145: Daphne's Food and Patronus Charm

Harry was in a much better mood and was feeling a bit excited.

Lupin had agreed to teach him the Patronus Charm on Thursday, which left him so thrilled that he tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep.

Since he couldn't sleep, Harry decided to go for a walk.

Throwing on his Invisibility Cloak, he stepped out of the Gryffindor common room.

Because of that one time Sirius Black broke in, the number of students sneaking around at night had decreased.

Harry didn't have any particular destination in mind; he just wanted to wander around.

With the Invisibility Cloak, he wasn't worried about getting caught.

As he passed the room where the three-headed dog had once been kept, he saw a figure slip by.

It was John!

John moved like a ghost—his footsteps made no sound, and even his outline was blurred and hard to discern.

If Harry weren't a Seeker, he probably wouldn't have been able to spot him.

In the moonlight, John swiftly entered that room, and as the door closed behind him, Harry crept closer.

"What's John doing in there?"

Harry's curiosity was piqued, and he cautiously, quietly opened the door to peek inside.

There was no light inside, and Harry felt PTSD, as though he was back in his first year.

It was as if, at any moment, Fluffy, the three-headed dog, would come charging out.

His breathing became rapid as he pushed the door open just a crack.

It was dim and shadowy inside, so he pushed the door open a bit more.

At that moment, he saw that there didn't seem to be anything inside.

But he had just seen John go in, so Harry opened the door fully.

The room was completely empty—there was no trace of John.

Harry was confused. Could he have imagined it?

"Lumos."

Lighting his wand, Harry carefully searched the room, confirming that there was no way for John to have left through any other exit.

Eh?

He was puzzled.

"John's always been so mysterious," Harry thought to himself.

As he left the room, he found himself lost in thought.

From the moment they had started at Hogwarts, John had always been someone who was difficult to understand.

He wasn't like Ron, who was simple and easy to understand, nor like Malfoy, who made his hostility obvious.

Harry made a mental note of the room before turning to leave.

Not long after he left, John emerged from the secret room of the Constellation Society.

"A few more Dementors, and that should be enough."

His right hand had stopped trembling, but there was still little strength in it.

John opened the door and stepped out, smacking his lips together—it was frustrating not having any sense of taste.

Just as he was about to leave, he paused.

Turning back to look at the wooden door, he moved closer.

"Someone's been here?"

In the corner of the wooden door, a hidden eye symbol seemed to come to life.

This was a detection spell John had set up. Whenever someone outside of the Constallation Society came here, the eye would spin rapidly.

He reached out and tapped it lightly, causing the eye to return to normal.

...

The next day.

John stared at the strange object in front of him, lost in thought.

Daphne's nose had a bit of flour on it, and when her eyes met John's, she nervously explained, "I was trying to make waffles."

Waffles?

Are you telling me these burnt lumps that look like charred mud are waffles?

John looked at Daphne again, his tone sincere, "I don't think I've done anything to wrong you, have I?"

Daphne lowered her head. It was her first time making them, and she didn't expect them to turn out this badly.

"I.. I'm sorry.."

Feeling downhearted, Daphne picked up the plate, ready to throw it away.

John gently pressed her slender, pale wrist.

Daphne's heart fluttered slightly, and a quick blush spread across her cheeks, giving her a shy, delicate beauty.

Thinking about how inedible her creation was, she awkwardly shifted her hand and said, "They're all ruined, don't eat them."

Despite her words, her heart felt sweet. Her mother had told her that if a man truly liked you, he would enjoy anything you made, no matter how bad.

Daphne shyly looked back, only to see John's face completely expressionless, with his face and clothes covered in an excessive amount of maple syrup she wanted to cover up the burnt waffles.

"…I was just going to warn you the maple syrup was about to spill. Why did you twist like that?"

Without needing to see a mirror, John knew he looked a mess. His lips twitched as he said, "It was not going to pour out, but you twisted your hand and put it on my face."

"Ah! Sorry, John!"

Daphne hurried over to wipe it off, but when she took out a towel to wipe it, the maple syrup, which had cooled down, stuck to John's face.

John clearly saw Heinrich's mouth twitch. He probably wanted to laugh, but he held it back.

Taking a deep breath, John wondered if today was just an unlucky day to be out and about.

As Daphne was about to help again, John quickly stopped her, "No, don't! Just stay still, I'll handle it myself."

Pulling out his wand, John cast a cleaning spell on himself, and the syrup was whisked away, though there was still a sticky feeling that made him uncomfortable.

He decided to just run to the washroom and take a proper shower.

Daphne buried her head in Pansy's arms, too embarrassed to show her face, "I'm doomed."

"Aw~ There there~" Pansy patted her back and comforted her kindly, "It's okay, you see, John wasn't even mad."

Hearing this, Daphne, feeling a surge of confidence, perked up, "You're right, I'll keep trying next time!"

Pansy muttered: "…John wouldn't kill me for encouraging her, would he?"

Heinrich: "Pfft~ Bahahaha."

...

After that, John was repeatedly "tortured" by Daphne's various failed attempts at cooking, making him suspect that this might be revenge for Tom stepping on her homework with its dirty feet last time.

Pulling out the Marauder's Map, John noticed that Lupin seemed to be looking for something.

"At this hour, going to the kitchen… surely he's not just hungry?"

Watching as Lupin moved from the staff office and wandered around to another location, John still had no idea what he was doing, but that didn't stop him from heading out to hunt Dementors.

Using the Disillusionment Charm, John boldly and openly left the castle, skillfully making his way to the Dementor gathering site.

The number of Dementors had noticeably decreased. The Aurors had already been sent to investigate, but they hadn't found any evidence of Dementors escaping.

This led the Ministry of Magic to suspect that Sirius Black might be behind it, seeking revenge on the Dementors who had tormented him in Azkaban.

Entering the gathering site, John began to search for a target.

Catching a Dementor that was too slow to escape, John turned to leave.

"Who's there?!"

A loud shout startled John—he'd been discovered.

Without hesitation, John activated his Meteor Shoes and used the Disillusionment Charm to make a swift getaway.

Behind him, Oz and Lippi rushed to the spot where John had just been. With a grave expression, Oz said, "It was Sirius Black."

"Sirius Black?" Lippin was taken aback.

Oz nodded seriously.

"I saw that black hair. There's no one else it could have been but Sirius."

Lippi was surprised by the news. This was a major lead.

They quickly contacted the other Aurors to search the area.

They even suspected that Sirius had mastered a terrifying form of dark magic—one that could silently capture Dementors.

The Ministry of Magic took the matter very seriously and initiated a search overnight.

Meanwhile, the person involved had already escaped back to Hogwarts.

...

Thursday night.

Harry arrived at the History of Magic classroom, feeling somewhat heavy-hearted.

His previously good mood had evaporated after reading that morning's Daily Prophet. It reported that Sirius Black had appeared and, in front of witnesses, had captured the Dementors who had once tormented him.

That cruel nature—he didn't even leave any Dementors alive.

"Such a terrifying person.."

Harry thought, he must bring him to justice with his own hands.

Clenching his fist, Harry looked up at Lupin, speaking earnestly, "Professor, I want to learn the Patronus Charm!"

Lupin smiled, a look of approval in his eyes. It hadn't been in vain that he had spent several days searching for a Boggart.

The Patronus Charm was an advanced spell, one that even many fully graduated wizards could not master.

Lupin was one of the few who could.

Due to his sensitive nature, he could conjure a Patronus although without fully manifesting it, but able to control it at will.

He gave Harry a demonstration, and a silver-white light emerged from the tip of his wand, causing Harry to marvel in awe.

"John Wick is a master of the Patronus Charm. Originally, I wanted you to learn from him, but..."

At this point, Lupin hesitated, stopping mid-sentence.

This pause left Harry itching with curiosity. He wanted to know more, but Lupin showed no intention of continuing.

Only Lupin knew that he held suspicions about John.

As one of Harry's elders, Lupin didn't want Harry getting too close to John.

It was a werewolf's instinct—something about that person felt dangerous.

Ignoring the inquisitive look in Harry's eyes, Lupin opened the crate he had brought with him.

The Boggart, sensing Harry's deepest fear, transformed into the shape of a Dementor and flew out.

Harry tried hard to shout "Expecto Patronum," but it was no use.

Once again, his mother's voice echoed in his mind, and he fainted.

Lupin quickly contained the Boggart back into the crate.

_____

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