Chapter 617: Snape's First Love
Chapter 617: Snape's First Love
Lockhart has been having a rough time lately, ever since his Valentine's Day "surprise" offended quite a number of people.
While they couldn't openly cause trouble for him, there were always more solutions to a problem than issues themselves.
Thanks to a tip from a student who wished to remain anonymous, a group of students seeking to cause trouble for Lockhart decided to pay a visit to their Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher with their respective queries.
That's right! This was the perfect plan.
After all, it was common knowledge that Lockhart's skills in Dark Arts defense were lacking, and his theoretical knowledge was even worse than Quirrell's from last year.
Those so-called titles he flaunted were now being questioned.
Anyone who wasn't a die-hard fan of Lockhart could now see how incompetent their Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher truly was.
Hence, Lockhart's weakness was obvious, like presenting a pile of review questions to an unwilling student and forcing their head towards it.
Right after Valentine's Day, Lockhart realized he was in trouble.
Students were unusually attentive in class, and one by one, they approached him during and after class with a myriad of questions, hoping for enlightenment.
The quality of the questions varied, but there were just so many of them.
Thus, Lockhart had the honor of experiencing the special treatment Quirrell received last year, as he now eyed students warily, expecting them to whip out notebooks at any moment.
All in all, the outcome was quite satisfying.
As for Albert, who had been wronged by Lockhart, he didn't forget to kick his offender back into the pit, while also completing a simple panel task.
Having just exited the Room of Requirement, Albert fiddled with a glass ball in his hand—the latest model of a detection ball. Currently, the detection range of these balls had been further compressed, ensuring that they wouldn't trigger an alarm as soon as they left the Room of Requirement.
As long as the Basilisk didn't leave the Chamber of Secrets, it wouldn't be detected by the ball.
Entering the Great Hall, Albert easily spotted a group of students whispering to each other. He walked over and sat in the empty seat next to Fred, picking up a slice of bread with some cured meat and taking a bite; he was starving.
"It seems there's some news about that person's girlfriend."
The fragmented voices around him caught Albert's attention, and he lifted his head to give the group a confused look. They seemed to be discussing something secretive, keeping their voices low and using a lot of euphemisms to avoid being overheard and having the information spread.
"Apparently, he had a girlfriend back when he was still at Hogwarts."
"Really? I can't imagine who would like that guy."
"Maybe he was handsome when he was younger?"
"Him? Young?" Albert analyzed their words, and it wasn't difficult to deduce who Angelina was referring to.
Snape?
Most likely. After all, he had received a Valentine's Day chocolate not too long ago.
The entire student body was curious about who his girlfriend was, and it fit the description they had been discussing.
"Yes, and she was a Gryffindor student, apparently." Angelina's words drew incredulous looks from the other students.
"Did you hear that from the Fat Lady?" Albert could guess the source of this information; aside from the ghosts, it was most likely one of the portraits that had spilled the beans.
"How did you know?"
"Just a guess."
Of course, Albert knew who Snape liked.
It was Harry's mother, though he had forgotten her name.
According to rumors, Snape had tried to "save" the pretty lady by telling the prophecy he had overheard to Voldemort, never expecting that it would lead to the tragic events that followed and the loss of his love.
"A Slytherin student dating a Gryffindor? I find that hard to believe." Fred expressed his skepticism.
"They must have broken up eventually," George stated confidently. "There's no way they could've gotten along."
"I don't know about other things, but if this gets out, you lot are in for some serious trouble," Albert warned after swallowing a mouthful of potatoes. "Don't expect him to be kind about it."
In fact, Albert had occasionally entertained the malicious thought of spreading the news about Snape's love life throughout the school, but considering the potential consequences, he had suppressed the urge.
After all, he still had a few years left at the school, and attracting Snape's unwanted attention was not a wise idea.
"Do you know something?" Lee Jordan asked quietly as they were leaving the Great Hall.
"Damn it, don't go spreading nonsense! What could I possibly know?" Albert glared at Lee Jordan and stormed off.
"I bet Albert knows something," Lee Jordan said to the Weasley twins as they walked alongside him. "You know how he always acts all mysterious, and he knows a lot of things we don't."
Actually, the reason he thought that way was because Albert had pointed out that Angelina's information came from the Fat Lady.
"I think Albert's right," Fred agreed with Albert's viewpoint. "Digging further into this matter will only bring us unnecessary trouble."
Snape was not someone to be trifled with. Sending him Valentine's Day chocolates was one thing—they knew he wouldn't be able to trace it back to them since it was sent by a house-elf. However, spreading rumors about him within the school would definitely bring about dire consequences.
"Alright, alright!"
Lee Jordan dropped the subject and quickened his pace to catch up with the three students ahead.
Just because they weren't discussing it didn't mean others weren't curious. Rumors about Snape's first love had already started circulating around the school.
Lockhart had wanted to ride on this wave of gossip, but unfortunately, he was overheard by Snape while boasting about these matters to other students.
In the end, Lockhart was scared off by the furious Potions Master, and the unlucky few who didn't manage to escape in time were put in detention.
However, the more Snape tried to suppress the rumors, the more curious everyone became.
The Potions Master had already slaughtered several chickens, yet it did little to deter the mischievous students.
Well! The entire Hogwarts student body was abuzz with this news, and they seemed to be more interested in Snape's love life than the Chamber of Secrets.
Fortunately, the name 'Lily Evans' hadn't escaped the students' lips.
Otherwise, the famous Harry Potter might have had an explosive reaction.
Everyone speculated that Snape must have broken up with his first love, otherwise, he would've been married by now instead of being single and aging.
If it wasn't his first love, then who had sent Snape the Valentine's Day chocolate?
Could it be a secret admirer?
Snape didn't believe in such nonsense.
He was certain that a student was deliberately playing a prank on him, but despite his efforts, he couldn't pinpoint the culprit.
Due to this incident, Fred, George, and Lee Jordan kept a low profile in front of Snape. Ever since they learned that the Potions Master could read minds, they tried their best to avoid any interaction with him.
(End of Chapter)
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