Noah was strolling down the long corridors with Terry and Michael, munching on some chocolates his mother had sent.
"Thank your mom for me, these are amazing," Terry said, running his tongue across his front teeth.
Noah nodded, about to reply, when someone called out.
"Noah."
He turned and saw two Gryffindors walking his way—Harry and Ron. Noah smiled, then an idea struck him. Putting on a ridiculous voice, he said:
"Well, well, if it isn't Potter and that idiot Weasley."
Harry and Ron froze for a second before laughing.
"You know," Ron said, "I couldn't tell if you were imitating Snape or Malfoy."
"You said you weren't friends with Potter," Terry whispered behind him.
"Harry, Ron, these are Terry and Michael," Noah said with a wide grin. "Terry's a huge fan of yours, Harry. If you don't mind giving him an autograph…"
"Hey!" Terry punched his shoulder but still asked, "Could you? Please?" looking at Harry.
Noah rolled his eyes. "So, what did you want with me?"
Harry nodded. "We've got flying lessons this week."
"And?"
Noah raised a brow. He could feel they were hiding something.
"We were wondering if you could help us with the History of Magic homework," Ron blurted out.
Now Noah smiled. "Finally, that makes sense."
"Book two, The Politics Behind History," he said, patting Ron's shoulder. "You'll find it in the library."
Ron recoiled as if the very word "library" had cursed him. "Can't you just… let us copy yours?"
Noah shook his head. "Even if I did, no one would believe you wrote it."
"Why not?" the redhead asked, genuinely confused.
"Because you're Gryffindors."
Terry and Michael snickered but quickly held it back—after all, Potter was right there. Noah found that even funnier.
Harry sighed. "Guess we'll have to study on our own, then."
But Terry leaned in. "I'll trade you some notes for an autograph."
Two minutes later, Harry and Ron had a few pages of notes in hand, and Terry was beaming at a parchment signed Harry Potter.
"My mom's going to love this," Terry said, noticing Noah and Michael's stares. "What? It's for my mom."
"We know."
The four of them headed toward the Great Hall. Along the way, plenty of students cast glances their way—though all of them were aimed squarely at Harry.
"Come on, Harry, give your fans a smile," Noah teased.
Harry rolled his eyes. "Why do they do this? I'm nothing special. If they knew I can't even cast a single spell, would it still be the same?"
Noah didn't answer, just turned to Terry. "So, does knowing he can't use a single spell make him less appealing to you?"
"Hey, I don't like him like that," Terry complained, but he still answered, "It wouldn't matter. You wouldn't know this since you grew up in France, but when we say he's a legend in our world, we mean literally."
Ron, who had lived his whole life in the British wizarding world, nodded. "We've got poems, songs, even bedtime stories about him, you know?"
"No way," Noah chuckled. "Tell me one later—I'll sing it next year during the school hymn."
"But I didn't do anything," Harry muttered, not lying. Like he'd said before, all he remembered were faint flashes of green light.
"You are who you are—the one who defeated the Dark Lord."
"You don't actually believe that, do you?" Harry asked. "That I defeated Voldemort?"
Ron froze mid-step, his face pale as a ghost. "Why'd you have to say the name?"
"Oh, Ron, don't be like that," Harry said with a grin. "It's not like he's around to hear us, right?"
Ron was about to explain the wizarding custom of avoiding the name when he noticed a professor walking toward them.
"Good morning, Professor Quirrell," Harry greeted first.
"G-g-g-good m-morning," Quirrell stammered, not breaking stride as he climbed toward the third or fourth floor.
They all greeted him, but once he was gone, they wrinkled their noses at the overpowering smell of garlic.
Noah's gaze lingered on the professor. Activating his Eye of Truth, he saw just how pitiful Quirrell was. His magic looked corrupted, his very essence deteriorating by the second. He was dying. And at the back of his head, the focal point sucking away all his vitality—none other than the Dark Lord himself.
"What is it?" Harry asked, noticing Noah still staring after Quirrell.
"Nothing. Just think he's a bit weird," Noah replied.
"Of course he's weird. He stutters and looks like he's about to faint any second," Terry joked.
"As terrified as Ron when someone says a certain name," Noah added with a laugh.
"Now that's going too far, Noah," Harry said. "You can't compare the two."
"Thanks, Harry," Ron muttered—until he heard the rest.
"Ron looked like he was about to die, not faint."
"Oi!"
When they entered the Great Hall, the tables were already packed. They were about to split up when Ron muttered, "If only I could punch Malfoy…"
Noah's eyes flicked to the Slytherin table. Sure enough, there was Draco, laughing loudly as he mimicked Snape scolding Ron and Harry.
The fact that Harry had ended up in Gryffindor only seemed to intensify the rivalry he already had with Draco from their rocky first meeting.
Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff had taken things in stride, but the Slytherins—who'd been certain Harry would join them—seemed to take it personally.
And under Draco's influence, they never missed a chance to harass Harry.
Noah found the whole dynamic amusing, almost like some invisible script was assigning roles: heroes, villains, and side characters.
"What's your deal with Draco, anyway?" Michael asked, not understanding why they seemed like rivals.
"He's an idiot," Harry said bluntly.
"And his parents were Death Eaters," Ron added, clearly sharing Harry's opinion of Draco.
"Death Eaters," Noah repeated, thinking the name sounded cool.
"If they were Death Eaters, shouldn't they have been arrested or something?" Michael asked. Being half-blood, he seemed a bit clueless about some things—maybe his wizarding parent hadn't explained much.
"They should've, but they claimed they were under the Imperius Curse," Ron explained. "And they're filthy rich. Very, very rich."
"Money and politics," Noah mused. "That's all it is. A few donations here, a few favors there… and suddenly crimes are forgotten, people are pardoned, lies are accepted. The same cycle that keeps the world spinning."
"No one ever tried to take justice into their own hands?" Noah asked, leaving everyone quiet.
"What? Just asking." He shrugged, letting the topic drop. Still, it was obvious the first wizarding war still echoed strongly in society—politics, pure-blood families, and grudges passed down to the younger generation.
After hearing it all, the one undeniable truth was this: Voldemort had truly been powerful and influential. Even now, a decade after his fall, the mere mention of his name could send shivers through the wizarding world.
They split off to their own tables. That evening, a shocking bit of news swept through the castle.
"Harry Potter's the new Gryffindor Seeker?!" Michael sputtered, spraying pumpkin juice everywhere.
Noah laughed and handed Terry a napkin, whose face was dripping wet.
"Sorry," Michael said. "It was just… shocking."
"See, Terry? Your autograph's worth even more now," Noah teased.
"I'm not selling it," Terry huffed, then muttered, "It's for my mom, anyway…"
The rest of the evening passed quietly. Noah read through the letters his family had sent and wrote back.
And so, his life at Hogwarts began. For someone addicted to magic, the castle was endlessly fascinating. Everywhere he looked, there was something enchanted. The very walls themselves seemed alive.
In class, he was quickly making a name for himself—"the genius first-year," people called him.
With each passing lesson, Noah grew bolder, asking professors questions. He always started simple, then slipped in more advanced ones once the conversation flowed.
Some professors refused to answer, reminding him to take things slow. But he got lucky with Flitwick. The half-goblin hadn't taught them any spells yet in class, but he liked Noah, often inviting him to his office for tea, answering questions, and handing out house points like candy whenever Noah showed sharp insight.
It didn't take long for Noah to realize two reasons behind Flitwick's kindness.
First, Noah was a prodigy—an investment worth making.
Second, Noah was all that and a Ravenclaw, which Flitwick secretly knew was McGonagall's regret. The half-goblin never missed a chance to tease her about his tea sessions with Noah, where they discussed advanced magic.
Flitwick and McGonagall were good friends, but this only fueled their friendly rivalry. McGonagall's counter was her own card for the year—her brand-new Seeker, Harry Potter.
Speaking of Harry, Noah often spotted him with Ron. Now Harry spent his free time studying Quidditch and practicing constantly.
He'd even invited Noah to watch a practice sometime. Noah said maybe, if he had time—but he wasn't exactly a huge sports fan.
What caught Noah's attention was how Harry sometimes seemed like he wanted to tell him something, but always backed out. Noah could guess, of course. They'd probably stumbled into the third-floor corridor and seen the three-headed dog.
As for why Harry didn't confide in him… Noah couldn't blame him. He'd be cautious too, after accidentally uncovering such a secret.
But something about it all felt odd to Noah—the relationship between Harry, Ron, and Hermione.
From what he remembered, the three weren't supposed to be this close yet. In fact, the third-floor incident should've driven them apart.
Instead, the opposite happened. They were seen together more often than not. Noah had even caught them twice, reading together in the Great Hall.
After a few days of observation, Noah figured out why.
First, Ron wasn't nearly as dumb as the books had painted him. He didn't constantly pick on Hermione, nor act like a complete jerk.
Second, Hermione wasn't quite as insufferable. When she noticed she was talking too much, she made an effort to shut up.
Combine that with McGonagall reminding Harry to keep his grades up if he wanted to stay on the team, and the trio naturally came together earlier than expected.
And of course, there was Violet.
The redhead was clever, making her a natural friend for Hermione. She also had a knack for balancing Harry and Ron's personalities, keeping them from acting like idiots.
So, by sticking with Violet, Hermione became close with the boys too.
Noah didn't mind. At least Harry and Ron weren't pestering him for notes. And with things turning out this way, he quietly pushed the troll incident further down his list of priorities…
A decision that would prove to be a terrible mistake.