HP: The Boy who saw Magic

On Friday morning, Kevin stood in front of the window of Ravenclaw Tower. The first week of school was about to end, and today's classes were only Herbology in the morning and Astronomy in the evening.

The sound of Wesley hurriedly packing came from behind. He was stuffing textbooks into his schoolbag in a rush, and his reddish-brown curly hair was standing up in a mess.

Fabian had already packed up, pushing his glasses up with his fingers. "Professor Sprout said we're going to learn about Devil's Snare today, so we need to wear protective clothing."

Ernesto also prepared dragon leather gloves, a hint of anticipation flashing in his gray eyes. "I remember that the juice of the Devil's Snare seems to be a high-level potion ingredient."

The four boys walked through the castle courtyard filled with morning mist and headed for Greenhouse No. 3. The glass of the greenhouse was covered with vines, and the dim light inside could be vaguely seen. When they opened the door, the humid air was mixed with the smell of soil.

Professor Sprout stood in the center of the greenhouse, with a kind smile on her round face. Behind her was an area surrounded by a black curtain, with only a few glowing mushrooms providing light.

"Good morning, students!" Her voice was as warm as the spring breeze. "Today we are going to learn about a special magical plant, the Devil's Snare."

She waved her wand, and the black curtain slowly opened. In the dim light, a deep purple vine was wriggling, like a sleeping giant snake. Kevin's "Eye of Truth" immediately captured the magic flowing in the vine, which was pulsating slowly as if it had life.

"Devil's snares prefer dark and humid environments," Professor Sprout explained. "They will actively wrap around objects that approach them, and the more they struggle, the tighter they will wrap."

Wesley leaned forward curiously, his reddish-brown curls almost touching the vines. "Can it tell the difference between animals and plants?"

"Great question!" Professor Sprout's eyes lit up. "The Devil's Snare senses its prey through body temperature and movement. Now, please divide into groups of four. Each group will be given a small seedling to observe."

Kevin and his roommates were given a foot-tall Devil's Snare seedling, its slender vines twisting restlessly even in the dim light.

"Touch it lightly with a protective glove first," Professor Sprout demonstrated, "and feel its strength and reaction speed."

Fabian stretched out his hand cautiously, and the vines of the Devil's Snare immediately wrapped around him. "It's stronger than I thought!"

Ernesto measured the thickness of the vine with his dragonhide gloves. "According to the Encyclopedia of Magical Plants, an adult Devil's Snare vine can even break a werewolf's bones under the right circumstances."

"Really?" Wesley moved closer excitedly, completely forgetting the professor's warning. "What if…"

Before he could finish his words, the Devil's Snare suddenly sprang up, and a vine wrapped around his wrist. Wesley struggled in panic, but more vines wrapped around his arms and waist.

"Don't move!" Fabian yelled, but it was too late. Wesley was being dragged towards the main part of the Devil's Snare like prey caught in a python. His face began to turn red and his breathing became difficult.

Professor Sprout was about to make a move when Kevin raised his wand. "Lumos Maxima!"

A blinding white light burst out from the tip of the wand, and the Devil's Snare quickly loosened its vines as if it had been burned. Wesley fell to the ground, gasping for breath.

"Perfect response!" Professor Sprout applauded. "Ten points to Ravenclaw! Mr. Hawthorne accurately utilized the light-sensitive properties of the Devil's Snare."

She turned to the shocked Wesley. "Mr. Cruz, this is why I stress not to approach rashly. Are you okay?"

Wesley forced a smile. "Not…not bad, just a little…feeling like vomiting."

The class continued, and with Wesley's example, other students were more cautious with the Devil's Snare in their hands. Kevin noticed that Fabian quietly hid a small piece of vine in the dragon skin pocket, and his eyes behind the glasses flashed with a research light.

Before class ended, Professor Sprout concluded, "Remember, although the Devil's Snare is dangerous, it has important uses in the medical field. Its extract is the main ingredient of a powerful sedative. Next week we will learn how to safely collect its juice."

When they left the greenhouse, the sunlight was particularly dazzling. Wesley rubbed his red wrist and said with lingering fear, "I will never underestimate these magical plants again…"

"You should be thankful that these are just seedlings," Ernesto said harshly, but handed Wesley a bottle of anti-edema ointment.

Fabian lowered his voice mysteriously. "I got a little sample, we can try to cultivate it in the practice room."

Kevin nodded, his gray-blue eyes thoughtful. "We can create a suitable environment in that classroom."

With no classes in the afternoon, the four boys decided to go to their secret practice room, an abandoned classroom. While walking through the corridors of the castle, they met the Weasley twins who were testing a new prank product.

"I heard that in your class this morning, an unlucky guy had a close encounter with the Devil's Snare?" Fred grinned.

"Do you know who it is? We have a gift for him," George smiled mysteriously.

"You guys just met him. Wesley is the unlucky guy you are talking about!" Fabian, who was usually gentle, also teased Wesley at this time.

Hearing this, George took out a bag of candy from his pocket and handed it to Wesley. "Try our new product 'Devil's Candy'! It will entangle your tongue! Let you experience the intimate embrace from the Devil's Snare again!"

Wesley stepped back in shock, causing the twins to laugh.

After saying goodbye to the twins, they arrived at the abandoned classroom on the fifth floor.

Kevin took out a piece of parchment with the Hogwarts seal from his pocket and showed it to his companions solemnly. "Guys, Professor Flitwick has helped us apply for the official right to use it!"

"Great!" Wesley cheered as he pushed open the door and coughed because of the dust that was raised.

The classroom was in a mess: desks and chairs were piled crookedly in the corner, there were vague arithmetic divination formulas on the blackboard, and several worn textbooks were scattered on the floor.

"Looks like we need to do some cleaning first," Ernesto wrinkled his nose and pulled out his wand.

"It's a good time to practice the Descaling Charm," Kevin smiled.

Over the next two hours, the four boys waved their wands and turned the abandoned classroom into their secret base.

"Scourgify!" Ernesto's spell swept away years of dust.

"Wingardium Leviosa!" Fabian used the levitation spell to pile the debris into the corner bit by bit.

Kevin used the Transfiguration Charm to transform some broken chairs into comfortable single sofas, while Wesley was in charge of painting the Ravenclaw flag on the wall with colored ink. Although the painting was crooked, it was clear that it was done with enthusiasm.

After a simple cleaning, the classroom finally looked usable.

"Look at this!" Fabian suddenly dragged a glass container out of the secret room. "The perfect incubator!"

Then they got some special soil from Professor Sprout's greenhouse in the name of cultivating dill, and carefully transplanted the Devil's Snare seedlings in. Kevin used the "Eye of Truth" to observe the flow of magic power and instructed Fabian to adjust the humidity and light.

"We should add some glow mushrooms," Kevin suggested. "Devil's Snare is afraid of strong light, but it likes weak light."

When the sun set, the originally dilapidated classroom had been completely transformed: on one side was the research area, where alchemical equipment moved from the secret room was placed; on the other side was the practice area, where various spell targets were painted on the ground; in the corner, the Devil's Snare was slowly wriggling in a special incubator.

"We should give this classroom a name," Wesley suggested, rubbing his red wrist.

"Ravenclaw's secret laboratory?" Fabian pushed his glasses up.

"Too blunt," Ernesto curled his lips.

Kevin looked around and his eyes fell on the crooked flag on the wall. "Let's call it 'Eagle's Nest'."

"Perfect!" the three roommates agreed in unison.