The June sunlight streamed through the greenhouse windows, shining into a clean student dormitory carved into the Hufflepuff basement.
There was no doubt this dormitory belonged to a Hufflepuff.
Everything inside had already been neatly tidied: old books stacked on the bookshelf, a few strange biscuits tossed into the trash bin, and fragments of herb packets scattered on top...
From the looks of it, the owner of this little room was preparing to leave for a while.
A gray owl flew in through an open window at the top, dropped a copy of The Daily Prophet onto the desk, picked up five copper Knuts, and then flew out again.
The front-page headline of The Daily Prophet blared in bold letters:
"Hilarious! Sirius Black makes the Ministry of Magic a laughingstock again!"
Beneath it was the grim-looking wanted poster of Sirius Black.
"The manhunt for Black, which lasted nearly a year, was supposed to end yesterday.
At 7 p.m. Greenwich Mean Time, the Ministry of Magic's Department of Magical Law Enforcement received an anonymous tip providing detailed information on Black's whereabouts.
With the help of a Hogwarts instructor, Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge successfully captured Black on the Hogwarts grounds.
But the foolish Fudge failed to immediately send Black to Azkaban, or even carry out a humane execution. Instead, he chose to keep Black temporarily detained at Hogwarts.
Having learned extensive dark magic from 'You-Know-Who' and mastered wandless casting, Black was never going to stay locked up. He easily knocked out the guards and escaped once again!
This marks the second time since last July's prison break that Sirius Black has turned the Ministry of Magic into a public farce...
Furthermore, in an interview, a Senior Undersecretary hinted that Hogwarts played an unsavory role in this second escape..."
The lower half of the article was obscured... The headline on the Prophet's second page read:
"The 422nd Quidditch World Cup is about to begin!"
"Mr. Ludovic Bagman, Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports, has announced that the 422nd Quidditch World Cup will open on July 20 in England and run for a month. The opening match will be England versus Transylvania, and the final will take place on August 22...
We wish the four British teams the best of luck in this year's World Cup!"
Below that article was another headline:
"Shocking! A Hogwarts Instructor is a Werewolf!"
Mr. Lucius Malfoy, parent of a Hogwarts student, provided this information to our paper.
The true identity of Hogwarts Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor Remus Lupin is that of a werewolf.
This has also been confirmed by a Potions teacher who asked to remain anonymous.
Mr. Malfoy emphasized that Headmaster Dumbledore should prioritize the safety of Hogwarts students rather than..."
And tucked away in a small corner of the paper was another brief notice:
"An Extremely Dangerous Hippogriff on the Loose..."
Mrs. Diana Greengrass, Head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, issued a warning:
At 5 p.m. yesterday, a Hippogriff with highly aggressive tendencies escaped its scheduled execution. It may be roaming near Aberdeen, Glasgow, or Loch Ness... The creature is pure white with a tuft of gray feathers on its head. Anyone who spots it should immediately report it to the Department for the Regulation of Magical Creatures!"
...
Jon Hart rolled out of bed, glanced at The Daily Prophet, then tossed it into the trash bin on top of the leftover dog biscuits.
Stretching lazily… today was his last day at Hogwarts. Tomorrow at 10 a.m., he would board the Hogwarts Express for London, and from there return home to Southampton.
But before leaving, there was one more task to complete: choosing his third-year courses. In Professor Sprout's words, this was something to take seriously.
Besides Potions, History of Magic, Astronomy, Herbology, Charms, Transfiguration, and Defense Against the Dark Arts, he had to select at least two electives from Divination, Arithmancy, Care of Magical Creatures, Ancient Runes, and Muggle Studies.
Of those, he was required to choose at least one between Divination and Arithmancy.
He dismissed Muggle Studies right away. Jon doubted the quality of that class and had no intention of wasting his time on it.
Ancient Runes covered translation, deciphering Norse writing, and applications of ancient magic and mental energy. That subject would be quite useful.
Care of Magical Creatures also interested Jon. While Rubeus Hagrid was hardly a stellar teacher, his knowledge of magical creatures was vast. Jon could definitely learn something valuable from him.
As for Divination and Arithmancy, Jon had no interest in either. Divination, even in the original story, was mysterious and unreliable—extremely difficult to master. And as a Transmigration, with foreknowledge of the coming years, he certainly didn't need prophecy to guide him.
But since he had to choose one, he reluctantly opted for Professor Trelawney's Divination class—at least he was more familiar with her.
After filling out his course selection form, Jon handed it to Professor Sprout.
"Divination, Ancient Runes, and Care of Magical Creatures?" Professor Sprout said playfully. "I thought you were going to take them all and try for twelve OWL certificates in fifth year."
"I don't think OWLs matter that much," Jon said quietly. "What really counts is what you actually learn.."
Truthfully, Jon didn't care about his future OWL results. In fact, if the original plot held, he probably wouldn't even make it to the end of fifth year. Long before then, he would almost certainly leave Hogwarts—maybe even leave Britain altogether.
What he truly needed was to keep strengthening himself.
Nearly two years at Hogwarts had taught him much… but it wasn't enough. Compared to the Death Eaters, and even Voldemort, there was still a gap. He had to keep learning.
Jon was on his way back to the Hufflepuff common room when someone called out his name.
"Are you Mr. Jon Hart?" It was a stern middle-aged woman, her voice sounding oddly familiar.
"Hello, and you are…?" Jon frowned.