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Originally, Neville was supposed to be paired with Seamus, and Harry with Ron. However, Neville had been sorted into Hufflepuff, and when Ron saw how Snape targeted Harry, he decided to team up with Seamus out of fear.
Harry ended up with their other roommate.
But is Seamus's title as a demolition genius a joke? He and Ron, who combined hadn't read a single page of the Potions textbook, relied purely on intuition to get through the lesson.
The result? They blew up their cauldron!
Not only did they cover themselves in boils, screaming in agony, but they also managed to affect several students nearby—including Snape, who had planned to make Harry's life difficult. He now bore several scars on his neck, partially hidden beneath his black robe.
"Mr. Weasley and Mr. Finnigan, ten points from Gryffindor for your outstanding efforts!" Snape's voice was colder than ever. "Why hasn't anyone taken these two fools to the hospital wing yet?"
Then, his gaze shifted to Harry, who stood closest to the scene.
"Mr. Potter, you were nearby. Why didn't you stop them from making a mess?"
Harry blinked in confusion. "What did this have to do with me?"
"Do you think letting your classmates bungle things makes you look better, Mr. Savior?" Snape sneered. "Five more points from Gryffindor for your ego!"
Harry was speechless but, seeing Ron and Seamus groaning in pain, chose to escort them to the hospital wing rather than argue.
And so, Gryffindor lost a hefty chunk of house points on the very first day, courtesy of being the protagonist's house.
As Dyroth watched Harry's frustration, he sighed. "If only you'd been born a girl, Snape might single-handedly defeat Voldemort for you."
Dyroth chuckled at the thought, imagining Harry as a girl.
Snape: "Miss Potter, what happens when you mix daffodil bulb powder with absinthe stem extract?"
Harley: "I don't know, Professor."
Snape: "Ah, five points from Gryffindor for your honesty."
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By the time Dyroth made his way to the Great Hall, many students were already seated at their respective House tables.
Seeing him approach, Hermione waved enthusiastically. "Dyroth!"
"Ah, the clever Miss Granger," Dyroth greeted with a smile. "I hear you earned a lot of points for Ravenclaw during Charms class today."
After the results of the duel from last night were publicly known, Dyroth no longer felt the need to sit at the head table. He slid into a seat beside Hermione at the Ravenclaw table. Several Ravenclaw girls adjusted their robes and scooted closer to him, though they tried to do so subtly.
Hermione, momentarily smug, then frowned. "But during Potions, Snape didn't award me any points! Instead, he... he lectured me!" She grimaced, recalling his exact words.
"He probably said something like this," Dyroth teased, imitating Snape's tone: "Miss Granger, do you think raising your hand constantly makes you smarter than everyone else?"
Hermione lightly punched his arm, though she couldn't help but smile.
As they ate and chatted, a sudden burst of birdsong came from the ceiling, followed by a flurry of owls swooping down with letters and parcels.
Two newspapers dropped in front of Dyroth, drawing Hermione's attention.
"Do you read those too?" she asked, surprised. "I thought you—"
"—memorized everything from textbooks? Is that what you think?" Dyroth smirked, making Hermione blush slightly. She'd been working extra hard since discovering Dyroth could memorize third-year textbooks with ease, spending nearly all her time outside class buried in study.
As Dyroth finished his meal, a headline from the *Daily Prophet* caught his eye:
"Gringotts Wizarding Bank was Attacked! Suspected Dark Wizard Activity!"
Though the goblins claimed nothing was stolen, Dyroth's eyes gleamed. 'Voldemort has finally made his move.'
He had been waiting for this moment. Unlike Dumbledore, who obstructed, or the Ministry, which was too afraid to act, Dyroth needed Voldemort back as soon as possible. He needed the Dark Lord's presence to draw attention away from himself and the Saints, to buy time.
Yet, Dyroth didn't intend for Voldemort's resurrection to go as smoothly as it had in the original timeline. 'It must happen under my control.'
Gringotts was a key part of the plan. One of Voldemort's Horcruxes—Hufflepuff's golden cup—was hidden deep in the Lestrange vault. Neither Voldemort nor Dumbledore would allow it to remain there untouched.
As the attacks on Gringotts continued, it would only be a matter of time before wizards lost faith in the bank's security. Even if nothing was stolen, constant breaches would erode confidence. Wizards would no longer feel safe entrusting their treasures to Gringotts.
Dyroth had coveted the wealth stored within Gringotts for years. But breaking into the Lestrange vault wasn't a simple task—it was heavily enchanted. Only Harry, as a fellow Horcrux, or Voldemort himself could bypass those defenses.
For now, it was better to target another Horcrux.
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Elsewhere, Harry also saw the news in the *Daily Prophet*, though his attention was fixated on the vault that had been attacked. Without Hermione's guidance, Harry and Ron bumbled through wild theories but failed to piece anything together.
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In the afternoon, Draco, seemingly in high spirits, darted ahead of Dyroth with Crabbe and Goyle in tow.
"Did he drink too much pumpkin juice?" Dyroth muttered.
"The first lesson after lunch is flying," Pansy chimed in, shaking her head. "Draco's been looking forward to it all day."
Dyroth sighed, disinterested. Like Pansy, he found Quidditch far less exciting than others.
He followed the rest of the Slytherins to the flying lesson, resigned to the afternoon ahead.
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