Hogwarts: Homecoming

Chapter 11: A Reserved Edge

In the assessments of both Severus Snape and Hagrid, the Amos Blaine of his school days was a low-key and aloof person. Even he himself would not deny that this was an apt description.

However, this was not because Amos was inherently a wizard who kept others at a thousand-foot distance.

You see, Blaine was an 'outsider'. Before coming to Hogwarts, he had believed he had simply been reborn into a parallel Earth. For the first eleven years of his new life, he had spent a great deal of time adapting to a country with completely different customs and cultural norms from his previous life. He had expended considerable energy re-learning the cultural knowledge he had mastered as a student, actively preparing for his future.

But that acceptance letter from Hogwarts had thrown all his plans into disarray, rendering his previous efforts almost entirely useless.

Why did he seem so out of step with his surroundings during his first few years at Hogwarts? The question was very easy to answer.

Firstly, the existence of magic directly overturned the worldview and values Amos had built over nearly thirty years across two lifetimes. For those few years, he was in a constant state of turmoil. On one hand, he had to accept that magic was real and diligently study it. On the other, he was constantly trying to explain the existence of magic through 'scientific principles', a conflict that nearly drove him to a split personality.

Secondly, the fragmented and unreliable memories of the plot that remained in his mind also caused him great distress.

Amos knew he was in an incredibly real magical world, not inside a children's book. Here, there were dangerous and vicious magical creatures, insidious curses that were impossible to guard against, cruel and bloodthirsty Dark Wizards, unscrupulous schemers, and despicable hypocrites.

Although Amos remembered some names, he could no longer recall the plotlines connected to them, and thus couldn't judge who was truly a 'good person'.

Especially after entering the wizarding world and becoming acutely aware of his own weakness and powerlessness, being wary of everyone was his way of ensuring his own safety.

Compared to that, the indifference and isolation from the other Slytherin students, which Hagrid had spoken of, were the least of his worries. After all, within his small body resided a mature soul.

Severus Snape was the only wizard at the school whom he had truly acknowledged back then. The reason for this, as it happened, was tied to Amos's own difficult origins.

At that time, Amos was penniless. The small scholarship from the school, after covering his secondhand books and school supplies, was nowhere near enough to support his advanced self-study.

To remedy his dire financial situation, Amos had to find a way to make some money. Starting in his second year, he began secretly brewing and selling potions.

At first, he could only use the cheap ingredients from the student supply cupboards to brew simple potions, earning a meager profit that he slowly accumulated.

It wasn't until the second term of his third year that he received a large order worth eighty Galleons—to brew a batch of Long-Lasting Invisibility Potion.

To ensure there were no mistakes, he used the Disillusionment Charm to sneak into the Restricted Section of the library multiple times at night to research. He also indirectly questioned Snape about the key techniques for brewing this specific potion.

Amos couldn't afford to be careless. The person who commissioned the potion was not providing the ingredients. The most expensive component, a Demiguise tail feather, cost six Galleons apiece, and the potion required five of them. This would nearly wipe out Amos's entire savings.

Unfortunately, things rarely go as planned. If there was going to be an accident, an accident was what happened.

Due to his inexperience, Amos used the wrong amount of Abyssinian Shrivelfig juice, and the potion was a failure.

He was despondent for days after this.

But then, a week later, before Potions class, when Amos went to get his ingredients, he found a bundle of no less than ten Demiguise tail feathers waiting for him in his usual cupboard. These were precious materials, not something that would ever appear in a student's supply!

Furthermore, during the subsequent lecture on the Confusing Concoction, Professor Snape, acting as if nothing was out of the ordinary, suddenly started talking about Invisibility Potions, a completely unrelated topic.

That was when Amos understood. His private business of brewing and selling potions had been seen all along by his stone-faced Head of House.

Similar incidents occurred several more times in the following years, but both parties maintained a remarkable, silent understanding. Neither ever spoke of it.

Because of this, Amos began to gradually trust Severus Snape. Before, he had always been wary of him. From the chatter of his housemates, he had learned that Snape had apparently been a follower of the great Dark Lord, and had only escaped judgment by the Wizengamot after the Dark Lord's fall thanks to Professor Dumbledore's protection.

However, his close relationship with his Head of House didn't change Amos's philosophy of keeping a low profile. He remained quiet at school, trying his best to avoid conflict with others or to stand out so much that he would attract jealousy. This state of affairs continued until his fifth year, when it was shattered by an accident.

It happened at the end of November, 1986.

The winter that year was especially cold. Grandma Filena, at the advanced age of eighty-four, did not make it to Christmas.

The old woman who had diligently cared for him as he grew up and had dedicated her entire life to charity had always been the person Amos respected most. Her passing was a heavy blow.

But that year was his O.W.L.s year. The school curriculum was incredibly demanding, leaving little time for grief. After hastily attending her funeral, Amos had to rush back to school to continue his studies.

The time returns to a late night in early December, 1986.

The pitch-black night was like a giant curtain drawn tightly over the earth. A sharp, cold wind swept across the already freezing Black Lake, and the sound of ice floes crashing against each other was like the crunching of bones in the jaws of an Inferius.

Confirming that his roommates were sound asleep, Amos sat up, his face devoid of expression. He quietly got dressed and took a framed black-and-white photograph from a hidden compartment by his bed.

The common room was silent. The eerie green lights, the rough stone walls, and the many empty, ornate armchairs made the long, low-ceilinged room look more like a tomb.

Slytherin students were not as keen on midnight explorations of the castle as Gryffindors, so Amos didn't encounter a single student as he navigated the bewildering, maze-like corridors. Even if he had, there was little to worry about. Amos was confident in his mastery of the Disillusionment Charm; he could move while remaining completely invisible. Even Filch's malnourished cat could walk right past him without noticing a thing.

"Hey, little one. I think you must be lost!"

As he passed through the Entrance Hall, a voice from the top of the marble staircase caught Amos's attention. He moved closer and looked up. It was the Gryffindor prefect, Bill Weasley, speaking to a young Hufflepuff student.

"Hurry back to bed, little one. Otherwise, I'll have to take you to see Professor Sprout."

"R-right away, Prefect Weasley! I'll go back to my dormitory right now!"

Hearing that he wouldn't be docked points or sent to a professor for detention, the little wizard Bill had caught was immensely grateful. He hastily bowed in apology to Bill and then scurried away.

Having dealt with the rule-breaking student, Bill ran a hand through the long hair that fell past his shoulders, humming a tune as he walked up the marble staircase to continue his prefect duties.

Amos stood at the bottom of the stairs, watching Bill's back disappear from view. The eldest son of the Weasley family, a family Dumbledore trusted deeply, the much-admired Bill Weasley was well-liked by both teachers and students at the school. This was not just because of his outstanding grades, but because he truly possessed an extraordinary personal charisma.

But among the older Slytherin students, Bill Weasley's reputation was terrible.

They believed that by consorting with a group of Muggle-borns, Bill Weasley had betrayed the honor of the ancient wizarding families. They had secretly planned to teach Bill a lesson more than once. But every time, they were soundly beaten by Bill and his strong Chaser brother, no matter how many of them there were.

As a result, Bill Weasley had become the public enemy of nearly every Slytherin in the fifth year and above. This was especially true after rumors began to spread that Dumbledore intended to make Bill the Head Boy in his seventh year.

Amos smiled silently to himself and turned towards the main doors, heading for the Forbidden Forest.

All of this trouble had nothing to do with him. After all, no one would be foolish enough to expect a transparent, non-existent figure in Slytherin to challenge the sun-like, brilliant prodigy of Gryffindor.