Harry returns from Hogwarts Legacy

Chapter 416 Who is your beloved?

Since giving up being caught in the middle and suffering from both sides, Harry has felt happier every day.

Sometimes, he could be by Ron's side and listen to how he complained about Hermione.

More often than not, he was by Hermione's side, listening to how she scolded Ron.

But Harry felt that the two of them were just missing a way to save face for each other.

Whoever is willing to back down first will have no problem with the other person.

The problem is that others can't point it out, otherwise they'll easily become the bad guys in both of their relationship.

Ron has recently been studying some of the little spells invented by the Half-Blood Prince, and has even shared them with Harry.

One curse causes toes to grow wildly—Ron did an experiment on Filch in the hallway, and the results were hilarious; another curse sticks a person's tongue to their palate, and Ron really wanted to secretly use it on Professor Snape, but if Harry hadn't stopped him, Ron probably would have already done it.

Of course, those who know the outcome know it all. If Ron really did that, he would probably have to make Snape be finely chopped into minced meat.

Of course, Ron's favorite was listening to the spell with his ears plugged.

This spell fills the ears of everyone around with an indistinguishable buzzing sound, allowing one to chat freely in class without fear of being overheard.

The only one who didn't find these spells fun was Hermione, because Hermione was the test subject for Ron's first use of the Earplugs spell.

When Hermione learned that Ron had cursed her, she was so angry that she punched Ron several times and ran back to her dormitory with red eyes.

“Woman, huh?” Ron said to Harry.

“Women.” Harry shrugged.

“Look at this.” Ron picked up the book “Advanced Potions Making” again and pointed to a spell in it for Harry to see: “This spell looks interesting—hanging someone upside down?”

I wipe?

Harry's body trembled.

He was all too familiar with this curse.

Isn't this the spell his father used on Professor Snape at the Black Lake?
Could it be... that this mixed-race prince is one of Dad's good friends?

First, he ruled out James.

The reason was simple: he knew his father wasn't cut out for potion making.

Moreover, his father, James, was a pure-blood wizard, so it was impossible for him to give himself a half-blood nickname.

So, who could it be? Professor Lupin? Or Sirius Black?
But something's not right. One of them has a moon-shaped face, and the other has big feet. Neither of them is a mixed-race prince.
Harry decided he had to find an opportunity to ask the two of them who the Half-Blood Prince was.

He felt that the two of them definitely knew.

“Let’s try this spell tomorrow, Harry,” Ron said, chewing on his licorice wand. “We’ll be going to Hogsmeade in the morning, so maybe we can use the spell on Malfoy on the way? I think that’s a great idea.”

“Before that, you’ll have to learn this spell, right?” Harry said, turning his head. “Why don’t you practice with Neville or Seamus now, casting the Upside-Down Bell spell on each other… wait, let me see how to break the spell.”

He took the "Advanced Potion Making" manual and searched it carefully for a moment: "—Oh, here it is. The golden bell falling to the ground is its antidote."

“I don’t want to practice with Seamus,” Ron said quickly. “I don’t want my legs blown off—”

"Hey!" Simo said, annoyed.

Ron chuckled.

“How about we give it a try now, Neville?” he asked.

“Come on.” Neville drew his wand. “I’m ready, Ron—let’s see if you can break through my defenses.”

However, Ron simply picked up his wand, pointed it at Neville, and gave it a slight shake.

"Ah ah ah ah ah!"

A bright light flashed, and the room erupted into chaos.

Neville let out a scream as he hung upside down in the air, as if an invisible hook had caught his ankle and was holding him upside down.

"A silent spell?!" Neville exclaimed in horror. "My God, Ron, how could you be so unethical as to use a silent spell on me! You're despicable!"

"Haha," Ron said with a grin, then winked at Harry and whispered, "The prince's little trick in the book, the silent spell—hehe!"

With that, he pointed his wand at Ron.

Another bright light flashed, and Neville fell onto the bed, landing in a large, fluffy heap.

“Let’s try it together.” Neville didn’t feel any pain or anger; on the contrary, he was eager to try.

This spell is so interesting, so much fun!
They dressed, putting on several sweaters knitted by Mrs. Weasley, and took cloaks, scarves, and gloves, fully armed.

Ron went even further, wearing a full Quidditch goalkeeper's protective gear.

“You cheated!” Neville pointed at Ron and said indignantly.

“I’m a Quidditch goalkeeper, so it’s only natural that I have my own equipment, right?” Ron said with a laugh.

They played with this spell in their dorm room until midnight before finally falling asleep, still wanting more.

"Hey Harry," Ron suddenly said to Harry before going to sleep, "what do you think would happen if I suddenly used this spell on Hermione?"

“Not good,” Harry answered his question quickly. “I think Hermione would be really angry and never speak to you again.”

Ron shivered.

“Then I’d better not use it,” he said.

When Harry woke up in the morning, he received a message.

It was Cassandra who sent it to him, asking him to meet her at Honeydukes Candy Store today.

"What's wrong? Why are you so happy so early in the morning?" Ron had just woken up when he saw his good friend's smiling face.

“Cassandra asked me to meet her at Honeydukes Candy Shop,” Harry said with a grin. “Looks like your plans will have to be put on hold—if Cassandra sees you using the upside-down bell on her junior, I can’t protect you.”

“That’s a real shame,” Ron shrugged.

Then, he held up one finger.

"Wait a minute," he exclaimed, a sudden realization dawning on him. "You said Cassandra is Malfoy's great-aunt, right?"

“Yes,” Harry nodded.

"And you, are Cassandra's boyfriend, and you're going to marry her, right?" Ron continued excitedly.

“Yes.” Harry didn’t know what Ron was so excited about. “Then, you’ll be Malfoy’s great-great-uncle.” Ron clapped his fist excitedly. “And me, I’m your brother, we’re of the same generation—so, rounding up, I’m also Malfoy’s elder?”

Harry opened his mouth.

He really wanted to say that his great-grandfather was also his good brother, but after thinking about it, he decided against it.

"I guess so," he nodded and said.

“We won!” Ron said happily. “From now on, whenever I see Malfoy, I’ll use this line—it’ll definitely be more effective than any spell.”

Harry gave a thumbs up, a genuine thumbs up.

"I must say, you do have a way with things," he said.

After washing up, they went to the auditorium together for breakfast.

Hermione seemed to want to say something to Ron, but for some reason, she hesitated and held back.

"Have something warm." Ron picked up two pieces of bacon and then two more for Harry. "It's gotten colder today—look, it's raining and snowing outside. If we don't eat something nutritious, we'll feel cold."

"Where are you planning to go?" Harry asked, forking up a piece of bacon.

“Go to Zorko’s Joke Shop,” Ron said to Harry. “Fred wrote to me saying that Zorko’s Joke Shop in Hogsmeade seems to have closed down, and asked me to check when I go to Hogsmeade this time—apparently because the two of them were doing so well.”

"So you're going?" Harry glanced at Ron. "Aren't you afraid they'll kick you out because you're a Weasley?"

“Even so, it’s worth it,” Ron said with a solemn expression. “I can’t help it, my two good brothers gave me just too much—besides that dragon skin jacket, they also stuffed a hundred gallons into my purse…”

Harry couldn't resist and spilled the oatmeal all over the table.

"Wait?" he asked. "You mean? One hundred gallons?"

“Yes,” Ron nodded resolutely, “One hundred Galleons, I’d do anything for my brothers!”

“He really is a good brother,” Harry nodded with emotion.

The temperature dropped so drastically that walking to Hogsmeade was very uncomfortable.

Even with scarves covering the lower half of their faces, the students couldn't bear the biting cold wind; the exposed parts quickly became painfully cold and even numb.

"I can't breathe!" Neville cried out, crouching low and struggling to keep up with the wind.

Why don't you shout, "Spotlight on us!"

"Just bear with it, hang in there!" Ximo shouted against the wind, "We'll be there soon!"

Harry was alright; he wasn't too afraid of the cold wind, not because he was physically strong, but because he had practiced spells to keep warm.

Along the road leading to the village entrance, students could be seen everywhere bending over and braving the wind.

“I’ve suspected more than once that we might actually be more comfortable in the cozy common room,” Ron said breathlessly.

When they finally arrived at Hogsmeade, they found that Zoko's joke shop had been boarded up.

“I knew it,” Ron said. “Zoko’s Joke Shop went out of business. I’ll have to tell Fred about it when I get back—”

Then Ron pointed to Honeydukes Candy Store with his gloved finger.

"How about we sit in Honeydukes for a while? Harry, aren't you going too? Harry?"

They hurried through the snow, their steps uneven, towards the Honey Duke candy store.

“Thank you Merlin, thank you Gryffindor, thank you everything,” Ron said, shivering, as the warm scent of milk fat filled the air. “Let’s stay here for the afternoon.”

“Harry!” a booming voice said behind them.

They turned around and saw Professor Slughorn, who was wearing an enormous fur hat and a coat with a matching fur collar, and was clutching a large bag of pineapple preserves. He occupied at least a quarter of the small shop's space.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Professor Slughorn said with a mysterious smile, “but I’m even happier today—you must have come here at her invitation, right? Ha, Miss Malfoy, I’m finally meeting the famous Malfoy today.”

“Famous?” Harry asked uncertainly.

“Of course she’s famous,” Professor Slughorn said with a chuckle. “She was the girl who was expelled from the family tree by the Dark Minister, Mr. Septimus Malfoy. Everyone knew her in our time… Oh, sorry.”

He noticed that Harry didn't look well and quickly apologized.

“It’s alright.” Harry smiled and said to Professor Slughorn, “I’ll head over now, Professor, she’s still waiting for me.”

“Alright, Harry, go ahead.” Professor Slughorn reached out and patted Harry on the shoulder.

After saying goodbye to Ron, Neville, and Seamus, Harry went up to the second floor and entered a private room.

Cassandra sat inside, holding a steaming cup in both hands, seemingly lost in thought.

“Kathy, darling,” Harry greeted her.

Unexpectedly, Cassandra put down her cup, her beautiful face showing a hint of anger.

"Who's your darling! Shameless!"

“Huh?” Harry sat down next to Cassandra with a smug grin. “Look, Cass—aren’t you my darling? That really hurts me, you’re my girlfriend…”

“No… shameless.” Cassandra forced a straight face.

Harry was already used to Cassandra's tsundere attitude, and he chuckled as he put his arm around her shoulder.

"What's wrong? Why did you suddenly decide to come here?"

“No reason,” Cassandra said sternly. “Why do you ask so many questions, Potter—”

"Okay, okay, I won't ask, I won't ask," Harry said, admitting defeat.

He looked up and surveyed his surroundings.

“This feels familiar,” he said. “If I remember correctly, the first time you brought me to Honeydukes, we sat in this very booth, right?”

“You have a good memory.” Cassandra finally smiled. “I remember that a certain little wizard thought I was a bad person back then. He dared not disobey me, but while he was listening to me, he kept cursing me in his heart.”

“You got the second part right.” Harry grabbed a gummy bear and popped it into his mouth. “But you got the first part wrong—I never thought you were a bad person, Casey—I just thought you were a spoiled rich girl with a bad temper.”

That's true. Harry never thought Cassandra was bad, but he did have all sorts of complaints about her in private.

"Really?" Cassandra asked with a half-smile. "I remember the nickname someone gave me—"

"Ahem," Harry coughed twice to cover his embarrassment, "Let's not talk about this anymore. So many years have passed, it's pointless to keep bringing it up..."

(End of this chapter)