days at Hogwarts

Chapter 579 No, why are you looking at me?

The bell rang on time.

Young wizards from various academies walked into the auditorium, poking their heads around, looking around, sizing up the Defense Association's meeting place with curiosity, while chattering in low voices with their friends around them.

In the past, the auditorium had held various activities, including several banquets, duel club activities, and the opening ceremony of the Goblet of Fire, but this was the first time that the students took the lead. Standing on the edge of the stage were no longer serious professors, but students who were so nervous that their faces turned pale.

There is less restraint and more liveliness and fun.

Harry took deep breaths repeatedly and finally controlled his trembling and weak legs. He walked onto the platform with erratic steps. The velvet carpet seemed more difficult to walk on than the muddy path. He stood in the center of the stage, cleared his throat to signal everyone to look at him, and his eyes met with the students below, thinking about how to start.

Quite a lot of people came.

Loren stood on the right and observed secretly.

Young wizards from all four colleges came, from all grades. At a glance, there were many familiar faces. Gryffindor had the most people, and the most conspicuous one was Ginny in the first row, looking up with bright eyes. Next to her were the Quidditch players led by Angelina, and the prefects Neville and Parvati led the first-year students. The other colleges had a similar scene, and even Slytherin had quite a few people, including sixth- and seventh-year graduates, all of whom were smart people.

"I'm Harry Potter... a fifth year student in Gryffindor. I think most of the students here know me, right?"

Harry held the wand in one hand against his throat and trachea, and his trembling voice gradually became steady. He felt that his head was in two states at the same time, one was dizzy and lack of oxygen, and the other was clear-headed with thoughts racing. A feeling he had never had before grew in his heart, and he vaguely felt that it was not bad.

"Before I stood here, I prepared a lot of formal opening remarks. I even discussed with Loren whether he could be the main speaker and start the first event in a humorous way. As you know, he wrote the announcement."

He changed the subject and spread his hands: "But he insisted on laughing at me..."

There was a chuckle from the audience.

"When Dumbledore found me and gave me this task, my first reaction was that he was playing a joke on me. I still think so now..." Harry paused for a few seconds to wait for the laughter to die down. "I looked around and found that there were more people than I expected. More than half of the students in the school came. My Gryffindor friends probably came to support me, my Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff friends probably thought the event was interesting, and as for the Slytherins, I think you guys are here to laugh at me."

This time even the Slytherin students laughed, and their scrutinizing eyes softened a lot.

"Harry has adapted very well..." Hermione looked at the audience's reactions and said cheerfully, "I can't believe it. His legs were so weak that he couldn't even stand before he went on stage."

Loren's eyes swept across Harry's back, but his expression didn't change much. "Honestly, if he stood on the stage and started teaching the Disarming Spell directly, I wouldn't be surprised, but he knows how to use a few jokes to stir up emotions and divide the hostility towards me..."

"Pressure can bring out unexpected potential in people, right?"

"I hope it's Harry's potential..."

Harry looked at the audience calmly, the bright candlelight casting a strange light in his eyes: "I understand that many people want to know the inside story of last year's Goblet of Fire final, or the hidden truth, but the answer has been in front of you a long time ago... I think everyone knows the purpose of establishing the Defense Association, so I won't talk about any long-winded theoretical knowledge, and will directly start teaching the Disarming Spell..."

What followed was an explanation of the Disarming Charm, which was very different from the textbook content but was easy to understand. Harry demonstrated the extraordinary Disarming Charm while breaking down the casting movements and even the intonation of the spell in great detail. He also responded to questions raised by the students in the front row, answering them right down to the principles of the spell with clear ideas.

The young wizards were asked to practice the Disarming Charm in pairs, and Harry went down the platform to look around. If they encountered typical problems, he would invite them to the top of the platform to correct their incorrect spellcasting habits bit by bit. He was gentle and polite, and his words were humorous. From time to time, he would use one or two teasing but non-offensive jokes to deepen the audience's impression. Even the Slytherins had a different impression of Harry.

This kind of real-time interactive course is always very rewarding, and time passes by unknowingly, and soon the event is about to end.

"Ginny, keep your elbows lower when casting, and focus on the tip of the wand..."

Ginny nodded, and indeed, a faster red light was spun out. She subconsciously came forward and gently rubbed Harry's cheek with joy: "Today's activities are great!"

Harry was stunned. The lingering fragrance of the girl made his heart beat violently. A strange pulse went along his spine and hit his brain, making his temples swell and feel dizzy. The scar on his forehead felt a faint but sharp pain, which instantly pierced deep into his mind.

Harry's eyes were dazed for a moment, and he staggered two crooked steps towards the platform. His consciousness, which was already in complete chaos due to low blood sugar and lack of oxygen.

He felt as if there was another consciousness in his body.

A python-like monster was wrapped around his body. There were a few red lights on its body, and the most conspicuous one was the lightning-shaped scar...

The next moment, he merged with that consciousness, and that consciousness naturally took control of his body.

He stood in the middle of the platform with steady and elegant steps, looked around, and a faint smile appeared on the corners of his mouth. He was gentle and polite. Anyone who saw this smile would have a good impression of him:

"Friends... At the end of the course, I must say that no matter how much theory you have, it is just theory, and no matter how much practice you have, it is just practice. If you want to defeat a powerful enemy, you must face your fear and defeat it..."

"I'm worried that he'll take advantage of you, that he'll try to control you..."

Harry suddenly remembered Dumbledore's warning, and the voice echoed clearly in his mind, which gave him a strong fear. He wanted to resist, he tried to struggle, he wanted to get rid of the monster entangled with him!

The monster's grip became tighter and tighter, and then the scar on his forehead seemed to burst open, as if a red-hot iron was pressed against his flesh, making a hissing sound. The pain was beyond imagination, the pain was unbearable...

Loren and Hermione stood on the side of the auditorium platform, looking at the bizarre scene before them -

Not far ahead, Harry's body began to tremble. His slightly bent hands shook due to excessive force, and his muscles and veins bulged hideously, but the part above his neck showed a gentle and polite smile, and his calm and steady voice echoed throughout the entire hall.

Is this what it means to be under great pressure and to squeeze out your potential?
Why is he still so stressed when the event is almost over?
It's still segmented.

Loren immediately realized that this man was not in a normal state, and quickly cast a Stunning Spell on him. Before Harry fell to the ground, he rushed to his side and steadied him. As he retreated towards the side door of the auditorium, he took the time to shout to the audience:

"Harry didn't eat dinner and he was so tired that he had hypoglycemia. I helped him to the infirmary..."

"The next activity of the Defense Association is yet to be determined, please pay attention to the notice board announcement..." Hermione added in a deep voice and hurriedly followed.

Even Ron, who had always been cheerful, finally realized that something was wrong. He pretended to be calm to calm his good friends, and followed them while saying that he had snacks in his pocket.

Watching the figure walking away with help, Ernie MacMillan from Hufflepuff looked at Justin and scratched his head: "What is hypoglycemia?" "I can't explain it to you clearly, I just fainted from exhaustion."

……

Harry was blind and dying, and every part of his body was longing to be untied. Before he lost consciousness, he heard the voices of Loren and Hermione. His uneasiness and anxiety suddenly dissipated, and his heart fell to the ground. He was even able to think about what happened tonight...

Did Ginny kiss me?
As Harry's mind filled with emotion, the creature's grip loosened and the pain disappeared.

When he woke up again, Harry was lying on his back on the soft bedding, his limbs were soft and sore, as if he had run all over the castle while sleepwalking, there was a strong smell of herbs in his mouth, his glasses were not on his nose, and the sound of someone speaking in a low voice echoed around him.

Harry opened his eyes and found that he was on a hospital bed in the school infirmary. He could tell who was speaking by the blurry figure and voice.

Hermione said softly, "When the activity was about to end, Loren noticed that something was wrong with Harry..."

"It's not just the end that's wrong, the whole event is wrong." Loren whispered as he sat in a chair, "I suspect Voldemort has discovered the connection between them. Maybe he was discovered when he went deep into Voldemort's brain and thoughts, or maybe his emotions were too volatile tonight... In short, Voldemort is trying to force his way into Harry's brain."

"It could be that he still covets the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts, and the activities organized by Harry stimulated him."

Ron, who was listening: "..."

Harry reached for his glasses on the wooden cabinet beside the bed and put them on quietly. The world in the ward became clear.

Unlike the solemn expressions he had expected, Dumbledore and Loren looked quite relaxed. They even had time to eat snacks and chew their licorice wands with a crunching sound.

Loren turned his head and pointed to the bed: "Look, he's awake."

"Are you okay, Harry?"

"It should be okay...right?" Harry himself wasn't sure.

Dumbledore, who was sitting beside the bed, stood up, leaned closer to Harry with his crooked nose, opened his eyelids and looked at him, then checked his scar, and handed him a box of chocolate frogs: "Some sweets will cheer you up."

"I don't understand..." Harry was holding the chocolate frog, confused for a moment. He looked up at his three friends standing next to him, and then at Dumbledore. He was completely confused. How could it be as if he just fell? That was Voldemort!
"Professor... I... Should we move to a safer place? That man... Voldemort could get into my head at any time."

Seeing that he was still relatively calm, Dumbledore smiled even more gently. He was as calm and reassuring as ever. If one ignored the chocolate sauce and biscuit crumbs on his beard, he would look even more reliable.

"Don't worry." Dumbledore chuckled. "He had been planning this all night, and only said an insignificant word through your mouth at the end. You drove him out with your own power, didn't you?"

"Drive out... my power?"

Harry said in confusion. Dumbledore's calm demeanor made him feel a little relieved, but his curiosity grew stronger. "Headmaster, I remember it was Loren's stunning spell... What does it have to do with my power?"

Loren's expression was calm, like an emotionless snack-eating machine: "The Stunning Spell only restricts your movements. It still depends on your own will to get rid of Voldemort's control. Think about it carefully, what were you thinking when you broke free?"

Wondering if Ginny kissed me...

Harry thought about it and suddenly felt a little shy. With a slightly red cheek, he glanced at Ron in the corner and said unnaturally, "No... I didn't think much. I just felt relieved and at ease with the help of my friends, and then I broke free."

Ron blinked with the biscuit in his mouth, feeling a little puzzled.

Why are you looking at me blushing? The ones who helped you were Loren and Hermione. I was left behind and didn't do anything.

"Precious friendship. This is what Voldemort has always feared, and what he will never understand..." Dumbledore nodded mysteriously and sighed with relief, "The power of love!"

"Cough cough..."

Ron suddenly choked on the cookie crumbs and took a gulp of canned pumpkin juice before he could swallow it. Facing the concerned eyes of several people, he waved his hands and said, "It's okay, it's okay. I choked. Go on."

Dumbledore seemed to think of something interesting, and his smile became even wider. He cleared his throat and warned, "Like I told you before, Occlumency is not the only way. You can arm your mind and fight back appropriately, so that Voldemort will not dare to break in casually..."

Harry nodded thoughtfully.

In the next half hour, Dumbledore discussed the matters of the Defense Association with Loren and others, and applied for some teaching books. The turmoil of the night came to an end, and the disaster that was thought to have serious consequences was thus calmed down.

"…It's already late, have a good rest."

Dumbledore stood up, said goodbye to everyone, grabbed a bag of honey and walked out the door.

"Then we'll go back too. You should get some rest early because you have a lot of classes tomorrow." Hermione nodded.

"It doesn't matter if it's a little late. We have History of Magic tomorrow morning..." Loren was roughly dragged away by the little witch before he could finish his words.

Ron, who had been in a trance the whole time, finally came to his senses, looked at Harry on the bed, smiled awkwardly and walked towards the door: "Well, it doesn't matter if you go to bed early or late, I'm leaving too."

Harry scratched his head, not understanding why Ron was acting so strangely. Then he came to his senses and began to worry again -

How can I explain this to Ron? She's my best friend's sister...

Forget it, it’s more important to resist Voldemort!

(End of this chapter)