章 11: 011 The Unsociable (Re-Written)
In the opinion of Severus Snape and Hagrid, Bryan Watson was a low-key and unsociable person during his school days, and even he himself did not deny that this was an appropriate assessment.
However, this was not because Bryan himself was a wizard who kept people at arm's length.
You know Bryan is an 'outsider'. Before coming to Hogwarts, he had always thought he had just time-travelled and reborn into a parallel world's Earth.
In the eleven years of his life before that, he spent a lot of time adapting to a country with completely different living habits and cultural customs from his previous life. He also expended no small effort to relearn the knowledge he had mastered in his student days, actively preparing for the future.
However, the admission letter from Hogwarts disrupted all his plans, making his previous efforts almost in vain.
Why did he appear incompatible with his surroundings in the first few years after entering Hogwarts?
This question is very easy to explain.
Firstly, the existence of magic directly overturned Bryan's worldview and values accumulated over nearly thirty years in his two lifetimes. During those years, he was always in a state of confusion. On the one hand, he had to admit that magic really existed and work hard to learn magical knowledge; on the other hand, he always wanted to use a 'scientific way' to explain the rationality of the existence of magic, which simply made him schizophrenic.
Secondly, the seemingly real but unreal plot memories remaining in his mind also made him feel painful.
Bryan knew that he was in an incredibly real magical world, not in a book for teenagers or a fiction. Here, there were dangerous and ferocious magical creatures, evil curses almost impossible to guard against, cruel and bloody dark wizards, unscrupulous conspirators, and despicable hypocrites.
Although Bryan remembered some names, he could no longer recall the plots derived from the characters, so he could not directly judge whether they were really 'good people'. Especially after entering the Wizarding world and knowing his own weakness and powerlessness, being vigilant towards anyone and almost everyone was his way of ensuring his own safety.
In Hagrid's words, the indifference and isolation of the Slytherin students were the least significant to him. After all, his young body contained a mature soul.
Severus Snape was the only wizard he recognized at the school back then. As for the reason, it was also inseparable from Bryan's humble background.
At that time, Bryan was penniless. The meager scholarship from the school could only guarantee that he could afford second-hand books and teaching supplies, and could not support his advanced learning progress at all.
In order to save his miserable financial situation, Bryan had to find ways to make some money on his own. Starting from his second year, he began brewing potions in private for sale.
At first, he could only use cheap ingredients in the student cabinet to brew some simple potions and earn meager profits, accumulating little by little. Until the second half of his third year, he received a big order worth eighty Galleons – to brew a long-lasting invisibility potion.
In order to ensure foolproof success, he used the Disillusionment Charm to sneak into the Restricted Section many times in the middle of the night to look for information, and indirectly asked Snape about the tricks of brewing this kind of potion.
Bryan could not afford to be careless as the person buying the potion did not provide the ingredients, and the most precious Demiguise hair in the invisibility potion was worth six Galleons per piece. Brewing this potion required as many as five hairs, which would almost consume all of Bryan's savings.
Unfortunately, things often do not go as one wishes. No matter how well-laid plans may be, Murphy's Law always prevails.
Due to lack of experience, Bryan got the dosage of Abyssinian shrivelfig juice wrong, and the potion brewing failed. Because of this, Bryan was depressed for several days at that time.
However, just a week later, before the Potions class, when Bryan went to get the ingredients for the class, he actually found ten Demiguise hairs tied together in his commonly used cabinet. This was a precious material that would not normally appear in a young wizard's cabinet at all!
Moreover, in the subsequent class explaining the Confusing Concoction, the nonchalant Professor Snape unexpectedly started talking about the invisibility potion out of nowhere!
This made Bryan realize that his private potion brewing and selling had probably been watched by the often-stern-faced Head of House all along. Similar situations occurred several more times later, but both sides maintained a high level of tacit understanding and neither poked through it.
Because of this, Bryan gradually began to trust Severus Snape. Before that, he had always been wary of Snape, because he had learned from chatting with his housemates that Snape seemed to have been a follower of that 'great Dark Lord before'(as they said). When the Dark Lord fell, he had escaped the judgment of the Wizengamot because he had gained the protection of Headmaster Dumbledore.
However, the close relationship with the Head of House did not change Bryan's low-key approach. He still remained silent in school, trying not to cause conflicts with others, or perform too outstandingly to arouse others' jealousy. This situation continued until his fifth year, when it was broken by an accident.
It happened at the end of November '86. That winter was particularly cold, and 84-year-old Grandma Ferena finally did not make it to the arrival of the New Year's Christmas.
For Grandma Ferena who had taken good care of him throughout his life and devoted her life to charity, she had always been the person Bryan respected the most. Her passing was a heavy blow to Bryan.
But because that year was the O.W.L.S year and the schoolwork was quite intense, there was not much time left for Bryan to grieve. So, after hurriedly attending the old lady's funeral, Bryan had to rush back to school to continue his studies.
Time went back to a late night in early December 1986. The dark night curtain covered the earth tightly like a huge canopy. The strong cold wind swept over the Black Lake that had already begun to freeze, and the colliding ice debris made crackling sounds like zombies chewing on bones.
After confirming that his roommates had all fallen asleep, Bryan sat up expressionlessly. He quietly got dressed and took out a mirror frame with a black and white photo from a hidden compartment next to the bed.
The common room was quiet. The ghastly green lamplight, rough stone walls, and many empty carved soft chairs made this narrow, low room look more like a tomb.
Unlike Gryffindor students, Slytherin students were not keen on midnight adventures in the castle. So, as he passed through the maze-like, dizzying passages, Bryan did not encounter a single student. However, even if he did, there was nothing to worry about.
Bryan was very confident in his Disillusionment Charm. He could completely conceal his figure while moving, and even Filch's malnourished cat walking by would not notice anything unusual.
"Hey, little guy, I think you must be lost!" When passing through the Entrance Hall, a voice from above the marble staircase caught Bryan's attention. He took a few steps closer and looked up, only to find that it was the Gryffindor prefect, Bill Weasley of the Weasley family, talking to a young Hufflepuff wizard.
"Hurry back to bed, little guy, or I'll send you to see Professor Sprout."
"O-okay, Prefect Weasley, I'll go back to the dormitory now!" Hearing that he would not be deducted points or sent to the professor for detention, the young wizard caught by Bill was grateful. He hastily bowed to Bill to apologize, and then scurried away.
Having dealt with this unruly young wizard, Bill touched his long hair hanging behind his head, and hummed a tune as he walked up the marble stairs to continue his prefect duties.
Bryan stood at the bottom of the stairs, watching Bill's back disappear from sight. The eldest son of the Weasley family, trusted by Dumbledore, and the and the focus of everyone's attention, Bill Weasley, was well-received by teachers and students at the school not only because of his outstanding grades, but also because he indeed had extraordinary personal charisma.
However, among the senior Slytherin students, Bill Weasley had a very bad reputation. They believed that Bill Weasley, who hung out with a group of Muggle-born wizards all day, had betrayed the glory of the ancient Pure-Blood family.
In private, they had planned many times to teach Bill a lesson. But every time, no matter how many people they mobilized, they were badly beaten by Bill Weasley and his burly Chaser brother.
Therefore, this also led to Bill Weasley almost becoming the public enemy of Slytherin students in their fifth year and above. Especially when there were rumors that Headmaster Dumbledore seemed to intend to give him the position of Head Boy when Bill reached his seventh year, this targeting became even more obvious.
Bryan laughed silently, turned and headed towards the Forbidden Forest through the Entrance Hall. All these troubles had nothing to do with him. After all, no one would be foolish enough to expect a transparent figure from Slytherin with little presence to defeat the proud son of Gryffindor.
章 12: 012 Enraged (Re-Written)
At the edge of the Forbidden Forest, Bryan paused and gazed towards Hagrid's hut. The simple wooden cabin showed no lights, and he couldn't sense any magical aura - it seemed Hagrid was not inside.
As everyone knew, the Hogwarts gamekeeper was one of Albus Dumbledore's most trusted confidants. Many times, Dumbledore would entrust this seemingly rough but ultimately reliable big man with extremely important and private matters.
Bryan wasn't sure if Hagrid was out on an errand or patrolling in the Forbidden Forest. To ensure he wouldn't be disturbed, Bryan walked a good distance further south before striding into the woods.
The dense Forbidden Forest was pitch black and utterly silent. Apart from the crunch of dead leaves underfoot, even the bone-chilling winter gales fell mute, cowed by the forest's oppressive atmosphere.
Bryan pressed on deep into the woods. He left the snaky path, skirting a patch where trees had been felled, now just moss-covered stumps. Only when he turned and could no longer see even a glimmer of the castle's lights did he stop, stepping onto a massive, flat boulder.
"This is the place, Grandma Ferena," Bryan said to the old woman forever frozen in a kind smile in the photo. He set the picture on the ground, propping it up with a broken branch.
"According to the customs of the world I lived in before, on the seventh day after a person's death, at midnight, their soul will have a chance to return to this world to visit their living family."
Bryan shook his sleeve and a wand slid into his palm - twelve inches long, ebony, with a dragon heartstring core, well-maintained.
He pointed the wand at the ground. A fist-sized pebble at his feet immediately floated up and, in a flurry of rapid blurring, spun and transformed into an orange-yellow bronze basin.
"At this time, the living family members will commemorate their departed loved one in a certain way-"
Bryan sat down cross-legged, not feeling the slight discomfort of the slippery and cold bluestone on his buttocks.
From his breast pocket he took out a cloth bag. This was a bag Bryan had bought for two Galleons from Dervish and Banges in Hogsmeade. Its space had been expanded with an Undetectable Extension Charm. As it wasn't expensive, its initial capacity was quite limited.
However, after secondary modifications, it could now fit a small car, and even had the ability to sort and store items in batches.
"I wonder if you would like this method?"
A large stack of incense, food, water, flowers, and candles spilled out from the bag, scattered on the ground.
"Whoosh!" Spontaneously igniting golden flames rapidly devoured the incense and the flowers in the bronze basin. The searing heat quickly charred the edges of the gleaming basin black and dried the moisture from the damp air.
The light and shadow of the flames danced across the glass frame, reflecting a rather pale face.
"I'm so sorry I couldn't be by your side in your final days. It will probably be the biggest regret of my life." Bryan said to the old woman smiling in the flames, his chapped lips trembling as he continued to put flowers into the basin.
The surging flames made the shadows flicker, causing the old woman in the photo to appear to come to life like a magical painting, gently comforting the grief-stricken boy.
"If not for you, I probably would have died at that woman's hands sixteen years ago, never having the chance to know this wondrous world."
Piercing northern winds rushed into this fire-lit space but turned gentle. They tenderly ruffled Bryan's hair like an invisible hand patting his head.
Bryan stared at the photo and softly recounted secrets buried deep in his heart. Those absurd things he couldn't voice even to the closest friend - only to his departed grandmother could Bryan speak without reservation.
The gentle moon gradually tilted towards the horizon. In the dead of night, fog surged from the depths of the Forbidden Forest, shrouding everything in a hazy dreamlike state. Dense leaves hung heavy with tiny shards of frost, drooping dejectedly on the branches.
"What do you think he's doing, Henry?"
Lost in thought, Bryan had let his usually keen guard down. He failed to notice that fifty feet behind him, two figures carrying broomsticks and wearing the scarlet robes of the Gryffindor Quidditch team had been quietly observing him for some time.
"Hard to say, Grace, but it looks like... he's conducting some wicked ritual. Using dark magic to summon the ghost of that old woman in the picture. You know those slimy Slytherins love to study that stuff."
Henry, a fourth-year Gryffindor Beater with a round face and beady eyes, lowered his voice as he spoke to the girl beside him, who was both his teammate and girlfriend.
"That's Bryan Watson. An eccentric bookworm."
"An eccentric bookworm?" Grace, a pretty girl with long flaxen hair, raised her eyebrows.
"Yep." Henry puffed out his cheeks and snickered. "I heard Haytham from Ravenclaw say that every Saturday morning in the library he sees Watson sitting in the corner of the reading area with a huge pile of books in front of him. He would not talk to anyone and seemed obsessed with studying but his grades are way worse than Charlie's brother. Probably because he's not too bright."
Grace snuggled up to Henry, leaning on her Cleansweep Seven as she giggled. "Maybe we should head back to the castle and fetch a professor, darling. We can't just watch him curse a deceased old lady with evil dark magic, can we?"
"That's not a good idea, Grace." Mischief glinted in Henry's beady eyes as he swiftly vetoed his girlfriend's suggestion. "Charlie and the others are still in the forest playing hide-and-seek with that giant spider. If we bring the professors, they'll all get exposed too."
"Charlie said his brother Bill is on prefect duty tonight. We could go notify him," Grace proposed, batting her lashes. "I'm sure Bill wouldn't sell out his own brother."
"Not bad, Grace." Henry glanced at Bryan's back on the boulder, and a wicked grin appeared across his face. "But I've got an even more interesting way to punish this evil wizard. Come on, Grace, take out your wand. Let's teach him a lesson!"
With only a few incense and candles left on the ground. Bryan scooped up the remnants with both hands, tossing them into the glowing bronze bowl as he softly bid his final farewell.
"I hope your good deeds in this life become blessings in the next, Grandma Ferena. The place I lived in my previous life was also wonderful. If you have the chance to choose, you could be born there..."
"Hey! Dark wizard of Slytherin, prepare to be judged!"
The sudden shout startled Bryan out of his daze. Before he could react, two jinxes whooshed fiercely from behind him.
"Petrificus Totalus!"
"Confringo!"
In that flash of time, the now alerted Bryan had no chance to consider who was ambushing him. He instinctively reached for his wand to retaliate only to realize in dismay that he had inadvertently pinned it under his leg. He had been sitting cross-legged in front of the fire for over an hour and his head spun, legs totally numb - he couldn't react in time.
'Damn it, I got too careless!' Bryan rebuked himself. Propping himself up with his left hand, he let his body fall to the side, snatching up his wand as he rolled off the boulder - dodging the curses by a hair's breadth.
But Grandma Ferena's photograph and Bryan's conjured fire basin were not so lucky!
Henry's Full Body-Bind Curse missed Bryan but hit the basin. Instantly, whooshing flames leapt skyward, illuminating the gloomy Forbidden Forest as if dawn had broken!
And Grace's Blasting Curse struck Grandma Ferena's portrait dead on. After a crisp shattering sound, the picture splintered into pieces and was swiftly devoured by the golden flames, reduced to ashes in a blink...
As Bryan struggled to his feet, a scorched, crumbling scrap of the photo fluttered past his eyes and drifted weakly to earth.
His gaze trailed after the photo fragment, and countless emotions flashed through his light brown eyes - blankness, shock, fury. As the last of the picture turned to ash, Bryan finally lifted his head and looked towards the source of the curses, and his face was full of rage. Slowly but resolutely, he raised his wand in the direction of the attackers...
Author's Note: Thanks for reading the chapter, I will add some extra facts and description of gadgets and spells of wizarding world mentioned in this chapter below.
Extra Fact 1 :
The specifications of a twelve-inch long, ebony wand with a core of dragon's heart nerves in the context of the Harry Potter universe represent the unique characteristics and properties of a particular wand.
Length: The length of a wand is believed to be an indicator of the personality and magical abilities of the witch or wizard who wields it. A longer wand, such as a twelve-inch wand, often suggests that the wielder possesses a strong and focused magical presence.
Wood: Ebony is a rare and highly valued wood known for its dark and dense nature. In wandlore, the choice of wood can symbolize various traits and qualities. Ebony is associated with protection, power, and elegance. It is often used to create wands for witches and wizards with a strong sense of purpose and determination.
Core: The core of a wand is its magical center, providing a source of power and imbuing the wand with specific characteristics. Dragon's heart nerves are considered to be a powerful and rare core material, representing strength, courage, and ambition. Wands with dragon core are often associated with a more forceful and adventurous style of magic.
Overall, a twelve-inch ebony wand with a core of dragon's heart nerves suggests a wand that is wielded by a determined, powerful, and ambitious witch or wizard. It signifies a combination of strong magical presence, protective qualities, and a propensity for more forceful and daring magic.
Fact 2:
In European folklore and cultural beliefs, there is a concept known as the "Seventh Night" or "Seventh-Day Visit." While not universally practiced across all European cultures, there are some regions where similar beliefs and customs exist.
In certain European traditions, it is believed that the soul of the deceased may return to the earthly realm on the seventh night after death. This is often seen as an opportunity for the departed soul to visit their family, seek closure, or provide comfort. Family members may prepare for this visit by leaving a door or window open, setting a place at the table, or lighting a candle to guide the spirit back home.
In some countries, such as Ireland and parts of Scotland, this belief is associated with the concept of "wake nights." During the wake, which typically lasts several days, family and friends gather to mourn and remember the deceased. It is believed that on the seventh night, the soul may return to bid their final farewell and ensure the family's well-being before departing to the afterlife.
Fact 3:
In the Harry Potter series, one of the magical supply shops in the village of Hogsmeade is called "Dervish and Banges." Dervish and Banges is a store that sells various magical items and supplies, catering to the needs of Hogwarts students and wizards in general. The shop offers a wide range of products, including spell books, potion ingredients, cauldrons, broomsticks, and other magical gadgets. It is a popular destination for Hogwarts students during their visits to Hogsmeade, providing them with essential supplies for their magical studies and adventures.
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FicFrenzy
FicFrenzy
I was confused between reducto and arresto momentum but i thought that reducto is a harmful spell so at that situation that girl may use arresto momentum to slow down MC so that her boyriend's curse can hit him.
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