Seeing Neville start to concentrate on organizing his little package, Harry tactfully refrained from asking further. Bored, he looked around at everyone busy with something, and finally, his attention was drawn to a few books spread out on the table by Hermione—
The known mass of the moon is about m=7×1022kg, the distance between the moon and the earth is about r=4×108m, the time it takes for the moon to orbit the earth is about 27.3 days, and the gravitational constant is G=6.67×10−11Nm2/kg2. Keep one significant figure for the calculation result, find:
(1) The gravitational force between the moon and the earth;
(2) The mass of the earth.
"?"
Wait, is this still English? How come he could understand every word, but when put together, it was like a heavenly script?
What does it mean to calculate the weight of the earth?
Which earth?
This earth under our feet?
Looking at Hermione scribbling a bunch of "messy" characters on the draft paper, he couldn't help but ask, "So, what exactly is this?"
"...High school physics."
Hermione had a look of resigned acceptance, but no one reacted much because Hermione had been like this lately.
She even occasionally took time to watch Ron and the others play chess, which was impossible before because Hermione wasn't interested in such activities. But her explanation was straightforward, "Once you get into math and science, everything else should be enjoyable for you."
When she said this, the Weasley twins nodded in agreement beside her.
No choice, they also took up Muggle Studies, and recently... William successfully became the class representative for Muggle Studies and "presented" all the must-do questions that tortured him for two and a half years in his previous life to Grindelwald, muttering something about "sharing joy with others is better than enjoying it alone."
And Grindelwald was quick to promote these things across all grades, saying, "If you really want to study Muggles, you must learn what they learn."
"...I don't think that dimwit Dudley could ever learn this stuff."
Putting down Hermione's biology homework, Harry frowned and said firmly. Just looking at those fruit flies made his eyes blur. As he spoke, he couldn't help but shiver—thankfully, he chose Rune Language over Muggle Studies and Ancient Runes, though that was also obscure and difficult to understand; at least it was simpler than this heavenly script.
"It's simply torture."
Hermione surprisingly agreed with Harry's viewpoint. She nodded, criticizing the subject she was studying, took a deep breath, and closed her completed math homework—"Okay, I need to go back to sleep, I've overused my brain today..."
With that, she quickly ran back to the girls' dormitory.
As time passed, everyone in the common room returned to their dormitories, lying on four-poster beds with red and yellow bed curtains. Harry rested his hands behind his head, watching the cloudy sky outside the window—
"Hey, how are you doing?"
Ron, returning from a midnight bathroom trip, shivered and quickly got back under his blanket. He looked at the daydreaming Harry and instinctively asked.
"Nothing, don't worry, those Dementors don't affect me."
Harry shook his head, explaining familiarly. The reason was simple; ever since the Quidditch match against Slytherin two weeks ago, everyone kept checking on him—of course, not just him but all the players on the field then.
Because at that time, the Dementors weren't just standing there passively; they began to suck—
'That's called a Dementor's Kiss, a method used by the Ministry of Magic to execute death row prisoners—'
Afterward, in the lively Hospital Wing, Hermione stood at Harry's bedside with a serious tone, flipping through a popular science book—"The Stories I Have to Tell About Azkaban". At that time, the players were the closest to those Dementors, and many of Slytherin's little wizards almost fell in.
Thankfully, they were saved by that white Giant Dragon—
But Harry knew that was a Guardian God. And the one who could summon such a Guardian God... Harry thought he had guessed the truth, even though the person involved wouldn't admit it.
"But that's not what I'm talking about."
Ron muttered, not letting Harry continue to talk his way out of it. Everyone was affected by those Dementors, as they all knew—but as Ron said, what he meant by 'nothing' had nothing to do with the Dementors; rather, "You still can't go to Hogsmeade tomorrow, is that okay?"
"...Of course."
Harry sighed, shaking his head. Though he did want to go to Hogsmeade now, it didn't seem as appealing as before. Instead of going to Hogsmeade, he seemed more interested in practicing his Charms, just as the Professors said. Sirius was eyeing him eagerly outside the castle; he must improve his skills!
Now, unless he was forced at knifepoint to jump off Gryffindor Tower, Harry Potter would not set foot outside the castle!
"Don't worry, we'll bring you back some candy—"
"Forget it, I haven't finished last week's batch."
"...Good night."
"Goodnight."
...
...
"Goodbye, Harry."
"Alright."
The next morning, Harry said goodbye to Ron and Hermione, wrapped in cloaks and scarves, and alone climbed the marble staircase back to Gryffindor Tower. Snowflakes began to fall outside the window, and the whole castle was quiet.
He became the only third-year student staying in the castle again.
"Hey—Harry!"
Hearing a call, he turned around and saw Fred and George peeking at him from behind the statue of a hunched-back, one-eyed witch at the stairway of the fourth-floor corridor.
"What are you doing?" Harry blinked, somewhat curious. "Why aren't you in Hogsmeade?"
But out of caution, he chose not to approach.
"Before we left, we wanted to create some festive atmosphere for you,"
Fred said mysteriously, winking.
"What is it?"
Harry widened his eyes. He hesitated for a moment, then stepped back, seeing George clutch his chest dramatically, feigning heartbreak over Harry's attitude.
"An early Christmas gift for you, Harry."
But Fred's expression didn't change much as he continued to say softly.
Then, before Harry could ask more, Fred and George glanced around, ensuring no one was around. They reached out with their magic wands, tapping on the statue of the hunched-back, one-eyed witch behind them, "Left and right separate—"
They said softly in unison.
"Buzz—"
With a low rumble, the statue of the one-eyed witch moved aside, revealing a narrow passageway behind it.
"This is..."
Harry widened his eyes, staring at the dark tunnel whose destination was unknown, swallowing hard.
If his premonition was right...
"This passageway..."
"Of course, it leads to..."
The twins exchanged glances, then under Harry's anticipation, revealed the answer, "Of course it's to Hogsmeade." "And it leads directly to Honeydukes' cellar," George added.
"..."
Harry fell silent, staring at the passageway. He suddenly recalled the oath he made in his mind last night.
He would rather die, jumping from Gryffindor Tower to his death, than...
After the Weasley twins left with smiles, Harry ultimately couldn't resist the deep-seated longing and temptation within him. Staring at the statue ahead, he began to struggle internally. After a long time, with a hum, the one-eyed witch returned to her position.
...How tempting.
Walking into the tunnel, Harry, smelling the sweet scent of freedom in the air, felt much of his inner restlessness and anxiety dissipate. Holding up his lit magic wand, he advanced quickly in the tunnel, which was overly long.
Stepping down half a meter onto a stone platform, Harry widened his eyes, wanting to continue pressing forward. But as he wasn't paying attention, at a turn in the tunnel, a stone carved with patterns but not noticeable, even easily overlooked, suddenly emitted a faint blue glow.
A moment later, the air in front of the stone began to twist, and a cloaked figure emerged from the stone.
The figure first looked back very cautiously and, not finding what they sought, turned forward, easily spotting the boy groping ahead with a Lumos Charm. The figure suddenly paused, stayed silent for a moment, then raised their magic wand at the boy's back—
"Avada Kedavra!"
In the darkness, a green electric light swiftly flashed through the air—