After lunch, the three of them sat with their notebooks to plan what they needed to buy next.
Shuxin went to her room and brought out the admission letter she had received earlier, which listed the required uniform, books, equipment, and pet.
"Mary, you're amazing," Shuxin said. "How could we possibly finish buying all these things in one day? We really need to plan properly."
God knows what Dumbledore had done to Mary and Tom, but they now seemed completely unfazed by magic when looking at things. Seeing dragon-hide gloves no longer elicited the initial shock and fuss, as if magic was everywhere and felt entirely ordinary.
Three sets of robes? Where was the limit in that? A girl should buy a couple more sets.
Only one hat? Add two more.
Protective gloves should be bought in a few extra pairs; a young girl's hands deserved good protection.
A cloak could just be bought as a single piece for now; Mary could make them herself—pretty and warm, and since they were only needed for winter, there was no rush.
First-year students had to study so many subjects? It sounded exhausting, so they would need to eat well afterward to build up their strength.
Shuxin didn't interrupt Mary, chatting along with her instead. Shuxin had no idea how much of their current plan could actually be realized, but this was Mary and Tom showing their care and affection for her.
Between them, they enthusiastically listed out several pages of items. Everything was ready, save for the school professor.
"Hello, are you a professor from the school?" Tom asked. "You've arrived so early! I saw you the moment I opened the door and got quite a start. Please come in, sit down, would you like something to drink?"
Thanks to Dumbledore's magic, even though Professor Snape's face was dark enough to drip water, Tom remained thoroughly warm and enthusiastic.
"Tom, is that the professor?" Mary asked, hearing the voices and coming over from the courtyard. "Oh dear, I'm so sorry, coming this early—you probably haven't had breakfast yet."
"What would you like to eat? How about a sandwich?" Mary asked, though the spread she prepared amounted to much more than just a sandwich.
Just as Tom helped Professor Snape sit down, Mary served breakfast: a sandwich, roasted ham, mashed potatoes, boiled sausages, and a piece of fried pork chop.
"What would you like to drink, Professor?" Mary asked. "How about milk? Or perhaps you'd like to try soy milk? It's a specialty of our shop."
"Soy milk, thank you." Professor Snape's face was stiff. It had been a long time since he had been treated with such warm hospitality, and he found it hard to refuse.
*She must be a Gryffindor,* Professor Snape thought as he took a bite of the sandwich. Hm, not bad at all, and then he took a piece of the fried pork chop.
"Would you like another glass?" Mary said, refilling Professor Snape's cup. "This soy milk is very popular with our guests. It's a way of eating and drinking from Hua Guo, Shuxin told us."
By this time, Shuxin had finished getting ready and stood across from Professor Snape.
She felt a bit reserved; Professor Snape was, after all, one of Dumbledore's right-hand men.
"Then let's get going," Professor Snape said. "We need to go to London first, and the things we need to buy today are... quite a lot."
Professor Snape finished the last drop of his soy milk, stood up, and inevitably caught sight of Shuxin standing opposite him.
Both of them instinctively turned their heads away.
*Merlin's woolen socks, those green eyes—just like Lily.* Professor Snape's face grew even longer.
"We're all ready and can leave whenever you like," Shuxin said. "Can Mary and Tom come along? We can drive to London, Professor, you can sit in the front passenger seat."
"Can we drive?" Tom asked. "Driving is much more convenient. Er, I mean, just in case we buy a lot of things, taking the train back might be a bit troublesome."
Shuxin felt as though Uncle Tom's enthusiasm was about to be completely extinguished by Professor Snape.
"Let's go then." Professor Snape lifted his foot and started walking out of the shop. How magical—his robes seemed to come with their own built-in wind machine; that sweep was simply perfect for a Victoria's Secret runway.
Tom drove with intense concentration, while Mary kept staring out the window. It seemed only Shuxin could hear Professor Snape speaking.
In the car, Professor Snape explained some common knowledge of the wizarding world to Shuxin, such as seventeen silver Sickles to a Galleon, and twenty-unnuts to a Sickle.
*Bloody hell.*
"Miss Field," Professor Snape said, "you can order some newspapers, like the *Daily Prophet* or *Witch Weekly*. They can help you understand wizards better."
"Hogwarts is divided into four houses," Professor Snape continued, "each with its own merits."
"How are we sorted into them?" Shuxin asked.
"That is a secret; you will find out when you get to school," Professor Snape replied. "Only you can enter Diagon Alley. They will have to wait outside."
Shuxin nodded, seeing nothing wrong with that.
Following Professor Snape's directions, the car came to a stop. Shuxin didn't see the legendary dingy pub anywhere.
"You lot wait around here," Professor Snape instructed. "You, come with me. We are going to Diagon Alley."
"Professor, aren't you curious about me?" Shuxin broke the silence after walking a short distance. "Headmaster Dumbledore was very curious about me."
"Not curious." Shuxin could sense the person in front of her pause for a fraction of a second.
This was the first time Shuxin had looked straight at Professor Snape—well, from behind anyway. Greasy hair, clad entirely in black, robes radiating an aura of their own—he was definitely not someone to mess with.
"I grew up in Hua Guo, Professor. Do you know Hua Guo?" Shuxin continued on her own without waiting for a reply.
"A few months ago, my parents brought me on a ship to England, but halfway there the ship had an accident. An uncle brought me to Surrey. Now that I think about it, that uncle must have been a wizard too."
Thanks to the inspiration Dumbledore had given her, Shuxin's "background story" was becoming increasingly complete.
"I didn't know I was a wizard before," Shuxin said. "When Mary and I saw the letter, we thought it was a prank. It was Dumbledore who told me about wizards."
"Dumbledore said that before my parents came to England, they wrote to him, which is why he came looking for me. If that's the case, my mother must be a witch, right?"
"Yes," Professor Snape said. "Only wizards can find Hogwarts."
"In that case, I don't need to worry about them," Shuxin said. "That wizard uncle could save me, so I believe my parents can save themselves, too. They probably just couldn't find where I was, which is why they haven't come for me."
*Or perhaps they are dead,* Professor Snape thought. *Not everyone who faces the sea returns safely.* But looking at the young girl missing her parents, he lacked the heart to crush her hopes. Hope was always a good thing.
"Aside from students and teachers, can parents enter the school?" Shuxin asked.
"Generally speaking, no," Professor Snape replied. "However, there is a wizarding village next to the school where they can send messages to the school. Your situation is special; your Head of House can take you there."
"Professor, what is this village called?"
"Hogsmeade. And don't go thinking you can sneak off there; school rules state that students below the third year are not allowed to visit Hogsmeade."
Shuxin didn't think Professor Snape was bad at all. He was actually quite nice; his complexion was just a bit unpleasant. Put that aside, and he was every bit a qualified people's teacher.
"Professor, do you think my father might be a wizard?" Shuxin asked. "Or perhaps a pro-wizard Muggle? Is he a Muggle? I remember Headmaster Dumbledore calling Mary and the others that yesterday."
"Wizard or not, your father must have loved you very much." Professor Snape couldn't help but think of his own childhood.
Shuxin suddenly stopped in her tracks. She hadn't expected Professor Snape to say something like that.
This had originally just been a lie, but it kept growing larger. "Thank you, Professor."
Shuxin bowed to Professor Snape, feeling a heartfelt sense of gratitude toward him. "Both of my parents loved me very much. They will surely bless me."
Sensing that Shuxin had stopped, Professor Snape turned around, looking alarmed. "You don't need to bow to me, and don't call me *laoshi*."
"Professor, this is a gesture of respect in Hua Guo toward one's elders," Shuxin said. "You deserve it."
Back home, Mary had explained to her that "Professor" generally referred to teaching instructors at a school, whereas "Laoshi" specifically denoted a professor's personal, inner-circle apprentice—the degree of closeness was different.
Shuxin admitted that making up the story earlier was, on one hand, to give him and Dumbledore a satisfactory explanation, but on the other hand, wasn't it also an attempt to win Professor Snape's sympathy?
If she managed to trick him into it, she gained; if not, she lost nothing. But this bow was entirely genuine.
After a long silence, Professor Snape spoke. "If you can make it into my Advanced class in your sixth year, I will take you as my apprentice."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Professor Snape was surprised himself. This was the first time he had ever spoken of taking an apprentice. These were green eyes without a drop of Potter's blood—clean and pure, resembling Lily's to the extreme.
"Hurry up and keep up," Professor Snape said. "We're going to be late."
Whether it was her imagination or not, Shuxin felt that the footsteps ahead of her had grown slightly lighter.