Dementors feed on happy memories.
In that despairing place called Azkaban, the prisoners had few happy memories to begin with, and even if they did, most had been devoured by the Dementors. Naturally, the Dementors had always been starving like famished ghosts.
Now that they had come to Hogwarts, which was full of happy memories, they could endure it for a day or two, but after three or four days, especially when encountering something as joyful as Quidditch season, how could these Dementors possibly restrain themselves?
"Have these Dementors gone mad!"
"Sean, let's get out of here quickly!"
Standing up, Sean looked at the Dementors descending toward them and immediately said to Blaise and the others, "You go first, I'll hold them off for you."
"Let's go together, you can't handle them!"
Pulling Blaise and the others behind him, Sean looked at the rapidly descending Dementors and the gradually freezing ground beneath his feet. He raised his wand, and scenes of happy memories floated through his mind.
"Expecto Patronum!"
Boom!
Silver-white mist gushed from Sean's wand like a shield, blocking above Sean, Blaise, and the others, directly confronting the descending Dementors!
However, while Sean was fighting the Dementors with his non-corporeal Patronus Charm, two more Dementors arrived. They gathered with the previous one, continuously draining happy memories from Sean, disrupting him and causing problems with maintaining his Patronus Charm. The silver-white mist became increasingly weak, and the shield it formed gradually thinned and shrank. Sean took a deep breath, about to summon positive emotions from deep within.
At this critical moment, Blaise suddenly stepped forward, blocking Sean's front, followed by Jansen, and finally Andy. The three of them protected Sean behind them, allowing the Dementors to drain their happy memories.
Looking at them, Sean felt a warm current rise in his heart. Originally, he only needed to hold on a little longer, and Dumbledore would intervene. They would naturally be safe then. Even if Dumbledore didn't act, Sean was confident he could maintain the Patronus Charm's protection.
He truly hadn't expected that the three of them would stand in front of him.
Looking at the three, Sean showed a sincere smile, closed his eyes, then slowly opened them, filled with determination.
"Expecto Patronum!"
Hum...
White light swirled and flickered at Sean's wand tip. A silver-white mist leaped from the light, existing between corporeal and incorporeal states. Like a meteor, the silver-white mist danced around the four of them in spiraling flight, dispelling the negative effects brought by the Dementors. Warm currents rose from the depths of their hearts, driving away the cold from their bodies.
The silver-white mist between corporeal and incorporeal states flew rapidly, trailing a wake as it crashed hard into one of the Dementors, creating silver-white ripples and making the Dementor shriek and retreat repeatedly.
Sean gently waved his wand, and the silver meteor spun once before crashing into the other two Dementors. Its speed was extremely fast and movements extremely agile. Facing three opponents alone, Sean still felt he had strength to spare. After several consecutive collisions, the three Dementors finally determined that Sean was not to be trifled with. They immediately retreated and swooped toward other house stands, wanting to quickly drain other people's happy memories.
But just then, an angry roar rang out from the faculty stands. Dumbledore, arriving late, emerged from the faculty stand entrance. Seeing the chaotic scene, he forcefully waved his wand, and a silver-white light shield instantly spread outward from his body. In the blink of an eye, it dispersed all the Dementors, making them flee in panic!
Seeing Dumbledore's move, Sean immediately knew this was probably a fifth-level, or even maximum-level, Patronus Charm. This powerful force that wasn't limited to corporeal form could practically be considered a nuclear weapon against Dementors and other ghostly dark creatures!
At this moment, looking at Dumbledore, Sean roughly guessed the differences between each level of the Patronus Charm.
The first level could probably summon a silver-white mist that could barely oppose Dementors.
The second level was Sean's current level, summoning thicker silver-white mist that could form shields and even semi-corporeal phantoms.
The third level should be able to summon a corporeal Patronus, though probably only a basic one.
The fourth level should involve various applications of the Patronus, like message delivery and other functions.
As for the fifth level and the final maximum level, they should be similar to Dumbledore's. No longer limited to simple corporeal forms, able to transform into light shields or release shockwave-type attacks.
Against Dementors and other dark creatures, the Patronus Charm was truly their nemesis. Especially after reaching the fifth and maximum levels, Sean felt it might even be effective against vampires or werewolves.
After the Dementor disturbance, today's match was declared over.
After dispersing the Dementors, the match continued, but due to Harry's unconsciousness, it ended with Hufflepuff's new captain and Seeker Cedric Diggory catching the Golden Snitch.
Malfoy, who had just been scared by the Dementors into calling for Daddy, was greatly excited by this result. Disregarding the fake plaster and bandages on his hand, he waved both arms and cheered.
As long as Harry Potter could be defeated, Malfoy didn't care if it was by himself or someone else.
He didn't want to beat Harry. He just wanted to see Harry suffer.
Stinking Potter!
Over the weekend, Sean had a long-overdue proper rest.
Even Snape, who was always strict in his demands, expressed support for this.
You see, when Sean brought his thesis early Friday morning, although Snape appeared steady as an old dog on the surface, he was actually startled by Sean's appearance.
The pale complexion, heavy dark circles, and dry and peeling lips, plus a thesis that obviously couldn't have been produced in just one night. All told, Snape exactly how hard Sean had pushed himself the previous night.
Even Snape, who was always extremely strict with Sean, sincerely felt that Sean was pushing himself too hard when he saw him in that state. He absolutely needed proper rest.
After experiencing Friday's match, Sean returned to his bedroom, simply fed Kulkan some food, and then slept until Saturday afternoon.
Getting up, washing up, eating, and visiting Harry.
Saturday evening, Sean had recovered his energy and become spirited again.
It was also at this time that Sean received news from Snape. This thesis needed no revisions and could be submitted directly to The Golden Cauldron!