The Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom buzzed with excitement as Gilderoy Lockhart entered, his robes shimmering and teeth gleaming in his practiced smile.
"Ah, my dear students! Today, we shall have a pop quiz! Nothing too difficult, I assure you."
Roy, seated near the front, tilted his head slightly as the quiz papers were distributed. A glance at the questions made him want to puke — they were absurdly trivial, bordering on ridiculous. Everyone around him furrowed brows, pens poised, ready to scribble.
Roy, however, simply closed his eyes for a moment. He focused his mind magic, reaching into the recesses of his own memory to summon every detail of magical theory and Defense Against the Dark Arts knowledge he had absorbed. Within moments, the answers appeared in his mind's eye. He wrote them down with ease, completely unfazed.
When Lockhart announced the scores, Hermione and Roy had earned first place. Hermione blinked, startled.
"But… you didn't even buy Lockhart's books!" she whispered to Roy.
Roy merely smirked, eyes glinting.
"Books are optional. Knowledge is everything."
Hermione, despite her shock, didn't care.
Lockhart, seeking to impress and perhaps reclaim his vanishing fame, brought in a cage full of Cornish Pixies.
"Ah! And now, my dear students, a practical lesson! I will demonstrate my mastery by—"
Before he could finish, the cage sprang open, and the pixies swarmed across the room, squealing and creating chaos. Desks overturned, books flew, and students shrieked.
Roy, ever calm, waved a hand and cast a transparent magical barrier around himself and Hermione, isolating them from the pandemonium. He leaned slightly toward Hermione, brushing her hand playfully as she blushed furiously.
"Do you want me to help them?" Hermione asked.
Roy shook his head, a mischievous grin curling his lips.
"Lockhart can handle it… or at least, he should."
Moments later, when Lockhart attempted to use his wand, the Cornish Pixies, fully aware of his incompetence, snatched it from him. The students erupted in laughter, watching Lockhart stumble helplessly.
Roy decided to accelerate the lesson. With a subtle flick of his wand, Lockhart was lifted and thrown down the stairs. The students gasped, but the barrier protected Hermione and Roy entirely. Lockhart hit the floor with a thud, unconscious.
Roy smirked and allowed the pixies to finish the job, tossing Lockhart gently back into the cage. The mischievous creatures, still fuming from his previous incompetence, began to tear at his robes and nibble on the edges of his flesh, shrieking their tiny indignation.
Some passing students ran to report the chaos. Soon, Lockhart was escorted to the medical wing, his fame taking an immediate nosedive. Roy, however, paid no mind. He took Hermione's hand gently, brushing his finger over her lips to silence her worried protest.
"Don't worry about them. Just stay with me."
Then, softly, he pressed a kiss to her forehead. Hermione blushed, nodded silently, and allowed herself to be guided out of the classroom.
Once outside, Roy summoned his magic to return the Cornish Pixies to their cage, along with a groaning Lockhart. The pixies, still irate, glared at the cage's bars, muttering tiny curses at their now-tamed prison.
Roy turned to Hermione, smiling faintly.
"Shall we go study something more interesting?"
Hermione nodded eagerly, forgetting entirely about the chaos of Lockhart and his humiliating lesson. Together, they walked through the silent Hogwarts corridors toward the library, leaving behind the faint echoes of shrieks, laughter, and the tiny, vengeful cries of the Cornish Pixies.
For Roy, another day had passed — full of mischief, mastery, and perhaps a little chaos, as always.