19. Infatuation

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"Meow!"

Koko, the adorable little goose with soft and fluffy feathers, stirred from his spot in the corner of the room. He sensed that something was wrong, and as he looked around, his gaze settled on Happy, his beloved pet human.

Happy was tossing and turning, caught in the grips of a nightmare. Without hesitation, Koko waddled over and perched himself on Happy's chest like a comforting presence in the darkness.

But when Happy woke up, he found Koko gazing down at his face, somewhat menacingly from that perspective.

"Good morning, boy. Are you hungry?"

Koko shook his head.

"Need to poo?"

The cute goose again denied.

Happy thought for a second before asking further. "Bored?"

"Meow!"

"Hah, alright then. I haven't shown you the amazing Hogwarts castle yet, so let's do that today."

"Woof!"

Happy led Koko through the winding corridors of Hogwarts, pointing out the various classrooms as they passed. The goose waddled along beside him, his fluffy feathers ruffling in the breeze.

As they turned a corner, a group of fifth-year Hufflepuffs spotted them and rushed over to greet them. "Merlin's beard! He's so cute!"

Happy smiled and proudly stood there, basking in the praises. Damn right, god gave him a pretty cute face, and he was proud of it.

"Hello there, little bird..."

Shattering Happy's dreams and pride, the girls knelt, reaching out to stroke Koko's feathers.

Koko let out a soft honk, and soon enough, students from all years and houses were clamoring to pet him. Except, of course, for the Slytherins, who kept their distance with disapproving glares.

Happy couldn't help but laugh as he watched Koko reveling in all the attention.

'Boy, you sure are a great magnet. Master that art, I will use it after becoming a man officially.' Happy thought as he saw some of the prettiest girls come and play with his pet.

But seeing the crowd getting bigger, Happy decided to continue the tour.

"That's the way to the dungeon, Koko. Slytherins live down there and have wet dreams of making the Snakeman Great again someday."

"Oink! Oink!" The goose replied, unsure if he was calling Slyterins pig or just making noises.

"Correct, pigs. But not all of them are like that. Anyway, let's go and introduce you to some portraits. You can play with them by pecking them later."

"Happy!"

As Happy was busy walking Koko, a feminine voice called his name. He turned around and saw Cho Chang, the girl from a year above and the one he recently saved.

"Oh, you're out of the hospital? I hope you're feeling better." Happy said, offering his well wishes.

Cho Chang nodded, her new regrown silky black hair bouncing beautifully, "I'm doing well, thanks to you, Happy. If it weren't for you, the troll would have killed me."

"I'm glad I could help, Miss Chang." He replied like a gentleman, not gloating over it too much.

"Miss? You don't have to be so formal with me. You saved my life." She insisted.

"But you're a second year, my senior."

"We're just one year apart. And we're friends now, aren't we?"

He simply smiled back. "Of course."

But Cho suddenly stepped closer and handed Happy a small gift-wrapped box. "I'd like to treat you to special lunch someday. But, for now, please accept this small token of my gratitude."

Happy was superhuman when it came to food, and at one glance, he knew the box had chocolates in it. Not just that, he knew it was hazelnut flavor. "I'll remember that promise, Cho. Thank you for this treat. I'll go now, still showing my goose around Hogwarts."

He tried his best to act uncaring about the gift. So he nonchalantly walked away without looking back. Then, he took a corner and stopped to open the box of chocolates to savor them.

Happy had a mental condition, or say, a mental habit since his past life. "No chocolate tastes better than free chocolates."

Yes, for some reason, he never enjoyed the chocolates he bought with his money. Of course, he knew he was rich, but free chocolate just always satisfied him more.

Pat! Pat!

"Such a ladies' man!" Suddenly, Ron jumped in front of him with a sly grin. "A second-year senior, no less! I didn't think you had it in you."

Happy didn't bother reacting much. "What do you mean? I'm not interested in women."

"..."

"I'm only interested in food. I didn't come to Hogwarts to date, mate...or study." Happy added and cleared whatever doubts rose in Ron's mind.

"But… Are you sure? Look at her. She's still standing there and blushing. She's definitely interested in you." Ron suggested as he sneaked a glance at Cho, although being immature himself.

Happy munched on a few chocolates. "It's called infatuation, Ron. This is temporary, as her memory of me saving her is still very fresh. Wait a few days, and she'll start seeing me as an eleven-year-old kid again."

"Ugh… If you say so. Anyway, are you heading home for Christmas? I'm stuck here at Hogwarts since Mum and Dad are off to Romania this winter. It's going to be boring without people around." Ron asked.

"No, I'm staying here. I got nothing to do outside, nor is anyone waiting for me there. Now, let's go and annoy Filch with fake money."

…

A week passed by, and Christmas was around the corner.

As the Hogwarts Express chugged out of the station, Happy, Harry, and Ron stayed behind. The castle was quiet now, with only sounds coming from the rustling of leaves and the occasional bird chirping.

It was actually nice to see the common room so empty. It brought some much-needed peace in the hectic life for Happy. His days were much more refreshing now, as he woke up late, and ate to his heart's content.

For the winter, he had a goal as well.

He wanted to go and meet the elves working in the kitchen and somehow strike a deal with them to cook for him whatever he desired. Or, at least, let one of Lestrange's cooks come and cook there, as the Lestrange house elves had traveled the world and knew a lot about food. Other than that, he didn't want to change things too much, as he had learned the lesson from the Troll Incident.

He was just being lazy for the moment and playing Wizard Chess. But even Harry had an agenda that winter.

Apparently, when Happy wasn't with the trio, they went to poor Hagrid to give them some information. So, they were now foolishly looking for Nicolas Flamel.

Happy instead spent most of his time with Fred and George as they were more fun those days. Their knowledge about the magic that could annoy others was convenient and exciting.

…

"HARRY!"

"Happy! Wake up!"

Happy woke up hearing Ron's annoying shouts. It was Christmas morning; outside the window, the snow was falling, while inside, Hedwig and Koko were sleeping huddled together in a corner, sharing heat and looking adorable.

"Ugh… I hate Ron's energy." Happy muttered and got out of bed with a bit of annoyance.

"Merry Christmas, Happy." Harry greeted.

Happy followed the boy out and arrived at the common room, where many presents were placed around the Christmas tree.

Ron had already opened his present, and it was a sweater with a large 'R' knitted into it. He didn't look quite happy about it, but it was from his loving Mum, so he couldn't complain.

To Harry's shock, he also got a present.

Harry opened it and found a letter saying, "Your father left this in my possession before he died. It's time it was returned to you. Use it well."

He flipped the letter over and over but didn't find the name of the sender. So, ignoring the letter then, Harry started unwrapping his gift.

"What is it?" Ron asked.

"It's some sort of cloak...?" Harry spread it up, looking at the velvety sheen on the dark cloak.

As Harry spread it behind him and draped it on his back, his body suddenly vanished.

"Woah!" Ron's jaw dropped.

"My body's gone!"

"Oh... it's an invisibility cloak! It's very rare, Harry." Happy explained.

'The mighty plot armor has arrived.' he added under his breath.

"Yeah, I've heard about them. Never thought I'd see... well, 'not' see one." Ron remarked, moving closer to the cloak.

"Who gave it to you?"

"It didn't have a name, just... told me to use it well," Harry replied.

Happy, meanwhile, wondered something. 'Dumbledore gave this. Certainly at a very convenient time when Harry needed to break into the library. Hmm… I know Dumbledore isn't a bad person, but all these coincidences are too unusual. Could it be that the old man wishes to test the prophecy? Or is all this truly random… If it is, then Harry has better luck than I do...I guess.'

"Wait! Why isn't there a present for Happy?" Ron wondered, only to soon realize why.

Happy shrugged and sat down by the fireplace. "Why are you shocked? Do you think they could send me something from Azkaban? Besides, what would those terrorists send me? Books on how to cast unforgivable curses? How to breed dark creatures?"

"We can share mine." Harry blurted almost instantly.

Happy just chuckled and ignored the offer. Though he greatly appreciated it, since it wasn't something ordinary.

'As expected, you did not disappoint me...Harry Potter.'

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