"How did you do it, Nolan?!"
Astoria Greengrass was the first to voice the question everyone wanted to ask. But unlike the others, her wide, bright eyes sparkled with a mix of curiosity and admiration.
"It's nothing special, Greengrass," Nolan replied casually, as if pausing time were as simple as tying his shoelaces. "The time-stopping enchantment isn't as miraculous as you think. It's just a combination of thirteen basic spells, layered together to create a brief temporal halt."
Montague rolled his eyes dramatically. "Thirteen spells? Merlin's beard—someone explain how he even figured that out!"
Eve, still holding the now-empty goblet, let out a soft laugh. "Honestly, Nolan's been working on that pocket watch since the summer holidays. I didn't think he'd actually pull it off… It's unbelievable. I suppose this adds yet another achievement to his ever-growing list."
"We should report this to Professor Snape immediately!" someone suggested excitedly. "This is a huge victory for Slytherin! Let's see Ravenclaw claim they're smarter than us now!"
The Slytherin students buzzed with excitement. Even though most of them hadn't contributed to Nolan's invention, they still felt a collective pride in his success. After all, if one Slytherin achieved something extraordinary—it reflected glory on all of them.
…
A few days later, Halloween arrived.
From the moment Nolan stepped into the Great Hall that morning, something seemed… off.
"What's wrong with him?" Cho Chang, passing by the silver-and-green Slytherin table, immediately noticed his unusually brooding demeanor.
"Oh, Cho—you know how it is," Miles said between bites of sausage. "Nolan's never in a good mood in the morning. Today's just worse than usual."
He leaned back in his seat and added with a smirk, "To be fair, even I'm tired—he spent half the night fiddling with his new toy."
"What toy?"
"Eve's broomstick," Miles said with a raised eyebrow. "He kept handling that Silver Arrow like it was some kind of priceless treasure. I honestly don't get it—what's so fascinating? Does he like the smell or something?"
Cho stifled a laugh, shaking her head. "Maybe you'll understand when you finally get a girlfriend?"
Miles froze mid-bite, staring at her in confusion. "Wait… Are we talking about—uh—those kinds of things?"
Alicia Spinnet, sitting nearby, snickered under her breath. "If we are, poor Miles will never understand. What a tragedy."
As the two began bickering, Cho quietly slipped into the seat beside Nolan. Without a word, her delicate fingers reached up to his temples, massaging them gently in slow, circular motions.
"Feeling better?" she asked softly.
Nolan closed his eyes for a moment, leaning into her touch. "Where did you learn to do that? It's a Muggle thing."
"My mom's a Muggle, remember?" Cho smiled faintly, trailing her cool fingers down his cheek. "Does this help?"
"Mmm…" Nolan exhaled slowly, relaxing under her care. A teasing glint flashed in his eye as he added, "You know, Cho, I'm starting to think I'll never see that reckless little girl from two years ago again."
Cho giggled, brushing her long black hair behind her ear. "Oh, Nolan—girls have to grow up eventually. The only ones who never do… are boys."
Recently, Cho had changed.
Her body had become more curvaceous, more mature, with the graceful curves of a girl growing into a young woman. But it wasn't just physical—her personality had softened, too. She was no longer the sharp-tongued, headstrong girl she had been in their first year.
These days, she carried herself with a gentle elegance—calm, nurturing… like the traditional women from her mother's Eastern roots.
It was a stark contrast to the fierce, independent girl he had once known.
If Cho's new tenderness unsettled Nolan slightly… then Professor Snape's ever-growing temper was oddly comforting.
At least some things never changed.
"Nolan Von Draugr!"
Professor Snape's voice cut through the dungeon classroom like a blade. His dark eyes gleamed with cold fury as he glared at Nolan. "Perhaps your damn sister has enough influence to make most of the professors turn a blind eye to your insufferable behavior, but in my classroom, you'd better follow the rules. If I tell you to take out your cauldron, you will do as you're told!"
Ten minutes had already passed since the start of Potions class, yet Nolan remained seated, completely motionless.
Snape's expression darkened. He seemed to take Nolan's silence as an act of outright defiance, and if there was one thing Severus Snape couldn't tolerate, it was a student challenging his authority.
"I'll count to three, Mr. Von Draugr. If you refuse to participate in my lesson, then I will have no choice but—"
"Wait, Professor Snape!"
Eve suddenly shot up from her seat, worry written all over her delicate features. "Something's wrong with Nolan!"
"What kind of nonsense are you babbling about, Stock?" Snape snapped, marching toward them with his robes billowing behind him.
Before he could reach them, Eve had already pulled Nolan into her arms, pressing a hand to his forehead. Her voice trembled slightly as she said, "He's burning up… He's sweating so much! He looks awful!"
"Move aside!"
Snape shoved Eve out of the way with little patience, then—without warning—kicked Nolan's chair out from under him. The boy tumbled over, collapsing onto the stone floor with a thud. Snape crouched down, grabbed his chin roughly, and forced open one of his eyelids. A flicker of something unreadable passed through the professor's expression before he exhaled sharply, muttering under his breath.
"A rejection reaction… Bloody fool, Felicia Von Draugr… She's going to pay for this."
Without another word, Snape seized Nolan's arm and hauled him up as if he weighed nothing. "Class dismissed. Self-study."
Then, with long, rapid strides, he stormed out of the classroom, dragging Nolan along with him.
Eve quickly grabbed both of their textbooks, stuffed them into her bag, and rushed after them.
Inside Snape's private potions chamber, a small but tense gathering had formed.
Professors McGonagall, Dumbledore, and Snape himself all stood around Nolan, who lay slumped in a chair, his breathing uneven and labored. Beads of cold sweat trickled down his pale skin.
"What's going on, Severus?" Dumbledore asked, his usual twinkle absent from his eyes.
"A rejection reaction," Snape answered curtly.
McGonagall gasped. "Of course! The magical eye! I should've realized sooner! Nolan has been wearing an eyepatch all year! Miss Stock, do you know exactly what kind of magical eye he received?"
Eve hesitated before nodding. "It's an Eye of Severance and Nullification, Professor McGonagall. Felicia told us that among the Nordic magical eyes, this one is especially powerful."
"Of course she'd say that." Snape's voice dripped with venom. "Because it is."
A cold silence fell over the room.
"That foolish vampire actually thought this was a good idea? Severance and Nullification? Either of those enchantments alone would be enough to kill this baby bat! And she combined them?"
McGonagall pressed a hand to her chest, looking at Nolan with deep concern. "But Mr. Von Draugr looks like he's in terrible pain! Surely there's something we can do to ease his suffering?"
"Perhaps he should try a Muggle painkiller?" Snape sneered. "This bat has always had a fondness for Muggle contraptions. I'd rather not waste my valuable potions on the idiocy of the Von Draugr family."
Despite his scathing words, Snape had already turned toward the large potion cabinet and was rummaging through it. One by one, he pulled out various vials, placing them on the table with sharp, precise movements. Within moments, the desk was covered in an array of shimmering, multicolored potions.
"He'll drink them all. That should be enough to keep this idiot vampire alive through the worst of it."
Snape's lips barely moved as he spoke, his voice as cutting as ever. His eyes flicked toward Eve, narrowing slightly.
"And you, Stock. You'd better take care of him. I will not tolerate this vampire disrupting my classroom again. If this happens one more time, I swear I'll personally send him to the coffin where he belongs. That is, after all, the proper place for a vampire."