The Sunshine of Hogwarts, Snape

Everyone present was stunned by what had just happened.

No one could process what had occurred in that instant!

Greyback's lower half had been cleanly severed, his upper body collapsing to the ground as blood gushed out relentlessly.

An extremely sinister Dark magic continued to corrode his wounds, inflicting unbearable agony… his wretched screams sounded as though he were being flayed alive!

Lupin, who had been struggling on the ground moments earlier, froze.

He was all too familiar with this curse. After all, this Dark magic had been invented specifically to deal with him… or rather, his group of four!

There was only one person in the entire Wizarding World who could cast it… the very man who had created it!

And only that one man could unleash such a horrifyingly precise cutting effect with it!

What truly left Lupin in disbelief was that Greyback had barely finished shouting when that man had actually appeared the very next second!

The children, however, had no idea what was happening. They could only scream in terror, clinging to the nearest person beside them, too afraid to look at Greyback's gruesome state.

Harry, who was pinned to the ground by the werewolf, stared blankly at the scene.

He had never seen this spell before, nor did he know who had cast it.

The other werewolf wizards only snapped out of their shock when Greyback's agonized wails pierced the air. They all drew their wands, but before they could even locate their attacker-

Over a dozen spells shot toward them from all directions!

Kingsley and his men emerged from the shadows of the forest, their wands flashing as they unleashed a barrage of spells, most of which struck the werewolves.

A few of the werewolves managed to react in time, including the one restraining Harry!

In his panic, the werewolf tried to grab Harry and used Apparition on the spot. But after uttering the incantation, he remained firmly in place.

The area had already been sealed with Anti-Apparition Charm. Kingsley and his team had followed someone's instructions and prepared thoroughly… no one would be escaping tonight!

Just as the werewolf raised his wand in frustration to attempt Apparition again, a jet of red light struck him, freezing him in place and rendering him completely incapable of further resistance!

Harry finally seized the chance to break free, rushing over to the frightened group of children and shouting reassuringly.

"Don't be afraid! Everyone, stay down and don't move! The people here to save us have arrived! They're here to help!"

He was brave and quick-witted enough to know that the priority now was to keep the children from panicking and getting hurt.

The Aurors swiftly cleared the remaining werewolves.

Though in the eyes of certain someone, the people in the Ministry are not reliable at all, but for the vast majority of wizards, those who can join the Ministry and become Aurors are the elites among all generations of Hogwarts' graduates!

Spells like the Shield Charm, which is a fundamental defensive spell, were beyond the reach of average wizards, and even non-Auror Ministry employees might not know them.

But for Aurors, mastering such spells was mandatory.

So, with Greyback, the leader of the werewolves, taken out first, the battle became completely one-sided.

In less than three minutes, the once-chaotic werewolf camp fell into complete silence.

All the werewolves had been subdued. Only then did three figures emerge from the shadows.

When the flickering torchlight illuminated their faces-

Harry shouted excitedly!

"Professor! I knew it was you!"

Hermione, her eyes still brimming with tears, stared in disbelief at one of the figures holding a long gun, murmuring softly as if speaking to herself, "D-Dad…"

Lupin, who was still lying on the ground, also saw the figure wearing Hawaiian shorts and holding a wand, who looked a little different from the person he remembered.

He couldn't speak, nor could he move, but the shock in his eyes said everything.

Severus gave Harry a reassuring glance before smirking and walking over to Greyback, who was writhing and howling on the ground.

"What a coincidence, Fenrir. Didn't we just meet two hours ago? I had no idea you missed me so much. What was it you were shouting earlier?"

Greyback's animalistic wails ceased. His slit-pupiled eyes burned with hatred as he glared at Severus… if looks could kill, Severus would've been torn apart a thousand times over!

"Kill me! If you've got the guts, kill me now!!"

"Tsk. Now, now, that won't do." Severus shook his head then gestured at Kingsley, who was not far away, "See that? The law's still watching. I only cast that spell earlier because, one, you insisted so passionately, and two, I had to protect the children. But now that you're no longer a threat, killing you would just make me a murderer, wouldn't it?"

He crouched down, facing Greyback with a smile only the werewolf's leader could see.

"Let me tell you a little secret… that spell just now could have taken your head clean off. But remember what I told Barty? You're just a scavenging beast."

"This is perfect, isn't it?"

"The Aurors will do their best to keep you alive, but they won't be kind enough to reattach your lower half. No, they'll toss you into Azkaban, let the Dementors drain every last drop of worth from a creature like you."

"Kill me!!!" Greyback roared in terror. "Snape! You coward! Kill me if you've got the guts!! Why won't you just kill me?!!!"

Greyback was finished. The werewolf leader, being a natural-born lycanthrope, had never bothered learning magic… he didn't even carry a wand.

His greatest weapon had always been his own body, with its formidable resistance to spells and physical prowess far surpassing that of an ordinary wizard, even outside the full moon.

But now, reduced to literally half a man, this fate was worse than death for him… a living nightmare of agony and despair.

But Severus had already lost interest in him. Standing up, he walked over to the group of children.

A female Auror had arrived to comfort the sobbing children, while Granger immediately swept his daughter into his arms.

Hermione, with tears still glistening in her eyes, stubbornly lifted her chin as if to prove she hadn't been afraid at all.

Harry was practically bouncing around Severus in excitement.

"I knew it was you, Professor! I knew you'd find us!"

"How was the experience?" Severus asked with a faint smirk.

"Terrifying… but also kind of thrilling!"

"Watching you step forward and declare yourself a 'Snape's student', I almost believed you weren't scared at all."

"Of course I'm scared, but I was more afraid of doing nothing while my friends got hurt!" Harry said earnestly.

Severus placed a hand on his shoulder and said quietly, "Then remember this feeling. Let it drive you forward… strive to never feel this helpless again."

"I will!"

After seeing this scene, Ghost Snape felt an indescribable turmoil in his chest. He didn't know how to put his emotions into words.

As Severus spoke with Harry, Lyall approached Lupin and lifted the Body-Bind Curse from him.

"When you didn't send a letter last week, I knew something was wrong. So I went to Dumbledore… and that's how I found out what happened to you."

After being freed, Lupin pulled Lyall into a tight hug.

"Thank you, Lyall."

Lyall patted his back, then stepped away with a hesitant yet resolute expression, as if he'd long made up his mind about something.

"I understand why you never came home all these years. First, you didn't want to disturb me during the full moon. Second… you knew I was keeping things from you."

Lupin looked at him, then said after a pause, "If there are things you don't want to tell me, you don't have to. I'm not-"

"No." Lyall cut him off, "I never told you before because I was afraid you'd blame me. But after what happened tonight, I realize I can't keep hiding this forever. And… you've already met him."

As Lyall spoke, his gaze shifted to Greyback, who was now being restrained with magical cuffs by Kingsley and several Aurors.

"The reason you became a werewolf… is because he bit you when you were a child."

Hearing this, Lupin was a little surprised, but only for a moment.

"Greyback has bitten plenty of children. He bit me too. That wasn't your fault."

"No, no… let me finish." Lyall stopped Lupin from continuing. He took a deep breath and did not avoid Lupin's eyes.

"He bit you to get revenge on me. That year, Dark creatures were unusually active in the Wizarding World… later, we learned it was You-Know-Who preparing for his rise. But at the time, the Ministry called in many experts to help contain them. I was one of them."

"The Aurors captured Greyback, but he tricked them into believing he was just a Muggle vagrant. I saw through his disguise. I saw through his lies and tried to get the Control Committee to keep him until the end of the full moon of that month before making a final decision, but they didn't listen to me. I was furious. I cursed Greyback, called him soulless, evil, deserving only death!"

"He remembered those words. The night before your fifth birthday, he found our home. Under the full moon, he transformed… and attacked you. I drove him off, but from then on, you were a werewolf!"

Guilt and self-blame were revealed in Lyall's eyes.

"This is all my fault, Remus! It was because of my harsh words to him that the retaliation fell on you! I never dared to tell you the truth before, but when I learned you had joined Greyback's pack as an undercover agent, I was even more terrified… terrified he might recognize you and expose your identity!"

Hearing this for the first time, Lupin stared blankly at Greyback, who had been magically restrained, his wounds sealed but still howling madly, demanding the Aurors kill him.

Lupin had never known the full story before, only faintly remembering being bitten as a child when a werewolf broke into their home.

But he never imagined it had been an act of revenge against his father!

After a moment of stunned silence, Lupin snapped out of it and patted Lyall's shoulder with a faint smile.

"It wasn't your fault, Lyall. You weren't wrong back then, were you? The ones who truly failed were the Ministry for ignoring your judgment and Greyback himself for committing the act. I'm not that reckless, ignorant young man anymore… I understand the chain of events, and I know who's really to blame!"

Lyall's eyes reddened as he finally unburdened himself after all these years.

He grabbed Lupin's arm and said sincerely, "After this is over, come home with me. Let's live together. Even during the full moon, I can help keep you safe!"

After Lupin thought very seriously for a moment, he shook his head at Lyall.

"It's not that I don't want to go back with you… but there's still something I need to do."

Lyall frowned in confusion.

"What else is there? Did Dumbledore or the Ministry assign you another task?"

"It's not them, it's my own business." Lupin glanced at Harry, who was now animatedly recounting his capture to Severus, his expression complicated, "That boy… he's the son of my best friend."

Following Lupin's gaze, Lyall looked startled.

"Severus's student?"

Even now, Lupin still felt a sense of disobedience when he heard this name again, and he nodded.

"Yes. Him."

Upon hearing this, Lyall's brow furrowed slightly as he brought up another matter.

"When we first arrived at the cliffs of Eastbourne today, it was Snape who found the clues you left on the rocks. He told me… some things about your school days-"

Before he could finish, Lupin already knew what Severus must have shared.

"Well… I owe you an apology for never telling you about that."

"So it's just as Severus said?" Lyall stared into his son's eyes, "Your friends lured him to you during your transformation, intending for you to kill him?!"

Lupin fell silent for a long moment before finally speaking.

"I don't know what your impression of Snape is now, Lyall, but the person he was back then… isn't the same as the man in the rumors. And besides-"

"No matter what, that should never have happened!" Lyall's voice was grave, "That was your group's mistake. If you were unaware, then it was your friends' doing… not only were they trying to murder Severus, they were putting you at risk too!"

Just as the father and son delved into the past, a familiar voice cut in from the side.

"Well, well… long time no see, if it isn't my dear nephew Remus Lupin?"