HP: Professor From Azkaban

When William finally pulled his attention away from the unnerving ritual effect, he noticed that one professor was missing from the staff table.

Unable to join the ongoing conversation among the other professors, William curiously deduced which professor had disappeared based on those still present. To his surprise, the missing Professor seemed somewhat familiar.

It was the Potions professor, Severus Snape; the unlucky fellow who had been both robbed and knocked unconscious by a student. At least, that was all the information William currently had about him.

"Where is Professor Snape?" William quietly asked Lockhart, who was seated beside him.

"Are you asking about that old bat?" Lockhart lowered his voice, as if unwilling to let the other professors overhear him.

"Professor William, I must tell you, back when I was a student here, Hogwarts welcomed its most unpopular professor, and that title has remained unchanged to this day. Can you guess who that professor might be?"

Lockhart gave his trademark smile, his teeth gleaming in the candlelight.

"The most unpopular?"

"Of course! Not everyone can win 'Witch Weekly's Most Charming Smile Award' five times like I did. He's always been scheming for the Defense; ah, I mean, the Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts position. But even by the time I took up the role, he still hadn't succeeded."

Lockhart spoke smugly, "I, on the other hand, am an honorary member of the Dark Force Defense League. Hogwarts' staff and students will undoubtedly cheer for my lessons!"

So, this Professor Snape is really that unpopular? I didn't get much of an impression from him. Information gathering failed. Also, while this Lockhart seems a bit full of himself, he does look like he's here to sell books. Still, those awards can't all be fake, right?

William decided to flatter his new colleague a bit; life in Azkaban had taught him how to handle such situations well.

His compliments clearly delighted Lockhart, who lit up like a peacock displaying its feathers.

"Let me tell you, most of the professors here know me. I've only been away from Hogwarts for less than ten years. When I first started school, Snape wasn't even a professor yet."

"He wasn't a professor?"

"That's right. Back then, he was still a student. I remember it vividly. I started in '75, and Snape was four years ahead of me. Tsk tsk, if I weren't so reluctant to speak ill of my classmates, I could paint a vivid picture of how Snape was strung up by his peers back then."

Well, you've practically spilled the whole story already.

William was certain that if Professor Snape ever overheard this conversation, he wouldn't feel the slightest bit grateful for Lockhart's "discretion."

But Lockhart's enthusiasm only seemed to grow, his flair for storytelling just getting started.

"I was in Ravenclaw, so I didn't know much about the students from the other houses. But Snape was a rare case; despised by both sides. When the Gryffindors strung him up, not a single Slytherin came to help him."

This was precisely why it was best not to work in the same school as former classmates. You could never be sure how much of your embarrassing past they knew. Judging by that lengthy tirade, William thought that if he were in Snape's shoes, he'd have challenged Lockhart to a duel by now for all the loose talk.

Just then, a new student was sorted into Ravenclaw, momentarily drawing Lockhart's attention.

He stood up, enthusiastically congratulating the student.

The newly sorted Ravenclaw girl turned bright red, nearly forgetting to return the Sorting Hat before she rushed over to the Ravenclaw table. There, she grabbed a girl of similar age and whispered excitedly; her behavior resembled that of a fan who'd just received a signed photo.

Watching the scene, William remembered another side of his overly talkative new colleague; an author of best-selling books, filled with adventure stories based on his supposed experiences.

Am I the most inexperienced person at this table? William found himself deep in thought.

Thinking of that, William couldn't help but feel an urgent need to relieve himself. He had drunk quite a bit of alcohol with Hagrid that afternoon, and somehow his thoughts had wandered to that moment.

"Sorry, I need to step out for a moment."

William discreetly made his way out of the Great Hall, heading toward the entrance. Since he wasn't yet familiar with Hogwarts Castle, he had to rely on the locations of a few bathrooms he had already memorized to address his pressing issue.

However, as he turned a corner, he saw two peculiar figures dragging luggage behind them. They were short and moving sluggishly, which immediately reminded him of why he had needed to leave the Hogwarts Express at noon and buy two sets of tickets for the Knight Bus.

***

"Huh? Second-years?"

Gripping his wand in one hand, William prepared to draw it if necessary, but he kept his tone light and casual as he asked the question.

Although it was highly likely they were just first-year students, the curse made him wary of any unexpected surprises.

The two sluggish figures froze in place. Then William noticed a third figure ahead of them; Professor Snape.

"Oh? Professor William, I believe this is a time when you should be attending the Start-of-Term Feast, not wandering around here," Snape said, his formal tone making it immediately clear to William why Lockhart had described him as so unlikable.

"I stepped off the Hogwarts Express at noon specifically for these two students," William replied evenly. "I even went to King's Cross Station to sort things out for them. Now that they're here, isn't it reasonable for me to check on them?"

What do you think? It's not like we know each other, and this is our first meeting.

In Azkaban, if a newcomer was so easily ordered around, they'd end up doing all the chores in the cellblock. While the original William might not have been this combative, his time in Azkaban had shaped him to push back, not too hard but firmly enough.

"I'm their professor!"

"Well, isn't that interesting? So am I," William retorted. "I thought you were their Head of House, but when the students reported to me at noon, I distinctly remembered they were from Gryffindor, weren't they?"

William noticed Snape's cold, piercing gaze fixating on him. The frenzied look Snape had displayed earlier was gone, replaced by the same icy stare William had often seen in prisoners newly admitted to Azkaban.

What's wrong with him? Is he so desperate to punish students that he's lost his usual judgment, resorting to ordering me around like this?

As these thoughts ran through William's mind, he casually pulled out his wand, feigning nonchalance. Whatever the reason, if he got taken down by another professor in front of students, he'd never live it down.

"Fine, very well. Then I'll leave it to you, Professor William, to keep an eye on Potter and the others. I'll go find someone else to deal with them."

To William's surprise, the conflict didn't escalate. Professor Snape quickly turned and walked toward the Great Hall, leaving the corridor behind.