By the time John finished, it was almost curfew.
Since he did not have Professor Snape’s method for quickly drying away the preserving solution, he first filtered it out and then used absorbent cotton from the classroom to wipe away the remaining moisture.
As a result, his technique was clumsy, and he ruined quite a few pufferfish eyes.
On top of that, after adding the blue powder and crushing everything together, the final product turned out terrible, with uneven granules of all sizes.
But John did not care.
Professor Snape should have expected this outcome when assigning such work to an amateur like him.
Right now, John only wanted to return to his comfortable bed and get a good night’s sleep.
Oh, and before leaving, John placed the history book Professor Snape had left with him back onto the lectern.
Whether it counted as polite or not, at least he had returned it.
Late at night, Hogwarts was exceptionally quiet.
The ghosts that usually drifted through the corridors and even the portraits hanging on the walls all seemed to be asleep.
Only the occasional hoot of an owl could be heard.
John glanced at the moon outside the window and vaguely noticed several dark figures flying through the moonlight.
They were probably the Dementors patrolling around the castle.
“These Dementors really ruin the atmosphere,” John muttered to himself.
However, just after he spoke the word “Dementors,” he suddenly heard a strange rustling sound from the garden outside the corridor.
Maybe it was just a rat or something.
John shook his head, no longer paying attention to it, and turned toward Ravenclaw Tower.
After he left, the head of a large black dog slowly emerged from the bushes where the sound had come from.
The black dog looked up through the garden courtyard toward the Dementors flying high in the night sky, and a very human trace of fear and vigilance appeared in its eyes.
Then it slipped back into the darkness once more.
…
By the time John returned to Ravenclaw Tower, curfew had already passed, but he had not encountered anyone on patrol, so everything was fine.
Even the dormitory entrance was not locked.
More accurately, there was nobody guarding it at all.
Was Hogwarts practically encouraging students to sneak out at night?
John arrived at the bronze eagle door and subconsciously waited for it to open automatically.
Then he suddenly remembered that he had returned alone this time.
Ryan had always answered the bronze eagle’s questions before, but now he had to rely on his own brain.
He walked up to the bronze eagle, and as its eyes lit up, its voice rang out.
“The clock tells me the present, the seer predicts the future.
If I believe in both at the same time, what punishment will time give me?” After hearing the question, John scratched his head.
What kind of question was that?
He did not believe in divination, so how was he supposed to know what punishment he would receive…
Hmm…
Maybe he could work backward from why he did not believe in prophecies.
Because believing in the result of a prophecy meant living under its shadow.
So his answer was: “It will turn my future into a prison built by the present.” After John answered, the bronze eagle showed no reaction at all.
A few seconds later, however, there was a click, and the door opened.
This door never gave any positive feedback after an answer.
It only asked philosophical questions with no fixed solutions, then fell silent after opening, which was honestly irritating.
Next time, he was definitely making someone else answer it again.
When John returned to the dormitory and pushed open the door, he found that Ryan and Ethan were still awake.
The two of them had been waiting for him to come back, especially since curfew had already passed.
They had even been considering finding a prefect or a professor if John did not return soon.
With Dementors flying around the castle all day, who knew whether one of them might suddenly go mad, rush into the castle, and just happen to run into John?
Their concerns were not unreasonable, but after hearing John’s explanation, they realized the real problem had actually been Professor Snape.
After explaining everything, John could not hold on any longer.
He collapsed onto his bed and immediately fell asleep.
In his dream, he decided that before learning magic to block smells and tastes, he would first master the Cleaning Charm, so he would never have to bathe again.
Hehehe…
…
The next morning.
Because he had been too exhausted the night before, John overslept by five minutes.
Ryan and Ethan had already left, leaving him to walk alone toward the Great Hall.
“Good morning, John.” A familiar voice suddenly sounded behind him.
“Hmm?
Oh, good morning, Neville.” Still half asleep, John paused for a moment before recognizing him and replying.
“Why do you look so exhausted?” Neville asked worriedly after noticing John’s unusual state.
“Oh, it’s all because of yesterday’s Potions class…” John waved his hand to show he was fine and briefly explained what had happened.
Neville’s expression after hearing the story was rather interesting.
First came a look of realization, then a bitter smile that clearly said he understood all too well, and finally an expression full of worry for his own future.
Of course, John had no idea what Neville was thinking.
He only saw that Neville’s face had suddenly become miserable.
“What’s wrong with you?
I’m the one who got punished, not you.
Why do you look like you’re about to be punished yourself?” “…” Neville fell silent for a moment before slowly replying, “To be honest…
I get punished in almost every Potions class.
And my first lesson today is Potions…” “I see…” John also fell silent after hearing that.
Should he feel comforted now that he was not the only one Professor Snape targeted?
Or should he say they were fellow sufferers?
The two silently placed hands on each other’s shoulders, patted them, and sighed at the same time.
When they arrived at the entrance to the Great Hall, they happened to run into Harry Potter and his two friends.
However, before Neville could even greet them, he noticed that the atmosphere between them seemed tense.
“Ron, I already told you, you don’t have to believe those ridiculous divinations.
They’re just tricks,” the brown-haired girl with slightly bushy hair said impatiently to the red-haired boy named Ron.
“How is that possible?
If a course like that exists, then there must be a reason for it.
You just don’t understand it,” Ron scoffed at Hermione’s words before sarcastically adding, “Hermione, I think you’re just upset because you can’t come first in this subject.” “Ron!” Hermione looked furious at his attitude.
After shouting his name, she turned and walked away without looking back.
Ron watched her leave, snorted, and headed into the Great Hall for breakfast.
Harry, who had been walking between them, looked helplessly at his two arguing friends.
He glanced at Hermione’s departing figure, then at Ron entering the Great Hall.
In the end, he let out a helpless sigh and followed Ron inside.
Seeing this scene, Neville actually wanted to chase after Hermione and comfort her, since they were friends as well.
In the past, whenever Neville was punished, kind-hearted Hermione had often helped him.
John, however, did not think much of it.
At their age, arguments between boys and girls were perfectly normal as their personalities clashed.
They would probably make up again in a few days.