Chapter 505: Failed Occlumency

"This method of extracting memories is a bit scary." Rogge closed his eyes and felt that those past emotions were still lingering in his heart, but he was unable to find the root of their existence.

His memory was like a beautiful harmonic wave, with some important lines cut off by invisible scissors. Although this did not affect the coherence of the entire harmonic wave, the missing details were like a gap in the shadow, making people feel uneasy.

"Teacher, what would happen if all of a person's memories were taken out?" He slowly opened his eyes and looked at Snape.

Snape was slightly stunned. This was indeed a bold idea, even a bit unorthodox. However, as a wizard who delved deeply into the dark arts, he admired Rogge's thinking.

"Maybe he will become dull and ignorant, or maybe he will become a completely different person." He paused, then continued: "Have you heard about the Longbottom couple?"

"Neville's parents?" Rogge chuckled and replied: "I have seen them in St. Mungo's Hospital. I heard that they have been cured by Neville."

Snape heard the sarcasm in his tone and understood what the contradictions created by the Longbottom couple were. He explained calmly: "Their minds were once as chaotic as a tangled ball of thread, with memories and emotions intertwined."

"That kind of stimulation therapy awakened a specific part of their brains, which gave Dumbledore the opportunity to adjust the chaotic situation."

"Have all their memories been extracted?" Roger asked curiously, "And the memories of being tortured by the Death Eaters..."

"It still has to be kept, and this is the bottom line that Dumbledore is willing to take action." Snape looked at the meditation on the side, and then said: "There used to be a more terrifying magic that could completely deprive people of all the unhappiness in their hearts."

"It sounds like an addictive potion. I remember that there is something called "No. 4 powder" in the Muggle world. It is said that it can make people gradually lose themselves and become zombies." Roger said in a serious tone, "It's dangerous to extract memories. I want to take them back now."

"Learn the brain block first." Snape insisted, "Short-term amnesia will not harm you. I will use Legilimency to try to enter your brain."

He deliberately waited for a while, and then suddenly made a move. Before Roger could react, he felt a magical power trying to get into his mind like a cunning snake.

Normally, wizards would strongly reject this kind of foreign magic. But the Soul Requiem has an unusually domineering and gentle quality.

It is like a master key that can open anyone's brain and freely browse the other person's memory.

The initial stage of brain occlusion is to learn to identify this kind of magic and forcefully expel it the moment it invades.

Snape's eyes were dark, and he saw a towering wall with a small fence window on the wall. He saw Roger being hugged tightly by a woman with disheveled hair, humming a ballad full of despair.

"Get out!" A strong sense of rejection surged from the depths of Roger's heart, surging like a tsunami, completely expelling the magic of Soul Requiem.

Snape was stunned for a moment, and a hint of apology flashed in his eyes. If he guessed correctly, it was Roger's memory when he was imprisoned in Azkaban.

Roger took a deep breath. He did not feel hatred or resentment towards Snape's snooping. This was the only way to master the brain block, and he had to endure it.

The dungeon fell into silence, and Roger carefully recalled his feelings just now. Soul reading and brain block are not absolutely antagonistic, otherwise it would become a pure magic contest.

Just as a drop of water will not dry up if it merges into the ocean, brain block can only play a protective role when it is opened. Just like the prey prepares the trap early, waiting for the hunter to fall into it.

"Teacher, do it again." Roger said firmly.

Snape did not say much, he launched soul reading again. This time, the expected brain block did not work. In his perception, Roger's memory flashed like a movie scene.

He saw the small building at the end of Spider Alley, and Roger was concentrating on flipping through the books on the bookshelf. Those textbooks that Snape carefully hid in the corner were also found by his students.

"Is your nose a hound's?" Snape thought to himself, his face hardened. Especially when he saw Roger's eyes resting on the words "Half-Blood Prince" on the title page, he felt his face burning.

He applied for Roger's privilege of leaving school at night, so that he could have more time to study the snake virus, instead of looking through his personal collection of books! He snorted and continued to read.

At this time, there was a knock on the door, and a woman's voice sounded, which Snape felt both familiar and strange.

"Are you a thief?" The woman asked curiously.

"I am the owner of the house, please don't call the police next time." Roger muffled his voice and imitated the tone of an adult man, "You know, it's troublesome to send those policemen away."

"Sorry, I thought..." The woman's voice suddenly became blurred, and she seemed to say two more words before turning around and leaving.

The red hair flashing outside the window was like a beautiful sunset, leaving a bright red mark in Snape's consciousness, which made him feel a strong sense of expectation and uneasiness.

He thought that Rogge would chase after her and see the true face of the red-haired woman, but to his surprise, Rogge went straight to the second floor and started the experiment of preventing the snake-man virus.

In Snape's eyes, Rogge showed off his skillful potions skills, which were rigorous and superb.

His technique was beautiful and concise, restoring the snake-man virus to its original state step by step. The crucible was gently swayed on the fire, and Rogge put in materials such as moonstone, salamander heart, and dragon scales in turn, each of which was processed to perfection.

Snape watched quietly, and the chaotic heart in his chest slowly calmed down as the medicine took shape.

The cyan liquid was mixed with the extracted snake-man virus at the final moment of its formation. Immediately afterwards, the clean and beautiful steam on the crucible turned filthy, and the outline of a poisonous snake opened its mouth ferociously in the mist.

With a "Bang!" sound, the crucible exploded and the liquid medicine splashed everywhere.

But Rogge had already anticipated this, and with a flick of his wand, he controlled the splashing potion in the air.

"Teacher, this is the 63rd failure." Rogge lowered his head and recorded the data of this experiment in his notebook.

Snape nodded slightly. His attention was completely attracted by Rogge's experiment. He asked, "Why not test the snake-man virus after the liquid is completely formed?"

"That would be too dangerous for Muggles." Rogge shook his head and explained his thinking: "I hope that the potion can directly form protection, instead of waiting for Muggles to be initially infected before treating them. Otherwise, they will suffer from Leave a permanent mark.”

"Considering the characteristics of the blood curse in the snake-man virus, those snake-man characteristics may even be inherited. This is not a good thing and defeats the original purpose of the snake-repellent antidote."

Snape couldn't help but nod. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Then, is it possible to consider reducing the weight of the moonstone..."

Suddenly, he stopped and his brows knitted together. Because he realized that he was using Legilimency to observe Rogge's memory. In other words, he is watching a movie like an audience member.

This is supposed to be a one-way observation, and the people in the movie are not supposed to be aware of his presence, let alone have a conversation with him.

"Is this a lie?" Snape stared at Rogge and asked in disbelief: "Are you using Occlumency to weave falsehoods to deceive me?"

Rogge nodded, and the test platform and surrounding walls began to melt rapidly. Snape felt himself being pushed out by a gentle but powerful spiritual force, and they seemed to be returning to the dungeon from the end of Spider Alley.

Snape's eyes flashed with approval, and there was a hint of indescribable excitement in his voice: "Roger, your talent in Occlumency exceeds my expectations."

"At first, I thought you would concentrate, abandon your emotions, and use cold Occlumency to drive out Legilimency."

"But, I miscalculated... No, I thought you hadn't mastered Occlumency yet, so I entered your memory without any precautions." He smiled slightly at himself.

"Actually, everything I see is what you want me to see. You even inject your own consciousness into it and adjust these fabricated memories at any time."

"Roger, you are born for this magic." Snape's tone was full of affirmation.

Rogge touched his nose sheepishly. Even in Potions, Snape rarely praised him like this.

Actually, being a natural for Occlumency is no compliment. Because it means that the wizard is deep-minded and able to hide his true intentions and wear multiple masks.

"So, everything I saw was fake, right?" Snape seemed to be expecting something, his eyes never leaving Rogge.

Rogge shook his head and explained: "Most of them are true. Fake things can only be deceived if they are hidden in the truth."

"Where's that woman?"

He replied lightly: "Oh, she's a Muggle from Spider Alley, so she's quite annoying."

Rogge smacked his lips, feeling a little regretful. This was his first attempt at weaving fake memories, and it was obviously imperfect.

For example, the woman who appeared outside the door should not have been noticed by Snape, but directly erased from his memory.

Because she is Petunia sent to Spider Alley by Buck, a woman who was transformed by Voldemort and has red hair and green eyes.

Every time Rogge goes to Spider Alley, even without turning on the lights, she can sense that someone is in the house and come to ask something. Apparently, she thought Rogue was Snape, the owner of the house.

"However, she moved away recently, more than half a month ago." Rogge stared at Snape's uncertain expression and directly pierced his imagination: "Perhaps it was a trap deliberately set by the Dark Lord."

Snape tried his best to remain calm and didn't even notice when Rogge retrieved the memories in the Pensieve. He sat on the bench all night, staring at the fireplace.

"People cannot be brought back to life..." His voice was low, almost talking to himself, "But Ariana...if she also..."

For several days, Snape fell into a state of uneasiness. He even forgot to use his usual sarcastic tone when Lupine came to him to buy the Wolfsbane potion.

Fortunately, on Friday night, Harry reluctantly came to class. His green eyes filled with hatred rekindled the fighting spirit in Snape's heart.

Snape knew that the red color was not real and was probably a problem Voldemort was using to test him. He also knows that he cannot always dwell on the past, but must face reality and continue to fulfill his promises and mission.

"Potter, you are the worst student I have ever taught, bar none." Snape sneered and began to list specific examples to prove his point: "After Neville returned to normal, his score in potions was significant progress.”

"I heard that he is competing for the position of Gryffindor Keeper. Your hyena shield has not been disbanded yet."

Harry corrected firmly: "It's the 'Lion's Heart Shield', not the 'Hyena Shield'!"

"Oh, is there any difference? Your father once formed a similar gang called the Predators. It sounds like a group of robbers."

"Are you going to class or not?" Harry asked impatiently, "I'm here to learn Occlumency, not to listen to you recall the past..."

"I'm glad you realize your mission." Snape narrowed his eyes and pulled out his wand from his robes. As he introduced the memory into the pensieve, he said: "Your study progress is frustrating to me as a professor."

"It even made me think that there was something wrong with my teaching methods."

Harry curled his lips and looked at Snape with a "Of course" look. He did not think that his inability to learn Occlumency was his problem, but that Dumbledore should not have arranged for Snape to teach him.

Harry felt unable to calm down as soon as he saw Snape's stiff face. Especially the cold sarcasm and sarcasm made him feel full of hatred and irritation, and he didn't want to listen to Snape at all.

The corners of Snape's lips curved into a sarcastic arc, and he said in a tone of mixed sarcasm and pride: "Slytherin's Roger, this name won't be unfamiliar to you, right? He mastered it in just ten minutes. Occlumency.”

There was a provocative tone in his words, obviously stimulating Harry's pride, hoping that he would respond.

"Who!" Harry raised his voice involuntarily, "Roger? He...he must have known it a long time ago, and it was definitely not taught by you!"

Harry wanted to deny Snape's statement, but Rogge's talent in charms made it impossible for him to refute. He hesitated and had to blame Roger's rapid learning of Occlumency on other reasons.

"I bet if I had a different professor, I could learn it quickly." Harry countered not to be outdone, his eyes flashing with determination.

Snape's laughter was as cold as ice: "Oh, so you think Lupine would be a more suitable candidate than me?"

"Of course!" Harry replied without hesitation. His words were like a sharp knife piercing Snape's heart, and then he stabbed him hard: "He is the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, and you are the Potions professor. Shouldn't..."

Harry's words gradually weakened under Snape's gloomy gaze, and he choked back the last few words.

Snape showed a rare smile, pointed his finger at the door of the classroom, and said in a cold tone: "Mr. Potter, since you have such an opinion, please leave my classroom."

"From now on, you don't have to learn any spells here. Just let your Professor Lupin teach you."

Upon hearing such an order, Harry's first reaction was joy, and he almost jumped for joy and walked towards the door. However, the moment he stepped out of the classroom, an inexplicable feeling of loss suddenly hit his heart.

He felt as if the door to the potions classroom hidden in the shadows had been closed to him forever.

"Who cares?" Harry muttered, feeling that he must be crazy to regret and regret losing Snape's guidance.

He hurried back to the Gryffindor common room to discuss where to go tomorrow. The laughter and laughter of his classmates made him forget his previous disappointment, especially the prank snacks made by the twins, which made him want to skip class.

"Albus, he needs to change his professor." Snape placed the pensieve on the principal's desk and shook his head helplessly: "Harry can't stay calm in front of me, Lupine is more suitable to guide him in learning Occlumency. "

Dumbledore was silent for a moment and said: "Severus, I understand what you mean. You must learn to control your emotions, especially when facing Voldemort..."

"Okay, I'll let Lupine try. However, I still hope you can guide Harry yourself."

Snape was silent, and he suddenly asked a seemingly unrelated question: "Is there any news about Petunia?"

"Harry's aunt..." Dumbledore shook his head, "I have been looking for her, but there is no news so far. Have you found anything?"

Snape's eyes became complicated, "There is a new neighbor next to my house. She has red hair and her voice..."

He paused, as if recalling every detail of that sequence, "But she suddenly left Spider Alley."

"You suspect..." Dumbledore's eyes became serious, "Severus, Lily used her own life to cast an ancient protective spell on Harry, allowing him to survive Voldemort."

"I understand, but..." Snape's voice was filled with indescribable heaviness, "But, Albus, I am very confused."

"If someone like Lily but not Lily stood before me..." Snape did not continue, but Dumbledore understood this feeling deeply.

He understood the feeling, even more than Snape did. Because when his sister Ariana really appeared in front of him alive, all his reason was destroyed by the emotions in his heart.

"Follow your heart, Severus." Dumbledore's tone was gentle but firm, "I will not interfere with your choice, you are free."

The two chatted for a while longer, with Snape doing most of the talking and Dumbledore listening quietly. When Snape left, Dumbledore watched him go, confident that Snape would remain steadfast in protecting Harry's safety.

Then he looked away from the Pensieve and turned to the portrait, "Can anyone come to the library? I'd like to have a chat with Madam Pince."