Hogwarts: Don't call me Wandmaker

Chapter 217 The Three Who Were Quarrelsome

At King's Cross Station, Sirius Black hid among the baggage carts and easily fooled the station staff.

After Xilun passed through the partition wall of number 9, he jumped down and boarded the train before anyone else could react.

Sirius didn't ask him where he was going. When they came back, Sirius managed to hide in the car the whole way, so it shouldn't be a problem this time either.

Just like during the holidays, on the train back home, Celen was in the same carriage as the Weasley brothers and Lee Jordan.

However, there was another one this time, Ginny. It seems she had a fight with her friend and was in a bad mood.

“Don’t do that, think about happy things,” Fred said.

"What's making you happy?"

“After school starts, you’ll be able to learn new magic,” George said.

"There's new homework."

"A new exam."

“New deductions…” Fred said with a smile, “I remember your first class tomorrow is Potions, right?”

Ginny's mood worsened. She should have known better. What comforting words could Fred and George possibly say?
In the evening, the train finally stopped at Hogsmeade Station.

Professor Flitwick and Hagrid were waiting for them at the platform. The freshmen followed Hagrid to the ferry, while the students from other years boarded the carriages one by one under Professor Flitwick's escort.

“This is very unusual.” George sat in the carriage, frowning as he asked, “Why is Professor Flitwick here?”

“No professors ever came to pick us up when the Christmas holidays ended before,” Fred said.

"Could it be Sirius Black?" Ginny's face showed worry. "Did he come to Hogwarts to kill Harry again during the holidays?"

“I don’t think so.” Xilun shook his head without hesitation.

Sirius Black has been staying in Diagon Alley, hundreds of miles away from Hogwarts, during this holiday season. How could he possibly go to the castle to find Harry?
Come to think of it, he didn't seem to see Sirius.

Sirius leaned out of the window and looked around for a while. It was already quite dark, and Sirius should have been very conspicuous, but he couldn't see anything.

I don't know if they ran away early or stayed on the train the whole time.

“In any case, something must have happened in the castle,” Fred said, and the carriage fell silent.

Soon, the carriage started moving on its own, slowly making its way towards the castle.

However, Xilun could clearly see what was in front of the carriage.

It was a special, magical animal. It looked like a black horse, very thin, as if only a layer of skin covered its skeleton, and it had bat-like wings.

These are Thestrals; only those who have witnessed death can see them.

Since the first-year holiday, when Siron used that disposable wand in Knockturn Alley, he has been able to see Thestrals.

A few minutes later, the carriage stopped at the castle gate. Fred and George jumped out immediately and ran straight to the stone steps of the castle hall.

Siren glanced at the Thestral's tail, then at Professor McGonagall standing at the castle gate... There was no doubt that Professor McGonagall could see the Thestral as well; none of his actions could escape her notice.

Without any hesitation, Siron immediately turned around, climbed the stone steps, and entered the castle.

Ginny followed closely behind.

Upon returning to the castle, they immediately went to the portrait at the entrance to the Gryffindor common room on the eighth floor.

The fat lady's vacation was not over yet; the portrait still depicted her as the Knight of Cadogan.

"Password!" He drew his short sword and gestured to the crowd.

The password was already given on the train.

“You filthy mongrel dog,” Fred said uncertainly.

“You too, sir!” Sir Cadogan called out, and the portrait sprang forward, revealing the passage behind it. “I’m starting to miss the Fat Lady,” Ginny couldn’t help but say.

However, they were too lazy to think about those complicated passwords anymore, and as soon as the entrance opened, they rushed into the common lounge inside.

fine……

Harry, Hermione, and Ron—the three people who chose to stay during the holidays—are all here unharmed; not a single one of them is missing.

The group breathed a slight sigh of relief.

"It seems Sirius isn't crazy enough to break into Hogwarts again," Fred said quietly.

"And the team doesn't need to get a new chaser," George said. "That's something to celebrate with a hundred fireworks."

But they soon discovered that the atmosphere in the common room was a bit strange.

The three of them seemed to be sitting a little too far apart.

Harry and Ron were by the fireplace, while Hermione was reading in an armchair furthest from it, almost the entire common room between them.

To put it simply, the distance between Harry and the others and Malfoy in the classroom was closer than the distance between them and Hermione now.

"Aren't they best friends?" Fred asked in a low voice, his curiosity evident.

"Are you having trouble?"

“Obviously,” Siren said.

As soon as he finished speaking, more students came out of the passageway.

The awkward atmosphere in the lounge was immediately dispelled by laughter, and it became crowded and noisy again.

Harry and Ron were clearly in low spirits and seemed distracted when talking to others.

It wasn't until after dinner that everyone learned the reason.

“What did you say?” Fred’s eyes had never been so wide. He looked at Oliver Wood and asked incredulously, “So we originally had a fire crossbow, but Professor McGonagall—our own Dean—took it and broke it apart, is that what you mean?”

“Please, don’t make me repeat myself.” Oliver Wood sat in his armchair, staring blankly at the fireplace.

"Do you know what I saw when I went to Professor McGonagall's office?" Oliver's voice trembled like the flames in the fireplace.

“They took it apart, and the beautiful broom branches were laid out one by one on the table, the ash wood handle split in the middle…” Oliver’s voice had become choked with emotion, and he clenched his fists tightly.

"How could they... those were fire crossbow bolts... this is practically a crime!"

Fred and George finally understood why the atmosphere in the common room was like that when they first arrived.

Because it was Hermione who told Professor McGonagall about this... told her that Harry had received a package without a name or message, which was likely sent by Sirius Black.

Professor McGonagall accepted her suggestion and immediately went to collect the fire bolts.

Let alone Harry and Ron, who had personally experienced this, even he felt the veins on his forehead throbbing when he heard the news.

Let alone the fact that they just sat a little further apart and didn't start arguing, that already shows how deep their relationship is.

They also knew that Hermione's idea was good.

Sirius Black, who escaped from Azkaban, was lurking outside, plotting to kill Harry, but Harry suddenly received a package of unknown origin at Christmas.

In this situation, the most correct thing to do is to first check whether any dangerous black magic has been cast on the object.

It's understandable, but those are fire bolts, the best broom in the world. Owning one is like holding the Quidditch cup in one hand.

So even though they knew Hermione was right, they still couldn't help being angry with her.

……

(End of this chapter)