"How much can that thing even eat?"
Inside the Gryffindor common room, Ron gawked in disbelief at Neville's little Snorlax, which sat before a mountain of food that could rival the height of a wardrobe.
"How many baskets is that now?" Fred asked, twisting around.
"The third," said George. "At this point, we might as well move the whole kitchen up here!"
Just moments ago, the little Snorlax had devoured two entire piles of food like a living vacuum cleaner. It had eaten at least three to five times its own body size, yet its belly didn't bulge in the slightest. The twins half-considered telling Neville where the kitchen was so he could just let it loose.
"This Pokémon is a Munchlax. The Snorlax from last year's textbook is its evolved form," Hermione explained, flipping open her book. "It eats an amount of food equal to its own body weight every single day."
"Equal to its body weight? He's eaten at least five times that much already!" Ron objected immediately.
"That's exactly the point. Munchlax weighs about a hundred kilograms," Hermione replied, closing the book with a snap.
Though the little Pokémon barely stood half a meter tall, its density was staggering—and so was its appetite.
"It's going to eat you out of house and home, Neville! A hundred kilos of food—Merlin's beard, my whole family of nine couldn't finish that much!" Fred exclaimed.
"It's fine. You lot forgot about the Doubling Charm, didn't you? I only need to prepare one serving and can multiply it infinitely," Neville said calmly. He didn't seem the least bit concerned; his family wasn't exactly poor like the Weasleys.
"I'd say you're lucky, Neville. Once it evolves—"
Ron was about to comment on Snorlax's power when the little Munchlax, belly full, gave a satisfied pat, plopped down, and promptly began snoring, a bubble forming from its nose.
George finished Ron's sentence: "—it'll eat even more."
Everyone burst into laughter.
"I have to admit, it reminds me of you when you first came to Hogwarts," Seamus chuckled from the corner. He had just caught a Voltorb today, though the thing's temper was so volatile that even he didn't dare let it out often.
"Guess we're all the same," Neville laughed good-naturedly.
"Anyway, what do you reckon the professor's going to announce?"
"My guess is—"
"This semester, the Pokémon Mastery Course will be joined by a new assistant instructor."
Inside the club hall, more than a hundred young witches and wizards turned their eyes to the man standing beside Charles—a tall, slightly tanned fellow with a shock of white hair that made him look unmistakably aged.
Originally, Charles had planned to disguise himself as Professor Kukui, but after some thought, he decided that Professor Oak would be a better fit.
"Professor Oak?" Harry frowned in surprise, instinctively blurting out the name.
"Who?" Ron and Hermione turned toward him at once.
"How do you know him?"
In fact, quite a few students were now looking at Harry, assuming he must be familiar with the stranger.
"What? Don't you know? Didn't you see it over the summer?" Harry asked, astonished. "Dudley got a comic book for his birthday. I snuck a look—and this man was in it!"
"Comic book? I don't read comic books," Hermione said primly, unimpressed by the idea that such things could qualify as "books."
Still, Harry's words piqued her curiosity.
If what he said were true, then how could a man from a drawing appear in the real world?If an animated mouse suddenly popped out saying it was Jerry, that would be absurd beyond belief!
"Wait—what are you two talking about? What's a comic?" Ron asked, baffled. For the first time, he felt an uncrossable gulf between himself and his friends.
"It's like… a picture story," Hermione explained.
"Oh. Got it."
He nodded quickly—just as Professor Oak stepped forward, coughed lightly, and began, "Good morning, everyone. My name is Professor Samuel Oak. I'm a Pokémon researcher from the Pokémon World—"
"You were right, Harry! He really is called Oak—and he's a professor!" Ron exclaimed.
"But… that's impossible, isn't it?" Harry murmured. "A comic book character can't be real."
Though he'd recognized the man's name, part of him still refused to believe it. Hermione, however, wore an expression of dawning comprehension.
"No wonder… that explains everything."
"What did you figure out?" Ron asked, giving up entirely on following along.
"Be quiet and listen!" Hermione hissed, afraid to miss a single word.
"I bet she doesn't know either," Ron muttered under his breath to Harry, who tried not to laugh, both turning their attention back to the stage.
"Starting this term, I'll be assisting Professor Charles Gold in teaching your course," Professor Oak continued. "This semester, our club's focus will shift more toward practical experience. Classes will be held in another 'Hogwarts'—located within the Pokémon Nature Reserve."
The entire hall erupted in whispers.
"Another Hogwarts?"
"How could that be possible?"
"Where did the professor find this lunatic—and why's he teaching us?" Seamus fumed.He felt they were being made fools of. There couldn't possibly be another Hogwarts!
"Maybe there really is one," Hermione said suddenly.
"You've lost it," Ron muttered worriedly.
"No—didn't you hear him say he's from the Pokémon World?" Hermione pressed on impatiently. "I've long wondered where the professor's Pokémon came from. Now it all makes sense—they're not conjured by magic at all! They're from another world entirely—the Pokémon World!"
She adjusted her curls and added, with conviction, "It's a parallel world—one similar to ours, but not quite the same."
"That's mad. I've never heard of such a theory," Ron said firmly. "And there's no way there's another Hogwarts! Even if he said it's inside the Reserve—you've been there, haven't you? Plains, snowfields, deserts, sure—but no castle!"
"Ron's right," Harry agreed. "The Reserve was built by Dumbledore and Professor Gold. A castle appearing there out of nowhere? Impossible."
"You're forgetting," Hermione countered, "that the Reserve didn't have Pokémon at first either. When we went last year, there were only half as many species as now!"
Her argument was sound—but others in the crowd didn't really care about the logic.
"You hear that, George?"
"Loud and clear, Fred."
The twins exchanged excited grins.
"This is brilliant! I can't wait to see this other Hogwarts!"
"Think our secret gadgets will work there?"
"Only one way to find out!"
They raised their hands in unison and shouted, "Professor! When can we go to the other Hogwarts?"
"Right now," Charles replied with a smile, flicking his wand.
A shimmering doorway appeared before them. With his magic, the space beyond connected directly to the Reserve. Over a hundred students rushed forward—and beyond the threshold, they saw it: a black-walled castle standing by a vast, glimmering lake.
"Whoa…"
A cool breeze drifted from the water. On the shore, Harry noticed several "beaver-like" creatures startled by their arrival, diving into the lake with a splash.
"Those are Bibarel," Hermione said automatically—this time not even needing her book.
"Or we could just call one of them you," Ron teased recklessly.
Hermione shot him a glare that could curdle milk.
Idiot Ron! My teeth aren't that big!
While everyone looked around in awe, Fred and George were already stripping off their robes, ready to dive into the water.
"What are you two doing?" Percy groaned, pressing his hand to his forehead. His brothers were going to be the death of him.
"We're checking for the giant squid!"
"And mermaids!"
"Get back here!" Percy barked.
They did—but not because they wanted to obey him. From across the lake, several figures were approaching.
A gentle Lapras glided across the surface, carrying several people dressed like Professor Oak.
"You brought them here already, Professor Oak?" one of them called. Dressed casually, Professor Kukui waved energetically before diving into the lake. "Let me show you the power of Aqua Jet!"
He swam faster than the Lapras itself, surging to shore in a single burst.
"This is Professor Kukui," Charles said, smiling. "He's an expert in Pokémon battle techniques. If you're curious about move mechanics or strategy, he's your man."
As a Pokémon Mastery course, the club had been letting students battle freely—but it was time they learned about moves, Abilities, and more advanced concepts.
This semester, Charles had decided to introduce real lectures: the relationships between Pokémon and humans, breeding, evolution, habitats, origins, techniques, ecology…Just a few modest topics.
In truth, the curriculum was quite light.
Soon, several other professors disembarked, each introducing themselves one by one under the curious stares of the young wizards.
"All right," said Professor Oak at last. "Why don't we take a little tour inside the castle?"
He released his Blastoise, whose broad shell gleamed like polished armor. One by one, Water-type Pokémon surfaced, forming a small fleet ready to ferry the students across.
"This feels just like our first year at Hogwarts!"
Excited cheers broke out.Back then, first-years rode boats across the lake to the castle—to honor the Founders themselves.Now, they were doing it again, heading toward another Hogwarts altogether.
"Quite an experience, isn't it?" came a familiar voice.
The crowd turned—and gasped. Dumbledore stood among them, though his appearance was different. He wore a crisp suit instead of purple robes, looking as youthful as he might have half a century ago.
"Professor Dumbledore!"
"Yes, that's me," he said pleasantly. "Though not your Dumbledore—rather, the one from the Pokémon World."
He lied with such perfect ease that one might almost believe him.
Of course, few did. Fred and George exchanged a look; if not for the crowd, they'd already be checking the Marauder's Map to see if there really were two Dumbledores.
"In any case, welcome to the Hogwarts Pokémon Academy," he said warmly. "Our professors will guide you through the castle. I trust you'll find it… enlightening."
It seemed he'd only come to see the arrival of the academy's first group of students—his "masterpiece."
Soon, the professors began ferrying the children across the water on their Water-type companions.
Before long, only Charles and Dumbledore remained by the shore.
"You hid the diary properly, didn't you?" Charles asked.
"Diary?" Dumbledore blinked innocently.
"Tom Riddle's diary."
"Oh, that one?" Dumbledore mused. "You mean the boy accused of awakening that ancient dark Pokémon? I always believed he was innocent. In fact, after he died heroically fighting the wicked Trainer Charles Gold, I held great respect for him."
"Now, with the castle once again under the shadow of that dark power, I only hope these students can uncover the culprit!"
Charles: "…"
"This is your script?"
"Not bad, isn't it? I'd say it rivals that prophecy of yours."
"I'd say it's a disaster," Charles replied dryly. "And some of this contradicts what you told Tom before, doesn't it?"
"There are minor discrepancies," Dumbledore admitted cheerfully. "But don't worry—I've found some help."
He raised his hand and waved. From the trees stepped a wizard dressed like a nobleman, wearing robes the color of forget-me-nots and perfectly groomed golden hair.
"Ah—ah! Hello there, Mr. Charles Gold!" the man greeted with dazzling enthusiasm."I've long wanted to meet you!"
Gilderoy Lockhart flashed his trademark smile—brilliant, blinding, and entirely insincere.
(End of Chapter)