Hogwarts: This professor is too Muggle.

Chapter 245 Summer vacation is over

Watching the professor walk out of the store, the witch with black-rimmed glasses took out a bottle of potion from the cabinet. The stopper was covered with old grease. When she unscrewed the stopper, a pungent smell filled the air. Even in the dirty pet store, this odor made people dizzy.

The bald, missing-toed rat was clutched in my hand. Two fingers deftly pried open its cheeks, and the pungent medicine was poured into the rat's mouth. The rat gulped down the medicine, choking if it was delayed even slightly. Its four broken legs struggled helplessly.

"Squeak... Ugh..." Banban stared in the direction of the store entrance, letting out a weak wail.

The shop owner sped up the administration of the medicine slightly; the mouse seemed quite energetic and might actually live for a few more years.

In front of the stacks of iron cages on the shelves, Hermione was introducing Bastian to the common pets, which were mostly toads, rats, and owls, as well as some cats that the store couldn't sell.

A ginger cat was lying on top of the cage, its limbs slightly bent, its back arched, staring at Banban as if it were poised to pounce, and making a low growl in its throat.

The rat, Spotted, had just finished drinking half a bottle of potion. Its belly was swollen and its eyes were slightly dazed. Upon hearing the roar, it instantly woke up. The few remaining hairs on its body stood on end. It grinned and bit the witch's hand. Taking advantage of the moment when she loosened her grip in pain, it broke free, landed on the floor, and quickly fled.

They disappeared in a flash from the store entrance.

"Spots! Spots!"

Ron screamed and chased after him, with Harry close behind.

The shopkeeper finally snapped out of his daze, looked at the ginger cat, and was almost frantic with anger: "Krukshan, you stupid cat! They haven't paid yet! This bottle of medicine is enough to buy you a month's worth of food!"

The good mood built up from closing two deals in a row vanished, leaving only the anger of losing half a bottle of medicine, especially since this cat was an unsellable scoundrel that would only waste food and cause trouble if kept in the shop.

Perhaps out of consideration for the two girls in the shop, the shop owner refrained from using any more offensive slang. He glared at the Crook Mountain on the shelf, trying to condemn it with his eyes so that it would feel guilty and go out to earn some money on its own.

“Madam, they are my friends. I can pay for the medicine in advance,” Hermione said in a low voice.

The shopkeeper immediately put on a smile, his expression changing faster than the Polyjuice Potion: "Kind witch, a child like you is sure to have good fortune. There are 10 sieclops in total, and half a bottle of potion left."

“Okay.” Hermione breathed a sigh of relief, then looked down and saw Bastian staring at the cat, his starlight-like eyes filled with longing. “Also, I’d like to see this cat.”

"You have excellent judgment!" The witch's face lit up with joy. "Krookshan is a guardian cat with raccoon blood; it can easily find those with ill intentions and expose their disguises..."

Listening to the owner's introduction, the two girls looked at the cat on the shelf. Its face looked like that of an old lady, with a flat nose and droopy eyes. It looked like it had run at high speed and crashed into a wall, or like it had been burned by an iron. It looked particularly agitated when it hissed softly. Its hind legs were bent, obviously broken.

……

Melvin stood at the entrance of the Quidditch boutique, glanced at the bustling crowd in front of him, and looked down at the bald rat tugging at his trouser leg and squeaking.

At the end of August, Diagon Alley was bustling with shoppers, and shop assistants in the back of the store cast curious glances at him. Because of these pedestrians' stares, the insect's tail could not return to its original shape, so it could only take advantage of the rare opportunity to escape to ask the young professor for help.

A few minutes earlier, Melvin was carrying a suitcase that had been enchanted with the Unseen Stretching Charm and was walking back to the Leaky Cauldron when he was suddenly swarmed by a rat.

"Squeak! Squeak!" Spotty Mouse cried anxiously, scratching at the shoe, gesturing with one of its front paws towards the newspaper office. "Squeak! Squeak!"

Wormtail is a cautious wizard who graduated from Gryffindor, but he has never been able to find the courage in his heart. Recently, he learned that Sirius Black had escaped from Azkaban, and he was so frightened that he could not eat or sleep, and the whole mouse became thin.

He knew that Blake was very likely to come knocking on his door.

Faced with impending purges, Scabbers the rat has no choice but to seek help from the young professor.

Melvin sighed, looking down. He wanted to get back to the pub as soon as possible to find Mr. Weasley and find out the whereabouts of the Dementors patrol, as well as the route of the Hogwarts Express, in order to prepare for tomorrow's capture plan.

"Hide and wait for Blake to be caught? How long are you going to hide? Where can you hide?"

Melvin crouched down and said to him gently, "Listen, Wormtail, my advice is to stay with Ron."

"squeak?"

"Besides you and Black, no one knows the truth about that night, but you are already dead. You received a commendation from the Ministry of Magic and were awarded the Order of Merlin, while Black, who is alive, is just a fugitive. No one will believe the story of a fugitive."

"Squeak..." The mouse Banban slowly quieted down, and its eyes revealed a very human-like thought.

"Everyone knows that Black is the Secret Service agent and an Azkaban fugitive. He dares not show his face in public. As long as you stay quietly by Ron's side and Harry's side, the Aurors of the Ministry of Magic and the school professors will be your guards."

"squeak?"

“Remember what we said before? Staying by Harry’s side allows us to gather useful information in a timely manner. You are an Animagus, a hidden rat. Even if something unexpected happens, you can get away at any time, just like twelve years ago.”

"..."

After some calming, the potion began to take effect, and the panicked mouse gradually calmed down, seemingly accepting Melvin's advice. About ten minutes later, Harry and Ron arrived. Ron, still panting, was busy putting the poor little mouse back in his pocket, his eyes red with heartache. He cherished this pet that had been with him throughout his childhood.

“Spotty probably won’t live much longer,” Ron said dejectedly.

"Don't say that, he can live for at least another two or three years." Melvin carried his briefcase. He wasn't talking nonsense. Voldemort was still waiting for Wormtail to be resurrected, so he really did have a few more years to live.

Ron looked extremely sad.

Finally, they parted ways at the crossroads. Melvin was going back to the Leaky Cauldron, Harry and Ron were going back to the pet shop to find Hermione, Scabbers hadn't paid for his tonic yet, and they also planned to visit Flourish and Blotts.

For the next half day, the Leaky Cauldron was bustling with activity. Parents who had been shopping rested there, chatting about the fun things that had happened during the summer holidays, while several teams of Aurors from the Ministry of Magic disguised themselves as passing patrons, actually secretly protecting Harry.

The Weasleys and Grangers had a very engaging conversation. Arthur wanted to learn about Muggle technology, while the Muggle couple wanted to know about raising multiple children. As they talked over drinks, Professor Levent was suddenly mentioned, and the atmosphere became even more lively.

Arthur reminisced about Professor Levent's help to Ron and praised the improved Muggle Studies class for being truly interesting. Melvin, sitting at the counter, heard Arthur suddenly become excited and want to clink glasses with Mr. Granger.

Melvin didn't stay in the bar for long, because the patrons were well-informed and quickly found out the information he wanted, confirming the time when the express train and the Dementors would meet.

As he went upstairs to his room, he heard Hermione and Ron arguing.

"You bought this monster?"

"Its fur is quite beautiful, isn't it?"

"What about Banban? It needs rest and relaxation. With this thing guarding it, how can it rest and relax? How can it get better?"

"Don't worry, Crookshank will sleep in my dorm, and Scabbers will be in your boys' dorm. There won't be any problems. Poor Crookshank, the witch said it's been in the shop for a long, long time, and nobody wanted it."

"This is where the problem lies!"

……

the next morning.

As usual, Old Tom woke Harry with hot tea and a toothless smile, then washed up and left the room, leaving the tavern in chaos.

The Weasleys were all awake and busy carrying all the trunks down the narrow stairs of the bar and piling them next to the front door. Hedwig and Hermes were in their respective cages, while Crookshanks was curled up in a wicker basket, snoring softly.

The Grangers also stayed overnight, and with her parents and Bastian's help, Hermione seemed quite at ease.

"It seems the professor left quite early."

Harry glanced at the next room; the door was open, and the room was empty.

"The time is a bit tight." Hermione was a little disappointed, as she was about to be separated from her family again, not seeing them for six months or a year.

“Don’t worry, my dad called a car from the Ministry of Magic to take us to the station, and we’ll even have time for breakfast,” Ron said smugly, but he didn’t seem to care.

Old Tom pushed the three tables together so they could enjoy breakfast at the same table. Perhaps because it was the last breakfast of the summer holidays, there was plenty of bacon and fried eggs, along with a fresh salad, making for a very generous meal.

Mr. Weasley and Mr. Granger became very good friends, chatting happily during their meals and even agreeing to meet again at the Leaky Cauldron for drinks on the weekend.

Hermione was talking to Bastian, who was also a little downcast, but he still managed a smile and reluctantly chatted with Hermione until she smiled. Only then did he pick up his cup and try the children's drink that was a special offer at the pub.

After breakfast, the Ministry of Magic's car arrived. Mr. Weasley greeted them outside and invited them to get in. Hermione knelt down in front of Bastian, stroking his soft hair.

"I'm going to Hogwarts now, and you'll be going to school tomorrow too. Don't worry, the schoolwork is very easy. Study hard, okay?"

Bastian sniffed and didn't agree.

Hermione pursed her lips and pulled her into a hug.

Bastian was still somewhat dazed until Hermione boarded the car with her clothes and luggage, staring blankly at the Ministry of Magic's official vehicle.

The luggage was stuffed into the trunk, Crookshank in the blue wicker basket was put in the back seat, but Bastian was left behind. She stood at the tavern door, craning her neck and staring longingly at Hermione.

Hermione waved to her from inside the car, and the car window gradually closed, cutting off their view of each other.

As the car started moving, Bastian unconsciously took a few steps to follow, until the car accelerated out of Charing Cross Road, at which point she stopped and stared blankly in that direction.

(End of this chapter)