There were lots of little heads outside the door.
The commotion here had just now drawn plenty of people, but when the little wizards saw an adult step out of the train compartment, they all looked at one another in confusion.
"Move along. There's nothing to see here."
Dewey shooed them away.
The little wizards immediately ducked their heads and left, excitedly discussing what had happened.
Draco and Harry fighting was nothing new.
They had been at odds for a long time.
What mattered now was, who was this adult?
Apart from the train staff and driver, were there other adults aboard the train to Hogwarts?
The little wizards chattered among themselves.
Malfoy returned to his compartment in a fury. Along the way, he saw several Slytherins. They were all surprised to see Goyle looking like that.
A little while later, a wizard came in.
"All right, all right. I may be a little rusty."
This wizard was the train's "jack-of-all-trades." He was responsible for dealing with any problems that arose aboard the train.
Clearly, nothing had happened on the train to Hogwarts for many years.
About two-thirds of the children of British wizards were aboard. Tampering with this train was tantamount to declaring war on the entire British Wizarding World.
Apart from madmen like Dewey, no one would want to blow up the Hogwarts Express.
There was nothing to gain and no benefit to be had. The only result would be that the entire wizarding world united to hunt down the perpetrator.
Even Grindelwald wouldn't be so reckless. Voldemort wouldn't kill so many Pure-blood and Half-blood children for no reason, either.
Dewey might.
Just look at his mental state.
This jack-of-all-trades wizard had been drawing a salary for years, and had rarely seen anyone settle things with their fists aboard the Hogwarts train. So when he saw injuries from a fistfight, he kept muttering to himself, visibly nervous.
His state of mind made the few little snakes around him nervous, too.
"This is awful."
He cautiously tried to cast a spell on Goyle, his eyes darting about. Goyle and Crabbe grew nervous right along with him.
Thank goodness he was only nervous.
His hand wasn't shaking too badly, and the spell was fine.
Goyle stopped bleeding.
After the wizard left, Malfoy cursed viciously, but for now, he had no way to deal with a Hogwarts professor.
Even with the Malfoy Family's considerable influence, they were powerless to reach into Hogwarts.
Everyone knew Hogwarts was Dumbledore's territory.
Dumbledore disliked politicking, but that didn't mean he didn't understand it, nor that he couldn't mobilize his resources.
His students, his old friends, his admirers, and his astonishing magical talent—any one of them was a formidable asset.
"That's because you refuse to use those Dark Arts."
Hagrid had once said this to Dumbledore when he first took Harry to the Dursley family's home. Professor McGonagall, then in the form of a cat, had been there, too.
It wasn't empty flattery or deliberate praise.
It was a fact.
Everyone thought so.
Dumbledore and Voldemort had both woven magic deeply into their souls. They had infused magic into every part of their lives, from eating and dressing to their every move. Using magic came as naturally to them as breathing.
The School Governors had just joined forces with the Ministry of Magic to pressure the headmaster into making concessions over the Dementors' entry into Hogwarts. They certainly wouldn't provoke Dumbledore again anytime soon.
Quite the opposite: what they wanted most now was to mend their relationship with Dumbledore. They would have been delighted if he made demands of them. No matter how influential the Malfoy Family was, no one would speak up in Malfoy's defense over something like this.
Draco Malfoy knew that very well. Lucius hadn't just taught Draco how to study—Draco was his only son, and Lucius spared no effort in raising him.
"One day, this manor will be yours, Draco," Lucius had once said. "The Malfoy Family will be yours, too.
"So, my son, you must carry on the glory of our family. You need to know everything."
Lucius believed Draco ought to know everything.
Draco understood all of this, too. Even though he was furious, he could do nothing about Professor Lupin.
"He'll make a mistake sooner or later!"
Draco said viciously.
"As soon as he does, I'll find my chance..."
He was cursing under his breath when the compartment door slid open.
Draco Malfoy had his back to the door. He didn't know who had come in, but from the terrified looks on Goyle and Crabbe's faces, he could tell something was wrong.
"I came to see how Goyle was doing."
"Professor Lupin" said quietly behind him. "But I seem to have heard something at the door that I shouldn't have?"
"Were you discussing how to deal with me, Draco?"
Something hard and unyielding pressed against Malfoy's waist. He thought it was probably a wand.
"I'm a Hogwarts student. You can't do this! You can't attack me!"
Malfoy felt his legs trembling.
Dewey stood behind Malfoy. He'd taken a potion while on his way to the locomotive to call for help. When he came back, he'd wanted to take a look at Malfoy. Thinking about how he would have to face the Dementors that night, a sudden anger had welled up inside him.
On the way back, he'd carefully examined the source of his anger and realized it came from his own cowardice.
He was afraid.
Afraid because he was powerless, he wanted to use anger to cover it up.
He wanted to deceive everyone with his anger, including himself.
You can't lie to yourself, Dewey. You're afraid, and there's no shame in fear.
Once he'd understood that, Dewey felt completely at ease. He even had time to play around with these little wizards.
Seeing the sweat beginning to bead on Draco Malfoy's head, Dewey smiled and said, "Although your plan sounds vicious, I think it's just your way of wishing me well, isn't it?
"The last two Defence Against the Dark Arts Professors at Hogwarts both had unfortunate endings.
"I understand that you're worried about me.
"So don't worry. I'll do my job well, and I certainly won't disappoint you."
After saying that, he slipped his wand into his sleeve and turned to leave.
He walked away with a carefree air. After he'd gone, Dewey heard a heavy thud. Malfoy must have sat down on the floor.
It seemed his two lackeys weren't very quick on the uptake. They hadn't thought to catch Young Malfoy.
He didn't return to the compartment. Instead, he stood by the window, greedily watching the scenery flash past, wishing he could lock it inside his eyes.
Blue skies, white clouds, green hills, open fields, mountains.
Beautiful. What a beautiful sight!
Looking at it all, Dewey inexplicably felt like crying, but he held it back. He stood there all afternoon, until he saw the sky darken and rain begin to fall outside.
Dewey's expression darkened like the weather beyond the window.
The air grew cold, but it wasn't because the temperature had dropped.
That feeling, that bone-deep chill, that sensation that made the hairs stand up all over your body.
"Dementors."
Dewey understood.
They were almost at Hogwarts.
His mood plummeted. He returned to the compartment and saw the little wizards snacking while they waited for the feast at the school that evening.
"Professor, you're back?"
Harry said.
"Yes, Harry."
Dewey replied warmly. He sat down. The foul weather outside grew worse, and the chill in his bones felt ready to burst out of his marrow.
"Why is it so cold?" Ron muttered. Dewey told Harry to take out the Chocolate Frogs.
"Have some Chocolate Frogs,"
he said.
The others had no idea what was happening, but they did as Dewey said and ate the Chocolate Frogs. Suddenly, the entire Hogwarts Express began to slow down.
"Are we almost at school?"
The three of them looked puzzled. They turned to the professor, only to find that his head was bowed.
The train stopped, and the air seemed to grow even colder! More importantly, the power went out!
In an instant, everything was pitch-black.
Outside, Harry thought his eyes were playing tricks on him.
He thought he saw something drifting past.
The sudden cold and darkness frightened the little wizards. They didn't know what to do.
In the darkness, Harry heard Professor Lupin's steady, resolute voice. There was something reassuringly solid in it, and the three of them felt calmer for no clear reason.
"Use 'Lumos,' Harry. Hermione, Ron, keep an eye on the luggage here."
With "Professor Lupin's" help, order was quickly restored. A little while later, the door opened, and Ginny and Neville came in.
"I don't know what happened," Ginny said. She looked at the only adult here, wanting to say something. Dewey motioned them inside and shut the compartment door.
"Have some chocolate, children,"
Dewey said. "Sit down, all of you. This is probably just a routine inspection."
As the chill drew closer, Dewey said, "A group of unwelcome visitors is coming, children. Protect yourselves."
Before you continue