The remaining ten or so days passed in calm tranquility. Aside from Avada being thoroughly tormented by a research topic on long-distance mental power transmission—and his Monster Book being borrowed by younger kids as a toy for a while—everything ran as usual, without a single ripple.
Thankfully, he'd decisively stabbed that Monster Book dead with a wand back then. Otherwise, who knew how he would've survived the rest of the break—though whether Hagrid would have opinions about it was another matter entirely.
And just like that, time quietly reached September 1st once more.
"Whew… it's been a long time since I've felt this relaxed…"
Gazing at the old-fashioned steam locomotive billowing white vapor, Avada suddenly felt a long-lost sense of ease wash over him from head to toe.
At last—he was about to enter the safest, most peaceful school year since enrolling.
In first year, he'd just entered the magical world and was fretting over his absurd name.In second year, Voldemort's shadow had loomed over him, keeping him constantly on edge.Last year, he'd thought things would finally ease up—only for the Horcrux diary to secretly charge up a major move behind his back…
But this year—
Everything had finally settled down.
All the threats from the original storyline had been cleared away by him—Voldemort himself, the Horcruxes he left behind, the Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets, and even the pure-blood families had just taken a heavy blow and would likely behave for a while. As for the Dementors that were supposed to cause no small amount of trouble this year, they wouldn't be stationed at Hogwarts at all, having lost the "Harry Potter is at Hogwarts" justification.
As for Sirius Black, there was no need to be on guard—he only needed to make contact eventually and retrieve the locket from Grimmauld Place. Peter Pettigrew, meanwhile, had been under tight surveillance from the very beginning; there was no chance of him slipping away unnoticed.
Other than the possibility of Hagrid getting carried away and bringing a dragon to class, there was nothing left to worry about.
"This is ridiculous—I've already spent four years at Hogwarts, and only now do I finally get to experience a normal school year…"
"And come to think of it, shouldn't I be preparing for my O.W.L.s next year? Time really flies…"
Muttering to himself, he dragged his luggage onto the train and began looking for an empty compartment. He'd arrived early enough—he should be able to grab a seat closer to the front.
"Oh—Cedric? You're sitting this far forward? And this is…?"
"Oh, this is Penelope Clearwater, the Ravenclaw prefect."
Cedric gestured toward the girl sitting opposite him, dressed in blue-trimmed robes and absorbed in a copy of Transfiguration Today. She looked up, smiled lightly at Avada, then lowered her head again—very Ravenclaw behavior.
"Oh, right—you didn't know yet,"
Cedric lowered his voice and stood up, stepping into the corridor with Avada. Smiling, he said softly, "I was selected as a prefect this year too. Penelope and I were just waiting for Percy and Montague to discuss the start-of-term arrangements…"
As he spoke, he pulled a gleaming, finely crafted badge from his pocket and handed it over. Avada cooperatively took it and examined it, offering a quiet compliment as he did.
"You made prefect? Congratulations."
"You don't need to congratulate me."
Cedric sounded modest, but the upward curve of his mouth betrayed his real mood. "You're far more capable than I am. Once you reach fifth year, you'll definitely get a badge too. Forget prefect—you'll probably have the Head Boy position reserved for you."
"Let's not."
Only then did Avada remember that prefecthood might be in his future as well. "I'm terrible at managing people. Taking on something like that would just add pressure. By the way—you're pretty busy this year, right? Prefect duties, O.W.L. preparation, organizing Quidditch training, and taking eleven subjects…"
"…It is a bit hectic."
Cedric's smile finally faded a little. "But it should be manageable. Percy had it even worse in his fifth year. I'll have to ask him for advice later—I really don't know how he managed to be a prefect and still earn twelve certificates…"
"Excuse me—could you step aside a moment?"
"Oh—sorry."
They finally realized they'd been standing too loosely in the corridor, blocking the way. It was only because the train wasn't crowded yet that they'd been able to chat there for so long. As they hurriedly moved aside, they took a look at the passerby.
This was clearly not a student.
Though his face still looked relatively young, his rough skin, unshaven stubble, and light brown hair streaked with gray all spoke of someone who'd weathered many hardships. He wore a worn wizard's robe patched in several places, and the battered suitcase in his hand only added to the air of weary resilience about him.
"Are you… a professor?"
Cedric blinked.
"Remus Lupin. This year's Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. You're one of the new prefects? Good lad—keep it up."
Lupin gave Cedric a pat on the shoulder, then turned and smiled at Avada before heading toward the rear of the train.
"Professors take the Hogwarts Express too?"
Cedric murmured in surprise—then realized he'd gotten no response. He turned, puzzled, and found Avada still staring intently in the direction Lupin had gone.
"Ken? Ken?"
"What is it?"
Cedric grew a little tense. "Don't tell me the new professor has problems too?"
He hadn't forgotten that Avada already had two Defense Against the Dark Arts professors to his name—Quirrell, who'd been possessed by Voldemort, and last year's fraud, Lockhart, both exposed by this very person.
Thankfully, he knew nothing about Professor Baker. Otherwise, he might've already cast a Shield Charm.
"It's nothing… I was just curious why a professor would take the train, that's all."
Avada shuddered faintly, then came back to himself and smiled at Cedric. "You should at least trust the Headmaster a little. There's no way every professor he hires has issues. If Dumbledore really had that kind of talent, the Auror Office would be partnering with him already—whoever he sent a job offer to would be dragged straight to Azkaban."
After both of them finished laughing at the tasteless joke, Avada straightened up and waved.
"I should go find a compartment too. If we keep chatting, we'll block the corridor again… See you at school."
"Yeah, see you."
Watching Cedric return quietly to the compartment, Avada once more looked toward where Lupin's figure had vanished. A hint of surprise and uncertainty lingered in his gaze—
That werewolf curse hidden within Lupin's vitality…
He might—just maybe—possibly…
Be able to cure it???
(End of Chapter)