To be honest, if Kyle had a choice, he wouldn't have wanted to be a Prefect. On the train to school, he'd much rather have stayed in the compartment chatting or playing a few rounds of wizard chess instead of pacing around on Prefect patrol. Fortunately, the students were cooperative; apart from Fred and George, who seemed intent on causing a bit of mischief, most were pretty quiet.
Finally, by evening, the Hogwarts Express slowed and came to a halt at the dark Hogsmeade Station. The doors opened just as a rumble of thunder echoed from the sky, and icy rain poured down in torrents, drenching everyone almost immediately.
Kyle clipped on his waterproof badge, which kept him and his belongings dry, and the others did the same or conjured umbrellas for themselves if they didn't have similar charms. In short, everyone had their own way of keeping dry... except for the first years, who had to follow Hagrid across the Black Lake by boat. They were quickly ushered off the platform.
"Oh, taking a boat in this weather isn't exactly ideal," Cedric shivered, glancing at the first years. "I hope this doesn't spoil their first impression of Hogwarts too much."
Moving with the crowd, Kyle made his way to the carriages and climbed into the nearest one, with the others following. A few moments later, with a rough jolt, the carriage started along the path to the castle, splashing through puddles as it went.
They soon arrived at the castle and quickly climbed out, hurrying up the stone steps into the warm, torch-lit foyer. Just as they stepped inside, Kyle caught sight of a large water balloon dropping from the ceiling, exploding with a splash over Ron's head.
One after another, more water balloons fell from above, splattering the crowd below. Screams and laughter filled the air as students pushed each other, trying to dodge the relentless onslaught.
"Peeves!" shouted an angry voice. "Get down here right now!"
Professor McGonagall strode out of the Great Hall, looking furious. The floor was so wet that she slipped slightly, and to keep from falling, she instinctively grabbed the person nearest her—who happened to be Hermione.
"Ouch... I'm sorry, Miss Granger..." she said, catching her balance.
"Ahem... it's alright, Professor..." Hermione replied, rubbing her throat, wide-eyed.
"Peeves, get down here this instant!" Professor McGonagall demanded.
"I'm not doing anything!" Peeves cackled, tossing a few more water balloons down onto a group of second-years. "They're already soaked! Hey, kids, no running!"
"I'm warning you, Peeves!" Professor McGonagall's voice grew sharper as her patience wore thin.
But Peeves merely stuck out his tongue, lobbed the last few water balloons into the air, and zipped up the Marble Staircase, giggling maniacally as he disappeared from sight.
"Alright, everyone, hurry inside," Professor McGonagall said, holding open the Great Hall doors and urging the drenched students forward. She muttered, half to herself, "I don't know where Peeves gets all those balloons... he never runs out, not even over the holidays."
Kyle stifled a laugh as he walked past Professor McGonagall and entered the Great Hall. The room was just as grand as ever, decked out for the start-of-term feast. Above them, the enchanted ceiling showed a turbulent storm, complete with lightning and thunder that made a few younger students squeak in surprise.
Kyle and the others made their way to the Hufflepuff table and sat down. Soon, students from all houses filled the other tables, chatting excitedly about their summer adventures and the interesting events they'd encountered.
Unsurprisingly, the Quidditch World Cup was the main topic of conversation. Those who hadn't attended were curious to hear firsthand accounts, eager to know if the matches—and the chaos afterward—had been as thrilling as the newspapers claimed.
"I wonder who the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor is this year," Cedric said, eyeing the empty seats at the teachers' table.
"Maybe they couldn't find anyone," Mikel replied. "Everyone knows the position is cursed; no professor has lasted a full year... Oh..." His eyes suddenly brightened. "Have you noticed? Professor Snape isn't here either."
"Could it be that, in addition to Defence Against the Dark Arts, we'll have a new Potions professor, too?"
"Oh, this would be amazing!" he added hopefully.
"Or... maybe he's just running late," Kyle said with a bit of optimism. Snape was probably tied up with Ministry affairs after Regulus's death and couldn't attend the Start-of-Term Feast.
"Oh, can't you let me be happy just this once?" Mikel sighed.
Just then, the doors to the Great Hall swung open, and the chatter fell silent. Professor McGonagall entered, leading a group of wide-eyed, drenched first-year students into the hall.
"They're in a bit of a state," Cedric whispered.
The new students looked as if they'd swum across the lake rather than taken the boats. Kyle rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Perhaps he could propose to Dumbledore that he enchant the boats with protective runes. By engraving a certain pattern, he could create an invisible canopy to shield the students from rain. That way, first years wouldn't arrive looking so miserable every time the weather turned foul.
He leaned toward Kanna, sharing his idea in a whisper.
"That might not be possible," Kanna whispered back. "Professor Babbling could do it, but the boats haven't changed in all these years."
"Well, maybe Professor Babbling is just too lazy," Kyle suggested. "She's always trying to merge classes to get more time to travel."
Kanna nodded, realizing it was true. Every year, Professor Babbling proposed combining all five years of Ancient Runes into one class so she could go on research trips. She definitely didn't seem like someone who'd spend her free time carving runes onto boats.
"Besides," Kyle continued, "we have the Board of Directors' Read the latest chapters on NovelHub - completely free! I'm sure Dumbledore wouldn't mind if it didn't cost the school anything."
Kanna was convinced and nodded. "When should we ask Professor Dumbledore?"
"No rush," Kyle replied. "The new students have already arrived for this year. How about we wait until Christmas or Easter break?"
"Good idea!" Kanna agreed.
At that moment, the Sorting Hat's song came to an end.
"in judging which House you belong to."
The Great Hall broke into applause, and Kyle, who hadn't listened to a single word of the song, joined in politely.
Professor McGonagall unfurled a large roll of parchment. "When I call your name, please put on the hat and sit on the stool," she instructed the first-years.
A small, shivering boy stepped forward, either from nerves or the cold.
"Ravenclaw!" the Sorting Hat announced after barely a pause.
Applause erupted from the Ravenclaw table as Ackerley hurried over.