Harry Potter: Charlie and the Candy Factory

"Sorry... Professor Snape, I'm going to take Filch back to his room."

Hagrid looked at Snape standing in the corridor and whispered hello to him.

Snape did not speak, but calmly took a step back to make way for the huge Hagrid.

"Thanks."

Hagrid nodded, as if he had long been accustomed to Snape's cold personality. After thanking him, he hugged Filch and walked in the direction where Snape had just arrived.

"…………"

Snape's eyes were still looking at the wooden door that had not yet been closed, feeling a little dazed for a moment.

Hearing that particularly familiar name come to his ears again after an unknown number of years, his originally gloomy expression finally showed some emotion.

As if by some strange mistake, Snape's feet started to move again.

However, this time, he did not continue on the path he had just taken. Instead, he slowly came to the huge stone statue without hesitation.

"Heap of cockroaches..."

With a slightly hoarse voice, the gargoyle gradually began to move in response to the command, silently making way to the principal's office and reappearing in front of Snape's eyes.

In the office, Dumbledore sat in his seat as usual, with his eyebrows lowered, and sighed helplessly. Then he took his hand down and threw in the two candies in the drawer.

In one's own mouth.

As the candy entered his mouth, Dumbledore's mouth began to move under his thick white beard. The originally drooped eyebrows also relaxed and regained their former look.

Suddenly, as if he noticed something, Dumbledore stopped chewing.

He raised his head, opened his slightly squinted eyes, and looked towards the door of the principal's office.

"Severus?"

Dumbledore's tone was filled with surprise, and he raised his eyebrows, looking unexpectedly at Snape, who was standing at the door and didn't know when he would arrive.

Snape's black robes were not very conspicuous under the already dark lights of the castle. If they didn't look carefully, it would be difficult for most people to notice his figure.

"Dumbledore..."

Snape didn't say anything at the door. He stepped into the principal's office, raised the wand that appeared in his hand from unknown time, and waved it.

With another muffled sound of "Peng", the originally opened wooden door closed again, isolating the principal's office from the outside world again.

Snape quickly walked to Dumbledore's desk, stood there, and stopped.

"Did you hear Filch's voice just now?"

Dumbledore smiled, and as he spoke, he reached out and pinched his eyebrows to relieve the pain in his head that had just been caused by Filch's yelling.

"…………"

Snape didn't answer him, and stared into Dumbledore's eyes, wondering what he was thinking.

Dumbledore was naturally not surprised by Snape's temperament. He paused for a moment, and seeing that the other party had no intention of answering, he continued speaking on his own.

"It seems that Filch has really put in a lot of effort for this school. He is so tired that he has become a little nervous. I was sleeping just now...doing some work, but then I heard Filch knocking.

The door kept knocking."

As he spoke, Dumbledore shook his head.

"You saw the result. As soon as he arrived in the office, he started shouting non-stop... Fortunately, Hagrid followed soon after..."

"Charlie——"

Snape's eyes narrowed and he looked directly at Dumbledore. He suddenly interrupted him and read a name in a deep voice.

"Charlie Blake!"

Snape then said

"I just heard Filch say that Charlie is going back to Hogwarts...is it true?"

Dumbledore also raised his head and looked into Snape's eyes.

He noticed very keenly that when Charlie's name was mentioned, a look that he had never seen before flashed in those eyes that had always been dark and seemed to never see the light.

Although it was just a flash, it was still captured by Dumbledore.

So, without hiding anything from the other party, Dumbledore nodded calmly and continued.

"Yes, I wrote him a letter not long ago... specially inviting him to attend the opening ceremony of Hogwarts this year."

"Opening Ceremony……"

Finally getting the answer he wanted, Snape's face showed a hint of understanding, and he murmured Dumbledore's words again, not knowing what he was thinking.

But soon, he returned to his original state, and then asked in a deep voice

"Why would you want to invite him to Hogwarts' opening ceremony?"

Dumbledore looked at the table with drooped eyelids and said slowly

"Hagrid brought me news when he went to pick up Harry... He said that before he arrived, Charlie had contacted Harry in advance and used magic to teach the cousin who had been bullying Harry a lesson.

elder brother."

As he spoke, Dumbledore coughed twice, his Adam's apple moved, and he swallowed the candy in his mouth. Then he continued.

"I think that since he cares so much about that child, I asked him to come and watch the child complete the sorting ceremony with his own eyes, so that he can rest assured."

"Care about that child...?"

Listening to Dumbledore's words, Snape's face that had remained unchanged for thousands of years showed great ridicule.

The corners of his mouth raised upward, revealing a stiff and sarcastic smile.

"Charlie doesn't have a good relationship with James's gang. How many times has he taught his stupid cousin a lesson? I think you know - what makes you think he would care so much about that man's child?"

"But that's the truth..." Dumbledore replied calmly, his attitude not changing at all because of Snape's ridicule.

"I can feel it... maybe he doesn't want to implicate the grudges of the previous generation on Harry."

Dumbledore said as he looked at Snape again, as if wanting to see his reaction.

Snape's expression did change a bit, but that was all.

He looked away and then continued.

"And...there are indeed some things that I need to meet with him to talk about."

"What?" Snape asked

But this time, Dumbledore didn't answer him, he just said simply

"You will know when the time comes."

Snape was silent, nodded slowly, and without saying anything else, turned around and left, heading towards the door.

"I thought you would be happy...after all, he used to be your best friend."

"yes…"

Snape stopped and turned his head to look at Dumbledore, his eyes full of complexity.

"Then after I became a Death Eater, we had no contact anymore."