"So it seems, Dumbledore has solved your problem?"
"Professor Flitwick and Hagrid were on duty at the front door, and Professor Snape and Filch were ordered to patrol the castle all night, responsible for the safety of all the students and staff at Hogwarts. Alastor Umbridge, who had just dispatched Filch and a rather confused Neville, could not return to her office to sleep soundly. After walking in the courtyard with her old headmaster, she had sent them away."
"Under the gradually cooling moonlight, my vision spanned across the undulating forest, clearly sensing that the white streak on the snow in the far distance had begun to spread towards the world."
The wind drifting over the lawn also carried the scent of winter. It seems, the first snow of the winter of 1993 is drawing near with each step.
Snape subtly turned his head, watching Umbridge standing still, gazing at the distant mountains covered in snow. He asked lightly.
"Mr. Headmaster, I'm afraid your help can't solve my problem--"
Alastor Umbridge yawned, stretched, and said,
"My situation is more complicated, I'm afraid. Other than myself, I don't think there will be much help."
Snape understood what Umbridge meant. She wanted to say that his problem was beyond her capabilities, just as it was for him.
"When exactly did you get into this trouble?"
Suddenly, Snape angrily said,
"I warned you so many times, Umbridge. The outside world is not as simple as Hogwarts. It's not just a matter of throwing a couple of spells that can blow up the ground and make everyone cheer. But you, still insist on doing dangerous things for those insignificant gold coins!"
"My troubles were not caused by what happened after I left school, my dear Professor Snape," Umbridge replied with a gentle smile.
"What exactly--"
Snape was stunned by this answer. His long and narrow nose constricted, and his eyebrows rose sharply.
"Does that mean... at Hogwarts?!"
"Who knows?"
Umbridge, with his hands clasped behind his back and his eyes closed, stared into the distance. He let the cold wind of the night caress his hair.
"Perhaps, it might have been trouble I caused before I was even born..."
.............
Professor Poppy refused to let Harry stay in the infirmary over the weekend, but he didn't argue or complain. However, he wouldn't let her throw away the remains of the Nimbus 2000. He knew he was being silly, and he knew that Nimbus 2000 couldn't be fixed. But Harry couldn't control his behavior because to him, it wasn't just a broom, it was his best friend.
Hagrid, Ginny, the entire Gryffindor Quidditch team...
During the daylight hours of the weekend, people kept coming to visit him, each one trying their best to cheer him up and help him move on from the terrible defeat he had experienced the day before. But to be honest, Harry didn't feel his spirits lifting; instead, he felt even more exhausted.
Ron and Hermione were virtually inseparable during the day, except for lunchtime. They had found a common goal of making Harry happy, and they seemed to have completely made up with each other. They chatted and sang together, talking about the news they had heard in the Great Hall, trying to lift Harry's spirits. But neither Ron nor Hermione noticed that Harry had a small bag filled with the remains of the Nimbus 2000 hidden under his bedsheets.
"It's been since the attack on Mrs. Loris and the incident with Professor Binns in the classroom talking about the Slytherin Chamber!"
Hermione, sitting beside him and peeling an orange, complained indignantly.
"I got up early today to go to the library and borrow two books about Patronuses. But Mrs. Pince told me that all the books related to this subject were taken yesterday... Oh, why can't they just leave some for me?"
Under Hermione's furious gaze, Ron, without any hesitation, snatched the orange she was preparing for Harry from her hand, shoved it into his mouth and started chewing with great relish, splattering juice everywhere.
"Are you thinking of learning that spell, Hermione?"
Ron looked at Hermione in a comical manner.
"Did you hear what Percy said in the common room last night? Even professors aren't all skilled in dealing with Dementors. And as for Professor Branagh's freak... Didn't you see, Hermione, yesterday at the Quidditch game, Dumbledore didn't look any better than we did."
Harry, who had been silently listening to Ron and Hermione argue about whether it was possible for young wizards to find a way to combat the vile creatures known as Dementors, suddenly felt a jolt in his brow, and a thought popped into his mind.
Hermione believed that Ron... Of course, including herself, the biggest problem was a lack of sufficient ambition in their studies. All this while, she had been trying her best to motivate and encourage them, but the results seemed to be very limited.
Although Harry appreciated Hermione's kindness, he was not very fond of Hermione's attempt in this matter. She could not impose her strongest skill on others, just as Harry never required Hermione to fly the Nimbus 2000 and perform a high-angle dive in front of everyone.
Hermione eventually failed to persuade Ron to have a stronger desire for knowledge, so she turned her head away in a pout, ignoring them both, and instead fixated on the sun as it moved towards the horizon.
As the crimson afterglow of the setting sun flooded into the infirmary, Ron's cheeks were flushed with color as he shared a new piece of news with Harry.
"Neville has gotten himself into trouble again." The Reading Room
"Oh, what happened?"
Thinking of Neville, who had fought beside him in Professor Branagh's Defense Against the Dark Arts class, helping Gryffindor win and heroically rising from the water, Harry frowned.
"Could it be Malfoy's group?"
"Harry, this time it has nothing to do with Malfoy and his group,"
Ron rubbed his stomach which was growling, pouted sympathetically and said.
"It's the same old problem, Harry," Ron said with a sympathetic pout, "Neville has lost something again, and this time, it's his wand... It's really perplexing why Neville isn't better at taking care of his own things than those two big fools behind Malfoy."
Although Ron's words were not particularly friendly towards Neville, Harry indeed felt that Neville had a knack for losing things.
"--Neville thought his wand had fallen on the Quidditch pitch, and last night, he stupidly tried to run out of the castle to find his wand. Unfortunately, he ran into Filch and that old bat, Professor Snape."
Hearing Ron say this, even Harry couldn't help but sigh for Neville... It was bad enough to lose a wand, but to run into the two people Neville feared most in school was just unlucky.
"And then what happened?"
Harry showed a slight interest in the topic and pursued further, asking.
"Neville said that Filch was going to torture him and Snape seemed to want to use him as material for potions class. Fortunately, Professor Branagh, who happened to pass by, saved him from certain death and even ordered Filch to help him find his wand on the Quidditch pitch this morning,"
Ron shrugged.
"But unfortunately, his wand may not have been dropped on the pitch after all."
"Poor Neville--"
Hermione worriedly said, "Without his wand, how will he be able to attend classes?"
Ron, however, was not at all concerned about Hermione's worries. He thought Neville's wand would turn up just like his old toad, which he often couldn't find.
Upon learning that Neville was not being bullied by Malfoy's group, Harry was not overly worried about the matter. In fact, as Harry fell silent again, he suddenly thought of something.
"Professor Branagh..."
Well, he seems to be particularly good at fixing things. Last year, he managed to extend the life of Ron's wand, which looked like it was beyond repair, and... he also seems to be particularly skilled in dealing with Dementors?
The Reading Room
