Early in the morning, Damian woke up first. Jerry and Geralt were still fast asleep.
He shook his roommates awake, changed his clothes, and headed to the bathroom to wash up.
When he returned, he saw that Jerry and Geralt had immediately laid back down and fallen asleep again.
He pulled out a Muggle alarm clock he had purchased over the summer. It was 7:50 AM. Breakfast in the Great Hall ran from eight until nine, with the first morning class starting right at nine.
He set the alarm for 8:30, placed the clock on Jerry's nightstand, and quietly left the dormitory.
As he crossed the Slytherin Common Room, a voice called out, "Good morning, Senior Damian."
It was Griffin Everett, a second-year Slytherin. Griffin was a half-blood. The proportion of half-bloods in his year was quite low, making them frequent targets for Slytherin's pure-blood supremacists.
Last semester, Damian had intervened in several bullying incidents. Being a half-blood himself, he refused to turn a blind eye, and Griffin was one of the students he had personally protected.
"Good morning, Griffin," Damian replied smoothly.
Griffin stepped closer, lowering his voice. "Senior Damian, I heard a rumor. During the summer holidays, Will Crabbe went around telling the upper-years that you are the 'New King of Slytherin'."
"Oh?" Damian's interest was piqued.
He had originally heard the ridiculous title from the Weasley twins on the Hogwarts Express. It turned out Will Crabbe was the one spreading it.
Will Crabbe was one of Griffin's primary tormentors. Once, while harassing Griffin, Crabbe had loudly insulted all half-bloods. Damian had happened to walk by and promptly taught the boy a harsh, painful lesson.
"He probably wants the upper-years to target you because of the arrogant title," Griffin warned, looking anxious. "Be careful, Senior."
Damian patted Griffin lightly on the shoulder. "Thanks for the information. I'll watch my back."
In truth, Damian didn't care about Will's petty tricks. After fighting literal assassins in another dimension, these childish schoolyard feuds were just light entertainment.
Damian smiled at the younger boy. "Want to head up and grab breakfast together?"
Griffin gave an apologetic look. "I actually promised my girlfriend we'd eat together today." He had specifically waited in the common room just to warn Damian before heading up to the Ravenclaw tower to meet her.
Damian's smile twitched slightly. "Alright then." He turned and headed to the Great Hall alone.
Kids these days are too precocious, Damian lamented inwardly. Dating in their second year instead of studying hard. No wonder he can't beat Will Crabbe in a duel!
When he reached the Great Hall, a decent number of students were already eating. Damian scanned the four long tables. Most of the first-years were still in bed, but the Hufflepuffs were out in full force.
Over at the Gryffindor table, Hermione Granger was the only first-year present, quietly eating her breakfast while reading a book.
"Good morning, Damian."
At the entrance, Damian bumped into Cedric Diggory. The Hufflepuff was a peer in his year and had ranked second overall in their previous academic term.
"Morning, Cedric," Damian replied. "Didn't you come down with your roommates?"
Slytherin and Hufflepuff shared Charms class for their year. Cedric frequently asked Damian for advice on spell-casting, so the two were fairly well-acquainted.
Cedric chuckled, holding up a napkin filled with toast. "They couldn't get out of bed. I'm bringing some breakfast back up for them."
Damian sighed enviously. "Can I switch dorms with them? Jerry and Geralt are useless."
Cedric smiled brightly. "Professor Sprout would certainly be thrilled to have you. Maybe then it would finally be Hufflepuff's turn to win the House Cup."
Ever since Damian became Snape's private assistant, the Potions Master called on him constantly during class. Damian strongly suspected Snape was just using him as an excuse to blatantly award Slytherin free house points.
Damian bid Cedric farewell and headed to the Slytherin table. He ate quickly. Since it was still early, he decided to swing by the library before class.
The Hogwarts Library, located on the second floor of the castle, housed tens of thousands of books on towering wooden shelves, accumulating over a millennium of magical knowledge.
The librarian, Madam Pince, was already prowling the aisles. She was a thin, strict woman who looked remarkably like an undernourished vulture.
She shot Damian a sharp glare, but seeing he wasn't a disruptive first-year, she said nothing.
"Good morning, Madam Pince," Damian greeted her politely.
Madam Pince gave a stiff, expressionless nod. She severely disliked anyone making unnecessary noise in her domain.
Damian headed straight for the historical manuscript section, where the shelves were organized by era. He scoured the area but couldn't find a single text belonging to Salazar Slytherin.
Frustrated, Damian approached the librarian's desk. "Madam Pince, does the library hold any original manuscripts by Salazar Slytherin?"
Madam Pince stared down her long nose at him. "The original materials left by the four Founders are securely kept in the Restricted Section. If you wish to consult them, you need a signed permission slip from a professor."
"Thank you," Damian replied.
He couldn't access the Restricted Section right now, but he figured he could easily get Snape to sign a slip for him after Potions. With time to kill, he grabbed a random charm theory book off a nearby shelf and sat down to read until class started.
Potions Class
"Damian, answer this," Professor Snape drawled unhurriedly. "How does one properly extract the liquid from a Salamander horn?"
Damian answered without hesitation. "Soak the Salamander horn in an infusion of wormwood for exactly ten minutes, then remove it. Place it in a cauldron with powdered moonstone, crushed scarab beetles, and armadillo bile. Simmer over low heat for fifteen minutes, then filter out the residue."
Snape gave a stiff, approving nod. "Correct. Two points to Slytherin."
Similar scenes had already played out three times since class began. Snape was acting a bit unusual today; normally, he only called on Damian once or twice per session to farm points.
Snape swept back to his lectern, his black robes billowing. "Next is the practical application. I sincerely hope your summer holidays were not entirely wasted on frivolous pursuits."
He scanned the dungeon with his dark, cold eyes. Several students immediately lowered their heads, too guilty or intimidated to meet his gaze.
"This practical will be completed in groups of three," Snape continued. "Damian, distribute the potion ingredients."
At Snape's command, the Slytherin and Gryffindor students quickly scrambled to form their groups.
Damian unlocked the student store cupboard in the corner and began passing out the salamander horns, moonstone, and scarab beetles to each table.
Naturally, Damian partnered with his two roommates. Geralt was tasked with crushing the beetles, while Jerry ground the moonstone into a fine powder. Both boys looked completely relaxed, knowing Damian would flawlessly brew the actual potion.
The Gryffindors at the adjacent tables were not nearly as lucky. Snape prowled through their aisles like a large bat, breathing down their necks.
He stopped abruptly behind the table where Fred and George Weasley were working.
Snape stared down at Fred with absolute disdain. "Perhaps you should clear the bezoars out of your head, Weasley. I distinctly recall saying the powdered moonstone and the scarabs were to be processed separately."
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