"Are they really stupid or what?"
"I wanted to believe it was just a lack of awareness, but that should be illegal."
"Are we even sure they're holy spirits?"
That was pretty much the reaction of Ginny, Marie, and Neville when I told them what had happened in the trio's compartment.
Obviously, I gave them some context before talking about their stupidity.
"Even I — who can be a bit hot-headed — know that you shouldn't take this tournament lightly. They're honestly dumber than trolls."
And to think Ginny is the one saying this. After spending time with Neville and Luna, we've come to know her — especially her personality, which is quite fiery.
"Are you sure you should talk like that about the person you're in love with?"
"It was just a childhood crush, born from all those fairy-tale stories people tell children. I can see now that he's not extraordinary, nor does he deserve his reputation."
We all widened our eyes — even Luna had a normal reaction, which proves that Ginny's statement was truly shocking.
"I think we'll have to take you to Madam Pomfrey when we arrive. You must not be feeling well."
"Stop being so dramatic. I was in love with him because of all those stories — you know, the ones where he supposedly fought dragons or something."
"It's true that you were a bit too young back then to understand those books were just written to make money, without caring about the truth of the story."
If I remember correctly, there were people who tried to sell worthless items, claiming they had belonged to Harry Potter — when it was clearly just an old bottle of butterbeer.
"Who would've thought Ginny would turn out like this?"
"Well, people do fall out of love."
"Yes, but I have to say… it was almost an obsession for you. Just being near Harry used to make you happy."
I picked up a book while Ginny and Marie started to argue — though it was more playful than serious.
They eventually calmed down, and the conversation shifted to what we had done during the holidays.
"If you knew what I did with Evelyn, you'd blush so hard we wouldn't be able to tell the difference between your hair and your face."
"I remind you we only went on a few dates and nothing more. Stop making that poor girl in love think we did anything obscene."
My little brother was trying to merge with the seat, clearly hoping to become invisible and escape the conversation.
"Enough about our holidays — we could talk about Luna's and Neville's instead."
"Weren't you with him?"
"I know what he did, but it's better when he tells it himself, rather than Grandma — she always ends up bringing up our parents."
Luna explained that she went camping with her father to search for the Crumple-Horned Snorkack, and Neville said he had a short internship in a greenhouse, which allowed him to deepen his knowledge of his favorite subject.
"I can't wait to talk about my vacation experience with Professor Sprout."
The good thing about this group is that everyone listens and values each other equally.
As time went on, the weather worsened to the point that we couldn't even see the landscape outside anymore.
I taught them how to use an umbrella charm to protect themselves — otherwise, they might get sick right at the start of the school year.
I left them at the end to do a quick patrol and remind everyone to put on their robes before we arrived at the Hogsmeade station.