Chapter 451: Boggart
Chapter 451: Boggart
Early the next morning, Wade went straight to Professor McGonagall's office to retrieve the much-anticipated Time-Turner.
"I've heard all about your situation," Professor McGonagall said with a warm, encouraging smile. "Welcome back, Wade."
"Thank you, Professor," Wade replied, hanging the golden Time-Turner around his neck and tucking it under his shirt. "And I also want to thank you for exempting me from last week's essay."
"The knowledge of animating inanimate objects is something I believe you already possess in your mind, so there's no need to write it down," Professor McGonagall said, looking at Wade.
"Wade, I assume you've received your new class schedule?" she asked.
"Yes," Wade answered. "It's pretty much the same as last semester's schedule."
"Well, this was written by the magical quill, and it's not capable of handling complex tasks. For example, some students' schedules need adjustments to be more efficient." Professor McGonagall drew her wand from her sleeve and gently tapped the parchment on the desk, causing lines of text to appear out of thin air.
"I know most of the third-year courses are not very meaningful to you. This semester, I will be teaching other grades, Wade. You can choose the appropriate times to attend the classes you need," Professor McGonagall explained, and a detailed schedule appeared on the parchment.
Wade took it in surprise, his eyes filled with disbelief as he looked at the meticulous schedule down to the minute.
Professor McGonagall didn't say more but checked the time. "Well, the first class is about to start. You should go—remember, even with the Time-Turner, don't abuse time."
...
The first morning classes were still the three elective courses in time manipulation, but for Wade, the content of the classes was not very relevant.
In Professor Trelawney's Divination class, if one ignored her self-aggrandizing content, all he needed to do was flip through the book.
Wade had a natural talent for divination, and even without studying the summarized knowledge points in the book, his predictions were more accurate than those of his classmates.
As for Muggle Studies, with his extensive Muggle experience, he should be teaching the class instead of Professor Burbage. Wade could spot at least five mistakes in her lecture during one class.
Professor Burbage, however, was a rare expert in Muggle Studies among wizards, possessing a deep understanding of Muggle knowledge and a sympathetic attitude towards non-magical people.
As for Arithmancy, Wade's mathematical skills were enough to crush everyone at Hogwarts. This course, which gave most people headaches, was just a relaxing numbers game for him.
It seemed that all the professors had discussed it beforehand, as every professor except for the Defense Against the Dark Arts and Potions teachers made an exception for Wade, allowing him to skip the classes that he had already mastered and spend his time more productively.
When Wade ran into Professor Snape in the corridor, despite his stern expression, he patiently explained why he couldn't grant Wade the privilege of skipping his class:
"Potions is a deeply profound and rigorous discipline that brooks no carelessness."
"It demands extreme precision, seriousness, and skill from the brewer. Every detail is crucial—details are the key to success in potions."
"Even if you've brewed the same potion a thousand times, when you brew it for the thousand and first time, you still need to be fully focused, maintaining the same concentration and reverence as the first time."
"Therefore, I will never allow any student to be absent from class without a valid reason," Professor Snape concluded coldly, his eyes sharp as knives. "And that includes you, Wade."
"Okay, Professor," Wade said, a bit taken aback.
Well, he wasn't really surprised, as he hadn't planned to skip Professor Snape's class anyway.
Although most professors' lectures could be found in books, and they occasionally made small mistakes, Professor Snape never did.
He demanded rigor from his students, and he himself was more rigorous than anyone, writing every step of potion-making on the board in detail. He would occasionally share some of his own tips accumulated over the years, like little diamonds hidden within the dry lectures.
However, aside from Hermione, who wanted to memorize every punctuation mark, most of Wade's classmates would just glance at the beginning and then rush to start brewing.
As they muddled through the process, correcting their mistakes already exhausted their minds, and they wouldn't bother listening to the professor's sarcastic remarks. In the end, they would hand in a passable but questionable potion.
As the first class of the day began, students were momentarily surprised to see Wade enter the classroom, but they quickly regained their composure and greeted him as if nothing had happened.
Most of them were unaware of his recent adventures, and given Wade's usual aloof demeanor, no one dared to pry into his personal affairs.
Come lunchtime, Wade briefly explained the situation to a select few, including Harry, the Weasley twins, and a handful of others. They expressed relief at his safe return, but didn't dwell on it.
"The Magi Puritan Party seems much better than the Death Eaters my parents talked about," Fred commented seriously as they walked to the Great Hall for lunch.
"At least they don't detain underage students for working," George added.
"What about villains with honor?" Harry asked.
George mimed smoking a cigar, lowering his head slightly, and replied in a gravelly voice, "You can call me 'FATHER.'"
The boys burst into laughter, remembering a Muggle movie they had recently watched.
"Mr. Weasley," Professor McGonagall's voice suddenly boomed from behind them, startling George.
"Good afternoon, Professor," they greeted her.
Professor McGonagall nodded sternly and, looking at the Weasley twins, said, "While movies may glamorize certain characters, I want you to understand that violence and crime are wrong. True strength comes from wisdom, courage, and upholding justice."
"Yes, Professor," the twins replied obediently, lowering their heads.
As Professor McGonagall walked away, the twins nudged each other, blaming each other for not paying attention to their surroundings while speaking.
"Hey, kids!" Hagrid approached them, speaking in a hushed tone after finishing his meal. "Which afternoon do you have free tomorrow or the day after?"
He thought he was speaking quietly, but almost every student nearby overheard him and couldn't help but show their curiosity.
"I only have one Charms class on Wednesday afternoon," Harry replied, turning to the others. "What about you?"
Wade nodded. "The same."
He had initially planned to attend the sixth-year Transfiguration class that afternoon, but he could easily reschedule it for Thursday.
Since several professors had exempted him from writing essays, Wade's schedule this semester was much more relaxed than before.
Michael and the others nodded in agreement. Among them, Wade and Hermione were the busiest, while the rest had significantly fewer classes.
"I have to write my essay," Hermione said with a frown. "And I still have a 325-page book to read!"
"We're not free on either day," George said helplessly. "Although Fred and I don't think we need to stress too much about the OWLs, the professors clearly have different expectations."
Fred's eyes lit up, and he looked at Hagrid expectantly. "But Hagrid, if you could exempt us from our essays too..."
Hagrid waved his hand dismissively. "Don't get your hopes up, that's not going to happen. Last time I asked you how to tell the difference between a hedgehog and a porcupine, and you two said you could tell by using their quills to make alchemical products, and if the product failed, it was a hedgehog. Is that a reasonable answer? Who would use such a complicated method?"
The twins stuck out their tongues but showed no sign of embarrassment.
In truth, they knew the correct way to differentiate, but they were experimenting with a new idea at the time and had used porcupine quills in their creation. Unfortunately, the unscrupulous merchant had sold them counterfeit goods, leading to their spontaneous response.
Porcupine quills had magical properties, while ordinary hedgehogs did not, which could be considered another distinction between the two. Hagrid had been so stunned that he almost forgot to continue with the lesson.
At this moment, the professor of magical creatures waved his hand impatiently and said, "You two should focus on reviewing your lessons! As for the rest of you... meet me at my hut at 4 p.m. the day after tomorrow, don't forget."
Hagrid blinked his deep brown eyes, looking as if he had a secret he couldn't share yet, and left in high spirits.
The group exchanged glances, and Michael asked, "Harry, do you know what this is about?"
"I'm not sure," Harry replied, "but I think... we should probably bring some food with us that day. Unless you want to have Hagrid's rock cakes for dinner."
Despite being allowed to skip some classes, Wade was not exempt from studying. In fact, he had scheduled himself a busier day than his original timetable.
After just one day back at school, he felt like he had already forgotten what a leisurely vacation was like.
Wade also met Ryan Troca, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, again.
His attire was much more formal than when they met in Diagon Alley, as if he was ready to attend a funeral at any moment. His expression was as stern as Professor McGonagall's, making him seem unapproachable.
In the classroom, the students were all quiet. Professor Troca was about to teach a topic that Abigail had prepared to cover—the Boggart.
In the room, there was a wooden box with a battered surface, from which came the sound of banging, as if it contained a dozen lively rabbits.
"There's a Boggart in here," Professor Troca said calmly. "I heard you've already learned some related content, so I'll keep it brief."
"Note down the key points I'm about to mention."
"Boggarts prefer dark and enclosed spaces. They have no fixed shape but will transform into people's greatest fears. The most important thing when facing a Boggart is a sense of humor."
The sound of scribbling filled the classroom.
Professor Troca paused for a moment before continuing, "You need to imagine a scene that makes it look ridiculous, and then use the Ridiculous spell. If you can laugh instead of scream, the Boggart will be disoriented."
"Of course, fake laughter won't deceive it—most people can't help but scream when they first see a Boggart."
"Now, take out your wands and repeat the spell after me—Ridiculous!"
"Ridiculous!" the students echoed in practice.
"Good," said Professor Troca, as if he wanted to smile in satisfaction, but in the end, only the corners of his mouth twitched.
He waved his wand casually, moving the desks and chairs to the sides of the classroom, clearing a large space in the middle. Then he asked the students to step back.
"Move back a bit to avoid disturbing the Boggart. It gets confused by multiple people and doesn't know what to transform into."
Professor Troca cleared his throat lightly. "I need a student to demonstrate first..."
His gaze slowly moved around the classroom. Some students were eager to try, while others quickly lowered their heads to avoid his gaze.
"Hmm... Miss Greengrass, please come to the front." Professor Troca said.
Daphne Greengrass swallowed, holding her wand and cautiously walking forward.
"Are you ready?" Professor Troca asked.
Daphne's entire body screamed, "No!" But the professor's stern demeanor was intimidating, so she reluctantly nodded.
"Then let's begin!"
Professor Troca also stepped back, waving his wand from a distance, and the wooden box lid instantly sprang open.
A pale, swollen hand slammed against the edge of the box with a loud bang.
After a brief silence, a woman in a blood-stained white dress slowly crawled out of the box. Her black hair hung damply like a mop, covering her face, and her limbs were strangely bent as she crawled towards Daphne.
Daphne was petrified, and the entire classroom fell into a deafening silence.
Wade covered his forehead, unable to bear the sight.
It was clear that while the Mirror of Erised had enriched the lives of wizards and broadened their horizons, it had also exposed this closed community to the extreme horrors of human imagination.
"Ridiculous, Miss Greengrass," Professor Troca prompted when he saw that she wasn't reacting.
Daphne shuddered, but instead of casting the spell, she threw her wand at the approaching "ghost," screamed, and turned to run! The person facing the "ghost" suddenly became Pansy Parkinson.
The Boggart tilted its head slightly, as if still deciding what to transform into, when Pansy let out a piercing shriek, backing away while pushing Blaise Zabini forward.
With a bang, the lower half of the "ghost" transformed into a giant centipede-like shape, making it even more terrifying. It even seemed to crawl faster.
It paused for a moment, then quickly crawled towards the crowd, and the entire classroom instantly turned into a sea of screams.
Regardless of what the students were most afraid of before, they now seemed to share a common fear.
(End of Chapter)
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