Chapter 74: 74: Hooray, They Got Potter!

"Speaking of toads, I can't help but think of Malcolm," Miles chattered as they disembarked from the Hogwarts Express. He had found Nolan and the others almost immediately, and now he was rambling nonstop—like he needed to unload a summer's worth of bottled-up nonsense. "Sometimes, I envy him, you know? Not every wizard gets to experience what it's like to be a toad. Malcolm must've really immersed himself in that world... He and that turtle formed some deep connection. I swear, before the holidays ended, I saw him standing at the sink, gazing at the turtle like he was leaving behind a soulmate. What was that thing's name again?" "I call him Britney..." Alicia murmured, cradling the little turtle in her hands. She had her usual vacant expression, but her eyes stayed fixed on the front of the carriages, where a large black horse-like creature stood. A Thestral. Students entering their second year no longer crossed the lake by boat. They were taken to the castle in carriages drawn by Thestrals. "Right, Britney. I bet Britney's a total heartbreaker in the aquatic circles." "But Britney's a he." "Oh... is he? Then why'd you give him that name?" Miles seemed deeply intrigued by this revelation. He squinted at Alicia, who was still staring ahead. "Hey, Ali. What are you staring at? Is there something in front of the carriage?" "You can't see it?" "See what?" "Nothing." Alicia opened her mouth as if to explain, but then shook her head. Nolan tugged on Eve's sleeve, motioning toward an empty carriage. Cho Chang had already left with her Ravenclaw friends, leaving just the two of them behind. "Come on, let's go. Unless you want to get to the castle after the first-years." Miles and Alicia climbed in after them, and the carriage creaked to life. Miles seemed fascinated by the whole process. The Great Hall was as magnificent as ever, with its enchanted ceiling glowing under the soft shimmer of the starry sky. The four long tables were slowly filling up—Gryffindor's table was loud and boisterous, Ravenclaw's relatively quiet, Hufflepuff's warm and friendly, and Slytherin's... well, half the table was bragging about their summer vacations. "What are they talking about?" Miles leaned over, draping his arm around Montague's shoulders. "Hey, Miles! Good to see you, mate. Nolan, Alicia, Eve—how was your summer?" Montague grinned as he greeted them, then added, a little sheepishly, "Malcolm's been bragging about his trip to Romania. He wants us to believe he saw dragons there. I mean, I know his family's rich, but come on..." Camille, another of their yearmates, slid into the seat beside Nolan, her eyes shining with curiosity. "What about you, Nolan? What did you do this summer?" "Stayed home," Nolan replied simply. After glancing at Eve, he added with a smirk, "Oh, and I went on a few dates with Eve and Cho." "..." Camille's lips puckered into a pout, and she mumbled under her breath, "Of course you did..." Apparently, the younger students were quite eager to hear about Nolan's summer. The moment the words "date with Eve and Cho" left his mouth, the gossip spread like wildfire across the lower years. It became the topic of the evening. "Out of all the girls... it had to be the two prettiest ones in our year." "Hey, to be fair, Rina from Hufflepuff and Elia from Gryffindor aren't too bad either!" "So, what are we doing now? Holding a beauty pageant? That's not very wizard-like." "I don't know... but I do want to know how Nolan managed to keep those two from tearing each other apart." "So, are we about to witness the first couple of second year?" At the Ravenclaw table, Cho rested her chin in her hand, half-listening to the swirling rumors around her. She knew the other girls envied her—that much was obvious. Next to her, Marietta's curiosity was practically burning through her. "You really went on a date? Did you two kiss? What was it like?" Cho let out a long sigh, visibly irritated. "What's kissing like? Yeah, I'd like to know too. Does kissing the back of my own hand count?" Her frustration didn't last long. Soon enough, the conversation shifted to the Quidditch European Cup—a topic Cho found far more engaging. By the time the Sorting Hat ceremony began, she was fiercely debating with other Ravenclaws over which Quidditch team reigned supreme. As the Sorting Hat's raspy voice echoed across the hall, Miles leaned over and muttered in Nolan's ear, "Here's hoping there aren't any more freaks like you this year." Nolan blinked, glancing at him. "Did I bother you last year?" "Bother me? No, of course not!" Miles hissed, though the way he hunched his shoulders suggested otherwise. "But with you around, none of the pretty girls even look at me! This summer, everyone in Diagon Alley kept calling me 'Von Draugr's sidekick!' Nolan, I'm not your sidekick, am I?" "You're not." "See!?" Miles turned to Montague for backup, but Montague only laughed, clapping him hard on the shoulder. "Wake up, Miles. If it weren't for Nolan, no one would remember you. Honestly, what's there to complain about?" Miles slumped further, looking as if someone had just crushed his last shred of dignity. "Hermione Granger!" By the Sorting Hat, a bushy-haired girl with large front teeth scrambled nervously onto the stool. Eve nudged Nolan lightly. "That's the girl from the train. I wonder if she ever found that toad." "Who knows." Nolan didn't seem particularly interested. Granger was quickly sorted into Gryffindor. As she skipped off to her new house, a platinum-haired boy approached the front, his face twisted into a smug expression. He looked strikingly like Malcolm from the previous year—except the boy's family name carried much more weight. "I'm Draco Malfoy," the pompous little Slytherin announced, flashing an all-too-bright smile at Nolan. He gestured to the two hulking boys beside him. "This is Crabbe. And that's Goyle. They're my friends." Malfoy? Nolan arched an eyebrow. "You wouldn't happen to be that Malfoy's son, would you?" At the mention of the name, Eve's face darkened immediately. Lucius Malfoy. Last year, Draco's father had made every effort to get Eve expelled from Hogwarts. If Nolan hadn't stepped in... Eve wasn't sure how much humiliation she would have endured. "You've got a great father," Eve said, forcing a smile that was ice-cold and razor-sharp. Her voice could have frozen the entire hall. Malfoy flinched at the hostility, his earlier bravado crumbling as he shrank back a step. He had no idea what he'd done to offend this older student—but it was clear that ticking her off was not a wise move. She and Nolan Von Draugr seemed... close. Maybe even very close. And if there was one thing his father had warned him about, it was not to mess with Nolan Von Draugr. "Y-Yes... Father's always been very kind to me..." Draco mumbled, nodding furiously before making a hasty retreat. At that exact moment, a loud cheer erupted from the Gryffindor table. Twin red-haired boys had jumped to their feet, arms draped over each other's shoulders as they broke into a strange celebratory jig. "We got Potter! We got Potter!" they chanted. Ah, congratulations, Gryffindor. Truly, what a wonderful thing. Wasn't it?