Trial of Time: A Hogwarts Legacy Story

(P1) Chapter 3 - Trolls? In Hogsmeade?

The next day after classes, an owl flies right up to my face, dropping a letter and startling me. It's from Professor Weasley, who is requesting to meet with me. I begin the long trek towards Professor Weasley's office, thinking of how well my first days at Hogwarts have been going. I was relieved to be excelling in my classes, and I wasn't feeling as far behind my classmates as I originally thought I'd be.

I knock at the door. "Come in!" shouts Professor Weasley. She is sitting at the front of the room, engaged in a conversation with a house elf who is standing on her desk. The house elf smiles at me as he hops off the desk and makes his way towards the exit. "Ah, excellent. Glad you're here, Miss Clarke."

She asks me about how my first two days have been going, and how the progress with my field guide is coming along. She explains that I need to go to Hogsmeade this afternoon to get a new wand and some classroom supplies that were lost in the dragon attack.

"Now, I wouldn't feel comfortable sending you to Hogsmeade on your own for the first time, so I've arranged to have one of your fellow students join you. Unfortunately your friend Miss Onai is currently preoccupied with helping another student get to the hospital wing, so-"

"Professor, you wished to see me?" A familiar voice echoes from the doorway. I turned to face none other than my most familiar classmate of the week. Sebastian Sallow.

"Yes, Mr. Sallow. I understand that you should be serving detention with Madam Scribner right now," Professor Weasley looks at him over her glasses, "if you would kindly escort Miss Clarke to Hogsmeade this afternoon, we will consider this in place of your detention for today." Sebastian's face reddens. "Of course, Professor," he replies. He turns to me, "meet me in front of the Entrance Hall in twenty minutes."

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Sebastian POV

I'm standing near the main doors, staring at the grandfather clock on the wall. Fifteen minutes had gone by. I was thankful that Professor Weasley had summoned me out of detention with Scribner. I couldn't take another moment of organizing the entire school's collection of autobiographies from A to Z. Plus, I didn't want to turn down any opportunity to learn more about the school's latest enigma.

I see her walking towards me down the stairs, her light blonde locks seemingly glowing in the sunlight that filtered through the windows. She smirks as she approaches me.

"Wow. You're pretty punctual... for a Slytherin," she jokes.

"You're pretty observant... for a Gryffindor," I smile and nod towards the door, "and today, you just happen to be my new charge. Follow me."

We run across the grounds, and soon we're on the path to Hogsmeade. I point out most of the notorious landmarks we cross, including the Forbidden Forest.

"Well that's ridiculous that the entire forest is off limits," Ciri huffs. "Shouldn't we learn how to explore it safely before we finish Hogwarts? It would probably be perfect for practicing spells. And it's not like it's going to get any less dangerous as soon as we're adults."

I couldn't stop myself from smiling and agreeing with her. It's at this point I realize that she and I could actually become friends. Anne would have definitely taken a liking to her already, even though she is a Gryffindor.

We're stopped on the path by Caretaker Moon, who appears to be drunk and rambling some nonsense about demiguises. Ciri looks concerned about him heading off on his own in that state, but I assure her that he can take care of himself.

As we approach the main Hogsmeade square, I notice the grin widening on Ciri's face. I don't think I'll ever forget my first time in Hogsmeade either. Such a cozy place.