If Snape hadn't been in charge of picking them up, Ron and Harry would probably have been able to appreciate the different scenery around them.
The carriage was incredibly fast, unusually fast, even faster than a flying broomstick—that was Harry's immediate impression.
The surrounding clouds rushed past, and occasionally birds could be seen flapping their wings and taking flight.
However, Harry and Ron weren't familiar with the different kinds of birds, and they had this thought: if Vizette or Hermione were here, they would probably be able to recognize what kind of birds these were.
Aside from the birds in flight, their main focus was on Snape, observing what he was doing.
They discovered something extremely strange: where Snape should have been, bloody flesh would suddenly appear.
Snape would toss the pieces of meat forward, and then the pieces would remain suspended in the air, be torn into pieces, and then disappear.
What Harry and Ron were now certain of was that the creature pulling the carriage was some kind of magical creature, one that was very fast and had a taste for raw, bloody flesh.
"It's best not to see it…" Ron's voice trembled. "Mother said that there are certain things in the magical world… if you see them, it will bring all sorts of terrible disasters!"
Clearly, even wizards with magical powers can develop superstitions due to certain events.
Amidst this thrilling experience, Harry and Ron watched the sunset.
They landed on a rugged path, bathed in the setting sun.
Snape's incantation rang out, "Stop the spell!"
Harry and Ron were overjoyed to finally be back.
What excited them even more was that they could see Hogwarts Castle not far away through the carriage windows.
Even though the road was extremely bumpy, it didn't feel so bad now.
The road was finally less bumpy, and the carriage passed through a magnificent cast-iron gate, officially entering the grounds of Hogwarts Castle.
"This should be the main entrance! Hermione should come in from here too!" Ron looked back, his gaze fixed on the stone pillars on either side of the iron gate, with winged boar statues at the top of the pillars.
The carriage finally stopped, and before Harry and Ron could unload their luggage, Snape spoke first: "The luggage is in the carriage and will be delivered to the dormitory later. You two, come with me."
Harry and Ron looked at each other and saw the despair in each other's eyes.
Left with no other choice, they could only follow Snape as he led them through Hogwarts Castle.
Nick, who had almost lost his head, stared wide-eyed. His head fell off in surprise, his flesh still attached, dangling in the air. "You guys actually got here so early?"
"Yes…" Harry and Ron said listlessly.
The two had just passed by the Great Hall and seemed to see the opening banquet that was about to be held.
Unfortunately, Snape didn't give them a chance to enter the Great Hall, and instead led them down the stone steps toward the basement.
"We've arrived." Snape's face was grim, like a block of ice, chilling to the bone. "Get in!"
This was Snape's office, and the atmosphere inside was as cold as his face.
The office was dimly lit, and along the walls were shelves filled with large jars containing cold, floating specimens.
The only thing that seemed to have any life was a strange mushroom that was swaying on a wooden table.
When Harry and Ron got closer, they realized that the pink mushrooms were quite plump, covered with dark bristles on top, and had tentacles growing below, which wrapped around earthworms as if they were feeding.
"Don't touch that!" Snape's voice rose a few decibels, his face seeming even worse. "Stay here until Professor McGonagall comes to you."
He seemed a little uneasy and added, "If you touch that, I'd be happy to help, to remove a part of your body... and soak it in a jar."
Harry and Ron exchanged a glance, then quickly moved away from the pink mushrooms, standing in the corner furthest from Snape, urging Professor McGonagall to come over quickly.
-------------------------------------
As night fell, familiar sounds echoed through the carriage.
"The Hogwarts Express will arrive at the station in five minutes. Please leave your luggage on the train and we will deliver it to your dormitory."
Luna quickly regained her senses and hugged the small pillow to her chest again. "Will it be sour?"
Vizette moved her arm and asked with a smile, "Does it make your skin sore?"
Luna laughed too, "No, it feels very comfortable."
"That's good!" Vizette nodded. "Me too, we need to get ready to get off the train."
His roommates woke up too.
Michael, standing nearby, gasped, "Ah! My neck... my neck is about to break!"
The other roommates had similar reactions, waking up amidst a chorus of groans.
After using healing magic to soothe the pain, Vizette told his roommates to go ahead, and then led Luna toward Hagrid.
Hagrid, carrying a large lantern, was calling out to the new students, shouting in a loud voice, "First-year students, come this way!"
"Vizette! Your sister, I remember her!" He noticed Vizette, raised his other hand and waved. "Leave her to me, see you at the banquet later!"
Vizette waved back, "Okay! See you at the banquet!"
Luna shook the mistletoe bracelet and the crystal ball bracelet in her hand, "I can do it myself, you go ahead!"
"Okay, see you later."
See you later!
...
Vizette turned back to the station and took another route.
He had walked this road when he returned to school during the last Christmas holiday, so it didn't feel unfamiliar to him.
There weren't many carriages left, so he casually opened the door of a carriage that hadn't been started yet, and there were already people sitting inside.
"Why haven't we left yet? What are you waiting for?"
"Goyle and Crabbe were sleeping, I woke them up."
The speaker was a girl with thin lips and Draco Malfoy.
If Vizette remembers the name correctly, the girl with thin lips is named Pansy Parkinson.
"Vizette Lovegood?" Draco spoke first.
"It's me." Vizette nodded, intending to change to another carriage.
To his surprise, Draco invited, "Since you're already here... why don't you get in the carriage? It seems the carriage won't move if there aren't enough people..."
Draco's eyes flickered, as if with a hint of anticipation.
"Okay." Vizette didn't say anything more and just sat down opposite him.
Draco and Pansy had different expressions. Draco breathed a sigh of relief and even clenched his fist, as if celebrating his success.
Pansy crossed her arms, pursed her lips, closed her eyes, and looked sullen.
After a while, the carriage closed its doors and slowly began to move.
Draco coughed twice, his eyes darting around as if he wanted to look at Vizette, or perhaps he wanted to avoid his gaze.
He said somewhat awkwardly, "I don't know what kind of magic the carriage used to make it move on its own."
Pansy remained silent.
Seeing Draco's somewhat embarrassed expression, Vizette said slowly, "Perhaps some kind of magical creature? Like a Demiguise?"
"Maybe!" Draco immediately chimed in. "You know a lot!"
…
Follow on [email protected]/ren saga for free advanced chapters!