Time Waits for No One

"What?" Michael looked utterly confused.

Hogwarts had a seven-year curriculum, but if a student failed every Ordinary Wizarding Level (OWL) Exam, they had to leave after graduating from fifth year. Michael did not understand why Wade was asking something everyone knew.

"Seven years." Wade said with some gravity, "There are only fifty-two weeks in a year. Take away summer break and the Christmas holiday, and we only spend around thirty-eight weeks at school each year. Over seven years, that's only 266 weeks!"

"Uh..." Michael thought about it. "That's true—but so what?"

"So... even if I could thoroughly master one book a week, I could only finish 266 books in seven years! But how many books are there in Hogwarts' library? Tens of thousands! It's like walking into a treasury piled high with treasures, free for you to take, only to leave after one lap carrying a tiny bag of Galleons. Wouldn't that be a shame?"

Michael felt that he made perfect sense, and a pressing sense that time waited for no one immediately rose in his heart.

"And think about it," Wade continued. "Only during these seven years... no, these 266 weeks, can we stay in the safest place in the world and ask the greatest wizards of this age questions whenever we want. Professor McGonagall, who teaches us Transfiguration, is one of only seven Animagi since the twentieth century. Professor Flitwick, who teaches Charms, is a dueling tournament champion. Professor Snape, who teaches Potions, is a Potions Master... Although the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor is a bit lacking, once you leave Hogwarts, where else can you find such an excellent learning environment? After graduation, when you encounter difficult magic or Potion-related questions, who will so selflessly guide you and teach you step by step? When you want to learn powerful Spells in the future but cannot find anyone to teach you, won't it be too late to start longing for Hogwarts' library?"

Not only Michael, but the circle of students around them, who had fallen quiet at some point, could not help nodding.

"So, Michael—" Wade asked solemnly, "do you still think it's enough to spend one-seventh of our time learning only eight books?"

Having been completely convinced by Wade's reasoning, Michael shook his head vigorously. He wanted to say something, but no words came out. Thinking of the two weeks he had already "wasted," he could not help feeling anxious.

He immediately stopped chatting with the girls, dug out the Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration that he had tossed into a corner, and began studying.

For a time, the Ravenclaw Common Room became utterly silent, filled only with the sound of pages turning and quills scratching across parchment. Two fifth-year students who hurried back just before curfew thought Professor Snape had invaded the Ravenclaw Common Room. They did not even dare breathe loudly as they crept back to their dormitory.

At dinner in the Great Hall.

"Something's wrong, Fred."

"You're right, something's really wrong, George."

The red-haired Twins exchanged a glance. At the same time, they reached out, randomly seized a Ravenclaw student, and pinned him to their own house table before he could cry out.

"What do you two want, Weasley?" the Ravenclaw boy they had pinned down said irritably. "I don't have time for your pranks."

"Huh? What?" Ron looked up blankly while gnawing on a chicken leg.

"It's none of your business, little Ronnie!" Fred shoved his brother's head back down. The Twins hooked an arm around each side of the Ravenclaw boy's neck and asked, "Davies, what's been going on with you Ravenclaws lately?"

"You carry books while eating—"

"You carry books while walking—"

"There are barely any Ravenclaws in the courtyard during lunch break—"

"You're not even as enthusiastic about Quidditch practice as before—"

"You didn't even go on dates over the weekend!"

"You weren't this fond of studying before, were you?"

"Seriously, did Snape secretly drug you lot?"

"—With something like a Love Potion called 'Passion for Studying.'"

At the thought of Professor Snape's face being associated with something as pink and fragrant as a Love Potion, Roger Davis could not help shuddering. "Don't talk nonsense. Professor Snape would never use a Love Potion... No, I mean, what kind of Love Potion would that even be... No, we just suddenly realized—life is short, and the time we can spend studying is even shorter."

"Huh?" The two Weasleys stared at him in bewilderment.

Roger Davis took a deep breath and looked solemnly at the Twins. "Fred, George, do you know how long we can stay at Hogwarts?"

Fred silently reached out to feel his forehead.

"My brain hasn't been fried!" Davies slapped his hand away and earnestly launched into theories about "266 weeks," "tens of thousands of books," and "failing to study hard is like entering a treasure mountain and returning empty-handed."

After speaking, Davies carried his book to the Ravenclaw table for dinner. The Weasley brothers looked at each other, while even Harry and Ron, who had been focused on eating, had unknowingly stopped.

A culture of diligent study began quietly spreading through Hogwarts.

Of course, most people only kept it up for three minutes. Ron, for example, worked hard only until he finished his A History of Magic essay, then went back to fiddling with his animated Wizard's Chess pieces. The Twins, meanwhile, still spent most of their time on pranks and researching magical tricks. But some people were quietly inspired to begin working harder.

Michael was one of those who worked hard only in bursts. He was clever but not diligent. Sometimes, Wade would influence him into studying hard for a while, but he would soon be drawn away by something more interesting, such as using magic to make little paper figures fight, or discussing music and clothes with pretty girls.

Most of the time, the Practice Room was occupied by Wade, Hermione, Theo, and Ryan.

Sometimes Professor Sprout from Herbology would come by to check on them, probably worried that they were conducting some dangerous practice. After seeing the setup of the Practice Room and their learning results, she praised them lavishly, awarded five points to each House, and said that whenever she had no classes, students could come to her with questions. She would be delighted to help clear up their confusion.

Professor Sprout was truly an exceptionally gentle and approachable Female Witch. She almost never treated students differently because of their Houses, favoring only those with exceptional talent in Herbology. Not long afterward, Professor Sprout recommended a Gryffindor student to their Study Group—Neville Longbottom.

The round-faced boy was honest and good-natured. He was extremely clumsy in his studies and learned Spells more slowly than anyone else, but he worked very hard and never caused trouble. Before long, he had blended into their little group.

On the weekend evening, a notice posted on the Common Room bulletin board stirred up all the first-year students—starting the following week, they would have Flying Lessons!