Hogwarts: I am Snape

Chapter 115 The Centaurs' "Ransom"

Margaret, the centaur leader, did not stop his companion's vehement words, but simply watched Snape silently.

As Snape watched the centaurs raise their cold arrows again, aimed at Nagini, and heard their pronouncements of "darkness," "filth," and "annihilation," his earlier apology vanished, replaced by a chilling rage.

He realized that any explanation or apology would be futile in the face of the other party's deep-seated beliefs; what the horsemen saw was merely a symbol that had to be erased.

He stepped forward, subtly shielding Nagini behind him, his wand pointing steadily at the ground.

“Margaret,” Snape looked at the centaur and asked, “isn’t Ronan here? I’ve seen him.”

The centaur hesitated for a moment, then said, "Ronan has his own things to do tonight."

“Very well, Margaret,” Snape said. “I don’t care what prophecies you’ve read in the stars; I don’t believe in that stuff. But since you insist on your ‘duty’ and are determined to hurt her,” he said, his gaze sweeping sharply over Bane and all the centaurs, “then it’s your turn. You will have to pay a ransom for your reckless attack tonight and for your foolish insistence now.”

A chorus of angry whispers and the twang of bowstrings rose from the surroundings. One of the centaurs behind Margaret once more angrily raised his bow and aimed at Snape.

Nagini crouched at Snape's feet, raised his head, and let out a low hiss.

“It’s alright, Nagini,” he reassured her softly in his Parsleyan voice. Nagini’s body relaxed slightly, but her eyes remained fixed on the centaurs.

“I suggest you lay down your bows and arrows,” Snape said calmly, but with an undeniable threat in his voice, “unless you want to experience—”

As he spoke, he flicked his wrist, and a blinding green light shot from the tip of his staff, striking an oak tree ten feet away. The bark instantly carbonized, forming a circular charred mark and emitting a pungent smoke.

Except for Magree, the centaurs collectively took two steps back.

“Margaret,” another centaur stepped forward and whispered to Margaret, “there will be no good outcome from tonight’s conflict.”

Margaret's nostrils flared, exhaling two puffs of white breath. His mane stood on end like flames, and the bowstring hummed in his hand.

“This is our forest!” he roared.

“Then you’ll have to keep putting up with it,” Snape said bluntly. “This is your forest, and it’s our forest too.”

Margaret suddenly stood up on her hind legs, and the arrow drew a dangerous arc in the air, its tip pointing directly at Nagini.

Snape's wand immediately emitted a red light, striking the arrow in the centaur's hand.

The wooden pole snapped, and Margaret staggered back three steps, her hooves leaving deep marks in the soft mud.

Amidst the flying dirt, Ferenczek swiftly cut between the two sides.

"Stop!" His roar shook a few leaves off the trees. "We cannot defy the will of Heaven!" He turned to his agitated companions. "Have we not seen the signs indicated by the planetary movements?"

“The stars are silent now,” Margaret stamped her foot heavily. “We must put destiny back on track!”

"Stop talking!" Frenzer suddenly raised his voice, glanced warily at Snape, and turned to his companion, saying, "We are concerned with the prophecies of the stars, not with fulfilling them. Centaurs are not the executioners of fate."

He turned to Snape, his voice regaining its calm: "Enough, wizard. Out of respect for fate, we will not pursue this matter tonight, but you must leave the Forbidden Forest immediately."

Snape didn't move: "What about compensation? Didn't you say you wouldn't let us leave like this? I thought you wouldn't leave like this either."

The centaurs immediately let out a disgruntled neigh, and several young centaurs stirred and raised their bows and arrows. But Ferenze turned and tried his best to calm them down, and the commotion gradually subsided.

“Wizard,” Ferenze’s voice lowered, his hooves sinking deep into the mud as if he were restraining himself, “we don’t want to fight you, but please don’t force us.”

“If you insist on making amends,” he said, his eyes gazing at the stars before returning to Snape’s face, “I can tell you this: if you truly care about that snake, you don’t have much time left.”

Snape narrowed his eyes; these centaurs before him seemed to truly see Nagini's fate.

“I need you to tell me more about the stars you saw,” he said, lowering his wand and taking a step forward, “and how to break the curse on this serpent.”

“The stars won’t give you a precise answer, wizard.” Ferrenze shook his head, his silver mane swaying slightly. “Nothing is foolproof. Change has already begun; the winter snow is melting.”

Snape paused for a moment, then asked, "Do you centaurs have any way to break this curse?"

“I’m sorry, there is no antidote,” Frenzer said, his voice carrying a strange pity. “Once the power of the curse begins to penetrate the soul, it’s like a river that will eventually flow into the sea, unstoppable.” He gave Snape a meaningful look. “The blood curse will eventually concentrate in the soul; it’s an irreversible process.”

"You mean the blood curse will eventually focus on the soul?" Snape pressed.

Ferenze hesitated for a moment, then nodded stiffly: "Wizard, that's all I can tell you. Don't be too greedy."

“Anyway, this news might be of some use,” Snape said. “Let’s call it a night.”

Whether it was due to Parsleyan or the Unforgivable Curse, the centaurs had been quite restrained tonight. Snape didn't intend to linger with them any longer; Nagini's condition was worse than he had imagined, and he had more important things to do.

By the time the centaurs turned around, Bane had regained his senses. He wanted to say something, but his companion whispered something in his ear, and he shut his mouth, looked at Snape with fear, and then limped away with his companion.

The sound of hooves gradually faded into the depths of the dense forest, and the clearing returned to tranquility.

Snape looked down at Nagini and saw Dobby cautiously approaching her.

The house-elf's eyes were filled with worry as he reached out a slender finger and gently touched Nagini's scales. She seemed to recognize Dobby again and did not attack. Although her eyes held little light at this moment, instead reflecting a wild, bewildered look.

“Mr. Snape,” Dobby said somewhat fearfully, “can Dobby continue to care for Miss Snake? She seems much better.”

“No, Dobby,” Snape shook his head, “that’s too dangerous.”

“Dobby is willing to face danger for Master,” the elf said firmly. “Dobby knows that Master cares a lot about Miss Snake.”

“It’s just a job.” Snape bent down and patted the elf on the shoulder. “Promise me, Dobby, don’t risk your life to do this job. Your life is more precious.”

"I will arrange other jobs for you later, so you are not unemployed."

After shrinking Nagini and hiding her in his sleeve, Snape grabbed Dobby's hand: "Take me to the Headmaster's office." When they arrived at that familiar office, Dumbledore was arguing with a framed portrait of Phineas Nigellus.

The headmaster was startled by the sudden appearance of the two. “Severus?” His blue eyes widened. “Why don’t you even knock now, so late—” His gaze fell on Nagini, who was emerging from Snape’s sleeve. “What happened? I thought she would be in the Forbidden Forest.”

“Professor,” Snape said, placing Nagini on Dumbledore’s desk, “the Blood Curse is consuming what little humanity she has left. Not long ago, she tried to attack Dobby.”

Dumbledore walked to the desk and saw Nagini curled up in a ball on it.

“Frenzel the centaur spoke some…prophecy,” Snape said, “that Nagini is going down a dark path forever.”

“The centaurs’ astrology certainly has its merits,” Dumbledore said thoughtfully, stroking his silver beard. “However, Severus, I’d also like to know your opinion on this matter.”

“Her condition is deteriorating faster than I expected,” Snape said. “Perhaps soon she won’t be able to recognize anyone.”

"Including you?" Dumbledore asked softly.

“Not yet,” Snape replied, “but I don’t want her to be nothing more than a cursed shell.”

Dumbledore looked at Nagini with concern; she was flicking her tongue at Fawkes' golden perch, her behavior increasingly resembling that of a real snake.

“It’s worse than I thought, Severus. I can’t think of a solution either,” the headmaster said softly. “If she completely loses her will, she won’t be fit to stay here any longer. She’s too dangerous to anyone except the Parsleyans.”

“Severus,” Dumbledore said, walking up to Snape, “you know how sometimes the hardest choices are…maybe you should send her back to where she came from, where she’ll be better suited to live.”

“At least for now, I’m not considering that option,” Snape said. “Perhaps we can find other ways. Albania is not a good place, nor is it where she came from; it’s just the beginning of her suffering.”

“Professor,” he looked up into Dumbledore’s eyes, “when you see her, will you still remember the woman who once defied justice and came to Hogwarts to ask for your help?”

The office fell silent, broken only by the crackling of the burning wood in the fireplace. The portraits of past principals watched the scene quietly.

After a moment, Dumbledore sighed: "I am not a god, Severus, nor can I solve all problems."

“I understand, Professor,” Snape said. “Frenzer said the curse would eventually settle on her soul. I just wanted to discuss with you whether there is a way to purify the soul separately.”

“The soul and the body are never separate,” Dumbledore said. “As far as I know, there is no magic that can do that.”

The separation of soul and body... an idea suddenly took shape in Snape's mind.

“Suppose,” he said slowly, “that there is something, some kind of vessel for the soul, that can absorb the power within Nagini’s soul, devouring her most hidden fears, her deepest secrets… Is it possible to absorb the curse within her soul at the same time?”

“What do you mean?” Dumbledore asked suspiciously. “Is there such a thing? Magical objects don’t have true souls, I think you’re well aware of that.” He paused abruptly, giving Snape a sharp look. “If you’re referring to something that contains a soul, then there can only be…”

“Professor, this is just a hypothesis,” Snape said quickly, “just an academic discussion.”

Dumbledore snorted and turned to the elf standing in the corner: "Dobby, would you mind leaving for a moment?"

Dobby looked at Dumbledore with emotion and nodded.

After the house-elf vanished with a snap, the headmaster's expression became more serious than ever before:
“Severus, we’ve all seen Professor Slughorn’s memories. What are you implying by saying that?”

“I wasn’t thinking of anything dangerous or evil, Professor,” Snape explained calmly. “Actually, this has something to do with Dobby.”

“Dobby once told me, almost casually,” Snape chose to reveal some information using Dobby’s name, “that he had seen a peculiar thing in the storeroom under the living room of his former master’s house. Dobby called it ‘a terrible talking thing.’”

"Dobby was so frightened that he ran away, and afterwards he burned his hand with an iron as punishment for touching his owner's things without permission."

"The Malfoys have such a thing?" Dumbledore seemed somewhat intrigued, pondering the value of this information.

“Yes,” Snape asked casually, “given the Malfoys’ close relationship with Tom, what do you think it would be?”

Dumbledore pondered for a long time: "It might just be an ordinary object, containing a memory, something similar to the portrait—"

“I don’t think Dobby would fail to recognize a portrait,” Snape interrupted him. “But assuming it’s some kind of being that can absorb souls, would it possibly be useful?”

“No one has ever done this before.” Dumbledore’s blue eyes scrutinized him through his glasses. “And how do you intend to retrieve that thing from the heavily guarded Malfoy Manor?”

"Dobby?" Snape said.

“Dobby can’t do this for you,” Dumbledore shook his head. “Even if his magical contract with the Malfoy family has been broken, if you send him to steal from his former master’s house, he might punish himself to death on the way.”

“Hmm…you’re right,” Snape said, frowning. “This won’t work.” Dumbledore was right; even if Dobby were to say a few bad things about his former master, he would smash his head with a teapot. To make him steal would be tantamount to indirectly killing a house-elf.

“I’ll try to think of something for you,” Dumbledore said, his expression softening slightly. “I’ll ask some old friends if there are any other possibilities.”

“Yes, Professor,” Snape said. “Could you give me a pass for the restricted section? I’d like to see if there’s anything related to it in the books.”

Dumbledore summoned a quill, wrote a message on the parchment, and signed his name.

“Here you go. Do your best, Severus.” He handed the signed note to Snape. “Don’t get your hopes up too high. The book only contains knowledge from the past. Sometimes, we have to accept things.”

Snape took the parchment, and before he could express his gratitude, a steaming cup of tea was shoved into his hands.

"Rest tonight," Dumbledore said gently. "I'll keep you informed if there's any further news."

“Thank you, Professor,” Snape said, taking a small sip of his tea.

Perhaps I should reconnect with my outstanding "fallen pioneer" senior, Lucius Malfoy.

　Thank you to Jia Ran Diana7mi, Yesterday Night, Dark Night Elf, Wu Zui, Light Warrior Who Passed By by Chance, cardio, Book Friend 20220618210232984, and Book Friend 20200218190013663 for the monthly tickets.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)