"Disagree?" He peers at the book.

"It just says there's controversy," he says, showing Dayo the page.

"How can there be controversy? Doesn't alchemy have, like, a definition and either it includes wandmaking or not? ...I really want to learn this."

"I think maybe I want to learn it too."

"Only after O.W.L.s though. Did you find anything on alternative applications of the Philosopher's Stone, Dark Lord resurrection flavoured?"

He shakes his head. "But I think maybe you have to know a lot about alchemy in order to really understand what the Philosopher's Stone does."

Sigh. "Well, let's go get lunch, why don't we, and then we can find Professors to ask things of."

Nod nod.

Lunch!

Snape is not at the Head Table.

But McGonagall is.

Somewhat inconvenient for their purposes.

He does not really want to have this conversation but it seems important.

So he approaches the head table once he finishes eating.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Evans."

"Can I speak to you privately, Professor?"

She peers at him. "Is it quite urgent? You do know my office hours."

"I... I'm not sure exactly how urgent it is, but I do think it's important."

"I shall trust your judgment on this, if you say we should speak now."

"Thank you, Professor."

And after lunch they're in her office.

"Did you see what happened to my broom during the Quidditch game?"

"Hmm? Yes, you seemed to be behaving rather strangely there."

"I think someone was jinxing it. It stopped doing what I wanted and started doing - that - instead."

She stiffens. "That is a very serious accusation, Mr. Evans. Do you have proof?"

"I haven't accused anyone. But I don't know what else it could have been."

"It could perhaps be a prank someone played on your broom before the game," she says uncertainly, "or someone could have Confunded you..." She does not sound like she finds these explanations very likely.

"Someone who was watching the game said they saw Professor Quirrell staring right at my broom while it was misbehaving, and when they looked back at him after the problems stopped, he wasn't looking at me anymore. But the person who saw that doesn't want anyone to know who they are, because the sort of person who would jinx a broom like that might hurt them too."