It was like finding a toy he'd been longing for. Kyle had been having the time of his life in the Room of Requirement.
He flicked a finger, and the rain instantly turned into a heavy snowfall. With another flick, it became hailstones the size of eggs.
Honestly, being able to change his surroundings with a wave of his hand felt incredible.
Only after he'd had his fill did Kyle suddenly remember he still had something important to do. Reluctantly, he turned the room back to a sunny day.
Never mind. He'd have plenty of time to play around with it later.
Kyle crouched down and carefully took two broad-bean-sized seeds from his pocket, afraid he might crush them if he wasn't careful.
The seeds were simply too precious—and they weren't even his. He'd gotten them from Herbology Class... well, picked them up.
He really had picked them up.
As it happened, during Herbology Class earlier, a Gryffindor first-year had successfully answered Professor Sprout's question. In his excitement, he'd flung the trowel in his hand straight at the Biting Cabbage across from him.
Unsurprisingly, it had been chewed into a lump of scrap metal on the spot, and the first-year had lost a point for it.
That should have been the end of the matter, but Kyle had happened to notice that, not long after spitting out the remains of the trowel, the Biting Cabbage had spat out two seeds as well.
Professor Sprout had been looking for a new trowel at the time and hadn't seen it happen.
As an excellent Hufflepuff, Kyle naturally had to help his Head of House out, so he'd taken the initiative and picked them up for her.
But later, he'd gotten so engrossed in Dittany that he forgot all about it.
Kyle dug two suitably sized holes, placed the seeds inside, and covered them with a thin layer of soil.
When he'd finished, Kyle nodded in satisfaction.
"Good. I'll keep them safe for now and bring them to Professor Sprout next class."
After leaving the Room of Requirement, Kyle returned to the common room. Then, when classes started in the afternoon, he went with the Hufflepuff first-years to the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom.
On the way, everyone seemed excited. It was hard to tell whether they were looking forward to Defense Against the Dark Arts or were simply curious about the legendary professor who never lasted more than a year.
It could have been both.
The Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom was on the second floor.
When they pushed open the door and entered, they found that all the neatly arranged desks had been moved against the walls, leaving the classroom looking very spacious.
Professor Oren had already arrived. He stood behind the lectern, fiddling with a covered cage.
Kyle was a little surprised to see this. He hadn't expected that their year's Defense Against the Dark Arts professor would be a hands-on sort, just like Lupin.
"Good afternoon, everyone."
Once the whole class had arrived, Professor Oren looked at them warmly and said, "Put your books away. We won't need them—not just for this lesson, but for any of our lessons this year."
With just one sentence, Professor Oren won over the young wizards.
What could make them happier than not having to bring their books to class? If there was anything, it had to be not needing to bring them to any class.
As it happened, Professor Oren had promised them both.
"This professor must really know his stuff," one young wizard said at once. "He'll definitely make it through the year!"
"I appreciate the vote of confidence, Mr. Bogg, but I can't award Gryffindor points just for that."
Professor Oren smiled and continued, "In my view, theory is always the easiest part of this subject. You can easily study it on your own; there's no need to use up precious class time on it.
"In class, I'd rather teach you how to protect yourselves when faced with danger.
"That danger might come from unknown Dark Magic, or it might be some dangerous Fantastic Beasts. Either way, it could cost you your lives."
Seeing the mood in the room grow more serious, Professor Oren continued, "But at your age, it's too early for you to deal with Dark Magic, and the headmaster wouldn't allow me to do that anyway.
"So we'll start with something simple: Fantastic Beasts."
With that, Professor Oren gave the cage a gentle push. A muffled buzzing came from inside, and the cloth covering it rocked from side to side as the cage rattled, as if it might fall off at any moment.
Some of the young wizards standing closer to the front hurriedly backed away.
"Don't worry. This little creature is dangerous, but as long as I'm here, none of you will be harmed," Professor Oren said seriously. "I only ask that you stay calm and remember everything I say."
Then Oren lifted the cover, revealing what was inside the cage.
...A blue insect, about an inch long. The buzzing came from the beating of its wings.
But unlike other insects, its wings grew out of the top of its head. When it flew, it looked as if it were wearing a little bamboo-copter, and its body spun around and around as well.
It was pretty cute.
Katie Bell couldn't help letting out a snort. "Professor, it doesn't look... dangerous, like you said."
In her eyes, Professor Oren had obviously exaggerated. She could kill such a tiny thing with a single slap, without even needing her wand. How could it possibly be dangerous?
"Is that so? I hope you're still that confident in a moment, Miss Bell." Professor Oren smiled slightly and asked, "Now, does anyone know what it is? The first person to name it can earn five points for their house."
Mikel suddenly heard a faint voice in the crowd, seemingly saying a name.
Tempted by the offer of points, he didn't think twice before blurting out, "Billywig!"
"Excellent, Mr. Mikel," Professor Oren said cheerfully. "Five points to Hufflepuff!"
"That's right, a Billywig, an XXX-class magical creature." Professor Oren explained, "Everyone, take a good look. There's a long, thin stinger at the bottom of its body. Anyone stung by a Billywig will feel dizzy, then slowly float into the air.
"If they're stung too many times, they might even float uncontrollably for several days."
Professor Oren turned to Katie Bell. "Do you still think it's not dangerous?"
Katie Bell turned her head away without saying anything. From her expression, though, she didn't seem entirely convinced.
"Professor..." A young wizard asked eagerly, "So are we going to learn how to deal with this Billywig in today's lesson?"
"Not exactly." Professor Oren shook his head. "Before that, you first need to learn the spell for dealing with it. We'll practice for real only after I'm sure you're ready."
Before you continue