Hidden beneath the Invisibility Cloak, Su Er huddled in a corner of the Gryffindor Common Room and, for the first time, fully experienced Gryffindor's atmosphere.
He watched Harry drag his broom back, utterly exhausted, only to have homework to do. He saw Ron win an armful of snacks playing Wizard's Chess against students from other dormitories, then unwittingly have quite a few pinched by the Weasley Brothers.
Of course, he also saw Hermione leafing through books in another corner, searching for the answer to some question.
He saw Neville chatting with a freckle-faced boy with reddish-brown hair, then grinning foolishly for ages. He also saw Ginny, the youngest sister in the Weasley family, paying little attention to her conversation and doing nothing but stealing glances at Harry, who was rushing through his homework nearby.
He saw Seamus blow up the cup in front of him while practicing magic. Seamus seemed never to have changed; whenever he practiced magic, he always had to blow something up a few times before succeeding once.
Only at the very end, when Head Boy Percy Weasley waved both hands to shoo the young wizards off to bed, did the room finally quiet down.
Sparks flickered among the unburned wood in the fireplace, and the common room was dim. Su Er finally no longer had to endure the hard floor, even though a soft rug covered it.
He leisurely found himself a seat on the sofa. If anyone came out of the dormitories now, they would see a human-shaped depression inexplicably forming in the sofa cushions.
It was hard to stay awake in such surroundings. Su Er took out the Brain-Alertness Potion kindly contributed by Professor Snape and downed it in one go.
After drinking it, Su Er smacked his lips. Huh, why wasn't it bitter?