The first lesson of the new semester's Defense Against the Dark Arts class, Lockhart seemed to have learned a lesson from yesterday's failure and didn't bring in any creatures he couldn't handle.
He had everyone spend half an hour writing their papers, and the rest of the time was spent on commentary, occasionally asking students to open his books and read the exciting passages.
Namely—the parts that could show off his strength, bravery, and indomitable spirit.
Thus, the class easily passed without much effort.
Even so, when class was dismissed, there were still some students clustered around Lockhart, asking for his autograph.
"If the next class is like this, I might find a way to call in sick."
Michael complained to Vid, and then asked, "By the way, I thought you wouldn't seriously answer the test paper!"
"I have some books I want to borrow from the restricted section," Vid said.
"What's so difficult about that? I've never seen someone more vain than this guy."
Michael said as he pulled out a few sheets of parchment, using the Gemino Curse to copy Lockhart's picture on the book cover, then called out to Padma.
"Padma, Vid wants a few of Lockhart's autographs, can you help get them?" Michael asked.
Padma tossed her braid over her shoulder, confidently saying, "Leave it to me!"
Today she also wore a phoenix-shaped badge on her collar, her skin flawless and radiant.
Padma joined the other girls and soon returned with a few "autographed photos."
"Whenever you need them, just ask me." She handed the parchments to Vid with flair, saying, "All I need to do is smile foolishly; he won't look closely and will sign a hundred of them!"
Michael gave a thumbs up, "Thanks to you, it might not have been so easy for us."
Vid pointed his magic wand, and all the copied photos disappeared, leaving only Lockhart's flamboyant signature.
He couldn't help but smile.
He felt good, but it wasn't because he had gotten blank autograph notes.
As they left, Michael bumped his shoulder against Vid and quietly asked, "Easier than you thought, right?"
"Vid, don't always feel you have to solve everything yourself; you can rely on us too."
"Sometimes things that are difficult for one person can be simple for another, right?"
...
Vid woke from a colorful dream, pushed open the window, and fresh, moist air rushed in, taking away the stale air inside.
It seemed to have rained last night; the windowsill was all wet.
He remembered the faces in the dream, ones he couldn't see clearly...
He remembered his father in a past life, who guaranteed for a "close buddy" and nearly went bankrupt.
He recalled a "friend" at university who stole his research results and published them first, only to later delete his computer files, accuse him of plagiarism, and instigate a mob of online trolls against him.
Some things, Vid thought he had long forgotten, were actually etched in his heart.
But Michael and Theo's words also echoed in his heart.
Friendship...
It's always easy for children to give trust, but the older you get, the harder it becomes.
But doubting everything and trusting everything are equally wrong... Without trust, loyalty and friendship will eventually drift away.
He took a deep breath, exhaling the impurities pent up inside for a long time.
...
After the afternoon class, Vid and Michael came near the hunchbacked one-eyed witch on the fourth floor. They leaned against the window, waiting for the students in the corridor to leave. Vid said, "I'm leaving."
Michael nodded, "If anyone asks for you, I'll handle it."
He pretended to admire the view, watching for anyone coming by, while Vid tapped the stone witch with his magic wand and whispered, "Split left and right."
The statue's hunchback opened immediately, revealing a narrow passageway.
Vid waved to Michael and quickly walked inside.
Michael watched the secret passage close, hands in pockets, slowly went downstairs, coincidentally passing by Filch.
The custodian stared at him gloomily, and Michael nodded at him, catching sight of a few Slytherin students out of the corner of his eye. His eyes brightened, and he immediately headed over there.
...
Vid first slid down a sloping stone chute for a long way, then walked forward along the damp and cold tunnel. The ground was rough and uneven, seemingly not man-made.
Around him was pitch-black and quiet, with only the bright light from his magic wand's tip.
The passage was very long, and Vid had walked for more than an hour before seeing a long staircase. The stairs stretched far upwards, looking like hundreds of steps.
Thankfully, he only needed to climb it once.
Vid muttered to himself, resignedly climbing the stairs upwards. He didn't know how long it took before he saw a trap door appear above.
Vid pushed open the trap door, and a hand reached down from above, grabbed Vid's arm, and pulled him out.
Lupin cast a Scouring Charm to remove the dirt from his body, smiling and asked, "Not an easy journey, was it?"
Vid steadied his breath, finally saying, "Much longer than I thought."
He felt like his legs weren't even his own.
Fortunately, he's young now... Or maybe it's the wizard's constitution, Vid rested for a while and felt much better.
"The passage is indeed long and hard to walk," Lupin said, "actually, there's another passage under the Whomping Willow that leads to the Screaming Shack. Just press the knot on the tree, and it will stop attacking."
"When the Disappearing Cabinet is fixed, I won't need the passage," Vid said.
"Why must you repair the Disappearing Cabinet?" Lupin said, "You know, compared to the passage, the Disappearing Cabinet can be dangerous."
"But the passage only lets me reach areas around Hogwarts. If I want to go farther, there's not enough time," Vid explained, "and even during class, I don't want to spend too much time on the road."
Lupin didn't ask where he wanted to go; he's a person with good sense.
"Watch out," Lupin said, "I'll give you Disillusionment."
He tapped Vid on the head with his magic wand. Vid closed his eyes, feeling a cold sensation flow from the top of his head into his body.
Vid looked at his hand, no matter how he moved, his body's color would blend to match the surroundings perfectly.
It was as if he had become invisible.
Only someone with extremely keen eyesight could notice the subtle overlap.
"Let's go," Vid said, "after the Disappearing Cabinet is fixed, before returning on Sunday, I hope I can learn this spell too."
"Not easy, it involves advanced applications of the Transfiguration Spell. But if it's you... maybe you can do it."
Lupin closed the trap door, walked behind Vid, speaking gently.
The two went up the stairs, reaching the back of the Honeydukes counter. Lupin waved his magic wand, and suddenly a bottle from the shelf fell over.
The shopkeeper, a bald middle-aged man, went over to grab the bottle, and Lupin and Vid took the opportunity to step out from inside.