Percy Weasley, the Head Boy of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, adjusted his badge before opening the compartment's door.
All the students turned to look at him, questions dancing on their faces.
Percy noticed Darcie's eyes on him and cleared his throat. "Professor Lupin sent me to check up on you, Harry. He's seeing a few more affected students," he said. "Are you alright?"
Harry's entire face scrunched up at the thought of someone else knowing that he had passed out. With no other choice, he nodded and looked away, taking another bite of chocolate.
"That's good," Percy said. "It can happen to anybody. You weren't the only one."
Harry's head snapped back. "Someone else fainted, too?!"
Percy's eyes darted. "… No, I meant… someone else brought out a reaction from the enchanted Boggarts, too. A seventh year, whose father was a guard at Azkaban, also made the Boggart assume a Dementor's form. The effect wasn't as exaggerated as in your…"
"Okay!" Ron hissed. "We got your meaning! Just go away!"
"Hey! That's no way to…" Percy began, but stopped again, sensing Darcie's eyes on him. "Pass me Professor Lupin's suitcase. Also…" He turned to look at Darcie. "We will be reaching Hogsmeade in ten minutes. All Prefects are needed at the station…"
Darcie nodded.
Percy kept looking at her, hoping to see her put on her Prefect badge.
But Ron shoved Professor Lupin's suitcase into his chest first and pushed him out of the compartment, sliding the door shut.
…
After a while, when Darcie was gone, too, Harry finally accepted that he was ashamed.
Like all First Years, he had also attended hours of counseling from Madam Villanelle regarding Dementors.
From what he had learned, he shouldn't have fallen to pieces.
The usual lack of hope and cheerfulness was there, as described by Ron and Black. But he had experienced feelings beyond that, losing consciousness.
As if that wasn't enough, Harry remembered that this Dementor wasn't even a real one!
"Well, Percy did say one thing right, even if he didn't know it…" Black said, feeding chocolate to his big black dog. "You weren't the only one who passed out, Harry."
Harry's mouth twitched.
"That's mean…" Hermione hissed. "You don't even care about your dog! Look at that poor thing! And how many times should I say it?! You are not supposed to feed chocolates to a dog, you buffoon!"
Harry, Ron, and Daphne just looked at each other, shaking their heads.
The remainder of the journey passed with Black and Hermione taking jibes at each other.
When the train stopped at the Hogsmeade station, all the Hogwarts students stepped out onto the tiny, freezing platform, icy sheets of rain pelting over them. The train would continue its journey to Assynt, the newly built town near the Ilvermorny School, further north.
There was such a scramble on the platform that Harry and the others didn't even get the chance to say hello to Hagrid, who was gathering the First Years around him.
Instead, they waved their hands toward him and rushed to the mud tracks, climbing into one of the hundred stagecoaches parked there, each pulled by a skeletal, winged horse-like creature.
Not many knew about these creatures two years ago, as they were invisible to all.
However, the Battle of Legends changed that. A great number of students had seen people dying that night. Then, in the end, they had also seen the Yellow Warlock kill Grindelwald.
Ever since then, all those students had gained the ability to see these magical creatures.
After only a few minutes, rocking left and right, the carriage reached the massive wrought iron gates, flanked by not only stone columns topped with winged boars, but also two large cabinets.
The cabinets were rattling so much that their noise entered the carriages, despite the downpour.
At last, when the carriages came to a swaying halt, the boys and girls got out and were welcomed by a delighted, mocking voice.
"You fainted, Potter?! You actually fainted?!" Draco Malfoy elbowed past Hermione and stared down at Harry, grinning ear to ear, his pale eyes carrying a glint.
Harry winced. "… You are not going to let it go the entire year now, are you?"
Draco, in extreme joy, shook his head. He looked down at the dog then and kicked it in the leg. "Hey… Why does Uncle Black look like you, Harry?"
"Nice!" Black nodded several times, high-fiving Draco.
As the boys began heading up the stairs toward the Great Hall, Hermione narrowed her eyes at Black and Draco. "These two… Why are they so mean to their friends?!"
Daphne sighed.
The door to the Great Hall was open.
But the group of six had barely entered it when a voice called, "Black! Granger! I want to see you both!"
It was Professor McGonagall.
Black and Hermione shared a glance before immediately jerking their heads away.
They fought their way out of the crowd, one carrying a cat in her arms and the other holding the leash of a big black dog.
She took them to her office and made them sit down on chairs next to the fire.
"Have you mistaken me for Harry, Professor?" Black asked, eyeing her square spectacles. "He's the one who was molested by a Dementor…"
Hermione gave a backhand slap to Black's shoulder.
"Don't worry, Mr. Black," Professor McGonagall said, giving a fleeting look to the dog. "There's nothing wrong with my glasses. Professor Lupin told me that Harry had had a chocolate. That's the best cure we have. He will be alright. It's you two I want to have a quick word with about your course schedule, then we can go down to the feast together."
My course schedule…? Black frowned within. Where's the storyline headed now?
"Professor Snape shared your request with me, Ms. Granger," McGonagall said. "You have taken too many courses. If it were before, then we could have arranged a Time-Turner for you as an extraordinary exception. Unfortunately, this is impossible now for reasons I cannot share. Even Darcie's request for the same was rejected…"
Then, she looked away from a disappointed Hermione toward a shocked Black. "… Are you alright, Mr. Black?"
Black held back on calling upon Timeline instantly. "What's a Time-Turner?"
"That's not for you to know now," Professor McGonagall said. "I called you here because…
"… Professor Dumbledore has asked me to free some of your time this semester."
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