Chapter 17: The Library
"Sean! Sean!"
A familiar voice made Sean pause. He was in the corridor just outside the greenhouses, and the last rays of the evening sun were streaming through the Gothic stained-glass windows, making the wizard standing there look even more handsome.
"Bruce," Sean said with a nod of greeting, preparing to continue on his way.
"You're heading to see Professor Sprout, right?" Bruce asked. "I'd advise against it. She's gone to Greenhouse Three, and first-years are forbidden from entering." After delivering the warning, he stood, holding a book, and waited for Sean's reply.
"…Thank you for the warning." Sean stopped, a flicker of uncertainty in his eyes. If Professor Sprout wasn't there, with his limited Herbology knowledge, he would struggle to even identify the right plants, let alone process them.
"You really are obsessed with magical plants, aren't you?" Bruce said, watching the light fade from Sean's hopeful expression. He looked as if he had just committed some terrible crime. With a sigh, he closed his book. "Normally, Professor Sprout only stays in Greenhouse Three for a little while. You should be able to find her in Greenhouse One after your classes tomorrow."
At his words, Sean's eyes immediately lit up again. He gave a solemn nod. "Thank you."
"Don't mention it. Oh, and here, this is for you."
A dark shape flew through the air, and Sean found himself holding a small, wrapped block of cheese.
"Dragon Milk Cheese," Bruce explained with a grin, crossing his arms. "Even though Enchanting Your Cheese has a revised recipe, I still think the original is better. A lot of people do." He winked. "It's a Hufflepuff tradition—sharing snacks. You might be a Ravenclaw, but who cares about that?"
While Sean was examining the cheese, Bruce turned and strode briskly away. Sean could hear the faint sound of conversation from the end of the corridor.
"I think the new version is better."
"Agreed."
"Pister! Leon! You two heretics! Don't make me lose my temper right after I was trying to look cool!"
"He thinks he looks cool…"
"Leon, this time, I think he might have…"
"Alright, Pister, you're right. I'll admit, that was pretty cool. Very Hufflepuff of you, Bruce. Well played."
New version, original version? Sean wondered. It was probably just like the endless debates from his past life. He glanced at the evening sky and decided to finally do something he'd been planning since he arrived: visit the Hogwarts library.
Thousands upon thousands of books, all of them free! The very thought made Sean, who had spent a small fortune on his required textbooks, practically drool with anticipation. Better yet, it was the perfect place to do his homework. A good academic record, he reasoned, would surely be one of the criteria for Dumbledore's scholarship evaluation.
The library was located on the second floor of the castle. Inside, thousands of shelves stretched out in every direction like a dense, ancient forest, disappearing into the distant gloom. Heavy oak tables were scattered throughout, where students sat hunched over their work, their faces illuminated by the soft glow of floating crystal balls. The only sound was the quiet scratching of quills on parchment.
Sean peered into the distance but couldn't see the fabled Restricted Section. It was a legendary place. Voldemort had found Secrets of the Darkest Art there and turned himself into a noseless psychopath. The Golden Trio had found Moste Potente Potions there and brewed Polyjuice Potion. It was a veritable treasure trove.
A third, lesser-known area was the Invisible Section, which housed most of the school's books on the subject of Invisibility. He had no idea how one was supposed to find those.
As he was contemplating this, a figure at a nearby table began waving frantically at him.
Sean! Over here! Justin mouthed silently.
Sean made his way over to where Justin and Hermione were sitting.
"Where have you been?" Hermione asked, her face tilted up. "You disappear every time after a meal." Her tone was sharp, turning what was clearly concern into something that sounded like an accusation.
"The greenhouses," Sean replied, unbothered.
"Oh. Well, in that case, do you know how to distinguish mature Dittany?" Hermione asked, seeming to realize how harsh she had sounded. Flustered, she blurted out the first question that came to mind.
"Dittany has a faint, gamey smell," Sean recited, repeating Bruce's words. "When it's mature, the smell becomes much stronger." It felt strange, like he was passing on a secret tradition.
"You know!" Hermione gasped, clapping a hand over her mouth. She had only asked on a whim; she hadn't actually expected him to have the answer. "Is that what you learned at the greenhouses?"
Sean nodded. More or less.
"I knew it!" Justin said, looking even prouder than Sean himself. Hermione blushed slightly.
"But I've memorized the entire first-year textbook," she whispered, the tips of her ears turning pink. "And there's absolutely no mention of that."
"I know," Sean agreed. "I've memorized it too. It's not in there."
"You've memorized it too?!" Hermione gasped again. She peeked out cautiously from behind a thick, brown tome, her eyes scanning the room. Seeing that Madam Pince was busy scolding another student and hadn't noticed them, she breathed a sigh of relief. "So you're…?!" Her eyes shone with the light of someone who has just discovered a kindred spirit.
"A Hufflepuff prefect told me when I was helping Professor Sprout," Sean explained. He then took out his History of Magic textbook and a fresh roll of parchment, deciding to get a start on his essay.
Hermione and Justin just stared at each other, their expressions a mixture of confusion and awe.
The assignment wouldn't have been so bad if Professor Binns hadn't mixed up his units. But the absent-minded ghost had assigned them a foot-long essay, not an inch-long one. It was a significant difference.
The students rushing out of class hadn't realized the severity of the mistake at the time, but now, as Sean glanced over at the second row of tables, he could see Michael and the others wearing masks of pure agony.
"A foot long?! I could set my margins to the widest possible setting and write in giant letters and I still wouldn't be able to fill it!" a voice suddenly roared.
Everyone in the library turned to look at Michael with pity. He clapped a hand over his mouth, but it was too late. Madam Pince was already striding towards him, her shoes making sharp, angry clacking sounds on the stone floor.
Sean discreetly propped his book up to hide his face and offered a silent prayer for his roommate. Then he got up to gather his own reference materials.
The essay might be long, but for Sean, it was an opportunity.
'A History of Modern Magic,' three Galleons. 'Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century,' four Galleons. 'Who's Who in Modern Witchcraft,' five Galleons…
He deliberately chose the most expensive books from the shelves. Expensive didn't always mean good, but it always meant expensive.
Once, these books had been far beyond his reach.
Now, they were his for the reading.