You'd Better Swallow That

The noise was so loud that even the next compartment could hear it.

Hermione Granger happened to be passing by when she abruptly flung open the compartment door.

"What's going on?"

No one answered her.

It wasn't that everyone had left the compartment. They were just busy with their own things.

Harry and Ron were responsible for gaping in astonishment.

Goyle, Crabbe, and their leader, Malfoy, were responsible for lying on the floor and resting.

Of course, the floor of a train wasn't exactly a place to sleep. That was just a humorous way of putting it.

The real reason they were lying on the floor was that Glenn had cast a spell called "Petrificus Totalus" on them. It left their bodies rigid and unable to move.

At the sight, Hermione was so stunned that, for a moment, she didn't know what to say.

"What are you doing?"

"Don't get the wrong idea, Miss Granger. They said they had nothing to eat and wanted some of our snacks," Glenn said.

Hermione glanced at Ron and Harry.

Surprisingly, although they looked a little frightened too, they nodded honestly.

"Unfortunately, they were so hungry they couldn't even hold the food properly." Glenn sighed, then picked up a pumpkin pasty from the floor.

"So, as fellow first-years, we had to show some spirit and feed them ourselves." As he spoke, he shoved the pumpkin pasty in his hand into Goyle's mouth.

Normally, once "Petrificus Totalus" was cast, the target couldn't move any part of their body except their thoughts and eyes.

But Glenn hadn't even started school yet, so it was only natural that he couldn't cast it perfectly.

Goyle could move his jaw, but he couldn't make a sound. To avoid choking, he could only whimper as he chewed and swallowed the pumpkin pasty.

At the sight, Hermione's gaze darted between the terrified-looking Malfoy and the others, and Glenn.

She had no idea what she was supposed to "not get the wrong idea" about.

"Stop..."

But before she could finish, Malfoy, who was lying on the floor, suddenly shouted.

"You stinking Mudblood, born to a Muggle family! Do you know what it means to make me angry...?"

At his words, Hermione's open mouth suddenly fell silent.

She didn't know what "Mudblood" meant, but she could still hear the contempt in it.

Malfoy was about to say more, but Ron stepped forward.

Having grown up in a wizarding family, no one knew better than Ron just how offensive those words were.

"Shut up!" Ron snarled, pointing his wand at Malfoy.

Seeing things spiraling further out of control, Hermione, although she didn't like the boy lying on the floor—in fact, she rather despised him—

could tell that something was about to happen that might be difficult to undo.

With that in mind, Hermione decided she needed to tell an adult—if Glenn hadn't spoken next.

"There's no need, Ron. He's just faint with hunger." Glenn lowered Ron's wand, which was pointed at Malfoy.

"We have to be tolerant of our classmates. Harry, here's a Galleon. Could you go to the trolley and pick out a few packs of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans? Consider it a treat for our three classmates."

From the bewildered looks on Crabbe, Goyle, and Malfoy's faces, it was obvious they had no idea what this meant.

But the other three present all froze.

"Sure." Harry's face flushed with excitement. He didn't even take the money Glenn held out, simply heading straight for the trolley.

It was only one Galleon, after all.

He was treating them to this Galleon's worth, no matter what!

The cheerful and friendly feeding session lasted about ten minutes.

Glenn picked out one bean after another from the magical sweets and fed them to his three dear classmates.

Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans really did come in an incredible variety of flavors. Besides the "vomit" flavor Neville had tried, there were all kinds, like boogers, dirt, earthworms, earwax, grass, rotten eggs, and soap...

Even Ron, who'd been the angriest earlier, wore a forgiving smile after feeding Malfoy a few beans.

When it was time to leave, Malfoy and the others didn't just stop shouting; they were too afraid to even look back. With tears in their eyes over how precious food was, they left.

"What a bunch of gluttons." Glenn clapped his hands.

"The rest of the beans taste pretty good, so you can take them with you when we get to Hogwarts. You don't have to save any for me." As he spoke, he sat back down in his seat.

It was as if nothing had happened.

"That was brilliant, Glenn!" Ron was still beaming with excitement.

"I've heard about the Malfoys before. After You-Know-Who disappeared, they were among the first to come back over to our side. They said they'd been bewitched, but my dad doesn't believe it. He says Malfoy's father went over to the dark side without needing any excuse."

Harry picked up the topic and told them about meeting Malfoy in Diagon Alley. That hadn't been pleasant either.

The arrogance of the pure-blood family had seeped into every part of that conversation. Malfoy had even insulted Hagrid, who'd brought Harry into the wizarding world.

So Harry felt pretty satisfied with what had happened just now, too.

Their shared dislike of the same person brought the two boys closer in an instant.

But there was still someone else present.

Ron turned around and asked Hermione, who was standing by the door, "Is there something you need our help with?"

Hermione ignored him and excitedly sat down on a seat.

"...Was that spell you used 'Petrificus Totalus'?" she asked in a hushed voice, as if discussing something she shouldn't.

"I've read about it in a book, but I've never seen anyone use it—I'm not saying it was right, I just..."

Before Glenn could answer, she went on, "I read about it in chapter seven of Curses and Counter-Curses. It's a low-risk beginner's spell. I've always wanted to try it, but I've never had anyone to practice on... How did you learn it?"

Looking at the hopeful expression in the girl's eyes, Glenn paused to think.

"Well, I have a wizard friend who's a little older than us..."

"Oh! I get it. You read the book and memorized all the spells first, then asked him to be your practice target, right?" Hermione clapped her hands excitedly.

That was exactly what she'd imagined would be the best way to learn!

"No. I watched him do it once, and then I knew how."

"?"

Hermione didn't quite know what to say to that.

She'd already started planning her future studies around that method.

Just then, a man's voice suddenly rang out through the train, interrupting their conversation.

"The train will be arriving at Hogwarts in five minutes. Please leave your luggage on the train. We'll have it sent to the school for you."

"We're going to change. Could you step outside for a moment?" Ron said stiffly.

"All right..."

Hermione rose reluctantly, then said disdainfully, "Oh, and by the way, you've got something dirty on your nose. Did you know?"

After getting back at Ron for his rude tone, Hermione left the compartment.

"I absolutely refuse to be in the same house as someone like her." Ron glared after her angrily.

"Glenn, are you nervous?" Now that Harry realized they were about to reach Hogwarts, he felt as though his heart might leap out of his chest.

"A little."

Glenn looked out the window. Night had fallen, and beneath the deep purple sky, only mountains and forests remained.

As the imposing castle on the horizon gradually came into view, a flood of memories passed through his eyes.

His time as a transfer student hadn't been long, but a hundred years had passed, and it all felt as though it had happened only yesterday.

"It's good to see you again, Hogwarts."