Breeze is Earning Points

Breeze sprinted out of the Slytherin common room.

He rubbed his messy black hair, his eyes indifferent. He truly wasn't suited for Slytherin; the people here were too snobbish, and their words were... utterly unpleasant.

Of course, the problem still lay with Malfoy. He hadn't realized so many people wanted to curry favor with him, but there was no use regretting it now, and he had no intention of suffering a loss.

"Slytherin, huh?" Damn that Sorting Hat. Could he really go back a thousand years to Hogwarts to study magic?

Breeze thought to himself...

"Let's go to class first."

No one had followed him. Tsk, those people were only good at sharp-tongued banter.

Breeze recalled a story—you beat the small ones, the old ones come; you beat the old ones, the ones buried in the dirt come...

Surely it wouldn't be an endless cycle.

Carrying his books, Breeze walked toward the Great Hall with a wooden expression, suppressing a laugh.

"It would be best if they didn't come to bother me."

He would rather spend his time studying magic and growing stronger than messing around with children.

However, if someone touched his bottom line, no one would have an easy time. Playing weak was a tactic, not his personality.

"Just wait a while longer. Do you really dare to put on airs in front of the strong?"

Breeze pulled the diary from his satchel and wrote on the last page—two second-years who blocked the way, two hulking brutes, an ugly and mean lion-faced girl, a platinum little peacock, a horse-faced male prefect, a scorpion-like female prefect, and those others standing, sitting, or sleeping in the dormitory...

"It's truly a waste of paper to use it for these insignificant people, but I must keep a record."

Breeze, having regained his composure, arrived at the long table in the Great Hall. As he sat down, some breakfast appeared on the table, though it was a bit sparse...

Breeze had a hearty appetite, something Betty had once worried about. Last night, because he had been the center of too much attention and hadn't been sorted into his preferred house, he had lost his appetite and hadn't eaten much.

"Hi! You cute little viper..."

"You seem to be in trouble..."

Large hands suddenly appeared on each of Breeze's shoulders. Well, it was the Weasley brothers, with their signature red hair.

But was it really okay for Gryffindors to be wandering around the Slytherin table?

Breeze glanced over and saw the few Slytherins at the table looking coldly in their direction. Malfoy smiled at him, seemingly mocking his stupidity, while Zabini, his roommate sitting nearby, averted his gaze the moment Breeze looked his way.

This guy had something going on.

Ignoring the two of them, Breeze ate his breakfast in a slow, measured, and hearty manner.

"Oh, ignoring us? I thought you'd be sorted into Gryffindor; we even saved you a seat."

"Not very fun, though our little brother clearly overslept and we can't find him for the moment..."

They chattered away on either side of Breeze with expressions of regret, but Breeze's mood inexplicably improved, and he ate another sandwich.

"Do you two have something to say? I have class in a moment." Breeze wiped the corners of his mouth with a napkin and pointed to the textbook on the table, One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi.

Fred and George exchanged a look, then pointed to the textbook and said, "Right, Herbology. It's a leisurely course; you can play in the dirt for the whole lesson. Of course, there are some decent plants in there that can bring us surprises."

George ruffled Breeze's hair, earning a glare from him. He continued, "Oh, well, but no plant is as interesting as Peeves. We heard the Weasley twins are collecting Stinkweed, and the twins can get Peeves to go to certain places and cause some chaos. It's brilliant."

Breeze looked up, staring straight at them, and said, "Thanks, I'll find a way to bring you some."

Fred and George flashed satisfied smiles, then slipped a cloth bag to Breeze without a trace before winking at each other and leaving his table.

Breeze smiled, feeling a sense of anticipation.

"Breeze?"

"Ah? Cedric..."

Sigh, he didn't hear that, did he?

Cedric blushed, looking worried, and whispered, "Don't touch Stinkweed with your bare hands, even with protective gloves. Also, the kitchens are on the basement level, directly below the Great Hall, next to the Hufflepuff common room. If you're in trouble, you can come find me."

"The door to the kitchen is a painting of fruit; if you tickle the pear, a door handle will appear. If you miss meal times, you can order food there."

Breeze smiled sincerely at Cedric. "Thanks, brother. Much obliged."

Cedric smiled back and waved goodbye. They had heard about the situation in Slytherin; Breeze seemed to be isolated. As a friend, he would help where he could, but the rest would have to depend on Breeze himself.

Once Breeze finished his breakfast, he prepared to head to the greenhouses for his lesson. Malfoy and his entourage also stood up. Despite arriving earlier and eating less than Breeze, they were so slow—an unforgivable drawback of aristocratic etiquette, with the exception of the two hulking brutes.

"Hmph, as expected. Some people can only be friends with poor redheads and the slop-buckets from the mud."

Parkinson remained mean-spirited, but Breeze was in a good mood after his meal. There was no need to waste his limited energy on someone he didn't need to care about.

As he was about to leave, he heard the male prefect from earlier, Bennett Wilder, teasing Jennifer Carrow at the table: "Look, the heartless little Muggle-born. Are you still going to be his mother, Jennifer?"

Jennifer Carrow frowned inelegantly.

"I only did what a prefect should do. Whatever happens to him afterward has nothing to do with me."

Bennett Wilder said, "Hmm, I told you your judgment was poor... Oh, alright, I'll stop. Put away your fork, you're an elegant lady of a pure-blood family..."

Breeze rubbed his nose, pondering some of the hexes recorded in his Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook, which he hadn't studied carefully yet... He wondered if they would be effective when he cast them. Perhaps he should go to the library to look for some interesting spells, or ask the Weasleys.

The greenhouse was spacious, with sunlight filtering through the transparent film to create a comfortable atmosphere. There were many plants inside, but the one they were to study had been placed on the central table: a pot of vibrant, tender sprouts, so green they seemed to shimmer.

The Herbology professor was Pomona Sprout, a plump, kind-hearted lady. Because she spent so much time in the greenhouse tending to her plants, her sleeves and hem were often stained with soil, yet she didn't look the least bit untidy. Her smile was infectious, and even Malfoy's group had nothing negative to say about her.

"Who can tell me what this plant is? Please raise your hand..."

Professor Sprout looked at the students encouragingly.

"Oh, very well, Miss Evan of Ravenclaw."

"This is Luminescent Grass, Professor."

Professor Sprout was delighted and awarded Ravenclaw one point. The little eagles were overjoyed, especially the girl named Evan, who blushed deeply.

The little snakes felt a bit disappointed, though their reserve kept them from showing it.

Is this the glory of Slytherin... Breeze thought. Points were tied to the House Cup; receiving praise in class earned points, while mistakes cost them. The House Cup was awarded at the end of each year, and Slytherin had won it for six consecutive years. The entire Great Hall was draped in the silver and green of Slytherin.

Breeze liked green and silver; he felt they suited the Great Hall perfectly.

"Now, who can tell me the uses of Luminescent Grass..."

"Oh, Mr. Order, please go ahead."

"Yes, Professor." When Breeze was focused, his pure black eyes shimmered with intelligence. His confident expression was quite endearing, and it was clear that Professor Sprout found this little snake quite charming.

"Luminescent Grass can be brewed into a Luminescent Potion, or Luminescent Oil, which can provide light to an area. This plant absorbs light during the day and stores it in its stems and leaves, emitting a soft, ghostly glow at night. Many families want to grow it, but this grass dislikes places where people live; such environments often lead to its death..."

As Breeze spoke, Professor Sprout's smile grew even warmer. The surrounding little eagles looked at him with admiration, though the little snakes wore strange expressions. Malfoy snorted, Parkinson looked displeased, and Zabini's gaze shifted, though he quickly returned to his usual indifference.

"Excellent, simply wonderful. I must award Mr. Order five points. That was a marvelous explanation, even more comprehensive than the textbook. You must have read quite a lot. However, I must add one point."

Sprout smiled at Breeze. "If you water the Luminescent Grass with lake water collected during a full moon every day, you can prevent them from dying when kept near humans. Of course, it must be every day. I discovered this myself... well, because the Herbology section of the newspapers is always behind Potions, and Luminescent Grass isn't highly valued, this discovery hasn't appeared in any reports yet. You should all take note of this; I might put it on the final exam."

Professor Sprout's class was wonderful, and the first lesson was quite relaxed. Afterward, Breeze managed to earn another four house points. Since points were usually awarded one at a time and each professor had a limit, Breeze had done his best.

"Tch, playing in the mud, are we, Mr. Order?" Malfoy and his companions brushed past Breeze and headed straight out of the greenhouse. The other little snakes left with similar indifference, though Breeze sensed their hostility had diminished significantly.

"A good start." Still, he couldn't forgive certain people.

Breeze touched his satchel, which contained his textbooks and diary, along with some Stinkweed he had surreptitiously swiped during the break. Since the Weasley twins had been banned from the greenhouse and were watched like hawks by Professor Sprout during class, they struggled to get enough Stinkweed. Now, Breeze's satchel felt heavy, which made him quite happy.

"I'll head to the library. If I run into the Weasleys, I'll give it to them. I wonder what they need it for, anyway."

The library was on the second floor of Hogwarts. The collection was incredibly rich, which excited Breeze even more. After spending a Sickle every day at the second-hand bookstore for so long, he could finally read for free.

Every event serves to advance the plot.