Breeze Was Ready

The librarian was Madam Pince, a thin, elderly woman who looked a little like an underfed vulture. When Breeze entered the library, she watched his every move intently, only slowly looking away once she saw him gently set a book he had chosen on a reading table.

Then Breeze saw Madam Pince angrily stride over to another reading table and viciously chase away a first-year Gryffindor who had accidentally dropped a book on the floor and cried out in surprise... Gryffindors came to the library too?

It seemed to be Neville, whom Hermione had brought along. Now both Neville and Hermione were being sent away, though Hermione pleaded desperately. Madam Pince eyed them suspiciously and let them off for the moment, then returned to the staff table, never taking her eyes off Neville, as if afraid he might make another noise or damage a book.

Well, Breeze thought Madam Pince was pretty good. At least she could guarantee him a quiet place to read.

"Hi..." Hermione led Neville over and asked quietly, "Can I sit here, Breeze?"

As she spoke, she sat down and gently placed a large stack of books on the table opposite Breeze.

Well, why bother asking me, then?

Breeze could only smile and nod before returning to the book in his hands—The Noble Slytherin.

Yes, Breeze needed to understand the rules so he could do what he liked within them. As time passed, he turned the pages more and more slowly. When he finished, he went back to reread them, his brow furrowing.

He rubbed his brow. There were only two words on his mind now: Pure-blood.

A thousand years ago, Salazar Slytherin himself had never intended to teach Muggle-born wizards—or even Half-bloods—from the beginning. That had caused a conflict with the other Three Founders of Hogwarts. That was what the book said. Breeze didn't know the details, but he could tell that the current state of Slytherin House had a great deal to do with that original disagreement.

Breeze murmured to himself, "Just as being a Pure-blood makes the Slytherins smile and show you goodwill, being a talented Pure-blood earns their respect, and a powerful noble Pure-blood can make them bow down... But who knows about my bloodline? I've been in the Muggle World all along, and my knowledge of magic only goes back to the month before school started... I'm not strong."

"But I don't think things will stay this way forever. Maybe a capable Half-blood or Muggle-born could make them shut up."

"Knowledge is power too. I learn quickly—that's my advantage. So, just like in Herbology today, I'll show them how strong I am and make them shut up."

Although young Pure-blood wizards received some education at home, their magic was unruly because of their own magical power. Before they got their wands at eleven, they couldn't use magic at will. One of a wand's functions was to help regulate young wizards' unruly, volatile magic.

So Breeze wasn't much different from the first-year Slytherins. In fact, thanks to his learning ability and an innate magical talent he hadn't even realized he possessed, he had already surpassed them.

Breeze raised an eyebrow and smiled. He slowly stood up; he'd been there long enough. He'd also reached his short-term goal. Just as they wanted, he would act like a Slytherin striving for glory.

"No one stands at the top forever, not even Merlin."

He returned the book to its place, then found another book nearby, one that had been checked out many times: Practical Jokes with Dark Magic.

"Some prank spells won't hurt anyone, but they can be pretty embarrassing." This was one of the few books on Dark Magic. The more powerful and dangerous ones were in the Forbidden Section.

Breeze looked toward the back of the shelves. A cordon separated that area from the rest of the library. That was the Forbidden Section, where books could only be borrowed with a slip approved by a professor. Younger students could only borrow books specified by their professors.

"I wonder if anyone's on night watch. I wonder if Mr. Filch is conscientious..."

Holding the book, Breeze said goodbye to Hermione, who was still buried in a sea of books, and Neville, who was already dozing off. Then he went to borrow the book from Madam Pince and left.

Neville sat in his chair with a book in his hand, his head propped up. Hermione watched Breeze leave, then quietly got up to take down the book he'd been reading...

It was almost 12:30, and he had another class soon. He had Herbology both in the morning and afternoon today, so Breeze could only grab a quick lunch before heading to the greenhouses...

"This afternoon, we're probably fertilizing Luminescent Grass..."

No wonder there were no first-year Slytherins or Ravenclaws at lunch right now. What was Professor Sprout using for fertilizer? Breeze was sure it wasn't anything pleasant.

Breeze grimaced and silently ate a little more. There was nothing he could do about it now, but hopefully a few simple spells would help. At the secondhand bookstore, he'd seen a deodorizing spell that was a branch of Scourgify. The incantation was Freshen the Air...

As time passed, Breeze earned another seven points in Herbology.

As the days went by, Breeze earned five points in Charms class on Thursday, and more points in Astronomy Class that evening. The first-year Little Snakes stopped giving him trouble, and the older students stopped paying attention to him too. Perhaps they were still watching him. Waiting to see how things played out was a Slytherin trait. The two fifth-year Prefects, however, were somewhat surprised.

Bennett Wilder remarked to Jennifer Carrow, "I didn't expect it. He's got a little Badger's temperament and an Eagle's brains... like Cedric, that Hufflepuff third-year who came top of his year."

Jennifer Carrow gave a cold snort and didn't respond.

Bennett Wilder shook his head and didn't provoke her further. Instead, he consoled her. "Maybe he's just clever in some areas. Doing well in every subject takes more than effort; it takes talent too. He's just a wizard who's most likely Muggle-born."

This was an investment that had been abandoned halfway through. Breeze seemed to have some talent, too, but Jennifer Carrow hadn't been decisive enough.

Thursday passed uneventfully, but that evening, Breeze's roommate actually spoke to him. It was enough to make him happy.

"Ockham and Gus are Half-blood wizards. They have no inheritance rights, and Gus's older brother is a Pure-blood in Ravenclaw. He's very clever. That's why they targeted you."

Zabini sat at his desk with his back to Breeze, speaking coldly as if to himself. "You did very well yesterday and today, but becoming a Slytherin isn't easy. You'll only count as one of us if you get Outstanding marks in your classes from now on. Muggle-born wizards without pure blood always have a harder time. A lot of Pure-bloods look down on you."

After he finished speaking, Zabini fell silent and went back to reading, as if he hadn't said anything.

Breeze narrowed his eyes. "Including you."

It was a statement, not a question.

He shrugged and picked up Practical Jokes with Dark Magic again. The book covered minor jinxes. There weren't many, but they were explained in great detail... well, the section warning young wizards not to use them and encouraging them to be good White Wizards went into great detail about the dangers of Dark Magic.

"Trip Jinx, Pimple Jinx, Laughing Jinx, Big Teeth Jinx..."

Breeze was engrossed in the book. He'd been studying it for the past two days, but he didn't have anyone to try the spells on yet, and he didn't know how powerful they would be. Still, he memorized all the incantations just in case. But...

After reading the book, Breeze knew that casting any Dark Magic required the appropriate malice.

"No one's heart is completely pure, right? Everyone has some flaws. But there's an old Chinese saying: 'Don't do evil just because it is small.' Well... repaying evil with kindness isn't my style."

He put the book down and picked up his Potions Class textbook. He had Potions Class tomorrow morning with Gryffindor. Earlier, he'd had Herbology with Ravenclaw, while Charms and Astronomy Class were with Hufflepuff. That was how the timetable worked at Hogwarts: because of staffing, two Houses always had classes together.

As for his Head of House, Breeze had a very clear impression of him: a greasy old bat. He wasn't bad-looking, but he didn't know how to take care of himself. Not very Slytherin at all.

Thinking of the first-year girls starting to put on makeup, Breeze couldn't help laughing. It wasn't that girls shouldn't try to look beautiful, but every age had its own unique beauty. Why try to look mature? They were all just children.

"Clang..."

Zabini went out. Breeze shrugged and got ready to wash up, then lie in bed and read. It was more convenient that way when he fell asleep.

After washing up, Breeze took his book to bed and soon fell asleep...

"Where are you going?"

Draco Malfoy was playing chess with another boy in the common room. When he saw Zabini come out, he glanced up and asked. After all, though first-years didn't have a Head, the Malfoy family had the most prestige and influence of anyone in their year, so everyone except Breeze treated Malfoy as their leader—at least on the surface.

"Nowhere, Malfoy. I just wanted to come to the common room and read for a while."

Malfoy nodded and looked at the chessboard without saying anything more.

Wizard's Chess followed more or less the same rules as ordinary chess, but its pieces looked like little people. They could move and had emotions of their own. If a player wasn't any good at chess, the pieces would look down on him.

"Theodore, it's your move."

"Give me a moment to think, Malfoy."

Theodore Nott had been Malfoy's childhood friend, but he was a gloomy sort and looked very frail.

Two girls were sitting on either side of Malfoy. One was the black-haired, straight-haired Pansy Parkinson. The other was a blonde girl who had only recently attached herself to him—Daphne Greengrass. Like Parkinson, Nott, and Malfoy, she was also from one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight.

A short while later, someone seemed to call for Zabini. He silently headed toward the boys' dormitory passage.

Daphne glanced at him, her pretty blue eyes thoughtful. She was clearly clever. She turned to Malfoy and asked, "Dear Mr. Malfoy, aren't you going to do something about that Breeze?"

"What's it got to do with me? There's no Head in the first year."

In other words, whatever happened wouldn't affect him.