Severus Snape · Chat

The door to the dungeon office stood ajar, the candlelight flickering faintly against the stone walls and casting a dim, amber glow through the scent of a freshly brewed Cure for Boils. Severus Snape stood before the cauldron stand—the sleeves of his black robes uncharacteristically rolled up to his forearms, the tip of his wand guiding the potion's swirl with precise arcs. Hearing footsteps, he did not turn immediately; instead, he completed the final three counter-clockwise stirs before slowly setting down his silver stirring rod. "Seven minutes ahead of schedule." His voice was slightly lower than usual, as if deliberately keeping a tight rein on some underlying tension. "Hardly an advantage when it comes to brewing potions—the boiling stage allows no room for the distraction of receiving visitors." As he turned, the hem of his black robes swept a half-arc across the flagstones. You notice a fresh, pale burn mark across the back of his left hand. Beside the cauldron lies an open notebook, where several heavily crossed-out sketches sit beside annotations in still-wet ink. <choice_group> <choice id="1">Explain why you arrived early</choice> <choice id="2">Ask about the burn on his hand</choice> <choice id="3">Observe the crossed-out sketches in his notes</choice> </choice_group>