days at Hogwarts

Chapter 768 On the way back to school
It's sunny outside the car.

The car was a little chilly.

White smoke was emitting from the front of the train on the rails, and a few owls were following the train, flapping their wings and having fun.

After Loren and Hermione got on the train, they walked back along the aisle and headed straight for the last section of the carriage. Sure enough, there was an empty compartment.

Loren randomly chose a clean and tidy seat and sat down. He then sat by the window, leaning against it as if to appreciate the scenery.

In fact, it was to cover up the embarrassed expression.

Hermione sat down next to him and looked at his red ears with great amusement.

The two of them had had more intimate behaviors and were almost frank with each other many times, but this was the first time I saw such a shy reaction in him, simply because of a normal physiological phenomenon.

Mr. Morgan is kind of cute like this.

After admiring it for a few minutes, Hermione smiled and shook her head, changed into a posture suitable for reading, took out the seventh grade textbook from the pendant, and began to preview.

Loren glanced at his reflection in the glass secretly, determined to find an opportunity to avenge himself, and without continuing to look at the scenery, he sat back in his seat silently.

Buildings and road signs passed by quickly outside the window. I didn't know when the train had left the town. The scenery outside the window turned into lush green forests and country roads. Colorful wild flowers flashed by, leaving behind a few blurry shadows.

The hills ahead were faintly visible as the train whizzed through this road, its bright red color weaving through the green mountains and tunnels.

There were footsteps in the corridor, and Harry and Ron knocked on the door and came in.

"Finally found you."

Harry sat down in the window seat in the opposite row, his breathing slowly calmed down, and his tone was somewhat relieved: "I didn't expect that I would almost miss the train on the last day of school."

"I ran too fast just now, and the piglet almost fell at the station..."

Ron stuffed the empty suitcase into the shelf, picked up the owl cage, put Zhu Qiongwei on the table, and complained as he cleaned up the seats: "We were supposed to leave at nine o'clock. We could have arrived at the station at least half an hour earlier and not have to rush to get on the train. It's all because the Ministry of Magic took back the car assigned to Harry, and my mother insisted on stuffing corned beef."

"Haw!"

Zhu Qiongwei agreed.

I don't know how Mrs. Weasley feeds this screech owl, but it makes its cry sound like a chicken.

Loren turned to look outside the door and couldn't help asking, "Why isn't Ginny with you?"

“She said she didn’t want to disrupt the graduates’ last ride experience.”

"Actually, they went to Luna to discuss the changes that have happened to newlyweds. They said it was a topic for girls and wouldn't let us follow them..."

As Harry muttered, he caught a glimpse of the cover of the textbook in Hermione's hand and immediately raised his chin, speaking with a bit of pride as a Potions major: "Potions textbook, I've also previewed a part of it, it's not difficult, I can get Professor Slughorn to give Gryffindor extra points in my first class!"

"The matter of Voldemort and the Death Eaters is over, and Professor Snape is back."

Loren's expression was calm, as if he was stating that the train had just entered a tunnel.

A shadow suddenly enveloped Harry, who was sitting by the window. Everything in front of him went dark. He couldn't help but cry out in sorrow, "Retire again? Why does he always retire? Can't the teaching position at Hogwarts be more stable? At least he can finish teaching the new graduates!"

"..."

The atmosphere in the compartment suddenly became cheerful.

In the past, when we took the special train back to school every year, we would discuss things related to the Ministry of Magic and the Death Eaters. This year, the topic was completely different: what new wizard pictures the Chocolate Frog had released, the back-to-school discounts at Honeydukes Candy Store, and finally, we had to explore all the places in the castle this school year...

"I heard there's an attic on top of the divination classroom. We can find a chance to get Professor Trelawney drunk during Christmas or Halloween dinner, and then we can go up and take a look."

Loren shared his adventure plan, suddenly wrinkled his nose and sniffed, a smile on his face: "Do you smell it? It's lunch time!"

As the words fell, the noise of carts clattering in the corridor was heard. The elderly witch knocked on the door a crack and smiled with dimples on her face: "Dear, do you want to buy some food?"

A sweet smell wafted into the compartment, a mixture of many kinds of sweets.

"Here are Bibi Multi-Flavor Beans, Puff Super Bubble Gum, Chocolate Frog, Pumpkin Pie, Cauldron Cake..."

Listening to the witch's sales pitch, Harry felt a little dazed, as if he had returned to the summer six years ago.

So he stood up and opened the compartment door: "Give me some of each, please."

"Okay, okay!" The saleswoman was delighted. She quickly selected the snacks and packed them up neatly before handing them over. "The total is -"

"Eleven silver Sickles and seven bronze Knuts."

Harry spoke in a steady voice and with a smile on his face, he handed over the coins he had prepared long ago, and felt that he now vaguely had some of Dumbledore's style.

"But……"

The saleswoman looked at him with some embarrassment and reminded him weakly, "It's twelve Sickles in total."

"……Oh."

Harry's smile froze on his face. He expressionlessly took out a few Knuts to fill the bill, took the snacks, and closed the door indifferently and neatly. His movements vaguely resembled that of a certain Potions professor.

Turning around, Loren and the others lowered their heads, pursed their lips, and silently took out the food they had prepared.

The corners of Harry's eyes twitched a few times, and he comforted himself in his heart that although their shoulders were shaking slightly, at least they didn't laugh out loud, and maybe they were laughing at the owl outside the window that hit the tree.

Molly prepared corned beef, sandwiches, pumpkin pie, nougat...

Loren's pendant contains iced pumpkin juice, butter beer, cola soda...

Actually, they had breakfast late at the Burrow, so Harry and Ron were still full when they got on the bus, but the atmosphere in the compartment was like a picnic. Looking at Loren taking a bite of corned beef with his left hand, chewing it with relish, and taking a sip of Coke with his right hand, the bubbles fizzing with a cool sweetness, the two of them swallowed quietly, and the corned beef that they were obviously tired of suddenly became delicious.

After eating and drinking, several people leaned back in their seats with comfortable expressions. Even the owl piglet that was fed nearby lay back on the table, half-covering its belly with its wings, showing a human-like silly smile.

Harry touched his round belly and couldn't help sighing: "It would be great if the train could keep running."

After he finished speaking, he was a little stunned.

He said the same thing that summer, but that was the holiday and we were out of school, while now we were back to school.

Same emotion, completely different state of mind.

The rise in blood sugar brought him a slight drowsiness. The sunshine in late summer and early autumn was warm, and Harry slowly squinted his eyes.

Loren on the opposite side had also eaten and drunk his fill, with a contented smile on his face. He changed several positions in succession, and finally found a suitable angle to rest his head on Hermione's shoulder, closed his eyes and began to sleep.

The train had already entered the wilderness. The golden sunlight was a little hazy through the glass window, shining in and hitting his face. His long eyelashes cast a shadow on his eyelids. Hermione's eyes moved away from the book at some point and stared at his face, not moving away for a long time.

It’s just a very normal sleeping posture, but I can’t get enough of it.

As the sun sets, we arrive at the station.

After stepping out of the carriage, Loren stretched and turned around to see two huge figures standing next to the station sign, guiding the new students in rough and dull voices.

Grawp was dancing with excitement.

The freshmen around were trembling and didn't dare to get close.

Only the former gamekeeper, Hagrid, showed a gratified and kind look.

After boarding the boat, the freshmen became much quieter.

They huddled in the boat, looked up at the half-blood giant in front, then glanced at the pure-blood giant in the back, with expressions of despair on their faces.

There was no boat in Hogwarts that could carry Grawp, so he could only tighten his belt, walk into the lake and swim across. His huge and heavy body caused surging waves, which crashed against the shore, one wave after another.

The boat drifted with the current and was in danger of capsizing at any time, causing the little witch to scream and cry.

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"Don't worry, dear children, gamekeeper Grawp is protecting you!" Hagrid shouted encouragingly.

The freshmen huddled in the boat, hugging each other, and trembling even more violently.

……

On the other side, senior students entered the school in the Thestrals and walked into the brightly lit castle.

The auditorium was still as magnificent as ever. The velvet dome was twinkling with starlight. Thousands of candles were floating in the air, illuminating the entire room. The golden plates and goblets were sparkling. Ghosts were moving between the long tables of the academy, flashing a hazy and transparent silver light.

Only the Slytherin table seemed shrouded in shadow. Many pure-blood students were silent, and even when they talked to the people around them, they seemed powerless.

The atmosphere in Slytherin was somewhat depressing.

Many students' families were in trouble. Not only were their Death Eater relatives facing trial, but the Ministry of Magic was also conducting an unprecedentedly harsh investigation. Many officials in the family were dismissed and sent home, causing many businesses to cease to continue.

The students of the pure-blood families realized that some far-reaching changes were taking place, but they could not see clearly and could not change them, so they could only feel at a loss.

As students from other colleges entered, the hall gradually became lively. After a summer break, the students seemed to have endless topics to talk about. Most of them gathered around Harry, chattering about information about Voldemort and the Death Eaters.

There are a few exceptions, such as the clever Seamus.

He approached Loren at some point and asked in a low voice, "The Daily Prophet reported the details of the battlefield. They said that a mysterious wizard defeated Voldemort. It wasn't Dumbledore or Harry. I had a guess at the time!"

Loren looked up at him.

Seamus's face flushed, and he was obviously a little excited. He kept recounting the newspaper news, confirming his unfounded but inexplicably correct guesses: "Loren, were you there at the scene? Did you participate in the battle?"

"Ah."

Seamus held his breath and lowered his voice: "So...are you the mysterious wizard?"

"Ah."

"I knew it!" Seamus cheered in a low voice, even more excited than the people present. "I heard that you ambushed Voldemort at the airport, and the Ministry of Magic and the Order of the Phoenix all joined the battle, as well as the Magical Congress of the United States of America. Are the Aurors there more powerful than those in the Ministry of Magic?"

"It should be about the same."

"What about the Death Eaters? Are they all extremely vicious and cruel? When they fight, they all use the Unforgivable Curses, and the lightest curse is torn into pieces? Are there any werewolves joining the battle? Which side do the werewolves stand on? What about the Dementors?"

"I don't know the specifics."

"Look at my brain!" Seamus slapped his forehead with a crisp sound, "Your opponent is Voldemort. The battlefield is completely different. Of course, you don't know the battle situation of ordinary wizards. They can't see your face at all. No wonder the newspapers only say that you are a mysterious wizard..."

"That's not what I meant." Loren paused, "I later told Headmaster Dumbledore that it would have been great if you were here. Your explosive magic would have certainly been able to inflict heavy damage on them."

"Loren!!"

Seamus slapped him hard on the shoulder. Although he tried his best to restrain himself, he couldn't help grinning, as if he had taken a high-energy drug and couldn't close his mouth.

He took a deep breath and took a while to calm down. "It is said that wizard governments of many countries have awarded you the anonymous Order of Merlin and specially granted you a seat in the Federation. When do you plan to reveal your identity?"

“I don’t have that idea for now.”

"Okay, I understand." Seamus smiled again, "I will keep it a secret for you. I won't tell anyone, not even if Dean asks me, and not even if my parents ask me."

"Thank you Seamus."

Loren couldn't help laughing as he watched his back go away. He shook his head and began to look around the main guest seats, observing the teaching staff lineup for this school year.

The main guest seats were vaguely divided into two areas. The back was for the elective courses and logistics faculty, and they were still familiar faces, with no changes. The front was for the main subject professors and the four deans, and the seating order and positions were different from last year, but there were no unfamiliar faces.

Sitting in the center seat was Dumbledore, and on his left and right were the two deputy headmasters, Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape.

The three professors were talking in low voices. Perhaps one of them happened to mention Loren, or perhaps they sensed his gaze, and they all turned to look at him, nodded, and smiled at him.

There was no sign of Professor Slughorn; he had really retired this time.

Turning his eyes to the right, next to Professors Flitwick and Sprout, the professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts had also been replaced. Remus Lupin raised his glass and gave him a gentle smile.

Loren was stunned for a moment, with some vague guess in his heart.

Ten minutes later, the sorting ceremony officially began.

As the freshmen lined up to enter, there were traces of dried tears on their faces. There was still a hint of fear in their curious, inquiring eyes as they secretly glanced at the students at the long table and the professors in the guest of honor seats.

Snape, dressed in a black robe, walked down from the guest of honor seat and placed the worn Sorting Hat on the four-legged stool. He then stood aside with an expressionless face, quietly looking at the group of freshmen.

"what?"

The senior students were a little surprised. After two years, Professor Snape seemed to have become much gentler.

In the eyes of the new students, there is another picture——

The man in the tattered and dirty hat sang a weird song, and the strange and gloomy professor next to him had sharp and cold eyes, as if he wanted to make them into specimens.

The dried tears of several little witches became moist again.

The shadow of fear once again looms over this group of freshmen!
(End of this chapter)