Chapter 85. Snape, Shocked.jpg
"What is Quirrell sneaking around to do?
Is he plotting something bad again?"
Duncan rubbed his chin and thought for a moment.
He decided not to go looking for Harry and Ron.
The gossip around Quirrell seemed juicier.
So as not to be discovered, Duncan deliberately waited until Quirrell had gone a fair distance.
Only then did he follow on light feet.
"Where exactly is he trying to go?"
After trailing him for a while, Duncan suddenly felt that something was off.
Quirrell seemed to be leading him on a purposeless wander around the castle.
"Have I been discovered?
Or did Quirrell simply overeat at supper and can't sleep, so he's out walking it off?"
Just as these two thoughts popped up in Duncan's mind, Quirrell up ahead suddenly flitted to the wall.
Duncan pressed himself to the wall almost without thinking.
Before he had even found his footing, two dazzling spells came flying past.
One of them skimmed right before him and shot into a nearby corner.
"So I really have been discovered?
Quirrell is that sharp?"
Duncan was startled.
His hand found the lock of his case, ready to let the Erumpent out to cover his retreat.
But before he could act, he heard Quirrell ahead mutter to himself, "Safe.
No one is following me…"
Several question marks popped over Duncan's head.
He even wanted to step out and ask Quirrell, "If you're this afraid of being tailed, why not use the Disillusionment Charm to turn invisible?
Wouldn't that be safer?
You wouldn't have to run all over the castle and suddenly fling off two spells to scare everyone half to death."
After checking behind him, Quirrell seemed reassured.
He stopped wandering and climbed the staircase to the fifth floor.
Duncan followed, hugging the corner by the stairs, craning his neck to peek.
"Pr-Professor Snape, are you there?"
Professor Quirrell looked around and stammered out a name that surprised Duncan.
"Snape?
How did he end up mixed up with Quirrell?"
Duncan's interest grew even stronger.
He tilted his head and listened intently.
"I am here."
Severus Snape's cold voice sounded.
At the same time, a shimmer rippled in the space ahead of Quirrell.
Snape stood there with his hands at his sides, expressionless.
He was much cleverer than Quirrell, knowing to use magic to conceal himself instead of running about like a Muggle.
"Professor Quirrell, you asked me to meet you here at this hour.
You had better give me a reason that satisfies me."
Snape frowned at the approaching Quirrell, his eyes full of loathing.
He had received Quirrell's letter not long after leaving Dumbledore's office, summoning him to meet here late at night.
If it weren't to carry out Dumbledore's surveillance assignment, he would never have sacrificed his sleep to keep this appointment.
Quirrell carefully glanced behind him.
After making sure no one was there, he leaned in close to Snape.
Snape's eyebrows nearly squeezed together.
He lifted a leg to step back two paces, but Quirrell blocked him.
"Professor Snape, have a look at this."
Quirrell seemed a bit overexcited.
With shaking hands, he pulled a piece of parchment from his robes, slowly unfolded it, and held it out before Snape.
"What…"
Snape's gaze dropped — then, as if he had seen something terrifying, his pupils suddenly dilated, and the words he was about to say died in his throat.
Quirrell was full of pride and smugness.
His back straightened notably.
In a low voice he said, "You haven't forgotten this emblem, have you?"
Snape's thin lips moved.
He looked at Quirrell with a stare that could kill.
After a moment he said coolly, "Professor Quirrell, what do you mean by this?
I'm not sure I understand."
Quirrell looked at Snape without a trace of fear.
"You haven't forgotten, have you?"
Snape still couldn't make out Quirrell's intent.
He hesitated for quite a while, then gave the slightest nod.
"That's good!"
Quirrell grinned, his voice excited, and leaned even closer to Snape.
That heavy stench of garlic slammed into Snape's nose, but this time he did not step back.
He stayed where he was and endured it.
"My master needs your help now, Snape."
Quirrell tried to keep his voice down, but the pitch rose despite himself.
Hearing this, the nameless shock in Snape's heart dissipated quite a bit.
He took a small step back and gave Quirrell a look reserved for idiots.
"Professor Quirrell, are you sleepwalking right now?"
Lord Voldemort needs my help?
That fellow was blasted to pieces by Lily.
Has he recovered this quickly?
If Lord Voldemort had truly returned, would Dumbledore still be sitting calmly in his office eating sweets?
And you — little Quirrell — since when did you get tangled up with Lord Voldemort?
If you want me to help you steal the Philosopher's Stone, just say it outright.
Using this kind of excuse — are you trying to fool an idiot!
From this moment on, Snape decided he would not believe a single word of Quirrell's nonsense.
Hidden off to the side, Duncan was dumbfounded.
He truly hadn't expected Quirrell to lay his cards on the table with Snape.
Seeing that Snape didn't believe him at all, Quirrell grew anxious.
"Snape, I'm telling the truth.
The master desperately needs the Philosopher's Stone right now!
But with my strength alone it's very hard to get it.
I need your help!"
"Do you have anything else?"
Snape shot Quirrell an impatient glance.
"I can pretend I heard none of this tonight.
But if there's a next time, Dumbledore may be very happy to hear your plan."
With that, Snape no longer wished to tangle with Quirrell.
He turned to leave.
"Wait, wait."
Quirrell hurriedly stopped him.
"Give me a moment more…"
He had racked his brains to come up with this plan.
He still wanted to win back some credit with Lord Voldemort by persuading Snape!
Snape paused and turned back to look at Quirrell, curious what else he could contrive.
Quirrell paced the corridor back and forth.
Only after several dozen seconds — by which time Snape was already growing impatient — did he steel himself.
"M-Master…"
Quirrell shuffled to the corner and called out tremulously.
Watching this, Snape's brow furrowed.
A sudden bad premonition crept into his heart.
Quirrell called several times in a row and got no response from Lord Voldemort.
He let out a breath — Lord Voldemort was probably still asleep.
"I hope you're mentally prepared.
Once you see it, you should know what to do."
Quirrell barked out the words.
Snape nodded extremely slowly.
He suddenly felt a bit of regret for having kept tonight's appointment.
Quirrell exhaled.
Both hands trembling, he lifted them and caught the end of his turban, unwrapping it one loop at a time.
Snape's eyes followed Quirrell's hands.
He felt his heart pounding, almost up in his throat.
With the last loop undone, Quirrell turned, his back to Snape, the back of his head facing him.
Snape stared at that face both familiar and strange, and his breathing stopped in an instant, not returning for a long time.
Is Quirrell a madman?
He actually dared to mount Lord Voldemort on the back of his skull and come to Hogwarts as a professor?
And where's Dumbledore?
Isn't he the White Dark Lord?
Why isn't he doing anything yet?
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