days at Hogwarts

Chapter 651: The Strange Slughorn

Hogwarts Castle is located at a high altitude and has a temperate maritime climate. Affected by the North Atlantic current and the Dementors' cold current, snow began to fall in mid-October.

May 10, morning.

The snow and wind howled and hit the windows.

Loren and others got up very early.

The first Hogsmeade Week of the school year has arrived.

As the situation in the wizarding world becomes increasingly tense, the precautionary measures around the school have been upgraded to become strict and rigid. There are rumors that the activity week has been postponed and will not be lifted until Halloween and Christmas. The students had originally given up on the Hogsmeade Activity Week this school year, but were suddenly very happy to learn that they could still go.

Miss Granger, who loved studying, also put down her homework and the "Research Report on the Life of House-Elves" she was writing. She had stayed in school for too long, and she felt happy to be able to leave the castle and relax, even for just a few hours.

After having breakfast and resting for a while, the young wizards in the third grade and above left the castle together.

Professor McGonagall and Filch stood at the school gate as in previous years, checking the names of students going out against the list. There was also an additional security check procedure, in which the administrator used a strange-looking detector to test the students.

I didn't see Mrs. Norris. The cold wave came too early this year and the temperature dropped too quickly, so the kitten didn't like to go out.

"What does it matter if we smuggle Dark items out?"

"Should we be more worried about what we brought in?"

Because Ron kept chattering in front of the administrator, he was poked a few more times by the probe, which made him grimace.

It didn't hurt, but it was too cold.

Loren noticed that the mystery detector was made up of multiple spyglasses, very much in the style of Weasley's Trick Shop. Even if it was not produced by the Trick Shop, it was probably copied by others. He talked about this with George and Fred in the communication last week.

The road was frozen by rain and snow, making it extremely difficult to walk to Hogsmeade. The road was full of students bending over and walking against the wind, and the scene was quite spectacular.

The sweater knitted by Mrs. Weasley was warm and close-fitting. The thick cashmere gloves wrapped around her hands. Her body and limbs were warm, but the skin on her face was exposed and extremely sensitive to the cold. When the cold wind blew, it felt like a knife cutting or a needle pricking her. Harry and Ginny huddled together tightly, pulling up their scarves to cover the lower half of their faces, leaving only their eyes exposed.

Loren was so frozen that his brain was not very flexible. He walked more than ten meters before he remembered the Bubble Head Curse, and with a deep breath, he cast it on several people in the group.

Arriving at Hogsmeade, they first looked towards Zonko's Joke Shop at the corner of the street. The door of the lively joke shop in their memory was now closed, even sealed with wooden boards, with a scribbled advertisement for shop for sale posted on it.

"Ugh……"

The little wizards all groaned as they passed by.

When they reached the fork in the road, Hermione, who was walking with her head down, felt numb and bumped into Loren's back. She only reacted after the bubble head curse was broken and looked up stupidly.

Loren looked at the others and asked, "What are your plans next?"

Harry and Ginny looked at each other and whispered, "Let's...let's go to the teahouse..."

"Alas... you all have dates, what can I do? I can only go to the Three Broomsticks and wait..." Ron's expression was full of melancholy, but the twinkling light in his eyes revealed his excitement. He went to Madam Rosmerta.

They agreed to meet at the Three Broomsticks, and the group separated. Harry and Ginny left their close roommates and brother behind and headed straight for the teahouse, not looking back, leaving Ron alone on the side of the road, with his shadow. Loren and Hermione staggered into Honeydukes.

There was a sign above the glass window saying "Open for Business". It was made of chocolate and toffee. The Froomes were introducing their new candies. The warm and sweet atmosphere separated the snow and wind, making it seem like another world.

He took a piece of pure white sugar from the tasting table and put it into his mouth. The sweet aroma of the cream frosting filled his mouth. Loren squinted his eyes in satisfaction:
"If I can eat as much as I want, I would even be willing to do so without paying."

Hermione looked at the man silently.

The conditions and price you proposed do not seem to be equivalent.

After walking around the new product shelves and the limited return shelves for a few rounds, they finished their daily snack shopping and stockpiling, filling their stomachs until their burps were filled with the sweet smell of candy. Then they walked out slowly and prepared to go to the counter to pay.

"Loren, kid!" An old and powerful voice came from behind.

It was Professor Slughorn. He was wearing a large plush hat and a coat with a plush collar that looked very expensive. He was running over with a large bag of candied pineapple in his hand. Seeing the two of them holding hands with their fingers interlocked, the old professor's smile became even kinder.

"Professor." Loren and Hermione nodded.

For a period of time after the preparation of the Felicis Potion, Professor Slughorn inexplicably distanced himself from Loren. Whether in the Potions class or at the weekend party of the Slug Club, his words and actions were somewhat cold. This lasted for about half a month, and then his attitude became enthusiastic again.

I'm afraid it's a precursor to Alzheimer's disease.

"Loren, you are my lucky goddess!" Slughorn patted his shoulder affectionately, turned around and exchanged a few words with Ambrosio, and directly paid their bill. "I can't wait to share this good news with you!"

Loren and Hermione were confused as to what was going on and followed him silently towards the Three Broomsticks.

"By Magic, you have no idea what the two bottles of Felicis were sold for..." Slughorn lowered his voice, his tone full of uncontrollable excitement, "By Merlin! Eight hundred Galleons per bottle! Two bottles is one thousand six hundred Galleons!"

The young lovers vaguely understood what was going on. No wonder they became enthusiastic again. It turned out that the profits had arrived.

"Hey, kids, don't think too bad of an old guy like me! I'm not that snobbish!" Slughorn knew what they were thinking and muttered back, "I don't intend to persuade my students to continue brewing the Felicis Felix potion. That thing is too precious and too eye-catching. It's not good for you or me..."

"I just want to thank you..." His voice became smaller and smaller, and only he could hear the last muttering. "Although I was a little scared some time ago and didn't dare to have too much contact with you..."

Loren didn't reply with the second half of the sentence. He smiled and said, "Then will the professor continue to sell the Felicis?"

Slughorn shook his head. "I plan to keep the rest for myself. The world is in such a mess right now, I never know when I might need it... On the battlefield, good luck is even more important than strength... If a real fight breaks out, this thing might help my old bones live a few more decades!"

"I advise you not to sell it for now. You have many friends and relatives, so you can never have too much of this stuff. If you two are really short of money, you can come to me for emergency. I can lend you money, or you can sell me any potions or materials you have..." He paused for a few seconds here, and sincerely reminded, "It's best to keep the Fuling potion, it's very valuable!"

It sounds like there is something behind the words...

Hermione raised an eyebrow.

Loren slowed down his speech and asked, "Professor, did you receive any news?"

"This……"

(End of this chapter)