[Chapter Size: 1900 Words.]

  Third Person POV

  Hogwarts.

  ...

  ...

  Snape had checked his entire inventory, which had expanded its space as he leveled up. Going through everything, he had potions, weapons, and even some magical bombs filling it at the moment.

  "Well, I think that's enough," Snape muttered, looking satisfied with his resources. He was prepared to invade the Forbidden Forest once again and ready to face hundreds or even thousands of those giant spiders.

  However, he had to forget all that for now, as he had a meeting with his professor—the monthly meeting called the Slug Club. The professor had always invited him ever since he saw his potential in potions in the early years, but Snape had never attended. That is, until this year, when he made a deal with him and agreed to go.

  He had attended the st few months, but it wasn't every month that he showed up since he began participating. After all, he particurly didn't like those meetings when he could be training or studying, but he went a few times when the professor requested him to attend, like this st time when he asked Snape to join.

  So, he quickly changed his clothes, putting on a kind of formal suit—something required for this meeting—and checked his appearance in a mirror before moving forward. He reappeared in a corridor near the meeting pce without anyone noticing and started walking, where he already saw some students entering what seemed to be a hall, some in pairs, others with friends chatting animatedly before disappearing inside. Snape just sighed before taking his first steps toward the venue, pcing one hand in his pocket and leaving the other free as he walked calmly.

  That's when he saw Lily, who was also heading there with her friend beside her. It was obvious she would be at these Slughorn meetings, where the professor only invited the best of the best—the students who had excelled throughout the year. He did this as a way of connecting everyone through a network for the future, to have contact with other brilliant witches and wizards when they left Hogwarts and entered the wizarding world.

  Slughorn did this to help them all in their careers. And Snape could understand that, but he came only because the professor asked him with some appeal, and Professor Slughorn had always been someone who helped him, so he made the effort. Although Snape didn't see himself pursuing a magical career or getting involved in any magical circles of Great Britain, at least that's what he pnned.

  As he approached, he saw Lily and her friend entering while his former friend quickly gnced at him before looking away and moving ahead. He followed them, and when he entered the pce, he saw it was a hall full of tables, with students filling the space in their groups, and there was a main table where the host, in this case, Professor Slughorn, was overseeing the arrangements while people chatted and greeted everyone who approached the main table. Snape made his way to this table as he saw Lily and her Gryffindor friend heading to the other tables, with Lily casting a quick gnce toward Snape.

  Slughorn smiled broadly when he saw his favorite student coming toward him. "Snape, my young and brilliant potion maker, it's good to see you here!" he greeted enthusiastically.

  "Hello, Professor. How have you been?" Snape asked calmly, even though he had already had a css with him today.

  "I'm great, even better now that I see you here. Come, sit down. I'm sure many people want to talk to you. Make plenty of friends." Slughorn requested, and then he turned to head toward a table where there was already a specific group of people he knew well, including Lucinda, Pandora, and Crissa at the table.

  "Severus, you look so elegant! That outfit suits you so well!" Lucinda greeted him before anyone else.

  Severus had bought expensive clothes some time ago, and a few formal ones for certain types of events were also included.

  Crissa huffed, rolling her eyes as if she didn't like Lucinda's words.

  "She's right, you look so handsome! It wasn't Dobby who dressed you, was it?" Pandora asked, pcing her hands on her chin, looking at him.

  "No, it wasn't him," Snape replied, a bit bothered by the idea of needing a house-elf to help him with such a thing, while the other girls wondered who "Dobby" was, but no one pressed the issue. He then settled into his seat.

  The gathering had already begun and continued as more people conversed with one another. Snape was answering some questions from two boys when Professor Slughorn was about to start his monthly meeting, standing up for his formal announcement, as he always did. But at that moment, someone reappeared, entering through the doors before they closed. She wore a bck dress, her hair styled, walking with a feminine grace that made everyone's eyes widen as soon as they saw her.

  Even Professor Slughorn was surprised to see another person he had always invited but who had never attended, always saying she preferred her family's gatherings over this "school nonsense." But this time, she was there. Beltrix walked in as the hall fell completely silent.

  "..." Even Snape raised an eyebrow at that.

  "Is it really her? How can she be so beautiful and terrifying at the same time?"

  "I've never seen Beltrix like this, not even at the magical meetings between the great wizarding families," murmured some older students, shocked by the femininity Beltrix was dispying.

  Everyone watched as Beltrix simply walked through the hall without greeting Professor Slughorn or anyone else. She went straight to Snape's side, sat down, crossed her arms, and didn't even look at him, clearly in a foul mood.

  The hall remained silent as Snape stared at her, but Beltrix didn't turn to look at him.

  "..." Lucinda.

  "..." Crissa.

  "She looks so beautiful..." Pandora said with some admiration.

  "Well, I suppose we should begin," said Professor Slughorn, still surprised by her presence, as he started the meeting.

  At that moment, music began to py, filling the room, while the tables were filled with fruits and small treats for everyone to enjoy.

  People started talking again as Slughorn began walking around the room, starting with some tables and chatting with his guests that night, encouraging everyone to mingle and form groups.

  Meanwhile, Snape's table remained silent as Lucinda and Crissa eyed Beltrix cautiously, who sat there unmoving. Only Pandora seemed oblivious to the tension.

  "Hey, what are you doing here? I didn't expect to see you in this pce..." Snape suddenly broke the silence, asking directly. He had grown accustomed to socializing with other students, though he still spent most of his time reading and training. He handled it better now, unlike at the beginning of the year when he didn't want any contact with others while trying to find a way out of this world. But he had realized it wouldn't be so easy, so there was no point in rushing things he couldn't control.

  The two Slytherin girls looked curious at Snape's question, while Beltrix turned to him with a dangerous gleam in her eyes. "It's none of your business..." she simply said, keeping her arms crossed and even crossing her legs.

  "That's not an answer. I really don't know why you're here, especially sitting with your arms crossed and sulking..." he commented, mocking her.

  "What did you say, you wretch!" She turned to him, ready to grab him by the neck, while Snape looked at her as if she were a spoiled, angry teenager.

  "Where are your sisters? They should be here," Snape commented. After all, Andromeda always came to his table, and Narcissa was always with the other Slytherins.

  "They had to leave Hogwarts after receiving a letter from our grandmother," she responded, before closing her eyes as if what she was about to say next was too embarrassing. "And I had nothing better to do if you want to know why I'm here! Satisfied, you wretch?" She said, opening one eye to look at him.

  "What kind of excuse is that...?" Snape muttered, a bit stunned.

  "She seems to be interested in you, Snape. You sure like having the hearts of all the girls, huh..." Snape heard Pandora comment openly, while Crissa and Lucinda looked at her as if something bad was about to happen.

  Beltrix immediately looked at her with dangerous eyes. "What did you say, Ravencw? You shouldn't even be here, and don't talk nonsense about me, or else..." She began to threaten, but a hand touched Beltrix's shoulder at that moment.

  "She's here because I've always made it clear she's welcome to join me. Don't come in here and think you're the queen of the pce—behave yourself..." Snape said, clearly displeased with Beltrix's words.

  "..." Beltrix didn't like that one bit, but she merely gritted her teeth at this cursed pure-blood, though he was stronger than her.

  "Hey, hey, don't get angry. How about we dance a little ter? I'd like to see if the mighty Beltrix has any social skills..." Snape tried to provoke her, while she tried to grab his clothes. He caught her hand before she could, all the while dispying a grin.

  The other three girls could only watch as Snape now held Beltrix Bck's hand. Among them, two were shocked, while Pandora kept her usual behavior, unaffected by anything that was happening. Meanwhile, Beltrix tried to pull away, but Snape kept his grip firm.

  "Did you use some hand cream? They're softer than usual. What's going on with you? Since when are you so feminine, taking care of yourself...?" Snape asked, smiling.

  "I've always been feminine, you wretch! I don't know where you got that idea!" she excimed, trying to force her hand free, but nothing happened. She even tried to push him, but he just started ughing and banced himself, finding it all amusing. He seemed to have found something to distract him during the gathering.

  "Hey, look at that!" Lily heard her cssmate while sitting at the table, drinking a gss of juice and chatting with her friends. She pointed her finger toward the table where Snape was, and soon the entire table was focused on that moment, watching Snape ugh while Beltrix tried to push him with her hands, as he held hers tightly. They seemed to be talking—well, Beltrix seemed furious, while Snape was mocking her.

  "What the hell is that?" one of the Gryffindor girls at the table excimed, stunned by the scene.

  "Unbelievable! That guy even managed to win over Beltrix!" a second girl said.

  "No wonder his table is full of girls. Besides being handsome and charming, he's even more mysterious. He barely shows up in the halls, only goes to css, and aces every test and question from the professors," another girl commented.

  "Hey, shut up, you shouldn't say things like that!" a fourth student murmured, signaling for them to look at Lily, who was staring distantly at that table, looking a bit lost.

  "Hey, Lily! Forget about that guy, it's over..." said this st girl to her friend, touching Lily at that moment. She snapped out of her reverie, finally taking her eyes off Snape.

  "Yeah, it's fine..." Lily muttered, returning to her juice as the other girls at the table exchanged gnces. Lily had been thinking a lot over the past few months. The girl felt a certain regret touching her heart since she saw Snape taking control of everything. Though it seemed overly exaggerated and violent, he had managed to surround himself with other girls who seemed to admire him.

  Without noticing, one of the students was grabbing something beside her. "Don't worry, Lily, I've got something that'll spice up our night, and you'll forget about that guy real quick." She said, showing a bottle of alcohol to the redhead, leaving Lily stunned.

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