Lys considered for a moment and led him to the rooftop, which usually served as a kitchen. She activated several alchemical devices, enveloping the glasshouse with anti-disturbance magic.
"I originally came for the Wolfsbane Potion experiment, but I didn't expect that werewolf to be your father."
Snape noticed the breadcrumbs at the corner of Lys's mouth and, against his better judgment, asked, "Is your father good to you?"
He regretted it immediately. How could he not be? Their interactions seemed warm and caring...
Lys rarely thought about it, but she remembered the crying she had overheard behind the tapestry in her second year. Snape had lost his parents; his Muggle father, who drank heavily and was abusive, had died accidentally, and his mother, who had left him, also passed away.
That was the first time Lys clearly understood that some parents could abandon their children.
She extended her arms with rolled-up sleeves, pointing to the terrifying scars on her left arm. "My dad bit me, but he hadn't transformed then."
Then she pointed to her right arm, which bore scars from curses she inflicted on herself last semester, lines of tender pink flesh. "I cut myself because I remembered the pain."
"You ask if he is good to me? For whatever reason, he hasn't looked at me much for over ten years."
Although saying this might hit Snape where it hurt, Lys still wanted to say it.
"But Snape, no matter when, no matter the circumstances, they always reached out to me, even when they thought I was a Squib, the lowest of the wizarding world, worthless and with no future. Even when my mother's pressure was so heavy, I still lived in their house, ate the food they prepared, and enjoyed the care of house-elves because of their orders."
"I don't know, Snape. I can only answer that I don't know either..."
Lys turned sideways and pulled out a plate of cookies from under the cupboard, placing it in front of Snape.
"But they accepted my existence, and although they loathed me, they gave me the resources to live, didn't they?"
"Our situations are not quite the same, Snape. My past can't comfort you or help you, even though we are both persistent, we are ultimately not the same."
Snape's face looked as if he were constipated.
Being caught looking for misfortune in others to comfort himself made him feel as if his own shortcomings were dragged into the light for public punishment.
Lys munched on several cookies, ignoring Snape's constipated expression. "Your question was too predictable. You recommended Occlumency to me before. Maybe you should learn it first, haha."
"Thank you for your potion recipe, but my mom handles the cauldrons at home. She needs to discuss specific modifications with you, but there is a finished product now. Do you want to see it?"
Lys downed a large glass of milk to swallow the dry cookies and looked at Snape, who nodded, knowing this matter was settled.
The potion in the medicine box wasn't for Noah to drink; it was a backup sample. The Wolfsbane Potion is most effective when drunk hot. Once it leaves the cauldron and heat, its potency quickly diminishes. Although still effective, the difference is vast.
Snape held the bottle's neck, observing it seriously. He even opened the lid with Noah's consent, sniffed it, and analyzed a drop with a silver spoon.
The timing of wolfsbane and liquid herb harvesting? Though he didn't quite understand, he trusted Starrys Black's material handling skills. Perhaps he could experiment in the Malfoy family's herb garden when he returned.
However, being able to brew such advanced and complex potions, Starrys's mother... He looked up and met Lys's eyes. "You must keep my mom's potion-making a secret. We have enemies watching us for potions outside."
"And you just told me?"
Lys shrugged. "You already know too much. What's a little more? This way, even if my demands are excessive, you'll have to consider them."
Snape, feeling tricked, wanted to cast a spell on those damn gray eyes of Starrys Black, but this equal, natural gaze... If Lily were here now, talking to him like this...
Feeling dejected, Snape quickly made a contract with Lys. As he left, she stuffed a pack of horribly sweet cookies and some strangely processed potion ingredients into his hands.
And "Do you have any recipes to share? I want to study them for alchemy."
"Hah!" Almost gritting his teeth, clutching those books, Snape strode out of the reading room.
Watching Lys's classmate leave, Noah asked, "Is he your boyfriend?"
Lys responded with a 'what a joke' expression. "Dad, his eyes hold another girl, one that won't fade."
"Do you like him?" Noah asked cautiously.
Do I like him? Lys asked herself. No, she didn't like him. She even envied his talent. It just so happened he was the first to talk to her at school. Coincidentally, the gossip hobby she learned from El was put to use. Coincidentally, she noticed the gaze he gave Evans, the one she always longed for from others.
She merely appreciated his attention, not him.
Lys smiled lightly. "Don't joke, Dad. I want someone who looks at me like Mom looks at you, someone who only sees me!"
Noah raised his head, pride evident on his face. "That's not easy. You'll have to search well!" He pointed to Lys's shirt, splattered with alchemical failures. "You need new clothes."
But Lys wasn't comfortable leaving her dad alone in the shop, so she changed the wooden snake's password at the shop entrance to "Starry Sea Reading Room, Self-Service, Please Keep Quiet," and practically pushed Noah out.
She found a clothing store where the owner wasn't too hostile and walked in.
The lukewarm attitude suited Lys. "I need the latest shirts, ma'am, and two pairs of pants. My pants shrink too fast."
Noah gave Lys a disapproving look. "You're a girl. You should at least have one dress!" "Oh, but Dad..."
Seeing Noah's disappointment, Lys reluctantly agreed. "Ma'am, add a dress, long sleeves, ankle-length, please."
Surprisingly, the store offered custom services. The lady spent an afternoon making a dress for Lys, which Lys liked quite a bit. The neat, straightforward design, with seven overlapping skirt panels, ensured simplicity and elegance without feeling restricted in movement.
She also sold Lys a pair of high heels. Though the heels were not low, they were oddly comfortable, making walking easy.
Despite the higher price, Noah happily paid and generously told them to keep the change. "My daughter is indeed beautiful, isn't she?" he even proudly confirmed with Madam Malkin.
"Yes, this young lady has a unique charm."
With a compensatory mindset, Noah urged Lys to get a beauty treatment, but Lys refused to continue after hearing about the lard slug beauty package.
"Dad, slugs in my ears!" "So what? Your mom's potions have mooncalf dung in them!"
Due to Lys's insistence, the beauty package was changed to hair care in the end.
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