and Voldemort."
As Sherlock spoke, he took out a notebook, clearly the one he had received from Snape that morning.
"Originally, the task of teaching you this was supposed to be handled by Severus. He is the true master of Occlumency in this castle. However, he has other important matters to attend to at the moment, and even if he could spare the time, it wouldn't be suitable. So, this responsibility has fallen to me."
"I have some knowledge of this magic, but my study is still in its early stages, far from Snape's level of expertise. Therefore, I recently asked him to help compile this notebook to assist us in our lessons."
Harry felt relieved after hearing Sherlock's words.
He had no objections to learning Occlumency, but if the professor were Snape, he would rather face Voldemort's nightmares every night.
Now, with Sherlock as his teacher, the situation was much better.
Back in his third year, Harry had received private lessons from Sherlock to learn the Patronus Charm. Learning Occlumency now wasn't much different.
"Let's begin our first lesson then", Sherlock cleared his throat and said. "Occlumency is a branch of magic that prevents the mind from being invaded or influenced by external magic."
"There is another form of magic in the Wizarding World called 'Legilimency.' Wizards can use this magic to extract feelings and memories from another person's mind—"
Harry blinked and interrupted, "Is it like mind-reading?"
Sherlock shook his head seriously.
"Before I truly delved into Legilimency, I thought the same thing, Harry. I believed it was what Muggles call mind-reading, but no magic can actually read a person's inner thoughts."
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
