To be honest, if he could choose, Kai didn't really want to be this Prefect. On the train to Hogwarts, he would rather stay in the compartment chatting or playing a few rounds of Wizard Chess, rather than walking around outside patrolling.
Fortunately, the students were very cooperative. Except for Fred and George, who intentionally caused trouble, everyone else was quite quiet.
Finally, in the evening, the Hogwarts Express slowed down and stopped at the pitch-black Hogsmeade Station.
The train door opened, and the air was filled with the rumbling of thunder. The rain poured down heavily, as if buckets of icy water were being constantly dumped on their heads.
Kai put on his waterproof badge, and the others followed suit. Those without badges transformed themselves umbrellas.
In any case, everyone had their own way... except for the first years.
They needed to follow Hagrid across the Black Lake on the boats, and were whisked away as soon as they got off the train.
"Oh, taking a boat in this weather is not a good choice," Cedric shivered. "I hope their first impression of Hogwarts won't be too terrible."
They moved their feet gradually with the crowd to the place where the carriages were parked. Kai casually picked the closest one to get on, and others followed suit.
A moment later, amid a violent jolt, the carriage set off along the path to the castle, splashing water everywhere.
Quickly, the carriage halted before two large oak doors. The students in front leaped off the carriage and dashed up the stone steps into the castle.
The hallway was lit with torches, giving off a warm glow.
As Kai walked in, he just caught sight of a water-filled balloon falling from the ceiling, exploding over Ron's head, drenching him.
Subsequently, balloons kept raining down constantly, causing people around to scream in panic and push each other in an attempt to escape the chaos.
"Peeves!" An angry voice shouted, "Come down here at once!"
Professor McGonagall stormed out of the auditorium. The ground was too wet, and she slipped, nearly falling backwards...
It's no wonder they say cats have quick reflexes; Professor McGonagall remained calm under pressure, swiftly reaching out and grabbing a nearby person's neck, thus managing to steady herself in time.
"Oh... I'm sorry, Miss Granger..."
"Ahem... It's okay, Professor..." Hermione said, breathing heavily while rubbing her throat.
For a moment there, she thought she saw her grandmother...
"Peeves, get down here now!" Professor McGonagall shouted again.
"I didn't do anything," Peeves giggled, throwing a few more water balloons at some second-year students who had just entered. "Besides, they're already wet, aren't they? Hey, you little brats, don't run!"
"I'm warning you, Peeves!" Professor McGonagall said loudly, her expression growing more serious...
Peeves stuck out his tongue, tossed the last few water balloons into the air, and then dashed up the marble staircase, cackling wildly as he ran away.
"Alright, get in quickly." Professor McGonagall opened the auditorium door, signaling the drenched students to hurry inside while muttering under her breath:
"I have no idea where Peeves got so many balloons; an entire holiday and he hasn't run out yet..."
Kai cleared his throat lightly and walked past Professor McGonagall without a word.
The auditorium was as majestic as ever, and for the start-of-term feast, it had been especially decorated; the enchanted ceiling flashed with lightning and thunder, frightening some of the younger students into constant shrieking.
Kai and his group took seats at the Hufflepuff long table.
Soon, the other house tables were also full, and everyone gathered around, chattering excitedly about the holiday fun.
The most talked-about topic was naturally the Quidditch World Cup, and students who didn't attend were curious to know if it was as thrilling as depicted in the newspapers.
"I wonder who this year's Defense Against the Dark Arts professor will be." Cedric glanced at the teachers' table at the front, seeing no unfamiliar faces on it.
"Maybe they couldn't find anyone," Mikel said, also eyeing the teachers' table.
"Everyone knows that this post is cursed, and to date, no professor has lasted a full academic year... Oh..."
Suddenly, his eyes brightened.
"Did you guys notice? It seems Professor Snape isn't here this year either."
He said excitedly, "Could it be that this year the Potions class will also have a new professor, besides Defense Against the Dark Arts?"
"Wow, that's fantastic!"
"Maybe he's just held up..." Kai dampened his spirits.
Snape should still be busy dealing with Regulus' affairs and didn't have time to attend the start-of-term feast.
"Oh, can't you just let me be happy for a moment?" Mikel said gloomily.
Just as he finished speaking, the auditorium doors opened, and everyone immediately fell silent.
Professor McGonagall led a group of first-year students into the auditorium.
"They look really pitiful," Cedric whispered.
The new students were soaked to the skin, and from their appearance, it seemed they had not taken boats but swum across the lake.
Kai stroked his chin, feeling that he could discuss with Dumbledore about undertaking the task of engraving Magic Patterns on those little boats.
By engraving specific Talisman patterns with Magic, they could add an invisible canopy to the boats, eliminating the need to worry about rain.
This would prevent the current situation from happening again.
The new students looked truly miserable, so much so that they didn't even dare to make eye contact with people around them, keeping their heads down as they walked silently forward.
As the Sorting Hat began to sing, he immediately shared his idea with Conna.
"I doubt that's possible..." Conna murmured, "Professor Babbling could do that job, yet to this day, those little boats remain unchanged."
"Give it a try, maybe Professor Babbling is just too lazy... She even wants to combine classes." Kai said.
Conna thought for a moment, realizing that this indeed might be the case. Every year, Professor Babbling would ask the headmaster once to combine all five-year classes to make more time for her travels.
In any case, she didn't seem like someone who would waste time carving Magic Pattern Talismans on little boats.
"Plus, we have a board of governors," Kai continued, "Dumbledore doesn't need to pay out of pocket, so he has no reason to refuse."
Conna was convinced, nodding in agreement, "So when do we find Professor Dumbledore?"
"There's no rush for that," Kai thought for a while, "This year's first years have already arrived, and we can do it before the end of the term.
How about during Christmas or Easter? We have a two-week break then."
"Alright!" Conna replied.
At that moment, the Sorting Hat's song came to an end.
"I have never been wrong."
"To determine which house you belong to."
As the last word fell, the auditorium erupted into enthusiastic applause.
Even though Kai hadn't really heard a word, he clapped along.
Professor McGonagall unfurled a large roll of parchment.
"When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool," she said to the first-year students.
"Stewart Ackerley!"
A boy stepped forward, trembling from head to toe. It was unclear whether from nerves or from cold.
"Ravenclaw!" The Sorting Hat shouted loudly after only a two-second pause.
The Ravenclaw table immediately burst into applause.
...