Chapter 16

A month passed after Professor Flitwick checked to see if I had forgotten anything. During this time, I not only started studying the 3rd-year program but also began training with other students in the Dueling Club. 

In the Duel Club, I met the Pruett and Frank twins; they were quite skilled, at least in my opinion. Although both of them lost to our professor, who trained us all. 

Of all our training duels, I was able to expand my spell repertoire, and that was a reason to be happy. 

Additionally, there was a new teacher in our school life, a man named Cecil Anderson, who was an obscurantist at one time and taught DADA. Professor Nott had to leave, we were told, due to family circumstances. Nevertheless, the level of education did not seem to deteriorate from this change. Cecil Anderson, being an obscurantist, proved his worth with his studies, although he didn't teach us anything creepy or scary. 

"Is Adam ready for today's classes at the Duel Club?" Sirius asked, pulling me out of my thoughts. 

Another novelty worth mentioning was that Lily, Sirius, and Severus also started studying with me at Professor Flitwick's. Although they weren't pitted against seniors like me, there was nothing stopping them from practicing the spells that I learned last year. 

"That's what I should be asking about, are you ready?" 

"Yes, you are our genius." 

"Is Evans going to Professor Flitwick's class too?" James Potter asked, who had overheard our conversation in the living room. 

Did he really fall in love? 

"Heh, yes. What are you so interested in?" 

"I'm just wondering what classes Professor Flitwick has." 

After that, he went to his friends in the person of Lupin and Pettigrew. 

"What is he doing?" 

"No idea. By the way, did you do the assignment given on the History of Magic?" 

"hm... Are you talking about the International Wizards Convention of 1289?" 

"Yeah." 

"No." 

"You know that the day of delivery is tomorrow, right?" 

"Yes." 

"Are you serious?" 

"Yes, I'm Sirius." 

"Very funny..." 

After getting under such a relaxed conversation, we got to the office where we trained. A pretty good number of students had already gathered there. 

"Oh, and our people have already gathered," Sirius said, looking at Lily and Severus. 

Having approached them, we began to wait for the arrival of our professor. 

"How are you doing here?" 

As soon as I asked the question in a flash, I heard a question from a rather annoying person: 

"Tsk, filthy Muggle scions." 

He was a 3rd-year Slytherin student, his name was Evan Rosier. The reason he treated me like that is that I knocked him down several times. 

"Do you want to tell me this to my face already?" 

Rosier visibly shuddered, I saw it clearly. So it was necessary to push on. 

"Why didn't you say that when you went out to duel with me?" 

It was necessary to add theatricality, so putting his finger on his chin, I spoke as brazenly as possible: 

"Ah! I remembered! You asked me to be gentle with you!" 

Rosier was furious at my words, so I understood that it was not in vain that I used these words. 

"Oh, you!" 

But one blond Slytherin had already stopped him from saying anything. 

"That's enough for Rosier." 

"But Lucius!" 

Lucius just looked at him and said: 

"Not now." 

Apparently, the look of the heir to the house of Malfoy scared him pretty much, since this guy did not say anything else. 

Rosier is a family of pure-blooded wizards. In the 1930s, they were among the "Sacred twenty-eight" families, whose magical origins no one doubted. 

After the representatives of this family openly supported Gellert, they lost all their claims to aristocratic society. At least that's what Sirius told me. He also talked about the fact that the Rosiers were originally French who fled to Britain. Considering this fact, in general, they do not have an incredible number of influences. 

Most likely, in addition to the fact that they believed in Gellert, there was also the hope of getting a pretty good place in society that this Dark Lord wanted to build. But apparently the higher beings were against Rosier gaining power. 

Before the atmosphere in the Duel Club turned into a more terrifying phase, Professor Flitwick came into the office. Clearly realizing that there could be a fight with the use of spells on both sides, he decided to put us on more familiar partners. 

All the Slytherins were practicing among themselves; considering that my friend was there, I also had to keep an eye on them. 

"Are you worried about Sev?" Lily asked, who was set against me. 

"Is it that noticeable?" 

"Well, considering where you're looking, yes." After that, she continued with a mirthless smile. "It seems to me that he doesn't tell us everything." 

"Do you think that he is being pressured by his own faculty?" 

"Yes. Don't you see the other Slytherins looking at him?" 

"Are you sure that those were the eyes that were directed at him?" 

It seemed to me that they were looking at me that way, not the rest of my friends. Lily only nodded sadly in response. I can't just leave it like that, and I'll have to find out how things really are. 

"We will resolve this issue. For now, you'd better focus on your spells." 

Two weeks passed since that conversation with Lily, and during that time, I began to monitor how the Slytherins behaved towards Severus. 

Even considering the generally cold attitude towards half-blood students, the treatment of Severus was notably worse. While he wasn't physically harmed every day, the emotional toll seemed severe. Tracking the students in a boarding school was relatively easy, and though there were fights, they were less frequent than in my previous life. However, magical injuries could be more severe, treated by Madam Pomfrey in the Hogwarts hospital wing. 

Madam Pomfrey, a knowledgeable woman in medical magic, efficiently treated most diseases and injuries. She rarely left the hospital wing, always prepared for any student's medical needs. 

"We can't let this continue," I thought to myself. After discussing with Sirius and Lily, we decided that preparing Severus for the worst-case scenario might be the best course of action. 

"Can we just make them afraid to approach Severus?" Sirius suggested with a belligerent smile. 

Lily, looking at Sirius as if he were a fool, responded, "Are you sure we can do this?" 

After reluctant agreement from both Sirius and Lily, I added, "But if everything goes according to the worst-case scenario, then we will have to intervene. And if anything, I will use my influence earned in tournaments." 

"Are you so sure that you can beat everyone at your age?" Lily asked skeptically. 

"Of course," I asserted. My extensive magical reserve, as I had discovered during training, gave me a significant advantage over others my age. 

As we went over our plan, Severus and I had the next lesson together in Herbology. 

"Do you think he's being pressured by his own faculty?" Lily asked, referring to Severus. 

"Yes. Don't you see the other Slytherins looking at him?" Lily nodded sadly. "We will resolve this issue. For now, you'd better focus on your spells," I reassured her. 

Two weeks later, as we were about to start Herbology, I gathered Sirius and Lily to discuss our concerns with Severus. 

"They don't like you at the faculty, do they?" I asked Severus directly. 

"This was expected, after all, I'm a half-breed according to them," Severus replied with a shrug. 

"We have concerns about your health," I informed him. 

Severus looked at me blankly, prompting me to clarify. "Did you notice it after all? I'd be a fool if I couldn't see their looks full of such interesting intentions." 

"What are you planning to do?" Lily inquired. 

"Do you think that if you help me, everything won't get worse?" Severus retorted. 

"Yes, it will definitely get worse, most likely. And because of that, we decided that we would do everything to make you stronger," I assured him.