A little while later, a very sweaty Neville found them.
"Um... can I sit here?" Neville's round face was etched with nervousness.
"Come on in, Neville, why are you so sweaty?" Hermione helped open the compartment door wider for him, as he was carrying things in both hands.
"I couldn't find an empty compartment anywhere, and I saw yours was pretty full already..." Neville mumbled, looking down.
"Probably because the three of us are quite skinny," Cohen said, pointing to the spot next to Harry. There was just enough room for one person on their side of the compartment.
Once Neville was settled, they started chatting about the summer rumors.
"My gran doesn't believe a word of what the Daily Prophet says," Neville shook his head. "She says if Dumbledore says the Dark Lord is back, then he's back."
"Not everyone can tell the difference between a Wrackspurt and a Streeler," Luna said out of nowhere.
"But they don't even exist," Hermione frowned.
"They just look very similar," Luna insisted stubbornly.
The scenery outside the window changed rapidly, one moment cloudy and the next bathed in brilliant sunshine.
Cohen guessed the cloud-covered mountain peak was where the Dementors were currently gathered – because he'd caught a glimpse of an ancient castle on its summit.
"Guess what I got for my birthday?" Neville intended to show everyone what was in his bulging backpack.
"You're so happy, it must be some kind of plant," Cohen said.
"It is a plant!" Neville's face lit up as he pulled out a small potted plant from his bag. It looked more like a single decorative item than a typical "potted plant."
It was a small, grey cactus planted in a pot, covered in what looked like boils.
"My Great-Uncle Algie got it for me from Assyria. Even the greenhouses at Hogwarts might not have one," Neville boasted. "I can't wait to show Professor Sprout..."
When it came to exciting summer news, Harry and the others didn't have much to share, as they'd spent most of their time at the Order of the Phoenix headquarters, and what happened there was strictly confidential.
"Cohen actually went on holiday to Greece," Harry offered. "And saw lots of interesting magical creatures."
"Greece!" Luna's eyes lit up. "Were there Crumple-Horned Snorkacks?"
"Nope, but there were Hippogriffs, Horned Water Snakes, and Chimaeras," Cohen said. "And a bunch of oddly shaped fish – though I didn't see a Hydra. The weather was too good during my trip; they only show themselves on rainy days."
"Rolf wrote to tell me he found some shadowy figures that looked a lot like Crumple-Horned Snorkacks," Luna said.
"He didn't mention bumping into me?" Cohen sounded surprised, though on second thought, it made sense – Rolf was probably too busy figuring out how to win Luna over, so he'd naturally forget all about Cohen.
Is that what good friends do, just ditch you once they've got a girlfriend...?
"Maybe the parchment was too short," Luna tilted her head, recalling. "He filled a whole page with magical creatures and even sent a deer antler..."
Cohen knew about that; it wasn't a deer antler, but an old horn the Water Snake used to shed in the temple, which Rolf probably acquired.
"Cohen!" Hermione suddenly remembered something dreadful. "We're supposed to be in the Prefects' carriage – it's been half an hour already!"
"Huh?" Cohen's eyes widened. "Can't I choose another carriage? Sitting with a bunch of strangers feels like being in Azkaban..."
"Pffft –" Harry and Ron looked at Cohen with amused expressions, even nudging him. "We'll save some snacks for you, then you can tell us who the Prefects from the other Houses are when you get back."
Under Hermione's anxious urging, Cohen reluctantly left his seat.
"Why do they want us in a separate compartment? School hasn't even started yet," Cohen asked.
"We're supposed to get instructions from the Head Boy and Head Girl, and then periodically patrol the corridors to check for any chaos," Hermione recited from the letter sent by Hogwarts. "Oh no, we're so late..."
"Relax, Dumbledore just laughs when I'm late. What kind of fuss can a Head Boy make?" Cohen said dismissively.
When they arrived at the Prefects' carriage, it was empty.
A circle of cushioned chairs surrounded a round table, on which a note was placed. It read: "Patrol the carriages every half hour. After the feast, escort first-years from your respective Houses to their common rooms."
"Looks like we didn't miss anything major," Cohen said.
"There's an attendance sheet!" Hermione exclaimed in a horrified tone. "Look! We're already absent on the first day!"
Cohen noticed what Hermione was pointing at: a form tucked under a copy of Numerology and Grammatica on the table.
It listed the names of all eight Prefects from the four Houses, and apart from Cohen and Hermione, the other six names had checkmarks next to them.
Cohen pulled out his quill and quickly added two checkmarks next to their names as well.
"!" Hermione stared at Cohen with an incredulous look.
"No one's absent now," Cohen said casually. "There's no surveillance here anyway."
---
After patrolling the train, Cohen and Hermione returned to Harry's compartment. It looked like the trolley had just passed by, as the table was piled high with food.
"How are you back so quickly?" Harry asked, his mouth full of a chocolate frog, his words muffled.
"Because we missed every lecturing bit," Cohen stretched. "We were too late; there was no one there."
"So, do you know who the Prefects from the other Houses are?" Ron asked curiously. "Maybe there was a list or something?"
"The Ravenclaw ones are Anthony Goldstein and Padma Patil," Hermione said. "And for Hufflepuff, it's Ernie and Hannah..."
"I bet the Slytherin one is Malfoy," Harry speculated.
"You're right," Cohen confirmed. "And Pansy Parkinson."
"How did that Pansy Parkinson become a Prefect?" Ron grumbled, annoyed. "She looks like she's drooling like an idiot all the time."
"Pick of the litter, I suppose," Cohen said. "It's already a miracle for normal people to be born from inbreeding; you can't expect much in terms of brains."
Ginny and Luna burst into laughter.
"By the way, Ginny, where's your owl?" Ron asked. He didn't see Ginny's owl; her trunk only had an empty cage.
"Sarah went to deliver a letter," Ginny said, tidying her bag.
"Who would you be sending a letter to?" Ron frowned, grabbing at something Ginny was trying to shove deeper into her bag.
"Can't I have a pen pal?" Ginny retorted, snatching the letter back from Ron. "You're starting to sound more and more like Mum. Owls are for delivering letters, not for being statues in cages."
"She's got a point," Cohen agreed.
"I'm your brother!" Ron said angrily. "I have to keep an eye on you and make sure you're not associating with any shady wizards!"
"I never associate with shady wizards!" Ginny said, her face flushed. "And besides, who I associate with is none of your business, Ronald Weasley!"
Cohen caught a glimpse of the name on the paper Ginny shoved into her bag: Carlton Grey.
An unfamiliar name; it didn't even sound like someone from Hogwarts.