𝘼 𝙎𝙥𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙏𝙤 𝙇𝙤𝙫𝙚 | 𝙃𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙂𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧

Gilderoy Lockhart

Third person view

The next day, Isaac had no desire to smile sincerely. Early in the morning, when everyone was eating in the main hall, to the sounds of noise and the smell of fresh bread; Isaac, Harry, and Ron sat next to Hermione, who had a copy of Vampire Excursions open and resting on a jug of milk.

He knew Hermione was still irritated by their irresponsibility, so it wasn't surprising when she just mumbled, "Good morning," without even looking at his face. Instead, his nose was buried in the book, so deep that he could inhale the ink on the paper. Neville, on the other hand, greeted the three of them excitedly, a smile on his face that Isaac envied.

"The mail will be here any minute, I think Grandma will give me some things I forgot."

Isaac had just started eating his toast, debating whether he should try to talk to Hermione to sort things out. However, everyone's attention was caught when Errol, Ron's owl, - who Isaac wasn't even sure how he was still alive - flew across the room and fell into Hermione's vase, splattering milk and feathers all over practically the entire table.

"Errol!" exclaimed Ron, pulling the wet owl by its feet out of the jar. The poor thing was passed out on the table, with a red envelope stuck to her beak.

"Oh no!" Ron squeaked.

"It's okay, he's still alive." Hermione said, poking Errol with the tip of her finger.

"I don't know how..." Isaac muttered before looking at the envelope, his eyes almost popping out of his head. "Ron, I suggest you run..."

"She...she sent me a howler..." Ron muttered, shaking from head to toe.

"Better open it, Ron," Neville suggested in a shy whisper. "It will be worse if you don't open it. My grandmother sent me one day and I didn't pay attention" he swallowed hard, "it was horrible."

"What's a howler?" asked Harry. But everyone's attention was fixed on the letter, which had begun to smoke in the corners.

"Open it," Neville insisted. "It will be over in a few minutes..."

Ron reached out with a trembling hand, took the envelope from Errol's beak and opened it. Neville stuck his fingers in his ears. Isaac thought for a moment that the envelope had exploded; A boom filled the enormous hall, shaking the dust from the ceiling.

"... STEALING THE CAR, I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY HAD KICKED IT OUT, WAIT UNTIL I GOT HANDS ON YOU, I SUPPOSE YOU DIDN'T STOP TO THINK ABOUT WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WERE THROUGH WHEN WE SAW THE CAR WAS MISSING... "

Mrs. Weasley's screams, a hundred times louder than usual, sent plates and cutlery crashing onto the table and producing a deafening echo off the stone walls. People all over the room turned to see who had been shouted at, and Ron sank so far into his chair that only his red forehead was visible.

"... LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WAS GOING TO DIE OF SHAME, WE DIDN'T RAISE HIM TO BEHAVE LIKE THIS, YOU, HARRY AND ISAAC COULD HAVE DIED..."

Isaac was wondering when his name would appear . He tried very hard to pretend he wasn't hearing the voice that made his eardrums throb.

"...ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED, YOUR DAD IS FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK, AND IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT, AND IF YOU LEAVE A LITTLE THING OUT OF LINE, WE'LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT HOME."

A silence followed that echoed. The red envelope, which had fallen from Ron's hands, caught fire and curled into ash. Harry, Isaac and Ron were stunned, as if a tidal wave had just passed over them. Some people laughed and, little by little, the uproar of conversation began again. Hermione closed Vampire Tours and looked at Ron.