Percy's Envy

Only a handful of students were scattered throughout the vast Great Hall, eating breakfast. Most, like Fred, George, and Lee Jordan, had simply stayed in bed and could not be bothered to get up.

Hermione sat silently beside Albert, absentmindedly spreading blueberry jam over a slice of toast. She casually found a topic to discuss. "Will we still be practicing against Boggarts at the next gathering?"

"Yeah, Boggarts are a fairly important exam topic."

"Listening to you, I keep feeling Professor Lupin will use a Boggart for the final practical exam."

Hermione took a bite of toast and asked indistinctly, "When's the next gathering?"

"In... a few days."

Albert was eating a fried egg when he happened to spot someone he knew entering the Great Hall.

"What do you mean, 'a few days'?" Percy happened to sit down beside Albert with a bowl of pumpkin porridge.

"The O.W.L. Defense Against the Dark Arts tutoring group." Albert smiled and waved at Isabelle.

"Since when did our school have something like that?" Percy asked without looking up as he ate the bacon on his plate. "Don't tell me it's a gathering you organized yourself?"

"More or less." Albert shrugged. "A lot of people are worried they'll mess up the Defense Against the Dark Arts exam."

"Actually, the O.W.L. Defense Against the Dark Arts exam isn't particularly difficult. It's all covered in Dark Forces: A Defensive Guide." Recalling the O.W.L. exam content, Percy could not help shaking his head. "The practical exam covers defensive spells and counter-spells. The book contains only those points. If they mess it up, they can only blame themselves for not revising properly."

"If other people heard you say that, they'd probably want to punch you," Albert teased with a smile.

"Don't you think the same way?" Percy retorted.