Hermione's eyes narrowed as she spotted something odd in the shadow of a rock—a crab cactus, or so it seemed. Instinct sent a warning through her. She immediately recalled the Devil's Snare they'd faced back in first year.
But that wasn't the only curious plant on the field.
Suddenly, Neville piped up from the crowd, his voice brimming with excitement, "There's a cactus on that patch of sand—it's a Mimbulus Mimbletonia! I've always wanted one!"
Every head turned toward Neville, a mixture of confusion and amusement on their faces.
A bit flustered, Neville nevertheless lifted his chin and explained eagerly, "Mimbulus Mimbletonia is an extremely rare plant native to Asia. It looks like a little gray cactus, but it's definitely not a cactus... I thought Hogwarts didn't have any, or maybe people just mistook them for cacti..."
A classmate quickly clapped a hand over Neville's mouth, then shot an awkward smile at Douglas. "Professor, he's just making things up. None of us have ever heard of a Mimbulus Mimbletonia... heh heh..."
Wasn't Neville basically calling Professor Holmes clueless?
Aside from Neville, no one recognized this strange plant. Clearly, they thought, he must be mistaken.
Douglas waved the concern away with a smile. "He's not wrong. That really is a Mimbulus Mimbletonia. I actually meant to hide it among the cacti as a special challenge. But since nobody's run over there yet, it's gone unnoticed—until now.
Since you recognized the plant, Neville, I'll make you a promise: if you manage to catch the mouse today, I'll give you that Mimbulus Mimbletonia."
Neville Longbottom flushed crimson, his voice trembling with excitement. "Really? I can keep it?"
Douglas nodded. "Of course. I brought that Mimbulus Mimbletonia back from Asia myself. If you succeed, it's yours."
Neville practically bounced to the starting line, turning to Ron. "Ron, let me go first!"
Ron, still brushing off the humiliation of his earlier fall, pushed away Harry's helping hand and replied earnestly, "I'm fine—still good to go. Professor Holmes always says: 'Get back up where you fall down…'"
Neville stood firm. "Professor also says, 'If you want something, fight for it yourself. Don't wait for others to hand it to you.'"
Ron blinked, baffled. Those two sayings didn't really match, but he couldn't put his finger on why.
At that moment, Hermione stepped up, giving Neville an encouraging pat on the shoulder. "Go on, Neville. Good luck."
She then pulled Ron aside and whispered, "Professor Holmes promised Neville that if he catches the mouse, he'll get one of those plants. Besides magical traps, there are all sorts of magical plants out there. Do you really think you're better than him at this?"
Ron had to concede the point. Ever since Neville started memorizing things by rote, he'd become a rising star in Herbology—Professor Sprout praised him constantly.
He muttered, "So you're saying let him blaze the trail?"
Hermione shook her head. "No. If he goes first and fails quickly, there'll still be chances for the rest of us."
Harry came over, ready to offer support, but Ron shot him a glare. "You shoved me out there on purpose, didn't you?"
Harry threw an arm around Ron's neck, grinning. "Didn't you say you were a mouse-catching expert? Who could've guessed..."
Ron glanced at Douglas and grumbled under his breath, "Who'd have thought the traps would be so twisted? I was caught before I even started running."
Standing off to the side, Douglas watched as Neville took his place at the starting line. With a flick of his wand, he summoned the mouse back to the start.
"All right, let's begin."
At Douglas' signal, Neville sprinted after the mouse.
He barely got started before his foot skidded on a cluster of pebbles, nearly sending him tumbling. His awkward flailing drew laughter from the students behind him.
Embarrassed, Neville scratched his head—but the stumble had made him more cautious. He quickly drew his wand and, with great care, cast Serpent Glide on his shoes.
Instead of charging straight ahead, he used the spell to steer himself toward the very edge of the course.
A ripple of surprise ran through the class. They hadn't realized you could do that.
Douglas chuckled quietly. Neville might have a poor memory and not much magical talent, but he wasn't truly slow.
Of course, whatever Neville could think of, Douglas had anticipated.
That edge of the course looked like a shortcut—no obstacles in sight.
In reality, it was riddled with hidden pits every few steps...
Just as Neville tried to overtake on the curve, he hit his first trap.
Thud!
He plunged straight into a pit as deep as a grown wizard, the fall leaving him dazed and dizzy.
The mouse scampered to the rim of the pit, peering down at him with what looked like smug amusement.
Some students started forward to help, but Douglas called out coolly, "There's nothing wrong with teamwork, but timing matters. If he fell into a pit alone in the wild, would he wait for someone to save him? Besides, he hasn't even called for help yet."
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