Chapter 361: Life at Hogwarts in 1994 Begins

The day before school starts, in the afternoon.

Hermione was sitting at the desk by the window, wearing thick light gray pajamas, her little face was tight, and she was concentrating on checking Loren's holiday homework.

It only took him half a day to finish all the homework.

This made Hermione completely uneasy, but after careful comparison, Hermione found that although the handwriting in these homework assignments was a bit sloppy, the content was not fabricated. The answers to the objective questions were completely correct, and the key points of the essay questions were basically answered, and even There are no spelling errors.

Even the most strict Professor McGonagall has to give this assignment an excellent grade.

"How's it going, Professor Granger, is there anything you need to change?"

Loren was lying lazily on the bed, holding up a three-level Rubik's Cube and twisting the Rubik's Cube with ten fingers.

"No, Morgan, your homework is very good -" Hermione drawled back, her tone sounding weird.

Loren stood up and stepped forward, placed the restored Rubik's Cube on the table, reached out and gently pinched the back of her neck, as if teaching a restless kitten a lesson.

Before the girl could get angry, Loren stopped his hand feeling refreshed. Shi Shiran clapped his hands and said, "I'm going back to school tomorrow. I'm going back to pack my things. See you tomorrow!"

After speaking, he waved his wand, and with a muffled sound in the air, the figure disappeared from the room.

"..."

Hermione pursed her lips, remained silent for a moment, and mustered up the courage to open the Transfiguration textbook.

Sooner or later, he will turn into a cat, and then he will be punished severely!

…

On the other side, Loren returned to his home and began to pack things with Grandpa Bates.

Mainly some spring and summer clothes, basically all newly bought by Grandpa Bates. Some clothes can be seen with logos, and some clothes have no logos at all, and even the patterns are very simple.

This kind of housework is not complicated. Loren can do it all in five minutes with a magic wand. But Grandpa Bates asked him to do it himself, saying that when he buys clothes, he always buys them in person, and using magic would be very disrespectful to him.

Loren could only rely on the old man.

"I've been having a question..."

Grandpa Bates was sorting out last year's old clothes. Many of them no longer fit. Bates folded them neatly, packed them into cardboard boxes, and asked, "Will the size of the magic robe change with the wizard's body shape?" Woolen cloth?"

Loren stopped folding clothes and replied thoughtfully: "There should be... From an alchemical point of view, these functions are not difficult to achieve, but I haven't seen them yet..."

"Last time I sent you and little Hermione to Diagon Alley, there was a wizard in that bar wearing a wizard's hat with stuffed vultures. Are those specimens real?"

"probably."

"Hey! What a bunch of weird guys..." Grandpa Bates shook his head and sighed, then looked at Loren seriously, "Don't learn to become that kind of weird wizard. Wizards are only a few people after all. You and Hermione will be in the future. You still have to go back to the society of ordinary people, don’t get into those bad habits... you know?”

"Don't worry, I don't like vulture specimens either..." A hint of cunning flashed in Loren's eyes, and his words changed, "I like venomous snake specimens."

Grandpa Bates's eyes widened immediately. After realizing that he was joking, he grabbed the leg of a pair of trousers and slapped him on the back: "You bastard!"

The woolen fabric scratched my back without pain or itch, but instead gave me a silent sense of peace in my heart.

Not long after Loren calmed down, he started joking with Grandpa Bates again, causing the old man to laugh and scold him.

…

The next day, King's Cross station, platform nine and a quarter.

Monica held Hermione's hand and whispered quietly not far away. The three men squatted next to the aisle, staring at some unknown machine at the entrance, fascinated.

"Look at this pole..." Wendell said in a deep voice, "It lifts and lowers it, does it look like the action of throwing a pole and closing it?"

Loren: "..."

Bates: "..."

The two looked at each other and saw the same meaning in each other's eyes: It's over, this person can't be saved.

Before parting, the parents said what they had said a thousand times before. Saying it a few more times would not make any difference, nor would saying it at the platform make any difference.

Bates hopes that Hermione will help take care of Loren and supervise his studies. The Grangers hope that Loren will take care of Hermione and supervise her to live a good life...

In the eyes of parents, their children are always fragile and soft.

It's just that Monica's instructions to Hermione seemed to be different, but the station was too crowded and noisy, and no one else knew what they said except the two of them.

The two dragged their empty black suitcases towards the platform and disappeared into the brick wall... The three parents stared blankly at the place where they disappeared. After a long time, they came to their senses and turned around to leave without saying a word.

…

On board the Hogwarts Express.

Loren and Hermione arrived early, and there were still many empty compartments in the car. They found a quiet seat at the end of the carriage. With the distant sound of the whistle, the train drove all the way out of the city, through the wilderness, and through the snow-covered fields. Country road.

Hermione, who was leaning on the window glass and looking out, withdrew her gaze and turned to look at Loren, who was unpacking the pile of cockroaches behind her: "I still think the handwriting on your homework is too sloppy."

Loren: "..."

Suddenly, I felt that the snacks on the table no longer smelled good.

"Why don't you go back to your dormitory and copy it again tonight, in case the professors don't recognize your handwriting and give you a low grade."

"It's better to get a low score than to have me do it again." Loren rolled his eyes and stuffed a cockroach into Hermione's mouth angrily, "Stop your mouth and talk less."

Different from the panic in the previous two years, Hermione is now able to calmly chew the cockroaches. She chews and swallows the candy: "Grandpa Bates asked me to take care of your studies, you should listen to me."

"Your parents asked me to take care of your life..." Loren stepped forward and stared into her eyes with a ferocious expression, "Now you should turn into a cat and sit quietly in the car!"

Hermione was indeed frightened and obediently stopped mentioning her homework.

Hermione raised her head and glanced at him quietly, then quickly looked away before he noticed.

She hasn't yet mastered the transformation technique of turning people into cats, so she needs to stay away from the edge for a while. When she returns to school, with the guidance of Professor McGonagall, and a little bit of diligence on her own, she will definitely be able to learn it soon.

Then on Saturday, Loren will be transformed into a lion cat, and on Sunday, he will be transformed into a short-footed cat, and he will be held in his arms and kneaded as he pleases.

Working days?

He has to go to school on weekdays, so just give him a break.

The train shuttled through forests and mountain peaks, occasionally passing through dark tunnels. When half of the candies on the table were put into Loren's stomach, he closed his eyes with satisfaction, tilted his head and began to sleep.

Hermione felt the sudden increase in weight on her shoulders, closed the Transfiguration book in her hand, and looked sideways at the man.

The journey was not quiet. The wheels ran over the rails and kept squeaking all the way. But this man was not affected at all. His belly rose and fell evenly, and his breath between his mouth and nose carried a sweet smell of candy. His eyelashes Shivering from time to time, he seemed to be sleeping soundly.

It was indeed the most pleasing to the eye when he was sleeping.

Hermione began to wonder if she could turn him into a cat at night so he wouldn't have to go to school.

…

In the mandrake bed in the third greenhouse of Hogwarts, the adolescent mandrakes waved their leaves freely and made harsh cheers that ordinary people could not bear.

Their nursery has been expanded, and they will welcome more partners!

The faces of the middle-aged and elderly mandrakes on their stems were tightly knitted together. Looking at them cheering for joy, it was as if they were seeing themselves a year ago.

So young, so energetic, so high-spirited, and so... stupid.

The middle-aged and old mandrakes twisted their roots and drilled deeper into the soil.

The mandrakes screamed and cheered with all their strength. Their voices had magical powers similar to those of the howling banshee. Ordinary people who listened to them would fall into coma, or even become deaf and die. But now, the sounds of these strange magical powers are trapped by an invisible film, and the sounds cannot spread out of the garden.

This all stems from the three professors next to the desk.

"They have never been so excited..." Professor Sprout looked at these little guys with unconcealed joy in his tone, "It seems that the mandrakes have stronger social habits than we thought. This time It must be growing well."

Professor McGonagall also had a satisfied smile on her face, and turned to look at Lupine: "In this case, Remus, are you finally relieved?"

The wolfsbane potion to stay awake and the mandrake needed to practice Animagus, Hogwarts has all taken care of it. Although the rest of the things may be more difficult, at least they have a good start.

Although those magical shrill screams could not penetrate the barrier set up by Professor Sprout, Lupine was still in a trance, as if he was half asleep and half awake in a dream.

"I really don't know how to thank you..."

Lupine spoke softer than usual, like some kind of whisper. Professor McGonagall and Professor Sprout failed to hear the following words clearly, and saw Lupine quickly come back to his senses with a determined expression. : "Leave the rest to me."

Professor Sprout didn't know what to say. Professor McGonagall took over, but did not respond to Lupin. Instead, he joked: "I think mandrakes should be added to the Defense Against the Dark Arts class. After all, they are The scream is dangerous enough, what do you think?”

"I don't agree!" Professor Sprout looked at Professor McGonagall with resentful eyes, "I don't believe you can't predict it, Minerva, it will only make my work harder!"

Professor McGonagall and Lupine smiled.

…

"Loren, wake up, we're here."

"Um……"

Loren woke up from his sleep with a thick nasal voice. When he opened his eyes, the sky outside had turned gray.

The snow in Hogwarts has begun to melt, but it has not completely melted yet. The moist water vapor condensed into a thick night fog outside this ancient magic school, vaguely adding a sense of mystery.

You couldn't see the faces clearly from five steps away, but someone greeted them. Loren and Hermione listened to the voice and replied casually. After getting off the car, they didn't walk a few steps and randomly picked a Thestral carriage to get on. .

As soon as he sat down, he saw Seamus and Dean chatting. They were reading a copy of the Daily Prophet, each holding an end. On the page were photos of the explosion in Diagon Alley. I don’t know how the reporter took the photo.

Seamus and Dean looked up and saw an acquaintance getting on the bus, their eyes sparkling with joy as they reunited after a long absence.

"Loren, Hermione! Come and see this!" Seamus shouted, "You are so far away from the wizarding world that you must not know the big things that happened during the Christmas holidays-"

"Death Eaters are attacking Diagon Alley!" Before Seamus could finish speaking, he was interrupted by Dean who couldn't wait.

Seamus glanced at him dissatisfied: "You must not know who--"

"It was Bellatrix!" Dean's face was full of excitement, and a series of words came out like a string of cannonballs, "Bellatrix Lestrange caused multiple explosions in Diagon Alley! The walls of the Leaky Cauldron were blown down, and I heard that the underground vault of Gringotts was blown open. Bellatrix took advantage of the chaos to steal something."

"Fortunately-"

"Fortunately, the Aurors had set up an ambush and took the things back. Although the Death Eater was not arrested on the spot, he was seriously injured."

Seamus showed an uncomfortable expression on his face, his eyebrows were tightly knitted together. He had not completely given up. After taking a deep breath, he said: "You will never imagine that I-"

"Seamus was in Diagon Alley at the time, and he also saw Professor Flitwick!" Dean finished speaking in one breath, smacking his lips with satisfaction.

"Ah!" Seamus' mentality completely collapsed. He looked at Dean with a ferocious face, "You have said it all by yourself, what can I say?"

He rushed over and punched Dean, and his words sounded particularly aggrieved: "I finally caught up with a wonderful adventure, is it easy for me?"

"I went to Diagon Alley secretly during the Christmas holiday, and my butt was almost beaten to pieces by my mother, as if it had been blown by the door-blasting spell!"

"She even said that she would stuff me into my father's socks as a Christmas present next year!"

"Do you know how smelly my father's socks are? Do you know?"

Seamus cried and beat Dean.

Loren and Hermione fell into silence. Loren signaled to Hermione with his eyes: It's better not to tell Seamus about what they experienced.

Hermione blinked: I agree.

The first dinner after returning to school was the opening banquet. After the young wizards entered the castle for a brief rest, they entered the auditorium and sat at the long table of the college after a holiday. After Dumbledore's brief speech, the auditorium fell into a sea of ​​joy.

Loren and Hermione sat separately. Hermione was going to report her love progress during the holiday to her roommate, while Loren was pulled by Seamus to sit with the boys and listen to him talk about his legendary adventure in Diagon Alley.

"... You don't know how thrilling it was! The nearest explosion point was only one street away from me. At that time, I saw the flying debris falling in front of me. It almost exploded me!" Seamus pinched his thumb and index finger together, leaving only a finger gap, "Just this little bit!"

"You don't know how thrilling it was!"

Ron was worried about a roasted chicken leg and didn't pay attention to what Seamus said.

Harry listened to it, and he scratched his head: "I see... Loren and Hermione should know, they were there at the time, the explosion was right in front of them, and it was Snape who used Apparition to send them back to school to avoid disaster."

"..."

Seamus' expression gradually became dull, his eyes were unfocused, and he lowered his head and began to doubt his life.