Who let this Dementor into Hogwarts!

Chapter 414 Return to School (Non-Horror Version)

"Cohen, has your book list arrived yet?" Edward asked, poking his head out from outside the door. "Your mother and I will go buy the books for you later—and for you too, Molly is too busy."

“We’re here.” Cohen handed over the book list, and Fred obediently handed over his as well (Harry and the others had the exact same book list as Cohen).

"Wait, what's that in your hand—" Edward paused for a moment as he took the book list.

“The prefect’s badge,” Fred said.

“It’s very shiny,” George said.

“Dad, you didn’t… not when you were in school, did you?” Cohen asked in a challenging tone.

“Well… the standards for prefects might vary from person to person—or maybe Dumbledore misjudged him back then—” Edward changed the subject, “I need to go tell your mother the good news—Rose! Our son has become a prefect!”

Edward came down the stairs with shouts, and it sounded like he stumbled.

"Eh..."

"There's no need to rush things," Rose's helpless voice came from downstairs.

By the time Edward and his friends returned from buying the books, it was already evening.

There were no meetings scheduled for today, so Mrs. Weasley prepared a grand dinner party and invited many members of the Order of the Phoenix who were free to dine and relax.

Mrs. Weasley even prepared a celebratory banner for Cohen and Hermione, which read in gold paint, "Warmest congratulations to Cohen and Hermione on their election as prefects."

The dinner was well-attended, including Lupin, Tonks, Kingsley, and even Moody.

“James and I weren’t chosen. In fifth year, the prefects of Gryffindor were Lupin and Rose,” Sirius recalled. “We caused too much trouble. Lupin looked like the best student.”

"Who was the prefect of Hufflepuff back then?" Cohen asked curiously.

“Arnold,” Edward said sullenly, “that badge has never left his robes since fifth grade.”

"So that's why you used a sticky charm to stick the badge on his chest?" Rose said, suppressing a laugh.

“You’re not exactly law-abiding yourself either…” Cohen suddenly realized.

“This is the only time I’ve ever broken the rules,” Edward said. “If you saw how smug Arnold was, you would have done the same. He never acted so arrogantly again.”

“I’m so envious,” Tonks said. “I’ve never been a prefect, let alone the student council president…”

"Although James didn't become a prefect, he and Lily became the student council president and vice president in seventh grade. Ah... how proud they were back then..." Sirius said sadly.

“What’s past is past,” Lupin quickly steered the conversation back on track to prevent the banquet from turning into a funeral. “I heard that the new professor at Hogwarts is an official from the Ministry of Magic.”

“The Ministry of Magic?” Harry’s eyes widened. He had absolutely no goodwill towards the Ministry of Magic now—except perhaps for Kingsley, Tonks, and Mr. Weasley. “How could Professor Dumbledore allow them to teach here—” “Because Dumbledore simply couldn’t find anyone willing to be the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor,” Moody said. “Nobody wanted to teach it, especially considering the terrible fates of the previous professors—one died, another was disgraced, and only Lupin and I had a better ending.”

“To be honest, my situation isn’t exactly good right now,” Lupin said with a wry smile. “Before, I was the one who told people ‘Remus Lupin is a werewolf,’ but now whenever they hear the name ‘Remus Lupin,’ they say, ‘Oh, that werewolf who got kicked out of Hogwarts, huh? Get lost.’”

“That’s outrageous!” Tonks said angrily. “Just think of it as taking a day off for the full moon—how are you any different from everyone else?”

"In short, the Ministry of Magic has assigned someone to teach this course, and I doubt Dumbledore can refuse. After all, schools can't openly oppose the Ministry of Magic; it wouldn't be good for the children," Moody said.

“I hope he’s someone like Mr. Pisgood,” Harry said hopefully.

“That ending might disappoint you,” Cohen said. “Arnold no longer works for the Ministry of Magic.”

“With such a good opportunity, Fudge won’t just send anyone over,” Moody said, taking a sip of his drink. “But you students don’t need to worry about these things—that’s Dumbledore’s business.”
-
The next day, from the moment he got up until he arrived at King's Cross Station, Cohen felt like he didn't have a single second to catch his breath—mainly because Harry was the key person they were protecting.

"Hurry, hurry! If we stick to the original plan, we might already miss the train!" Hermione had already arrived at their row of rooms, pushing open each door and urging them on. "Mrs. Weasley is going crazy with worry—"

The house was in chaos because Fred and George were trying to cast a spell on the boxes so they would fly downstairs on their own, but the boxes bumped into Ginny.

"—You might seriously injure her! You two idiots—" Mrs. Weasley roared hysterically.

Cohen originally thought that leaving at eight o'clock was not too late—until Moody led them through almost all of London before finally arriving at King's Cross Station, it was already 10:55.

They were hurriedly pushed onto the train. Although Mrs. Weasley hadn't given Fred and George a friendly look when she left, she still gave them a loving kiss as she saw them off and told them to be careful.

“It’s hard to believe we actually came by car.” Ron shook his head. “Two hours. We should have reached the station long ago even if we walked.”

“Just to be safe, Mad-Eye is always on guard,” Hermione said understandingly. “Let’s find a carriage first—the corridors are too crowded.”

Perhaps due to the Daily Prophet's smear campaign against Harry and Dumbledore, the students on the bus whispered and pointed at them as they passed by.

“Never mind them, Harry,” Ginny said, walking ahead. “There’s a box up ahead that doesn’t look too full…”

They found a box with only one girl inside, Luna Lovegood.

“Hello, Cohen,” Luna greeted Cohen warmly. “Hello, Ginny.”

“Can we sit here?” Ginny asked.

“Of course,” Luna said. “There’s always a seat next to me.”

Because Luna had visited Cohen before, Harry and the others were not unfamiliar with her, although most of them still thought of Luna as a crazy girl.

(End of this chapter)