I, Hogwarts Second Week

A painting.

To be precise, it is a magic sketch.

Unlike magic portraits, the characters in the painting have independent consciousness. What Owen has in his hand is more like a magic photo, a snapshot of a moment.

The painting shows a silver-haired girl wearing a Hogwarts girl's school uniform. She is holding the edge of the sink and looking at herself in the mirror.

Suddenly, she noticed that there seemed to be someone behind her. She turned her head suddenly, and after revealing a stunning face, she turned her head again to look at the mirror. The next step is to repeat this process.

". This. Susan, did you draw it?" Hermione's expression was complicated, with confusion, confusion, and resentment, and even a little joy flashed in her eyes for a moment.

"Hermione, listen to my quibbling - ah - explanation, I didn't - this was not drawn by me, but -"

"But you are a participant, right?" Owen narrowed his eyes and looked at Susan with a dangerous look.

"I" Susan's face was full of panic. She tried to find the right words to explain the current situation, but she found that no matter how many words she said, it would only make things worse. "I just... just..." She stammered, her eyes full of pleading. "I provided some views... to help the picture be more realistic."

"Realistic?" Several question marks floated above Owen's head. He has already painted me as a woman, what realism are you talking about?

I.

"Okay, but I think your composition is a bit strange." Hermione raised an arc at the corner of her mouth. She "grabbed" all the parchment in Owen's hand, fearing that he would destroy such an excellent work. "Why is the background the bathroom?"

"Because." Susan explained hesitantly, "The painter said that he saw Owen in the bathroom of Myrtle on the third floor, and he was..." As she said, she pointed to the painting in Hermione's hand.

"Heh - it's fine if you lied, but now you dare to spread such vicious rumors." Owen glared at Susan, "Are you trying to say that I was secretly wearing women's clothes in the bathroom?"

"I didn't, I wasn't, that's what you said." Susan took a step back and denied three consecutive blows.

"Wait, Owen." Hermione grabbed the boy, "Since it's Myrtle's bathroom, why don't we go ask Myrtle?"

With that, without waiting for his consent, she pulled Owen out of the hall.

The girls' bathroom on the third floor has always been a restricted area for young wizards.

Because Myrtle is so annoying.

Even if she doesn't spray the toilet when you go to the toilet, just crying sadly on the side, it will definitely make you lose interest.

In the whole Hogwarts, it seems that only Hermione and Luna have a good relationship with Myrtle. Originally, Ginny was there. In the original book, she was controlled by Voldemort to open the Chamber of Secrets. She stayed in the bathroom for a long time and became friends with Myrtle. However, because Dumbledore killed the basilisk in advance this time, Ginny lost contact with Myrtle. She knew this special ghost, but the relationship was not very good.

As soon as they entered the bathroom.

They stepped on water.

Although this place has been renovated, the leaking water is not caused by aging pipes.

"It must be empty." Owen glanced at the cubicles, "The imposter was discovered, how could he hide here."

"I know." Hermione said, and then carefully cast a few original appearance spells, and the golden light spread around, illuminating all traces of magic.

"Look at that--" she pointed to a cubicle closest to the central bathing table.

"What's wrong?" Owen had already discovered the magic residue there. "It seems that someone is brewing potions here?"

"Who else in the castle would secretly brew potions besides you?"

Hermione turned around and glared at him. Why did this sound so strange, as if she had done something shameful before.

"Do you remember in the potion class, Snape said that many of his collections had been stolen recently," said the little witch.

"Well - do you think that person brewed potions here? Using the materials he stole?"

"It's very likely." Hermione nodded. "This place is suitable, no one will come. As long as..."

As she spoke, a girl's ghost rose from a flush toilet behind them, floating in the air, a pair of eyes staring at them from behind thick white round glasses.

"I heard the noise downstairs, I didn't expect it was you two!" She said sullenly, "You haven't been here for a long time."

"Hey, Myrtle." Hermione looked at her with a gentle expression, "The schoolwork is complicated, and a lot of things have happened recently, you should have heard about it"

"I know, Princess!" Myrtle emphasized the last four words with a strong sense of envy. She herself is a Muggle-born wizard, so she is even more envious of this title.

"Ahem." Hermione was a little embarrassed, but she adjusted her mood quickly and changed the subject immediately: "That-has someone secretly brewed potions here recently?"

"This has nothing to do with you." Myrtle glared at Hermione angrily. "If it weren't for finding out the truth, you would never come here in your life, right!"

"How could it be!" Hermione said quickly, "We are friends."

"I dare not be friends with the princess." Myrtle glared at them, then somersaulted back into the toilet, splashing a lot of water.

"Wait-don't go!"

Hermione was too late to call Myrtle, because when she opened her mouth, Myrtle could no longer see the ghost.

"Okay. The last clue is gone."

The little witch sighed and turned to look at Owen again.

"Someone is secretly brewing potions here, which may be related to the poisoning. Maybe, as Ron said, the murderer is really in the castle."

"We can't pry open the ghost's mouth. Veritaserum and Legilimency have no effect on them." Owen said.

"Maybe we can have a better way." Hermione frowned and left here with Owen.

As she walked, she thought.

Just as she walked to the stairs again, she raised her head suddenly, and a bold idea sprouted in her little head, and then she looked at Owen with a smile.

"I have an idea!"

"I don't want to do it!" Owen glanced at the little witch, he had guessed Hermione's plan.

"This is the simplest plan. As long as..." she said, she was eager to try, with a gleam in her eyes, "I can lend you my clothes."

"I can't wear women's clothes. I have never worn women's clothes and I won't wear women's clothes in the future." Owen said righteously.

Hermione's plan is very easy to guess.

The biggest difference between the person who pretended to be him and himself is that he was wearing a girl's school uniform. As long as he changed into women's clothes, he could pretend to be the person who pretended to be him. Then go to Myrtle to ask questions, and the truth will be immediately revealed.

"Try it!" Hermione said, "Do you want to poison incidents one after another?"

"." Owen stared into her eyes, "I don't think you are looking for the murderer at all."

"Of course I am looking for the murderer!" She said righteously.

"I don't believe it at all."

Under Owen's suspicious eyes, Hermione's smile became more and more brilliant.

——————

A few days later, they didn't take any action.

They had already alerted the snake.

Now they need to calm down the snake from its alertness.

It doesn't matter if she changes the place to brew the potion, as long as she continues to brew it. Don't let her give up because of the disturbance, otherwise it will be difficult to convince others without physical evidence.

About a week later.

One morning, Owen ran into Harry in the hall.

He told himself that Hagrid had sent a note about Aragog's death.

After persisting for so long, the old spider finally ended its long life, a while earlier than the time recorded in the original book. This may be related to the fact that Owen burned many of his descendants to death in a fire a few years ago.

Hagrid mentioned on many occasions afterwards that Aragog was sad about the destruction of his descendants. He always blamed the students in the castle and Dumbledore.

But most of the young wizards thought it was a good thing. No one would like monsters like the Acromantula.

What's more, they eat people.

Owen read the note. The handwriting was quite sloppy, and there were large ink stains on the paper. It might be tears. In short, it was difficult to recognize.

——Dear Harry, Ron, Hermione:

——Aragog died last night. If possible, I hope you can come to the funeral tonight, it means a lot to me. I plan to hold the funeral at dusk, which is his favorite time of the day. I know you are not allowed to come out so late, but you can use the invisibility cloak or something else. I didn't want to ask this, but I can't face it alone.

——Hagrid

"So you plan to see Hagrid tonight?"

"Yes." Harry confirmed, "I will go with Hermione"

"No, sorry Harry, I'm afraid you can only go alone tonight." Hermione said, "Owen and I have other things to do."

"It doesn't matter." Harry said indifferently, "Ron and I."

"Delusion!" Ron shouted and became excited, "Let me go to the funeral of a spider? I would rather be poisoned again now. Okay, buddy, you will represent us this time."

"Okay." Harry felt it was a pity, "I can go alone."

After that, he was about to go back to the dormitory. He didn't have class this morning, but he had a potion class in the afternoon.

Ron said that he and Hermione were going to take the Apparition test. They had to take a leave of absence from the afternoon class.

"Wait a minute, Harry." Owen called him. Then he took out a small crystal bottle from his pocket and handed it to him.

"What is this?" Harry looked at the bottle in his hand, which was only half the size of a fingernail, and there was a golden liquid flowing in it.

"Felixir!" He was deeply impressed by this potion and always remembered it.

"That's right." Owen said, "I gave you a quarter, and the potency can last for about three hours.

Remember to drink the potion first when you go to Hagrid in the evening, and then go find Slughorn!"

"Slughorn?" Harry was stunned and looked at Owen in confusion.

"The venom of the Acromanthus is a very precious magical material, not to mention Aragog, the king of the Acromanthus! Slughorn will definitely be interested. You will act according to the situation. This will be a good opportunity for you to get your memory. By the way, remember to get some venom for me, which is a very precious material."

"I understand!" Harry nodded solemnly.

Afterwards, Owen and Hermione went to the alchemy course.

Harry and Ron went back to the dormitory.

In the afternoon, on the way to the underground classroom, Owen and Harry said goodbye to Hermione and Ron in the hallway. They were going to take the exam.

"Good luck to you," said Harry.

"Don't worry, it's easy," said Ron. Then he confidently followed the students taking the exam out of the castle and headed for the open space outside.

There were only a few people in the Potions class that day.

Harry, Owen, Ernie and Draco.

Even Coyote was not there, because she did not get the Apparition certificate in Ilvermorny and also needed to take the exam.

She could have taken the exam last year, but she forgot to register at that time.

She only joined Hogwarts last Halloween.

After Christmas, she started to register for Apparition. At that time, her relationship with the little wizards was not harmonious, and Owen would not remind her to sign up for the Apparition exam. It was the subsequent O.W.L. exam that really made her integrate into Hufflepuff.

In the Potions class, Slughorn looked at the four of them and asked kindly, "Are you all under the age of Apparition? Not yet seventeen?"

Several people nodded.

Owen's birthday is June 27th, and he is still in the third grade. His aunt told him that before, he didn't know what day his birthday was.

Harry and Ernie Draco also have birthdays between the end of April and September.

As for the little wizards after September, they will be arranged to enter the next school year because they are under eleven years old when they are admitted. This is why Hermione is one year older than them.

"Well." Slughorn said happily, "Since there are so few people, we don't have to learn according to the content of the textbook. Let's do something fun. I want each of you to give me something interesting!"

"That sounds great, sir." Ernie immediately rubbed his hands and flattered.

Draco didn't smile at all. He asked irritably, "What do you mean, 'interesting' things?"

"Oh, just give me a surprise." Slughorn answered easily, "Whatever, any potion is fine, the one you are best at or the one you hope to prepare, well, it's best if it's the formula you have improved yourself, and it can be interesting to me."

Draco frowned and opened his "Advanced Potion Making". In Owen's peripheral vision, he noticed that the other party's textbook was densely written with a lot of things.

In addition to the first time, he also noticed that the other party's skin became paler, and his white-gold hair turned silver-gold, and his hair was a little longer, like Bill's hairstyle.

It seems that after knowing that his parents betrayed Voldemort, it was a big blow to him.

Harry didn't notice these. He was thinking about what Owen said to him in the morning, and then he planned to show his skills and get closer to Slughorn.

He opened his "Advanced Potion Making" and the booklet compiled by Hermione.

Then he chose a potion called Joy Potion from among the many potions. It seemed to not only meet Slughorn's requirements, but if he could taste it, it might make him happy and give up his memory.

"Ah, it looks wonderful." An hour and a half later, Slughorn stared at the golden liquid in Harry's cauldron and clapped his hands, "Ecstasy, isn't it? Wait, what does this taste like? Well, you added a little peppermint, didn't you? Not very orthodox, but what a genius idea, Harry, of course, this can offset the occasional side effects of singing too much and twisting your nose. I really don't know where you get these wonderful ideas, my child, unless..."

Harry smiled in response.

"-It's just your mother's genes showing up in you."

"Maybe." Harry said with a sigh of relief.

"Well, let me see Mr. Rosier." Slughorn's interest was high. He walked to the cauldron with Owen, "What are you doing?" Just by smelling the smell of the potion and observing its color, Slughorn deduced what kind of potion Owen brewed, "Vitality tonic, right?"

"Yes, sir." Owen said. The potions he was most proficient in were vitality tonic and stimulant. In order to refresh Miss Granger, he brewed many of these potions and even invented many potions of different flavors.

"Hmm..." Slughorn took a sip, "It tastes like strawberry, and there is a minty fragrance. I feel a gentle air flow from my lower abdomen to my limbs. Oh - it is more gentle than the normal vitality tonic. I guess you must have solved its side effects. Right?"

"Yes."

"Great!" Slughorn said, "As we all know, vitality tonics cannot be used for a long time, because potions cannot really let you rest. It just eliminates your feeling of fatigue and increases the activity of magic in the wizard's body. Long-term use will have a probability of sudden death, neurasthenia and limb spasms. At the mildest, there are also sequelae of dizziness, tinnitus and insomnia."

"Your potion has completely changed all this."

"But it still can't be used for a long time." Owen said.

"Of course. Potions can't replace sleep." Slughorn said.

As he said that, he came to Draco again.

Then frowned.

"You are brewing a very complicated potion."

"Hmm." He responded softly.

"Very bold, but I think you will need at least twenty days." Slughorn said, and then went to Ernie. After seeing the purple sticky substance in the crucible, he walked away without saying a word.

When the bell rang, the little wizards left.

Slughorn walked very fast. Harry had wanted to let him taste his own euphoria potion, so that he could save the Felicis potion, but unfortunately there was no chance at all.