Hogwarts: I will not become the Dark Lord

The garden in front of Hogwarts Castle was like a tranquil painting. Without the aid of the Marauder's Map, finding someone became quite troublesome. Jerry had to ask the portraits in various frames along the way before finally locating Hermione here. At this moment, Hermione was sitting alone on a bench, tears silently streaming down her face.

"Here, wipe them away." Jerry said softly, handing over a handkerchief. Then, he sat down next to Hermione.

Hermione looked up, startled by Jerry's presence. She quickly lowered her head, wiping the tears from her cheeks with the clean, white handkerchief before looking up at Jerry again: "Why did you come out here too!"

"What do you think?" Jerry's lips curved into a faint smile, and he shrugged casually.

"I'm sorry, Jerry, I'm holding you back." Hermione's voice trembled slightly. "I've never been spoken to like that by a teacher in all these years. Professor Trelawney's words really upset me." She buried her face in Jerry's chest, her arms tightly around his neck. "You were right. If you hadn't been here with me these past few days, I really would have broken down!"

Jerry gently stroked Hermione's hair, comforting her softly, "You do seem a bit worn out lately. So, don't worry about Buckbeak for now. Leave it to me."

"Okay, I'll listen to you," Hermione nodded lightly, her voice as soft as a mosquito's hum. "But Jerry, promise me, don't do anything reckless for Buckbeak. I don't want you to be locked up in prison, or even Azkaban, because of this!"

Arrest him? Who dares? Don't be ridiculous. Do you even know what a lawless madman is! (Tactical lean back)

Even if Jerry himself agreed to plead guilty, ask Grindelwald if he'd allow it. Believe it or not, before Jerry is even arrested by the Ministry of Magic, the officials who issued the order and Fudge would have vanished from this world forever!

"Don't worry, I guarantee Buckbeak will be fine, and the Ministry of Magic won't bother me!"

"Thank you, Jerry!"

Hermione slowly raised her head from Jerry's warm embrace, looking at his profile. The emotions in her heart rippled like waves, filled with gratitude and...shyness. So, she quickly and gently left a soft kiss on Jerry's cheek, like a blooming cherry blossom, brief but beautiful. Then, she shyly retreated back into Jerry's embrace, pressing her cheek tightly against his chest, into his school robes.

...

"Can you even call this a holiday?" Seamus Finnigan's complaining voice echoed through the silent study hall. "The end-of-year exams are still so far away, why are the professors tormenting us like this?"

Hermione was still the busiest of all the students. Even though Jerry had helped her share some of the load, she was still the last to leave the study hall each day and the first to appear in the library the next morning.

"I have to seize every minute and every second to study. There are only a few months left until the end-of-year exams." Hermione already had dark circles under her eyes like Professor Lupin.

The Gryffindor versus Slytherin Quidditch match was scheduled to take place on the first Saturday after Easter. The Slytherin team was at the top of the league, leading by a full two hundred points, which meant that Harry and his team needed to score at least two hundred points or more in the match to have a chance of winning the Quidditch Cup.

This kind of pressure, like a heavy burden, fell almost entirely on Harry's shoulders. Because in this game, catching the Golden Snitch would directly win them a crucial one hundred and fifty points, but also, the game would end immediately.

"Therefore, I can only go after the Golden Snitch if I'm sure we're leading by at least fifty points," Harry explained to the others. "Otherwise, even if we win the game, we might miss out on the trophy due to insufficient points."

"You'll win, Harry, don't forget your Firebolt. That Malfoy's broom can't catch up to you!" Ron said excitedly.

"That's right, Harry!" Hermione added sternly, "Although Jerry is here too, I still have to say, in the Quidditch final, you must beat Malfoy to a pulp!"

Jerry, on the other hand, appeared calm and composed. He had never liked Quidditch, and the honor of Slytherin House meant nothing to him. When he achieved fame and success in the future, Slytherin House would naturally be honored because of him.

The entire Gryffindor House was nervously and eagerly anticipating the upcoming Quidditch match. Since Gryffindor's legendary Seeker, Charlie Weasley (Ron's second oldest brother), had graduated, Gryffindor had not been able to win the Quidditch Cup again. Harry had missed games for various reasons in the past two years, causing Gryffindor House to fail to obtain that long-awaited trophy.

The animosity between Malfoy and Harry had intensified. Malfoy was still bitter about the Mudblood incident and even more furious that Harry had escaped punishment. And Harry also resented Malfoy's tricks against him in the Ravenclaw match, as well as the entanglement in the Buckbeak incident.

The feud between the two players made this game feel like a powder keg even before it started.

After Easter, the relationship between the two teams and the two houses, Gryffindor and Slytherin, was like a fully drawn bowstring, ready to snap.

Small-scale conflicts occurred frequently in the corridors. The most serious of these was a fierce argument between two older students, one from Gryffindor and one from Slytherin, which resulted in them both being sent to the school hospital because green chives were sprouting from their ears.

"It would be great if there was a trash-talking segment at this time!" Jerry shook his head, feeling a little regretful. He thought he could discuss it with Dumbledore and add a trash-talking segment before the game, it would definitely be exciting!

Jerry didn't belong to the Slytherin camp, nor did he belong to the Gryffindor camp. He couldn't wait for the two teams to fight on the Quidditch field!

Quidditch matches are so boring, it would be much more exciting if a dozen people on each side were riding brooms and hitting each other in the air with bats!

On the day of the Saturday game, the atmosphere in the Great Hall was so tense that it was almost palpable. The students from the two houses were divided into their respective camps, and the tense atmosphere reached its peak. When Harry entered the hall, the students in the Slytherin area openly booed.

"Harry, good luck!" Ron and Neville waved their fists beside Harry, cheering him on, but Harry seemed to be affected by the tense atmosphere and appeared rather taciturn, mechanically nodding to Ron and Neville. Their cheers, though loud, were like a breeze blowing across the lake in Harry's heart, failing to stir up even a ripple, leaving only a faint echo.

"Harry, good luck!" Cho Chang shouted from the crowd, her voice not very loud.

"Th-thank you, Chang!" Harry instantly woke up, a hint of excitement flashing in his eyes. He immediately smiled at Cho Chang, and the gloomy mood that had just enveloped his heart instantly dissipated without a trace. Harry felt his face flush.