Harry Potter: Shadow Eminence

Chapter 8.

Brian went back to the Slytherin common room, organized the textbooks he had left by the fireplace, and let out a soft yawn.

The harvest this time was quite good.

[Witnessing and participating in the discovery of the trapdoor, witness points +0.5×2]

Since he was part of the whole process, he earned double the witness points, but it still amounted to just 1 point.

"Witness points are even scarcer than I thought," Brian remarked, pinching his chin.

It was already very late when Brian got back to the dormitory, where the lights were off, and he could hear Crabbe and Goyle snoring in harmony from a distance.

However, tonight, Malfoy was awake; he sat upright on his four-poster bed, waiting for him in the dark.

"Where have you been, Brian?" he asked softly, his gray eyes glinting in the darkness.

"I was curious if you were going to sabotage my good plan again?" Malfoy said in a teasing tone.

"That's right, Draco, I heard what you said, and I was a bit conflicted about you, so..." Brian replied casually; this issue was impossible to conceal.

"I waited for you and the others, but I didn't find you, and almost got caught by Filch instead." Brian said quietly, "It seems I did something unnecessary. You did something quite clever; it appears you do have a brain after all, Draco."

"But you messed it up!" Malfoy's voice rose. Crabbe and Goyle continued to sleep soundly.

"So what? If you had informed me beforehand, this might not have happened," Brian shrugged.

"I don't need you to do unnecessary things!" Malfoy said through clenched teeth.

"Fine, but you should know, Draco." Brian looked into Malfoy's eyes, his expression earnest, and spoke in a flat tone, "I'll do what I must if I unknowingly become part of your plan."

Malfoy turned his head away and huffed heavily.

"But you should know that I'm not your enemy." The soft voice made Malfoy perk up, "Perhaps you and I sometimes struggle to understand each other's thoughts, but that doesn't define us entirely."

"We have much more in common, right?" Brian smiled.

"But your earlier comments..." Malfoy frowned.

"No, Draco, those are actually points we should reflect on; I'm merely sharing my own thoughts." Brian interrupted him.

Brian spoke earnestly, "This is how I feel, Draco. Though I don't seek your approval, I will share my thoughts with you because you are my best friend (my predecessor's)."

Malfoy raised his chin and declared proudly, "But I will not agree with your negative remarks; I will show you that I am right."

"So, it's just a minor disagreement; it won't impact our friendship."

"Hmph, I will reluctantly keep this from my dad, but you need to think about how to win me over." Malfoy's chin lifted higher.

"As you wish," Brian said, thinking that this guy was quite endearing.

"Not yet; I still need a few days to forgive you." Malfoy pulled the bed curtains, hiding himself inside.

Brian sat quietly in the dark, his gaze calm and restrained.

...

In the following days, his relationship with Malfoy returned to its previous state.

They ceased discussing ideological matters and no longer interfered with each other's actions. In fact, aside from this issue, their bond grew closer.

Brian continued to eagerly absorb magical knowledge, and Malfoy joined him for a few days of study, but he couldn't keep it up for long and resumed provoking Harry Potter and his friends.

He acted like a mischievous child seeking his parents' attention and approval. This was Brian's assessment.

He and Daphne no longer spoke of that night; the two remained good friends.

Hermione had some minor complaints in her letters, but most of the time, they discussed academic issues. Miss Know-It-All was like a small encyclopedia; it was always wise to consult her with any questions.

Harry's attitude towards him improved significantly; at least they would nod at each other when they crossed paths. But Ron stubbornly believed that Brian was scheming something, thinking Brian was more cunning than Malfoy, believing it was his duty to protect Harry from him.

Separated from the book, they were all living, breathing individuals with their own joys and sorrows, more three-dimensional and vivid than what was depicted in the book, leaving Brian feeling somewhat lost.

This is a real world, but Brian feels increasingly uncertain about what he is pursuing; perhaps he doesn't even know himself.

It seems he is merely going with the flow, getting by.

When life becomes routine, everything feels natural.

Setting aside those confusing matters, Brian's studies are gradually getting on track; at least he can handle the praise Professor Snape gives him in Potions class.

Snape always relentlessly targets Harry, to the point that Harry leaves Potions class looking disheveled every time.

Of course, Brian and Malfoy have become exemplary students in Potions class. Snape commends them for their performance in every class and generously awards points to Slytherin.

During those moments, Malfoy always casts a proud glance in Harry's direction, with a smug, taunting smile on his lips, an expression that even makes Brian feel an urge to punch him.

Daphne is much more conventional; she is not the best but rarely makes mistakes. Recently, she had a disagreement with Pansy Parkinson and complained to Brian that she never wanted to deal with her again. Brian just patiently comforted her.

Children's moods shift quickly, and soon she reconciled with Pansy. Pansy is not particularly arrogant when interacting with friends; most of the time, she is just an ordinary girl, though sometimes she speaks thoughtlessly and easily hurts her friends' feelings.

As for Crabbe and Goyle, they are simply a walking disaster. That's how Brian sees it.

Brian attempts to teach them the transfiguration they just learned, like turning a matchstick into a needle.

Crabbe always ends up blowing the matchsticks apart into thin wooden splinters, which are as fine as cow hair but can pierce through skin, forcing them to spend a long time picking the splinters out of their hands. For days, the four of them in the dormitory felt prickly all over.

Clearly, Crabbe is not skilled at precise magic; his approach is bold and powerful, but he lacks control.

Brian has been trying to advise him to practice control, but Crabbe clearly doesn't take it to heart.

As for Goyle, he spent an entire week just managing to turn a matchstick into a crooked, worm-like object. Malfoy secretly thought he had no chance of passing the O.W.L. exams, and Crabbe was in the same situation.

But there's no doubt that Transfiguration is the subject Malfoy despises the most. He always claims he is not afraid of Professor McGonagall at all; he just wants to maintain a gentlemanly demeanor in front of ladies.

It's worth mentioning that recently Malfoy took him to watch a Quidditch match, Slytherin against Ravenclaw, and Brian earned 0.1 witness points because of it.

Although it's rare, God knows how many matches he has missed. He was not enthusiastic about Quidditch before; he thought it was a complete waste of time.

Later, Brian took the initiative to watch every Quidditch match, leading Malfoy to mistakenly believe that he also loved Quidditch, and he constantly complained to him about Gryffindor breaking the rules by allowing that scar-headed Potter to join the house team early.

Of course, a very important thing is: Brian can finally start learning Occlumency.

During this time, Brian learned the Silencing Charm, which can eliminate his own sound. With this spell, after several nights of trying, he finally succeeded in sneaking into the Restricted Section and found the book "How to Block Your Mind."

It appeared to be an ordinary book and had no restrictions, which greatly relieved Brian.

It's known that most books in the Restricted Section have certain reading thresholds; if you can't meet them, you can't read at all, and forcing yourself to look will only harm both the reader and the book.

For instance, in the original story, Harry once snuck into the Restricted Section and opened a book that emitted a bone-chilling scream. This serves as a test, but also as protection.

So currently, Brian is not very interested in the books in the Restricted Section.

Brian did not take the book directly; he could envision the scene. Madam Pince would discover the missing book the next day and would spend a long time searching every student's bag who entered the library, keeping a close watch on everyone.

He pulled out a roll of parchment, took out a quill, and cast a small spell on it, which he jokingly referred to as a copying spell. Its function is very simple: to quickly write down the words he sees in front of him.

That's why professors never assign copying homework.

Brian spent three nights successfully copying the book and officially began practicing Occlumency.

After research, Brian discovered that it was a very profound magic, which posed a significant challenge for him.

In the entire magical world, there are very few wizards who truly master the brain sealing technique. However, those truly powerful wizards mostly have mastered this magic, as it can genuinely protect your mind.

And it is certainly not just used to counter mind reading.