Chapter 45: Farming and Professor Oren

It felt like finding a long-lost toy. Kyle was having the time of his life in the Room of Requirement, experimenting with its magic. With just a flick of his fingers, he turned the gentle rain into a fierce blizzard, and with another flick, he conjured hailstones the size of eggs. The power to alter his surroundings with a wave of his hand was exhilarating.

After indulging in the magical weather changes for a while, Kyle suddenly remembered he had actual work to do. Reluctantly, he changed the room back to a sunny, serene atmosphere. Never mind, there'll be plenty of time for this later, he thought.

Squatting down on the ground, Kyle carefully pulled two fava bean-sized seeds out of his pocket, handling them as if they were made of glass. They were incredibly precious, and, more importantly, they weren't even his. They had come from the herbology class, where he had... picked them up. Really, he had just picked them up.

Earlier that day, during Herbology, a Gryffindor student had been so excited after successfully answering one of Professor Sprout's questions that he accidentally flung the shovel he was holding straight at the Chomping Cabbage on the other side of the classroom. Predictably, the Cabbage had reduced the shovel to a mangled piece of metal in seconds, and the student had been docked a point for his blunder.

That would have been the end of it, but Kyle noticed something curious. After spitting out the remains of the destroyed shovel, the Chomping Cabbage had spat out two small seeds. Professor Sprout, busy fetching another shovel at the time, hadn't seen a thing.

As a good Hufflepuff, Kyle naturally wanted to help his Head of House, so he'd picked the seeds up for her. But, distracted by the lesson on Dittany, he had completely forgotten about them... until now.

Kyle dug two small holes in the soil, just the right size for the seeds, and gently placed them inside. After covering them with a thin layer of soil, he stood up and nodded, feeling satisfied with his work.

"Very good," he muttered to himself. "I'll keep them here for now, and I'll take them to Professor Sprout next time we have class."

...

After leaving the Room of Requirement, Kyle returned to the common room before heading to the Defence Against the Dark Arts class with the other Hufflepuff first-years for their afternoon lesson. The atmosphere on the way to the classroom was charged with excitement.

It was hard to tell whether they were more eager about the lesson itself or curious about the legendary "One-year Professor".

The Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, located on the second floor, greeted them with a surprise. When they pushed open the door, they noticed that all the desks had been pushed to the walls, leaving the room feeling oddly empty.

"One Year Professor" Oren, their teacher, was already present, standing behind the lectern and fiddling with a cage that was partially covered. Kyle, upon seeing the setup, was a little surprised. He hadn't expected their Defence Against the Dark Arts professor to be a realist like Lupin, preparing practical lessons from day one.

"Good afternoon, everyone," Professor Oren greeted them warmly once everyone had gathered inside. "Put away your books. We won't need them—not just for today, but for every lesson in the future."

That single sentence won the favor of many young wizards. What could be more delightful than not needing to bring books to class? And not having to bring them to any class? Professor Oren had managed to do both.

"This professor must be great!" one of the students exclaimed. "He's definitely going to get re-elected!"

"I hope you're right, Mr. Borg," Professor Oren replied with a smile, "but sadly, I can't give Gryffindor extra points for that."

He continued, "In my opinion, theoretical knowledge is the easiest part of this course, and you can learn that on your own, so there's no need to waste valuable class time on it. Instead, I'd rather focus on teaching you how to protect yourself in dangerous situations—whether it's from dark magic or a dangerous Magical Creature. Either could cost you your life."

The room grew a little tense, as the seriousness of the subject settled in. Sensing this, Professor Oren added, "But it's too early for you to learn about dark magic, and the headmaster wouldn't allow it anyway. So we'll start with something simpler: Magical Creatures."

With that, Professor Oren gently nudged the cage, and a low buzzing noise came from inside. The cloth covering it began to tremble, as though whatever was inside might burst out at any moment. Some of the students standing closest to the cage instinctively backed away, startled.

"Don't worry," Professor Oren said reassuringly. "This little guy may be dangerous, but as long as I'm here, you won't be harmed. Just stay calm and pay close attention to every word I say."

With that, he removed the cloth, revealing the creature inside: a tiny, blue insect, about an inch in size. The buzzing noise came from its rapidly flapping wings, which were situated on top of its head, making it look like it was wearing a little bamboo dragonfly. As it hovered in place, its body rotated slightly, giving it a rather cute appearance.

Katie Bell couldn't help but laugh. "Professor, it doesn't seem as dangerous as you said."

To her, it was hard to believe this tiny creature posed any real threat. It was so small, she figured she wouldn't even need a wand to swat it away.

"Really?" Professor Oren raised an eyebrow, smiling. "I hope you'll feel the same way later, Miss Bell."

He turned to the rest of the class. "Now, does anyone know what it is? The first person to name it will earn five points for their house."

In the midst of the murmuring crowd, Mikel caught a faint whisper, like the name of the creature. Motivated by the chance for bonus points, he blurted out, "Billywig!"

"Excellent, Mr. Mikel!" Professor Oren said, clearly pleased. "Five points for Hufflepuff!"

"That's right, this is a Billywig, a level XXX Magical Creature," Professor Oren explained. "Take a close look. It has a long, thin stinger at the base of its body. Anyone stung by a Billywig will feel dizzy at first, and then they'll begin to float. If someone is stung multiple times, they may even float uncontrollably for several days."

He turned back to Katie Bell. "Now, Miss Bell, do you still think it's not dangerous?"

Katie shrugged, saying nothing, but the skeptical look on her face made it clear she wasn't entirely convinced.

At this point, another student eagerly asked, "So, Professor, is this lesson going to be about how to deal with this Billywig?"

"Not quite," Professor Oren replied with a smile. "First, you need to learn the proper spells for dealing with it. I won't let you face any magical creatures in combat until I'm sure you're ready."