Chapter 12: The Giant Snake, Parseltongue, and a Good Person
Lockhart's mood wasn't actually as smug as he was making it out to be.
In fact, he had to admit, he was a little jealous!
Watching the two young wizards cast spells with his own eyes made him anticipate magic so much, but the wand in his hand felt no different from a pair of chopsticks.
And the boost that the original Lockhart's understanding of "fairy tale romance" gave to Harry and Draco was so significant that he really started to feel envious.
He yearned for magic too.
He yearned for strength too.
Taking a deep breath, he turned his head to observe the expressions of the surrounding professors. Seeing Draco get knocked away again by a spell, Professor McGonagall looked worried.
So, he flashed a brilliant smile, strode forward, preparing to stop the duel between the two young wizards, Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy.
Enough.
It was already perfect enough.
But at this moment, Malfoy quickly flicked his wand, and the giant snake behind him swiftly slithered forward. Judging by its hissing tongue, Harry's Disarming Charm had thoroughly enraged the large creature.
Faced with such a terrifying scene, Harry didn't flinch, but simply stared at the snake, hissing in response.
Good heavens, the expressions on all the professors' faces changed instantly.
Lockhart's expression tightened. Damn it, the unexpected situation had still occurred.
Harry Potter, you really know how to steal the spotlight!
This is my stage!
I am the protagonist!
Today is the most important stage for me to establish my status as a magical master at this school!
He strode forward, even "not having time to draw his wand," and put an arm around Harry's shoulder, turning his gaze away from the giant snake, quickly giving Professor Snape a look.
After all, he noticed that although Professor Snape was sneering, wanting to see Harry make a fool of himself, he was also tightly gripping his wand, ready for any major problems that might arise.
"Perfect!" Professor Lockhart laughed heartily, praising, "A truly perfect duel..."
He held Harry's shoulder firmly, placing his tall frame between Harry and the giant snake.
Scared? Of course, he was a little scared.
But he believed Snape should be able to handle the snake.
If not, Professor Dumbledore would also step in.
And he just needed to properly portray the image of a magical master who was fearless in the face of a giant snake, "Believe everyone..."
Before he could finish his sentence, a young wizard in the audience suddenly exclaimed, "Was that Parseltongue just now?"
Then, many other young wizards who weren't sure at first also started shouting, "I heard Harry Potter talking to that snake!"
"Yes, I heard it too!"
"Oh my god, that's unbelievable! I heard only the most evil wizards understand Parseltongue!"
"..."
The people below the stage were discussing animatedly. Lockhart quickly shouted for order, urging the prefects to calm everyone down as soon as possible.
He secretly glanced back and, seeing that the giant snake had disappeared, finally breathed a sigh of relief and spoke eloquently, "In fact, Parseltongue isn't only spoken by dark wizards. If any of you can go on an adventure in the Amazon like I have, you'll find that many tribes there have speakers of snake language."
"Strictly speaking, snake language is also an advanced subject within Defence Against the Dark Arts."
"I think the most representative example is our great Headmaster Dumbledore. He is not only proficient in snake language but also in Mermish, Gobbledegook..."
Dumbledore watched with amusement as Lockhart confused the young wizards about the difference between Parseltongue, an innate talent, and snake language, a learned skill.
Professor McGonagall, however, stepped forward. She knew that what Professor Lockhart was saying now could ease the sudden situation, but she wasn't very happy to see the students confuse the concepts of snake language speakers and Parselmouths, as it went against her teaching principles.
"Alright, children!"
With a wave of her hand, the hall, which had been dimmed by Lockhart, lit up again. "This class is over. Please leave the classroom in an orderly fashion."
She looked at everyone meaningfully, "Even if some of you couldn't understand the magical key of 'fairy tale romance,' the seven keys summarized by Professor Lockhart are very insightful. I hope you will think more about them."
"Prefects, lead everyone back to the dormitories."
The hall was in a chaotic state, but everyone had to obey Professor McGonagall's words, discussing Harry Potter's situation in a disorganized manner as they walked out.
Fortunately, there were still many young wizards who looked forward to their own strength and focused more on the true meaning of magic that Professor Lockhart had just explained.
On the stage, facing the surrounding professors, especially Dumbledore's deep eyes that revealed no emotion, Harry felt uneasy.
"Haaaa-rryyyy Po-tter!" Professor Snape strode forward, looking down at Harry with malicious intent. "Let's see what kind of surprise our savior has brought us this time."
Harry didn't know how to face this situation. His mind was a mess. He didn't need to look up to know what kind of narrow-minded gaze the evil Snape was giving him at this moment.
"Yes, it's quite amazing."
Suddenly, a hearty laugh came, and a warm arm gently embraced him. Harry looked up and saw Professor Lockhart.
Professor Lockhart gently squeezed his shoulder, as if giving him the strength to face everything.
"Parseltongue, what an enviable ability!"
Professor Lockhart raised an eyebrow at Professor Snape. "Of course, you and I both grew up in the Muggle world. We should have heard of Muggle genetics. Such things as recessive inheritance are very normal."
Professor Snape sneered, "That better be your explanation."
Professor Lockhart just smiled without arguing further, and called out to Draco Malfoy, who was looking at Harry with surprise and suspicion, "Your performance was truly outstanding. I must give you some rewards. Of course, regarding your getting too deeply into character just now, I also need to give you some psychological counseling."
Saying this, he looked at the surrounding professors, especially Dumbledore, "May I take the children away first?"
Great!
Harry was very grateful that Professor Lockhart had stepped forward to help him out at this crucial moment. He didn't want to stay here at all. The way everyone was looking at him made him uncomfortable.
He suddenly felt a little sorry for thinking that Professor Lockhart was a terrible person before. Clearly, this professor was not only a powerful wizard but also a good person.
Soon, our good Mr. Lockhart received Dumbledore's permission and took Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy to his office.
These two children were too worthwhile to invest in.
Not to mention the protagonist of the original story, Harry Potter, just Draco Malfoy alone represented the incredibly powerful strength of his pure-blood family.
What could make Mr. Lucius Malfoy, the parent, feel closer and more respectful than the teacher of his child?
Perfect!
Moreover, not to mention the future, in the upcoming teaching classes, what could be more suitable than these two little guys to use as assistants? Every time a spellcasting scene was needed, just bring these two out for a spin, without even needing to do it himself.
With a little cultivation, these two children with such potential could possess considerable strength. By then, even if no one had ever seen him cast a spell, no one would doubt his identity as a magical master who could teach such excellent students.
Absolutely perfect!
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