days at Hogwarts

The candlelit Christmas is over and 1995 is coming to an end. As wizards prepare to welcome the New Year, a grand ball is held at Malfoy Manor in Wiltshire.

The brightly lit manor exudes colorful and dazzling light. Every invited guest who walks into the hall can't help but exclaim how beautiful this place is!

Magic candles floated in the air, and the giant chandelier hanging high above the dome was inlaid with hundreds of prisms, diamonds, rubies and sapphires. The various colors of light emitted by the flames were received and reflected, illuminating everything in the hall. The hard and smooth floor was as bright as glass.

There are dozens of portraits of old wizards hanging on the walls. They look at the guests with warm and hospitable smiles, and occasionally chat with a few people who are nearby, talking about some interesting stories of one of their ancestors, showing the heritage of the Malfoy family.

As the clock struck the hour, those well-known musicians stood on the platform and began to tune the strings, with smiles on their faces about their well-paid salaries. At a quiet moment, violins, cellos, accordions, banjos and harpsichords all played together, and a beautiful waltz began to flow.

"I told Draco to stay in his room. When Mrs. Bostder asked, I said he stayed at school for Christmas and didn't come back..." Narcissa, with a thin velvet ribbon tied around her waist and a darkly embroidered shawl hanging casually on her arms, whispered in her husband's ear and then moved into the group of chatting and laughing ladies.

Lucius nodded. They just came on stage as the host of the banquet to dance an opening dance. Not wanting to be in the public eye anymore, they quietly retreated to the edge of the hall.

He swept his eyes across the room and landed on Cornelius Fudge, who was not far away. He then walked over and greeted him with a gentle and polite smile: "Hello, Cornelius."

"Oh, Lucius, this party is perfect!" Fudge smiled brightly as soon as he saw him. "I really don't know how to thank you. I haven't attended a decent ball for at least a whole year."

Lucius smiled and nodded. "Too much has happened in the past day. That's why I'm holding this end-of-year dance. I hope we can say goodbye to these troubles once and for all."

"That's absolutely right!" Fudge agreed loudly.

Lucius raised his glass at the right time and clinked it lightly with the goblet in his hand. The two of them smiled and took a big sip of the wine, and the smiles on their faces became even wider.

He glanced at the wine glass in Fudge's hand from the corner of his eye. The champagne was already empty. An unnatural camel-red color appeared on his swollen cheeks. His eyes were slightly narrowed, and he stared at the girls in the field with a smile on his face.

They were wearing fairy-like beautiful dresses, with skirt hoops making the hems look fluffy and soft, and lace-trimmed trousers faintly visible under their skirts. There were also young witches who confidently displayed their smooth and slender calves, revealing their round and thin shoulders, and the outline of their full and white breasts under the lace-trimmed lotus leaf neckline was a bit dazzling.

Lucius smiled and stepped aside, a cold light flashing in his gray-blue eyes:

"Fudge has completely let down his guard, but to be on the safe side, we should let him drink some wine with added ingredients..."

Lucius casually placed the wine glass on the tray in the hands of the elf in the corner, avoided everyone's sight, quietly went upstairs, pushed the door and entered a secluded room - Severus Snape's exclusive room in Malfoy Manor.

The furnishings in the room were very monotonous. Apart from a few chairs and a sofa, there was only a square mahogany workbench, which was filled with heavy utensils of various materials and shapes, including heavy copper crucibles, slender oak spoons, small ceramic medicine bottles, and shining crystal test tubes...

Compared to the bright lights downstairs, this room seemed a little dim. The quietly burning fire in the fireplace was the main source of lighting. The melody of the music below came up through the floor, mixed with the rustling sounds of dance steps, faint and ethereal.

The Qinglong wood sofa was very soft, and Snape sat quietly on it. His gloomy and cold face was immersed in the dim shadows, but his black eyes were so bright that Lucius felt a little chilly and thought that this professor was becoming more and more like the Dark Lord.

"Lucius?" Snape sat up straight, his grayish-yellow and somewhat pale face emerging from the shadows, his slightly long hair draped on both sides of his scalp like curtains. "What a surprise! Why are you here instead of enjoying your dance downstairs?"

"Severus, I need some potions to completely disarm Fudge..."

"Take the medicine bottle with the black label on the table."

"..."

Lucius got the potion without much effort. Just as he turned around to leave, he stopped driven by some inexplicable idea, turned around, walked to Snape and sat down.

After a few seconds of hesitation, he whispered, "Severus, can I talk to you?"

Snape raised an eyebrow and asked calmly, "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

Lucius sighed dejectedly: "Perhaps I shouldn't say this, Severus, but you are a smart man, you should understand that it is difficult for us to win. Although the Dark Lord is still powerful, we are old, Rookwood and his men are old, not to mention the lunatics of the Lestrange family... We must find a way out."

"I don't think so." Snape's eyes flashed with a hint of sarcasm, "Not everyone is like you, with your body gradually aging, abandoning your old beliefs, and your soul becoming corrupt, lifeless, and not striving for progress...

"The Death Eaters will also have new forces joining them. They are young, their bodies are still developing, their magic is growing every moment, and their souls and bodies are full of vitality..." He leaned back in his chair, and his thin lips formed a cold smile:

"Like my dear student, Draco!"

Lucius sucked in a breath of cold air, as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head, and his face suddenly turned pale: "My son... my only son... Severus..."

Snape observed his expression, and his whisper was like the sound of viscous liquid boiling in a crucible: "Draco should be proud. The Dark Lord specifically asked him to return to this family to spend Christmas and let him participate in this plan just to give him the opportunity to prove his ability in Knockturn Alley. This is a great honor..."

Lucius' cheeks lost color and gradually became paler. His lips trembled as he explained, "This is to warn me, this is to punish me for my mistakes. I lost the Dark Lord's diary, so he chose Draco, my son..."

"So you want to refuse this honor?" Snape said coldly.

Lucius hardly dared to look him in the eye, and explained with some stammering: "I mean, he is still too young. He does not have the ability to accept this honor yet... Severus, please, you have always been and are still Draco's favorite teacher, and we are old friends. I beg you, as the Dark Lord's most proud and trusted confidant, can you talk to him..."

"The Dark Lord cannot be persuaded. I am not stupid enough to try it..." Snape's eyes were scorching. Just when Lucius couldn't bear it any longer, he suddenly changed the subject and said, "But I can save him in another way."

Lucius's face lit up and he looked at him expectantly.

"But it will cost you a price," Snape said slowly.

"..."

The bubbles in the crucible burst, and the boiling deadly poison turned into steam and escaped, emitting a rich sweet and fishy smell.

……

Knockturn Alley.

The day when the plan is implemented.

Snape, wearing a cloak and a hood, pulled another figure dressed in the same way but obviously shorter through the dark and narrow alley. He glanced at the sign of a shop on the roadside, pulled him through the door, and entered the spacious store.

Snape glanced at the items displayed on the cabinet, then quickly retracted his gaze and rang the bell on the counter: "If you don't want to die here, you'd better listen to my arrangements, Draco!"

The shorter figure raised his head, revealing a slightly childish face: "I thought we should be with Aunt Bella, sir..."

"If you want to spend the next few years in Azkaban, I have no objection," Snape said dimly.

"..." Draco was keenly aware of something and showed a thoughtful expression.

The dim shop fell silent for a moment. The faint rustling sounds of dark magic items came from the shelves and corners. Hideous masks glared down from the walls. Various human bones were placed on the counter. Rusty, sharp-toothed instruments hung from the ceiling. In the glass box next to it, the joints of withered human hands creaked. A stack of bloodstained cards seemed to be moved by invisible hands. The motionless glass eyeballs stared at them at some point.

A hunched-backed man walked out of the back room slowly. He looked at the two people's concealing clothes without paying attention. He stroked his greasy hair with his hand and said, "Welcome. What can I do for you?"

"It's me, Borgin." Snape lifted his hood, revealing his face.

"Oh, Mr. Snape, long time no see!" Borgin deliberately pretended to be surprised, his tone was slick and sharp, "Your works have not appeared in the market for a long time. I thought you had stopped making them. It's really a pleasure to see you again. Is there anything I can help you with? Whether it's consignment or collecting rare medicinal materials, my price will not disappoint you."

"I'm not doing any potion business today, Mr. Borgin. I'm here to store something."

"Storing things?" Borgin's smile faded a little. "This is not within the scope of our business. Perhaps you should go to Gringotts and ask."

"A pint of Potion Felix, about half a day's storage," said Snape flatly.

"It is my pleasure!" Borgin said again, with a high tone of surprise. "What can I deposit with you?"

"Storage..." Snape's voice was slightly drawn out, and he slowly turned sideways to look at the student beside him, "One person."

Draco realized something was wrong when he heard this. Before he could react, he heard a [fainting] spell in his ears, and then he lost consciousness.

On this day, the Department of Mysteries of the Ministry of Magic was attacked and many Death Eaters appeared in Knockturn Alley.

The Daily Prophet reported that Dumbledore defeated the mysterious man again and many Death Eaters were arrested, including the famous wealthy couple Malfoy.

……

In the temporary prison room converted from the lowest floor of the Ministry of Magic, Lucius held his wife in one hand and his son in the other. Tears welled up in his eyes. He choked unconsciously, but a happy smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.

The Malfoy family never does business at a loss, so this deal was indeed worth it. He even felt a little regretful that he hesitated at the time. If he had been more decisive and offered a higher price, not only Draco but also Narcissa might have been able to escape.

Narcissa was inexplicably flustered. She tightly grasped her husband's hand and asked anxiously, "What deal? What debt? Didn't our family's business stop a long time ago?"

Lucius trembled as he held his wife's slender hand and said in a hoarse voice, "This is a very good deal... Before the action began that day, in order to protect Draco, I was willing to give up something, my freedom, my body..."

Draco suddenly raised his head with a horrified expression. He wanted to say something in a panic, but couldn't say anything. He could only stubbornly protect his parents behind him, staring at the strange wizard vigilantly with a determined look on his face.

It seemed that if that person took one step forward, he would die together with him.

Narcissa sobbed quietly.

"Are you crazy?" Loren rolled his eyes. "When did I become interested in your body? I just want a piece of your flesh."

"Ah? Ah!"

"Stop it. Let's get started. I have prepared bone-growing spirit, white fresh essence, vitality tonic potion, and some anesthetics... It's painless and minimally invasive, and it guarantees a good prognosis."

"..."

Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy looked at each other and fell silent at the same time.

Draco stared at the man thoughtfully, the inexplicable feeling of familiarity growing stronger and stronger.

……

Lucius watched the man mutter something as he took out a syringe and injected some white unknown liquid into his hand. A strange feeling spread, which was a little painful at first, but then he felt nothing.

As Loren injected the drug, he said, "Licardoine is a dental anesthetic. The dosage is based on the instructions. It doesn't guarantee complete painlessness."

Lucius: "..."

"[Shen Feng Wu Ying]"

"【Quick Healing】"

Narcissa stood silently beside Draco, holding his arms. The sad atmosphere just now was gone, and she even felt a little subtle inside.

Seeing the little finger of the left hand suddenly separated from the palm, the three people were shocked in their hearts, but before they could scream, they took the white fresh essence internally and externally, and poured in half a bottle of bone growth spirit. The tiny wound healed quickly, and began to grow white pink bone, fresh granulation tissue and skin again.

Lucius gently touched the new little finger. It was a little sensitive and still very small. It would probably take a few hours to fully grow out.

Loren put the severed finger into a special box and said, "Rest well these few days, don't do high-intensity physical labor, and don't eat raw, cold, greasy food..."