Loren chewed the lamb chops with a satisfying crunch, his eyes fixed on Hermione across the table.
Hermione sat opposite him, an irrepressible smile lighting her face as she happily ate and hummed soft melodies.
Every so often, she glanced at Loren, muttering to herself something like "22 to 0."
Loren comforted himself with the thought that at least he was becoming familiar with the Shield Charm—and Hermione's small happiness was a win-win!
The flutter of an owl's wings came through the skylight. Weekend mail at Hogwarts always meant more letters.
The little spectacled owl, silly as ever, delivered a reply from Grandpa Bates.
Loren had sent his letter on the Saturday of the second week, and now it was the third—ample time for an owl to travel both ways, plus some time for Bates to write back. But Loren didn't care about the wait.
Setting the owl aside after feeding it cheese and bread, Loren unfolded the letter.
In it, Bates said he wasn't worried about Loren at all. He teased that Loren had waited nearly half a month after school started before writing, using rather impolite words. These matters would be sorted once he returned from vacation.
Bates said nothing directly about Loren's return to the city. Instead, he mentioned plans to revisit old haunts and asked Loren not to interfere.
Nowhere in the letter did Bates mention Hogwarts or magic lessons. At the very end, he wrote that the two sheep at home had lambed, and when Loren returned, it would be perfect for roasting lamb.
Folding the letter carefully, Loren slipped it into his pocket, warmth spreading through his chest.
Suitable for roasting lamb, he thought. No, I just miss him. The old man is like that—stubborn as ever.
Tomorrow would be a full moon night. Loren wondered how the old man was doing—would he be wandering the mountains again?
Loren didn't write back immediately. He planned to wait until he had the Wolf's Bane potion ready and send it with the owl.
The werewolf issue resolved, the owl pecking nearby at his food—seemed somehow cuter. Loren reached out and stroked his feathers.
Hermione also watched the owl. She had been present when Loren bought it. "It looks a little bigger."
Loren nodded, stuffing a bite of pudding into his mouth. "Definitely fatter."
"Coo!" The owl, focused on his cheese, looked up indignantly. How rude!
"So, what's its name?" Hermione asked, curious.
Loren froze mid-bite. A name? He'd never really thought about it—he always called the owl Hannah.
Tentatively, he said, "Hannah?"
The owl immediately responded with a "Coo!"
Hermione repeated the word twice, puzzled. It sounded like a repeated sound, like "meow" or "pippi."
"I want to borrow Hannah to write a letter to my parents."
Hermione had not written home since school began. It was her first time away from them. Though magic's wonders eased her loneliness, her longing for her family only grew stronger.
She found it hard to explain the magical principles she'd learned—the tone and nuance of spells—as awkward as a middle schooler fumbling grammar and physics over the phone.
Her extracurricular life was dull, and she hadn't bonded much with her roommates. For a long time, only Loren had been a friend; she only met Harry and the others after a night out.
Seeing Loren communicate with his family, Hermione resolved to write home too—telling them the headmaster was a white-bearded old man and that she adored Professor McGonagall.
Loren nodded. "Of course..."
"Merlin's beard!"
Not far away, Seamus huddled close to Ron and Harry, staring at the Daily Prophet in their hands, exclaiming.
The Daily Prophet reported on Peter Pettigrew's trial and revealed details from the courtroom.
Peter Pettigrew had defected to the Dark Lord in 1981 and betrayed the Potters, leading to their murder—and the Dark Lord's first downfall.
While fleeing Sirius, Pettigrew caused an explosion that destroyed a street and killed twelve Muggles. He cut off a finger to fake his death, framed Sirius, and hid in the Weasley family for ten years as an illegal Animagus.
It was suspected Dumbledore exposed him, leading to his arrest and transfer to the Ministry.
The paper blurred details of the arrest; the truth was only speculation.
During the trial, Pettigrew said nothing, but his mother claimed he had ended the Dark Lord and was a hero undeserving of trial.
The court rejected her plea and sentenced Pettigrew to life in Azkaban.
The report praised Minister Fudge's wise leadership and cleared up wrongful convictions from the previous administration. Only a brief paragraph acknowledged Hogwarts and Dumbledore's contributions.
Seamus absorbed it all, repeatedly exclaiming, "Merlin's beard!"
One roommate was the savior who killed the Dark Lord and saved the wizarding world.
Another's family had sheltered Death Eaters for ten years.
Another roommate had exposed hidden Death Eaters just days after school started and cleared an unjust case.
Even Neville came from a heroic Auror family.
Seamus sighed, suddenly feeling insignificant—a strange inferiority complex crept in.
Harry was glad Pettigrew was punished and that he had a new godfather.
But doubts about that year still haunted Harry. His scar and the title of "the savior" filled his mind with questions.
Ron, staring at the report, thought of Scabbers again, feeling more disgusted than scared.
That day, his beloved pet had turned into a short, fat, repulsive middle-aged man—his greatest shock yet.
Memories of eating and sleeping with the cute pet flooded his mind. Ron covered his head and muttered, "No, no, no."
The harder he tried to avoid the memory, the clearer it became. He couldn't eat anymore, sinking onto a stool with empty eyes.
Senior students surrounded Percy and the twins, asking if they'd been cursed or caught a thief stealing food at night.
Percy's face was pale; he said nothing. Scabbers had been his pet too, and he recalled many unpleasant memories.
Fred and George answered some questions.
"Yes, when we were six, we were very ill because of Peter Pettigrew."
"We were bedridden for a whole week."
At six, they hid Scabbers in Molly's soup and were beaten so badly they couldn't leave bed.
"We also suspected Pettigrew was strange and wanted to investigate."
"But Percy stopped us."
The twins had wanted to use Scabbers for magical experiments.
…