Dumbledore spoke with Madam Pomfrey for a few more moments before leaving the hospital wing with Kyle. As they walked through the castle, Kyle seized the chance to ask Dumbledore about some issues he'd encountered while practicing magic. Dumbledore, ever patient, answered each of Kyle's questions generously.
...
Since they were headed in different directions, they soon parted ways, and Dumbledore made his way back to the Headmaster's Office. When he arrived, Snape was already waiting for him.
"These are the ingredients for the potion," Snape said, drawing out the words as he slapped a long piece of parchment onto Dumbledore's desk. "Our Deputy Headmistress mentioned that it contains a lot of rare ingredients and requires your signature."
Dumbledore raised an eyebrow as he picked up the parchment, speaking casually. "Minerva is far too conventional at times. I did tell her long ago that she could handle all of this on her own. After all, it's only a simple Magic Suppressing Potion. How expensive could it really be...?"
As his eyes scanned the list, Dumbledore's expression shifted from indifference to surprise.
The list began:
Mandragora juice: 50 ounces. Horklump juice: 50 ounces. Antipodean Opaleye eggshells: 5. Erumpent explosive liquid: 10 ounces. Graphorn horns: 5. Aconite: 100.
...
This was just a partial list. Numerous other ingredients, totaling around 30, were scribbled beneath.
After reading through the parchment, Dumbledore could feel a headache coming on. Of the top six ingredients listed, only one—Mandrake Root Juice—was actually required for the potion. The rest had absolutely no relevance. And Antipodean Opaleye eggshells? That was a key component for the Strengthening Solution! How had Snape slipped that in, thinking no one would notice?
And the quantities! Fifty ounces of Mandrake Juice? If that much were brewed into the potion, it could supply the entire school—including the faculty—for a whole week.
Then there were the Erumpent horns. The market generally sold them as a powdered ingredient, but Snape had listed five full horns, in their raw, most expensive form. The cost of such an order would be astronomical.
Dumbledore blinked, his brow furrowing. What on earth is going on? Is Snape trying to run an entire potion market through the school budget now?
At this point, Dumbledore fully understood why Snape had come directly to him for a signature. With such an outrageous list of ingredients, there was no way Professor McGonagall would have approved it—or perhaps Snape hadn't even bothered going to her, knowing she would reject it outright.
"Severus..." Dumbledore deliberated for a moment, deciding to give Snape the benefit of the doubt. He tentatively asked, "Are these really all the ingredients needed for the Magic Suppressing Potion?"
Snape nodded, his expression calm. "Yes, Headmaster."
Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. "And what about the Antipodean Opaleye eggshells?"
Snape's tone remained neutral. "A new recipe I'm experimenting with."
"But the quantity seems... excessive."
"Forgive me, Headmaster," Snape responded matter-of-factly, "It's been quite some time since I brewed a Magic Suppressing Potion. Minor miscalculations are to be expected, so I need to ensure we have sufficient ingredients."
Seeing no immediate reason to argue further, Dumbledore sighed and picked up a scarlet quill, signing the parchment with a couple of swift strokes. "Very well. There seems to be no reason for me to object."
Snape's eyebrows lifted slightly, a hint of satisfaction crossing his face. "Mr. Mikel will surely appreciate your generosity, Headmaster."
With the parchment full of extravagant ingredients now in his possession, Snape could hardly contain his eagerness. He was more than ready to "prepare" the potion—or perhaps, as Dumbledore suspected, replenish his private stores. Just as he was about to leave, Dumbledore spoke again, his tone seemingly casual.
"Severus, what do you think of young Kyle?"
"Kyle?" Snape's smirk faltered, replaced by a flicker of mockery. "Is there yet another scheme in the works, Great Headmaster Dumbledore?"
"No, no, Severus, you've misunderstood." Dumbledore smiled mildly. "It's just the natural curiosity of a headmaster who sees promise in an outstanding student. You needn't answer if you don't wish to."
Dumbledore then casually grabbed a cockroach-shaped candy from his desk and popped it into his mouth. He held out one to Snape, adding playfully, "Care for one? They're quite delicious."
Snape recoiled slightly, his face twisting with disgust. "No, thank you." He could never comprehend Dumbledore's peculiar taste for such bizarre sweets, especially when there were so many more palatable options in the wizarding world. The candy looked even more revolting than Flobberworm slime.
Unperturbed by Snape's reaction, Dumbledore continued, as if speaking to himself, "Kind, brave, honest, unflappable in a crisis—Hogwarts hasn't seen such an exceptional first-year in quite some time. I remember his mother, Diana, was also in Slytherin. She was only a year ahead of you, if I recall."
"Shut up!" Snape's face twisted in sudden fury, his eyes darkening. "Never mention that name in front of me again, never!"
His last words were practically shouted, causing the portraits of past headmasters to grumble in irritation. They chastised Snape for his outburst, scolding him for his disrespect toward the current headmaster. But Snape ignored them completely. If he had no qualms about yelling at Dumbledore, he certainly wasn't going to worry about the opinions of a few paintings.
He only called them "headmasters" out of courtesy; to him, without that respect, they were just pieces of canvas, no more useful than paper to wipe a cauldron.
Dumbledore, unfazed by Snape's outburst or the chattering portraits, sighed softly. "I didn't expect that, after all this time, you would still hold onto those memories. But Severus, I still believe you were in the wrong. Diana was a wonderful girl, with a good heart. If you hadn't used that word to insult Chris, she wouldn't have hounded you in the common room day after day..."
Bang!
A deafening door slam cut Dumbledore off mid-sentence. The noise startled Fawkes, the phoenix, from her nap, prompting her to flap her wings in displeasure at Snape's retreating figure.
"Pfft..." A rotund portrait of a past headmaster suddenly let out a chuckle, unable to hold back. But when Dumbledore cast a playful glance in his direction, the painted figure quickly covered his mouth and scampered off to another frame, clearly embarrassed.
Dumbledore, shaking his head slightly, soothed the ruffled portrait and muttered to himself, "Really, the older I get, the more I seem to enjoy reminiscing about the past..."
"Hmph, hypocrite," came a sneering voice from the wall. The portrait of Phineas Nigellus Black, a former headmaster with a goatee, glared at Dumbledore. "Don't think I don't know what you're up to. You intended to provoke him. All Snape wanted was a little extra potion ingredients. What's the big deal? Back in my day as headmaster, this sort of thing was routine. But you—wait! Dumbledore, what are you doing? I'll stop, don't come over here!"
/////
On the other side of things, since it was already the end of the lesson when Kyle left the school hospital, he decided not to return to Charms class and headed directly to the library instead. Dumbledore had recommended two books to him earlier, suggesting that they would be highly beneficial for mastering basic Charms—perfect for a young wizard just starting out. Kyle was eager to borrow them and get reading.
The library was on the second floor, easy to find as all it took was climbing a set of stairs.
"Two books? Absolutely not!" Madam Pince, the stern librarian, greeted Kyle with a disapproving look, her feather duster in hand. "Unless you have a professor's note, you may only borrow one book at a time."
Kyle didn't dwell on it and quickly responded, "If it's just one book, then I'll take Gadding with Ghouls."
What he hadn't anticipated was Madam Pince's reaction. At the mention of Gadding with Ghouls, her expression immediately twisted into one of pure disgust, as though Kyle had just uttered a curse word.
"Another Lockhart book," she muttered under her breath.
Madam Pince harbored a strong dislike for Gilderoy Lockhart, or more specifically, his writing style. She found it excessively self-centered and pandering. Though many biographies were written in a similar vein, Lockhart's works in particular left her unsettled. There was something off about the narrative flow in his books—details seemed to be missing, making parts of the story feel incoherent. It wasn't enough to ruin the reading experience for most, but it left her feeling distinctly uncomfortable.
Her already poor impression of Lockhart's books now seemed to extend to Kyle. After a brief silence, her expression stern, she announced, "Gadding with Ghouls has been checked out. If you register for it now, you might be able to borrow it... in about two years."
"Two years... never mind," Kyle said with a shrug. "What about The Troubadour in the Wind?"
Madam Pince's demeanor softened noticeably at this request. "We have that," she said, her tone far more pleasant. She instructed Kyle to wait and headed toward a nearby shelf.
As she disappeared among the rows of books, Kyle couldn't help but observe the infamous librarian with curiosity. Madam Pince was a thin, elderly woman with a vulture-like appearance, as though she had been malnourished. The young wizards quietly reading nearby seemed terrified of her, not daring to make the slightest sound as she passed. One unfortunate student, too nervous to control himself, let out a sneeze—and was promptly expelled from the library for it.
Kyle smirked to himself. It was no wonder people rumored that she and Filch were a perfect match. They were both sticklers for rules and seemed to share a mutual disdain for students.
Before long, Madam Pince returned, handing Kyle a thick, hardcover book along with a note.
"It must be returned within a week," she warned in her stern voice. "If it's overdue, or if there's any damage to the book, you will never be able to borrow anything from this library again."
"I'll remember that," Kyle promised, tucking the book under his arm and heading out.
...
Since there was only one morning class for first years, Kyle decided to head straight back to the Hufflepuff common room after leaving the library. He was eager to find a quiet, comfortable spot to dive into the book he'd just borrowed. But the moment he stepped through the barrel door, he was surrounded by a crowd of his fellow Hufflepuff first-years.
Nearly all of them had gathered in the common room, anxiously awaiting Kyle's return.
"What's up, Kyle?" Ryan rushed over first, concern etched on his face. "Is Mikel okay? We tried to visit him in the hospital, but Madam Pomfrey threw us out as soon as we got there!"
The other young wizards nodded in agreement. Even though they had all suffered from the accident in Charms class, their concern for Mikel's well-being was evident. This was typical of Hufflepuff—loyal and always looking out for one another.
"Don't worry," Kyle reassured them, smiling as he patted Ryan on the shoulder. "Professor Dumbledore has already seen him. He'll be discharged tomorrow after taking some medicine."
"That's a relief," Ryan said, visibly relaxing. After a moment of thought, he added, "Has Mikel woken up yet? Has he said what he'd like to eat? We can't take him anything now, but we could prepare it in advance so he'll have it when he's discharged. He'd love that!"
The idea quickly gained approval from the rest of the group. Generously, they began offering up their most treasured treats.
"I've got some candied raspberries!"
"I can bring nougat!"
"How about some cookies? My mum made them herself—they're delicious."
"I think he'd like some liquorice..." another suggested.
...
For a moment, Kyle was deeply moved by the overwhelming sense of camaraderie among his classmates. With their eager eyes on him, he lowered his voice and said, "Mikel didn't mention what he wanted to eat, but I don't think snacks are what he needs most right now. What he really wants is to keep up with his studies!"
"Keep up with his studies?" Ryan scratched his head, clearly puzzled by Kyle's words.
"Exactly," Kyle replied seriously. "You all saw what happened in Charms class. Mikel was falling behind and got impatient, which led to the accident, right?"
Ryan nodded slowly. Though he hadn't fully understood how the blinding flash occurred, he did recall that Mikel had struggled with the spell. Kyle's reasoning seemed solid enough.
"That's right," Kyle continued. "Mikel's really competitive. There's no way he'd want to miss two lessons. So, here's what we need to do: in this afternoon's Transfiguration class and tomorrow morning's History of Magic, we need to pay close attention, write down everything the professor says, and compile it into detailed notes for Mikel. I'm sure he'll be moved to tears!"
A hush fell over the Hufflepuff common room. The young badgers looked at one another, then back at Kyle, unsure of what to say. The idea that anyone might prefer study notes over snacks was hard to believe. But after considering Kyle's argument, they realized they couldn't find any flaws in his logic. It was structured, logical, and entirely plausible.
Maybe... Mikel really does love his studies that much, they thought to themselves, gradually convincing themselves that Kyle was right.
Soon, volunteers stepped forward to take on the task of note-taking. Some offered to take notes in Transfiguration, while others would handle History of Magic. A few took on the responsibility of organizing the notes into a comprehensive format for Mikel.
The few students who didn't manage to grab a task but were eager to help huddled together and began brainstorming. After some discussion, they realized there was one important thing Kyle had overlooked: homework.
At Hogwarts, homework was a crucial part of every subject, and they knew Mikel wouldn't want to fall behind on that either. So they decided to make sure Mikel received all the homework assignments from each class. Not only that, but they also resolved to inform their professors that Mikel, despite being in the hospital, was still dedicated to his studies. They would proudly tell the teachers that Mikel was an exemplary Hufflepuff who wouldn't let his hospitalization stop him from completing his homework.
/////
In a corner of the Hufflepuff common room, Cedric watched in disbelief as the enthusiastic first-years hung on every word. He couldn't understand what was wrong with them this year. Could they really not tell that Kyle was just spouting nonsense? And yet, they were so cooperative.
This is Hufflepuff, not Ravenclaw, he thought, shaking his head.
Cedric had no idea what anyone else was thinking, but if he ended up in the hospital wing, the last thing he would want would be class notes or—Merlin forbid—homework. Especially not homework.
Goodness, treating homework as a gift... Could any normal wizard even think of such a thing? Even Voldemort wouldn't be that cruel, Cedric mused.
His conscience nagged at him, telling him he should expose Kyle and save the innocent Mikel from this madness. But he couldn't bring himself to do it. Because, in a way, Kyle's ridiculous claims made the Hufflepuff badgers pay more attention in class. And that, Cedric had to admit, was definitely a good thing.
He wrestled with his decision for what felt like forever. In his twelve years, he had never faced such a tough choice. On one hand was his conscience, and on the other was his responsibility as a senior student. He didn't want to give up either, so he found himself caught in a frustrating loop, torn between the two.
Not far from Cedric sat Kanna, equally bewildered but for different reasons. She was the only other freshman who had remained clear-headed through Kyle's absurdity. Unlike Cedric, Kanna's thoughts were much simpler.
Whatever happens, I need to stay away from Kyle! she resolved firmly.
Kanna promised herself that once she got the special rat tonic, she would steer clear of him at all costs. Even if she couldn't transfer to another house, she would make sure to avoid any possible encounters.
And I'll definitely sit as far from Kyle as I can during class.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the room, the little badgers, brimming with a sense of mission, were still deep in discussion, planning their next steps. Kyle, having successfully planted his idea, quietly slipped out of the group. Now that their focus had shifted to what they should do next, he was no longer the center of attention.
He found a sofa away from the crowd and sat down, flipping open The Troubadour in the Wind. It was a book published fifty years ago, chronicling the adventures of a wandering poet and the various troubles he encountered on his travels. The style reminded Kyle of Lockhart's work, but this book focused less on the poet himself and more on the things he saw along the way.
It also contained many Charms unique to different regions, which Kyle found refreshing.
He reluctantly closed the book when Cedric came over to call him to lunch.
"What are you reading?" Cedric asked, curiosity evident in his voice. "I called you a few times, but you didn't respond."
"The Troubadour in the Wind," Kyle replied, handing Cedric the book. "Dumbledore recommended it. It's a really interesting biography."
"The headmaster recommended it?" Cedric's eyes lit up, immediately expressing his desire to read it too.
"No problem," Kyle said, thinking for a moment, "but I've only just started, so you'll have to wait a few days. Or, you could check the library to see if they have another copy."
"No need," Cedric returned the book and shook his head. "Just let me know when you're done, and I'll borrow it then."
From his experience with the school library, Cedric knew they rarely had multiple copies of the same biography. Going to check would likely be a waste of time, and besides, he wasn't in a rush to read it. Waiting a few more days didn't matter to him.
After leaving the Hufflepuff common room, the two quickly made their way to the Great Hall. By now, the morning's big news—about a Hufflepuff blowing up the Charms classroom—had already spread throughout Hogwarts.
In the hall, almost every group of students seemed to be buzzing with excitement, talking about the incident.
"Hey, look who's here!" came a voice as Kyle and Cedric entered.
Before Kyle could react, Fred and George blocked his path, having clearly been waiting for him.
"I knew Hogwarts wouldn't stay peaceful with you around," Fred grinned, grabbing Kyle by the shoulders. "Tell us, how did you manage to blow up the classroom?"
George chimed in, "Yeah, we heard even Professor Flitwick limped out of there."
"Blowing up a professor in your first lesson...," Fred and George exchanged glances before declaring in unison, "Kyle, you're definitely going down in school history!"
Their voices weren't loud, but they still caught the attention of nearby students, who began gathering around, curious about the commotion.
Kyle sighed, feeling a bit helpless. "First of all, the Lighting Charm can't blow up a classroom. That's just common sense. Professor Flitwick hurt his leg because he tripped and fell. Secondly, the wizard who caused all of this is in the hospital wing, and it has nothing to do with me. If you keep spreading this, I'm writing to Mrs. Weasley."
"Not you?" The twins blinked, clearly surprised.
"Of course not. Why would you even think that?" Kyle gestured to Cedric beside him. "If you don't believe me, ask Cedric."
"I can confirm," Cedric nodded firmly. "It really wasn't Kyle."
"There you go," Kyle said, pushing Fred and George aside. "Where did you even hear this? It's completely unreliable."
"We got it from some Ravenclaw first-years," Fred shrugged. "They said you sent your classmates to the hospital wing."
Kyle was exasperated. "I was helping! Dumbledore even gave me twenty extra points. Did they say anything else, or was that it?"
"I don't know," George shrugged back, nonchalantly. "That's all we caught when we walked past."
Kyle shook his head, unable to believe what he was hearing. Unbelievable.
"I'm done with you two," he muttered, taking a deep breath. He'd initially thought Ravenclaw students had a knack for twisting the truth, but Fred and George were on a whole other level.
"When you're asking for information," he said, glaring at them, "at least listen to the end. Who hears just half a story and thinks they've got the whole picture?"
Luckily, Fred and George had come to him directly instead of spreading the half-baked rumor. If they had, his reputation would've been in ruins by now.
Kyle sighed dramatically and clapped them both on the shoulders. "You two are wasting your talents at Hogwarts. Honestly, you should go work for The Daily Prophet. Rita Skeeter would love."