Passion, pride, ambition, tend to blind us, or maybe we just choose to be blinded. Trying to ignore what is happening around us, why should we care about everyone’s opinion if it doesn’t contribute to my dream, to my needs.

  It is not me that’s wrong, it’s the rest of the world, they’re immature, don’t care about the world, don’t care about the future, it’s them that will regret it. I’m fine just the way I am resting is for the weak, they just don’t understand. They can’t stop me, I can’t wait, I can’t give up…

  But we can’t do it, at least not alone, but when we come to that realization, we have already burned ourselves, desperate, without anyone else to rely on. Crashing down.

  Professor Flitwick gave a magistral class, even if somewhat repetitive. But I believe that it is so that we can etch that deeply into ourselves, cementing the basics, preparing us for next class, maybe we will start practicing more complicated spells, like the mending charm, or the fire-making spell.

  But this was the last course for today, I have the rest of the day all for myself.

  “J, do you think we should do our coursework tonight, or we do everything the weekend?”

  “Obviously we need to finish it today, that way we can have the weekend free, or do you want to scramble at the last minute to finish everything, now we just have Defence Against the Dark Arts and Charms, but if you let it pill up, we will need finish this two plus Transfiguration, Herbology, History of Magic and Astronomy, at least one foot each, that means to finish six foots of course work in what little time is left after a day of relaxation and…”

  “Stop it Ernie, I get it, I just was just asking, you sound like my mother.

  “I think Ernie is right, we can help each other tonight and finish it quickly”

  “Justin, Wayne and Ernie are right, I don’t want to spend my weekend immersed in a sea of parchment.”

  Justin was clearly deflated, but Ernie was right, never leave something you can do today for tomorrow. Tomorrow we will have other things to do.

  “Guys, I’ll catch up with you lot at supper, I made and appointment with Neville and Hermione from Gryffindor.”

  “Is she your little girlfriend”

  “Cut it Justin, we just met in the Hogwarts Express, but they’re good lads, maybe we can do something this weekend.”

  “Justin, Solé has taken an excellent approach in this situation, we as members of Hufflepuff need to make friend in every House, that is our way of life, I remember my father advice, son your friends will be your greatest wealth.”

  We just stopped in our tracks and looked baffled at Ernie, sometimes he just liked to start these improvised speeches, maybe one day he will run for minister of magic, he will sure like that job.

  “Anyway, see you at the Great Hall.”

  I briskly walked to the library; it wasn’t that far but I took what’s called the scenic view, so when I arrived Neville was already waiting for me.

  “Neville, I didn’t make you wait for too long did I?”

  “No, Jas I just got here.”

  “That’s good, how about we go in and take a seat, at least until Hermione comes along.”

  “Okay, but we shouldn’t go to far inside, in case she thinks we left her behind.”

  “You’re right Neville, why don’t you go in reserve some seat for us, and I’ll wait for her.”

  “That’s okay.”

  Neville walked into the library, one of the most magical places that I have ever seen. Maybe it didn’t seem to be that big, but the bookshelves ranged from ten to twenty feet tall, almost bursting from the amount of books that filled them. From outside it didn’t seem to be that big, but the insides were clearly stretched with some kind of magic, this should be one of the biggest book collections in the world. I don’t know of a bigger collection in neither the magic nor the muggle world.

  And this treasure trove was guarded by one unassuming witch, Madam Irma Pince. Her gaze could intimidate even the bravest of the Gryffindors, cause’ of the many stories I’ve overheard about the Weasley twins, I haven’t heard anything about them and the library. Her piercing eyes followed Neville as he made his way to a particularly large couch.

  I prayed for Neville; I shouldn’t have asked him to go alone. But Hermione shouldn’t take too much time, and when she comes we can go somewhere else, I couldn’t relax with her breathing in my neck.

  A couple of minutes later, Hermione arrived, she was carrying many books with her. I too would have been late if I had to carry so many books with me wherever I went.

  “Hermione, here! Let me help you with those”

  “Oh James, thank you I took these books yesterday. I needed them for my homework.”

  I took the book’s from her arm’s and almost dropped them, I don’t know how her tiny arms could support them.

  “But we just started Hermione, you should relax a little bit. We have more than enough time to do our homework, and review.”

  “You’re right James, but think about it, we will study for seven years, but if you consider the time for sleep, the time to eat, and other miscellaneous task, we don’t have enough time, not when we have access to this amazing library, I have run the numbers and we have about 23,478 hours, that means we just have two years, two-hundred and forty eight days, six hours and a couple of minutes give or take.”

  “If you put it like this, we don’t have that much time.”

  “Yes, and that includes our normal study time, that means that at least half of that time we cant just study whatever we want, we don’t have enough time James.”

  “Well, you certainly have a point, but no one can learn everything, we have to take in consideration our abilities and limitations, you won’t learn anything substantial if you just read every book you can, you need time to rest and process what you learn, and then you need more time to put that knowledge into practice.”

  “Oh, my god!!! How could I haven’t noticed it, that means that I have even less time, if I can’t have enough time, I won’t learn enough, if I don’t learn enough I’ll disappoint my parents, if I can’t learn anything I won’t be able to graduate, if I don’t graduate I won’t have a good job, and if I…”

  Hermione started hyperventilating, and I had to something to bring her back, so I shouted for Neville.

  “N E V I L L E!!!”

  The poor lad jumped to his feet and sprinted to the exit of the library, Madam Pince shot dagger at me, and yelled at Neville”

  “Mr. Longbottom!!! you will be banned from the library for two weeks!!!”

  Neville almost stumbled when he heard that, but he still made his way up to me, luckily enough, I wasn’t inside the library, so she couldn’t ban me, but today. Today I had made a formidable adversary for the rest of my time at Hogwarts.

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  “What ahh happened ahh ah James”

  “Take this books, we need to help Hermione”

  He took those heavy books as if they were nothing. I approached Hermione and shook her out of her trance.

  “Hemione, calm down!”

  “And if my children… then… and…”

  “Hermione, calm down!”

  “And if… then… and… and…”

  “Hermione, Professor McGonagall is going to give extra credits”

  “What!! Where’s Professor McGonagall”

  She snapped out of whatever fantasy she had built, I don’t even think she was speaking English at the end.

  “There’s no professor McGonagall, I just wanted to wake you up.”

  “That isn’t funny James, extra credits are very important, that’s no joking matter.”

  “Sorry, but you were gone, I didn’t know how to snap you out of that state, and you don’t even know if Hogwarts gives extra credits.”

  “Ah, oh, umm sorry James.”

  “No problem, but you should relax a little bit, this was just our third day at Hogwarts, and you were already calculating how much time we had left in school.”

  “Sorry, it’s just that we have access to all this knowledge, but we have so little time”

  “But you are just in the first grade, there’s so much time left, and even if you graduate, you can become a professor, and then you could continue learning.

  “You are right, I just was a little anxious”

  “Remember what Professor Dumbledore said at the start-of-term feast, Hogwarts will always be our home.”

  “You are right, it’s just”

  Even now she was still a little nervous, this wasn’t about the amount of time we had left to study in Hogwarts. This breakdown was provoked by something else, but if I wanted to inquire about it, I’ll need a more private place, there were already some gossipy students looking our way. Were did they come from, when the library was almost empty.

  “Neville, we should return these books and go somewhere else.”

  “Alright Jas… but I was banned…”

  Yes I forgot that, Madam Pince still was looking in our direction. But Hermione wasn’t in condition to carry so many books, and Neville couldn’t enter, so I had to do it myself.

  I took the books, from Neville’s arms, and bravely made my way to Madam Pince’s Desk.

  “I’m sorry Madam, we didn’t intend to make such a ruckus, Neville just attended to my call, he didn’t mean to run in the library”

  She was clearly outraged by our behaviour and just looked at me with those piercing eyes.

  “I just want to return Hermione’s books, we are deeply sorry.”

  “Mr. Black, I have seen many students attend Hogwarts, this library has been witness to many naughty and downright wicked students, but no one has ever shouted like you in this sacred place of knowledge. If it wasn’t that you were just outside the library, I could have banned you from ever, ever taking a step into the library not even professor Dumbledore would have convinced me from ever accepting you here. But…”

  “But what Madam Pince”

  “But you didn’t toss those books, and you weren’t ‘inside’ the library, so I’ll be watching you Mr. Black. If you ever make the slightest sound or disturbance inside this sacred place ever again, I’ll ban you for life. Is it clear Mr. Black?”

  “It’s clear Madam, and about Neville”

  “His ban will end this weekend, just this time, next time he will make you company in my ban list.”

  “Thanks’ Madam”

  “Now go take care of your friend, she is a good one.”

  A big weight left my chest, I will be strictly monitored by Madam Pince, but at least I can still enter the library.

  “I’m sorry James, it’s my fault, if it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t have been warned by Madam Pince.”

  “It doesn’t matter Hermione, that’s what friends do. But we should get going, we shouldn’t continue toying with Madam Pince’s patience.

  We walked to the astronomy tower, there shouldn’t be anyone there at this time of day. Hermione was silent all the way, and poor Neville didn’t know how to break the tension, at least he was a little relieved knowing that his ban will end this weekend.

  Once we got there, we found a little inconspicuous corner and sat down.

  “What is going on Hermione, this isn’t about time innit?

  “Well… it isn’t about that, it’s just that…”

  “Tell us Hermione, you don’t know maybe we can help you”

  “Jas is right Hermione, we can help you”

  “It’s just that no one in my dorm talks to me, they talk about stuff that I don’t know, and when I try to add something to the conversation they change the topic or just act as if they didn’t hear me. But I don’t talk that softly and, and today I heard them say that I talk too much. But they don’t even talk to me, how can I talk that much, if they don’t even hear me…”

  I didn’t know what to say to her, ‘everything is going to be okay’, ‘don’t mind them’. I couldn’t do anything substantial to help her, I wasn’t even assigned to her house, and even if I was assigned to the same house she was assigned to, I cant change anything about it, cause’ I’m a boy. I can’t barge in the girls dormitory and talk some sense into them. If I ever did that, then I don’t have to ponder if my solo time with the professors was detention or extra tutoring, it would automatically turn into detention.

  “I’m sorry Hermione, but you still have us, we are your friends, right Neville?”

  “Yes, we are your friends, my Gran told me to take care of you.”

  “Thank you guys, I don’t know what I could have done without you”

  “Anytime Hermione, we may not be in the same House, but we are in the same school, the same castle and the same country, don’t we?”

  “Stop it”

  “Neville, please take care of her, you spend more time with her”

  “Don’t worry Jas, I’ll watch over her.”

  “Guys… I’m not a kid”

  “We are still kids Hermione”

  She started crying. To be honest, I didn’t really know what to do or say in this situation. Neville looked at me with glassy eyes and took us into a bear hug.

  He is a loyal friend, he should have come to Hufflepuff with me, but if the Sorting Hat put him in Gryffindor, then he should have true bravery in his heart.

  We remained in the hug for a while until my belly started ringing, that meant that it was time for supper.

  Growl Grrr

  “I’m sorry guys, it’s time for supper”

  “Don’t worry James, I’m also a little hungry, we should head to the Great Hall”

  “Well, I’m also hungry.”

  The stairs were killing me, why did we have to go all the way to the astronomy tower, when we reached the moving staircases, I told Hermione and Neville to jump with me, that way we could get there a little bit faster. I couldn’t stop laughing when Hermione continued screaming even though we had landed safe and sound.

  She pouted and refused to talk until we got to the Great Hall. Once we got there I went directly to the Hufflepuff long table, Neville and Hermione were a little worried about going to another house’s table, but I have seen many students from different houses in our table, we Hufflepuff welcome everyone.

  “Guys, I’m sorry I didn’t paid attention to time”

  Ernie, Justin and Wayne were waiting for me, in the other side of the table were Hannah and Susan.

  “Let me introduce to you my friends from Gryffindor, Hannah this is Hermione, Hermione this is Hannah, Hannah this is Neville, Neville this is Hannah, Susan…”

  After I finished with the presentations we all sat and started eating while chatting. I think that Hermione and Neville can easily integrate into the group and the bigger the group the better, I’m starting to think what can we do this weekend, if we finish all our homework before that, we could have two whole days to have some fun.

  We can’t spend the day doing nothing, Hermione needs something to distract herself, and eight people can do more than six. Maybe we could play some football, listen to some music (although we do that every night), maybe some karaoke. It is a shame that I couldn’t bring a tv to school, we could have seen some movies, but apparently electronic products don’t work in Hogwarts. I heard that Nintendo started selling a handheld console last year, but even if I asked Connor to buy one for me, it wouldn’t work here.

  I am starting to dread my fate this next seven years, if I can’t have contact with modern society, I don’t know how well I will fit in the muggle world after my graduation.

  At least I asked Connor to send me the latest albums, but what about the rest of the students in Hogwarts, from what I heard about Professor Quirrell, most wizards know next to nothing about the muggle world, and Professor Quirrell had to fact check the books used to teach wizards about the muggle world.

  But if there’s a way for me to play muggle music with my J-max, then there must be a way to get access to other forms of media. Maybe with reels and projectors, we can see movies here. But I don’t think that would be an easy solution. I don’t know where we could get them, and I don’t think they are that cheap. Maybe there is a way to play VHS here, but I should ask someone more knowledgeable.

  I don’t think Mr. Ragnok knows anything about this, but I should ask him, and Professor Dumbledore, maybe he can do something about it, it can become a school activity, that way we have more options for entertainment, adequate relaxation does wonder to learning.

  “James” – “Jas” – “J” – “Solé” – “James” – “James”

  “Ah, sorry guys, I was thinking what can we do this weekend, I wanted to play a little football or see some movies.”

  “Oh J, you’re right, there’s nothing to do this weekend”

  “Movies?”

  Only Hermione and Justin didn’t ask what were movies, it must be hard to be a kid in the magic world, they don’t know what movies are, I can’t let them continue like this.

  “You don’t know nothing about movies?”

  “I know a little, but I haven’t seen one, my father works all the time and when he has free time he always takes my mother on date, so we are left with our grandmother, and her house only has a radio.”

  This was a tragedy, how could they live like this.

  “Oh, poor souls, you don’t know the beauty of the silver screen, the window to countless dreams, the magic of film… you don’t know nothing about life on mars.”

  “Cut it James, don’t imitate Professor Snape, you can’t do it and get down, a professor may come any moment.”

  “You are right Miss Granger, a professor may come any moment, don’t you think so Mr. Solé?”

  “P-Professor Snape…”

  “Five point from Hufflepuff, the Great Hall is not a place for your little show Mr. Solé”

  “I’m sorry professor.”

  “I’ll see you in class Mr. Solé, I hope that you can put some of this passion on the art of potion making. There are countless baboons in showbiz, we don’t need one more.”

  Wait a minute, does Professor Snape know about movies, it’s always the ones you least expect.