`"Good morning. I'd like three scoops of powdered narcissus root, two spoonfuls of beetle eyes, one unicorn horn, and two bezoars, please..."
Tom read off his list and walked away with a big bag of potion ingredients—and an empty wallet to show for it.
This stuff is seriously expensive!
Just the unicorn horn alone cost a whopping 21 Galleons. Tom was pretty sure the apothecary was straight-up robbing people.
He'd been thinking about this problem for a while now.
He needed to practice Potions, but he didn't have the materials.
Book knowledge alone wasn't cutting it. Tom needed hands-on experience—real practice!
Getting Galleons had always been a headache, until he saw Lockhart today. That's when it hit him: he could totally use Lockhart to make some money!
The guy was famous. His autographed stuff would sell for a fortune.
Sure enough, one personalized photo went for 150 Galleons.
In three days, there was the competition. He had to bring his A-game.
This week... maybe I just won't leave the house. Aside from my daily workouts, I'll spend every spare minute practicing magic. I've got to win this thing!
...
Three days flew by in a blink.
Tom was ready to go.
"Hermione, you look like a little fashion model today. Heading out to hang with friends?"
Instead of his usual short boots, Tom had switched to tall ones, paired with black tights. He wore a plaid coat in a Muggle style, a black-and-white scarf wrapped snugly around his neck, and his long curly hair was tied up in a bun at the back, topped with a beret.
(From 101 Reading—101kks.com, fully typed, no errors!)
"Mrs. Sheryl, you're looking as gorgeous as ever today."
"You always say the sweetest things, Hermione."
Tom smiled and headed off quickly to Diagon Alley.
Just yesterday, he'd hit a major milestone: all his first-year spells had reached Level 3 proficiency.
And he'd unlocked a new title!
[Title: Little Wizard]
[Little Wizard: When equipped, reduces spell mana cost by 10% and increases casting speed by 30%.]
Even with the upgrade, Tom wasn't getting cocky. He knew the upper years had some real prodigies.
He arrived early in Diagon Alley. The competing students were already buzzing with excitement. Lockhart was dressed even flashier than last time—if that was possible. The guy looked like he wanted gold thread sewn into his shoes.
"Hermione—!" Lockhart spotted Tom and threw his arms up dramatically. "My little angel, you're here! I hope you'll show everyone your true strength on the field today. Let them all see how amazing you are.
Little angel, I believe in you. You can do this!"
"Thanks for the vote of confidence."
Lockhart didn't linger on Hermione for long. He quickly moved on to the other first-years.
"Mr. Ron, your hair is as vibrant as ever today. It makes me so happy to see that smile of yours."
Ron wasn't nearly as calm as Tom. Right now, he looked like he wanted to bury his head in the ground. Meanwhile, the twins were poking his shoulders nonstop. "Hey, Ron, chin up! Everyone's watching."
"Ron, Mr. Lockhart is counting on you to win! Ginny, look at Ron's face—it's redder than his hair, haha!"
...
Back at Hogwarts.
Hermione was rushing around like crazy.
She felt like she was losing her mind.
One day was fine, but after four straight days, she finally understood what it meant to not have a single second to slack off. She hadn't even had her bedtime glass of milk in ages.
Mornings were completely taken over by Professor Snape, who seemed to have some personal grudge—he'd snap at her out of nowhere.
But thanks to prepping ingredients for Snape every day, Hermione's understanding of Potions had skyrocketed. Her "Snape Notebook" that she carried everywhere was now completely filled, complete with tons of illustrations. That notebook could hold its own in the library against books by third-rate potion masters.
At noon, she'd help out Hagrid and get hands-on with all sorts of magical creatures. She'd even gotten her toe nipped by a big yellow rat—Hagrid had freaked out over it.
Counting on her fingers, Hermione tracked the days.
If Tom had actually signed up like he said, today was the competition, right?
She really hoped...
"Tom! What are you daydreaming about?" Snape's voice snapped her back to reality. "Do you think you're so brilliant now that you can brew any potion perfectly?
Let me tell you, you're the dumbest student I've ever seen—and the most oblivious one!"
"Professor Snape, I was just..."
"Enough! I don't want to hear your excuses!" Snape huffed coldly. "Here's 200 Galleons. Go to Diagon Alley and buy everything on this list. If—if—you get even one thing wrong, you know what'll happen!"
Snape's icy glare swept over her, like it could pierce right through her heart.
Diagon Alley? Diagon Alley!
She might have just enough time to sneak a peek at how Tom was doing in the competition.
And if he won, she could bring back Lockhart's stuff and keep it on her bed!
"Thank you, Professor Snape!"
"Hmph. Idiots don't know they're idiots. Do you really think wasting time on this nonsense is 'relaxing'? Get out of my Potions lab!"
Hermione bowed politely, grabbed the Galleons from Snape, and hurried out of Hogwarts.
Not long after she left, Dumbledore pushed open the door to the Potions lab.
"Albus, what do you want?"
Dumbledore stroked his beard, pacing around the room before joining Snape at the window. They watched Hermione sprinting away below. "Severus, perhaps I am the headmaster of Hogwarts after all. I think I have the right to inspect the lab."
"What are you getting at?"
Dumbledore lifted his chin, avoiding Snape's eyes. "Tom's a good kid, right?"
"I think he's a foolish student, actually going so far as to..." Snape trailed off.
"Severus, last night Adalbert—the portrait hanging outside your office door—he..."
"I know who he is, Albus. You don't need to explain."
Dumbledore continued anyway. "Adalbert told me something interesting. He said Tom has been a bit out of it when getting up at night to use the bathroom lately. Keeps mumbling about something called the 'Lockhart Junior Wizard Competition.' Any idea?"
Snape: "Lockhart? Just a fraud. If I were him, I wouldn't show my face at something like that."
"Oh? But I never said Lockhart would be there, or that today was the competition. Funny coincidence—why today of all days? And hmm, there's still plenty of ingredients in the lab. Does Tom really need to go shopping?"
Snape's face darkened instantly. "Albus, have you been a bit too free lately? You're usually so busy."
"Severus, Tom's a good student, isn't he?" Dumbledore repeated. "I've never seen you take such an interest in one."
"I! Do! Not!" Snape bit out each word, then stormed out of the lab.
Idiot!
Albus was just as much of an idiot as Tom!
...
By the time Hermione reached Diagon Alley, it was already afternoon.
The place was packed with witches and wizards—even the Leaky Cauldron was standing room only.
"Too bad. Mr. Lockhart was so busy. I wanted to get a photo with him."
"Forget it. Didn't you see the crowd around him? There'll be another chance."
"But who would've thought a first-year would win? I heard she hasn't even started at Hogwarts yet."
"Her casting speed was faster than those third-year Weasley twins, and even beat Cedric and Cho. Cedric's in Hufflepuff, Cho's in Ravenclaw."
A first-year?
Hermione caught the key word.
No way it was actually Tom, right?
No, no, impossible. Tom had only been doing magic for a short time. It had to be one of those pure-blood kids who'd grown up with it.
She made her way to Flourish and Blotts.
Lockhart had already left—the competition had ended at noon.
"Young miss, what can I get you?"
Hermione asked, "Do you have any photos from today's competition?"
"Of course! Right over here—2 Sickles each."
"Thanks." Hermione paid and took the photo.
It was really him!
Her mouth fell open in shock.
"This kid is incredible, huh?" the shop assistant smiled. "Every first-year spell looked effortless for her. Look at that casting speed—goodness, she could keep up with some fifth- or sixth-years."
Hermione stared at the moving photo in disbelief.
Tom waved his wand gracefully: "Incendio!"
A burst of flame shot from the tip, instantly lighting the coal in front of him.
By the time Tom finished casting, the red-haired boy next to him hadn't even gotten the incantation out.
It was really him!
Hermione covered her mouth with her hand.
That meant Tom had Lockhart's full set of signed books and a personal photo right now?
Hermione was thrilled. The darkness in her emerald eyes faded a lot—she suddenly felt like everything she'd been putting up with at Hogwarts was totally worth it!
She finished buying the ingredients and headed back to school in high spirits.
...
Day seven.
Tom was back in his black robes, sitting alone in the Leaky Cauldron.
"Hey, lady, sorry to keep you waiting." The twins appeared in perfect sync.
"I'm not a lady," Tom said in Hermione's voice, sounding oddly confused.
The twins exchanged a glance and grinned. "Sure thing, lady. About that deal we discussed..."
Tom pulled out a suitcase and slid it over.
George opened it, checked the contents, and nodded. "All real. Lady, where on earth did you get these?"
Tom put a finger to his lips with a slight smirk. "How many Galleons?"
"I think 400 is fair. What do you say?"
"500."
George snapped his fingers. "Deal, lady. But we don't have that much on us right now—you might have to wait a bit."
Tom shook his head and wrote down an address. "You can start selling them first. Deposit the Galleons here when you're done. I've left instructions at Gringotts. George, Fred."
The twins weren't surprised to hear their names—they'd already guessed who this cloaked figure was. Anyone with half a brain could figure it out.
Who else could get their hands on the champion's prizes right after the competition?
"Thanks for the trust." George grinned wide.
They were going to make a killing—at least 50 Galleons profit!
Once Tom left, George nudged toward his direction. "Fred, what do you think would happen if Ginny found out her idol is like this behind the scenes?"
During the competition, their little sister Ginny Weasley had been completely starstruck, going on and on about how cool "Hermione Granger" was.
Dressed super cool, different from other wizards. Casting spells—super cool. Standing confidently next to Mr. Lockhart after winning—super cool!
Just all-around cool!
Fred shrugged. "No idea, but we can't tell Ginny. That would totally shatter her illusions."
The two burst out laughing together. "She's our little cash cow right now. Who knows, maybe we'll even see her at Hogwarts someday."