Chapter 443: A Child

After sobering up that day, Slughorn never mentioned this topic again, and Snape wouldn't express his feelings even more, so school life returned to a kind of dead-silent peace.

For two full weeks, except for Ma Erfu challenging Ron beyond his ability from time to time, Harry almost forgot about Kamen Riders. He and Zhang Qiu explored new dating methods tirelessly, and in addition to that, took some time to train Quidditch. Until one day, Jin Ni and Eve brought OWL exam questions to ask for advice, and Harry was surprised to find he couldn't understand what they were talking about. He could only refuse helplessly. Out of guilt, he spent a little more time on classes and homework.

When the smile on Harry's face became more and more cheerful and sweet, he somewhat helplessly found that the relationship between Edith and Nikola had become less good. Nikola would no longer come to watch training, and Edith would no longer run to the library.

Time flowed slowly, and some changes that were not visible at first started to settle and appear. Although Edith's performance on the field was getting better and better, the smile on her face was getting less and less.

In early April, Gryffindor, with an absolutely strong lineup of players, showed suffocating suppression, crushing Ravenclaw with a luxurious record of 270:10, booking the House Cup in advance with a hearty victory. All of them gathered in the common room, and the students' cheers, laughter, and applause intertwined, making the entire tower vibrate because of this victory.

Harry and Ron were surrounded by lower-grade students, who chattered about their admiration. Jin Ni was passed around by the crowd; it was Demelza and Katie who lifted her up first. McLaggen also found his own fan group; he laughed wantonly in front of a group of girls, constantly shaking a bottle of champagne that had long since lost its fizz.

When Jin Ni finally landed and, together with Eve, carried a large tray of treacle fudge, donuts, and chocolate cake, squeezing into the center of the crowd happily to share with all the players, they only then noticed that Edith's expression was a bit wrong.

"What's wrong with you, are you okay?" The unsuspecting Jin Ni happily stuffed a donut into her hand. "And you, Nikola, come try this pumpkin pasty."

The two sat together somewhat cautiously. Edith took a bite of the donut and chewed mechanically. Harry suddenly remembered that vampires wouldn't have an appetite for human food—last time, they used a kiss to avoid this link, but this time both seemed to have lost the passion for kissing.

"Give them some private space." Harry said while smiling to help them out, while moving the crowd away to make a path.

They smiled awkwardly and left without a word, not even holding hands. Harry looked at the figures one after another with some worry. He reached out and pulled a little fatty from the crowd, Nikola's good friend in the same dormitory, Quinn.

"What's wrong with him lately?" Harry asked in a low voice.

"Don't know, we guess he was trained to have psychological shadows by McGonagall," Quinn said in a low voice.

"I'll go out and take a look." After a brief hesitation, Harry still put down the revelry; the bell of responsibility in his heart was ringing.

The two didn't go far, just leaning on the railing on the other side of the corridor, and didn't enter the Room of Requirement. They were silent, looking forward with unfocused eyes, until Harry appeared, only then barely causing some ripples.

"Mr. Potter." Edith said somewhat dejectedly. "I feel like I've become a monster."

"Sorry." Nikola lowered his head deeply.

"This isn't your fault either, Nick." Edith comforted him palely, but he still couldn't lift his head.

Harry looked at them quietly. Suddenly, he thought of a pretty good topic.

"Do you know, there was once a person whose situation was almost exactly the same as yours." He also leaned in front of the railing, clasping his hands, and told slowly, "He was bitten by a werewolf when he was very young and almost lost the qualification to go to school. It was also the Headmaster at the time, Dumbledore, who helped him hide his identity and gave him a chance to go to school."

"That period was equally agonizing for him. Every full moon, he had to sneak out of the castle and come to a deserted corner to spend a difficult night, constantly scratching and biting himself. This was a very painful thing. What made him feel even more painful was that he had to hide this from his good friends; he worried that if his friends knew, they would think he was a freak."

"Paper can't wrap fire; his friends finally knew, but they didn't reject him, but instead thought of a way to reduce his pain, which was to practice being an Animagus. Every full moon night, they accompanied him in the way of animal friends. So he spent the best seven years at Hogwarts, learned a lot of magic knowledge, but more importantly, this experience healed his life."

When the story reached here, Harry noticed Hermione and Ailina had come, but they didn't speak, just listening quietly on the side.

"When he was blocked everywhere and rejected by almost all wizards, he still retained a kind heart and a positive and optimistic attitude toward life. Finally, things took a turn for the better, his friend..." Harry paused and summarized, "thought his friend had sacrificed on the battlefield, but he was still alive. Of course, only one was left."

"This friend found him, just like deciding to violate school rules many years ago. He said, 'Hey, how about we do something cool?' Then, he agreed with a smile." Speaking of this, Harry raised his head somewhat proudly. "They drew a circle in the forests of Albania, so this became the Land of Werewolves, where every werewolf could live without discrimination, earn a living by labor, and stand up straight to talk to the Ministry of Magic and all human wizards on an equal footing. They have always been legal residents of the Wizarding World, but only now have they finally enjoyed the rights that residents should have."

"This is the story of Remus Lupin. He was our professor. Unfortunately, you didn't meet such a great professor, so you can only listen to my retelling." Harry turned his head to look at the two children. "But you are as lucky as him; you have each other, and of course, you can have more friends. There are Headmasters and professors who care about you, and we senior students are also very willing to provide any help."

"Thank you, Mr. Potter, Hogwarts has also healed me." Nikola raised his head and said very seriously. "Perhaps in many years, I can also become a gentle person."

"No wonder Professor Snape would say things like carving out a piece of land for us to build a country." Edith also laughed. "Perhaps, we will also welcome that day."

"Yes, sister said, as long as the Queen Project succeeds, the vampire race will truly have the capital to talk to wizards on an equal footing. We can cooperate friendly with the Ministry of Magic and use our advantages to provide help to wizards. Perhaps then there will be wizards who voluntarily donate blood to us." Nikola's eyes were shining.

"That's a bit far." Harry rubbed his head. "You just need to study hard now, and then, cherish each other more."

"I'm not alone." Edith grabbed Nikola's hand. "I want to see that Professor Lupin, is that okay? It sounds like you seem to know him."

"Yes, if we're lucky, we can go find Easter eggs at his place during the Easter holiday." Harry agreed first. As for the blood feud between werewolves and vampires, he decided to leave the problem to Lupin to solve—of course, if it really didn't work, he could also invite Lupin back for a trip.

The two children held hands again, and they leaned against each other and walked downstairs, seemingly wanting to take a walk on this beautiful night.

"Is he... also a werewolf?" Hermione asked with somewhat complicated feelings.

"I can't say." Harry spread his hands.

"Everyone is trying hard to live." Ailina revealed a strange, miserable smile.

"Why, are you not happy either?" Harry felt good at the moment; he wanted to take this opportunity to untie another person's heart knot.

Ailina was silent for a moment. She wanted to look at Hermione, but unconsciously looked away. Finally, she spoke slowly: "I once thought that hard work could change everything. Yes, when I tried my best to defeat all my peers and stood on the stage of the Triwizard Tournament for the first time, I thought I would shine brightly. I didn't expect things to become a duel between two old men in a muddled way. This was my first time being a clown; I lost to strength."

"Then someone threatened me with student loans, forcing me to give up the person I loved. This was my second time being a clown; I lost to capital. Then someone, for some ulterior purpose, willfully locked us in prison. My third time being a clown was losing to power."

"Finally, I bet my life to gain strength, but still couldn't beat anyone. Someone told me that being a Herrscher has no future; blame it on me for not choosing to be a Rider, but where do I have the qualification to touch the belt? This time I lost to fate. I finally understood: how high a person can stand and how much scenery they can see depends on fate. I can only grab the things at hand; I have no qualification to covet more."

Harry understood what she meant. This girl actually hadn't really suffered much misfortune; she was just worn down by the high-flying spirit she originally had in one setback after another. He really didn't know how to persuade her. After all, Harry was actually more willing to live a peaceful and happy life in his heart, rather than being a leader or a hero.

"Who threatened you to give up the person you loved?" Hermione frowned and asked. "Did you and Ron break up because of some hidden reason?"

"I can only say, Hermione," Ailina gathered great courage and pushed her gently, "don't go to Miskatonic, go to a school in the Tian Chao." ===== CHAPTER 444 =====