Magnus would have expected the headmaster to announce the Ministry's resolution of establishing a Pokémon club within the school by that evening.
Usually, Dumbledore made most of his important announcements during breakfast, but surely this was important enough that he could announce it during their evening meals... I mean, the rumours had already spread throughout the school.
It beat Magnus how so many people had come to learn of this, but again, once something was known to more than two people, it ceased to be a secret.
There had been a lot of people in on that story.
The headmaster, however, did not.
Matter of fact, he wasn't even present during the evening meal, and instead McGonagall was in charge.
The only thing she made an announcement about was warning the students against loitering after curfew, and that the second years and above would require a parent's or a guardian's signature to visit Hogsmeade the coming Saturday.
That bit was exciting to Magnus, but pointless, seeing that he was a first year. None of them were allowed to visit the village neighbouring the school.
Magnus had seen a lot about Hogsmeade that he was honestly impatient to at least see it for himself. It had become very close to him, especially during the last fight against Voldemort, when Harry, Hermione and Ron were almost ambushed by the Death Eaters on the street, only being saved by Dumbledore's brother.
He didn't think he would ever come around to thinking of this world as a complete reality, especially seeing he had interacted with it quite a lot.
To him there would always be an element of fiction.
Still, the group composing of Fred, George, Lee and himself left the Great Hall at the same time after being done with dinner.
Actually, they had timed it perfectly, because they had something to discuss, a lot of things.
Despite the fact that Magnus had objected against continuing with the Pokémon evolution behind the Ministry's back, there were still other aspects and projects that made it necessary for them to meet.
For instance, Fred and George told him that they needed to discuss the progress of the Pokéball, because now it was becoming necessary.
It was necessitating that they perfect the Pokéball, because that was the next phase in Pokémon evolution.
If Magnus had any say in it, and if they were able to achieve some decent modification to the ball, who knows, the twins might actually transform their lives and their family's. And Magnus might get some credit for it as well, that and a bit of galleons, if it ever passed the Ministry's approval.
They had, however, not gone past the first statue of the knight that guarded the corridors that led to the Great Hall when a voice that he detested rang from behind.
"Magnus..."
All of them stopped and turned around. Draco was alone, and he was swaggering toward them, not caring that he had called them to a stop, and etiquette demanded that he at least show some manner of urgency.
But then this was Malfoy, what did he possibly know about etiquette.
He clearly was doing it to get into their nerves.
"Let's go, guys, he's not worth it."
Lee said, seeing how defensive the group had become.
"I don't know, Lee," Fred mused. "I think we should jinx him with one of our bogey spells. I mean, those nostrils look like they could do with a bit of filling in there, otherwise they might suck all the fun out of the school."
"My thought exactly, bro," George agreed, reaching for his wand.
Malfoy looked a bit less confident than he had been before.
Clearly he hadn't been expecting him to have company.
"But you are right," Fred added, "he is not worth it."
"Let's go, mate," George said, pushing Magnus forward.
"Wait!" Draco still called.
He had to have a lot of nerve. It didn't look like it, though. It had to be something else.
Magnus waited.
"Professor Snape is expecting you in his office."
Now Magnus was surprised.
"Me?"
For a while there, Draco looked like he wanted to say something smart. Then, seeing Fred's Espeon eyeing him carefully, he seemed to decide against whatever thought had been forming in his mind.
Still, he could not resist a little jeer, clearly Magnus' fearful reaction had brought him satisfaction.
"Unless there is another Magnus, yep... pretty sure it's you."
He gave him an evil grin before turning around and disappearing back into the Great Hall, like the coward he was.
Magnus was left flabbergasted.
"Me?" he asked again at the group.
They stared at him in confusion.
"Why in hell would Snape call you into his office? Did you skip his class?" George asked.
"Of course he did, genius," Fred answered George's ridiculous question. "He was knocked unconscious for two days and then had a Ministry hearing, remember?"
"That means he was excused," George agreed.
"Oh, Snape is a git," Fred replied.
"Do you reckon he might have considered it still an insult... I mean, not even unconscious students get to miss potions lessons..." He paused, then his eyes brightened. "Oh, cheer up, Magnus, he might have decided to give you private tuition to catch up."
Magnus gave him a dark look, there was nothing cheery about that.
"Can you hear yourself? Snape can't do anything more than what is stipulated in his teaching contract, let alone give a student from another house private lessons." He said it more to encourage himself than anything else.
But he had, Magnus thought to himself, to Harry at the request of Dumbledore.
It hadn't gone that well for Harry though. Still, they had a point. Why would Snape call him?
"Did you have a detention with him?" Lee asked.
"Sure I did... but a while ago. I think he dismissed it and allowed me to leave."
"Well, I can't put it past Snape to have reconsidered his decision. Either way, I think you'd better go, Magnus," Lee said.
"Yeah, sorry pal," George pushed him towards the corridor branching towards the Slytherin dungeons.
"That guy is one impatient flobberworm. The more you make him wait, the worse it will be for you. You know how to access the lab, right?" George added, winking.
"We shall have something warm going when you are back... you will need all the warmth you can get knowing what that place feels like."
"Sure."
Magnus was about to go when he suddenly thought about something. Wait. Then he let it go. There was no point anyway.
With heavy feet and a dreadful thought, he began to descend towards the Slytherin dungeons.
The journey there was gloomy as usual. He didn't know how the students there coped with this. With more steps down, he felt just like what Fred had pointed out.
All the happiness was being drained from him. If it was not a dormitory for Hogwarts students, the dungeons would be a pretty good place for the Dementors to breed. They loved such kind of gloom.
But of course the twins would know, they must have interacted a lot with it during numerous detentions, no doubt.