"What do you an, 'made a place' for it?" Cohen frowned.
The brain was, without a doubt, talking about a Dentor. To these peculiar creatures, Cohen looked a lot like a Dentor himself, since he was sixty percent Dentor, after all. The Ministry must have captured a Dentor and put it into the brains' tank, hoping the brains would simply devour it.
"Just... made a place," the brain communicated back. It sent Cohen a feeling that was truly like setting aside an empty spot inside itself for new "thoughts" to join in.
"Can it leave?" Cohen asked.
"Thoughts can't be stopped," the brain replied. "It likes us, so it stays. When it doesn't, it will leave."
Then, the brain gave off a wave of pure happiness. Cohen siphoned it up, and just like human happiness, it was sweet.
Suddenly, Cohen understood why the Dentor "liked" these brains so much. It was a buffet! A voluntary, all-you-can-eat buffet!
The Dentor had joined them so it could feast to its heart's content. No wonder the wizards in the Departnt of Mysteries thought the brains could harm a Dentor; when a Dentor seed to be sucked into a brain right before their eyes, it definitely looked like the brain "ate" it.
Unfortunately, the Departnt of Mysteries didn't have a "communication specialist" like Cohen who could understand the piercing thoughts the brains emitted. And there was a clear difference between humans and Dentors: a human's soul can't leave its body for too long, while a Dentor is a spiritual entity to begin with. So, what was a deadly hazard to a person was simply an open-door room for a Dentor. A room full of snacks, no less.
"Give so more," Cohen told the brain.
"Okay," the brain replied, emitting another burst of happy thoughts.
This little snack was really useful. Since the brain was willing to offer up treats, Cohen not only changed its water but also moved it to a larger tank—the very one Lupin used to keep a Grindylow in. When Lupin left, it was thrown in the storage room, but Cohen had brought it back, thinking he might keep so aquatic animals soday.
With fresh water and a bigger tank, the brain could now swim around freely, its thought-tendrils swaying in the water, giving it an easygoing, almost carefree look.
"Cohen! Professor Dumbledore is back! We just saw him—rlin's beard, what is that thing?" Ron burst into the common room, speaking happily to Cohen, then he saw the thing Cohen was playing with in the large tank.
"Join us?" the brain asked when it noticed Ron.
"It's a brain, you can probably tell," Cohen said. "Soone's gift to . It seems to be from the Departnt of Mysteries."
"It must be incredibly rare, then... why would a brain be on its own..." Ron said oddly. "Ugh—it's so disgusting—"
The brain was still spewing out colourful brain fluid, as if it thought this was the way to tempt Ron to join it.
"It's actually quite cute," Cohen said. "Look, it can even swim—now turn over."
"Turn over."
Upon hearing Cohen's request, the brain flipped over in the water and then sucked its colourful brain fluid back in. It was a good attempt at playing hard to get, but it was sorely lacking in common sense. A normal person would not be drawn to a brain spewing fluid in a tank, even if the fluid was made of colourful thoughts.
"Ugh," Ron said, looking queasy. "You're not going to keep it in the common room, are you? It's gross. Professor McGonagall would never allow it."
"Of course not. It's a bit dangerous for you all," Cohen said. "It wants to pull people's thoughts into its own body—then you'd be stuck living in the sa brain as it."
Ron shivered and took a step back.
"Did you say Dumbledore is back?" Cohen asked, covering the tank with a cloth, then preparing to stuff it into his Mokeskin pouch.
"Yes, Harry and Hermione went to see him. They should be back soon," Ron said. "But who sent you this 'brain'? It's dangerous for people... sounds like an attempt on your life..."
"It was definitely intended as a murder attempt," Cohen said, raising an eyebrow. "But clearly, they didn't succeed. I got a new pet and a future big project: I'm going to raise lots and lots of brains."
Then the Dentors could abandon their worldly desires and join Cohen to build a brainy society. He had the Departnt of Mysteries to thank for the generous sponsorship.
"You're in the sa league as Hagrid now," Ron said, swallowing hard, only sitting down on an armchair once Cohen had put the tank away. "Of course, I an when it cos to keeping magical creatures..."
Not long after, Harry and Hermione returned. Dumbledore didn't seem to have talked with them for very long, and Harry didn't look like he was in a better mood.
"What happened, mate?" Ron asked, puzzled by Harry's gloomy expression. "Dumbledore didn't believe you, did he?"
"Quite the opposite," Harry said, forcing a weak smile. "He believed us and even gave us a solution."
"That's great, then," Ron said.
"I'm guessing you have to learn so extra lessons," Cohen said.
"I have to take Occluncy lessons with Snape," Harry said, his smile looking less like a smile than ever.
"It's the safest way, Harry," Hermione said patiently. "You have to sever this connection. Dumbledore is right, it's dangerous for you and for everyone else."
"I'm not going to ambush you in my sleep," Harry said impatiently. "And I do want to sever the connection—but Snape... you know what he's like. He'll never teach ."
"He will, though. Rember, he's in the Order of the Phoenix, too," Hermione said.
"He looks like a spy to ; he's a Death Eater, after all," Harry said angrily. "He'll probably just torture in his office instead of teaching anything."
"Cheer up. You're just possibly going to be murdered. I've already been murdered," Cohen said comfortingly. "Soone tucked a brain into a bunch of gifts today, hoping it would swallow whole."
"Tucked a... what?" Harry thought he hadn't heard the word correctly.
"A brain, a literal brain, the Ministry of Magic's big invention for fighting Dentors. It's my pet now," Cohen said. Suddenly, he patted his head. "Oh, right, I need to write to Edward quickly and tell him not to murder all those brains..."
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