Bab 32: Legilimency

Harry sat in place for a while, waiting for his emotions to fully settle before he began searching for clues.

He picked up his wand and gently waved it.

“Revelio!” (Show yourself!)

However, he found nothing. The Order of the Phoenix’s meeting room bore no traces of his old friends.

After searching fruitlessly in the Room of Requirement, Harry eventually decided to give up.

He sneaked back to the Gryffindor dormitory and lay down on his bed.

On the bed opposite, Ron was still sound asleep, smacking his lips as though dreaming of something delicious.

The next day, Harry slept until noon.

He wasn’t the only one; several of his dorm mates did the same.

“Good morning,” Ron greeted Harry with a smile.

“It’s already noon,” Harry replied, drawing the curtains and glancing out the window.

On normal days, young wizards received their packages during breakfast.

But since it was the weekend, they all slept in, and the owls delivered their packages at noon.

An owl swooped in through the doorway and precisely dropped a package into Neville’s lap.

“Ouch!” Neville yelped. “Carol, you always do this!”

He complained as he opened the package, pulling out a glass orb about the size of half a fist. Inside, it seemed filled with white smoke.

“Look, it’s a Remembrall,” Seamus said with a grin.

“Yes, a Remembrall,” Neville said with a bitter expression. “Gran knows I’m forgetful—it’s supposed to tell you if you’ve forgotten something. Look, you hold it tightly like this, and if it turns red—oh no!”

Neville’s face fell immediately as the Remembrall began glowing bright red. “It means you’ve forgotten something!”

He racked his brain trying to remember what he had forgotten when Draco passed by the Gryffindor table and suddenly snatched the Remembrall from Neville’s hand.

“Malfoy!” Harry, already in a bad mood, stood up. “Give Neville his Remembrall back.”

“Why should I?” Draco said, tossing the Remembrall in his hand. “This little lump is so dumb that even a Remembrall can’t help him remember to wear his school robes properly.”

Draco sneered, then slammed the Remembrall onto the table.

“Next time, try using your fat behind to think, Longbottom,” he said darkly. “People like you existing are just…”

He suddenly fell silent because Professor McGonagall, with her sharp cat-like senses, had appeared beside them.

“What’s going on?” Professor McGonagall asked sternly.

“Malfoy took my Remembrall, Professor,” Neville replied. “Harry and Ron were telling him to give it back.”

Draco smirked defiantly at Harry and Ron before leaving the Gryffindor table.

Harry’s already foul mood worsened.

He had the sudden urge to cast Legilimens on Draco’s pale, scrawny face—not just to teach him a lesson but also to see if he had any memories related to Cassandra.

“Well done, Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley,” Professor McGonagall said, a faint smile appearing on her otherwise stern face.

“Thank you, Professor,” Harry and Ron said politely in unison.

On Tuesday, after the dull History of Magic class, it was time for Flying lessons.

After enduring Professor Binns’ sleep-inducing lectures, the lively Flying class always lifted everyone’s spirits.

Even the drowsiness caused by Binns’ droning voice instantly vanished.

Flying lessons were a combined class for Gryffindor and Slytherin.

Due to Professor Binns forgetting to end the class on time, the Gryffindor students almost arrived late.

The Slytherin students had been waiting and looked visibly annoyed. Twenty broomsticks were neatly lined up on the ground.

“These brooms are ancient,” Ron said to Harry. “I heard they’ve been here since Bill’s time at Hogwarts and haven’t been replaced. Fred always complains that they shudder when flying too high, and some of them have steering issues.”

“They should definitely get new ones,” Harry replied absentmindedly.

Unlike Ron’s enthusiasm, Neville and Hermione were incredibly nervous.

Hermione kept muttering passages from Quidditch Through the Ages, trying to use advanced theoretical knowledge to dispel her fear of flying. Neville, seeing her as a reassuring presence, stuck closely to her side, listening intently to her rapid recitation of basic principles.

Before long, Madam Hooch arrived. She had short gray hair and piercing yellow eyes like those of a hawk.

“All right, what are you waiting for?” she called out loudly. “Everyone stand by a broomstick. Quickly, quickly, we haven’t got all day!”

Harry had no idea why she was in such a rush.

“Stick out your right hand over the broom,” Madam Hooch instructed, “and say, Up!”

“Up!” everyone shouted.

Harry’s broom immediately leapt into his hand. Hermione turned to look at him in surprise, but her broom remained stubbornly on the ground despite her hoarse shouts.

“All right, when I blow my whistle, kick off hard from the ground. Hold the broom steady, rise a few feet, lean forward slightly, and land vertically back on the ground. Wait for my whistle—three—two—”

Before Madam Hooch could finish, Neville suddenly shot into the air like a rocket.

“Whoa!” Draco exclaimed loudly, shielding his eyes as Neville soared sky-high before crashing back down with a loud thud.

It all happened in an instant. Harry didn’t even have time to draw his wand. He merely extended his hand toward Neville, casting a softening charm to reduce the impact.

But he was too young and too far from Neville to fully prevent the fall. He could only slightly ease the blow.

“Broken wrist,” Madam Hooch announced as she helped Neville up. “I’ll take him to the hospital wing. The rest of you are to stay here! Anyone caught flying will be expelled from Hogwarts before they can even say ‘Quidditch.’”

After Madam Hooch left, Draco picked up Neville’s fallen Remembrall.

“Isn’t this Longbottom’s Remembrall?” Draco said mockingly. “Maybe if he squeezed it, he’d remember to land on his fat bottom instead of his wrist.”

“Give it back, Malfoy!” Harry stepped forward.

“No, I’m going to hide it so that lump has to find it himself,” Draco said smugly, mounting his broom and hovering in the air. “How about the roof?”

He hovered mid-air and taunted, “What’s wrong, Potter? Can’t reach me?”

Harry didn’t hesitate. He swung his leg over his broomstick.

“Harry! No! Remember what Madam Hooch said—you’ll get expelled!” Hermione yelled, trying to stop him. “Besides, you don’t even know how to fly yet—”

But Harry had already taken off, flying with incredible skill.

Hermione gaped. She hadn’t expected Harry’s ‘first time’ on a broom to look so effortless.

“That’s so cool,” Seamus said in awe.

“Give it back, Malfoy,” Harry said, his tone icy. “Or I’ll make you regret it.”

As he spoke, he locked eyes with Draco, debating whether to cast Legilimens to pry into Draco’s thoughts.

“What’s the matter, Potter?” Draco tossed the Remembrall up and down. “Are you standing up for Longbottom?”

Harry’s anger boiled over. The frustration of not finding his old friends and Draco’s infuriating smirk combined into a fiery rage.

He pulled out his wand and pointed it at Draco.