To be honest, Ron's words made him sound like a complete scumbag.
When Percy first gave him Scabbers, Ron had really liked the rat. But now—just like the saying goes, out with the old, in with the new—his attention had shifted entirely to his Pokémon.
Forget about Infernus and Nimbus; even the seemingly plain-looking Sandshrew was far cuter than Scabbers in Ron's eyes. He even named it "Roundy."
Ron wasn't exactly disgusted with Scabbers now, but he certainly neglected him. If the rat disappeared for a while, Ron wouldn't even notice. The only thing that truly troubled him was that Infernus had an unusually strong hostility toward Scabbers.
Not just Infernus, either—Harry's Pokémon didn't seem to like Scabbers much, either. That made Ron a little uneasy.
Fortunately, he had spent the entire morning hugging Infernus in the common room, so nothing had gone wrong.
When he and Harry went back to the common room to wait for Hermione so they could head to the club together, the atmosphere between Ron and Hermione was still awkward. But things weren't so bad—they could still use Harry as a communication bridge when they didn't want to talk directly.
"Look—it's Malfoy!"
A few minutes later, Ron spotted Draco Malfoy heading in the same direction.
Malfoy had his Ekans coiled around him, which made Crabbe and Goyle keep a safe distance. His Purrloin, on the other hand, still hadn't accepted him as its Trainer, so Malfoy didn't dare to let it out.
"Well, well, look who it is! Oh, it's Malfoy! So, did you manage to scrub all the toilets clean yet?" Ron never passed up a chance to mock him.
If it were a year later, Harry would've been more aggressive about it—but right now, he just felt that was a bit much.
"Shut up, Weasley!" Malfoy snapped. His mood was already foul enough—the experience of cleaning toilets by hand had been utterly revolting, and the smell still haunted him.
He wanted to fire back with his usual sharp tongue, but the memory of detention made him swallow his words.
"Keep running your mouth, Weasley. You too, Potter." Malfoy glared at them with venom in his eyes, then raised the Poké Ball in his hand. "Let's settle this on the battlefield!"
Harry: "???"What does this have to do with me?
Still, he didn't mind. Malfoy only had one decent Pokémon, while Harry had three.
Soon they arrived at the club's classroom. Compared to their first visit, the room had been expanded—it could now seat several hundred people, though the large stands looked empty today.
"Hey, look—it's Professor Dumbledore! And the other professors too. Are they here to be our referees?" Harry asked curiously.
"I doubt the professors have that much free time," Hermione replied, shaking her head. "Professor Gold must have something important to announce."
She was probably right—she always was. Hermione knew better than anyone how much grading the professors had to do, especially since she took her own assignments so seriously. And that was just first-year coursework.
Sure enough, once Professor Charles Gold saw that almost all the club members were present—except those still in the Nature Reserve—he began his announcement about the upcoming Gym Challenges.
The news sent a shockwave through the young witches and wizards. At the same time, Charles heard the familiar voice in his head:
[Stage Mission 1 completed. Congratulations! Reward: Moltres's Flame ×1, Random TM ×8.]
"Challenge a professor? That's impossible!" Hermione exclaimed at once.
Harry couldn't have agreed more—especially since Snape was staring right at him with that cruel gleam in his eyes.
"You'll never get a Slytherin Badge in your lifetime."
"Don't be too discouraged," Percy said kindly. "Even if you don't win, as long as you perform well, you might still earn the badge."
But Harry knew perfectly well that no amount of good performance would ever satisfy Snape.
"Then again—" Fred and George suddenly appeared at his sides, grinning from ear to ear.
"Maybe this is our chance to teach that old bat a lesson."
They took turns whispering their mischievous visions of Snape being thoroughly defeated in battle, painting such a vivid picture that Percy couldn't stand it anymore and shooed them away.
Still, Ron thought they had a point.
In Potions class, Snape constantly humiliated them—they couldn't even breathe wrong without earning his scorn. Now that there was finally a legitimate chance to fight back, how could they pass it up?Even if they couldn't win now, someday they just might.
Thinking about that cheered Harry right up.
Then Professor Gold dropped another bombshell.
"Starting this year," he said, "at the end of every school year, the club will host a Pokémon Tournament. The tournament will be held on the school grounds, and every student who has earned eight Gym Badges will be eligible to participate."
Of course—if there were Gyms, how could there not be a League?
Still, since his Stage Mission 2 involved the "League Conference," and since the rewards were dynamic, Charles cleverly named this one the 'Pokémon Tournament: Hogwarts Cup.'
As for the real League Conference—he'd save that for a grander stage someday.
Even so, the announcement set the students buzzing with excitement. And when Dumbledore himself stepped forward to add another surprise, the atmosphere reached a fever pitch.
"I'm delighted to serve as a Badge Guardian," Dumbledore said with a bright smile, "and even more delighted to see such joy and unity among our students. Therefore, I hereby announce that the Pokémon Tournament: Hogwarts Cup will now contribute points toward the House Cup—and the Hogwarts Cup trophy will be displayed in the Trophy Room!"
The moment he said that, not only the students but even the Heads of Houses began murmuring in excitement.
"Are you serious, Albus?" Professor McGonagall asked, visibly thrilled.
Slytherin had won the House Cup six years in a row—something that left the other Heads, especially McGonagall, deeply frustrated.
Now, with a brand-new way to earn points, their chances of turning the tables had finally improved.
"Of course I'm serious," Dumbledore replied warmly. "I think it's time for a little change, don't you agree, Severus?"
"I don't mind," Snape said flatly.Doesn't matter. I'll just deduct points.
Charles hadn't expected Dumbledore to make such a bold decision, but it certainly didn't bother him. If anything, it only fired up the students' enthusiasm for Pokémon battles.
After that came the free battle session. The Pokémon Master Club—perhaps better described as the Battle Club—was, after all, all about battling.
Malfoy, eager to avenge his earlier humiliation, immediately challenged Harry to a match. But, unsurprisingly, his Ekans lost to Pikachu once again.
(End of Chapter)