Snape certainly hasn’t gone insane.
He just didn’t want to witness Ian’s inability to distribute the spoils anymore, so he flicked his cloak behind him and turned to take a different, longer route back to his safe house.
Along the way.
Many little wizards saw the gloomy-faced Slytherin Headmaster. No one dared to speak to him or provoke him, as the Old Bat would even kick a passing toad twice.
Some say.
No one saw Snape again that day.
Others say.
Snape caught a few naughty little wizards and resumed the infamous whipping punishment of Hogwarts, conducting inhumane experiments in his office for a whole day.
No matter how flawed and implausible such claims might be, they didn’t prevent them from spreading swiftly, with Gryffindor students playing a crucial role.
They were always eager to vividly recount even more absurd rumors about Snape to everyone they met.
"Did you hear? Snape actually gave Ravenclaw extra points!"
"What? Is Snape mad?"
"Snape has finally lost it! He must be planning to use evil magic to kill us all!"
...
At the beginning of the rumors.
Perhaps it was just a kind-hearted little wizard who attended that Magic Potion Class trying to express how Snape differed from the rumors, but the impression of Snape had become deeply ingrained in the hearts of the Hogwarts little wizards over the years.
Fred may need to take some responsibility for this, but expecting him to take any would be implausible. What does Gryffindor’s contribution have to do with his Ravenclaw?
"Wait for my good news; I will start making it soon."
After bidding farewell to Aurora, who shared his alchemy philosophy, Ian began exploring Hogwarts Castle. In the first week of the school term, the little wizards’ courses weren’t too intense.
A class in the morning, a class in the afternoon, the rest free time. Perhaps this is a tradition, allowing little wizards some time to discover the castle’s secrets.
As a thousand-year-old castle.
Hogwarts houses many things that even Dumbledore might not have encountered.
Now that Ian was already in this fantasy land, how could he not want to explore, especially the legendary passages and the Room of Requirement?
"Vera Verto!"
As they say, it’s the hard-to-get things that are precious, and whenever Ian found the right opportunity, he would transform some decorative potted plants. He didn’t actually know if doing so was against the school rules.
"Shouldn’t be."
Ian wasn’t involved in pranks like the Weasley Brothers; he was merely turning them more artistic, brushing up on his skill level while adding a touch of Picasso to Hogwarts.
"Oh! Luckily I had money to hire the best painter back then!"
The paintings hung on the walls of Hogwarts seemed to be the only group affected by Ian’s masterpieces, with an unknown Witch painting covering her eyes in shock.
"Madam, this is art."
Ian’s art wasn’t without admirers in the paintings.
A Giant in the painting, who was beating up a ballet teacher, paused his century-long assault in appreciation of Ian’s art.
It leaned closer to the frame, staring intently at the potted plant outside.
"The Giant actually understands art?"
Ian was quite amazed. However, the Giant in the painting wouldn’t speak, it only stared at the potted plant outside, drooling continuously.
"Move aside, you."
Reaching this point.
Ian largely knew he had found the entrance to the Room of Requirement. He knew this so well thanks to the Giant wearing a ballet dress, which had left a deep impression in his childhood.
And just when Ian was about to enter.
A white figure quietly emerged from an armor set behind him, a short, comical ghost with a wide face and bright round eyes.
It was Peeves.
The mischievous ghost of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, existing since its founding, enjoying causing pranks and chaos, making the school and its staff quite helpless.
Even Dumbledore found it quite bothersome.
"Look, I’ll scare you to death!"
Peeves suddenly popped up in front of Ian from underneath his pants.
"Ah... Sectemsempra!"
Ian had been trying to recall the detailed steps of entering the Room of Requirement when he was genuinely startled by the jump scare from the mischievous ghost.
He instinctively raised the magic wand he had always been holding in his hand.
A eerie green light flickered gently.
Fortunately, the Wisdom Enlightenment kept Ian’s rationality intact, promptly switching it to invisible magic, cutting towards the in-your-face ghost like an unseen blade.
"Wow!! Got a sneak-learning black..."
Peeves had been laughing and intending to taunt and scare Ian, but in the next moment, it found its body suddenly sliced into dozens of pieces.
Very painful!
Yet without the arrival of death.
"Ah!!!"
Peeves’ "remains" on the ground wriggled constantly, its split head slowly rejoining, but the fear overwhelmed Peeves in an instant.
Making it terribly anxious.
"Impossible! Impossible! I’m an elf! I’m an elf!"
"This isn’t Snape’s Sectemsempra!"
"What kind of spell did you kid use!"
In centuries, Peeves had become the scared object for the first time. After its "body" automatically reassembled, it frantically sought to escape far away.
"Turns out it’s you, the trouble-making ghost!"
Ian hadn’t expected his magic to work on Peeves; realizing something, he was excited to verify his suspicions.
"Trying to escape!"
Ian leapt forward, grabbing Peeves’ legs in mid-air.
Yes!
He actually managed to catch a solid form!
"Seems like you’re not as slippery as the seniors described!" Ian moved swiftly, directly slamming Peeves to the ground and began to wildly punch him.
"I’m dying! I’m dying! Let me go, you little brat!" Peeves frantically struggled, but couldn’t turn into an illusory form in Ian’s grip.
It couldn’t understand.
Increasingly terrified.
"Trying to scare me, even called me a brat, see if I won’t beat you to death!"
Ian was quite grudging.
He was nearly scared into making a major mistake.
If he didn’t give this mischievous ghost a truly painful psychological shadow, Ian felt his thoughts wouldn’t be clear, and he would likely be targeted for revenge in the future.
The way to eliminate hatred is simple.
Convince with reason.
"Incendio!!!"
Ian raised his hand holding the truth.
"It hurts! It hurts! Let me go!"
Peeves’ hair was set ablaze, it screamed in fear. Because it was near dinner time, nobody in the eighth-floor corridor could hear him.
"Go to the office on the west side and get Dumbledore to save me!"
It could only call for help from the paintings on the wall.
Except.
The Goblin, who resumed beating up the ballet teacher, was completely indifferent to the affairs outside the frame.