Neville Longbottom was an unremarkable student.
The kind who wasn't a bad person, but always seemed to be lacking something. The sort of person you were bound to have at least one of during your school days.
A wizard on the verge of being a Squib, unable to cast a single spell properly.
An idiot who couldn't ride a broom, couldn't keep up with his studies, and had a longer list of things he couldn't do than things he could.
That was how Neville saw himself.
Though he was the sole legitimate heir to the noble house of Longbottom, Neville had never truly felt the weight of that fact.
To him, the Longbottom name was just a burdensome weight his grandmother forced upon him.
At least, that's how he had felt until he saw the news in the paper.
[Bellatrix Lestrange, Escaped.]
Bellatrix Lestrange.
Just hearing the name made his heart plummet. A chilling sensation washed over him, as if all the blood was draining from his body.
A face he'd never seen, but a name that was terribly familiar. It brought Neville a realization that felt like a certainty.
With trembling hands, Neville pulled an album from his bookshelf.
A photograph of his mother and father, smiling brightly. And nestled between them, his infant self.
The way they gazed lovingly at each other before repeatedly stroking the baby looked almost sacred in Neville's eyes.
Neville turned the page.
His parents, staring into the void with blank, unfocused eyes. Drool trickled from the corners of their mouths.
The only person with any life in the photo, Neville himself, was forcing a smile as if holding back tears.
His parents had become this way all because of Bellatrix Lestrange. It was the fault of that wicked witch. Unable to withstand the Cruciatus Curse, his parents had…
Neville realized something.
There was no more time to be an idiot. He didn't have that luxury.
Some say revenge is a futile act. But the soul of one who does not seek revenge is eaten away.
Revenge is the act of preventing that pain from becoming futile.
At least in this moment, Neville felt his soul burn with the thought of taking revenge on Bellatrix.
…But could he do it?
Could he, known as the biggest idiot among the many students of Hogwarts, possibly stand a chance of getting revenge on Bellatrix, whose cruelty was unparalleled?
Perhaps, in his ignorance, he would try to take revenge on Bellatrix only to end up being a nuisance to the other students.
No. He'd be lucky if it ended with just being a nuisance.
Perhaps he was destined for an ending where he was laid to rest beside his parents in St. Mungo's Hospital.
In the end, revenge was not something he could dare to dream of.
There was nothing he could do but shiver in his room every day as he read about Bellatrix's atrocities in the newspaper.
But wait, how had he started thinking about this again?
…Ah. That's right.
It was only when faced with that dark, formless shape that Neville remembered.
The Dementor in front of him.
…Right. It was sudden, but perhaps this was the proper end.
Rather than die trying to get revenge on Bellatrix and see her face filled with scorn, maybe it was better to just die here at the hands of a Dementor…
*Fwooooosh—*
Just as he gave up thinking and was about to let himself go, to let the suction pull him away…
*Flash!*
There was a flash of light.
Glittering, pure white, holy, shining, pristine. A light that seemed to embody all those words appeared before Neville's eyes.
*Kieeeek!*
Darkness always shrinks before a brilliant light.
Unable to withstand the glow, the Dementor vanished as if pushed out through the gap in the open window.
Only after the mesmerizing light subsided could Neville make out the face of the person who had created it.
Blue hair?… No, it was hair as black as obsidian, and golden eyes that shone even in the dark.
It was Aisen Potter.
Neville gazed at him, his eyes filled with awe.
***
How was it that this year, trouble was already breaking out before we even set foot in Hogwarts?
We had been chatting peacefully on the express train when I suddenly felt a chill, and then the train's lights went out.
It was a cold that went beyond mere chill, seeping into my very bones. There weren't many beings capable of generating such a cold.
And unfortunately, it seemed a horde of one such being had descended upon Hogwarts this year.
"What's going on?"
Hermione and Ron grew tense as the train behaved abnormally.
"Wait here. I'll go check on the situation."
That damn Albus. He'd boasted so confidently that Dementors would never enter Hogwarts territory. How dare he deceive me?
Cursing my hoobae who wasn't present, I moved toward the source of the cold.
Finally, I found the Dementor. It had stuck its head into one of the compartments and had a hold of a student.
I recognized the face. It was Neville, from our dormitory.
Seeing this, I immediately drew my wand.
*Expecto Patronum.*
Just in case the magic went out of control, I summoned the Patronus as a bright sphere of light, just before it could take an animal form. The guardian's light instantly expelled the Dementor from the train.
I clicked my tongue in annoyance.
Even if Dementors were my daily bread (literally), they weren't exactly pleasant friends to run into.
Especially these days, when my body was in a strange condition and I had to be careful with every spell I used.
After waving my wand to dismiss the Patronus and tucking it back into my robes, I felt a pair of eyes staring intently at me.
I turned my head to see Neville Longbottom, whom I had just saved, looking at me with an almost burdensome fervency.
We had been in the same house for two years, but we'd never really spoken. I was about to give a slight nod and turn away when Neville grabbed me.
"W-Wait! Aisen!"
"What is it?"
"What is it? What you just did… how did you…"
I shrugged and replied.
"How? You just saw it with your own eyes, didn't you?"
Of course, he wasn't asking about what he had just seen.
He was probably asking how I could be so strong.
Unfortunately, I'd received stares like that many, many times.
Stares of jealousy and envy. Stares of admiration and awe.
The two seemed different, yet they were similar. Both were directed at someone superior.
In that sense, Neville's blazing gaze was quite a burden to me.
I didn't have many good memories of getting involved with people who looked at me like that.
Since we weren't close enough for me to go through that trouble, I left Neville staring and headed back to my compartment.
But as I walked, I felt another gaze on me. What was with today?
Smiling wryly, I turned my head. This time, a familiar face I had recently encountered was looking at me.
The person staring at me with an indescribable expression was none other than Professor Lupin, whom I'd met in Knockturn Alley.
I asked with a polite expression.
"Hello, Professor. I didn't expect to run into you in the corridor. Is something the matter?"
Lupin seemed to frown for a moment before answering candidly.
"I felt a dark presence from the compartments, so I was on my way to check. In doing so, I happened to witness a very rare sight."
Ah. He must have seen me use magic while coming to deal with the Dementor. Thinking back, I was a bit careless… then again, it wasn't as if I did anything I wasn't supposed to.
There was nothing for me to feel guilty about even if I was seen.
I grinned and said, "You saw quite a rare sight. I feel like I should be charging an admission fee."
Lupin didn't laugh at my joke. He narrowed his eyes and asked, "What… are you, exactly?"
"Didn't Albus tell you?"
Albus? Albus.
Lupin muttered the name a few times, pondering what I meant, before asking in shock, "Are you talking about Professor Dumbledore?"
I waved a hand in farewell.
"Let's just say we'll greet each other properly once you hear the full story. That would be better, wouldn't it?"
I usually preferred not to reveal my identity to the professors, but it seemed better to make an exception for this man.
In the first place, since he was friends with Sirius, it would have been difficult to hide my identity anyway.
Leaving a dazed Lupin behind me, I was finally able to return to my compartment.
Hermione asked, "What happened?"
"It was nothing. Just something weird came in through the window."
A Dementor certainly fell into the category of 'something weird'.
As if sensing I was hiding something, Hermione's teasing gaze darted between me and Ardeura, poking at me, but I didn't yield.
The Hogwarts Express, as if it had never stopped, picked up speed once again.
***
The Great Hall at Hogwarts.
We joined Harry, who had already arrived, and the four of us caught up after having been apart for a while.
"Harry! Have you been well?"
"Hermione! It's been a while!"
"Ron, did you manage to tame that monster book?"
"Damn it, how are you supposed to tame that thing?"
After that, well, it was the same as always.
The first-years came out and were sorted into their houses, Albus gave a strange speech, and we sang that bizarre school song.
The only thing different from usual was Albus's serious demeanor.
"Everyone, I have heard that there was an unfortunate incident on your way to school. I am also aware that many students are displeased about this. As the Headmaster of Hogwarts, I am well aware of these issues, and I assure you that your safety will always be my top priority."
He was drawing it out, but it could be summarized in one simple sentence: 'Sorry for letting the Dementors loose.' How on earth did he handle things?
Receiving my reproachful glare, he must have felt a pang of guilt, as he kept tearing his eyes away from the Gryffindor table to look at the farthest table, Slytherin's.
The Slytherins, interpreting his gaze in their own way, started grumbling loud enough for me to hear. Hmm, good. The usual chaos. A normal day at Hogwarts.
Besides that, he introduced Lupin—without mentioning he was a werewolf—and the other newly appointed professors.
The most unusual thing was that Hagrid had been appointed as the Professor for the Care of Magical Creatures.
…Was that really an appropriate choice?
A slight worry crossed my mind that this was like handing a sharp knife to a murderer, but surely Hagrid, with a sound mind, wouldn't go berserk now that he had accepted a professorship.
No. If I played my cards right, I might be able to coax Hagrid into helping me bring back the magical creatures I wanted.
Deek had definitely said he released the magical creatures I was protecting and raising somewhere in the Highlands. Perhaps if their descendants were still around, I could bring them here.
Hagrid would undoubtedly be thrilled, so it didn't seem like a bad idea.
"…And with that, we conclude the start-of-term feast! The prefects of each house, please lead your students back to your dormitories!"
While I was lost in thought, the ceremony had apparently come to an end.
On the way back to the common room, I asked a grinning Harry, "So, how was the fishing trip?"
"Of course it was great. Ardeura won't have to worry about food for a year."
I nodded, satisfied.
Seeing my expression, Harry quietly asked, as if holding some expectation, "So… you forgive me, right?"
"Forgive you? Did you do something wrong?"
We enjoyed our reunion, laughing heartily.
And that night, Harry received the Nightmare Hat.
***