Chapter 223: Cedric: Are You a God?
Cedric took the small notebook Dylan casually handed him, opened it, and his eyes widened. "How did you... I mean, you already know this spell?"
Dylan nodded. "It's actually not that complicated to learn. This notebook was given to me by a professor, and it has very detailed instructions. I've also written down some of my own insights. You can study it when you have time."
Cedric's throat felt dry. This kind of spell... how could Dylan, a third-year student, already know it? He couldn't help but be shocked.
And what was even more surprising was that Dylan was a third-year now. It was impossible for him to have just learned Occlumency this year. It must have been in the first half of the year, or even last semester or the semester before...
Had the professors already deemed Dylan capable of learning Occlumency? This was a bit too much. He was about to graduate, yet the professors had never said a word about teaching him Occlumency.
In fact, unless you had a very close relationship with a professor or had an extremely outstanding talent, it was difficult to learn some of the most advanced spells. And in the normal Hogwarts curriculum, there were no overly complex spells. Wizards who wanted to learn these spells would either learn them through family teachings, like Malfoy, who learned Occlumency from his aunt Bellatrix Lestrange, or they could find these advanced spells and learning methods in private libraries or the Restricted Section of the Hogwarts library.
The third way was for adult wizards to join magical societies after graduation. They could also learn advanced spells not taught at the school by exchanging them in these societies, or at magical markets or black markets.
But now, Dylan had just casually pulled out a notebook for him that contained detailed instructions on how to practice Occlumency.
Cedric swallowed. "Can... can I learn it?"
Dylan asked, "Why can't you learn it?"
"Ahem, no reason." Cedric coughed slightly.
Dylan said, "You know that the spell that Occlumency can counter is Legilimency, and Voldemort has a very high level of control over Legilimency." He continued, "If you ever meet him, even if he hasn't fully returned yet, if you don't have a defense, he can still probe your mind at will."
Cedric nodded heavily, his expression touched. "Thank you. I can't believe you're willing to tell me all this."
He knew that Dylan was aware of the things about the Dark Lord not only because he had very powerful divination skills, but also because the events of the past two years were basically related to Harry. As Harry's roommate, Dylan must have known some things. Cedric was sure that Headmaster Dumbledore must have told them not to spread this information to anyone.
But now, Dylan was still risking being disciplined by Headmaster Dumbledore to tell him about it. Although the information wasn't complete, and Dylan hadn't explained the details about Voldemort, only telling him that he wasn't completely dead and might return, Cedric was still very moved. With this information, he had more time to prepare.
"It's nothing. When Voldemort really returns, everyone will know anyway. I'm just telling you in advance," Dylan said, waving his hand. "Besides being able to defend against others' probing, Occlumency can also help you clear your own cluttered thoughts."
Dylan looked at Cedric. "I think this should be perfect for your current situation."
"Yes, I'll work hard to learn it," Cedric said, but his expression was a bit conflicted. "But what if..." He continued, "What if I can't learn it? Or what if I do learn it but can't hold out against Vol I mean, the Dark Lord? What then?"
Dylan rolled his eyes. "What then? You'll be a goner."
Cedric was speechless.
"Alright, alright, I won't talk nonsense with you anymore. Go and learn it. This spell is very simple. I learned it in a few days," Dylan said, waving his hand. "And your talent is not bad. I believe you'll figure it out in less than ten days..."
"I'll learn it?" Cedric's eyes lit up.
"No," Dylan shook his head. "You'll have a clue."
"..."
Dylan raised his hand and patted Cedric on the shoulder. "Go back. I'm going to eat."
Dylan finished his meal in the Great Hall and planned to go back to the dormitory to read. However, as he passed the Hospital Wing, he decided to drop by. After all, they were roommates, and he should show some concern. But before he even reached the main entrance of the Hospital Wing, he heard a voice.
"That's enough! Stop disturbing Mr. Potter! Get out! He needs to rest quiet rest!"
Then, Dylan saw Madam Pomfrey shooing Ron and Hermione out of the Hospital Wing.
Dylan blinked and walked over. Madam Pomfrey looked at him. When she saw it was Dylan, her expression softened a little, but she still frowned. "Child, are you also here to visit Harry? I'd like to say yes, but you're too late..."
Dylan didn't wait for Madam Pomfrey to finish. He reached into his bag and took out a few pieces of fruit in a bag. He handed the bag to Madam Pomfrey. "These are some fresh fruits and vegetables. Please give them to Harry for me. I won't go in. I think he needs some time alone to heal his emotional wounds."
Hearing Dylan's words, Madam Pomfrey's expression softened. "Yes, facing those ugly things is always a torment. At times like this, too many people chattering nearby will only give the patient a headache." As she spoke, Madam Pomfrey glanced at Ron and Hermione, her words pointed. The two of them lowered their heads and didn't dare to make a sound. "I'll accept these for Mr. Potter. Now, you should all go back. I don't think Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger have eaten yet."
When the two of them didn't speak, Madam Pomfrey said bluntly, "Alright, go eat. Don't stay here and disturb the patient's recovery." After she finished speaking, Madam Pomfrey turned around and quietly closed the door to the Hospital Wing. The movement was quick but gentle, and the door made no sound.
Ron's face fell. He looked at the closed door of the Hospital Wing in front of him, but he couldn't do anything. He just shook his head and sighed, then turned to look at Dylan. "Harry must be so sad right now. He really needs me by his side to talk to him, or at least to comfort him, right?"
Hermione, who had been arguing with Ron for a while, seemed to have made up with him again. She nodded, agreeing with Ron's words. "Yes, Harry definitely needs me to stay by his side!"
Ron turned away in disagreement. "It's me! Harry needs me!"
Hermione glared at him. "You're too loud. Unlike me, who speaks softly, Harry doesn't need you."
Ron's eyes widened. "Your voice is sharp and shrill! Harry's eyebrows were furrowed when you were talking to him!"
Hermione rolled her eyes. "He was clearly frowning when he was listening to you."
Just as Ron was about to continue arguing with Hermione, Dylan interrupted. "Alright, I think it's because you two were arguing in front of Harry like this that you were bothering him."
Dylan's words made them both stop. They were a little embarrassed but had to admit it. It seemed they had indeed argued for a while in the Hospital Wing earlier. Well, just for a little while.
Ron pursed his lips and said, "Dylan, where were you just now? You took so long to get here. If you had come a little earlier, you could have joined the others, and maybe with you here, we could have talked to Harry for a little longer."
"Uh, I went to eat," Dylan said.
"What?" Ron turned his head blankly, as if he hadn't heard Dylan clearly, his eyes blinking non-stop. "You... you went to eat just now? While Harry was unconscious from being scared by a Dementor?"
Dylan's slight embarrassment quickly passed. "Yeah. Anyway, being here would only bother Harry, so I went to fill my stomach first."
"But..." Ron wanted to say something more but didn't know what to say.
"But what? Although Dylan didn't come here just to chat with Harry, at least he brought him something." Hermione scoffed. "And there were so many people here just now, and you were here too. Did your comfort make Harry feel any better? I don't think so." She continued, "On the other hand, Dylan specially brought fruit, which at least Harry can eat to get some nutrients and recover faster."
Ron was annoyed again. "It's not like you were any use. Your comfort was useless, too, and you didn't bring any gifts."
Dylan rubbed his forehead. "Alright, there's no difference between visiting a patient without a gift and just offering a few words of comfort, or bringing a gift and not saying much. They're all meant to show that you want the patient to get better."
With Dylan acting as a mediator, Ron and Hermione finally stopped arguing. They went to eat, and Dylan returned to his dormitory.
Harry wasn't actually badly hurt. He was just a little emotionally unwell after facing the Dementors. Harry wanted to leave on Sunday morning, but Madam Pomfrey didn't allow it. She insisted that Harry stay in the Hospital Wing for observation. Dylan didn't have any feelings about this. He didn't interact with Harry much anyway. Or rather, he didn't interact with anyone else much. But Harry's absence made Ron miss him for two whole days. Dylan even felt that for two nights this weekend, Ron was tossing and turning in bed, as if he were suffering from lovesickness.
On Monday, Harry was finally "discharged." Professor Lupin was also "discharged" and back to teaching the morning's Defence Against the Dark Arts class. So, they didn't have to be taught by Professor Snape again today. This made the students very happy, as Professor Lupin's first order of business was to cancel the homework Professor Snape had assigned.
Some people were happy about this, and some were sad. In fact, most people were very happy because they had a terrible time completing the assignment. And the completion rate was generally low of course, this was also related to the Quidditch match on Saturday. For the entire day, almost no student in the school had time to worry about how to write their homework. They were all busy watching the match; who cared about homework?
So, everyone had been feeling anxious about this class, thinking they would have to endure a whole class of verbal abuse from Professor Snape again. But a sudden twist occurred. With Professor Lupin back in class, they were all happy again.
As for who was sad... it was naturally Hermione, who wanted to do her best in everything. She had actually taken time out of her nights to finish the homework. And it was an assignment that went far beyond what she had previewed. A two-page essay on the body structure and habits of werewolves. It was like asking a third-year student to write a detailed paper on human anatomy. Just looking up the information would have taken a lot of time! Despite the difficulty, Hermione still managed to finish it.
But she wasn't sad for long. At the end of the Defence Against the Dark Arts class, Professor Lupin noticed the parchment Hermione had placed on her desk, ready to throw away after class. After asking, he found out that Hermione had completed the homework Professor Snape had assigned last week.
After looking through it, Professor Lupin found that Hermione's homework was of a very high standard although not perfect, as there were still a few flaws. But it was still very good, and Professor Lupin generously awarded Gryffindor fifteen points for it.
As the school week began, the entire Hogwarts school gradually calmed down, with no more major events. Dylan also went back to his daily routine: practicing Ancient Rune Fire, the Patronus Charm, and food charms.
He was learning food charms from Cedric, who would occasionally come to him for advice on the details of learning Occlumency and to have Dylan test his progress. Cedric would teach him spells in his spare time. It was also because Cedric taught Dylan these spells that he realized just how terrifying Dylan's talent was!
Cedric would hand over the spell and specifically point out the difficulties. Then, when he turned to practice his own Occlumency, Dylan would have already learned the spell and would be making food with it.
This left Cedric even more dumbfounded. "Bro? Are you a god? How do you learn magic so fast?!"
.....
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