Days at Hogwarts

In the evening, in the Gryffindor Common Room.

Harry sat next to the candlestick, staring at it and occasionally chuckling to himself. He looked so silly that no one wanted to sit with him.

Loren was playing wizard's chess with Ron, using Seamus's chess pieces, and glanced over at Harry. "How long has he been like this?"

Ron sighed helplessly. "Ever since he said goodbye to his godfather."

"I have a godfather, hehehe!" Harry muttered stupidly.

He would say this from time to time, and the others had gotten used to it.

"He didn't even attend training this afternoon," Ron added, "but Wood and the others are happy because the team will have two Nimbus 2000s."

Ron pushed his castle forward and explained, "The broom Professor McGonagall bought is still on its way. The Nimbus 2000 Harry got today was from his godfather. He paid extra for expedited delivery."

At this, Ron sighed with envy. "Sirius is the heir to a pure-blood family."

Loren smiled. "Aren't you from a pure-blood family too?"

Ron felt mocked and didn't reply. Instead, he pushed his knight forward and declared viciously, "Checkmate!"

Loren wanted his queen to deliver the final blow, but the piece refused to cooperate. "Don't send me there! Can't you see the knight next to you? Let him go! It's fine if he dies!"

The chess pieces began squabbling, a familiar scene. Loren's poor skills and the unfamiliar chess set made quarrels inevitable.

He stopped focusing on the board and looked at Harry. "Now that you have a godfather, you don't have to keep grinning at that mirror all day."

Ron sighed. "It's not getting any better."

Suddenly, Harry stood up, excited. "I have to tell my parents!" Then he hurried out of the common room.

Loren and Ron exchanged worried looks.

"Will it get better soon?" Loren asked, unsure.

"It will," Ron replied confidently.

Watching Harry leave, Loren remembered it was September 19th tomorrow and he had some business to attend to.

"I'll be out for a while!" he said, then ran off.

He headed to the Hufflepuff basement and descended the stairs. Though it was past dinner time, the underground corridors were brightly lit.

Loren approached a painting of a bowl of fruit, reached out, and gently scratched a pear. The pear revealed a stick-figure face that giggled before transforming into a green door handle.

Pushing open the door, Loren entered a huge kitchen, spotless and neatly arranged with plates and pots stacked.

No one was in sight. The fire in the hearth crackled warmly.

"Dear little wizard, is there anything I can help you with?" a sharp, somewhat harsh voice came from behind.

Loren turned to see a house elf, shorter than him by far—only about two feet tall—with slender limbs, a thin torso, a large head, and bat-like ears.

No wonder Hermione wanted to establish the House Elf Rights Promotion Association. It was easy to see why.

The elf's eyes were fixed on Loren, expectant.

Loren calmed himself. "I want to order a cake for tomorrow—an avalanche strawberry cake."

The elf exclaimed in surprise, "Avalanche strawberry cake! Of course! We will prepare it immediately and send it to you when it's done!"

Before Loren could reply, the elf shouted around in a shrill voice, "Did you hear? Avalanche strawberry cake!"

A dozen elves came running from nearby.

The scene was too overwhelming for Loren. He hurriedly stopped them. "Not now. Tomorrow. I'll take it after dinner."

With that, he dashed away, not wanting to linger even a second longer.

In the corridor, Loren realized he had neither asked the elf's name nor told his own. But he wasn't worried—he would find out next time he came to the kitchen.

Returning to the common room, Loren found Ron and Seamus playing chess. Although the pieces obeyed Seamus's commands, Ron's were winning bit by bit.

Harry had returned as well, still staring blankly at the candlestick.

Loren sat down beside Harry, waving his hand in front of his eyes. "Hey! Professor Snape is calling you!"

Harry visibly shuddered, then realized where he was and gave Loren a complaining look.

"What's wrong?"

Harry sighed. "In front of the Mirror of Erised, I saw Headmaster Dumbledore."

"And then?" Loren expected Dumbledore to let him off, or maybe bring him chicken soup himself.

"He said he wanted to put the mirror away," Harry said, feeling sorry.

Loren knew that beyond worrying about Harry's mental health, Dumbledore also wanted to use the Mirror as the last-level safeguard for the Philosopher's Stone copy.

Loren changed the subject. "Did your godfather tell you about your parents?"

Harry shrugged. "He did, but I don't know how to handle it."

"I'm angry at Peter Pettigrew's betrayal, but he's already in Azkaban."

"It's all Voldemort's fault—and he's dead."

"I miss my parents, but I'm glad to have a godfather who cares."

Harry spoke slowly, repeating words he'd just said to Dumbledore, now telling Loren and himself.

Loren stayed silent. Harry was always thinking of his parents. In the original story, Sirius didn't stay long. Harry grew up lonely, losing much. People saw a hero but forgot he was still a child.

"Don't overthink it. Look forward instead. You don't have to go back to the Dursleys over the holidays."

Harry's face brightened at this.

...

In the fantasy books library.

"Flamel, I want to ask you about the Philosopher's Stone." Loren hadn't started studying today.

"Of course! It's my duty," Flamel floated over.

"Can the Philosopher's Stone cure werewolves?" Since Dumbledore was writing to Nico, and Nico was here, why not ask directly?

Flamel hesitated. "I'm not sure."

He explained.

The Philosopher's Stone, also known as the Philosopher's Stone, contains powerful magic. If fully utilized, all magic can be realized. There are legends in the Muggle world that it can fulfill wishes—these are not baseless.

But no one can fully control this power. Most effects depend on the refiner's intentions.

The mainstream belief is that the Stone can turn metal into gold and refine the elixir of immortality. Nico was influenced by this and his Stone has these two functions. But after long exploration, Nico realized the original mistake was irreversible.

Flamel's role was to save Loren detours.

Regarding Loren's doubts about Voldemort, Flamel said it was difficult for Voldemort to control the Stone's power. He regarded it as a powerful source of magic. Using that magic, Voldemort performed rituals to reshape his body.

Any powerful magic source could serve this purpose; none were stronger than the Philosopher's Stone in modern magic.

If Loren found magic that could reverse lycanthropy, the Stone could supply the power. But Nico hadn't heard of such magic in hundreds of years.

Loren felt a little disappointed and asked if there was another way.

Flamel replied, "You can first obtain the identity of the Philosopher's Stone's refiner, use Nico's Stone with faith, and perhaps succeed."

"How do I obtain it?"

"Redeem a desperate soul."