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Chapter 25: Roommates
Chapter 25: Roommates
"In any case, those are all the key points to keep in mind. As long as we're careful in our daily lives, we won't lose any points for our house. But even if we do slip up occasionally and lose some points, it's not a big deal. We Hufflepuffs don't place much emphasis on that. As long as everyone is happy at Hogwarts, that's what matters."
Prefect Harris addressed the group, while Kyle sat on the outskirts, silent and looking down.
"Kyle, what are you doing here? I've been looking for you for ages."
Cedric approached and casually handed him a glass of juice. "Fresh orange juice. It's a great choice to have a drink before bed."
Kyle didn't take it and didn't even lift his head. He simply waved Cedric away to indicate that he didn't need it.
"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
"No, I'm just a bit tired," Kyle said in a slightly rushed tone without lifting his head. "And I don't like to drink anything before bed. Why don't you offer it to someone else?"
This unusual behavior naturally piqued Cedric's curiosity. He took a couple of steps to the left, but Kyle almost simultaneously turned in the opposite direction.
Something was amiss, and it was more than obvious.
"Alright, then I'll ask the other new students." Cedric quickly moved to the side and then held his breath to lighten his footsteps. He circled back in front of Kyle and, after estimating the position, laid down on the ground swiftly.
Kyle had been wondering when he could return to the dormitory when suddenly, a fluffy head popped up in front of him.
The two of them stared at each other...
"Kyle, what happened to your eye? Why do you have such a big dark circle under it?"
"It's nothing!"
Kyle quickly raised his hand to cover the area around his left eye and said seriously, "I accidentally bumped into a table earlier. It's normal to have some bruises."
"Could a bruise be that round?" Cedric sat on the ground, stroking his chin. "It looks like someone punched you."
"Impossible. You're overthinking things!" Kyle said sternly. "Even if you don't believe me, surely you trust Hufflepuff? This is the warmest family in all of Hogwarts. How could there be such a violent person here?"
"That's true. Could it really be from a fall?" Cedric nodded in agreement.
He didn't believe that anyone from Hufflepuff would beat up a new student on the first day of school. Something like that would usually only happen in Slytherin.
However, he still couldn't understand how the "dark circle" could be so perfectly round if it was indeed from a fall.
A freak of nature?
Just as Cedric was pondering this puzzle, Prefect Harris's speech came to an end.
"Starting today, we're all classmates. If you need any help, just speak up; don't be shy.
Hufflepuff is a warm family, and every senior student, including me, will be there to help you.
You must be feeling sleepy by now. I'll take you to your respective dormitories. Patty, you take care of the girls' side."
Kyle felt as though he'd been granted a pardon and quickly got up from the sofa, falling in with the large group. He didn't even bother to say goodbye to Cedric.
Under Harris's guidance, Kyle soon arrived at his dormitory.
Like the common room, the dominant colors here were yellow and black.
The copper lamps cast a warm glow on the four-poster beds, and the walls were adorned with copper bed warmers, ensuring the young wizards' beds remained at a comfortable temperature.
The other was Ryan Baggins, blond and relatively well-built.
Yep, both of them were complete strangers and typical side characters.
As for the remaining bed, it was empty, probably due to an insufficient number of new students.
Kyle turned his head and, after a brief greeting, climbed into his bed.
"Hey, isn't it just amazing that I'm a wizard? My whole family is non-magical; my dad sells drills, and my mom works at a bank. So when I first got that letter, I thought it was a prank, but I never imagined it would be real.
Haha, Hogwarts... I still can't believe I'm here; it feels like a dream." Michael sat on the edge of his bed, his eyes sparkling with excitement.
"I'm a half-blood, which is what wizards call a mixed lineage."
Ryan, with his golden hair, chimed in, "My dad's a wizard, but my mom's a Muggle. She was pretty shocked when she found out the truth."
"That's understandable; anyone unfamiliar with magic would react that way." Michael nodded. "You can't imagine the look on my parents' faces when Professor Quirrell showed up at our house out of thin air, talking about Apparition or something like that."
"Disapparition," Kyle quietly corrected from his bed.
"Oh right, Disapparition," Michael repeated.
"Hey, I remember you!" Michael's eyes lit up. "You're Kyle Joba, the one who took twenty minutes to get sorted, right?"
"Yes, nice to meet you both," Kyle replied.
"So, can you tell us what happened? Why did it take so long for your sorting? Twenty minutes, that's longer than all the other new students combined." Michael asked curiously.
"It's not that big of a deal," Kyle thought for a moment. "The Sorting Hat just couldn't decide which house to put me in; it kept changing its mind."
"Wow, so that's why it took so long," Michael exclaimed. "The hat must have seen something truly special in you."
Kyle just smiled and didn't say anything.
He knew he was talented, but that had nothing to do with the Sorting Hat's indecision.
And if Michael knew the real reason behind the hat's hesitation, he probably wouldn't be so quick to compliment him.
For the next while, Michael was like a chicken that had been fed stimulants; he just kept talking non-stop.
He went on and on, from Diagon Alley to Gringotts, and from Gringotts to choosing a wand, without taking a breath.
Becoming a wizard seemed to have unleashed a torrent of excitement in him.
At first, Kyle and Ryan tried to join in the conversation, but gradually, the only sound in the dormitory was Michael's voice.
It was just too much; they couldn't keep up.
After a filling dinner, the drowsiness kicked in, compounded by the ten-plus hours they had spent on the train earlier.
It was a feat in itself that Kyle had managed to stay awake for so long.
He really wanted to chat with his roommates and get to know them better, but the comfort of his bed was irresistible, and he soon drifted off to sleep.
Ryan, on the other side of the room, had dozed off even earlier; he had been silent for the last five minutes.
...
...
(End of Chapter)
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