"You'll learn it eventually," Wade said, taking back his homework and raising an eyebrow. "You should do your own work."
He watched Carlyle scratch his head over the homework, smirking gleefully. Then, as the boy ran a hand through his hair, his sleeve slid down, revealing a long, thin, dark mark on his arm.
Wade's eyes narrowed slightly.
He knew it was a whip mark.
Sometimes, Wade couldn't quite figure it out. After Carlyle was "educated" by Dumbledore, had he truly abandoned his old ways and become a normal student?
Or was he still loyal to The Organization, and everything he said and did now was merely following their orders?
It was clear he hadn't been treated well by them, but in their daily interactions, there was no sign of the past trauma.
It had been about ten days since he entered Hogwarts. The students' curiosity about the transfer student had largely faded, and Carlyle was thriving in Gryffindor, getting along well with students from other houses too.
But in all this time, he had never once mentioned his parents.
Wade had asked Ralph and learned that Carlyle hadn't secretly used the school's owls to send letters to the Johnsons, nor had he asked the headmaster to pass on a message. It was as if those once intimately close family members were just passing strangers in his life.
He couldn't understand it, but for now, all he could do was treat Carlyle as a normal classmate and observe him gradually.
Carlyle suddenly looked up and asked, "What's wrong? You keep looking at me…"
"You've got ink on your face," Wade said.
"What? Where?"
Wade pointed, and Carlyle quickly wiped his face with the back of his hand.
…
After dinner, Wade transfigured an old kerosene lamp canister and a cup into a food container. He and Harry took a generous meal and headed to the Hospital Wing.
Lupin had returned to his human form and had a private room there.
The injuries inflicted by Hagrid had healed, but his bodily functions had been somewhat damaged, and he had also undergone a full moon transformation during that time, making him very weak. He could only consume liquids and spent most of his time in a stupor.
A few days ago, Madam Pomfrey had restricted their visiting hours, allowing them only a brief visit each day, with almost no chance to talk to him.
But in recent days, Lupin's condition had improved rapidly. Yesterday, Madam Pomfrey even told them they could prepare some normal food for him.
Reaching the door to the room, Harry knocked, then heard Lupin's voice say, "Come in."
The door opened.
Lupin sat on the hospital bed, frowning miserably and clutching a steaming cup that emitted a foul, pungent odor. Wade not only felt suffocated but also felt his eyes being attacked by the smell.
He didn't hesitate to cast a Bubble-Head Charm on himself and immediately felt better.
Harry quickly grabbed his arm. "Please, Wade, help me out…"
Wade cast a Bubble-Head Charm on him too.
With transparent fishbowls seemingly over their heads, filled with fresh air, they both took several deep breaths in unison, finally feeling alive again.
"Remus, what is this?" Harry asked with difficulty. "Is it wastewater from a chemical plant?"
"What's a chemical plant… Oh, this is a healing potion."
Lupin closed his eyes, tilted his head back, and took a sip, then shivered and made a pained expression.
Harry looked at Lupin with a mix of awe and dread. Just smelling that, he never wanted to drink that kind of Potions in his life.
Wade said sympathetically, "Remus, I brought dessert. Do you want some?"
Harry quickly put his own food container on the table too. "Yeah, and pumpkin juice!"
"No, this Potions will taste even worse if mixed with sugar. I've already tried."
Lupin looked as if the past was too painful to recall. He held his breath and, with great determination, finally gulped down the Potions in one go.
Then he started to shiver, as if he were very cold.
Wade took the cup from his hand and looked at the tar-like Potions clinging to the inside of the cup, feeling a sense of dread himself.
He tapped a clean cup nearby with his Wand, and clear water immediately surged up, filling it in an instant.
Lupin drank the entire cup of water and felt a little better.
Seeing both children looking at him worriedly, Lupin made a face and said, "It tastes awful."
Harry couldn't help but laugh.
Wade opened the window and cast a small whirlwind spell to sweep the terrible smell out of the room before dispelling the Bubble-Head Charm.
Lupin didn't have much appetite for dinner for the time being. He sat on the bed, cherishing the time he had to talk to the two of them.
"Madam Pomfrey is even stricter than when I was in school," Lupin said. "I'm practically bored to death staying here all day. Luckily, you two came to see me."
Harry quickly said, "I'll come tomorrow too. We have time after lunch tomorrow — right, Wade?"
"Mhm," Wade simply said, casting a Scouring Charm on the cup as he spoke.
"It's a shame I don't have any tea to offer you – Harry, I heard your Divination Class wasn't very pleasant?" Lupin asked.
"Even you heard about it?" Harry spread his hands, unconcerned. "I don't think Sirius is a Grim. We all know Professor Trelawney loves to spout nonsense."
At first, he really was scared, but after two or three days, the shock faded. Harry just thought seeing the Grim in the tea leaves was a coincidence, and he even found Professor Trelawney's exaggerated reaction a bit funny.
Lupin chuckled. "I underestimated you… I was worried you'd be frightened."
"Nothing to be afraid of," Harry shrugged, acting completely unconcerned. "Before I even chose the class, I knew Professor Trelawney was a quack."
"Remus, what did those people inject you with?" Wade asked. "Why did it make you transform before your time?"
Hearing this, Harry also looked over with concern. "Yeah, what kind of Potion was it?"
"It wasn't a Potion," Lupin frowned. "Snape confirmed that it wasn't any known Potion, but it's more potent than most Potions…"
"Snape?" Harry said, surprised.
"Yes, he helped investigate and did a lot of work, and even kindly brewed a healing draught for me," Lupin said. "He's truly an expert in this field."
Harry immediately turned to look at the cup on the table, finding it already clean. He muttered to himself, "I think I know what that taste was all about…"
Wade wasn't bothered by their conversation and continued to ask, "So? Did no one figure out what it was?"
"No, they did," Lupin said. "Snape visited scholars at a Muggle university, and they confirmed it's something called a 'Hormone,' and it's a previously undiscovered type."
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