In the candle-lit halls of Hogwarts, where magic stirs with every whisper, Harry Potter begins his first year - unaware that fate has woven another soul into his journey.
Elsa Scamander, silent as snowfall and powerful as a storm, arrives cloaked in...
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"Expecto patronum"
♡♡♡♡♡♡
The castle walls hummed softly with the return of winter. Hogwarts always seemed to breathe differently after the holidays—quiet, waiting, ancient.
Harry and I walked side by side through the corridors, our footsteps echoing faintly against the stone.
"Harry! Elsa!" Hermione's voice called, her curls bouncing as she ran toward us.
"Hagrid's back!" she said breathlessly.
At once, all three of us hurried toward Hagrid's hut. But before we reached the grounds, Harry slowed.
"What is it?" I asked, turning to him.
"I forgot to tell you something."
There was a flicker of hesitation in his eyes. "When Snape took me that night—he invaded my mind. He saw everything."
I froze. "You mean... everything?"
He nodded grimly. "Yeah."
My mouth fell open. "Oh my God, Harry—what the—"
He gave me that warning glare—the one that said *don't finish that sentence.* I sighed, tugging his arm and quickening my pace. "We'll deal with it later. Come on."
We reached Hagrid's hut just in time to hear a shrill, syrupy voice.
"I'll say this one last time," said Umbridge, each word sticky with false sweetness. "I'm ordering you to tell me where you've been."
We crouched beneath the window, peeking inside.
"I told you," Hagrid said, standing firm, "I've been away for me health."
"Your health?" Umbridge echoed, her lips twitching.
"Yeah—bit of fresh air, you know."
Her smile sharpened like a blade. "Oh yes, as a gamekeeper, fresh air must be so rare. If I were you, I shouldn't get too used to being back. In fact... I wouldn't bother unpacking."
She turned on her heel, her pink cloak fluttering behind her like a poisonous flower.
When the door finally shut, we slipped inside.
"This is top secret, right?" Hagrid asked, lowering his voice. "Dumbledore sent me to parley with the giants."
"Giants?" Anna's eyes widened. "You found them?"
"Well, they're not exactly hard to miss, see," Hagrid chuckled. "I tried to convince them to join the cause—but I wasn't the only one trying to win them over."
"Death Eaters?" Ron asked.
"Yeah," Hagrid said grimly. "Trying to persuade 'em to join You-Know-Who."
