[HP] Astringent

At the end of the song, Vanessa pulled Blake back: "Let's have something to drink."

"Oh fine."

The auditorium was almost full of couples cuddling together and rocking to the song.Vanessa felt that both she and Blake didn't fit in with the atmosphere.Leaving Blake to wait by herself, she finally found a gin at a table in the corner - for Merlin's sake, the other tables were full of mead and strawberry champagne for children.Without thinking, she picked up the whole bottle and downed two empty glasses, only to realize that there was no Blake behind her.

"Have you seen Sirius?" She managed to find two familiar faces near the door.Harry looked at Qiu Zhang in the distance, but didn't hear her question.

Ron said angrily, "No! I didn't see either he or Hermione!"

Vanessa was taken aback by the yelling, and Harry came back to his senses.

"Who is he competing with?"

"Ron is mad at Hermione for being Krum's partner." Harry shrugged, but taking into account Ron's emotions, his movements were small.

"You didn't invite Hermione, Ron," said Vanessa pertinently.

Ron blushed, but stubbornly refused to admit his mistake: "Then she shouldn't accept the enemy's invitation!"

She gave up trying to convince him, and turned to Harry, "Where's Ginny?"

Harry looked around, only to realize that he didn't even know when Ginny left.Vanessa sighed deeply, and gave the two of them a big roll of their eyes.

Ron looked at her back and asked Harry, "What happened to her?"

"I don't know..." Harry finally withdrew his gaze from looking at Qiu Zhang, who was slumped in Diggory's arms and smiled happily, "Let's go for a walk."

"Severus, you can't pretend this didn't happen! It's becoming more and more obvious..." Karkaroff's voice was panicked and hoarse, and he kept pacing, as if trying desperately to throw himself Like a ghost chasing him.

Snape cut him off impatiently: "Run away then - I'll excuse you." He had no intention of reassuring his panicked old colleague when in fact he had much more to worry about, and that pervasive irritability soaked his heart.And today, he saw Vanessa in a white dress holding Blake's hand into the auditorium and starting to rise to the top.

Snape and Karkaroff turned a corner.He blasted the rosebushes sideways with his wand, his face horrified.There were screams from many bushes, and several dark figures jumped out from inside.

"Ten points from Ravenclaw, Fawcett!" he said fiercely—a girl ran past him.The irritability is even worse, and it happens every time there is a dance, and the morons are like glue slugs (a kind of snail without a shell, but with a strong secretion of mucus), and they don't want to separate for a second.

"Ten points for Hufflepuff!" Another girl also cried and ran past, tripping over the skirt that dragged the floor and almost falling.

"Leave them alone, Severus..." Karkaroff was about to say something.Snape ignored his words: "I've made my point."

Snape dropped Karkaroff and headed for the Great Hall.Vanessa should still be dancing with Blake.He didn't understand what was so fascinating about dancing, she never missed a dance.Snape knew very well that he didn't want to see them dance at all, but he was even more afraid of running into them among the rose bushes.

The fairy lights in the rose garden flickered like butterflies conjured by that spell.Snape thought Vanessa had forgotten the spell long ago.Since she still remembered, how could she teach Ginny Weasley so easily.He hadn't forgotten Vanessa's pitiful look when she begged him for a charm, and now he just felt ironic.He should have known Vanessa's usual tricks - she likes to use all her tricks to play tricks on people around her like a monkey, enjoying others' compromises for her, giving up her armor for her, and laughing at each other mercilessly A piece of infatuation, then lightly pulled away and left.If not, how could she have never used the spell once.

He didn't go to the Easter ball that year, but he passed the Great Hall on his way back to the cellar after finishing the potions, and he saw Vanessa with her hair up high, hitting the ball like a fool with an even stupider Hufflepuff The hands kept turning in circles.

"Snotlite, stop! What are you and Karkaroff plotting?" Blake jumped out of the bushes, blocking his way.

"Who is sneaking in on other people's affairs now?" It was just right, Snape raised his wand without hesitation, "Would you like to complain to Albus and see who he will listen to?" He looked around, Nissa wasn't around.

"Don't be too arrogant! Even if Professor Dumbledore believes you, I don't believe it!"

"I think your brain was left in Azkaban by the dementors." He sneered, "Oh, no, it wasn't there at all—you thought you were so important. You don't trust me and What's the use?"

"I'll watch you, you don't want to do anything to betray the Order of the Phoenix!" Black said through gritted teeth. "Especially Vanessa, she is so innocent that she thinks you and us are of the same mind?"

His tone became cold, and he chewed on the name word by word: "Vanessa?" What does he know about this familiar address, this firm tone?

"I have seen through you since I first saw you on the Hogwarts train." Black said arrogantly and sarcastically, "You used to be jealous of James, you were jealous of his good family background, parents who doted on him, jealous He is a Quidditch genius, and he is jealous that he can pursue Lily in a fair manner. So you hate him, but you are also afraid of him, because what he has is what you want and can't get after all your efforts!"

Snape was almost at the limit of his patience, he clenched his hands so hard that his nails almost dug into his flesh.On the contrary, Blake said it more proudly: "Is it right, snot? Don't think I don't know your purpose of getting close to Vanessa?"

"My purpose?"

"She reminds you of Lily, doesn't she? Another silly girl who thinks you can be saved."

"She's like Lily?" Snape sneered short and bitter, which was the most ridiculous joke in the world.He really wanted to tell Vanessa to listen to him: No one who spends time with you these days ever tries to understand you.Snape put down his wand and asked, "How is she like Lily?"

A crisp sound of glass shattering interrupted the two of them, and they lit their wands at the same time, aiming at the source of the sound.There was no one there, but Snape keenly noticed that the branches of the bushes swayed twice.He walked over, and the scent of gin filled the air.He looked down slightly, and a familiar cedar wood and plum fruit perfume smell broke through the wine and lingered on the tip of his nose.Vanessa was probably standing right here, less than an inch away from him.

Snape narrowed his eyes and took a few steps back.It was a good opportunity, and he deliberately raised his voice: "What about you, Blake? I can also easily see through your thoughts. It's just because you think she looks like Lily, so you want to find a competent godmother for Potter. I Is it wrong?"

Vanessa couldn't hear a word from Snape when she said "she looks a little like Lily".Her mind seemed to be crowded with countless bees buzzing together, she was cold from head to toe, as if her vitality had been sucked away by a hundred dementors at the same time, only the moist corners of her eyes remained warm.

Lily... Lily... always Lily!

Until Snape pulled away, she didn't want to stand here and hear a word they had to say.Relying on her own invisibility spell, she let the tears flow without any scruples.

Vanessa cried silently through a scene of deep love, and countless little wizards bumped into her and fled in terror.She also doesn't care what other people and other things in this world have to do with her.Vanessa has been crying since she was a child, but there has never been a time like this year.She was floating in the boundless sea, unable to turn back and reach the shore.

Vanessa stumbled back to the office, where Ginny and Hermione were standing in the doorway, hand in hand.She opened the door directly, startling the two girls.

"Come in and close the door." She threw off her high heels and shrank into the sofa without explaining.

"Are... are you there, Vanessa?" Ginny asked timidly.

Vanessa picked up a tissue and blew her nose. "I was on the couch, and I used the invisibility spell." Then she took a blanket and wrapped herself from head to toe.They found Vanessa by the outline of the blanket and sat across from her.

"You don't sound too good?" Hermione asked.

Vanessa looked up at Hermione. Her nasal voice was very nasal, and there were still wet tears on her face. Ginny hadn't cried, but looked sleepy.

"My makeup may be off, don't be intimidated." She said and revoked the invisibility spell.The two were still taken aback, they had never seen her in such a mess before, they surrounded her and hugged her.

"Did Sirius bully you?"

"No...I don't want to say it anymore." She sobbed a few times, "Would you like some wine?"

Vanessa used the polymorphing spell to conjure the bartending tool—she couldn’t help crying when she remembered that her tool was still thrown at Snape’s place—and made do with some Ginfis, which didn’t taste too strong For them, gin with lemon juice, soda water, and sugar, like fizzy drinks.But because of the limitation of tools, the taste can barely be eaten.She herself drank a screwdriver with more alcohol content. The ratio of lime juice and wine was one, the sour and bitter taste was just right.

"I..." Hermione spoke first, and she said with a big tongue, "why does he care who I dance with? She doesn't invite me as a partner!"

Ginny mumbled, "Don't mind Ron! You deserve better! To hell with him and his old lady's lace shirt."

"He's not wearing a lace shirt..." Hermione whimpered, thinking that Ron hadn't made a fool of himself with the shirt.

"It's all my fault." Vanessa drank more than them, but she was always good at pretending to be sober. "I'll go and suggest to Moody that next time you have a class, let him use the Imperius Curse to direct Ron to dance ballet!"

"No, no...you have to wear a lace shirt!" She sobbed and downed a whole glass of wine.

"Stop drinking, go back to the dormitory and sleep." Vanessa fulfilled her duty as an elder while she still had a sliver of sanity.

Ginny said: "I won't go back, the principal said that you can play all night today!"

Vanessa has no position: "Don't tell people I drink to underage."

"Vanessa, why doesn't Harry always notice me?" Ginny murmured.

"Because he's blind, otherwise he wouldn't be able to wear glasses." Vanessa's mean words didn't make Ginny laugh, she sighed, "It's so hard to like each other..."

The speed at which the wine bottle bottomed out became faster and faster, and all three of them collapsed to the ground.They let themselves be free from any restraint of reason, weeping over a name spoken at random, laughing because a man knocked against the corner of a table when he got up to get a drink.

Hermione's hair gradually began to return to its curly and fluffy appearance. She simply tied a huge ball with a headband, and looked at Vanessa: "Why are you crying today?"

Tears fell again, and Vanessa said hoarsely: "Because if I want to be someone else, I can't do it; if I want to be myself, I can't compare to her."

"Is she someone the one who gave you the Charms liked?" Ginny asked.

"Yes." Alcohol made Vanessa very frank, and once some words were spoken, she could no longer restrain herself.

"How long have you liked him?"

"Since the fifth grade..." She wanted to tell others how sad she was, but she really didn't know where to start when she really had an audience.

Ginny looked at her distressedly: "Have you waited for that person for so long?"

"Because he liked someone else longer..."

They lowered their eyes one after another, thinking of their secret love. "I said..." Ginny said, "Is there any way to make others fall in love with you?"

"Love potion?" Vanessa said.

"I will!" Hermione maintained her pride as a top student even after drinking too much, "Even if the old bat doesn't give me an O, I have to admit that my potion score is much better than his precious ferret Malfoy!"

"Because the old bat is blind!" Vanessa didn't defend Snape at all this time, but felt particularly relieved.

"Leave him alone," Ginny slapped her forehead and stood up, "Let's go make the love potion."

"Go!" Hermione also stood up and asked stupidly, "Where are you going?"

Vanessa was a little confused, her sluggish brain didn't give her any correct instructions, she put on her high heels unsteadily: "Follow me!"

Ginny did not forget to bring two more bottles of wine before going out, and Vanessa reminded her to bring a bottle opener.

The three of them came to the cellar unimpeded by the invisibility spell, and Vanessa skillfully found the abandoned classroom.There was a dusty operating table inside. She knelt down and took out a large box from the bottom of the display shelf, and put out the old second-hand crucibles, crucible holders, and silver knives one by one.

"let's start!"

Both Ginny and Hermione were stunned, and said in unison, "Why are you so familiar with Slytherin's territory?"

Vanessa blinked her eyes, and Hermione immediately understood: "That person is a Slytherin."

"Don't guess, I will never tell you." She sat on the edge of the table, shaking her high heels, "What else is missing?"

"We... have no potion ingredients!" Ginny laughed wildly at this point.

"wait for me."

Vanessa swaggered into the storage room next to the potions office, which was Snape's private potions collection.The Thunderbird tail feather she gave to Snape was placed in the middle of the display case, in a glass enclosure that was enchanted with constant temperature and humidity.It has been meticulously cared for, every visible grain of sand has been removed, and no trace of the original soil and blood stains has been left.That's how Snape is, if you've actually watched him make potions, you'll know how caring and gentle he is, just like someone who really cared about him.

Thinking of this, Vanessa angrily threw several inexpensive potions to the ground.