Snape, the Sunshine of Hogwarts.

Chapter 223 I caught him

For Hogwarts Castle in September, the two-month-long period of quiet campus life finally came to an end.

The return of returning students and the enrollment of new students have restored the place to its lively and youthful energy.

For this year's Hogwarts students, there are three things that are most worth discussing.

First, there's the change that Severus Snape, the former Head of Slytherin and Potions Professor who has consistently topped the list of Hogwarts students' most hated teachers, brought about during this holiday, and the series of news he created.

Most students listened to his speech at the trial live, and many were willing to believe that he was truly different from before.

However, a small number of students still felt that the Potions professor, who always had a gloomy face and acted as if everyone owed him a fortune, could not possibly have changed so completely.

Even if he is temporarily different from before, he will eventually revert to his old ways one day.

Secondly, after Severus left, Horace Slughorn became the new headmaster and potions professor at Slytherin House.

Many people already know that he is a fat old man with a fairly good temper, and unlike those rigid and conservative Slytherin students, he does not only value students' family background, but also shows great favor to those students who, despite their humble origins, possess extraordinary talent and ability.

This meant that the Gryffindor prefects, who used to be terrified of every Potions class, no longer had to worry about being inexplicably penalized by some bat spirit for skipping a turn when mixing a potion.

On the contrary, it was a rare occurrence in Potions class that when a Gryffindor student performed well, the Potions professor would generously praise them and award them extra points.

This one change alone made everyone, whether they believed Severus had changed or not, think that it was a great thing that he had been able to bring back such a normal Dean and Potions Professor!

Thirdly, it concerns the students.

Among the new students that year, two striking red-haired twins caused a huge commotion at the sorting ceremony, making their names known throughout the entire school on the very first day of school.

“George! Casting spells in the hallway is forbidden! Mr. Filch told me he’s warned you many times, but you always manage to get away!”

McGonagall's face was tense as she reprimanded the red-haired boy.

"Besides, you've only been in school for less than a month. Professor Flitwick probably hasn't even taught you a single proper spell yet! Your random waving of your wands will only cause destruction!"

The boy innocently shrugged.

“Professor, you’ve arrested the wrong person! The troublemaker Filch caught is George, but I’m Fred!”

At this moment, McGonagall had already raised her wand.

"Ten points deducted from Gryffindor! Don't try to pull these tricks on me! I don't care if you're George or Fred, you've all committed these mistakes together!"

Just as McGonagall was grabbing whoever was either George or Fred by the collar and dragging him toward Filch, the Hufflepuff resident ghost fat monk suddenly found McGonagall.

"Ah, Professor McGonagall, so you're here. Dumbledore asked me to pass on a message to you, asking you to come to the Headmaster's office when you have time. He has some things to discuss with you."

Just as McGonagall turned to talk to the fat monk, the red-haired boy seized the opportunity and ran away in a flash.

McGonagall didn't bother with him anymore; whether it was George or Fred, they could run away but they couldn't hide.

So on this morning when there were no classes, McGonagall quickly went back to the principal's office.

When he arrived at Dumbledore's office, he found it already full of people!
"Snape?"

Upon seeing Severus and his group, McGonagall's eyes widened noticeably as she scanned the group.

She recognized Lupin and Harry, of course, but Draco was unfamiliar, as was the strange black dog.

Since Severus rescued Nicolas Flamel in France, there has been no news about his whereabouts. Not only French journalists, but even British newspapers are speculating about where he went.

As a result, Severus disappeared from everyone's sight for almost a month, and then suddenly appeared at Hogwarts!
"Good morning, Professor McGonagall," Severus greeted McGonagall as he ate a small dessert that Dumbledore had kept hidden away.

Lupin also waved and greeted his old dean.

Harry had spent two days at Hogwarts before, so he was somewhat familiar with the professor, who always had a serious expression. Draco, of course, was a complete stranger to him.

"I asked you to come here because Severus told me about something that happened to him outside, and I wanted you to hear it too. After all, you were the headmaster of those four people, so you know them better than I do."

"Four people? Which four people?" McGonagall asked, frowning.

“The four of them, including Potter.”

Upon hearing this, McGonagall was taken aback. She turned to look at Lupin, her eyes clearly showing considerable emotion.

"The four of them. The four of them now."

At this moment, she seemed to suddenly realize something, and her expression turned somewhat unpleasant.

"Is it Sirius Black? Did Black, who escaped from prison, find Snape and the others during their disappearance?"

Dumbledore nodded and smiled.

“You guessed right, they did meet with Blake, and not only did they meet him, they brought him here, and he’s right in front of us now.”

McGonagall paused for a moment, then glanced at Severus Lupin and Harry Draco again before her gaze suddenly fixed on the black dog!
Blake didn't bother to keep him in suspense any longer, and the male announcer's voice from Radio Number Three came through his collar.

"Long time no see, Professor McGonagall."

Although she didn't understand why Blake was maintaining the appearance of a dog and talking through that collar, the mere fact of it made McGonagall take a deep breath and launch into a barrage of questions.

"What's going on? What happened? You captured Blake and turned him into a dog as punishment?"

"He is like you, or rather, I only learned today that Potter and the other two, just like you, all learned the extremely difficult Transfiguration technique, Animagus."

"Dumbledore exclaimed."

“They are indeed incredibly talented, and your training in Transfiguration is excellent.”

However, McGonagall did not show the slightest smile at Dumbledore's praise; instead, her expression turned gloomy.

"They illegally learned Animagus! They covered it up and didn't register it with the Ministry of Magic!" Her sharp, angry gaze, like that of a lioness, made both Lupin and Black in his black dog form turn their heads away guiltily, not daring to meet her eyes directly.

"No wonder! No wonder he was able to escape from Azkaban, no wonder so many Aurors have been searching for him day and night but still can't find him! So this is how my students use what I taught them! For crime!"

“I think you need to calm down now, Minerva,” Dumbledore said softly. “I called you here today to let you know about the inside story of Sirius’s crimes. Severus brought him back and told me a very astonishing story.”

"Please have a seat. Would you like a lemon honey soda? It always cheers me up when I'm feeling down."

McGonagall sat down with a grim expression, but instead of drinking the lemon honey soda Dumbledore had offered her, she picked up a cup of black tea to cool herself down.

Then, Dumbledore recounted to McGonagall what Severus had told him about Black.

McGonagall's expression changed accordingly; first she was surprised, then astonished, and finally she reverted to anger.

"So Snape used truth serum to verify that what he said was true?" McGonagall's eyes burned with anger as she stared intently at the restless Black on the ground.

This left Blake somewhat frustrated and puzzled.

He had assumed that after hearing the truth, McGonagall would be moved and remorseful, saying that she had misunderstood him before, followed by a touching reunion between teacher and student.

But to my surprise, she now looks even angrier than before.

“Yes, Professor McGonagall, I can certainly vouch for the effectiveness of the truth serum he drank.” Severus shrugged.

Upon hearing Severus's confirmation, McGonagall could no longer hold back and launched into a tirade against Blake.

"So you're hiding in Azkaban, trying to atone for your sins because of some so-called guilt towards your friends, completely disregarding your orphaned son!"

“I’ve never seen anyone as selfish as you! Sirius Black! I thought you and James Potter would be best friends, but you never even thought about him! Never!”

Faced with McGonagall's reprimand and anger, Blake, who had already been taught a lesson by Severus in Albania, could only lower his head in silence, unable to utter a single word of defense.

"Alright, we're not here to determine who's right and who's wrong."

Dumbledore tried to persuade McGonagall, but despite this, he clearly had no intention of letting Black go.

“I just don’t want you to get lost in fantasy and forget about real life. Emotions are important to wizards, of course, but they are by no means our only concern.”

Whether Blake actually listened to those words or not, only he himself knows.

After explaining the matter of Black to McGonagall, Dumbledore began to consider the problems they were now facing.

“We can certainly prove his innocence with the Truth Potion, but it’s not that simple with the Ministry of Magic. Testimony obtained through interrogation using the Truth Potion without the Ministry’s approval has no legal validity under magical law.”

As the chief archmage of Wizengamor, Dumbledore was clearly very knowledgeable about the law.

"Moreover, given the habits of those officials, in this period when the Ministry of Magic's prestige has been repeatedly undermined, they will have no incentive to overturn this case without direct and concrete evidence that can be made public."

Dumbledore's words caused Lupin to look troubled, and Harry also looked worried.

One of them wanted to clear his friend's name, while the other was concerned about his godfather and also wanted to find out the truth about who betrayed his parents.

Blake himself didn't seem to care.

"They can't catch me anyway! There's no need for me to prove anything!"

"Do you really want to hide like this for the rest of your life! So that Harry Potter will never be able to tell anyone that he has a godfather?!"

McGonagall's exasperated scolding made Blake shrink back involuntarily.

Even though he had been mischievous and lawless since his student days, the dean of his own academy still had some influence over him.

At this point, Severus interjected.

"Perhaps we can hold off on overturning the verdict for now; who knows what unexpected twists and turns might occur later?"

As soon as he opened his mouth to speak, Dumbledore's gaze fell upon him.

Severus made no attempt to hide it, smiling and winking, while the insightful headmaster of Hogwarts, of course, saw it all.

“Alright, let’s put that aside for now. As for the other thing you mentioned, about catching Gilderoy Lockhart stealing other people’s memories and then impersonating them as his own, and then writing and publishing a book about it.”

Dumbledore leaned back in his chair and spoke to Severus.

"You want me to take him to the Ministry of Magic to turn himself in?"

Severus nodded.

“Yes, he did me a favor in Albania, and I promised him at the time that I wouldn’t hand him over to the Aurors directly, but would let him turn himself in. It might be better if you were to handle this.”

"Of course, that's no problem. As a member of Wisengamo, I have an obligation in this regard."

After discussing some key issues, they chatted about their travels in France and Albania. Then Severus gave Lupin a wink, and Lupin, understanding the signal, stood up and beckoned to Black, Harry, and Draco, saying he would take them to Hogwarts to visit their old friend Hagrid.

McGonagall left as well; she had a fourth-grade class to teach soon.

Once only Severus and Dumbledore remained in the headmaster's room, the atmosphere became somewhat delicate. Even the portraits on the wall that had been dozing off unconsciously slowed their breathing and pricked up their ears to listen carefully.

They both knew that the next conversation between the two was the most important thing.

"I wonder what kind of surprise you've brought me this time you've returned?" Dumbledore asked Severus with an expectant look on his face.

Severus didn't pull anything out this time; he just said calmly.

"I caught him."

(End of this chapter)