Harry Potter: The Dark ages

The white-haired person seemed to float up the stairs, their white hair perfectly still, their upper body straight, yet they were moving upwards.

Gary and Howard had to steel themselves and walk forward; this was the only way to Ravenclaw Tower.

Under the Foodie Buff, Howard feared nothing. Clutching his apple pie, his elephant-like leg thumped onto the stairs.

Gary felt much safer following behind Howard. His figure was so tall and imposing that Gary couldn't see anything at all, including the white-haired person.

Taking steps, the two quickly caught up with the slow-moving white-haired person.

When the three met, Gary finally breathed a sigh of relief. The white-haired person was a student.

He was slightly cross-eyed and seemed dazed. His robes were embroidered with a raven on a blue and black background.

He was from Ravenclaw.

"Hello," the white-haired person greeted them, but his eyes weren't focused on them. His vacant gaze went straight through Gary and into the distance.

"Hello," Howard patted his stomach. "Howard White and Gary Shafiq."

"Senior, why aren't you back in your common room so late?" Gary asked. Since he wasn't a first-year, he had to be older than Gary and Howard.

"Oh, I'm looking for Crumple-Horned Snorkacks." His voice was ethereal and soft, as if it could dissipate into the air at any moment.

"I'm Xenophilius Lovegood, a third-year Ravenclaw."

Howard and Gary had heard this name from older students. In their mouths, this name was always associated with being eccentric and having strange behaviors.

In the eyes of the other three Houses, Ravenclaw students' behavior was already quite odd, but Lovegood was someone even Ravenclaw students considered strange.

"Um... sorry," Howard didn't understand what Lovegood said. "What did you say?"

"Crumple-Horned Snorkacks..." Lovegood said. "They're a type of slug that lives in water and spits out rainbow-colored bubbles. I plan to check the washroom at night when no one's around."

Gary and Howard laughed awkwardly. They had never heard of Crumple-Horned Snorkacks and could only smile and nod in agreement.

"What's this?" Fortunately, Lovegood quickly changed the subject. He looked at the apple pie in Howard's arms.

Howard immediately clutched the food tightly. "It's just a pie."

"Apple pie?" Lovegood's nostrils flared, seemingly very interested.

"That's right..." Howard looked wary. He felt that Lovegood was coveting the delicious apple pie. "But this is my supper tonight..."

"The taste isn't quite right," Lovegood interrupted Howard.

"What?" Gary was a bit confused.

"It's hiccuping potion," Lovegood said with certainty.

Howard and Gary exchanged glances. They took out the apple pie and sniffed it.

Gary just gave it a perfunctory sniff, while Howard practically shoved his nose to the edge of the pie, wrinkling his nose hard, then taking a deep breath.

"There's something mixed in," he said, his plump face filled with seriousness. Because of his large face, his seriousness appeared more pronounced than others. "Beneath the sacred and delicious apple pie, there's a bitter taste hiding."

"Hoen took this from under the kitchen counter," Gary tried to recall the entire process of the elf Hoen finding the pie.

"Well, I don't know about that," Lovegood's silver-white eyes stared at Howard, making his scalp tingle. "But even if you accidentally consume this, it's nothing serious. At most, you'll stay in the Hospital Wing for a month."

"A month?" Howard was dumbfounded.

Given the medical standards of the magical world, broken bones and fevers would definitely not require more than a week of hospitalization. What kind of illness would require a month?

"There's no effective treatment for hiccuping potion," Lovegood said slowly. "You'll just keep hiccuping, but there aren't any other effects."

"Of course, you don't have to be hospitalized, but you'll be the center of attention in class."

"If you don't believe me, we can experiment." He turned and continued walking upstairs. "Go to the Owl Shed, and you'll see if I'm right."

The three walked all the way to the eighth floor. At the passage entrance to Ravenclaw Tower on the sixth floor, they saw James pacing anxiously.

"Great, Gary," he saw the three and quickly ran over. "I wanted to go to your common room to find you, but your Head Girl told me you two had gone out."

"What happened, James?" Gary looked at his flustered appearance, feeling a little uneasy.

"I want to warn you..." James glanced at the expressionless Lovegood standing to the side and pulled Gary into a corner.

He didn't pull Howard along too. If he had done that, it would have been obvious that the three of them had important matters to discuss and that Lovegood should go somewhere else. Only pulling Gary over wouldn't make Lovegood feel isolated, and he could still explain things clearly.

James's skill in handling relationships with peers was perfect, except for Snivellus.

"I heard Snape has already prepared his revenge," James said mysteriously.

"Heard?" Gary asked. "Heard from whom?"

"...Avery," James stammered in response.

"Is your brain stuffed with dittany?" Gary frowned. "Avery and Snape are accomplices. He told you Snape wants revenge on us?"

"Oh, come on," James explained. "Avery and I talked before, and Snivellus came to them seeking protection. You know how difficult Snivellus's personality and bloodline make things for him in Slytherin. He'd been bullied for several months, and his brain finally opened up. He found Avery, wanting to do things for them."

"Heh," Gary chuckled, his disdain for Snape growing.

"Snape told Avery he wanted to restore Pure-blood glory at Hogwarts and planned to teach the Muggle-borns a lesson, starting with that most flamboyant Ravenclaw fatty," James organized his words and continued.

"This afternoon, they found out that Snape and Howard were already at odds, felt they had been tricked, and decided not to protect Snape anymore," James said a long explanation, finally making it clear.

"Senior Lovegood said that apple pie has hiccuping potion in it," Gary pointed to the bag Howard was holding in his arms.

"This is Snape's revenge?" James laughed. "He wants Howard to hiccup to amuse everyone?"

"I really overestimated him, Gary." James patted Gary's shoulder. "By the way, our two families are planning to go skiing in the Alps for Christmas. We can relax then."

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