A loud, piercing meow suddenly echoed down the hall. Harry and the others, huddled under the Invisibility Cloak, jumped out of their skins.
They froze, pressing themselves against the wall, praying Mrs. Norris would just saunter past.
But no such luck. The sleek cat padded straight over, rubbed against Sean's legs, and let out a triumphant yowl.
Justin shot Sean a knowing look. Harry, Ron, and Hermione stopped breathing entirely.
"We're busted… we're getting expelled…"
Harry's mind was spiraling.
He'd barely survived one year. Any minute now he'd be packing his trunk and heading back to the Dursleys. What would they say when he showed up on the doorstep?
"Harry, don't say that…"
Hermione was white as a sheet but still trying to keep it together for him.
"I'm starving… do you think I can at least get one last meal at Hogwarts?"
Ron muttered, totally dazed.
"Ron—"
Hermione glared.
"I'm serious. I'm really hungry."
Ron had officially given up.
Then, out of nowhere, everything flipped.
Sean slowly dropped his concealment charm, scratched Mrs. Norris behind one soft paw, and traded a quick glance with Justin.
Justin pulled a whole tin of silverfish treats from his bag. Mrs. Norris gave a smug little huff in Harry's direction, snatched the treats in her teeth, and trotted off.
"I should've known—Mrs. Norris is basically Sean's pet at this point…"
Ron whispered, relief flooding through him like a tidal wave.
"Let's go—now!"
Harry snapped out of it, suddenly desperate to get Norbert out of the castle.
"Almost there!"
They reached the corridor just below the tallest tower. Harry was panting.
The spiral staircase up to the tower felt like the easiest climb in the world. Four brooms swooped down; Norbert's crate got tied up by a group of cheerful wizards from Charlie's team.
They swore the ropes were enchanted—Norbert couldn't possibly escape—and told the kids to say their goodbyes.
Under the starry sky, Sean locked eyes with Norbert. He walked over, and the little dragon gently bumped foreheads with him.
Sean quietly stuck a little tracking button onto Norbert's scales, then watched the four brooms disappear into the night.
Norbert was gone… Sean stared down the empty corridor.
Filch wasn't around, Malfoy hadn't been caught lurking, and it looked like the night-time adventure would stay secret. Sean waved goodbye to Justin and the others—he had a ritual to "ponder" before morning.
Night slipped away fast.
The next day, Sean was heading from the Great Hall to the Alchemy office. He needed to talk dragon rituals with Professor Tela and hunt down McGonagall's notes on dragon anatomy.
But then he saw Professor McGonagall take the staff table with the mother of all scowls.
Sean glanced toward the doors. A crowd of little wizards was buzzing around the hourglasses.
"How did we lose a hundred and fifty points overnight?!"
He heard a Gryffindor shout.
McGonagall wasted no time announcing Harry, Ron, and Hermione's midnight escapade to the whole school.
Turns out Malfoy had gone looking for them—and got caught by McGonagall instead. Then he ratted out Harry without a second thought. The trio got nabbed right outside the Gryffindor common room by a furious professor.
"I am appalled," McGonagall said, voice shaking with anger.
"Three students out of bed in one night! I've never heard of such a thing! Miss Granger, I thought you had more sense. Mr. Potter, I thought Gryffindor meant something to you.
All three of you will serve detention—no matter the reason, you have no business wandering the castle in the middle of the night. It's dangerous. Gryffindor loses fifty points."
"Fifty?"
Harry couldn't breathe. They'd just caught up to Slytherin after the Quidditch match!
"Fifty each!"
McGonagall's long nose practically flared.
That was the sentence Harry regretted most.
Even the Gryffindors who'd been cheering against them didn't know what to say. Hermione looked baffled that Harry had opened his mouth at all.
Harry was instantly persona non grata.
Ron fared a little better—his name wasn't quite as big. Hermione was mad at herself, clamming up in class and burying herself in Hope Cabin study sessions.
No surprise—they hated themselves, hated snitch Malfoy, but never once blamed Hagrid or breathed a word about the dragon.
"They know they screwed up. They're beating themselves up, but they didn't sell out Hagrid or spill about Norbert," Justin murmured to Sean.
"You know what my mum would say?
Never throw someone under the bus to save your own skin—that's integrity. That's courage.
And you know what I say?"
Justin glanced at Sean, then leaned in and whispered something.
Sean thought for a second and nodded.
Harry and the others were super sensitive to what people thought of them. Justin's idea wasn't half bad.
"Professor—I was night-wandering too! And Sean! Sean was there!"
Justin charged forward like a kamikaze truck, leaving every professor at the staff table stunned.
"Mr. Finch-Fletchley, oh—"
Professor Sprout dabbed at her eyes, like she'd just figured out the plan.
"I'm taking fifty points from Hufflepuff!"
"Mr. Green—really—"
Professor Flitwick pretended to be furious, dragged Sean over, then winked like, "Don't worry, kid—we'll earn them back in no time."
And boom—Ravenclaw lost fifty too.
Suddenly every house had taken a huge hit (Malfoy lost points as well), and Harry and company weren't public enemy number one anymore.
McGonagall was livid. She hauled Sean off immediately.
Before, everywhere Harry went people pointed and whispered insults loud enough for him to hear.
Slytherins clapped and cheered whenever he passed: "Thanks for the help, Potter!"
Now the hot gossip was that Sean Green—perfect, golden boy Sean Green—had lost points for the first time ever.
Nobody could believe a kid that talented would break rules.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione just stood there, completely shell-shocked. Harry's eyes stung; everything was blurry.
Hermione clapped a hand over her mouth to keep from crying. Ron stared at the floor, shoulders shaking—he didn't even know why.
Justin got mobbed by a pack of angry Badgers. He meekly promised to put together the ultimate first-year Herbology guide by the end of term, and only then did they let him go.
"Looks like I've got my work cut out for me, huh?"
He gave them a warm smile.
The trio was speechless—too overwhelmed to even pretend that was a bad joke.