HP: At the beginning, I influenced Snape's childhood.

"I don't think I need to say it again." Snape was really annoyed by this old bee.

"In that case, I'll speak with Mr. Lockhart," Dumbledore said. "It's too late tonight, Severus. I'll tell him tomorrow that you should go home and rest."

Dumbledore wanted Snape to go back, partly because he was afraid the two young men would talk about this matter late into the night in the headmaster's office. Although he had insomnia, he didn't want anyone arguing in the middle of the night.

On one hand, Dumbledore was afraid that Snape might not be able to control his sharp tongue and might end up criticizing himself while criticizing Lockhart. He was getting old and couldn't stand Snape's biting remarks.

Another reason is that Dumbledore has already opened half of his new candies, and he feels really uncomfortable if he doesn't eat them tonight; he's still craving them.

"No need. I'll talk to him myself. And there's no need for tomorrow. I have classes tomorrow and don't have time to waste on this." Snape saw through Dumbledore's strange thoughts at a glance and directly blocked Dumbledore's escape route.

"But what if Lockhart is asleep at this hour?" Dumbledore asked weakly. He really, really, really wanted some candy right now. He was exhausted after being smeared with the venom of the Slytherin headmaster in front of him. So he even omitted the last two words when addressing Lockhart as "Mr. Lockhart".

"Then call out." Snape looked disdainfully at the White Lord who was pretending to be stupid in front of him. "How come I didn't know that the Headmaster cared so much about others that he was afraid of disturbing their sleep?"

Snape got angry just talking about it. Everyone knew that Dumbledore loved to come to him in the middle of the night like a pervert to discuss things. If Snape hadn't known that Dumbledore didn't have that kind of overflowing affection, he might have really blacklisted Dumbledore as a peeping tom.

"Has the great Headmaster forgotten that he often comes to a certain poor Potions Professor at night to ask him to make a Tooth Strengthening Potion?" Snape slapped Dumbledore's words back.

Upon hearing Snape's words, Dumbledore's face darkened. He thought to himself, "No wonder the young wizards don't like Snape. He's making it sound like I'm the one having an affair with him in the middle of the night."

As I thought about it, a chill ran down my spine, and a tall figure, both clear and blurry, appeared in my mind.

I wonder how he's doing now. Well, he's been locked up in Nugamamd by me, how could he be having a good time? He'll probably hate me for the rest of his life.

Sensing that the old bee opposite him was acting strangely, Snape frowned. In his memory, Dumbledore had never shown any abnormal emotions that would be noticed by others.

It's even more annoying. How come there's a little monster in his teens and an old man who's over a hundred years old, about three times his age? Don't they have anything important to do all day?

He needs to care for and coax her every day. Ugh, those are stupid things only a monster would do. He feels that the indifference and authority he has built up over the years are gradually disappearing, and he is almost turning into a professional psychological counselor.

He's Snape! Not some weird Muggle psychiatrist! Snape was truly speechless with anger.

Seeing that Dumbledore was completely oblivious, Snape impatiently tapped the table, making a sound.

That little idiot is annoying me, fine, but what's with all this pretense from an old bee like you? If you have a problem, go find your old flame outside.

"I'm sorry, Severus, getting old makes you more sentimental." Dumbledore composed himself so quickly that one might doubt whether he had even shown any emotion from just moments before.

Seeing that Snape was still about to berate him, Dumbledore was truly terrified; this was real torture. At that moment, he was inwardly groaning without any regard for his image, but he replied to Snape, "Since you're in such a hurry, I'll call him over."

Snape remained silent, tacitly agreeing with Dumbledore's actions. Both men, bored out of their minds, stared blankly at the table. One, unwilling to face the sharp tongue and venom, was preoccupied with candy; the other, disliking Lockhart's idiot status, was also preoccupied with venom.

"Headmaster, and... Mr. Snape? Oh, good evening." Lockhart walked into the headmaster's office and greeted the people inside.

Ignoring Snape's undisguised disdain, Lockhart continued, "So, what brings you two here? I would be honored if you needed my help, I wonder..."

As Dumbledore watched Lockhart speak eloquently, a strange thought arose in his mind. He inexplicably felt that he was being somewhat immoral, and looked at Snape with great interest.

Sure enough, Lockhart was interrupted by Snape just as he had interrupted Dumbledore before he could finish speaking.

"Alright, Mr. Lockhart. It's getting late, let's get down to business and stop with the nonsense," Snape said calmly.

Ignoring Snape's veiled attacks, Lockhart found a chair, sat down, and asked the two men with a grin, "What brings you here?"

"Severus, you brought this up, so you should say it." Dumbledore picked up his cup, took a sip of water, and passed the buck to Snape, indicating that he was just there to bear witness.

I can't deny getting old, and I really don't want to deal with these trivial matters anymore.

Lockhart's gaze shifted to Snape, and he casually straightened his clothes and hair. Snape suddenly realized he'd been too hasty in comparing Lucius to a peacock in heat; someone was even more vain than the Malfoys.

"It's not a big deal. Everyone has witnessed Mr. Lockhart's teaching abilities. I won't say anything more unpleasant. Mr. Lockhart should know what he's doing," Snape said sarcastically.

Lockhart's face darkened, his expression stiffened for a moment before he resumed his forced smile. Although Snape's words were harsh and he didn't say much more, the sarcasm was unmistakable.

"I don't think Mr. Snape, as a Potions Professor, can arbitrarily judge the strength and teaching level of a Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor. We have nothing in common." Lockhart genuinely thought Snape was just a Potions Master and treated him like an easy target.

Unfortunately, he was somewhat blind. Putting aside the fact that Snape was many times stronger than Lockhart, who was just a pretty face, Lockhart shouldn't have said that, even if other aspects were presented, he shouldn't have.

Snape, both in appearance and behavior, was not someone to be trifled with, not to mention that a renowned Potions Master was not someone to be trifled with.

"No, no, Mr. Lockhart, you can't say that," Dumbledore said, seeing Lockhart acting like a fool and trying to save his life. After all, no one could die in the headmaster's office. "We all know Severus's abilities; he is very powerful."