Hogwarts Homecoming

Going to the Forbidden Forest to collect materials is actually nothing unusual for professors.

When Remus was the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts, he would go to the Forbidden Forest to find swamps and catch Hinkpunk and Cabba from them.

The Boggart he used to teach the little wizard was also caught in the abandoned old room of the castle.

Professor Sprout would occasionally come to the Forbidden Forest to dig some wild vegetables or collect some manure. As for Hagrid, the magical creatures he showed to the little wizards in class were all native species in the Forbidden Forest.

The same is true for Snape. Some of the materials used in Potions lessons were obtained by him from deep into the Forbidden Forest.

For professors, this is part of their daily routine.

Along the secluded wild path, Snape led Malfoy and the others to walk arduously between the giant trees for about an hour, and finally came to a large swamp near the black lake.

Thick miasma fog floated on the irregular puddles, distorting the shapes into various shapes with the breeze.

The carrion of some kind of animal floating in the water gave this area a strong rotten smell.

Malfoy looked around and saw a faint orange-red halo in the hazy fog. The light was beating like a heart, exuding a sense of temptation.

After being slightly confused, Malfoy immediately became alert.

He realized that it was a Hinkpunk trap designed to lure the lost into the swamp.

"what should we do?"

Malfoy raised his head and asked Snape, and his voice also woke up Pansy, Theodore and Blaise who were temporarily confused.

Snape took out several large glass bottles from his robes and gave one to everyone.

"Don't go deep into the swamp, just stay on the edge of the swamp."

"So how do we find leeches, Professor Snape?"

The howling wind made the area even more eerie and terrifying. The dull waves crashing on the lakeshore not far away were also destroying the hearts of several young wizards.

Pansy Parkinson asked with a pale face.

"No need to look for it, Miss Parkinson—"

Snape's tone was still lazy, but it didn't always have a touch of sarcasm like it usually did in class.

"Just stand in the water and they will come to you."

Snape's understatement succeeded in making Pansy retch, and the other three boys also felt chills.

"Don't stand together. Everyone should be at a distance. Let me see your wands light up. If you are in danger, send a signal. Fill the glass bottle I gave you and we will return."

Although they were reluctant, they could only do it.

Holding back the disgusting stench, Malfoy took off his shoes and went into the water with a sinister expression. Then, he immediately felt that his feet were sinking into the mud.

Snape did not go down to the swamp. He went to give Pansy Parkinson some tips and then returned to Malfoy's back.

"What are you afraid of, Draco?"

His calm eyes fell on Draco, who was bending over and using his wand to petrify the leeches, and Snape suddenly said.

Draco, who wanted to fill the glass bottle and return to the castle as soon as possible, trembled suddenly, straightened up slowly, and turned to look at Snape with a pale face.

"I'm not afraid of anything, Professor."

Draco said.

"Don't lie to me, Draco-"

Snape looked at Draco Malfoy calmly, seeing that the boy's face was almost paler than the light emanating from his wand.

Under those dark eyes, Draco knew that his lies could not be hidden. He lowered his head and stared at the water as dark as ink, saying nothing.

"This is not what I want to see."

After a long time, Draco said dejectedly,

"I know what is happening to the school now. After the deputy minister of the Ministry of Magic was kicked out of Hogwarts, my father wrote to me and told me that the school board planned to use the funds to close Hogwarts to force Brian The professor obeyed.

This is not what I want to see. I wrote to my father and asked him not to do it, but he said that this was not something I could get involved in. "

"This has nothing to do with you, Draco."

Snape said calmly,

"Are you stupid enough to think that you can intervene in the dispute between the Ministry of Magic and Amosta?

Malfoy's lips moved, but no sound came out.

The dispute between the Ministry of Magic and Professor Blaine is essentially a dispute between Professor Blaine and the Dark Lord.

There was no need for anyone to tell him whether his father was a Death Eater following the Dark Lord. Draco knew it in his heart.

Previously, after the news of the Dark Lord's resurrection was announced, Dumbledore and Professor Brain immediately made it clear that they would fight the Dark Lord to the end.

At that time, he and some classmates were inspired by their ridiculous ambitions and decided to follow Professor Brain to pursue a career, but they suffered a "head-on blow" from Professor Brain.

Only then did Draco truly realize the cruelty of this.

If the Dark Lord finally wins, then his respected Professor Brain will definitely be doomed.

If Professor Blaine wins, the outcome will be even more cruel. His father will definitely be liquidated this time. Professor Blaine has never been able to get rid of the sand in his eyes.

The current troubles Hogwarts is encountering are actually just a sign that this struggle has become more intense.

"There are rumors."

Draco's eyes flickered and hesitantly said,

"You said you also followed the Dark Lord, Professor?"

Regarding the fact that Snape was once a Death Eater, there have been similar rumors in Hogwarts for a long time, but there is no evidence to prove it.

A somewhat cold wind blew, and several bushes far away from the two of them began to sway in the wind. Snape squinted his eyes and looked over. After a moment, he turned his head around without noticing anything strange.

"What exactly are you trying to say, Draco?"

Snape's face turned slightly pale. He did not answer Draco's question, but asked with sharp eyes.

"Oh, I just"

Draco bit his lip, his chest rose and fell slightly, and he said calmly,

"Just wondering, which side do you think will win?"

Snape's brows were raised high, and a trace of sarcasm emerged from the corner of his mouth uncontrollably, but after a moment, his expression returned to calm,

"You want to know which side will win, Draco, why can't you be more honest?"

Snape's dark gaze penetrated Draco's heart;

"You're thinking about which side will win, so you can make a decision in advance and decide which side to be loyal to, right?"

"Isn't that right?"

Draco summoned the courage to raise his head, but there was shame in his gray eyes.

"Only by being on the side of the winner can you survive. This is what my father taught me."

Staring at Draco's face, Snape's thin lips moved, and he didn't know how to persuade him.

Be on the side of the winner.

Indeed, this is the style of the Malfoy family, and it is also in line with Slytherin's values.

Snape looked at Draco, with complex emotions simmering in the depths of his dark eyes. He felt as if he was seeing himself and Lucius twenty years ago.

"Which side do you prefer to win, Draco?"

After a long silence, Snape asked softly.

"I--"

"You don't need to tell me the answer—"

Snape interrupted Draco,

"The answer is in your heart. Just understand it yourself, Draco. It's not about standing on the side of the winner, but - whichever side you want to win, then join in and help win."

Draco's gray eyes were slightly confused.

"Whichever side you want to win, just join in."

The breeze lingering by the water took away Draco's confused murmur.

Which side does he want to win?

There is no doubt that if the Dark Lord wins the final victory, then the Malfoy family will definitely benefit even more.

To this day, some of the Dark Lord's ideas still have an extraordinary appeal to Draco, and once the Dark Lord dominates the British wizarding world, there is no doubt that the Malfoy family who has always supported him will be rewarded. , the Malfoy family will be even more glorious than it is today.

And if Professor Braine finally defeats the Dark Lord, the Malfoy family will suffer huge losses in the aftermath of the war. It would be better if his parents can spend the rest of their lives in Azkaban.

So, he should join the same camp as his father, give up those unrealistic 'heroic' dreams, and return to real interests?

But

The young face with gray hair and purple eyes appeared in front of Draco's eyes. He always showed a gentle smile, but he was as ruthless to his enemies as the cold winter was to all things.

Does he really want to make an enemy of such an amazing wizard?