The Staff of Orkney

Chapter III
Professor LeSal

 

Their workload piled higher and higher. It seemed that their fifth year at Hogwarts was going to be a difficult one in which the monstrous O.W.L.s. at the end of the year would rule. By Friday, they were in no mood to accept the pile of work that Professor Snape laid upon their shoulders in potions. Even Hermione looked worried, something that the other Gryffindors in the class took as a sure sign to panic.

“You are still much too far behind,” Snape snapped at them Friday morning. “Let me tell you, the potions part of your exam is by far the most difficult. You must take Potions seriously this year.” He paused then went on angrily, “Half of you seem to have not even bothered to do your summer work.” He seemed very frustrated as he flipped through the stack of papers he held. “Potter!” he exclaimed. “Only one page?”

Harry felt it was no use telling Snape about the Dursleys and just how difficult it was to complete homework, so he merely shrugged.

“I guarantee you, Potter. I will fail you unless you drastically improve your attitude and overall performance in this class. And if you fail potions, you will be held back.”

Harry looked away but unfortunately caught sight of Malfoy sneering at him.

“And as for you, Mr. Malfoy,” Snape suddenly said. Malfoy’s sneer quickly faded and he stared up front. “I didn’t even get a paper from you.”

“Well…I…” Malfoy sputtered, then a light seemed to go in his head. “You know that your cousin, LeSal, was a guest at my house over the summer. He taught me a lot about Potions as well as other things.”

Harry could only guess at what those “other things” might be.

Snape thought for a moment before saying, “I’d appreciate it, Mr. Malfoy, if you would call him Professor Snape at this school while you are a student and he a teacher.”

“Yes, sir,” Malfoy replied, apparently a little hurt.

Pansy Parkinson put her hand up in the air. “Yes, Miss. Parkinson.” Snape glared at her apparently annoyed that he couldn’t continue.

“He told us, our Defense Against the Dark Arts professor did, to call him Professor LeSal—so there wouldn’t be a mix up between him and you.”

“Oh, he did, did he?” Snape turned away from the class but Harry got a glimpse of his expression before he did, and he appeared very disgusted and seemed to be muttering something under his breath.

Then from behind him, Harry heard a crash of glass. He turned around to see that Neville had accidentally pushed his jar full of lacewings onto the floor.

“Longbottom!” Snape barked. “What are you doing? I want those cleaned up now! Not a single one left loose, is that clear? You’re making a mess of the lab.” Neville scurried to catch them and Hermione turned a pencil into a net and handed it to him. “Ten points from Gryffindor.” Snape added for good measure.

They thought that they’d never get out of Potions. Poor Neville had his nerves completely frazzled and Harry, Hermione, and Ron were not too far behind.

“Whoa, was he being a wicked warlock!” Harry commented.

“He was being more than that,” and then Ron said some nasty things.

“And now we’ve got another Snape to survive in an hour,” Harry said dismally.

They ate their lunch in near silence as they thought about the impending doom that assuredly awaited them in Defense Against the Dark Arts.

“Well, there’s no use putting it off any longer,” Hermione said late during lunch. She had only taken a few bites of her cucumber and mayonnaise sandwich. “I don’t think it’ll do us any good to be late.”

Harry and Ron shot up out of their seats at this and headed toward the classrooms. It seemed that the rest of the class had the same idea as them for the entire class was already sitting outside the door ten minutes before class was to begin. They were speaking quietly about the catastrophe in the morning. Someone even questioned the sanity of Dumbledore and McGonagall for hiring another Snape and even keeping the old one.

“Is it one o’clock already?”

Everyone froze. The door to the classroom was open and Salazar Snape stood in the doorway.

“Well, if you’re all so eager to begin, we will,” and he disappeared into the room.

With a groan, they all stood up and filed in. Harry and Ron headed for the back seats but others had the same idea and beat them to it. Neville had raced in and actually pushed aside someone to get a back corner desk. After they had all found their seats, Harry, Hermione, and Ron unfortunately toward the front, the room became dead silent and they all just watched as their professor grabbed a stack of parchment and began handing them out.

“This is to test you on how well you did on your summer reading,” Salazar said in a loud voice, very unlike the soft, menacing voice of their Potions Master, but intimidating all the same. “I’ll give you thirty minutes to complete it and your not to look at your books. And you’ll get a big fat goose egg if I catch you looking at your neighbor’s paper.”

All that could be heard was a low rustling as the students placed their papers and books beneath their seats. Ron, after looking at his paper, screwed up his face and looked despairingly at Harry.

“I didn’t do any of this,” he whispered.

“Neither did I,” Harry admitted.

They both looked somberly over at Hermione who was busy scribbling away. They felt sick.

“I’ll inform you that I’ll be different from your other professors,” Salazar began. “As you probably have already heard, I’ve spent the last few years teaching at Durmstrang where the atmosphere is quite,” he paused, “different. You’ll find the way I run my classroom a change from your other subjects. I don’t tolerate much, for you’re here to learn, and you learn best in a quiet and orderly environment.” Salazar Snape stood back and stared at all the class. He frowned at Ron who had quickly turned away from Hermione. “One practice I’ve brought with me is the use of a sneakoscope during testing. If you don’t know what a sneakoscope is, you can learn during my first years’ class.” He reached into his robes, which were simpler than the robes he had been wearing at the feast, yet still rather lavish, and pulled out a small sneakoscope He placed it on his desk. “I’ll know if any one of you decide to not answer honestly.”

“Damn,” Ron spat under his breath. “I already hate this guy.”

Harry just sighed and stared down at the questions. His mind went blank. He now wished that he had completed the assigned work as did the rest of the class, excluding Hermione.

Ten stressful minutes passed in which Harry had managed in only answering two questions, when there was a piercing shriek. The sneakoscope was madly whirring and spinning. Salazar had been seated at his desk, and he looked up sharply. All the students bent down closer over their papers and if they weren’t writing before, they certainly were now.

Salazar pushed his chair away, stood up, and with a hand firmly on his staff, he angrily floated between the desks. He passed Harry like a cold storm cloud and from behind, there came the sound of smashing glass.

Harry didn’t have to look. He put his head in his hands. “Neville,” he moaned. Slowly, he turned around.

Neville sat rigid in his seat while Professor Salazar stood over him reading the paper. The professor wrinkled his brow. “So you don’t believe there are such things as dark unicorns? And that griffins can only be found in Australia?” He promptly snatched the paper of a nearby student. “Pass up your papers, everyone,” he said after a second or two. He didn’t take his eyes off the papers as he headed toward the front, only he pointed his staff absentmindedly at the spilled ink and broken bottle. The ink returned into a repaired well.

The class all passed their papers to Harry. Hermione, however, was madly writing. “But I’m not done!” she exclaimed as Harry tore the paper from her and put it at the bottom of the pile.

After collecting the pieces of parchment, Salazar put his staff to the side and sat back against his desk to read them. Harry noticed that the glowing blue stone had gone dull and black.

“Harry Potter.”

Harry braced himself.

“Only two questions? Tisk, tisk.”

“Déjà vu,” Ron whispered into Harry’s ear.

“My cousin told me to keep my eye on you. Is it true that you’re a bad student?”

Harry wanted to say something horrible, but he stopped himself. Professor Salazar was smiling. Not the malicious, lip curling smile of Severus Snape, but a genuine, warm grin.

“Do you play Quidditch, Potter? You can answer that, I hope,” and he leaned over and dumped the stack of papers off the side of his desk where a wastepaper basket appeared to catch them.

“Quidditch?” said Harry, now utterly confused.

“The game with brooms, bludgers, Quaffles, and a snitch?” Salazar prodded. “You are James Potter’s son, I take it?”

“Uh—yah. I am,” Harry replied warily.

“And you play on Gryffindor House Quidditch team?”

“Yeah.”

“Then I understand completely,” Salazar stated while nodding.

Harry and Ron stared at one another.

“Is he trying to be friendly?”

“It’s gotta be a trick,” answered Ron.

The room was silent as Salazar seemed to be studying them all. “You all look like death warmed over,” he finally stated. “How about if I take attendance,” he said slowly. “That won’t be going to quickly for you, will it? I understand that you’re all Gryffindors and I’ll try and take that into consideration…” he paused and grinned at the gaping students.

“What is he doing?” Ron hissed. “Is this a Snape?”

“Am I a Snape? Is that what you just asked young man?” Salazar broke in. “Are you Ron Weasley? Severus told me all about you too.”

Ron waited before replying, “Yah, I’m Ron Weasley.”

“Well, Mr. Weasley. Why would you ask such a question?”

“Ummm…” Ron looked to Harry then Hermione. “Um, well you’re…you’re acting nothing like Professor Snape…Old Snape…I mean our Potions professor, Professor.”

“I should hope not,” Salazar stated. “I may have the last name Snape, and Severus—your ‘Old Snape,’” he smiled when he said this. “He may be my cousin, but I don’t think I am much like him. And I am sorry if I frightened you all in the beginning like that, but as I said, I just came from Durmstrang and it’s going to take me awhile to adjust to being back at Hogwarts. It’s very different here. Very different. Brighter. But as for me being like Severus, yes, we’re cousins, we grew up in the same house together, we experimented with potions on each other, and we were both Slytherins while in school. Otherwise, we’re very different. I’m better dressed, didn’t catch so many bludgers with my nose, and I have a slightly better sense of humor than a fence post. I will warn you, however, that while it takes a lot to cross my temper, I have it on good authority that I am capable of becoming just as frightening as Severus, if not worse, when I’m angry. So just keep that in mind if you plan on breaking any rules in my classroom or doing anything remotely similar to what I did while I was here. Got that? Good. Now a word on my name.”

Salazar jumped up onto his desk and sat cross-legged. “You don’t have to call me Professor Snape. With my cousin teaching here, two Professor Snapes will get confusing very fast, and I don’t want to be confused with him. I also don’t want you calling me be my first name because…well, you could say it does not have the most pleasant connotation at this school. That and one of the previous schools I taught at in the States, they had never hear the name Salazar before and actually found it extremely humorous. So I prefer to be called LeSal, Professor LeSal.”

At first, the students didn’t know what to think. Surely he couldn’t be related to Professor Snape: greasy, grouchy , old, smelly, bubbling potions Snape. He just couldn’t.

“Welcome back Hogwarts,” LeSal said at last. “Thought I’d never come back here, let alone have a class of Gryffindors at my complete mercy.” Then he laughed. It wasn’t an evil laugh, and it made the class finally relax, still, there was something about it that Harry didn’t like.

“As for your summer reading,” he said, turning on a serious tone. “I didn’t assign it. I will say that I’m disappointed that none of you bothered to do it, for you’ve got O.W.L.s. this year. Sooo…I’ll give you until the end of this month to complete it. So you can still expect a test.”

“Who assigned it? Our reading, if you didn’t?” Ron ventured.

“Severus—Professor Snape, I mean. I didn’t even know that I’ve have this job until the beginning of the summer.”

“He assigned too much,” someone grumped.

“Yes, he did,” Professor LeSal agreed, scanning over a notebook. “Summer holiday is a holiday after all, a break from work. No, I’d never assign that much.”

“Why is he such a grouch?” Ron dared to ask.

LeSal grabbed his staff and studied it. “He is a little grumpy sometimes, isn’t he?”

“If that’s not the understatement of the year,” Ron laughed.

“Ah now, I didn’t mean to start a free for all on Severus,” LeSal said, still looking seriously, turning the staff in his fingers. “I don’t blame him for the way he is. You’re very lucky to have him, you know.” He glanced up and saw that the students didn’t look too convinced. “He, your ‘Old Snape,’ happens to be one of the best potion masters in the world. Even Dumbledore gives him that respect. You’re very lucky indeed. I’ve always taught potions before now, and I’ll admit that I can’t even shake a stick at the knowledge he possesses in that field.”

The class fell silent and serious again. “If I were you, I’d bite down and ignore any conniving little things he may say to insult your House, and try to learn all that you can.”

This was a new one for them all. Someone speaking highly of Snape. Finally, Hermione took the initiative to change the subject.

“So you’ve never taught Defense Against the Dark Arts?” she inquired.

“Uhh—no,” replied LeSal.

“But you’re from Durmstrang!” a student pointed out.

LeSal laughed. “What’s that supposed to mean? You don’t seriously believe all those rumors about heavily studying the Dark Arts, do you? I’ll admit the students tend to be a bit more serious, but Durmstrang is a respectable school that wouldn’t think about breaching such a rule of magic society.”

“So they don’t teach the Dark Arts?” Ron said incredulously.

“Of course not. Not that some of the students haven’t gotten in trouble for learning on their own—you’ve had that here at Hogwarts. Every school has the occasional stray student.”

Ron turned around. “Slytherins,” he coughed and then faced front. Hermione slapped him on the shoulder.

“I heard that, Mr. Weasley,” LeSal scolded. Ron just grinned.

The Professor sighed and jumped down from his desk. He paced up and down the front of the class a few times, then stopped and faced them. Harry noticed that he was clutching his staff tightly. “On an extremely serious note, the Dark Arts are not a laughing matter and this is going to be a very difficult and intense course for you this year.” He continually looked at the stone in his staff, which was back to glowing blue, and seemed to have a slight purple tinge just now.

“I will admit that I have never wished to teach this subject, however, Dumbledore thought it would be beneficial for you to learn from me.” Again he paused and stared at the stone. When he resumed speaking, his eyes did not waver from it. “This will be a difficult subject for me to teach to you, but I highly suggest you listen and try to take in all that I’m going to try and pass on to you. You probably have heard many rumors about me and my involvement with the Dark Arts, and I will admit that some may be true—not all. I have first hand experience with just how dangerous, how hurtful, using dark magic can be.”

Harry suddenly felt very uneasy, and he squirmed in his seat. By the sound of shifting bodies in their desks, he knew he wasn’t alone.

LeSal sighed. “I’m not as concerned about this class. I will tell you that. Warning Gryffindors about the evils of the Dark Arts is probably preaching to the choir. You’re the least of my worries this year, yet that won’t excuse you from my lessons.”

They all knew what class would be his main concern.

“Now, for the horrible news,” he had looked away from the stone and back to the class. “O.W.L.s. await you at the end of this year, and there will be heavy reviewing. I’m sorry to say that few of your previous Defense professors haven’t left me adequate notes to work by, so it’s going to be even more difficult. You’re going to have to bear with me as we go through all the material that will be covered on your exam. So I’m pleading for your cooperation now. It’ll be much easier for you and myself.”

Harry wondered if he had given the same speech to the Slytherins, but didn’t have time to contemplate it too much, for just then, it became time for class to let out and everyone scrambled for their things.

“Please sign this roll sheet on your way out,” LeSal yelled over their heads. “I’ll try and learn your names on Monday. And for homework, just read the first chapter you were assigned over the summer and come up with one question for me.”

He stopped shouting, as it appeared no one was paying much attention anymore. For they seemed all in a hurry to leave and there was good reason: Severus Snape had somehow entered the room and he appeared to be in an unusually dark mood.