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

Chapter 110 Extra: When Severus Asks for Leave

Early in the morning

Dumbledore reached out and pulled Gellert's arm away, got out of bed, put on his coat from the chair, slipped on his slippers, and went to the bathroom to wash up. He was going to substitute teach Severus today; that little rascal Emeric was always bullying the elderly and had been running off with his Potions professor every few days.

He grew angrier the more he thought about it. After washing up, he went to the bedside, pulled off the blanket covering Gellert. He couldn't bully Emeric, but couldn't he take his anger out on Gellert?

"Get up and stop sleeping, come to class with me."

"Hurry up, we still need to go to the auditorium for breakfast, stop dawdling."

As a good partner, how could he let Gellert sleep alone? Of course, they had to suffer together. Gellert looked around blankly, pulled the blanket back, and tried to go back to sleep. He wasn't the professor, so why would he wake him up?

"Al, can I not go?"

"No! Hurry up, go to class or go back to Nurmengard, choose one."

"I'll get up..."

Gellert sighed; his beautiful morning was ruined. The two entered the Great Hall one after the other; all the seats around them were occupied, except for Severus and Emeric.

These two have taken leave to go out and play again, leaving all their classes to him. Dumbledore has a Potions class in the morning and a Spellweaving class in the afternoon. Fortunately, the Spellweaving class is an elective, and Gellert can attend the small class so that no one can be idle.

"Quiet down, children. Your potions professor is on leave again. Turn to page 98 now."

Dumbledore tapped the blackboard. He no longer needed to ask where the lesson was going; how could he not know since the substitute teachers came every few days? He opened the lesson plan on the podium and began teaching step by step, following Severus's instructions. He especially emphasized the key points, practically pulling every ear to make them listen attentively.

After writing all the steps on the blackboard, Dumbledore told them to get the materials. Of course, Gellert would stand by to prevent the young wizards from taking the wrong or missing materials.

He stepped down from the podium and began to patrol, with Gellert on one side and Gellert on the other. At this moment, he admired Severus and Emeric, who were able to teach a class by themselves without causing any trouble and without being confused by the young wizards. He didn't have that ability.

"Hey, what did I just say? Stir it a few times."

"Three laps... Principal."

"How many times have you stirred it?"

"Three and a half laps..."

Dumbledore was scolding the boy for not paying attention in class, while Gellert was glaring at the troublemakers. Both of them were busy and confused, and they didn't know why the little wizard was not afraid of them.

Even after Gellert's identity was exposed, the kids continued to cause trouble, showing no fear of him whatsoever. Some of the bolder ones even approached him with Dumbledore's Chocolate Frog cards, asking for gifts—who knows who taught them that.

"bang"

"Ravenclaw loses ten points for conducting dangerous experiments. Gale, take her to the medical wing. It should be done soon; I should be able to manage on my own."

Dumbledore, hands on hips, glared at the mischievous little wizard and told Gellert to take him away quickly; he still needed to clean up the mess to prevent it from affecting the other students. This potion was emitting black smoke; it clearly wasn't good. If it poisoned someone else, Severus would laugh at him for a year.

Finally, class ended without incident. Dumbledore leaned on the podium, relieved to have survived another day. This year's students were more destructive than ever before, and some things weren't even written in Severus's lesson plans, requiring Dumbledore to improvise – it was truly terrifying.

"Al, let's go, it's time to eat." Gellert knocked on the door frame to attract Dumbledore's attention. After the unfortunate child was cured, he sent him to Flitwick's office. He believed that their headmaster knew how to deal with the children's excessive curiosity.

"They're here. This generation is too destructive. No wonder Severus wants to take a vacation. It's really unbearable to be around them every day."

"Let's go, I told Fufu I'd make braised pork for lunch today, and I'll make it for you to mix with rice."

"Then let's hurry up and go."

This is arguably the only good thing about being a substitute teacher: Gellert lets him eat what he likes and doesn't force him to eat healthy food.

Dumbledore pulled Gellert along quickly; he needed a perfect lunch right away. They hurried back to the headmaster's office and sat down, eager for lunch.

After finishing their meal, the two left the principal's office again. The first class in the afternoon was a magic rune class, and they would have to continue teaching there. However, this time Gellert was teaching the class while they watched the spectacle; none of the students who chose this class were exactly the kind of troublemakers they were.

"Why are your hands shaking again? Isn't this simple?"

"Mr. Grindelwald, we don't have the same level of talent as you and Headmaster Dumbledore..."

"Please, please have mercy on us! We beg you!"

As expected, the effect of small-class teaching is that everyone teaches exactly like the teacher, just like when Emeric was being affectionate. Gellert glared at them with a long face, and helplessly taught them all over again.

"Watch carefully, try to carve the turns in one stroke, don't make them crooked or too long."

Dumbledore sat in the corner with a teacup in his hand, looking quite content. He covered his mouth and chuckled, especially when he saw Gellert covered in ash from the things the little wizard had carved.

"Alright, Gale, don't be so harsh on the children. They'll learn eventually if you teach them slowly." He completely forgot how he was in Potions class, even more so than Gellert.

Gellert glanced helplessly at Dumbledore, sighed, and continued teaching, refusing to believe he couldn't teach them. Emeric flipped through his lesson plan again and again, finally managing to teach all the young wizards before the end of get out of class.

"Alright, get out of class dismissed. Remember to hand in your homework to Professor Thaddeus next class."

"Gail, let's go. Minerva is looking for us. I wonder what she wants."

Dumbledore put away the teacup and small tea table, took Gellert's hand and walked out. If he didn't coax him now, it would be hard to coax him later. Every time after class, Gellert would be angry for two days. He really didn't know where he got such a temper.

The two walked hand in hand through the castle, the sunlight shining on them, gilding them with a golden glow, and the air filled with a warm and cozy atmosphere.

"What's wrong with Minerva?" Dumbledore pushed open the door and looked at McGonagall, who was sitting behind her desk.

"Nothing much, just wanted to ask when Ellie and Severus are coming back. I need to talk to them about something."

"They say he'll be back in three days, which is next Monday. Maybe I can help?" McGonagall rolled her eyes at him. It was already a favor that Dumbledore wasn't making things worse for her, let alone helping.

"Since you have the time, why not take a look at these documents? It's your job to handle them."

"Ah~, if there's nothing else, I'll be going now. Gale, did Ms. Rosier come looking for you? Let's go." Dumbledore made an excuse and grabbed Gellert's hand and ran off. He didn't want to look at that pile of documents. It was too much to ask someone so old to be teaching and dealing with documents as well.