Unexpected Friendships and Transfiguration Lessons

Sunday passed quickly and simply, especially since there was no daylight in the dormitory. By the time Jon was forced to introduce himself to his roommate, it was already noon.

"By the way, tomorrow is the first day of classes. Jon, have you done any previewing?"

"Previewing? No, have you guys?" Jon shook his head.

"Of course... not," Stephen chuckled. "But we heard that you used a Lumos spell when you enrolled yesterday, and everyone thought you had already studied in advance."

"Oh, that. My family taught me that back at home."

"Nice," said a freckled boy sitting next to Stephen. He was Flynn Desley, Jon's roommate, a wizard from a Muggle family. "I envy kids from pure-blood wizard families."

"There's nothing to envy, Flynn."

Sitting to Flynn's right was Scali Lanch, a child from a mixed-blood family with big eyes.

"You know, wizard parents are always very strict with you. They think you have to go to Slytherin or Gryffindor because that's where pure-blood wizards should go. So, Jon, why did you come to Hufflepuff?"

"Um... actually, my parents don't really care about me. They let me make all the decisions."

"Wow!"

The three boys looked astonished. It was hard for them to imagine parents who would allow their children to make their own decisions.

"It's a long story, and I'll tell you guys when we have the chance."

Strangely enough, whether Jon volunteered or not, he had gained three friends on the first day of school, which was completely unexpected for him. Because of the lack of information in the original work, he had never thought that Hufflepuff students were so eager to make friends.

Well, having a few friends wasn't a bad thing. Maybe they could even help him cover up sometimes.

What surprised Jon even more was that since arriving at Hogwarts, Bella hadn't come to see him, as if he didn't even exist as her little brother.

This woman... He had thought she had some warmth!

Monday came quickly. In the morning, Jon was pulled out of his small room by his excited roommates. If it weren't for Jon's habit of sleeping with clothes on, those three guys would have seen him naked.

The first class at Hogwarts started at nine o'clock. When they finished breakfast and arrived, the classroom door was still empty.

"I told you, you don't need to come this early. Classes start at nine, and it's not even eight yet. Transfiguration doesn't require any previewing."

Jon was dragged by Stephen and seated in his seat. There was no cat on the podium yet. It seemed that Professor McGonagall hadn't arrived.

"Coming early can get us good seats. I heard Gryffindor students always come early. Professor McGonagall is their Head of House. If we arrive earlier than them, we might even get some bonus points."

Flynn and Scali sat at the same desk, behind Jon and Stephen.

"Getting bonus points is not that simple. The conditions are very strict. If coming early could earn us bonus points, Hufflepuff wouldn't always be at the bottom of the House Cup."

Jon casually opened his book, "A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration," and flipped through it haphazardly.

"Jon, I don't appreciate your attitude. Why can't we win the House Cup once?" Flynn, obviously unaware of Hufflepuff's history, said with some dissatisfaction.

His words earned sympathetic looks from Stephen and Scali, but they didn't want to discourage Flynn's enthusiasm, so they changed the topic.

"I heard Professor McGonagall is a powerful Animagus. I wonder how proficient one has to be in Transfiguration to master that magic."

"Forget it. I heard that only genius pure-blood wizards can learn that magic, and it takes a lot of time and effort. It seems our House has never had anyone who mastered it." Jon listened silently to their conversation. He held a different opinion, some ideas about the principles of Animagus magic. Unfortunately, those ideas couldn't be shared in the Transfiguration class. Otherwise, Professor McGonagall would definitely dislike him.

Moreover, this transformation magic involved a dangerous conjecture on Jon's part, and he wouldn't casually speak about it without sufficient evidence.

"Yeah, that magic is really difficult."

Jon casually responded with a couple of sentences while his mind wandered to other things.

He should order a copy of the Daily Prophet. Moreover, the upcoming days in Britain would definitely not be peaceful. The original "Harry Potter" series didn't mention some events that occurred during that time, but Jon knew about them.

As Jon brainstormed, the first-year students started to arrive one after another.

Gryffindor and Hufflepuff attended the Transfiguration class together. The two Houses had never had any conflicts, and their relationship was harmonious.

At some point, a cat had already appeared on the podium.

After Animagus transformation, magic could still be used. In Hogwarts Castle, wizards were not allowed to use Apparition, but for a professor like McGonagall, the level of the Disillusionment Charm presented no great difficulty. As soon as it struck nine o'clock, Professor McGonagall's figure suddenly appeared, startling all the students in the room.

"I believe maintaining vigilance should be the first lesson for wizards. At least don't show such astonishment, or you will lose your elegance."

Professor McGonagall was indeed a stern professor. She briefly spoke a few words before starting the Transfiguration lesson. Minerva McGonagall, as the Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts, possessed exceptional magical abilities, especially in Transfiguration. With a seamless demonstration, she immediately sparked the students' enthusiasm for learning.

This included Jon, although his attention was somewhat diverted as he wondered if he could use Transfiguration to create a key.

Hmm, the principle didn't seem difficult. Just transfigure a lump of clay first, then stuff it into the keyhole, and use Transfiguration to change the malleable nature of the clay to a hardened state... This idea persisted until the end of the Transfiguration class, and Jon still hadn't turned a matchstick into a needle.

"Your magical talent is not a problem, and your technique is precise."

Before the end of class, Professor McGonagall stared straight at Jon, making him inexplicably nervous. His mind started frantically constructing complex mathematical formulas to avoid being caught off guard.

But Professor McGonagall clearly wasn't as intimidating as Jon imagined. She just looked at him with an appraising gaze for a while and said in a disappointed tone, "Mr. Smith, you lack focus. I hope you maintain enough concentration when performing magic. This way, you won't waste the powerful magic that comes with your pure-blood lineage. Although you were sorted into Hufflepuff, remember one thing: Hufflepuff is also a very formidable House, and its founder was equally a legendary witch."