For the rest of the lesson, Moody stopped demonstrating the Unforgivable Curses and instead focused on explaining some of the characteristics of the three spells.
In a sense, this explanation was even more detailed than anything Tver had ever received during his time at Durmstrang.
After all, the danger of these three spells was so extreme that even at Durmstrang, they were never taught to students without strict restraint.
Besides, there was little point in researching the Unforgivable Curses. No matter how much time one spent on them, the spells remained exactly the same. They neither evolved nor offered students any real increase in power or knowledge.
The students, for their part, finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Coming into contact with forbidden dark magic was undeniably exciting, but the terrifying sight of those three spiders earlier had left their nerves in shambles.
For the first time, they felt grateful that what followed was purely theoretical instruction.
As soon as the bell rang, the students grabbed their books and filed out of the classroom, one after another, leaving only Tver and Moody behind.
"Well then?" Moody strode up to Tver with a smug look, gazing down at him. His magical eye was unusually still, giving his face a rare sense of balance.
Tver let out a sigh and stood up, reversing their positions so that he was now looking down at Moody.
"I won't pretend I know nothing about dark magic," Tver said calmly, "but Professor Moody, I believe students should only be exposed to the Unforgivable Curses after they're fully prepared mentally."
"That's why I've always been extremely cautious when arranging any dark magic–related content in my classes."
"Oh?" Moody let out a cold chuckle. "Coming from Professor Fawley of Durmstrang, that doesn't sound very convincing."
Tver clicked his tongue softly and gave him a knowing smile. It seemed Barty Jr. was still quite immersed in his role.
"I'm not the same as you, Professor Moody," Tver replied. "After all, you've actually used the Unforgivable Curses on Death Eaters."
Before Moody could say anything else, Tver turned his head and walked out of the classroom.
"Neville?"
He stopped in surprise when he saw Neville standing near the doorway, head lowered, lingering as if he had been waiting there ever since class ended.
"P-Professor," Neville said hesitantly. "May I ask you something?"
"Of course," Tver said, patting him on the shoulder. "Come on, let's talk in my office."
Both the classroom and Tver's office were on the third floor, separated only by the staircase in between.
Neville nodded obediently and walked along in silence, allowing Tver to keep an arm around his shoulders.
Or rather, he quite liked the warmth of the gesture.
However, when they reached the office, Tver found that they weren't the only ones there.
"Draco? You don't have classes this afternoon either?"
Draco stood in the corridor with his bag slung over his shoulder, swaying slightly as he stared out at the sunlight, clearly lost in thought.
Hearing their voices, he turned around with a look of pleasant surprise.
Hmm, Neville Longbottom.
Draco glanced at Neville's calm expression. After spending time together last year grading papers, he didn't actually have any particular grudge against him.
Of course, he still hadn't forgotten that Neville had taken his exam papers back then.
"I just finished Transfiguration and thought I'd come learn a bit of magic from you," Draco said.
Tver turned to Neville to check his reaction.
"Do you mind if Draco stays as well?"
Neville looked up at Draco. In the past, he would never have wanted to stay in the same room as someone like Draco, even with a professor present.
But just as Draco had begun to see Neville in a different light, Neville also came to realize, through spending time together, that Draco was nothing more than a smug kid who had been badly influenced by his family.
So he nodded quietly once again.
Sensing the awkward mood, Draco obediently followed the two of them into the office and didn't say anything else that might ruin the atmosphere.
"I heard another professor mention at lunch that you had another conflict with Harry and the others in Care of Magical Creatures on Monday?"
Tver asked casually as he poured Pumpkin juice for them.
Draco immediately felt annoyed and… scratched his head.
This was the professor's office, after all. There was no way he could just lose his temper here.
"I just wanted to ask about those… um, what were they called again?"
"Blast-Ended Skrewts," Neville reminded him softly.
"Oh, right, thanks. I still don't understand what those smelly Blast-Ended Skrewts are even good for. Is their only purpose to blow our robes to bits?"
Blast-Ended Skrewts?
Tver searched his memory.
Hagrid had mentioned that creature to him over the summer, but he'd been so busy at the time that he'd even forgotten to send a polite reply.
Listening to Draco's nonstop complaining, he gradually realized what kind of creature it was.
Some hybrid species Hagrid had bred himself.
To be honest, privately breeding new magical creatures was far more dangerous than last year's incident where a hippogriff injured a student.
Neville, however, had no interest in the topic at all. After reminding Draco once, he fell silent and took small sips of his Pumpkin juice.
Looks like that attempt to ease the mood failed.
Tver sighed and said to Draco, "Putting others down so casually won't make you seem any better, Draco."
"But at the same time," he shifted his gaze to Neville, "silence doesn't solve most problems."
"Neville, is something bothering you?"
At that, Neville slowly raised his head and met Tver's eyes seriously, completely unlike his usual timid self.
"Professor, can you teach me the Cruciatus Curse?"
"Pfft—"
Caught completely off guard, Draco was so startled by Neville's words that he sprayed the Pumpkin juice straight out of his mouth.
Fortunately, Tver reacted instantly and blocked it with a Shield Charm, only for the splash to bounce right back onto Draco himself.
"Why would you even think of that?" Tver ignored Draco and looked at Neville in surprise.
Neville took a deep breath.
"It's because my parents were… deeply harmed by that spell. I want to learn it. I want to study all of its principles."
"I want to…" He paused, lowered his head, and his voice turned hoarse. "Cure my parents."
Malfoy didn't even bother wiping the Pumpkin juice off himself. Instead, he looked at Neville with a complicated mix of shock, pity, and other emotions.
Several times, he reached out, as if trying to comfort someone who could barely be called a friend. But then it hit him that he'd never done anything like that before. He didn't even know how to comfort someone…
Tver looked at the two of them sinking into sadness, speechless. Neville was one thing, but why was Draco getting dragged into it too?
Was grief contagious or something?
Still, he felt quietly relieved by Draco's reaction.
Being able to think about others at all was already the first step for Draco in breaking away from the negative influence of his family.
"If you truly want to learn, I can teach it through theoretical research," Tver said. "But the process will be dull and dangerous, and I don't want you chasing quick results. You'll need patience."
"As for your parents, even if there's no way to cure them, I believe they're already proud of you."
"Mm!"
Neville nodded firmly.