Even if Senior Sister Penelope didn’t know what the secret was, she had already subtly conveyed Dumbledore’s mood to Ian.
"If you’re hoping Little Grindelwald will plead for you, you’d better abandon that ridiculous notion soon; Little Grindelwald probably can’t even protect himself now."
Snape recalled the look in Dumbledore’s eyes earlier.
His spine still felt chilled.
"What’s wrong with Aurora? I haven’t seen her today."
Ian frowned and asked.
"It depends on what she’s done." Snape clearly didn’t want to say much more, staring at Ian with a look of frustration.
"She’s been temporarily protected by some people, but you should worry about yourself more!"
The cold, warm-hearted Professor of Potions snorted softly as a reminder.
"I actually have more friends than just Aurora."
Ian felt Snape somewhat misunderstood him.
Is he someone who is lonely?
"Besides counting on me, if you can get Gryffindor to climb out of his grave and speak for you, it might be of some use. Now, obediently follow me to the hall and pretend nothing has happened."
"I’ll go see Dumbledore; this matter cannot wait until he finds out and then talk about it. Before I give you a reply, you better be honest and not cause any trouble."
Snape, holding his wand, quickly walked to the front. The Fire Ash Snake wasn’t unusual anymore, and its danger was significantly lessened, but caution was still necessary.
After all, animals have territorial instincts, and if you approach the Fire Ash Snake’s egg-laying area, the snakes that have laid eggs but haven’t dispersed still remain highly aggressive.
"Is Gryffindor buried near Hogwarts?" Ian followed Snape closely; although he didn’t know Gryffindor, he had a garment touched by Ravenclaw.
I wonder if it can sell for a high price. Alas, at that time, there was some regret in not seizing the opportunity; it would have been better if Lady Rowena Ravenclaw could have signed something for him. When he returns, he could add some words in front of the signature and then, by heavenly mandate, in Ravenclaw’s lounge...
"I told you to be honest! Can’t you understand human speech?" Snape slapped Ian’s neck; Ian’s words reminded him of anecdotes in Hogwarts Village.
Imperio.
Now there’s Fiendfyre again... Alas, compared to this troublesome spell, learning Imperio might even be considered obedient. At least playing with corpses is merely a moral issue.
Fiendfyre is different.
Snape only hoped Dumbledore would appreciate years of loyalty and not have any "severe reaction to familiar faces." Although the Prince Clan hadn’t produced any good people for several generations, they’d certainly not produced any geniuses in Dark Arts; so how did Ian, this little troublemaker, suddenly appear?
Perplexed, Snape urged Ian to return to the hall.
Due to Snape destroying a ruby imbued with unknown magic, the crisis at the hall was resolved, although professors still needed to lead senior students to assist Professor McGonagall in clearing the source.
It takes more than just one fierce magical flame to give rise to such a large number of Fire Ash Snakes; any corner of Hogwarts could be a breeding ground for them.
"Follow them back to sleep."
Snape led Ian through the side door into the hall, where the not-so-strong Madam Pomfrey, along with Madam Hooch and other staff members, were organizing students to return to their respective houses—the first to be cleaned up would be the common rooms, as the Little Wizards needed a night that perhaps wouldn’t be all that restful.
Of course, compared to the tense and anxious Little Wizards from the other three houses, the Gryffindor students were mostly excited.
"I must write a letter to my dad; tonight was simply thrilling; he would be incredibly envious of my experience."
"Did you see it? I just saved Professor Flitwick; although the snake was still over ten meters away from him, I bet Professor Flitwick didn’t see it."
"Headmaster Dumbledore ought to give us three days off, so I can drag some friends to the Forbidden Forest for another adventure... Uh, I mean, so we can properly calm our terrified hearts."
...
Though Ian found Gryffindor’s loudmouths annoying, he couldn’t deny that the Gryffindor students were indeed fierce fighters; they provided the most help to the professors.
"Aren’t you going to comfort the Slytherin kids?" Ian watched Snape turn to leave, then looked at the crying first- and second-year Little Wizards in Slytherin.
"It’s a lesson for those sniveling brats, the flowers of the greenhouse won’t bear the family’s glory." Snape flicked his cloak and disappeared around the corner of the corridor.
"Aren’t there Half-blood Wizards in Slytherin too..." Ian saw the Ravenclaw prefect starting to organize people return to the common room and promptly joined the mighty crowd.
Tonight’s ordeal may have been a crisis, but after the calm, everyone reflected; some senior Wizards walked and analyzed the shortcomings in their performance today.
While the Little Wizards were more concerned about their belongings left in the dormitory.
"I’m still a bit smarter."
Ian shook his bulging cloak; his valuable items were all on him, and the borrowed books were wrapped in oil paper and stuffed into the water tank in the bathroom.