Hogwarts: Bourne Returns from Warhammer

Bourne's action scared Professor Scamander, who looked up and down at the three-meter-tall "little wizard".

"This little wizard said they are experts at opening doors. Could it be that night walks are no longer enough to satisfy those little lions in Gryffindor? Are they now starting to study how to break into the door of the Slytherin common room?"

The old wizard shook his head, temporarily put aside all the thoughts in his mind, walked to the mysterious man who was "completely petrified" and squatted down.

Considering that the other party might have dangerous items such as "Dementor Skin" on him, Professor Scamander first took out a pair of fire dragon leather gloves from the suitcase out of caution. After putting them on, he began to search the man's pockets.

As a result, when he checked the first pocket, he casually pulled out a "magic wand" about four or five inches long.

It seems that this guy cherishes it very much.

This "magic wand" is not only spotless, but also has a very fine layer of wax maintenance agent on the surface.

"But, isn't this wand too short?"

Scamander took the "magic wand" and compared it with the length of the man's forearm, and found it to be absurdly short.

Although he was not an expert in wandology, Scamander knew that a wand that was too short usually meant that the owner of the wand had serious character problems.

However, no matter how short a wand is, it would not be only four or five inches long. Scamander had never seen a wand so ridiculously short.

Bourne also glanced at the "magic wand" and suddenly thought of another possibility: "Professor, could this not be a magic wand? It looks a bit like the stirring accessory of the 'automatic stirring crucible' -"

The so-called "Automatic Stirring Crucible" is a new type of crucible invented by a wizard named Gespard Singleton. As the name suggests, it can stir the potion by itself during the production process, reducing the workload of the potion master.

Last year, this kind of product was already sold in Partridge's Cauldron Shop in Diagon Alley. He remembered that there was another new product called "Folding Cauldron" at that time.

Obviously, if we consider the functionality, "automatic stirring" is definitely more meaningful than "foldable".

So, at that time, Bourne bought an "automatic stirring crucible". Moreover, when he was brewing "growth potion" in batches for the biting cabbage, Bourne also used this crucible.

Therefore, after taking a look at the strange short magic wand, Bourne suddenly realized that this thing seemed to be a component of the "automatic stirring crucible".

"——The reason why this stirring stick is made to look like a magic wand is because it has two constant spells, one is 'levitation' and the other is 'clear water like a spring'.

However, I suspect that the stirring rod is actually broken.

Since it can't float, and the 'Clear Water Like a Spring' spell probably has some problems, you might try waving it."

Bourne patiently explained to Professor Scamander. After all, different trades are like different mountains. Even the world's top magical animal experts may not be familiar with the latest crucible trends.

Professor Scamander followed suit and waved his wand in the direction of the bathroom. To his great surprise, as he waved the "magic wand" towards the bathroom, a thick column of water suddenly sprayed out from the top of the wand, like a high-pressure water gun, and shattered a mirror hanging on the wall in the bathroom.

"Merlin's beard!" Scamander was shocked.

Bourne was not at all surprised, as this result was in line with his expectations.

For a pharmacist who makes potions, the value of a broken stirring stick like this might be considered negative - it has lost its usability - using it to stir potions is not only a disregard for the pharmacist's own safety, but also an irresponsible treatment of various precious raw materials.

"Professor, I'm afraid no real wizard would carry such a thing in his pocket." Bourne said firmly, "Our previous guess may be correct. This person is a Muggle. I just don't know how he got so many things from wizards. Moreover, regardless of how many other laws he has violated, he must have violated a series of Statutes of Secrecy."

"This matter must be contacted with the British Ministry of Magic," Professor Scamander realized the crux of the problem.

As a former member of the Ministry of Magic, although he did not think highly of this "old employer", he had to admit that only the Ministry of Magic had the highest level of authority in protecting and maintaining the Statute of Secrecy.

"Teddy, come out quickly!" Realizing that there was absolutely no way to bypass the official department, Professor Scamander became a little anxious and began to rummage through the pockets of the mysterious man.

In addition to the stirring rod of the "automatic stirring crucible", he found some other messy things.

For example, he took out a large bag of "Pepper Little Boys" from a pocket, which looked like it had passed its best before date.

Bourne took one of them out and crushed it with his sole according to his instinct. Then he found that this thing was the culprit for the heavy smoke in the museum. A large cloud of smoke came out of the broken "Pepper Urchin" candy, and this smoke condensed into a ball and took a long time to dissipate.

For example, they also found something that looked like a "bamboo dragonfly" in the pocket of this mysterious man.

However, it was not Bourne this time, but the old wizard Newt Scamander who first guessed what this thing was used for, because he had traveled to an island country to study the two magical animals "Kaba" and "Ooni", and had seen this magic prop.

"This is a flying machine invented by neon wizards. It has a 'sticking spell' on it, which can be inserted on the top of one's head. As the propeller rotates, it can carry people into the sky..."

Well, this is the bamboo dragonfly.

"… Actually, this prop was very popular for a while. It was so popular that both the Magical Congress of the United States and the Ministry of Magic of the United Kingdom enacted laws to prohibit its sale in the United Kingdom and the United States, just like the 'magic flying carpet'.

Originally, this unreasonable ban actually had some possibility of being broken.

However, in order to enter the market here and reap profits, those neon wizards openly resorted to smuggling.

Not only that, in order to gain more profits, they also reduced their control over product quality!

Eventually, some of the smuggled bamboo dragonflies encountered danger while being used by people - for example, a wizard wearing it fell directly to the ground from a height of more than 200 feet.

Someone disassembled it and found that the quality of the bamboo helicopter had declined due to the Neon Wizards cutting corners!

Even if those Japanese wizards later bowed 90 degrees to admit their mistakes and published animated photos in mainstream newspapers and magazines of the Ministry of Magic in various countries, no one would trust those Japanese wizards.

The bamboo dragonflies that still exist from that era can now only be found in thrift stores, where they are often considered toys for little wizards.

Professor Scamander examined the "bamboo dragonfly" again, then nodded, confirming his judgment.

"Yes, this is a toy of a little wizard. The wizard modified this bamboo dragonfly with a spell. The spinning spell is gone, and it is replaced by a floating spell. It is just right for children to wear on their heads and float in the air to play."

"Then this guy must have used it as a means of escape," Bourne responded. "If he had come a little later, he might have slipped out of the window, and judging by the situation, he might not have honestly followed the rope to the ground... What a cunning guy."

-

"Who says it isn't? This is a disgrace to all British people!" Uncle Vernon sat in his chair, staring at a piece of news on TV.

The TV announcer was reporting the urgent news about what happened at the British Museum yesterday and how thieves were suspected of stealing a piece of the collection.

On TV, there were also several profiles of the thieves, all of which were hand-drawn sketches by professionals.

"Look at him, a complete scoundrel! Look at his hair... He doesn't look like an English man at all!"

He glanced venomously at Harry, who had a head of tangled but very thick hair.

The thief depicted in the sketch on TV, although he looked nothing like Harry, had thick and dense hair that didn't look like a British person, which made Uncle Vernon very unhappy.

Of course, he would not admit that he was jealous.

The newscaster reappeared.

"The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries announced today—"

"Wait!" Uncle Vernon roared, staring at the newscaster angrily, "You haven't told us where that lunatic escaped from! What's the use? A lunatic could be running into the streets any minute now!"

Aunt Petunia, a scrawny, horse-faced woman, came trotting over, peering eagerly out the kitchen window, and Harry knew that his Aunt Petunia would love to be the one to call the hotline.

She was the most nosy woman in the world, and spent most of her life spying on her boring, law-abiding neighbors.

"When will they ever learn," said Uncle Vernon, pounding the table with his huge fist, "that the only way to deal with these people is to hang them!"

"That's right," said Aunt Petunia, still squinting at the red beans next door and wondering if they might contain some spy devices like in the novels.

Uncle Vernon drained his tea, checked his watch, and said, "Petunia, I'd better get going. Marge's train is in at ten."

Harry had been thinking about the Quidditch maintenance tools in the attic when he felt a thump in the stomach from a Bludger, snapping him back to reality.

"Aunt Marge?" he blurted out. "She—she's not coming here, is she?"

Aunt Marge is Uncle Vernon's sister. Although she is not related to Harry by blood, Harry is always forced to call her "Aunt".

Aunt Marge is a detective of Scotland Yard, who has a bulldog. She doesn't come back to Surrey often. It's not known whether it's because she can't bear to leave her beloved dog or because she's too busy with work, but every time she visits, Harry is left with a terrifying impression, which is still fresh in his memory.

At Dudley's fifth birthday party, Aunt Marge used her cane to hit Harry's shins hard to prevent him from winning the game of posing to music against Dudley.

A few years later, she showed up at Christmas, bringing a toy robot for Dudley and a box of Scottish dog biscuits for Harry.

The last time was the year before Harry went to Hogwarts, when he accidentally stepped on the paw of her beloved dog, Lippy. As a result, Harry was chased by the dog into the garden and climbed up a tree. Aunt Marge didn't call the dog back until midnight. To this day, Dudley still laughs until tears come out when he thinks of it.

"I hope that Lippy doesn't come over. Otherwise, hmph..."

Harry suddenly felt a little excited because he received a gift from Hagrid last Christmas, which included a dragon tooth pendant strung together with a rope.

He, Ron and Hermione all received this kind of fire dragon tooth pendant as Christmas gifts from Hagrid last year.

Hagrid told them that as long as they wore the fire dragon tooth pendant, unless they encountered a very few extremely dangerous magical animals, most beasts would involuntarily be afraid of the pendant.

This kind of dragon tooth was originally given to the twins Bourne and Weasley. Because they are "Forbidden Forest Assistant Inspectors", they often have to patrol the Forbidden Forest.

However, given last year's experience of Ron and Harry inexplicably running deep into the Forbidden Forest, Hagrid felt that the trio might also need the Dragon's Tooth Pendant.

However, just as Harry was imagining how he would scare the old bulldog, there was a sudden crunching sound of gravel being crushed outside the house.

Uncle Vernon stood up curiously and walked to the window. He saw a mini car slowly turn into the drive, then the car door slammed open and shut, and a pair of feet walked along the garden path towards the house.

"Go to the door quickly, and be polite when you open it!" Aunt Petunia said to Harry in a low voice. Then, he looked at Vernon again: "Why did Marge come here early? And she drove a car and wore a uniform? Never mind, I'll go to the kitchen to prepare the cake and dessert first."

Harry walked over dejectedly and opened the door.

Aunt Maggie stood at the door.

She looked a lot like Uncle Vernon, tall and stocky, with a purple face, and even a barely noticeable moustache, but not as thick as Uncle Vernon's.

She was carrying a huge box in one hand and holding a grumpy old bulldog in the other.

"Where's my Dada?" Aunt Maggie asked gruffly. "Where's my dear nephew?"

Dudley waddled into the hallway, his blond hair flat on his fat head, his chin folded into three or four layers and almost hidden by a bow tie.

Aunt Marge slammed the box down on Harry's stomach, knocking the breath out of him, then she threw her arms around Dudley and gave him a big kiss on the cheek.

Harry knew very well that Dudley could tolerate Aunt Marge's embrace only because he could get rich rewards.

Sure enough, when they parted, Dudley had a crisp twenty-pound note in his fat fist.