As mentioned before, any wizard chosen as a Prefect at Hogwarts might not necessarily be the single most outstanding student, but they were undoubtedly among the elite at the very top of the school.
At this moment, several familiar faces could be seen gathered in the compartment...
Whether it was Cedric Diggory, hailed as Hufflepuff's hope, or Cho Chang, elegant and poised though already spoken for, they were both indisputably among the most exceptional wizards in their respective houses. In the eyes of others, their appointment as Prefects was a foregone conclusion.
As for Draco and Hermione, who had long occupied first and second place in their year, there was even less to be said. They were practically the embodiment of Hogwarts itself, especially Draco Malfoy, who had truly distinguished himself during the Triwizard Tournament....
At the very least, someone like Pansy would be expected. She was a witch who clearly outperformed others in certain areas, and her grades were firmly among the top as well, far from lacking.
Perhaps compatibility in working together was also taken into account, which was why Pansy, who was very familiar with Draco, had been chosen as his partner.
As for Ron Weasley?
From an academic standpoint, he was not so bad as to be at the very bottom, but he was certainly stuck in the lower-middle range. And in the professors' impressions, Ron Weasley was hardly a well-behaved student.
Just counting the number of times he had landed in the infirmary after fights was already a tall order.
As for compatibility, the fact that Hermione refrained from firing off a few spells at Ron Weasley could already be considered remarkable restraint on her part.
It could even be said that if Ron Weasley were not Harry Potter's friend, there would be nothing about him that stood out in the eyes of others at all....
So when Ron Weasley appeared here, it was no wonder that everyone present felt a sense of disbelief.
This Weasley had never been part of their expectations.
In fact, they had originally thought that Harry Potter would be the one appointed as Prefect...
To be blunt, Ron Weasley's presence was like a husky wandering into a pack of wolves.
What made it worse was that this husky seemed to genuinely believe himself to be the wolf king, destined to lead the hunt.
His calm, unruffled expression made it seem as though his appearance here was only natural.
Unlike the others, Draco, who had already sensed something off about Ron Weasley during the conflict at last year's ball, frowned slightly as he fell into thought.
Dumbledore... had he done this deliberately?
...
Although everyone's gazes were filled with doubt, the authority to decide who qualified as a Prefect lay with Dumbledore, not with anyone else.
So after the initial shock and suspicion, once they realized the outcome could not be changed, everyone shifted their eyes away from Ron Weasley.
Everyone except Hermione.
The disgust on her face was completely undisguised. She had no intention of giving any courtesy to a fellow housemate and future colleague. The moment she saw him enter, she instinctively leaned a little closer to Draco.
After all, she had not forgotten what had happened at the ball....
Ron Weasley, who must have noticed this, behaved uncharacteristically. Instead of flying into a rage, he hid his gaze beneath the fringe that had grown long enough over the short holiday to cover his eyes.
If not for his unmistakably fiery red hair, even Harry Potter might not have recognized that this was Ron Weasley.
But even with his changed appearance, Hermione's attitude toward Ron Weasley remained exactly the same...
"Why him? Has Dumbledore gone senile... tch!"
Although spending time with Draco had taught Hermione to rely more on her own judgment rather than blindly believing what others said, openly cursing an elder was still something she could not bring herself to do. Her respect for teachers ran too deep.
Even so, it was obvious that Ron Weasley becoming a Prefect left Hermione extremely dissatisfied, and it even affected her view of Dumbledore.....
"I suppose it's because he's Potter's only friend. Other than that, I can't think of any reason."
"Maybe it's because he's good at wizard chess?"
Draco and Pansy's amused, almost mocking remarks made Hermione, already in a foul mood, roll her eyes. At a time like this, they still had the nerve to joke.
And because of this, Dumbledore's standing in Hermione's eyes dropped yet again....
…
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Penelope's applause drew everyone's attention over. It seemed that after her attempt with Draco had failed, she no longer intended to establish her authority as Head Girl through that kind of approach.
In the end, Penelope was quite confident that she could win over these gifted students through her own capabilities...
"First of all, welcome, everyone. Whether you've just been appointed as Prefects this year, or are continuing in the role, as Head Girl, I would like to congratulate you all for standing out from hundreds of students to become Prefects of your respective years."
Whether out of politeness or genuine agreement with Penelope's words, the waves of applause at least allowed the Head Girl to maintain her dignity.
Good looks paired with eloquence were undeniably an advantage.
Even the absent-minded Pansy reached over, grabbed Draco's hands, and clapped a few times with them.
Although Hermione felt that Pansy was doing this purely to provoke her, rather than out of any desire to blend in with the group....
...
Penelope, who had caught sight of Draco out of the corner of her eye, twitched the corner of her mouth. Then, as if recalling something, she shifted her posture.
"Ahem! The main reason for calling everyone here today is simply to let you get to know one another. No need to be nervous. Just relax. Like... well, our Malfoy junior here is doing a very good job."
"...."
"...."
Suddenly becoming the center of attention, Draco remained completely unfazed. He merely raised an eyebrow, while also noticing Penelope give him a quick wink.
Those large, lake-blue eyes really did suit her Ravenclaw identity.
From the faint smile in her eyes, Draco could tell that this was probably a small act of mischief prompted by what had happened earlier.
At the same time, he could also feel the wary gazes coming from all around.
It seemed that this senior, Penelope, was quite popular...