Chapter 124: Advanced Transfiguration Guide
The academic pressure in third year was far heavier than in the first two.
After all, several new subjects had been added, and the existing courses had grown much more advanced and complex.
Many third-years grumbled about it, complaining that the workload and homework cut into their time for Quidditch and other extracurriculars...
Jon himself didn’t feel much pressure, though the heavier workload did eat into his time in the Room of Requirement.
It wasn’t until Thursday afternoon, after his first Ancient Runes class, that he hurried up to the eighth floor for the first time this term.
As he neared the Room of Requirement, he suddenly saw a chattering group of Gryffindors coming from his right.
Jon quickly averted his gaze to the portrait opposite the Room—the one of a troll thrashing Barnabas the Barmy—and pretended to admire it.
Barnabas the Barmy was a “famous” wizard who once made the foolish attempt to teach a troll ballet; during the attempt, the tutu-clad troll clobbered him on the head with its club... The portrait captured that very moment.
“Raar!” The troll in the portrait clearly noticed Jon. It turned and roared at him.
The roar drew others’ attention.
“Jon?” a clear voice called from within the Gryffindor group.
A petite girl broke away from the crowd and ran over to him.
“You lot go on ahead!” she waved to her classmates. “I’ll wait here a bit!”
Jon’s mouth twitched, but he turned and greeted her. “Good afternoon, Natalie!”
...
“How have you been settling in these past few days?” Jon asked, stumbling a little as he tried to sound concerned.
“It’s been great!” Natalie clasped her hands and beamed. “I’ve never eaten so many delicious things so freely, or slept in such a big bed. Professor McGonagall’s been really kind to me too...”
“Right...” Jon suddenly remembered the girl came from a poor neighborhood in East London.
Compared to what she’d been through, life at Hogwarts must feel like paradise.
“Are you looking at this painting?” Natalie’s gaze shifted to the portrait before them.
The troll in the tutu seemed to notice a new spectator—baring its teeth and roaring at her.
Caught off guard, the little girl staggered back in fright.
Thankfully, Jon reached out in time to steady her.
“Thanks!” Natalie wiped the sweat from her face. “The portraits, the staircases, the statues here are all so strange... they keep popping out and scaring me!”
“You’ll get used to it,” Jon said casually. “Natalie, want me to see you back to the Gryffindor common room?”
“No...” She quickly shook her head and changed the subject. “Where are you going now... I heard the Hufflepuff common room is down in the dungeons?”
Trying to act casual, Jon glanced at the wall behind them—the entrance to the Room of Requirement was right there—then said slowly, “That’s right, under the castle... I’m here to find Professor Flitwick and ask him something...”
He made up an excuse on the spot.
“Professor Flitwick?” Natalie blinked thoughtfully. “Can I come with you? I’ve got something I want to ask him too!”
Jon felt a headache coming on—as though he’d picked up a shadow he couldn’t shake off...
As they headed toward Professor Flitwick’s office near the West Tower, Natalie chattered nonstop.
“Ginny Weasley told me you’ve been top of your year since you first started!” she asked curiously. “Is that true?”
“I guess... yeah...” Jon replied vaguely.
“That’s amazing...” Natalie breathed. “How did you do it... I always feel like I’m a step behind those kids from wizarding families!”
“Well... maybe I’m just more diligent...”
“Professor Sprout sang your praises in Herbology!” Natalie added. “She said you’re the most gifted student she’s ever seen in herbology... Professor Snape praised you too, but I can’t remember when...”
Being flattered like this—especially by such a cute little girl—wasn’t unpleasant.
Still, Jon didn’t let it go to his head and kept his wits about him.
A dozen yards from Professor Flitwick’s office, Jon suddenly smacked his forehead.
“Sorry, Natalie,” he said gravely. “I just remembered—I left my Spellman’s Syllabary in the Runes classroom... Sorry, I’ll have to dash!”
With that, he hurried back the way he’d come.
Natalie Pavlov watched his retreating back, pouting in displeasure. After a moment, she turned and headed, disappointed, toward the Gryffindor common room.
...
Finally rid of her, Jon hurried back to the portrait of the Troll Whacking Barnabas the Barmy.
Seizing a moment when no one was around, he slipped through the wall into the Room of Requirement.
The familiar little room unfolded before him...
Jon sank onto a cushion, opened his backpack, and dumped all his books onto the floor.
Among them, a slightly worn and unfamiliar volume landed conspicuously right in front of him.
Jon frowned. It was the book Zacharias-Smith had asked him to return to the library: Advanced Transfiguration Guide.
Curiosity piqued, he picked up the restricted-section volume and gently opened it.
He soon found a bookmark, the letters ZS scrawled on it in rough ink.
The page it marked was the chapter on Animagus.
Jon’s eyes fell on the opening lines:
“WARNING! Becoming an Animagus requires exceptional aptitude in both Transfiguration and Potions... Animagus transformation is an extremely dangerous form of magic. Failure at any stage may result in severe physical or psychological consequences. Attempt only after registering with the Ministry of Magic and under the supervision of a Transfiguration instructor...”
Jon set the Advanced Transfiguration Guide aside, lost in brief contemplation.
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