Chapter 37: Sizzle Bee Candy

“You’ve done well enough.”

Wizard Sean gave Justin his Yorkshire pudding.

He thought sweets might lift the boy’s spirits.

“Professor Snape is an idiot.”

He whispered,

“Don’t be upset, Hermione. Want some pudding?”

Wizard Sean loved Yorkshire pudding—it came from the old woman who used to donate supplies to the orphanage,

she always brought many puddings, the best food Wizard Sean had ever tasted at the time.

So he always sat at tables with the most pudding.

“Mm.”

Hermione unusually did not refuse,

and so their criticism of Professor Snape turned into a full assault on the pudding.

The professor was not always fair,

Wizard Sean thought,

it depended on whether Harry Potter was beside him.

After finishing the pudding, Justin’s remarks shifted toward Professor Snape’s “glorious” exploits,

like pretending not to patrol at night, but actually casting the Disillusionment Charm to catch five Gryffindors out of bed;

like staying at school over Christmas and catching two couples;

like just now in class, deducting another point from Gryffindor because Harry didn’t tell Neville the correct brewing method—when Harry himself had no idea what he was doing.

“Oh, Hermione, I’m listing these examples to tell you that if anyone’s to blame here, it’s certainly not you,

we all know Professor Snape is strict, bad-tempered, and sometimes downright unreasonable.”

Justin whispered,

Wizard Sean nodded silently beside him.

“If you doubt yourself, deny yourself, and make yourself miserable because of someone unreasonable, isn’t that just stupid? Even if that someone is a professor.”

Justin added.

Wizard Sean nodded again.

“What do you think, Wizard Sean?”

Justin looked at Wizard Sean expectantly,

Wizard Sean thought for a moment:

“Yes.”

“Alright.”

Justin nodded, somewhat defeated.

At that moment, Wizard Sean noticed Hermione trembling slightly; he pulled Justin aside,

they stood up and blocked the front of Hermione, pretending to chat casually so no one could see the little witch’s quiet tears.

“Hermione always stays silent when she’s wronged—I think I need to watch her more closely,

she always pretends not to care, and those who bully her never realize how much it hurts her,”

Wizard Sean heard Justin whisper,

“And how can I make her understand… she doesn’t have to pretend to be strong in front of her friends?”

Wizard Sean stared at Justin, stunned—he remembered Hermione had no real friends; Gryffindors shunned her,

Ron even gave her a nickname and mocked her, driving her to cry in the bathroom,

at least before Halloween, Hermione was utterly alone.

Soon, Wizard Sean sighed in relief,

at least now, she had two friends.

…

Ravenclaw’s only class today was afternoon Herbology,

Wizard Sean had arrived early at the dome building.

Greenhouse One smelled of damp, warm earth; the glass dome filtered the afternoon sun into a hazy gold-green glow.

Professor Sprout rolled up her sleeves, her dragonhide gloves caked in humus, carefully tending to a plant resembling a spider’s nest.

Three Hufflepuff students huddled around a deep trough planted with pumpkin-shaped plants, their scarves-covered heads leaning together, gesturing and debating what it was.

“Clever little sprouts should remember, this plant is called Spider’s Web, though it looks like spider eggs, those are actually two-sided berries,

don’t be frightened by its roots—they’re not real spiders, just its roots,

can anyone tell me how often Spider’s Web can be harvested?”

Professor Sprout’s question stumped the Hufflepuffs,

Neville seemed to recall something but stammered unable to speak; Ernie and the short, stout boy were just lost.

“The book describes it as a perennial plant, harvestable three to four times; if well cultivated, it may yield even more,

one wizard once grew a Spider’s Web that yielded five harvests.”

A clear voice floated over; Professor Sprout beamed:

“Mr. Green, excellent answer… child, so glad to see you.”

She then directed Neville and the others to harvest Crabapple Lilies.

“Ah, warm sun, warm summer—new sprouts always take root,

sometimes I wonder if I’ve lost my energy, why else would I struggle to Making Guide even a few young wizards at once…

Mr. Longbottom, watch your leg! Wingardium Leviosa—”

Neville nearly spilled dragon dung fertilizer onto his shoes, but Professor Sprout swiftly levitated the bucket with a spell.

“Oh! Mr. Macmillan!”

Professor Sprout gasped and rushed over to help Ernie, now surrounded by jumping tubers.

At that moment, the door opened,

a tall figure stepped into the greenhouse:

“Not every first-year wizard is named Wizard Sean Green, is that right?”

Senior Bruce leaned against the plant rack, eyes glinting with mischief.

…

After Herbology,

Wizard Sean thought he probably shouldn’t come to the greenhouse again for a while—

the plump professor was drenched in sweat, especially after three Hufflepuffs stayed behind during class, leaving her even more frantic.

In the greenhouse corridor,

a gentle breeze blew,

Senior Bruce stood leaning like a statue; Wizard Sean thought he had the makings of a model,

given the two senior witches nearby had already glanced his way at least ten times.

“Sizzle Bee Candy—”

Senior Bruce placed a candy that looked intensely sweet into Wizard Sean’s hand.

“Try it now?”

Wizard Sean curiously ate the juice-and-cream jelly ball,

then heard a shout:

“Green, don’t eat it! Damn it, Bruce, you bastard—”

Leon’s golden hair gleamed in the warm sun, but even as he stormed over, he was too late to stop Bruce.

Wizard Sean felt a surge of magic, then floated upward—along with Senior Bruce beside him.

“Isn’t that amazing?!”

he exclaimed excitedly.

“Amazing your bloody Merlin’s pants!”

Leon grabbed Wizard Sean and Bruce by the arms,

“I should’ve just let you fly off!”

Leon glared fiercely at Bruce,

“Sorry, Green—Bruce treats his friends like this,

me and Pistor have been pranked by him plenty of times.

Let me explain: Sizzle Bee Candy is a juice-and-cream jelly ball that makes you float.

One of its ingredients is Billywig, and anyone stung by it feels dizzy, then floats helplessly.”

Leon’s tone softened noticeably as he looked at Wizard Sean.

“Oh, come on, Leon! You don’t mean it!”

Senior Bruce was still laughing loudly,

then Wizard Sean saw Leon let go.

“Leon! No! No! I’m sorry—”

As Senior Bruce screamed in shock, Wizard Sean saw Senior Leon proudly swaying his wrist,

he had somehow tied a rope between himself and Bruce,

“I always have unorthodox methods for dealing with unruly types.”

Wizard Sean heard him say.