Chapter 107: Boggart

The first week of term began with classes on Thursday, and Harry deeply regretted not being able to experience Professor Doudou’s and Hagrid’s lessons sooner, but Thursday also brought the Defense Against the Dark Arts class he had been eagerly awaiting—he couldn’t wait to learn the Patronus Charm.

Of course, before Defense Against the Dark Arts, he still had to endure Professor Snape’s Potions class. Today, Snape looked particularly unpleasant; his face was grimly dark, and Harry had reason to suspect it was because of Lupin—when Harry and Ron spoke about Defense Against the Dark Arts, Snape immediately deducted a point from Gryffindor, even though class hadn’t started yet.

The lesson was the Ageing Potion, which Harry found unchallenging; he swiftly and neatly chopped his ingredients and began simmering the potion over low heat.

“Hey, Harry,” Malfoy sidled over. “You’ve heard about Sirius Black’s escape, right?”

“Of course—it’s practically common knowledge now,” Harry said, glancing absently at his potion.

“Actually, I heard someone spotted him nearby,” Malfoy whispered. “A Muggle reported it, so she didn’t realize how serious it was—the place is dangerously close to Hogwarts.”

“So what? Are you worried Black will try to sneak in here?” Harry said. “With Dumbledore’s spells and the Ministry’s guards watching the school, he has no chance.”

“But he escaped Azkaban. He found a way out of a prison with tighter security and stronger enchantments—maybe he can slip into Hogwarts too. I don’t want that to happen.”

“Oh?” Harry remembered they shared a secret society.

“I’d like to gather the Torchwood members this Sunday to discuss how to prevent Black’s attack,” Malfoy revealed his true purpose.

“Though I seriously doubt any measures could be sufficiently practical or effective, maintaining at least some vigilance against potential threats won’t make things worse,” Harry said in a convoluted sentence conveying “better than nothing.”

“What are you two talking about, Potter?” Snape’s dark gaze turned toward them.

“Uh, we’re exchanging tips on potion brewing,” Harry improvised.

“Let me see…” Snape scooped a bit of potion from Harry’s cauldron with a small spoon and fed it to the test toad. The toad swallowed it, then puffed into a tadpole, hopping in Snape’s palm.

“Excellent potion. Clearly, sharing experience helps,” Snape said coldly. “One point each to your houses.”

After class, Ron was still fuming about Snape’s behavior, complaining that Gryffindor got nothing while Slytherin gained a free point.

“Calm down, Ron,” Harry comforted him. “We’ll make it all up on the pitch.”

“Oh, Hermione,” Ron waved toward a direction, but she didn’t respond—she dashed off without looking back.

“Hermione’s right behind you,” Zhang Qiu suddenly appeared.

Harry and Ron turned around—sure enough, Hermione had just stepped out of the classroom, clutching her Potions textbook.

“Well, maybe I misread,” Ron scratched his head. “By the way, what are you doing here?”

“Why didn’t you argue with Malfoy during the first Potions class? Why didn’t you help him prepare his ingredients?” Zhang Qiu complained. Since the train ride, Harry had noticed her mood was unstable.

“Never mind. At least you saw Hermione—even a mosquito’s leg is meat,” she muttered. “Sorry—I’m under a lot of pressure. Forget it. I’m leaving.”

“So was that really Hermione?” Harry paused. “Could it have been last year’s impostor pretending to be Neville—now pretending to be Hermione?”

“Dunno. Who cares? Let’s go eat—I’m starving,” Ron said. He disliked dwelling on conspiracies—he preferred dealing with problems as they came.

At lunch, Harry noticed Lupin dining at the staff table; his complexion had improved considerably.

“I need to find a chance to ask more about the Patronus Charm,” Harry whispered.

“Why not buy a shield and try a physical Patronus?” Ron mumbled through a drumstick.

When Harry arrived at the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, Lupin hadn’t arrived yet. The students chattered for a long time until, one minute before class, Lupin finally walked in.

“Put your books away, children—we’re having a practical lesson today,” Lupin said at once, winning everyone’s favor—no one liked dry theory.

Lupin led the students to an empty classroom containing a large, old wardrobe. On the way, he’d used a minor jinx to punish the annoying Peeves, which instantly boosted the students’ confidence in his abilities.

“This wardrobe contains a Boggart. Now, does any student know what a Boggart is?”

“It’s a monster that takes the form of whatever you fear most,” Hermione raised her hand.

“Close, but not precise,” Professor Lupin said, and Hermione’s face flushed. “When a Boggart hides in darkness, we don’t know its shape. It doesn’t know what form will frighten the person on the other side of the door. No one knows what a Boggart looks like alone—but when we make it emerge, it instantly becomes the thing we fear most.”

“That means,” Professor Lupin smiled, “we already hold a great advantage before we even begin. Do you know its weakness, Harry?”

“Because there are so many of us, it doesn’t know what form to take,” Harry guessed.

“Exactly. The more people present, the more confused the Boggart becomes,” Lupin continued. “But today, I’ll teach you a spell that lets you face a Boggart even when alone.”

“The spell is ‘Riddikulus,’” Lupin said. “It forces the Boggart to take on a comical form. When what you fear becomes ridiculous, it loses its power to frighten.”

He asked them to imagine their greatest fear and how they’d make it funny. Harry immediately thought of the Dementor—he found it more terrifying than Voldemort—and struggled to picture how to make it amusing when Lupin spoke again.

“Now, starting with Neville—be careful. Once the Boggart realizes it can’t frighten Neville, it might attack everyone here.”

Neville stepped forward, hesitantly drew his wand, and Harry thought he’d prepared himself to face Voldemort again.

The wardrobe door opened—but inside wasn’t a Dark wizard. It was Neville himself. The Neville inside looked pale, gloomy, and pudgy. Seeing the class, he burst into tears.

“I’m not afraid of any enemy—I’m afraid of giving up,” Neville said wistfully. “I was such a coward once.”

“But once I accept my weakness, I become invincible.” He slowly raised his wand. “Riddikulus.”

The Neville inside the wardrobe stood up, fastened a belt around his waist.

“Cobra! Knight System! Evolve!” a voice shouted.

Harry stared at Neville in confusion—he himself didn’t understand what was happening.

“I never thought of that—I mean, it should’ve moved on to the next person,” Neville said urgently. “Everyone, be careful.”

But no student stepped forward to claim their fear. They exchanged glances. Lupin sensed something was wrong but only drew his wand warily.

Amid violet-black smoke and lightning, the Boggart transformed into a black-and-white-clad figure, then slowly walked toward an empty corner.

“Long time no see? Or maybe not so long…” it murmured, picking something up from the floor. Harry could barely make out the shape—it looked like a person.

“Help…” Zhang Qiu’s Disillusionment Charm slipped off as she struggled. Harry had never seen her so uncomposed—she looked terrified.

“Oh no, can you cast the spell? Try?” Lupin encouraged her, but Zhang Qiu couldn’t utter a word.

Finally, Lupin waved his wand and forced the Boggart back into the wardrobe. Zhang Qiu collapsed to the floor, gasping for breath, drenched in sweat as if pulled from water.

“Good girl, it’s all right,” Lupin soothed. “I remember you’re a fourth-year. Why are you here? Did you come to observe our class?”

“Yes. I wanted to see the Boggart,” Zhang Qiu said weakly.

“Alright, it’s back in the wardrobe now. You’re safe,” Lupin said gently. “You must not have been prepared—the Boggart isn’t fooled by invisibility. It noticed you too. Would you mind telling us what it was? With proper preparation, you could’ve defeated it easily.”

“A Dark wizard more terrifying than Voldemort. It couldn’t be made funny,” Zhang Qiu sighed. “Sorry for interrupting your lesson. I must go.”

“Fair enough—you were only observing. Scaring you was my mistake,” Lupin said generously. “Go rest, or see Madam Pomfrey. Harry, would you accompany her?”

Harry helped Zhang Qiu walk out, murmuring, “I’m also stuck—if the Boggart turns into a Dementor, I can’t imagine how to make it funny.”

“Once you learn the Patronus Charm, it won’t turn into a Dementor anymore.”

“By the way, what was that figure? Is that what you meant by your terrifying thing?”

“No—it’s already been defeated. Though we can’t forget it, it’s truly gone,” Zhang Qiu said, still shaken. “And the good news? The terrifying thing coming won’t be as bad as that thing.”

“Then that’s good—if even that figure was defeated, other fears can be handled too, right?” Harry said. He was certain Zhang Qiu looked a little less burdened.