Ever since the Quidditch match against Slytherin, he had felt utterly unlucky. He was targeted by Dementors and then fell off his broom during the match on the field.
Without a Seeker, Gryffindor lost the game without any suspense. He felt he had let down Wood's expectations, his teammates, and most of all, himself, because their training had been so serious and diligent.
Even more saddening was the fate of his beloved flying broom—the Nimbus 2000—which had been chopped into many pieces of wood by the Whomping Willow, completely beyond repair.
He felt like he had lost a good friend; the broom held too many good memories.
On the day he woke up, Ron excitedly ran over to tell him that all the Dementors had been removed. Professor Dumbledore said they were almost certain never to appear again.
Harry was also happy, but he also felt a sense of loss, because his motivation to learn the Patronus Charm had suddenly disappeared.
He didn't like quitting halfway. He still hoped to learn the spell from Lupin, even if the Dementors no longer appeared; he still wanted to try to overcome the fear in his heart.
Thinking of Professor Lupin, he recalled the days when Snape substituted for them, which were extremely boring, with endless notes and homework, and utterly dull. He always liked to lecture with his greasy hair, using a tone that could make students drowsy, but no one dared not to listen. He liked to find ways to deduct points from Gryffindor, and as soon as you were distracted or felt like dozing off, he would "coincidentally" stand next to you and say:
"It seems you have a good grasp, Potter, but that's no reason for you to be distracted in class. Answer my question." His tone was extremely gloomy.
Then, whether he answered correctly or not, Snape would deduct points from Gryffindor.
Moreover, he answered incorrectly most of the time.
Also, Hermione and Ron's relationship was still so bad. The two would always choose different times to visit him. He now understood that the worst relationship wasn't when they argued fiercely and dramatically, but when they were in a cold war, not saying a word to each other.
All of this made him feel uncomfortable.
Today was the day he was discharged from the hospital wing, and their captain, Wood, finally brought him an unexpected good news.
In the afternoon, there was a match between Slytherin and Ravenclaw.
Slytherin was utterly defeated. According to the spectators, most of their players were distracted. Not only the players, but even the cheers from the students of the same house in the stands were weak.
Slytherin's loss meant that there was still hope to recover from their first game's defeat.
Like a ray of warm winter sunshine piercing through dense clouds, Harry's mood soared, and he was full of fighting spirit again, even when facing a broom that was completely unfamiliar to him.
Moreover, it was broken, rotten, and old.
He could only endure it; he had to find time to choose a new broom.
The Christmas holidays were coming soon, and before that, the students could go to Hogsmeade Village once more. Except for him, the other students were full of excitement.
Just as he hugged Ron, who was draped in a cloak and wearing a scarf, to say goodbye and was about to return to the Gryffindor Tower along the marble staircase.
The Weasley twins appeared behind him and gently patted him on the shoulder.
"Harry, poor Harry." Fred looked at Harry with a sympathetic expression and shook his head.
"We really couldn't bear to see you so lonely," George continued.
"We actually hoped you could stay quietly at school," Fred said with a tangled expression.
"But I think the final choice should still be yours," George shrugged.
"What are you talking about?" Harry shook his head in confusion, looking at the twins in front of him.
"We just want to give you an early Christmas present," they said in unison again.
"Thank you," Harry nodded and reached out to take the gifts from George and Fred.
"You can open it when you get back to the dorm," Fred looked at Harry and winked at him.
"Okay," Harry nodded. He still hadn't figured out the purpose of the two people in front of him. He even guessed if it was another prank.
"Trust me, you'll be surprised," George said.
Harry thanked them again and walked towards his dormitory.
"Honestly, Harry won't be in danger, will he?" Fred nudged George's shoulder with his elbow.
"Black doesn't dare to show up. There are Aurors patrolling everywhere around the school and on Hogsmeade High Street now," George said casually.
Soon Harry understood the meaning of what the twins had said to him.
The gift was a hand-drawn map, crooked and slanted, but it could express what it wanted to express.
It was a map to Hogsmeade, with notes on the precautions to take when passing through the secret passage.
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When Harry finally appeared in front of Hermione, Hermione opened her mouth wide, staring at him blankly, as if she had seen a ghost.
"Oh my gosh, Harry, how did you get here? Did your aunt and uncle agree to sign for you? Did they even sign the form and send it to you by owl?" Hermione's face was filled with astonishment.
"I sneaked out," Harry lowered his voice.
Now his nose sniffed, smelling a bloody smell, which made him not very comfortable. He couldn't help but look up and saw a sign hanging above, which read: "Unusual Flavors."
Then he and Hermione went to a darker corner before starting to talk about his affairs.
"Are Ron's two brothers trying to kill you?" Hermione took a deep breath and couldn't help but complain, then seemed to think of something: "You mean a map? Is there a secret passage leading here?" she asked.
Hermione paused as soon as she asked, and a memory she didn't want to recall began to emerge from her mind.
"Yes," Harry nodded, completely unaware of Hermione's abnormality, "It's from the Honeydukes cellar, next to a classroom on the fourth floor, there's a one-eyed witch, behind that is the secret passage," he said.
"Oh." Hermione, who had been excited just now, became a little absent-minded and simply replied.
She hated to recall her own rule-breaking behavior.
Perhaps there were other deeper reasons.
"Isn't Ron with you?" Harry regretted it as soon as he said it, because he saw Hermione's face covered with frost again, as cold as the snowflakes falling outside the window.
"Him?" Hermione raised her beautiful eyebrows, "Maybe he's still sipping beer at the bar, obsessively looking at some bar owner," she said sarcastically.
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