Chp 5: Disagreement

After a few classes, Brian regrettably found out that he was not particularly talented at magic. Oh, he did perform as well as Hermione, but not to the level of great wizards like Dumbledore, Grindelwald, and, though he didn't want to admit it, Voldemort.

And so, he dedicated nearly all of his free time to study and review. He quickly picked up what he learned in previous classes and by now he was already preparing for the upcoming lessons.

However, a lot of information was removed from the textbooks, which was likely done by the ministry to tighten its grip on the wizards. To that end, he spent a great deal of time wandering around the library in search of reading material under the attentive eyes of Mrs. Pince, the librarian.

While all of this was going on, Draco and his two lackeys continued to cause problems for Potter and Weasley. It seems as though he had made it his life's mission to annoy them every day.

He did not bother to join them, though. He had far more important things to do than to waste time on childish squabbles. Oh, right, he is still a kid, technically speaking.

Anyhow, after numerous unsuccessful searches across Hogwarts' upper floors, Brian had finally located the tapestry depicting a wizard attempting to teach trolls ballet. Barnamas the Barmy, aptly named indeed.

What lay on the other side of it was a blank wall. There was a hidden entrance here that led to the Room of Requirement as Brian remembered it. Walking past it three times while thinking of something, a large door suddenly appeared.

Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Brian grabbed the door handle, and pushed it open, revealing a room that was an exact replica of the Slytherin common room.

Truth be told, Brian had completely forgotten where the Room of Requirement was located. He spent days looking for it until a live portrait of a wizard—apparently he was a Slytherin when he went to Hogwarts—saw him running around like a headless chicken and led him in the right direction.

Brian needed a suitable location to train, which is why he was here. He was trying to master the Disillusionment spell. So he could sneak into the Restricted Section to find books on Mind Arts and start learning Occlumency—an esoteric magic that would keep him safe from Dumbledore's probing.

The result, however, was a let down. The Disillusionment Charm, a spell that only a Senior Wizard could master, is not something he can learn at his current level. He was far behind them in terms of their knowledge and magic prowess.

Additionally, he was curious to see if the system would award him points for finding this room. But once again, he was left feeling let down. He received no prompt from the system.

After his plot to raid the Hogwarts library was thwarted, Brian had no choice but to put it behind him and concentrate on his studies. He also made friends with Daphne Greengrass during this time, incidentally.

Daphne enjoyed spending her time in the common room near the window, gazing out at the lake with one hand on the window ledge and her chin resting on it. She would press her face close to the glass and open her blue eyes wide whenever a large shadow passed across it, curiously wanting to know what kind of creature it might be.

When Brian was reading a book by the fireplace, Daphne would occasionally ask him several questions about the things she didn't understand in the class. After several conversations, the two grew accustomed to one another and occasionally cracked jokes.

Daphne was what the Japanese call a tsundere, a girl who gives off an icy exterior but is actually quite shy. Though she may seem reserved at first, she actually had a great sense of humour and loved to make other people laugh. She was devoted to her friends and family and always willing to provide a helping hand.

While she agreed with the idea of pureblood, she didn't hate muggles either, which led Brian to also discuss his opinion about muggleborns with her. She was astonished to hear that, but much to his relief, she didn't reject him for it.

In their talk, Brian also discovered that Daphne had a sister who is one year younger than she is. However, due to her sister's failing health, she had been worried that her sister won't receive the Hogwarts letter.

Brian would often make time to talk to Daphne rather than allowing himself to slowly wither away in loneliness. This helped him connect with other young people his age.

Over the course of the next few days, he continued to put in extensive study time, and the positive effects of this effort began to appear in his grades. Thus, he earned his place as Slytherin's top student. He was still below Hermione in some subjects. Though that was primarily due to his rebellious wand.

In the library, Brian stood in front of the bookcases and reached for the last copy of "Hogwarts: A History," only to discover that someone else had already gone for it.

"Sorry, you can take it." Two voices spoke at the same time.

Having briefly froze, Brian withdrew one hand only to discover that the other hand had also been drawn back.

"You can have the book. It was just something I wanted to read as a pastime. I'll go look for other books," the other voice babbled, saying everything in one breath.

Brian thought he heard this voice from somewhere before, and when he turned around, he realised it was indeed Hermione Granger.

After Hermione finished her explanation nervously, she quickly dropped her face and turned to leave.

"Do you no longer want this book, Miss Granger? Here, you can take it. I was just curious, really. There is still a copy of this book in my house's common room."

Hermione turned around in surprise when Brian's reply came. She took the book Brian was offering her in complete disbelief. This lasted for more than a few seconds before she gathered herself.

With her face somewhat red, the little girl stammered uncomfortably while holding the book. "Sorry, I... I thought you don't want to talk to me."

She then stopped talking, and they were left in silence. As it started to feel awkward, Hermione quickly brought up a topic.

In a bossy tone that Brian and many other students are well accustomed to, she said, "So, how's your study been going?"

When it came to what she was best at, Hermione's eyes lit up with confidence and pride. Brian listened patiently and occasionally added his own thoughts. They had a pleasant conversation for a while.

Hermione was overjoyed that someone was open to speaking with her. She had not made any friends since arriving at Hogwarts. Few people are willing to talk to her, not even in her own house.

That was until Mrs. Pince came and kicked them out of the library for disturbing the peace.

After they both stepped out of the library, Hermione turned to him. "Brian, I appreciate your time today. You are not like the rest of the Slytherins."

She gave him a final wave before descending the stairs.

Brian's mouth arched into a smile as Hermione disappeared from view. His initial attempt to get close to Harry Potter appeared to be successful.

They would frequently meet in the library in the days that followed. After learning that Brian did not hold any discrimination against muggles, Hermione would sometimes let him in on some of the interesting muggle's stuff.

There was nothing Brian could do but listen to her. Little did she know that he came from the 21st century. He was more aware of how quickly the the muggles would develop in the future.

Meanwhile, Draco was in a bad mood. Pansy Parkinson had just told him that Brian had recently been hanging out with a Gryffindor in the library. Immediately, he went to find Brain to ask him what he was doing with a mudblood of all things.

And Brian's response was, "Mind your own business, Draco."

Draco tensed up upon hearing Brian's icy tone. He quickly regained control and went back to being his pompous self.

"Fine! But I just wanted to let you know that there have been some rumours concerning you." After that, Draco turned on his heel and walked away.