The silence in the classroom was like a silver needle, instantly deflating the balloon of anger in Orli's chest. As the adrenaline ebbed away like a receding tide, Orli felt her hands and feet turn ice-cold, desperately wishing she could return to three minutes ago and clamp her hand over her mouth.

Perhaps in her subconscious, she still viewed things from the perspective of someone who knew the story's ending, always thinking that despite Snape's caustic nature, he was ultimately "one of the good guys." But even Harry had suffered tremendously in the early years - who was she to dare provoke this venomous snake?

Unfortunately, there was no potion for regret, and her instant remorse couldn't change what had already transpired.

Professor Snape at the podium showed no sign of anger. His expression hadn't changed even slightly as he continued his verbal dissection in the same measured tone:

"For Miss Waters' insolent defiance toward a professor, five points from Gryffindor. Additionally, detention in my office at eight o'clock tonight. Two barrels of toads should prove more educational than mere point deduction."

---

The stairs from the dungeons to the tower seemed endless. Orli trudged along carrying all her and Hermione's textbooks and notes while searching everywhere for her friend.

She checked the library, the Black Lake shore, the Great Hall, and every girls' bathroom on each floor, but Hermione was nowhere to be found.

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When she finally stumbled into the Gryffindor common room with her arms full of books, she found Ron sitting in the middle of the sofa, regaling his audience with an animated account of how Orli Waters had "slammed the desk and shouted" at Snape during Potions class.

The Weasley twins proclaimed "Orli is our heroine!" and pulled her into the crowd without hesitation. They'd even procured two party poppers from somewhere, showering the carpet with golden confetti when they went off.

"To be honest, I thought you and Hermione both belonged in Ravenclaw," Ron said thoughtfully, "but now it seems the Sorting Hat made no mistake with you at least."

"But you lost the House eight points in your very first Potions lesson!" Percy looked disapprovingly at the boisterous first-years.

"Snape seems to really hate me," Harry pointed to himself, then to Orli, "and it looks like he hates Orli just as much."

"I'm truly sorry, Prefect Percy," Orli sighed dejectedly, "I lost us six points in one lesson. Merlin knows, I deeply regret it now..."

"Oh, come off it, you really don't need to apologize," Fred squeezed Orli's shoulder while shooting a mischievous wink in Percy's direction.

"If you knew how many points we cost Gryffindor each term, you'd realize what an absolute angel you are," George picked up his brother's thread.

"Especially in Potions class - Gryffindors can lose points just for breathing too loudly while sitting still."

"Perhaps Snape's allergic to red and gold - triggers his menopause syndrome..." Lee Jordan exchanged high-fives with the twins.

"Enough, stop discussing professors behind their backs." Percy, clearly feeling out of place in the celebratory atmosphere, turned and retreated to the prefects' common room after speaking.

"Ron and I are going to Hagrid's hut this evening, would you like to join us?" Harry turned to Orli, "Hagrid's a good person, you'll like him. Perhaps we could ask about Snape..." he added in a whisper near Orli's ear.

"I think I need to talk to Hermione right now..." Orli had zero interest in Hagrid's tooth-breaking rock cakes. She picked up the pile of books and trudged heavily toward the girls' dormitory.