HP: I beat the otome game at Hogwarts

"For what?" Lyra interrupted Cedric's apology rather rudely.

“For…” Cedric was taken aback for two seconds by Lyra’s unusually aggressive tone, but he quickly recovered. “I think we should have a rematch. The Dementors suddenly stormed onto the field, Harry was distracted and fell off his broom, but I didn’t notice. It wasn’t until we caught the Golden Snitch that… If I had noticed sooner, maybe I could have fought off the Dementors with Harry…”

“What nonsense are you talking about?” Lyra said bluntly. “You and Harry were so focused on catching the Golden Snitch that you didn’t pay any attention to your surroundings. I’m sure if you two had switched places, Harry would have ended up like you. Besides, nobody brought wands during the competition, and you insisted on going with Harry, so you both ended up getting hurt. It’s so good that you’re okay; I can’t imagine how bad it would have been if you both had fallen off your brooms.”

Although Lyra's tone was anything but gentle, Cedric felt a surge of warmth flowing into his chest as he stood in the cold rain.

He was indeed completely focused on chasing the Golden Snitch at the time, failing to notice the Dementors or pay attention to Harry, and he would have done the same even if they had a rematch. But the thought that they were both chasing the Golden Snitch at the same time, and he caught the Snitch unharmed while Harry was knocked unconscious and injured by the Dementors, made him feel inexplicably guilty.

“So you don’t need to apologize, it wasn’t your fault.” Lyra said, then turned to look at Wood, who was still getting soaked in the rain, and gestured for Cedric to look over there. “Believe me, you won fair and square. If there was even the slightest unfairness in this match, do you think our captain Wood would have let you off the hook?”

“You’re right,” Cedric said, glancing at Wood, who was stubbornly getting soaked in the rain. He had originally intended to discuss a rematch with Wood, but after hearing Lyra’s words, he realized that his previous idea was indeed inappropriate. “Wood will not tolerate an unfair match result. Even if Gryffindor wins, if the match is truly unfair, given Wood’s character, he will protest—Wood is a respectable opponent.”

“So, congratulations, Cedric,” Lyra said sincerely. “But next time, we Gryffindor will definitely win!”

“Thank you, Lyra,” Cedric replied gently but firmly, “but Hufflepuff won’t lose next time.”

After saying that, the two looked at each other and smiled.

The rain was still falling, but the young man and woman felt no cold at all as they walked side by side toward the castle.

*

"Don't touch Harry! Please don't touch him, have mercy... Don't touch him, just kill me—"

A shrill voice laughed, a woman pleaded and screamed desperately, and then a flash of green light...

She's dying...she's being murdered...he has to help her...what is he doing now...?

"Fortunately, the torrential rain turned the stadium into a muddy field..."

"Dumbledore was just in time..."

"It was so close...it was really terrifying..."

Harry could hear whispers in his ear, but he didn't understand what they were saying or where he was. He only felt pain all over his body, as if he had been severely beaten...

By whom... terrifying... cold... a dark figure wearing a headscarf...

Dementors!

Harry opened his eyes abruptly and found himself lying in the university hospital.

A group of people surrounded his bed. Apart from Wood and Lyra, the other Gryffindor team members, Ron and Hermione, were all looking at him with concern. They were all soaking wet and covered in mud.

"He's awake!"

“Harry!” Fred spoke first, “What do you think?”

Harry's memories were starting to return: he remembered seeing a huge, furry black dog from the highest point of the stands while flying at high speed... He and Diggory spotted the Golden Snitch at the same time... The Dementors had appeared...

"What happened?" Harry's head was throbbing. "How was the game? Can we play again?"

For a moment, no one spoke.

Everyone exchanged glances, seemingly hoping someone would step forward and explain to Harry, but the terrible silence had already made Harry's heart sink to the bottom of the Black Lake.

“Uh, well…” George finally mustered his courage and stepped forward to tell Harry what happened next.

About ten minutes later, Madam Pomfrey sent everyone away so that Harry could get some rest.

But Harry couldn't sleep at all after learning that the Seeker had lost the game because he was unconscious, and that his Nimbus 2000 broom had crashed into the Whomping Willow and turned into a pile of pieces.

*

"Brother, I think someone might have taken the compound decoction and replaced Lyra—"

"No, no, no, I think maybe the scratching fly devoured Lyra, and then formed a new Lyra—"

In the corner, the whispers between George and Fred could be clearly heard by Lyra on the other side.

But Lyra ignored the red-haired twins and diligently searched the library shelves, looking for books on how to learn the Patronus Charm on your own.

"Found it—" Lyra exclaimed with delight as she pulled out a thick book with a blue cover, hugged it to her chest, then grabbed the two red-haired, freckled creatures that were trying to escape, and went to Mrs. Pince with the double burden to complete the borrowing procedures.

After the three of them borrowed the books and found an empty classroom, the twins, upon learning that they had to learn the Patronus Charm before the next Quidditch match, began to sob and cry:

"We just lost the game, and we're still slowly recovering from the sadness—"

"The animal-themed product line still needs further experimentation and adjustments—"

"Fifth-grade homework has already overwhelmed our young shoulders—"

"This year is the OWL exam year, we really can't add any more study burden—"

Snapped!

Lyra slammed the thick book on the table, expressionless, rolled up her sleeves, and drew her wand—

"Even if you argue until the end of time, you still have to learn the Guardian Angel Spell!"

George and Fred embraced and wept, but Lyra remained unmoved.

“Do you know how lucky Harry was?” Lyra said quietly, staring at the two of them. “If it weren’t for the torrential rain, if Dumbledore hadn’t happened to be there, he would have been turned into mincemeat on the spot. All because of the Dementors—”

As Leila spoke, the twins gradually quieted down their crying.

"Do you know how scared I was when I saw someone lying on a stretcher, not sure if they were alive or dead, and I wasn't even sure if it was one of you two?"

"We were lucky this time no one was really hurt, but what if the Dementors break in again next time?"

George and Fred stopped faking their tears and raised their hands in surrender. They flanked Lyra, one on each side, and the three of them huddled together, intently reading the big blue book.

One week later—

"Damn it!" Lyra glared angrily at George and Fred, who were having a great time playing with the two silver magpies, then looked at her wand, which could only produce a small puff of silver mist—

"Why am I the only one who hasn't learned this damned Guardian Charm!"