The two of them didn’t overexert themselves; after all, it was Halloween today, and the Halloween feast in the evening was the main event.
Will was looking forward to eating his fill.
It had to be said that although British cuisine was not great, the food at Hogwarts was not bad, mainly because the House-elves’ recipes were not limited to British dishes.
Will had recently given some suggestions to the House-elves in the kitchen and had even bought a few American and Asian cookbooks himself.
He believed it wouldn’t be long before he could enjoy the cuisine he desired.
Just as the two were about to head to the Great Hall,
“Will, Will!” Sylvia pushed open the door to the Room of Requirement, with Hermione, her eyes red and tear-streaked, behind her.
“I just ran into Hermione in the bathroom in the dungeons. It took me a lot of effort to persuade Hermione to come up.”
Will realized that Hermione was crying because of Ron’s hurtful remarks behind her back.
Ron, as a character, indeed had many unlikable moments in the early and middle parts of the story.
“What’s wrong?” Will asked Hermione with concern.
“Who bullied you?”
Sylvia looked at Neville, who looked completely bewildered.
But then again, only Hermione had heard the whispers between Ron and Harry, so it was understandable that Neville didn’t know.
Will had always been inexperienced in comforting girls, so this difficult task could only be left to Sylvia…
Hogwarts on Halloween Eve was bustling with activity.
The entire Castle looked as if it had undergone a major renovation and redecoration, filled with a festive atmosphere.
Thousands of bats fluttered on the walls and ceilings, and another thousand, like low-lying dark clouds, circled above the dining tables, making the candle flames inside the pumpkins flicker.
The floating candles had been replaced with pumpkin lanterns, and the candlelight shone through the cutouts of the pumpkin lanterns, casting comical light spots.
The Halloween feast was exceptionally lavish, with an even richer variety of dishes than at the start of the term, and all sorts of pumpkin foods covered the dining tables.
Harry and Ron walked downstairs towards the Great Hall.
He was about to go to the Great Hall for the feast, and Ron was excitedly explaining the essentials of Wizard’s Chess to Harry.
Two Gryffindor girls, whom Harry recognized as Patil and Lavender, walked past them.
Patil was chattering to Lavender, “Granger has been crying in the girls’ bathroom all afternoon, and she won’t let anyone comfort her…”
Harry felt a bit uncomfortable, and at the same time, he noticed Ron’s expression starting to turn rather unpleasant.
However, the festive atmosphere quickly enveloped the two of them.
It was Harry’s first time attending such a grand feast in his life.
The entire Hogwarts Great Hall was filled with laughter and joy.
Occasionally, some students chased and played between the tables.
Dumbledore, wearing a robe printed with pumpkin lantern patterns, was attacking a pumpkin pie in front of him.
Quirrell, wearing a purple turban, burst into the Great Hall, bringing news of a Troll.
This news shattered the festive atmosphere, and the students fell into chaos.
Dumbledore waved his wand, making it emit sharp explosions, while saying something to the other Professors.
Then the other Professors immediately had the prefects arrange for the young Wizards to return to their respective House common rooms.
Harry’s face was terrible.
He grabbed Ron:
“I just remembered — Hermione.”
“What about her?”
“She doesn’t know about the Troll yet.”
Ron bit his lip: “Let her Slytherin friends help her.”
“Don’t talk nonsense, Ron!!” Harry seemed furious, his emerald eyes glaring at Ron.
For the first time, Ron felt Harry was so intimidating.
He subconsciously thought, “Oh my, no wonder Harry could defeat You-Know-Who.”
But looking at Harry’s expression, he nodded, “Alright, alright, but we can’t let Percy see us.”
To put it simply, Ron and Hermione had a conflict in class, and after class, Ron insulted Hermione, saying, “No wonder everyone can’t stand her. Honestly, she’s like a nightmare; only Slytherin Dark Wizards would probably want to be friends with her.”
Will and Sylvia were inexplicably caught in the crossfire.
“Don’t mind that poor Weasley. He’s as stupid as a goblin. Remember, in Potion Class last time, the antidote he made almost burned through his own tongue.” Sylvia mocked Ron while comforting Hermione.
“Hermione, you are the smartest Witch I’ve ever met, and many people in Gryffindor like you. You always earn us a lot of points.” Neville also chimed in to comfort Hermione.
“The wise are always ostracized by the foolish; cattle flock together, while predators walk alone.” Will also hoped his classmate could cheer up a bit.
“Then, ‘Mr. Great Wizard Behrens,’ are we flocking together or walking alone?” Sylvia asked, staring into Will’s eyes.
Upon hearing this address, Will’s mouth twitched.
He was often mocked when seeking Snape’s guidance, for example:
“I never imagined Mr. Great Wizard Behrens couldn’t even handle dittany properly. It seems Mr. Great Wizard Behrens has never been injured in a duel.”
“Look, how professional Mr. Great Wizard Behrens’s technique is for extracting Indian Yellow-spotted Snake blood. Is Mr. Behrens afraid that taking too much blood will prevent this dead snake from coming back to life?”
…Later, Sylvia once heard Snape call Will “Mr. Great Wizard Behrens” and started using that title to tease Will as well.
“You all walk alone with me.”
The others understood that Will was branding himself as a leader, but only Sylvia rolled her eyes.
Neville thought for a moment, then asked with confusion, “Am I a predator too?”
“Of course! You’re following ‘Mr. Great Wizard Behrens,’ so how could you not be a predator?”
Will’s face darkened, “Alright, the Halloween feast should have started already. Let’s hurry to the feast.”
Hermione hadn’t quite processed it, and she looked at Will suspiciously, “What ‘Great Wizard Behrens’? I don’t understand.”
Will walked towards the door of the Room of Requirement with a dark expression, Sylvia’s clear laughter echoing behind him.
Will suddenly felt that this wasn’t bad either.
His strength was steadily growing, his friendships were harmonious, and even Dumbledore, whom many said was a ‘white-cut-black’ (innocent on the surface but cunning underneath), was easy to deal with.
Perhaps this was the compensation for his twenty-plus years of hard work and a stroke of great luck?