HP: It's a snake, not a badger.

Chapter 17 Don't bully him, the two little ones finally understand.

Sunlight streamed through the black lake into the dark bedroom. Under the spell, the windows were exceptionally bright, and the warm sunlight moved slowly before finally settling on the four-poster bed.

The two, one big and one small, were embracing each other on the bed. The adult was awakened by the sunlight and gradually regained consciousness.

Sleeping before midnight and waking up at nine the next morning made Snape look much better, and the regular meals he ate made up for the sleep deprivation he suffered from staying up all night before Christmas.

After caring for the cubs for four days, Snape gradually figured out a way to get along with them. That was to keep the cubs occupied, keep them in front of you and give them something to do, pat them on the head when they did well, and feed them regularly, which would reduce a lot of trouble.

Snape skillfully dug the cub out of the bed, changed his clothes, and went to the bathroom to wash up together. He then placed the clean cub on the sofa to wait for its meal.

Watching Emeric eat obediently, Snape suddenly remembered that he had spent a day with Draco before. Even with the help of the house-elves, Draco kept crying and fussing, wanting his father and mother, and he couldn't be soothed.

From that moment on, Snape thought children were the most terrifying creatures in the world. At first, he thought he would die in those seven days, but he never expected that Emerick would not make a fuss. In fact, when he cried, it only made people feel sorry for him, rather than annoy him.

After finishing their meal, they began their work. Snape placed a small cauldron next to the cub, and the two of them made potions together. They made some very simple potions, where the ingredients only needed to be crushed at most, not chopped, which was very safe. Finally, they asked Snape to help them wave their wands, and the potion was finished.

The morning flew by in a flurry of activity, and the timer spell reminded them it was time to go to the auditorium for lunch.

After tidying up the things on the table, Snape cast a spell to clean his and Emeric's clothes, then took the cub's hand and went to the Great Hall for lunch.

In the past few days, the little lions have noticed that Professor Snape is much more patient with Emerick. As long as they don't deliberately provoke the big bat, they won't be put in solitary confinement!

"That greasy old bat's been in such a good mood these past few days, hopefully we won't get locked up~"

"Old Bat hasn't been in solitary confinement for several days now. Could he be in love?"

The clearly malicious title immediately enraged Emeric. "Don't you people have any respect for others? Fine, I'll call you all mentally unstable idiots, is that alright?"

Snape didn't care about the nicknames the students gave him, even the worst ones; he'd be happy to catch them, put them in solitary confinement, and deduct points. But Emeric couldn't accept it—his beloved Severus being given such a nickname by these people, and they wouldn't even apologize.

When Emeric was a big kid, he would have frowned upon hearing this and excluded these people from his social circle, but he was a little kid now. Little kids would tattle, and after the points were deducted, Emeric pursed his lips, feeling the punishment was too lenient, and angrily dragged Snape to the teachers' table.

The clever cub, based on the colors of the people's school uniforms, accurately located their headmaster, pulled Snape to Professor McGonagall, and Emeric began to cry.

"Professor McGonagall, waaaaah, someone's bullying Severus! They're saying he's a bad guy, calling him a greasy big bat who shouldn't be out in the sun..."

The cub cried its heart out, and before Snape could comfort it, Professor McGonagall shoved the cub into his arms and stormed off into the Gryffindor crowd.

She noticed early on that her college points were lower than expected. She initially thought it was because someone had been caught playing a prank and had points deducted, but she didn't expect it was because she had insulted the professor.

She wouldn't allow such behavior to be punished in such a way; Severus was her student, and she couldn't bully her students.

Professor Flitwick tugged at Snape's clothes, then knelt down and patted Snape's head. Professor Sprout followed suit, patting Snape's head as well. "Severus, why didn't you tell us? We're sorry we didn't notice."

Snape was the youngest of the professors, and almost all of them had taught him. The young wizards sitting below were their students, but Snape was also their student. Just because he was now a colleague didn't mean they couldn't acknowledge that relationship.

Next, apart from the Slytherin house wizards, the manners and etiquette of the other three houses were scrutinized. The professors even made a deal with the ghosts: the ghosts would decide the punishment for any wizards who swore, as long as it wasn't too excessive.

After venting her anger, the witch returned to her seat and hugged Snape. "If you see this happen again, bring him to me and I'll handle it myself. Promise me, Severus, that you won't think of yourself as an adult and that you'll give in to the children."

A wave of goodwill and warmth washed over Snape, leaving the emotionally reserved man at a loss for words. He mechanically responded with a hug. Emeric noticed Snape's bewilderment and asked, "Professor McGonagall, may I bring them with me to you? These people usually do it behind the professors' backs."

"Of course, I think Slytherin needs to add fifty points today to defend the professor's actions."

After he finished speaking, Slytherin's gem jumped up quite a distance, and Emeric opened his swollen, tear-filled eyes and looked at the professors with a grin.

Seeing that the cub had stopped crying, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, which made them even more determined to enforce behavioral rules. Snape handed him a glass of warm water and gestured for him to drink it.

"Severus, have you seen Dumbledore these past few days? I need to speak with him." Professor McGonagall had searched almost everywhere but couldn't find him, so she could only try to get an answer from Snape.

"Professor Dumbledore is in Nurmengard and might be quite busy. I suggest sending a Howl letter." Snape was eager to see the two old men startled. Hearing this, the older witch clearly understood what was going on. She readily accepted the suggestion and left the Great Hall with a dark expression.

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Harry applied to stay at school during Christmas; he didn't want to go back to spend Christmas with the Dursleys, and he was happier at school.

Especially on Christmas Day, he received many gifts: a sweater from Aunt Molly, Emeric's potions notebook, and most importantly, a pair of cufflinks from Draco, dazzling platinum inlaid with emerald green gems.

Harry shyly changed his cufflinks. He accepted Draco's feelings, and thinking about the gift he had given, he couldn't help but bury his face in the blankets to hide his blush.

On the other side, Draco rummaged through the pile of gifts and pulled out a red and gold package. He carefully unfolded the package and opened the box. Inside was a Golden Snitch. The Seeker's Golden Snitch is only given to loved ones.

Draco blushed when he thought about what he had given her; he had given her a token of love, and she had reciprocated with one.

The two kids who hadn't figured it out last month suddenly became so at the same time that they couldn't wait to see each other and ask if the other liked them. But it was holiday time and there was no reason to go back to school early.