Chapter 206: The Rationale Dream Curse 

"I was thinking of popping into Zonko's Joke Shop too, Dylan. Wanna come along?" Neville asked. 

Dylan considered it for a moment, then shook his head. "Not really my thing." 

Neville blinked, a bit surprised. 

Hogsmeade only had a handful of shops. If Dylan wasn't keen on Zonko's, what else was there to do? Just hit up the sweet shop? 

Trying to persuade him, Neville said, "Seamus was saying Dean told him Zonko's has all sorts of weird stuff—things we don't usually see." 

He glanced around cautiously, then lowered his voice. "Seamus and Dean even saved up some Galleons. They're planning to go all out!" 

Dylan raised an eyebrow as Neville listed some of the items Seamus and Dean were eyeing. 

"Sounds like a bunch of banned stuff," Dylan remarked. 

Neville grinned. "Yeah, most of it's on the prohibited items list, from what I know." 

"Seamus told me in secret, so don't spread it around, okay?" 

Dylan waved a hand dismissively. "I'm not one for gossip. And honestly, I'm not that into banned items. Truth be told, don't the Weasley twins make their own versions of that stuff?" 

"I saw someone trading with them under the table the other day. Why buy from Zonko's when you can support a classmate's hustle?" 

Neville blinked, then nodded. "That… actually makes sense." 

Dylan shrugged. "Don't you think Fred and George's ideas and gadgets are way more fun than what Zonko's has?" 

Neville thought for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Yeah, you're right. I heard last week they made these Canary Creams—look like regular biscuits, but eat one, and you turn into a giant canary for a minute before the feathers fall off and you're back to normal." 

Dylan nodded. "I know. Those require some serious Transfiguration skills. They even asked me for advice." 

"What?" Neville glanced at him. "No wonder they pulled it off so fast. Last year, I heard them talking about developing those biscuits, but then it went quiet. Now they've got a finished product." 

Dylan smirked. "Exactly. That's why I'm not fussed about Zonko's. People who've been to Hogsmeade say their stock hasn't changed in ages." 

"I bet one day Fred and George will open a joke shop that's way better than Zonko's. It'll take the whole country by storm." 

Dylan and Neville walked along. 

Suddenly, a voice burst out behind them. 

"By Merlin's smelly old boots! What's that I hear?" 

"A prophecy from a third-year Divination master, certified by Professor Trelawney herself?" 

"You bet it is!" 

The voices rang out one after the other. 

Dylan's eyelid twitched at the exaggerated tone. 

Oh no. 

He'd accidentally boosted the twins' egos. 

"I just meant that in the future…" Dylan tried to clarify. 

But the Weasley twins didn't give him a chance to finish. 

They swooped in, crowding him. 

"Well, Dylan, why haven't we heard you hyping us up like this before?" George said, grinning. 

"Exactly! High praise like that? You gotta say it to our faces! No time like the present!" Fred added, winking. 

George nudged Dylan's shoulder, his face creasing with a wide smile. 

Fred joined in, playfully shoving George closer to Dylan. 

"Come on, tell us—which of our brilliant inventions is your favorite?" 

"That Screaming Whistle that filled the Slytherin dungeons with donkey brays?" 

"Or maybe the Starburst Flour that turned the Hufflepuff kitchen into a sparkler show last month?" 

Dylan, squished between them and nearly pinned to the wall, felt his patience snap. His gaze sharpened. 

"Fre—d—" 

"I'm George!" 

Realizing they'd gone too far, the twins backpedaled. 

"Gotta run! We've got a prototype waiting in the dorm!" 

They bolted, their voices trailing behind. 

"See you in Hogsmeade!" 

"No, at Honeydukes! We'll be waiting!" 

"With a secret weapon just for you!" 

And they were gone. 

Dylan sighed, exasperated. 

Those two… 

Always cooking up some wild prank. 

Secret weapon? 

Dylan clicked his tongue. 

Neville stood nearby, watching the twins appear and vanish in a whirlwind. 

His eyes were practically sore from blinking. 

"Let's go," Dylan said, waving Neville along. 

All that talking had made him hungry. 

Neville nodded and hurried to keep up. 

Time flew by. 

In the days leading up to Halloween, Hogwarts was still surrounded by Dementors, but the third-years weren't thinking about that. 

It was their first chance to leave the castle for a trip during term, and most were buzzing with excitement. 

Some were downright hyper. 

Dylan noticed the Gryffindors were even more engaged in classes. 

Especially in Snape's Potions lessons. 

It was wild! 

Despite Snape's usual habit of picking on Gryffindors—calling out everyone except Dylan for some fault or another—the students didn't talk back. 

Whatever Snape criticized, they fixed, following his instructions to the letter. 

Snape was stunned. 

Maybe even a little touched. 

Then he went and nitpicked everyone's work again, docking points from Harry. 

Isn't that just Snape being a fair teacher in his own way? 

The day before Halloween arrived. 

Morning light barely crept over the castle's spires when Hogwarts' stone paths were already packed with restless students. 

The day they could finally visit Hogsmeade had come. 

This year's third-years were thrilled, clustering together in excited groups. 

Meanwhile, Filch stood like a bristling old cat at the entrance hall's archway. 

From a distance, he looked almost like a nail sticking out. 

His hooked nose practically jabbed at every passing student's face. 

He clutched a list so long the parchment nearly dragged on the ground. 

Who even makes parchment that long? 

"No one passes without being on the list! Try sneaking out, and if I catch you, you're done for! Your Head of House will have to come fetch you!" 

Filch's voice was like a rusty saw scraping stone—shrill, grating, with a nasally edge. 

Every syllable sounded like it had been soaked in sour milk. 

When Dylan strolled up, Luna was at his side. 

Neville trailed behind, wanting to join them but too shy to step forward. 

"He looks like some kind of magical creature," Luna said, her gaze fixed on Filch. 

Filch was too busy checking names to notice her curious stare. 

Dylan glanced at her. 

Was this girl seriously intrigued by Filch? 

Was she planning to study him and write him up in her dad's magazine? 

Dylan clicked his tongue. "I'm heading through. Keep an eye on Luna for me, and say hi to the mist for me." 

Luna tilted her head. "If you can, keep an eye out in Hogsmeade for any undiscovered rare creatures. Let me know if you spot any." 

Dylan nodded. "Sure, but don't get your hopes up. I doubt I'll run into anything special." 

If there were undiscovered creatures in Hogsmeade, the local wizards would've nabbed them long ago. 

No way a young wizard on a day trip would stumble across one. 

Luna nodded, her blonde hair fluttering in the breeze. 

Dylan had run into her in the corridor on his way out, so they'd walked together. 

"No worries, just keep an eye out," Luna said. 

"Will do." 

They parted ways. 

Luna headed off in another direction. 

Neville hurried to catch up with Dylan, letting out a quiet sigh of relief. 

He glanced cautiously at Dylan, then noticed Hermione, Harry, and Ron up ahead. 

Neville paused. "Harry said his aunt and uncle refused to sign any of his forms." 

Dylan raised an eyebrow. "Really? He didn't mention it to me." 

"Er," Neville looked at him. "Maybe because you haven't talked to Harry much lately?" 

"Huh." Dylan nodded. "Fair point." 

He'd been caught up with a breakthrough in his research. 

He'd made progress on memory-altering magic. 

Before, he could shield Hagrid's memories, preventing others from probing and exposing his secrets. 

That was already advanced magic. 

But it was rough—forcefully cloaking his presence. 

If someone dug deep into Hagrid's memories, they might spot inconsistencies. 

Now, things were different. 

Dylan could not only sever specific memories but make them appear "logical" to others, who'd overlook them. 

It was like casting a Fidelius Charm on a piece of someone's memory. 

But unlike the Fidelius, which hid memories as secrets, this let others see the memory without questioning it. 

The memory would even shift to align with what the observer thought was "normal." 

Dylan named this spell the Rationale Dream Curse. 

Rationale for "logical," as it made gaps in memory seem like a natural doorway. 

Dream for its seamless, dreamlike infiltration, twisting perception naturally. 

But the spell had stricter conditions than his earlier Mnemosyne's Veil. 

The Veil only required Dylan to cast it on his target. 

The Rationale Dream Curse demanded close proximity to the target and prolonged contact to weave into their memories. 

If the target was skilled in memory magic—like Snape or Dumbledore—they'd likely notice Dylan's tampering. 

They could also break the spell easily. 

Even without that, Dylan had to maintain the spell's effect periodically. 

He was now working on making it undetectable. 

Though he mainly developed it to keep Hagrid's big mouth from spilling about him, Dylan wanted to perfect it. 

He'd spent hours studying Portkeys, the Fidelius Charm, Mnemosyne's Veil, and the Memory Charm. 

He'd also been sneaking into the Forbidden Forest at night to test the spell on Hagrid. 

Hagrid was strong but clueless about charms, making him the perfect test subject. 

Dylan successfully shielded Hagrid's memories about him—especially regarding Norbert. 

With all that, plus other tasks, he hadn't had time for Harry and the others. 

And Harry hadn't come to him with any complaints, so things were probably fine, right? 

As for the Dursleys… 

Dylan's eyes narrowed. 

Next holiday, when he visited Harry, he'd teach those two what it really meant to support a kid's growth. 

"Harry's aunt and uncle are his guardians, so without their signature, he can't go to Hogsmeade," Neville said. 

Dylan thought for a moment. 

This wasn't a surprise—it was part of the story. 

If so, Harry didn't need his help. 

Let him handle it. 

"Speaking of, I should probably check in with Harry and the others," Dylan realized. 

He'd been so focused on Hagrid's memories that he'd neglected them. 

Approaching Harry, Ron, and Hermione, Dylan noticed Ron and Hermione had temporarily set aside their feud. 

As he got closer, he overheard them comforting Harry. 

"I just don't get it. McGonagall knows Harry's guardians are those two, so why can't he come with us to Hogsmeade?" Ron said, fuming. "With us there, it's not like he'd get lost!" 

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