Two o'clock in the morning.
Harry and Ron were released from confinement, but they were stumped by the password.
The Fat Lady's expression was quite unfriendly. "Without a password, you'd better find another way to get in!"
A flying broom? Or Flying Ford Anglia?
Both of them understood what she meant.
I'm already thankful I wasn't expelled or penalized.
Want to go in?
It all comes down to skill.
Just as the two were racking their brains for a solution, the dormitory door behind the Fat Lady was suddenly opened from the inside.
"Boom boom boom—" Colorful fireworks exploded above their heads.
"Surprised?" Fred and George squeezed into the hole, each holding a bunch of Filibuster Fireworks.
Hermione, standing behind them, was furious. "You're praising them in a roundabout way!"
"Relax," George said, pulling a firework towards her. "See, doesn't this feel much better?"
She waved her hand to swat away the small bursts of fireworks, saying, "Don't forget why we came here."
"Okay, okay, Miss Nagging~" Fred said with a smile, putting his arms around Harry and Ron.
"Oh well—whatever." Hermione turned and walked into the common room.
Less than two minutes after I left, a banner had already been put up inside.
"Welcome back in glory, Potter and Weasley?"
Her lips were trembling slightly.
Because, apart from Vincent, who was quietly looking at his laptop, everyone had lost their previous seriousness.
Why didn't you stop them?
Vincent turned to the next page. "I thought you'd gotten used to the atmosphere here."
"If something happens, you're more worried than anyone else; if nothing happens, you're happier than anyone else?"
"Correct answer." He closed his notebook. "Unfortunately, I'm not a professor, so I can't give you extra points."
Hermione looked at the half-black and half-white cover with a puzzled expression, as well as the reverse half-black and half-white Magical Runes.
She was more interested in the contents of the notebook than his lame jokes.
"Want to see?"
She nodded slightly, then shook her head decisively.
"Ask me again when you really want to see it." Vincent put the notebook away.
A moment of regret flashed through Hermione's mind.
"Could it be something shady?"
"Yes, children shouldn't watch it."
If it weren't for the wicked smile on his face, she would have almost believed it.
Are you angry?
"No."
Vincent stood up, walked around her, and joined everyone in applauding.
"Harry, Ron —welcome back!"
Hermione stopped pouting and went forward to clap her hands just like him.
When you are different from those around you, then you are the only outlier.
Before you have the ability to completely change the environment, you have no choice but to try to fit in if you don't want to be seen as an outsider.
The welcome party lasted for almost half an hour.
Before Percy could kick him out, Vincent had already quietly returned to his dorm room.
When did he disappear?
"While you were tossing Harry and Ron up in the air."
The disappointment on Fred and George's faces didn't last long.
See you tomorrow!
"See you tomorrow." Hermione walked into the girls' dormitory with a sigh of relief.
Although she resisted it, it was a new beginning.
The next day, at breakfast
Hermione was reading a book while eating porridge.
Neville, who was next to her, glanced at her unintentionally and instinctively shrank back.
Vincent leaned down to look over.
"Voyages with Vampires"...
He calmly took a sip of milk to calm his nerves.
"The postman is here!" Neville straightened up instantly, his expectant gaze fixed on the flock of owls flying in.
"My grandma will definitely send me the things I forgot to bring."
Vincent and his two roommates all looked very uncomfortable.
Forget about textbooks, he didn't even bring underwear.
Neville was describing what it felt like in a very serious manner last night.
On the other side of Vincent, James and Alfred joked:
"Merlin bless you, you will surely get new big shorts."
I wish there were more, so you could have something new to wear every day.
"I didn't mean to—" Neville shrank back again, "At least I didn't forget—"
With a "thud," a large, bulging package hit him on the forehead.
With another "smack," a gray owl crashed into Ron's milk jug across the street.
Harry, who was sitting next to him, suffered.
Not only was it splashed with milk, but wet feathers also stuck to its eyes.
"Oh no—" Ron quickly pulled Errol out.
It lay sprawled on the long table, its two legs stretched out straight.
Hermione closed the book and gently poked it with her little hand. "It's okay, it's still alive."
"That's not the point!" Ron said, pointing tremblingly to the red envelope Errol was holding in his mouth.
Neville clutched the package tightly, his expression even more terrified than Neville's.
"What's wrong?" Harry brushed aside the feathers blocking his view.
Ron said weakly, "She—my mother sent me a Howler."
"You'd better open it, Ron." Neville shifted back uneasily. "It'll be worse if you don't."
My grandma sent it to me once, but I ignored it, and then—"
He gasped, "It was terrifying. I still can't forget it."
Harry wiped his face. "What's Howler?"
"Oh—you wouldn't want to know." Alfred quickly pulled out his wand and conjured up earmuffs for himself.
James followed suit and put it on at almost the same time as him.
"Open it quickly—" Neville urged Ron, "I remember there are only a few minutes left."
As Ron shakily removed the envelope Errol was holding, Vincent had already used Wandless Magic to seal his ears.
But the letter slipped from his hand and even turned into a giant mouth that tore off the envelope.
Vincent could hear a particularly loud noise.
He watched as dust, shaken off the ceiling, fell into the half-eaten porridge in front of him.
The Howler is truly terrifying!
"How dare you steal your father's car!"
Ron Weasley! If you get expelled from school, you'd better not know what I'll do to you!
Not only the Gryffindor table, but also the plates and spoons on the other tables were making a clattering sound.
The echoes from the stone walls of the Great Hall were deafening.
In that instant, all eyes were on Ron's face.
His face flushed, he tried to grab the Howler floating in front of him.
"I received a letter from Dumbledore last night. Your father was so ashamed he almost died."
We raised you with so much care and love, and we never imagined you would do something like this. You and Harry almost lost your lives..."
Harry then stood up as well.
No matter how hard they tried, the Howler could always dodge it.
"Your father's lack of promotion is all your fault!"
If you don't behave, we'll bring you back right away!
The roar stopped, but the sound still lingered in their ears.
The Howler, which had transformed into a mouth, closed, rolled into a ball, and spontaneously combusted.
"Pfft—hahahaha—" The Slytherin table erupted in a burst of laughter.
Draco laughed the loudest.
Not only was his mouth wide open, but he was even having trouble breathing.