Chapter 692: Pre-Exam Jitters
Chapter 692: Pre-Exam Jitters
During the first week back at school, professors teaching any subject were relentlessly assigning homework and emphasizing the importance of O.W.Ls.
In Fred's words, they acted as if "the sky would fall if you messed up your O.W.Ls."
However, Fred soon regretted his words, as the sky literally fell on them with the amount of work they had to do.
As the weekend arrived, they found themselves spending a significant amount of time in the library, facing a never-ending pile of homework, and even their enthusiasm for pranking Malfoy waned.
At that moment, Fred was flipping through a book, muttering incomprehensible words: "O.W.Ls are like a grindstone, pushing the students' heads into their books, slowly grinding away their patience until they go crazy!"
George looked up from his parchment and glared at his friend, who was rambling on, and said irritably, "Stop going crazy. You still have to practice your Disappearance Spell, right? We have spot checks next class, so be careful not to get locked up."
"At least I'm not like Albert," Fred muttered to himself, "I'd rather be holed up here doing homework than have Snape give me two extra hours of tutoring."
In the Potions classroom, Albert and Isabelle were listening to Snape talk about the Potions Championship.
"The Magical Gardens are the most well-preserved and diverse gardens of magical plants in the world. Despite the name, it is actually a forest, as large as the Forbidden Forest, and contains even more magical plants than you can imagine."
As a master potion maker, Snape was very familiar with the Magical Gardens.
"Students participating in the Potions Championship will need to enter the Magical Gardens to collect ingredients, preserve and bring them back, and then use them to create a potion. The champion will be determined by the process of collecting ingredients in the garden, the method of processing the ingredients, and the final potion."
Seeing that the two of them remained silent, Snape continued, "What you need to learn now is how to identify ingredients and acquire and preserve them safely and correctly. Ingredients are not limited to plants but also include animals, such as frog brains, which are not readily available and need to be sourced from the forest itself."
The two students remained quiet, listening attentively, which caused Snape to raise an eyebrow and suddenly ask, "Mr. Anderson, are you aware of your weaknesses?"
"My age?" Albert knew that Snape was trying to give him a hard time.
"Indeed," Snape replied, "You have learned far fewer potion formulas than most witches and wizards your age, which means you have fewer options. This competition will be very unfavorable for you. I really don't understand why Professor Dagworth-Granger recommended you." Snape's words were clearly intended to belittle Albert.
"Oh, Professor, I don't think you need to worry," Albert said calmly, his tone like a whip lashing at Snape's face, "I've already read through 'Advanced Potion-Making' and memorized all the formulas within. I don't feel that my repertoire of potion formulas is any less than that of my peers. Time is precious, so let's focus on the key points, shall we?"
Snape glared at Albert, his eyes cold and piercing.
However, Albert remained unfazed by Snape's intense stare.
In the following hours, Snape witnessed what true genius looked like.
The two students progressed rapidly, almost memorizing the lessons as they listened to Snape. By the end of the session, they had mastered most of the material.
"Very well," Snape said, his face twitching as he lowered his voice, "You're learning faster than I anticipated. We can move on to the next step next week."
"Processing ingredients?"
"Yes, processing ingredients," Snape said expressionlessly. "Alright, you may leave now."
After leaving the Potions classroom, Isabelle suddenly said, "Snape doesn't seem to like you."
Earlier, Snape had tried to give Albert a hard time by asking him unexpected questions, but Albert had answered them all without any difficulty.
"It's a Slytherin's prejudice against Gryffindors," Albert replied.
"Prejudice?"
During the past few hours, Snape had not only covered the key points from "One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi" but had also lectured on the acquisition of ingredients and other important matters.
Pure herb potions were actually quite rare, and most potions required one or two ingredients sourced from magical creatures or other beings, which was the most challenging aspect of the Potions Championship.
As the two of them walked towards the Room of Requirement, they chatted along the way.
"Is seventh year really that busy?"
"N.E.W.Ts are important, no one wants to mess them up."
"You have too much to learn, so it's natural that you feel the pressure." Albert wasn't too worried about Isabelle's exam performance, "But for you, getting all 'Outstanding' shouldn't be too difficult."
"I'm not like you, able to get excellent grades without even trying."
"Alright, that's enough mutual flattery."
The two of them shared a smile.
With Isabelle occupied by the Time-Turner and the N.E.W.Ts for seventh years taking up most of her time, their opportunities for leisure conversations like this had become rare, and they cherished these moments.
"By the way, have you discovered the secret of that new Professor Lupin?" Isabelle asked in a soft voice.
"You mean the werewolf?" Albert replied.
Werewolf was the term used to refer to what was commonly known as a werewolf, but being in Hogwarts, Albert felt it was best to be less explicit, lest other students overhear them. After all, most wizards probably knew what a werewolf was, but they might not be aware of the magical disease known as lycanthropy.
"It seems you've noticed as well. I really don't understand why Professor Dumbledore invited him to teach here," Isabelle said, clearly not at ease with the idea of a werewolf among the staff.
There was no helping it; werewolves were dangerous creatures, and their presence posed a significant risk to the students.
"Most of the professors here are likely aware of his condition, and they didn't object. Professor Dumbledore must have persuaded them," Albert consoled, "I'm sure they'll provide Professor Lupin with Wolfsbane Potion."
Of course, Isabelle was already aware of this, but she still couldn't shake her unease. As Albert would say, it was better to be safe than sorry.
Who knew what would happen if Professor Lupin forgot to take his medication one day? The consequences could be disastrous for Hogwarts.
"Hmm, I'll teach you the Human Transformation Spell. If you master this spell, you'll be able to easily subdue a werewolf," Albert offered, having already contemplated how to deal with such a threat.
"Human Transformation Spell?" Isabelle was intrigued, knowing that Albert had been researching the spell from Lockhart's book, but she hadn't expected him to succeed.
"Are you interested in learning it?" Albert asked.
"It's similar to the Patronus Charm, but I think for a genius like you, it shouldn't take too much time to learn. It just hasn't been tested yet, so I'm not sure how effective it will be," Albert admitted, already considering Professor Lupin as a potential test subject.
After entering the Room of Requirement, the couple had their house-elves bring them dinner so they could spend more time chatting and enjoying each other's company.
It was typical of couples in the throes of young love to want to spend every waking moment together.
"You left us to go on a date and came back in the middle of the night?"
The next morning, as the trio busily worked on their homework, they shot Albert resentful glances.
"Haven't you finished your homework yet?" Albert asked, feigning innocence.
"Of course...as if!" Fred replied dejectedly. "This pile of homework feels never-ending. I feel like I'm going crazy."
"You're not the only one," George added irritably. "And don't forget, Albert has to juggle twelve subjects and extra tutoring sessions with Snape for the Potions Championship."
"Damn, did you forget that Albert doesn't have to do most of the homework?" Fred retorted.
Lee Jordan glared at Fred and complained, "I'm trying to eat here."
"How do you get away with not doing any homework?" Ron was curious, feeling the weight of the heavy workload now that they were in their third year.
"It's all about maintaining a good relationship with the professors, but only if you excel in that particular subject. This approach obviously doesn't work for you," Albert said as he spread jam on his bread slice.
"You idiot, Ron. Just give up on that fantasy and join us in our homework misery," Fred teased, not letting Ron off the hook so easily.
"I'm just asking for Hermione. She's taking twelve subjects too, and she's been really busy lately. Her temper seems to have worsened as well," Ron explained.
"Well, sorry if my temper has worsened!" Hermione appeared beside Ron and glared at him.
Harry and Ron quickly shut their mouths, not wanting to further provoke her.
Hermione had been swamped with work, spending most of her time in the library.
The thought of having to complete homework for twelve subjects was daunting.
"You should exchange tips with Percy. My approach may not suit you," Albert advised as he took a bite of his bread. "The pressure at the beginning can be overwhelming, but you'll get used to it. If you're not aiming for Outstanding in every subject, dropping some of the unnecessary courses might be a good idea."
"I don't think grades reflect everything," Fred chimed in, dismissive of Percy's achievements. "Even if Percy gets into the Ministry after graduation, it'll take him decades to become a high-ranking official."
"A stellar record is still important if you want to join the Ministry," Albert added.
As they spoke, a flock of owls flew into the hall, delivering mail. Albert reached out and caught one of the owls, inspecting the sender before opening the envelope. Inside were several photographs, each with a number on the back: 2000.
"This price..." Albert mused.
Although he wasn't familiar with property prices in the wizarding world, the amount seemed like a bargain.
Less than ten thousand pounds was definitely a steal, but considering the wizarding community's frugal nature, it wasn't entirely surprising.
After all, wizards could easily acquire inexpensive properties from Muggles or construct their own dwellings with magic if they so desired.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
