HP: Wormwood and Lightning Wood

The Hogwarts Express is about to depart.

Hermione sat with Ginny and the other two girls.

West, Harry, and Ron walked down the corridor and found only one unfilled box at the very end, where an adult man was sitting.

The man was wearing an extremely worn wizard's robe, patched in several places.

He looked sickly; although young, he appeared exhausted, and his light brown hair was already mixed with gray.

"This is the first time I've seen an adult in a train car," Ron said in a low voice.

"Who is he?" Harry asked. "Do you know West?"

West squinted, chuckled, and sat down.

How could he not recognize him? Remus John Lupin.

He would never forget how, because of a joke by Black, Severus was almost bitten by Lupin, who had transformed into a werewolf, but luckily James arrived in time to save him.

"Professor RJ Lupin." Before West could answer, Harry noticed the name on the man's trunk first. "He's the new professor."

"What does he teach?" Ron asked.

"Clearly, Defense Against the Dark Arts," Harry said.

"Harry Potter!" The carriage door was suddenly pulled open, and a platinum-haired boy angrily called out Harry's name in a harsh tone.

Lupin frowned almost imperceptibly.

Ron was used to it, while West watched the scene with great interest.

"Draco?" Harry laughed happily and pulled Draco into the carriage.

"What are you laughing at! You wretched Potter, you invited Hermione and the Weasleys to Potter Manor, but not me!" Draco gritted his teeth, shaking off Harry's hand. "We're done!"

Harry stammered, "No, Draco, I..."

The two bickered like elementary school kids, and West couldn't help but laugh out loud. Only then did Draco realize that there was someone else next to him.

"Vest?!" Draco exclaimed, "You're back?"

"Long time no see, Draco."

Finally, Harry gave Draco an exquisite alchemical brooch to appease the angry man.

No one noticed that Lupin's breathing was a little rapid and his eyebrows were twitching.

The train moved slower and slower, panting and struggling through the downpour, the raindrops and the train windows creating a dense drumbeat.

West noticed frost slowly forming on the car window and his heart skipped a beat.

The train jolted and came to a stop. Darkness suddenly engulfed the train, and the temperature plummeted.

Students screamed and shouted, "What happened!" Whispers filled the entire train.

"What's going on?" Draco was startled by the sudden darkness and instinctively grabbed Harry's hand.

Harry stood up and warily circled Draco, only to step on Ron's foot.

"Ouch!" Ron hissed in pain. "Dude! Watch out for my foot!"

The scene was in chaos.

"Quiet," West said in a deep voice, and everyone instinctively fell silent.

The light emanating from the tip of West's lightning-struck wooden wand tore through the darkness, illuminating the carriage.

Everyone remained seated, listening to what was happening outside. Harry and Ron, who were near the door, heard a faint sound; the carriage door opened.

A cloaked monster, towering to the ceiling, appeared in the doorway. Its head was hidden beneath a turban, emanating a chilling, decaying aura.

Draco and Ron let out a scream. Ron trembled and hugged himself tightly, almost wanting to jump onto Professor Lupin; Draco instinctively burrowed into Harry's arms.

West frowned. He was no stranger to this monster.

"court death."

West raised his wand. "Patriot!" A large, dark green serpent emerged from the tip of his wand, its hard scales scraping against the carriage wall as it slithered toward the Dementor.

Harry's eyes widened; he thought this snake wasn't much smaller than the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets.

Its massive body almost filled the entire carriage, and its dark green scales gleamed coldly in the darkness.

The black serpent hissed and coiled itself around the Dementor's body, tightening its grip so that the Dementor could no longer move forward and began to struggle violently.

A horrifying scene unfolded. The giant serpent opened its massive jaws, revealing sharp fangs dripping with venom—it bit into the Dementor's body, then ripped it apart with a flick of its head.

The Dementor let out a piercing scream, turned into a wisp of black mist, and vanished into thin air.

As the black serpent slithered out of the carriage, all the Dementors seemed to receive a danger signal and fled from the train at top speed.

Soon, the Dementors were all driven away, the train lights came on, and they heard crying coming from other carriages.

"Merlin..." Ron gasped for breath, slumping into his seat.

Harry felt his frozen breathing gradually return, and he touched Draco's head with lingering fear. "It's alright, Draco."

Lupin had already opened his eyes.

He stared intently at West, who returned his gaze expressionlessly.

Lu Ping averted his gaze as if burned. For some inexplicable reason, he sensed the malice hidden in the boy's eyes.

"Have some chocolate, it'll make you feel better." Lupin took out a large piece of chocolate and broke off a piece for each of them.

When it came to West, West waved his hand and refused.

Lupin didn't insist. He got out of the carriage and distributed the chocolates to the other students who had been frightened by the Dementors.

"What was that just now?" Harry asked.

"Dementors!" Draco said.

He jumped up from Harry's arms and sat down beside him, his face flushed, whether from embarrassment or anger, it was hard to tell. "Damn the Ministry of Magic! How dare they release the Dementors!"

Ron felt his legs still trembling slightly. "This was crazy." He finished the chocolate in one bite. "I felt like I'd never be happy again... but I feel much better now..."

West's face darkened.

He had already learned of the Ministry of Magic's latest decision from Caspard Somerset.

The exposure of Sirius Black's exoneration will inevitably lead the public to question the Ministry of Magic's law enforcement practices.

The foolish Minister of Magic, Cornelius Oswald Fudge, fabricated an event to cover up the Ministry's negligence and attract more public attention.

He lied, claiming that some of the most vicious Death Eaters had used some kind of dark magic to drive away the Dementors and escape from prison. While the public panicked, he could then send out the Dementors, pretending to protect the students and hunt down the Death Eaters, thus regaining the public's trust.

This is an absurd political farce.

To West's surprise, Fudge actually allowed Dementors to patrol the Hogwarts Express.

Lupin returned to the carriage and greeted everyone, "We'll be at Hogwarts in ten minutes—West, you've already learned the Patronus Charm?"

They're called guardian spirits, but they're completely different. After all, ordinary people's guardian spirits don't have a physical form, and they can't kill Dementors.

Lupin looked at West with a complicated expression.

West said indifferently, "An improved version."

After that, no one spoke, and the train slowly came to a stop at Hogwarts.

It was raining coldly outside when they got off the bus, and they saw Hagrid greeting the first-year students.

"Are you all alright?" Hagrid shouted over the crowd of heads.

They waved to Hagrid.

West and a few others followed the other students onto a rough, muddy road where many carriages were waiting for them.

West stroked the back of a Thestral pulling a carriage. The Thestral obediently lowered its skeletal head, nuzzled his palm, and breathed its cold air onto his face.

Harry and the others looked at West with puzzled expressions. Hermione asked, "West, can you see Thestrals?"

She reached out her hand, trembling, and actually touched the Night Stroller's cold body.

Hermione looked at West with trepidation, "West, you..."

A ripple of emotion spread through West's dark green eyes. He sighed, "They're beautiful, aren't they?"