My partner at Hogwarts is Tom

Chapter 75 Harry

Time flies, and it seems like only a few days and nights have passed before the unpredictable weather of the Scottish Highlands has cycled around the castle's stone walls for two weeks.

As autumn deepens, the morning mist grows increasingly heavy and damp, often obscuring distant mountains behind a gray, misty rain curtain.

When the sun occasionally shines, it carries a crisp chill.

Inside Hogwarts Castle, however, the familiar, inexhaustible joy and excitement remained.

The fire in the fireplace dispelled the damp chill, and the energy of the young wizards filled every corridor.

Over the past two weeks, three main things at the castle have sparked much discussion among the students.

The first thing is about the bizarre "disappearance" of two college ghosts.

Lady Grey, who always exuded a melancholy and haughty aura in Ravenclaw Tower, and Barrow, the sinister and silent Blood Man in Slytherin Dungeon, both ceased to appear in the castle around the same time.

At first, only a few observant students noticed, but then the news spread rapidly, like a pebble dropped into still water.

The ghosts were all conflicted, feeling both blessings and regrets.

Mrs. Pince complained twice in the library that she couldn't find Barrow to help drive away the students causing trouble near the restricted book section.

This almost caused a small panic. Could ghosts also meet with misfortune?

It wasn't until breakfast that Headmaster Dumbledore stood up and, in his calm yet instantly quiet voice, explained the situation to all the teachers and students.

He informed everyone that Lady Grey and Barrow the Blood were two of the most famous ghosts in Hogwarts' thousand-year history.

They have all resolved their centuries-old obsessions and inner conflicts, and chosen to "move on".

He did not elaborate on why he was obsessed or how he resolved it.

He simply praised them in a gentle and respectful tone for their long years as guardians and witnesses of Hogwarts, and wished them peace on their "new journey."

Dumbledore then extended an invitation to the existing ghosts in the castle to recruit new volunteer ghosts for Ravenclaw and Slytherin, willing to take on the duties and honors of being "House Ghosts."

These words sparked a long and enthusiastic buzz of discussion in the auditorium.

Ghosts "walk on"? This is a concept that is both unfamiliar and somewhat sad for many young wizards.

They were used to Peeves' mischief, Nick's rambling, the fat monk's good-naturedness, and even Lady Grey's indifference and Barrow's terrifying presence.

Ghosts seem to be an eternal part of the castle, like the moving staircases and the talking portraits.

Now that two heavyweight ghosts have departed at the same time, many students, especially those from Ravenclaw and Slytherin, feel a sense of emptiness, as if a page of a living history has quietly turned.

Speculation about their obsessions, what "keeping going" truly means, and who will become the new ghost of the academy—

These topics continued to simmer for several days in the common room, hallway, and dining room.

The second matter concerns the "gender reversion" of the Savior Boy.

After the bizarre potion incident at the beginning of the school year, which was privately referred to as "Tom's Curse".

Harry Potter, who had been appearing as a girl for a month and a half, finally regained his male form on the second weekend of October, thanks to the continuous and "meticulous" treatment and "cooperative research" of Potions Master Severus Snape, Britain's youngest Potions Master.

When Harry walked into the Great Hall again, dressed in his boys' robes and sporting his perpetually unkempt black hair, he drew stares and whispers from almost every year.

After Harry turned back into a boy, the changes in Potions class became even more pronounced.

The period of "Snape's special attention" that Harry "enjoyed" because of his "special research value," which made Ron Weasley green with envy and wish he could become a girl, and which also left Harry with mixed feelings, came to an end with the recovery of his body.

Professor Snape instantly withdrew his rare, awkward "patience" and reverted to his bat-like form, with his black robes billowing, cold eyes, and merciless venom spray.

However, to the surprise of many, Harry did not seem too disappointed.

On the contrary, under the "high-pressure training" of a month and a half, his potion-making talent, which had been hidden by fear and prejudice, was truly stimulated and unearthed.

He no longer simply followed the textbook steps mechanically.

Instead, they began to understand the principles of how the ingredients of a potion react with each other, and felt the unique rhythm and beauty of magic flowing, fusing, and sublimating in the crucible.

When Harry, now a boy again, brews a near-perfect potion in Potions class using his understanding and skill.

Even though Professor Snape scrutinized Harry from head to toe for ten minutes with his hawk-like self-illumination, and even examined the color and transparency of the potion under a microscope, he could only squeeze out a barely passable "acceptable" through gritted teeth.

Then, with a gloomy face, he unleashed double the firepower of his nitpicking on Ron Weasley, who was relieved to see Harry succeed but whose own mistake caused the cauldron to emit yellow smoke, and Neville Longbottom, who was so nervous that his hands trembled as he added the wrong porcupine quills.

As Harry watched his friend take the blame for him, he felt a strange sense of familiarity with the bubbling cauldron.

The world of potions seemed to have truly opened a new door for him.

The third thing is more like a "castle legend" circulating in a specific circle.

The energetic and mischievous students at Hogwarts, who enjoyed challenging school rules and creating "surprises," discovered...

Their newly appointed and highly respected "leader" this year is Tom, the assistant instructor of the Fantastic Beasts Conservation Class.

And the two original "leaders"—George and Fred—suddenly became elusive.

Previously, it was a secret hideout in a corner of a corridor, an abandoned classroom, or near the kitchen.

You can always find them gathered together, excitedly discussing new prank ideas, or testing gadgets that scream, change color, or explode.

But in the last two weeks, Tom, the eldest son, has rarely been seen strolling around the castle, and the twins seem to have been put into hiding.

Occasionally, when they bump into each other during mealtimes or on their way to class, the two always seem to be in a peculiar state.

He had obvious dark circles under his eyes, and his face showed signs of fatigue from lack of sleep.

But in those identical blue eyes burned an intense excitement, as if they had discovered a gold mine.