Days at Hogwarts

Chapter 727 Harry: Loren still cares about me

Hogwarts.

The bluestone used to build the outer walls has been dulled by wind and sand, and after being exposed to the sun and rain, it has turned a deep dark green. The morning mist that has not yet dissipated floats in the corner of the wall, and dewdrops still condense on a few blades of grass. The top floor of the tower is bathed in the summer sun, and the bricks and stones are tinged with a faint golden light. The contrast between light and shadow makes this magic school even more dreamlike.

In front of the foyer, Harry sat on the marble steps, staring intently at the bronze knuckles in his hand.

Unfortunately, Tongnat remained silent. Several minutes passed, and there was still no new message. If nothing unexpected happened, there probably wouldn't be any more messages for a while.

The expectation in Harry's eyes slowly faded, and he sighed deeply, much like a lonely old man left alone in his hometown.

Based on his understanding of this friend, he figured that the guy had probably already put away his communicator. Unless there was any valuable information, the next time he thought of communicating with his roommate who stayed on campus would probably be at the end of the month, around his seventeenth birthday.

This cold-hearted fellow is reliable in crucial moments and his advice is very useful, but he only has enough patience for Hermione. As for others, unless they are right in front of him, he will just give them the runaround.

But this guy is quick-witted. No matter how rude he is over the phone or through letters, he always manages to appease the other person's anger the next time they meet, leaving them with no chance to retaliate.

"..."

Harry muttered to himself that he would definitely interrogate him harshly the next time they met, and make him so ashamed that he couldn't stand it anymore.

A gentle breeze swept through the castle, through the empty corridors and passageways, and along the walls, dispersing the fog that lingered in the school, making a soft sound.

"Huff, huff..."

The flowers and leaves swayed gently, and dewdrops slid down, as if everything in this ancient building was responding to his murmurs. The castle came alive and thus became tranquil.

Harry let out a long breath. His bottom was getting a little cold from sitting on the rock for so long. He got up, patted himself a couple of times, and then started walking towards the Forbidden Forest.

Hagrid should be back soon. He and Gropp patrol the Forbidden Forest twice a day, morning and evening, at irregular times, but always twice a day. This is partly to prevent anyone from sneaking into the school during the holidays, and partly to protect against forest fires. Of course, their main purpose is, of course, to collect food for the Giant Brothers.

The unicorns seem to know that school is out for the holidays, and occasionally venture out to the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest.

And then there were the horsemen. On the night of the waning moon last time, Ferenze led a few foals to the field to perform divination, lighting strange hay to make a bonfire, which was filled with smoke.

It's unclear what future it foreshadows, but it's certainly effective at repelling mosquitoes.

Summer vacation at Hogwarts wasn't boring at all; sometimes it was quite lively. He wasn't the only one in the castle; besides the house-elves who didn't want to take a vacation, there was also Professor McGonagall.

It's said that Professor McGonagall stayed at the school specifically for him, but Harry isn't sure of the specifics.

The house-elves' main job now is cleaning the castle, including the residences of the four houses, the long-used classrooms, and the various secluded towers. Hogwarts kitchens no longer serve meals in bulk, and if they don't go to Hagrid's place, they have to eat with Professor McGonagall every day, which feels strange.

Every night before lights out, I have to report to the office, which feels like a room check at a Muggle boarding school.

After walking for about ten minutes, we arrived at the Forbidden Forest Hut.

It's now a small courtyard, covering a considerable area. The nearby trees have been cut down and cleared, some used for firewood for the winter and some for a fence.

The vegetable garden was divided into several plots by earthen beds. The largest plot was planted with pumpkins, while the other plots were planted with purple cabbage, radishes, cauliflower, and so on.

There was also a small patch of empty land where nothing was planted; that was Aragog's cemetery, though the weeds on it were quite lush.

The courtyard was quiet, with the doors and windows tightly closed. A pile of dried wood lay on the ground, seemingly ready to be chopped for firewood. The water vat in front of the door was empty, with only half a tank of water remaining.

It looks like Hagrid and Gropp haven't returned yet.

There was a small, crudely made padlock on the door, its pins weak and clearly unable to stop the unlocking spell. Hagrid probably wouldn't mind... but Harry didn't open the door and go in.

He couldn't explain why either.

It was somewhat influenced by Loren.

Harry glanced at the firewood and water tank, thought for a moment, and decided to peer through the fence at the slug on the pumpkin's head while waiting for Hagrid to return next to the vegetable garden.

These tasks are slow and tiring for him, so he might as well wait here for Hagrid and Gropp to return.

The reasons are valid, and this is also influenced by Loren.

Just as the two slugs were about to pass through the vines lying in the middle and complete their destined encounter, a loud barking finally rang out from the path behind the house.

Harry withdrew his lingering gaze, stood up, and headed back to tell Hagrid that his vegetable garden needed pest control.

As always, Tooth was very enthusiastic. He ran up to him and started circling around his trouser leg, sticking out his tongue and making soft snorting noises, as if he was telling him about the sights he had seen along the way. Hagrid stayed behind and kept an eye on Grop to prevent him from being attracted by any birds or butterflies and running into the forest and getting lost. There had been precedents for this.

"Hagrid, Grop!"

"Ha... Harry..."

"It's Harry! Why don't you come inside and wait?" Hagrid threw the rabbit he had hunted on the ground and wiped his hands on his mole fur coat. "I ran into Bane on the way and was delayed for a while, so I'm back late. Watch over Gropp for me while I go prepare lunch."

"oh!"

Harry sometimes thinks he's a professor, staying at the school to babysit Hagrid's children.

I wonder if Professor McGonagall felt the same way about him, worried that he might be attracted by some butterflies and birds and leave the school, doing something silly and causing a commotion so that we could find him.

It feels a bit strange.

Harry had already figured out how to get along with Gropp. He approached the underdeveloped pure-blood giant, took a box from his storage scales, opened it, and found an oval-shaped gray ball tied inside.

A wandering ball!

Harry specifically asked Professor McGonagall for it; it was equipment that the school was about to discard. It had passed its expiration date, and the Blink-Walking Ball seemed to have gone mad, flying around erratically, though it was faster, making it completely unusable for matches.

It would be perfect as a toy for Gropp.

As soon as the rope was untied, the thing rushed out, tracing a straight line towards the water vat in the yard, but was caught by Gropp's large hand. It then changed direction and squeezed out from between his fingers, only to be caught by another giant hand and squeezed out from between his fingers again...

The pure-blooded giant and the wandering ball had a great time playing this game.

Thanks to the charm of the old, worn-out ball, Harry was able to keep Gropp sitting peacefully on the ground for the time being. Although Gropp kept waving his arms, his legs and head remained steady, preventing him from accidentally hurting Harry and allowing him to practice Legilimency.

Are the heads of pure-blooded giants not as empty as mine?

It can at least accommodate young hippogriffs.

Harry, who was standing on the ground and not even as tall as the giant's ankle, smiled, stepped back a little, and looked up at the thrashing giant.

The forest mist hadn't completely dissipated, and sunlight slanted down, making the light seem to take shape. The giant's head was adorned with thick, curly, fern-colored hair, and his skin was rough and thick, resembling a moss-covered boulder from afar. His face was astonishingly large, his features appearing roughly carved from a giant boulder; his short, thick nose was almost unrecognizable, and his mouth was crooked, filled with bizarre, yellow teeth the size of half a brick…

Most importantly, those huge, brownish-green eyes were piercing.

Harry silently chanted in his mind, "[Leuciscus]".

……

"When will we be able to convince Hagrid to give up rock cakes?"

Harry hummed indistinctly, his steps light.

It was already sunset, and the golden afterglow spilled across the open space, dazzlingly bright. The castle in front of them was also draped in a golden shirt. Harry was planning his next practice session when, without realizing it, the foyer came into view in the distance.

Harry stepped into the castle and caught a glimpse of a familiar figure out of the corner of his eye. The small, thin house-elf was standing at the entrance to the Great Hall, and he immediately went over to him.

"Dobby, you're back from your vacation?"

"Dobby went too far. The wizards there can't understand Dobby's language and can only communicate with gestures. Everything is very expensive there, and Dobby spent all his savings and came back." The house-elf looked excited and didn't seem to care about the money at all.

"I can't understand you, where have you been?"

Dobby doesn't know either.

"Never mind, it's good that you came back safely. Anyway, I'll stay at school during the summer vacation, so we can keep each other company. Those little elves in the kitchen are all afraid to talk to me. Every time, I think I'm some kind of bad guy. It's weird."

"Harry is a good person!"

Dobby shouted, then seemed to remember something, lowered his head slightly, and, not daring to look Harry in the eye, whispered, "But Dobby can't stay with Harry. Dobby has to go to work and save money so he can go to a farther place next time."

Harry paused for a moment, but then, considering it was a house-elf, and Dobby, it didn't seem so strange anymore.

Remembering his recent problem with meals, Harry's eyes lit up: "How about I hire you to do my chores?"

Dobby stared at him, somewhat indignantly: "Dobby is supposed to work for you. Dobby is an employee of Hogwarts, and he gets paid by Mr. Dumbledore. How can I charge you extra? Do you think Dobby is some greedy elf?"

"What utter nonsense..."

Harry looked at the stubborn little guy and felt a headache coming on. He tentatively said, "If it were during normal school hours, you should indeed provide services, but it's summer vacation now, and you're on vacation yourself. You have no obligation to continue providing services."

"Dobby and Harry are friends, and Dobby is willing to serve Harry, even without pay!"

"I know, I know..." Harry thought for a moment, assuming it was Loren, what he would do in this situation, "What I'm offering you isn't a salary, but an extra allowance, or rather, compensation."

"?"

"I hired you not to cook and do laundry, but to practice a kind of magic, Legilimency, you know? This kind of magic might invade your privacy, so I should compensate you."

"My privacy?" Dobby frowned and thought seriously. He seemed to have heard Wheat mention this before.

That guy read a lot of difficult books, and even the house-elves in the kitchen said he'd gotten confused and didn't want to listen to him. But Dobby thought some of what he said made sense, and some he didn't understand but remembered, like this thing about privacy, human rights, respect...

Anyway, it's something slaves are entitled to. Once they get it, they'll be freed from slavery and become equals with their employers.

Dobby is a free spirit, so it seems reasonable for him to receive this allowance.

Dobby blinked, intending to ask him properly when they got back to the kitchen that evening, but for now, he agreed: "Okay, I can practice this...this..." with you.

"Capturing thoughts and ideas."

"Let's put the allowance and compensation aside for now. I'll go back and consult with them, and I'll get back to you tomorrow."

"OK."

Harry smiled, turned and went upstairs to sign in with the dorm supervisor.

……

I'm all alone in the dorm, and I really can't find anything to do.

Harry finished washing up and walked out of the bathroom. The sky outside the window wasn't completely dark yet. When he took out his communicator again, he found that Loren had replied. It was some practice techniques for Legilimency, several long paragraphs, which made his eyes dizzy just reading them.

It must have taken a long time to type such a long text.

Harry felt a little touched. Loren was so busy during the summer vacation, yet he still took the time to help him, which showed that he still cared about their roommate relationship. He wouldn't question him harshly next time they met.

After carefully reading the text, Harry felt that his Legilimency skills had improved significantly and he prepared to try it out tonight.

Harry lifted the curtain, stood in front of the Mirror of Erised, took off his glasses, and stared at his reflection.

Some invisible and intangible magic permeated along the equally illusory gaze. Harry's senses touched a layer of icy barrier, like the thin and brittle ice on a lake after the first snowfall. With a little force, one could pass through it and enter another vast underwater realm.

Exclude memories of family reunions.

Exclude memories that are unrelated to Voldemort.

Harry tried to convince himself, but this vague and broad description was not very effective. Instead, as he pondered which memories were of family reunions and which were unrelated to Voldemort, many random memories surfaced and appeared before Harry's eyes.

Of the Dursleys' memories, Aunt Petunia's face is the clearest, while Uncle Vernon and Cousin Dudley's faces are indistinct, though their body types are quite distinctive.

"You should have lost weight by now..."

Harry dismissed the thought and turned to the next memory.

This process is like aimlessly fishing at the bottom of a lake, with no way of knowing what memory you will pull up next. It might be about the Dursleys, like a discarded and useless pebble, or it might be about Quidditch, like a useless seashell, but the patterns on it can make you happy.

The process of capturing the mind is like a Pensieve projection, but it is different. You review those images from a third-person perspective, experiencing your own emotions as a participant, while also generating new emotions as an observer.

There's always an indescribable feeling, strange and wonderful.

One memory bubble after another floated by, and Harry savored the feeling until the scene of the Sorting Ceremony for his first year appeared.

Watching the young-faced Harry Potter sit for the first time at the Gryffindor table, his curious gaze meeting that of Professor Snape and Professor Quirrell at the head table—

"hiss……"

Harry felt the pain of his long-lost scars.