The Return to Hogwarts

"Oh, it's about Blake, Professor!"

Meeting Professor Blaine's sharp gaze, Harry, immediately realizing what was happening, shuddered and quickly explained,

“I told Ron and Hermione my guess: that Black escaped from prison to hunt me down, and that you accepted Fudge's commission to hunt Black down. That’s all I said!”

Amostah nodded in satisfaction, his gaze softening. He had been researching the Blood Demon Curse recently and was short of experimental materials.

"You have other secrets you haven't told us!"

Ron immediately understood and glared at Harry with displeasure.

Hermione was also curious about what Harry was hiding, but she was clearly more worried about Harry's safety.

"Professor, what are your plans to do with that Blake?"

As soon as Hermione asked the question, something stirred in Ron's pocket. In an instant, a listless mouse popped its head out of the pocket, its dark eyes shining with curiosity.

Chapter 155 Meeting

Swish!

A bright yellow figure flashed past Amosta like lightning, heading straight for Ron's pocket.

"Oh, damn it!"

Ron instinctively jumped up from the stool, grabbing Hermione's snarling cat with both hands to keep it as far away from his face as possible to avoid having his eyes scratched out.

"Can't you do something about this beast, Hermione? This is the second time today it's tried to rip my scalp off!"

"Oh, don't do that, Crookshan!"

A beat slow to react, Hermione frantically snatched her birthday present back from Ron's hand to prevent him from strangling it. "That's a bit rude, Crookshanks!"

Once the large, ginger-colored cat, about the size of a young tiger, calmed down, Hermione held it tightly in her arms and scolded it sternly. However, the cat, named Crookshanks, suddenly became gentle and lay lazily in Hermione's arms, licking its paws.

"Impolite? That's all?!" Ron yelled angrily at Hermione, but Hermione was only focused on calming the beast and ignored him completely.

“That rat—” Amosta rubbed his temples and pointed toward the stairs.

In that brief moment, the mouse that peeked out of Ron's pocket was even faster than the big yellow cat. In the blink of an eye, the mouse slid down Ron's trouser leg, nimbly dodged the messy wooden legs of the tables and chairs, darted behind the bar, and then ran across the aisle at lightning speed, disappearing around the corner of the stairs.

"Oh, Scabbers!" Reminded by Professor Blaine, Ron realized that Scabbers had once again escaped his control. He abandoned the others in the hall and hurriedly chased after them.

“Spotty is a pet that Ron inherited from Percy,”

Noticing that Professor Blaine's expression was a little off, Harry offered to explain, "It's quite old, and it's been traveling to Egypt with Mr. Weasley and the others, so it's a bit unwell and not used to the environment. That's why Ron is worried about it."

"He looks quite energetic--"

Amostella smiled, dismissing the slight unease that had arisen in his heart during that fleeting glance, and met Hermione's gaze, saying...

“Dealing with Black has never been a problem, Miss Granger; the key is finding him,” Amosta said, her tone turning stern as she looked at Harry.

“I must warn you, Potter, if Black is really as loyal to Voldemort as the rumors suggest, then you need to be careful this school year. If I mean if he were to actually face you alone, I think he probably wouldn’t waste much time torturing you.”

Harry understood Professor Blaine's meaning perfectly, but he wasn't particularly worried. The reason was Dumbledore. Think about it: even during Voldemort's most powerful era, he didn't dare to storm into Hogwarts where Professor Dumbledore was. Harry didn't believe that Voldemort's lackeys would be more daring than their master and dare to storm into Hogwarts to cause him trouble.

"The Ministry of Magic and Professor Dumbledore both knew Black's purpose in escaping from prison."

Hermione was a little unhappy with Harry's nonchalant attitude, but she also knew that this was his old habit, and no matter how much she reminded him, it was always difficult to change.

“Next school year, I think the school will definitely have tight security measures in place. Professor, do you think that even under these circumstances, Black could still sneak into Hogwarts to murder Harry?”

Amosta stood up, yawned and stretched in a very unladylike manner.

“Remember my words, Granger and Potter, never place your hopes on the incompetence and stupidity of the enemy, or you’ll be playing with your lives. Enough of this small talk, it’s getting late, and you have to get up early tomorrow to catch your trains. Now, all of you, go to bed.”

Amosta did not choose to take the Ministry of Magic bus to King's Cross Station with Harry, Hermione, and the Weasleys to Hogsmeade via the Hogwarts Express; instead, she chose to leave alone.

This was something he and Lupin had planned. During this school year before Black was apprehended, Lupin would keep an eye on everything around 'Savior' Harry within Hogwarts, which would serve as a visible defense.

Meanwhile, Amosta remained hidden in Hogsmeade, keeping an eye out for any unusual activity around the school.

Of course, being lurking here doesn't necessarily mean lying in the dark and not being discovered by anyone; rather, it means not sending any signals to the outside world that you are tracking Blake.

Actually, Amosta's plan was less about guarding against Black and more about being wary of Dumbledore. That old guy was cunning and had a lot of free time, so Amosta didn't want him to come up with some new tricks after learning about Amosta's plans.

The next morning, at dawn, the pure and pleasant sunlight filtered through the gaps in the curtains, creating faint, ever-shifting shadows on the wooden floor.

"How many times do I have to emphasize this, Molly? The newspapers didn't report it because Fudge wanted to cover it up, but Fudge went to Azkaban the night Black ran away."

The guards told him that for a long time, Black had been talking in his sleep, repeatedly saying, "He's at Hogwarts. He's at Hogwarts." Black had gone mad. Molly, he wanted Harry dead. If you ask me, he thought killing Harry would allow Vader to make a comeback.

The night Harry stopped Vader, Black lost everything; he spent twelve years alone in Azkaban, constantly dwelling on it.

In the dimly lit room, Amosta tidied her messy hair in front of the mirror. Suddenly, she heard suppressed arguing coming from the room next door where the Weasleys lived. Although she had no intention of eavesdropping on the couple's privacy, the whispers were hard for Amosta, whose senses were particularly sharp due to magic, to hear clearly.

No wonder Fudge was so sure Black would go to Harry, Amosta thought with a sudden realization.

Having spent over a decade in Azkaban, living alongside Dementors, he still couldn't forget his desire for revenge against his former master. To be honest, this 'loyalty' moved Amostaro deeply, while also highlighting Voldemort's 'charisma'.

"So--"

Amosta looked at Harry, who was sprawled out on the bed, fast asleep and completely unaware of his surroundings, and murmured a smile.

"Good luck to you as always, Potter—"

After saying this, Amosta picked up his suitcase and quietly left the room.

Although the sun has not yet completely broken free from the earth's embrace, the deep blue of the high sky already tells people that today will be a good day.

Thick, ethereal clouds rose from the center of the Black Lake, drifting with the morning breeze. Hogwarts Castle, perched on the high ground, appeared and disappeared in the mist, a breathtakingly beautiful scene. Unfortunately, not far from the castle, a dark cloud, so thick that just gazing at it sent chills down one's spine, ruined the beauty of the painting. Even the Hogsmeade wizarding village at the edge of the mountains was subtly affected by the dark cloud, its desolation and chill tinged with oppression.

"Ha, got one. Put your hands above your head so I can see your wand, sir!"

Amostella, who had just appeared in Hogsmeade Village, in front of the Honeydukes Candy Shop, staring at the ominous black cloud, was suddenly greeted by a solemn and stern voice behind her.

Chapter 156 Unfair

Amosta didn't raise his hands above his head, nor did he even make a wary gesture. Instead, his lips twitched slightly, and with his back to the person behind him, he politely inquired...

"Excuse me, esteemed lady, have I broken any laws?"

"Oh, you didn't know?"

The voice remained serious, but it sounded like someone was suppressing laughter.

“Don’t you know, sir, that the Auror Office has received approval from the Department of Magical Transportation and Minister Fudge to implement traffic control in Hogsmeade? Anyone arriving in Hogsmeade without prior application via Apparition, Floo Network, or Portkey is not permitted. You have made a grave mistake, sir!”

"But the Ministry of Magic's recent press conferences and the Daily Prophet have not reported on this at all."

Amosta pursed his lips and smiled.

“We posted a notice on the bulletin board at the village entrance. It’s your problem if you didn’t see it, sir, not the Ministry of Magic’s fault!”

Amostah could already hear the panting laughter behind him. Before he could say anything, the person behind him completely abandoned his pretense and burst into laughter.

"For your egregious disregard for the law, Amosta Blaine, I think you need to be severely punished. Hmm, I have an idea, how about a semester of solitary confinement?"

Amosta laughed too, turning around to look at the person behind him and teasingly said,

"Want me to be put in solitary confinement? Of course, no problem, Tonks, provided someone comes with me."

In the early morning, Hogsmeade Village was bathed in the cool sunlight. Most of the local natives had not yet left home. On the commercial streets where there were few pedestrians, Amostella and Tonks shook hands with smiles.

Inside the empty Three Brooms Bar, the alluring proprietress, Ms. Rosmerta, strode over, placed a glass of syrup soda and a cup of green tea on a tray, nodded in greeting, and then discreetly walked away.

"Some things are secrets that are not made public,"

Tonks tousled her slightly dull violet hair, transforming it to the color of ripe wheat in autumn. She looked at Amosta with curiosity and said with great interest...

"The Daily Prophet says that the boy and his friends brought the basilisk from the Chamber of Secrets in Slytherin, but most of the members of the House know that you were the one who pulled those little guys out of the basilisk's mouth. However, very few people in the House know where you came from, and many people are asking around about your origins!"

"Did you tell them who I am?"

Amosta smiled, showing little sign of being bothered.

“I know you don’t like drawing attention, Amosta—”

Tonks said smugly.

“There’s this annoying woman named Umbridge who’s been asking about you along with a lot of the young guys in the department. She even came to me, but I didn’t say a word to her.”

"I am extremely grateful—"

Umbridge is the Senior Undersecretary of the Ministry of Magic and is said to be Fudge's right-hand woman, enjoying Fudge's complete trust. Amostella guessed that this woman probably wanted to recruit some young wizards who were skilled but not well-known for Fudge.

In the future, if Fudge and Dumbledore ever break off relations, some of the people in the Ministry of Magic will be more loyal to power, some will be neutral, and a considerable number will be Dumbledore's devoted followers. If Dumbledore were to take command one day, it's hard to say who they would listen to!

“Speaking of which,” Amosta said, glancing at Tonks’s standard black robes worn by Aurors on missions, his eyes flickering for a moment.

"You've become an Auror? That's a pretty good job. Of our graduating class back then, only Bill Weasley met all the requirements for an Auror recruitment; it seems like everyone else's grades weren't good enough?"

“I was specially recruited,” Tonks said, tilting his nose proudly.

“You know, Amosta, I’m a Disguise Magus, and I’m exceptionally gifted in hiding and disguise. Of course, being an Auror isn’t an easy job, and I’m still an ‘intern.’ Speaking of which, Amosta, what have you been doing all these years in hiding? I mean, before you entered Hogwarts as an ‘Investigator’ earlier this year?”

"Freelancer—" Amosta said with a smile, picking up his teacup, "aims to help people who are in trouble to get out of their current predicament."

"This doesn't sound like a proper job—" Tonks asked suspiciously.