Chapter 188: Snape: Teaching Your Class Here
"If you're not there, won't I have to go to class alone?"
Hermione pouted. "You know I don't know anyone in those classes. Harry and the others aren't in some electives, so I'd be sitting by myself."
"If you were also taking classes, we could sit together."
Dylan's lips twitched. "Hold on a moment—what do you mean 'if I'm not there'? I'm just not attending classes, I'm not dead."
"That's exactly what I meant!"
"... ('-'*)" There was no way to deal with this young girl. "Alright—alright, I just won't be appearing in those classes. I've already explained why."
Hermione's expression became dejected. "Alright!"
Indeed, she had no way, and no right, to demand that Dylan attend those classes with her. —They were just two friends whose relationship was a bit better than average classmates, but still quite ordinary.
More often than not, Hermione viewed Dylan as a rival. Not in a hostile way, however. She wanted to mimic and approach Dylan's daily study rhythm as much as possible. And precisely because of this, she fully knew how complex and varied the books Dylan read usually were.
At least far more than the books she read!
So Hermione understood that Dylan indeed had a clear understanding of his future plans. And he would run full speed in that direction. Some knowledge, he could completely discard. In fact, he had probably already mastered this knowledge, so there was naturally no need to spend time studying it again.
"Sigh..." Hermione let out a soft sigh. But even though she understood all this, Dylan's sudden departure always made her feel like something was off. —Shouldn't they be taking classes together?
Perhaps what she was worried about was that she and Dylan had been companions, studying electives together. However, after only a few days, Dylan had already made a more definite judgment about his personal future plans. He believed he didn't need to take these elective courses. But what about her?
In fact, Hermione didn't have a precise definition or plan for how she should proceed with her own future. It was just like Harry. Harry, precisely because he didn't know what to do next, maintained a casual attitude towards electives.
He and Ron, acting on others' advice, more or less chose a few courses together. Even if they performed poorly, at least they could comfort each other. —When making mistakes, having a companion makes the feeling of facing errors entirely different from facing them alone. This was very normal human nature.
Although Hermione had signed up for all elective subjects, seemingly completely contrary to Harry's casual choice of subjects, she was very diligent, very eager to learn and strive. But taking all of them was actually due to her confusion about the future, not knowing what she could do.
Instead of doing nothing, it was better to do everything once. This way, no matter what she ended up doing, she would have some accumulated knowledge. Harry and Hermione were fundamentally the same kind of people.
Hermione walked forward in silence. The group arrived at the Great Hall. After eating, they returned to the Gryffindor common room. Dylan, as usual, went to practice alchemy, feed his pets, feed the basilisk, and feed the increasingly incoherent Lockhart.
Dylan found Lockhart's increasing mental decline strange. He had only cast a Memory Charm on himself, forgetting everything. This would only cause amnesia, but it shouldn't make someone silly, right?
However, Dylan didn't dwell on it too much. After completing his evening routine, Dylan went straight to sleep.
The next morning, Dylan was the first to wake up. He tidied up, read, ate, and fed his owl. After completing his morning routine, it was almost class time. Dylan headed towards the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom.
On the way, he met Hermione again. Hermione seemed a bit down, clutching a thick stack of books that nearly reached her chest.
"Good morning," Dylan greeted.
"Morning," Hermione replied dully.
"What's wrong?" Dylan asked.
"Nothing." Hermione was silent for a moment, blinked softly, then looked up at Dylan again. "So you dropped Arithmancy and the other few electives, leaving only the class taught by that professor who doesn't seem to have any prophetic abilities?"
Dylan raised an eyebrow, then nodded. "Yes."
"You're not even planning to go to Hagrid's class?"
Dylan nodded again. "His class... I think, due to Malfoy's injury, it might be suspended for a while. Plus, this elective wasn't of much use to me anyway, so I canceled it as well." Dylan shrugged.
"Phew—alright, as long as you have your own plans." Hermione let out a sigh. Just then, Harry and Ron hurried over. After reaching Dylan, they looked up and saw Hermione. Both were stunned.
"Hermione?"
"Strange, why are you here?"
Hermione lifted her head glumly. "What do you mean?"
Ron clicked his tongue, turned to look behind him, found no one, then turned back. "Uh—I mean, just now—weren't you walking with me and Harry?"
Ron pointed behind him, then made an exaggerated gesture. "Then, Harry and I saw Dylan, walked two steps forward, and when we caught up, we found you, who should have been behind us, suddenly ran to... the front?" Ron looked puzzled, scratching his head in confusion.
Dylan immediately understood. Hermione must have gone to another class this morning, then used the Time-Turner to return to this point in time to attend Defense Against the Dark Arts. Hermione also caught on. Her voice started to become hesitant.
"This, uh... well—" Harry and Ron stared at Hermione. They waited for a long time, but she couldn't explain it properly. It was Dylan who spoke up then.
"Alright, it's almost time for class. Let's get to the classroom before the professor arrives." Hearing this, Hermione nodded repeatedly. "Right, right, let's hurry to class, let's go quickly!" As she spoke, she lifted her feet and dashed directly towards the classroom.
Watching Hermione flee, clutching her books, Ron frowned suspiciously. "Something's off! Nine out of ten things are off!"
Dylan tilted his head. "What about the remaining one?"
"Super off!" Ron lowered his voice. "I always feel like Hermione's hiding something from us."
Dylan thought about it. Recently, his schedule with the Time-Turner was either with Hermione or alone. So, no one else had discovered anything amiss.
Ron continued with his speculation: "There aren't that many classes today, right? And there aren't many books needed for class. Look at you two, Hermione was holding books this—thick!" Ron put one hand under his chin.
Dylan couldn't help but laugh aloud. "Is it because you're a bit too short?" They say girls grow faster than boys when they're young. Now, Hermione was even a bit taller than Dylan. —Of course, it might also be because Hermione was thin, which made her appear taller.
"Alright, you know how much Hermione loves to read. Maybe she wanted to read a few more books during lunch?" Dylan casually made an excuse for Hermione, then entered the classroom. He ignored Ron, who was whispering something to Harry.
After they sat down, Lupin didn't arrive quickly; in fact, he was a bit late. When he finally showed up, Dylan looked up. He noticed that Lupin was wearing the same old, worn clothes he had worn at the start-of-term feast.
Lupin wore a smile on his face. His demeanor was calm. He was also carrying a case—which looked as old as his clothes, perhaps even more tattered. However, his face had a slight flush, making him look quite well. After staying at Hogwarts for a few days, Dylan even felt that the sharp edges of his face had softened somewhat.
"I am delighted to be your teacher. I will do my utmost to make you understand the terrifying effects and dark essence of Dark Magic." Lupin didn't put down the case, whose corners were polished shiny and whose leather seams had jagged cracks. He firmly grasped the worn handle with one hand. After greeting all the students, he cleared his throat, his voice steady and strong.
"Close your theoretical books. Put those difficult spells aside for now. Today, no parchment or notes are needed. I only require you to firmly grip your wands." As Lupin's words fell, the students in the classroom were all stunned.
Then, the classroom instantly erupted into a buzz. Some frowned slightly, others whispered to each other. Their expressions all showed a hint of strangeness. This was not surprising.
After all, the image of Lockhart releasing a cage of rampaging Cornish Pixies in class last year, turning the classroom into a mess, was still deeply etched in everyone's minds.
Now, hearing Lupin immediately announce another practical lesson, everyone was very curious, and at the same time, quite apprehensive.
"Follow me." A rustling sound filled the classroom. The rustling of parchment and the bumping of books intertwined. Students quickly stuffed their textbooks into their bags, tightly gripping their wands.
Seeing that everyone was mostly ready, Lupin turned and walked towards the classroom door. Everyone followed him out in single file. Lupin's old leather shoes tapped rhythmically on the stone corridor. Behind him, the footsteps of the young wizards were slightly disordered.
As the group rounded a corner, a figure suddenly appeared. It was Peeves—with a wide face and mouth, wearing a bow tie, glaring at the newcomers. At this moment, Peeves was hanging upside down from the ceiling, his legs swinging exaggeratedly.
From the movements of his hands, it seemed he was trying to stuff chewed, sticky chewing gum into the keyhole of a door. His brightly colored clothes stood out particularly in the dim corridor. His round, bright eyes stared at Lupin, then suddenly, loudly, he sang in a high-pitched voice, shaking his cracked slippers.
"Loony, Loony Lupin, teaching Dark Arts like a mucky swamp, head full of owl poop!" Peeves finished his not-so-catchy but very grating rhyme. He giggled, pressing the sticky chewing gum firmly into the keyhole, intentionally wiggling his fingertips twice. The saliva-coated goo instantly filled the keyhole, completely encasing the brass lock mechanism.
As Hogwarts' most ancient mischievous spirit, Peeves, like the Dementors, was also a non-being. Unlike Dementors, Peeves was a poltergeist in the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, a manifestation of chaotic energy—that is, a ghost that caused various noises, disturbances, and object movements.
In reality, he was a magical entity formed from the mischief, rebellion, and disorder accumulated by students. The accumulated prank energy and mischievous nature of Hogwarts students over the years manifested in the form of Peeves.
And Lupin himself was a former Hogwarts student. Naturally, he was no stranger to Peeves. In fact, during his student days, Lupin, as a Marauder, had contributed many mischievous ideas. He was even one of the main sources of Peeves's power.
Now, facing this old acquaintance's provocation, Lupin wasn't angry. He just shook his head slightly, his tone carrying a familiar helplessness. "Old friend, how about causing trouble elsewhere?"
"Pah!" Clearly, Peeves had given his response. The spitting sound was loud, mixed with saliva, splattering on the stone floor. Peeves hung upside down, making a grotesque face at Lupin, his pointed ears wiggling with his movements.
Seeing this, Lupin said no more. He drew his wand and then said to his students, "Watch closely. This is the first spell I'll teach you. It allows an object to be rapidly propelled outwards." Lupin lightly flicked his wand.
"Waddiwasi!"
The air suddenly vibrated. The stubborn wad of chewing gum in the keyhole was suddenly pulled by an invisible force. It shot out backward at astonishing speed, precisely—right into Peeves's nostril.
"Aargh! You horrible fellow! Big silly!" Peeves let out a pig-like squeal. He did three somersaults in the air, cursing as he vanished around the corner. Only the intermittent "vile Lupin" faintly echoed in the corridor.
This clean and efficient handling caused the students watching from behind to gasp.
Oh my goodness! As third-years, this was the first time they had seen such a reliable Defense Against the Dark Arts professor! It was truly unbelievable! Lupin's composure strangely reassured these students who had endured two bizarre Defense Against the Dark Arts professors.
Dylan raised an eyebrow in the crowd. "Waddiwasi... quite an obscure spell indeed."
After passing through two more corridors, the group led by Lupin stopped in front of an unassuming common room door.
This was a staff common room. With a creak, Lupin pushed open the wooden door. Warm yellow light poured from inside. Everyone walked in, only to see Professor Snape lazily slumped in an armchair, the hem of his black robe dragging on the floor, his gaze cold as he looked at everyone. —Mainly at Lupin.
"Teaching your class here? Trying to steal the common room too?"
....
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