Blake was dragged into the cheering Hufflepuff crowd and quickly ushered to a seat by Cedric, who patted the spot beside him.
Blake glanced around.
To his left sat Cedric. On his right, Big Black Brother Bob. And across from him—his dear little sister, Hannah.
"Ah…" Blake sighed in frustration.
He had been hoping to sit next to a sweet-smelling, soft girl—not surrounded by his siblings and bulky housemates.
Suddenly, a loud bang echoed from the castle's front doors. Everyone knew what that meant—Hagrid had arrived with the new students.
Filch rushed over, removed the card from the door's top frame, and unbolted it.
Over ten minutes later, Professor McGonagall entered, leading a nervous line of first-years.
Filch re-secured the bolt and returned the card.
Blake watched closely.
He's not a squib anymore, Blake realized. And he's improved in ancient runes over the holiday. He hadn't seen Filch since summer, but the man's progress was undeniable.
Filch, noticing Blake's gaze, gave him a slight bow.
Blake nodded back, pleased. He's the kind of subordinate I admire—one who works hard without being told.
Meanwhile, the Sorting Hat had just finished singing its annual welcome song. The Sorting Ceremony began.
One by one, the new students approached, placed the Sorting Hat on their heads, and were assigned to their houses.
After the last student was sorted, Professor Dumbledore stood to speak.
He introduced the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor—Remus John Lupin.
As expected, Snape's face turned thunderous.
But even he knew there was no point contesting a direct descendant of Dumbledore. Especially since he'd have to brew wolfsbane potion for Lupin every month.
Still, as thoughts of Lily flashed through his mind, the gloom on Snape's face briefly lightened.
With introductions done, Dumbledore wasted no time and called for dinner.
Blake dove into the feast eagerly. For some reason, he was famished tonight—almost ravenous.
Maybe it's because of my body's sudden growth spurt after the explosion… he thought.
Soon, the Hufflepuff students around him began shifting away.
No one wanted to sit near Blake anymore.
His appetite was monstrous. Sitting beside him meant leaving the table hungry.
Blake, oblivious, kept eating.
Even when the feast wound down and everyone else was done, he continued shoveling food into his mouth.
At last, he set down his fork, wiped his mouth, and gulped down a tall glass of honey water.
Then came the notification from his system.
He scratched his head, confused. I was just eating. Why the sudden alert?
Only then did he glance at the mountain of empty plates before him.
His expression turned serious.
Something's wrong with me...
Blake was convinced his body had changed. But remembering that his future self created it eased his worry.
Surely my future self wouldn't screw me over, he thought. Still, I need to understand how this evolution works.
His mind flashed to earlier that evening—how easily he had deciphered the door bolt's mechanism.
He'd always been strong, but this was a leap beyond.
This must be evolution. But what triggered it? Emotions, maybe? Magic tied to feelings?
He remembered: just before his body changed, all the positive emotions had been absorbed, leaving only the negative ones.
I need to test this... But what if I lose control?
"It seems I need to find a way…" Blake muttered.
Meanwhile, a large black dog emerged from the trees.
Standing on a distant hillside, it stared silently at the towering silhouette of Hogwarts Castle.
Then it turned and padded quickly down another path.
Sirius Black was uneasy.
The dementors who usually haunted his path had vanished.
Has the Ministry given up on me? he wondered.
But he quickly dismissed the thought. An escape from Azkaban was the Ministry's greatest embarrassment—and Fudge would never let it go.
There must be another reason the dementors have pulled back…
Either way, it worked in Sirius's favor. He hated those foul creatures.
His next stop would be Hogsmeade. First, he needed food.
He'd run all day with nothing to show for it. Then, he'd look for a way into Hogwarts.
The rat—Peter Pettigrew—was hiding. Sirius was certain he was disguised as the pet of that boy Ronald.
And Ronald roomed with Harry.
The Gryffindor dormitories. Sirius knew them well.
"Peter Pettigrew," he growled. "Are you ready to die?"
The black dog bared its white fangs.
squeak!
Inside Gryffindor Tower, in the shadows beneath Ron's bed, Scabbers twitched violently awake.
Another nightmare.
Since Sirius's escape from Azkaban, they'd plagued him nightly—each ending with a massive black dog tearing him apart.
He didn't know if Sirius was after him or just coming for Harry.
But the fact that dementors had searched the Hogwarts Express today? That meant Sirius was closing in.
Panic rising, Pettigrew considered fleeing.
But what if he ran straight into the dog?
At least here, in Hogwarts, he was relatively safe.
Still, staying with Ron seemed too risky now.
He had to hide somewhere else—within Hogwarts itself.
After all, like Sirius, he had once been part of the Marauders. He knew all the secret passageways.
Deciding quickly, he crawled out of his little nest.
Then came the problem—how to leave the dormitory.
His Animagus powers had been suppressed. He couldn't change forms. Worse, his body felt like it was poisoned.
Running or jumping made him ache all over.
He couldn't even make it out the window.
In short… he couldn't escape Ron's dormitory, let alone Hogwarts.
Back in the Headmaster's office, Blake sat rubbing his stomach.
"Professor… I think something's wrong with me," he said.
Dumbledore looked at him thoughtfully. He was already aware of Blake's android nature—and that he'd been built by his future self.
Plus, the feast hadn't gone unnoticed. Blake's appetite had alarmed him.
"I noticed you ate quite a lot tonight," Dumbledore said.
Blake nodded. "Actually… I still feel hungry. I'm dizzy with it."
Dumbledore's face darkened. "We need someone I trust—someone skilled in healing—to examine you."
He needed someone who could be trusted with Blake's secret.
"Blake, use your teleportation magic to summon Dean Bohan."
"Now?" Blake glanced at the clock. "It's past ten..."
"This is urgent. Dean Bohan will understand."
Blake would've preferred to just eat again. He was sure this hunger was due to his body evolving and needing energy.
He had even considered returning to his dorm to drink a nutritional potion.
Moments later, Dean Bohan arrived at Hogwarts from Saint Bavar, confused and disoriented.
"Oh… Blake, what kind of magic was that? I only saw a ring of sparks—"
"Dean Bohan," Dumbledore interrupted. "Now's not the time. We need you to examine Blake."
"What? Is he ill?" Bohan asked, immediately worried.
Blake had been instrumental in the progress of magical healing. If something was wrong with him, it couldn't be ignored.
Dean Bohan pulled out his wand and began scanning Blake with a series of diagnostic spells.
After several minutes, he frowned and turned to Dumbledore.
"Albus… have you not been feeding the child? He's nearly fainted from hunger!"
Dumbledore blinked. "He ate more than half the Hufflepuff table."
"Still not enough!" Bohan snapped. "He needs food now. Or better yet—a nutritional potion. That'll be faster."
"I have one," Blake said, producing the high-concentration potion he'd meant to give Yuping.
He uncorked it and downed it in one go.
Dean Bohan's eyes widened. "That… that potion is extremely potent! Patients are supposed to dilute it first…"
But Blake didn't stop.
After the first bottle, he drank another.
Almost immediately, he felt a change.
Heat pulsed through his muscles. They tightened, flexed, and began to surge beneath his skin.
Dumbledore and Dean Bohan watched in shock as Blake's body transformed before their eyes.
His muscles writhed like small animals beneath his robes, expanding visibly.
Strength poured through Blake's limbs.
He stared at his hands, alarmed.
"No… if this continues, I'll become some kind of physical magician…"
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