Days at Hogwarts

Chapter 176 The Curse Club

"The basilisk is a living organism. Its magic will continuously regenerate and recover, and it will threaten the students' safety again in about a month."

Dumbledore bent down and patted Loren's forehead, his eyes crinkling into slits as he laughed. "The Deluminator will be your reward, and the task of protecting the school will have to be entrusted to you as well."

Loren rolled his eyes dramatically. "Can I not take it?"

"As the headmaster of Hogwarts, I must set an example for the students and do what I say."

Loren couldn't help but ask, "But the basilisk will be awakened soon. How am I supposed to test the eyesight of a thousand-year-old basilisk that's awakened next month? Should I feed it first?"

Voldemort had only entered the Chamber of Secrets to assess the situation, without waking the Basilisk. Both knew that now that he had reopened the Chamber, he would surely unleash the Basilisk to cause trouble. Once awakened, the Basilisk wouldn't lie there obediently, letting them manipulate it as it did now.

"Hmm, you have a point." Dumbledore feigned a moment of thought, then said rather roguishly, "But I believe you have a way."

Loren just wanted to curse.

The white-bearded old headmaster smiled like a fox.

He realized last year that Loren was more mature than Harry and not suited to a meticulously planned, step-by-step educational approach. Rather than having Loren participate passively, it was better to present the plan directly to him and give him more control.

Dumbledore's gift of the Deluminator to Loren involved some alchemical considerations. Nico's "no comment" wasn't truly "no comment," but rather Loren wasn't yet ready to understand it.

The two restored the secret room to its original state and walked back the way they came.

"Headmaster, how do you plan to test Harry using the Basilisk and Voldemort?"

"Harry speaks Parseltongue, so he'll be the first to notice the Basilisk, and the rest will happen naturally."

"Poor Harry."

"He is destined to walk a thorny path, with obstacles not only from reality but also from within himself. He must believe in himself, believe in his friends, and persevere."

"That sounds even worse."

……

Sunday morning, in the auditorium.

Growing up in a family of dentists, Hermione was instilled with the importance of proper eating habits and dental care from a young age. Before attending Hogwarts, she always ate in a very proper and meticulous manner, chewing her food slowly and carefully.

This good habit was gradually changed after spending some time with Loren.

Although cola is bad for your teeth, it tastes good. Eating too much delicious food will make you feel bloated, but it makes you feel good.

She didn't know when it started, but Hermione began to learn from Loren and enjoy food to the fullest, without caring so much about the consequences. Hermione had to admit that although this man could be quite rude at times, the food he made was incredibly delicious.

Just like now, Loren used a knife and fork to cut a few slices of bacon into pieces on his plate, sprinkled them into the steaming oatmeal, and added a few spoonfuls of stewed beans, stirring it all together. The broth overflowing from the stewed beans gave the oatmeal an enticing color, and the meaty aroma of the bacon and the salty fragrance of the beans rose with the steam, making one's mouth water uncontrollably.

Watching Loren stand at the table sighing, not eating the delicious food he had prepared, but just stirring it with a spoon in circles, letting it emit an enticing aroma.

Hermione felt a tingling sensation in her salivary glands under her tongue, and then she wanted to eat.

She tried following Loren's steps to make the same thing, but it just never tasted as good as his. Maybe, like magic, cooking requires talent.

Hermione sniffed as she sat down next to Loren. Loren glanced at her with one eye raised, then lowered his brow and sighed listlessly.

"What's wrong with you?"

"fine."

"Did I hit you too hard yesterday? Did it hurt?"

"No, it was my greed that led me into Dumbledore's trap." Loren said sadly, handing the porridge he had prepared to Hermione. "You eat it, I don't like salty porridge."

"oh."

Hearing Dumbledore's name, Hermione was no longer worried; the two of them had been acting mysteriously at Hagrid's hut.

She took the spoon and tasted it. The bits of meat, bean paste, and oatmeal danced in her mouth, their savory aroma filling the air. She covered her mouth and couldn't help but ask, "It's so delicious, how could anyone not like salty porridge?"

Seeing her satisfied expression, Loren felt a surge of joy and stopped worrying about the basilisk. He pretended to be serious and said, "Salty porridge is heresy; sweet porridge is the most delicious!"

Hermione knew this guy was up to his old tricks again, so she snorted twice and ignored him, focusing on finishing the delicious food in her bowl.

Harry and Ron across from them were whispering about today's training.

Upon learning that all Slytherin players had switched to the latest model of flying broomsticks, a strong sense of urgency arose within every Quidditch player on the Gryffindor team. From Wood to Angelina, and even George and Fred, everyone rallied their spirits and intensified their training.

The hunched-over posture and heads-down posture suggested whispering, but the voices could be heard from several seats nearby.

Ron's nose twitched, but his eyebrows danced with excitement as he offered his idea: "That Malfoy got into the team entirely through connections; he can't stop you. As long as you catch the Golden Snitch before the score gap widens, we'll win."

Getting excited, he slammed his hand on the table, his voice rising a few decibels: "I'm definitely going to ride a broomstick and spin around on Marcus's head!"

Harry seriously considered the feasibility of the plan. He had managed to break Malfoy's arms and legs on his first flying lesson, and although he didn't say it, he still considered himself better than Malfoy.

He said modestly, "I've trained a year longer than Malfoy, so I'll definitely catch the Golden Snitch before him, but how to find the Golden Snitch as quickly as possible..."

As they were chatting enthusiastically, a voice suddenly rang out.

"Potter, Weasley," Professor McGonagall approached them sternly, "you two will stay in solitary confinement tonight as punishment for hurting the Whomping Willow!"

Harry and Ron's shoulders slumped. They had thought Professor McGonagall would have forgotten about it because she was busy with work, but it turned out she remembered now.

Ron was then assigned to manually polish the silverware in the prize room for Filch, while Harry was to reply to Professor Lockhart's letter.

Ron's scalp tingled. There were at least several hundred trophies in the room, and he had to manually wipe them one by one. He couldn't use magic, or his hands would get so tired that he wouldn't even be able to hold a quill pen.

Harry's scalp tingled, and his whole body went numb.

"Professor!" Ron pleaded, "Can we do it next week? The Quidditch team needs to practice their new tactics today."

Professor McGonagall hesitated when she heard "Quidditch." Gryffindor hadn't won the championship in many years, and Snape had mocked her for just as long. Even though Gryffindor won the House Cup last year, she still felt somewhat inferior in front of Snape.

Seeing a glimmer of hope, Ron was secretly delighted, but said in an even more mournful tone, "Please, Professor, the entire Slytherin team has switched to Nimbus 2001 this year, and Harry and the others need more time to practice."

After much pleading and cajoling, Professor McGonagall reluctantly agreed to postpone the lockdown: "Your lockdown will begin next Saturday night, and there will be no further extensions this time."

……

The following week, the school's professors were endlessly busy preparing for their respective clubs. This included the club recruitment process, the admission criteria, how to separate activities for upperclassmen and underclassmen, and the selection of club leaders…

The reopening of academic clubs has brought about a series of events that have left the professors bewildered.

The first-mover advantage of the Cursed Club became apparent at this point. Professor Flitwick had been maintaining the upper-year division of the Cursed Club, and this expansion only required the establishment of a new lower-year division.

The recruitment notice for the lower-grade branch of the Spell Club was quickly posted on the bulletin boards of the common rooms of various colleges.

The young wizards all learned about the Charms Club and that Professor Flitwick would be holding his first public event this Wednesday afternoon, which every young wizard could attend.

That afternoon, there was a history of magic class for second-year Gryffindor students. Professor Binns had just announced the end of get out of class when, in the blink of an eye, the classroom was empty, not a single wizard remained.

To secure a good spot, Seamus and Dean led a group of young wizards in a mad dash toward the club's activity room, their shoes nearly falling off.

"Hurry up! I heard all the wizards below the third grade are going to join the fun!" Seamus shouted excitedly.

Loren wondered if he was genuinely enthusiastic about club activities or simply excited by the crowd. But it didn't matter; he was excited too, and wanted to run wild in the hallways with the crowd. Even the older students had to avoid them—it felt amazing.

Just as Loren was about to follow, Hermione grabbed his sleeve.

Loren turned his head, a smile of excitement on his face, and asked, "Don't you want to join the Spell Club too? Come on, let's run together! Don't worry about me, you're sure to get a front row seat."

Hermione shook her head, leaned closer to him and whispered, "I had Parvati's sister, Padma, reserve seats for us."

After Loren and Hermione declined to become leaders of the lower-year students, Professor Flitwick found another outstanding second-year Ravenclaw student—Padma Pettier. Padma was Hermione's roommate and Parvati's twin sister.

Loren clicked his tongue in disappointment; he had really wanted to join the sprint.

It was the same classroom Lockhart had used before, with a four-sided platform in the middle where the young wizards sat around.

They rushed to the classroom, only to find that Padma had reserved seats for the two of them in the front row. Although Professor Flitwick had used magic to widen the classroom so that more students could sit, the experience of sitting in the front and back rows was definitely different.

"Thank you, Padma, otherwise we would have had to sit in the back." Hermione said, pulling Padma's hand and thanking her repeatedly.

Padma shook Hermione's hand and smiled at her and Loren, "You're welcome. I should be thanking you. Professor Flitwick told me that this position was originally yours."

Before leaving, she winked at Loren and gave her a charming smile. Hermione didn't thank her as much as she was told.

The young wizards nearby were probably also from Ravenclaw; they were whispering about things happening inside Ravenclaw.

"Have you heard? Marietta Eckmer is very dissatisfied with Padma; she thinks she should be in charge."

"Why? Because she's the daughter of Mrs. Eckmore of the Magical Transportation Bureau's Flyway Network Management Department?"

"Hehe, you're right, who spoils her?"

Loren and Hermione sat upright, eyes downcast, pretending not to hear the sounds of the neighboring house's furniture.

"I never imagined something like this would happen at Ravenclaw." A familiar voice rang in their ears.

The two turned around and exclaimed in unison, "You're here too!"

Harry and Ron, Seamus and Dean, even Neville were there, and they chuckled, "We ran fast and got to the front row."

"I wonder what spell Professor Flitwick will demonstrate. I'm really looking forward to it," Seamus said.

Dean said excitedly, "Whatever the curse is, it must be amazing. Professor Flitwick was a dueling master when he was young."

"I want to learn how to perform a thunderous explosion!"

"Me too! Me too!"

Where there are Simon and Dean, there is never a shortage of chatter.

Harry and Ron around them, and Loren and Hermione in the front row, all wore expectant expressions. The spells brought by Flitwick, the Charms professor and dueling master, would certainly not disappoint them.

In the classroom, the students below the third year gradually arrived. Even several professors came to audit the class. Unlike Lockhart's playful career club, the Charms Club was a serious academic club, and Professor Flitwick was the most experienced. Several professors wanted to come and learn from him.

As the clock struck midnight, the classroom lights went out abruptly, and the sudden darkness caused whispers to rise from the young wizards' seats.

Soon, milky white orbs of light appeared on the podium, drifting lightly to the sides of the classroom and floating under the ceiling, illuminating the entire classroom once again.

"It's the Illumination Charm!" Seamus said, suppressing his excitement, in a low but forceful voice.

An ordinary Illumination Charm simply produces a ball of light at the tip of the spell, but the Illumination Charms before us are not only numerous but can also detach from the wand and float around, demonstrating Professor Flitwick's extraordinary skill in spells.

Immediately afterwards, a stone embedded in the ground on the platform jumped out, bouncing and tumbling on the platform with a loud boom.

The young wizard gasped in surprise.

Dean said, "Oh my! The stones are dancing, which is somewhat similar to our exam question from last year."

The dancing stone stopped, twisting itself into a pretzel, its body stretched out, its top plate pulled high, like a strangely shaped high stool.

"Transfiguration? Professor Flitwick doesn't seem to be very good at Transfiguration." Seamus blinked, somewhat puzzled.

Hermione retorted, "It's not Transfiguration, it's a spell. Miranda Gossack said that a spell adds a specific property to an object, making it do something, not making it become something. The latter is Transfiguration."

A commotion came from the back of the classroom. It turned out that Professor Flitwick had flown up from the back and slowly landed on the stone bar stool.

Professor Flitwick steadied himself and flashed a bright smile at the young wizards: "My dear students, and dear professors of Hogwarts, welcome to the first public event of the Charms Club! Philius Flitwick extends his sincerest gratitude to you all!"

The sound was loud and clear, like the striking of a great bell.

(End of this chapter)