The Return to Hogwarts

Ever since Crookshan got a taste of the goodness of Amosta's last time, it has been particularly keen to stroll around this house. Amosta, who is alone all day, does not mind having a little guy to talk to, so it has not deliberately chased it away.

Meow--

Crookshan called out softly, but did not obey orders to leave the screaming shed as usual.

"Today is Halloween, and I'm not sure if the naughty kids in the village will suddenly decide to come to this haunted house to play adventure games. Also, I have dinner plans with a friend tonight."

Amosta walked over, knelt down, and gently stroked the downy fur on Crookshan's head, saying softly...

"The Halloween Eve dinner is lavish, and if you run fast enough, you might still be able to catch up with Hermione and sneak in some good food and drinks."

Meow--

Crookshan lowered its head even further, clearly unwilling to leave. Faced with Amosta's puzzled gaze, it raised its paw and pointed to the sky, then scratched at another mountain peak, repeating this action over and over again.

It took Amosta, still somewhat bewildered, a while to finally understand what Crookshan meant.

"Hmm, you want to invite your stray dog ​​friend here to avoid the rain?"

Crookshank lowered its paws and gripped the sofa tightly. It nodded, its body tense, and a barely perceptible tension flashed in its bright yellow pupils.

"You're quite loyal—"

Amosta chuckled, but he did not immediately agree.

If Crook Hill's friend were a cat, Amosta wouldn't mind, but if it were that excessively large black dog he'd glimpsed that night, he was a little worried. After all, the house was a dilapidated building, and if a large, energetic dog was allowed to run rampant there, Amosta wasn't sure if all he'd see when he came back tomorrow would be a pile of ruins.

"All right--"

After a moment's hesitation, Amosta nodded in agreement, and then, in a slightly serious tone, instructed...

"The staircase leading to the second floor is about to collapse, so I expect you two to stay on the first floor obediently. Also, the spiders and mice in the cage can be your Halloween feast, but you must tell that dog not to cause any damage, otherwise, I will use you two as experimental subjects for magic!"

Joko's Joke Shop is the most eye-catching magical shop this Halloween. The shop owner, who seems to have gotten inspiration from somewhere, cast an expansion spell on a pumpkin lantern, making it as big as a house, and then used a spell to make it float in mid-air.

Amidst the lightning and thunder, the enormous pumpkin lantern swayed in the wind and rain, creating a visually stunning scene. Even Amosta, who had come down from the mountain, couldn't help but stand on the street and take a second look.

Several little ones wearing raincoats ran out of Amosta's house, shouting happily. Each of them was holding a large bunch of brightly wrapped candies. In the narrow alley, Amosta smiled and stepped aside to make way for the little ones.

Turning around, he saw Remus standing in the doorway, smiling at him.

"How's the research going, Amosta?" Lupin asked kindly.

"Same as always, no breakthroughs."

Amosta said lazily as he walked past Lupin and stepped inside first. When he saw the scene inside the house, he paused, looking slightly surprised.

The once dark and dilapidated living room was now much brighter under the light of hundreds of neatly arranged candles suspended in mid-air. The walls were covered with swaying golden ribbons, and the ceiling of the living room had been enchanted with the same magic as the Great Hall of Hogwarts, reflecting the rolling clouds and lightning in the sky.

The original square dining table in the house, which was soaked in grease and stains, was replaced by a brand new long table that occupied half of the living room. The table was piled high with delicious food that appealed to the senses of color, smell, and sight, such as lamb chops, sausages, grilled eel, and chocolate pudding.

Watching all this, Amosta remained silent for a few seconds, then turned to look at Remus, who was gazing at the Screaming Shack through the rain, his expression somewhat strange.

"Did you prepare all of this?"

"Actually—"

Lupin withdrew his somewhat uneasy gaze and smiled.

"It was Albus who ordered the little elves in the kitchen to prepare this for us. He wanted to invite you to a dinner party at the school, but he was sure you would refuse, so he had me bring it over."

Heh--

Amosta smiled enigmatically, raised his eyebrows, and nodded slightly.

"Anyway, please thank him for his kindness, and bring him the money for the meal later."

"Why, Amosta?"

Remus, who was just pulling out a chair to sit down, couldn't help but smile wryly upon hearing this.

"If you were wary of Albus before because of his identity as 'Golden Viper,' but now he clearly doesn't intend to pursue anything because of it, why do I always feel that you seem to be very reluctant to get involved with him?"

Amosta sat on the other side of the table. Remus's question didn't elicit much of a reaction from him. Instead, he smiled, pointed to the wine bottle on the table, and asked softly,

"Do you know what kind of liquor this is, Remus?"

"Ogden Fire Whisky, aged at least eighty years --"

Despite his poverty and hardship, Remus, who had spent half his life in the magical world, was clearly a knowledgeable wizard. After his gaze lingered on the bottle for a moment, Remus quickly answered the question.

“That’s why I don’t like getting too involved with him, Remus,”

The bright golden candlelight danced in Amosta's pale purple eyes as he maintained a faint smile and spoke to the bewildered Remus.

"Dumbledore is a very wise wizard, but the problem is that, many times, he's a bit too clever for his own good. I keep my distance from him in the hope that Albus Dumbledore will maintain a relatively friendly relationship. If the two of us get too close—"

Under Remus's thoughtful gaze, Amosta gave a cold laugh and said nothing more.

This was Amos Tower's first proper Halloween since leaving Hogwarts. Regardless of whether his relationship with Lupin was based on mutual exploitation or a degree of mutual appreciation, he was still grateful to Remus Lupin tonight.

Time passed slowly, and the atmosphere at the table was very pleasant. They didn't talk about Sirius Black, nor did they discuss Dumbledore anymore. As two successive professors of Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts, he spent most of the time talking about the young wizards at the school. During this time, Lupin also talked about the situation when he met Harry earlier that day.

The sudden downpour made the late October temperatures even colder, but Amosta and Remus, who had drunk quite a bit of strong liquor, didn't seem to feel it.

"Oh, right--"

The dining table was a mess, and Remus, his cheeks flushed, casually asked...

"Why would you choose to conduct magical experiments at the Screaming Shack, Amosta? I went there with a group of friends when I was in school. The environment there was terrible, and it seemed like wild beasts often appeared there?"

"We haven't encountered any ferocious beasts,"

A slightly dizzy Amosta said, "There is a cat that often likes to go there to hunt mice. It's quiet there, Remus, no one will bother me."

Hearing this, Remus, whose gaze was hidden by a strand of hair, breathed a barely perceptible sigh of relief. He smiled and raised his glass to Amosta once more.

Boom!

The deafening thunder made the earth tremble slightly. Amostella also raised his glass to return the toast to Remus, but as soon as he raised his glass, he suddenly stopped and turned to look at the door.

"What's wrong, Amosta?"

The unfathomable gaze made Remus tremble. In a daze, the young man opposite him had transformed from Amosta Blaine into Golden Viper.

Ding--

"problem occurs."

Amosta put down his glass and said calmly.

Chapter 185 The Storm Finally Arrives

Sirius Black's escape from prison hung like a Damocles' sword over the heads of most of the wizarding world, causing great trouble to their daily lives. For Harry, this feeling was particularly profound.

During the first week of school, after Black escaped from the Ministry of Magic again, Hermione, who had been at odds with Ron for some time because of Scabbers, kept reminding him not to do anything risky. Even Hagrid forbade him from visiting him after dark.

Outside, the wind and rain continued to rage, but inside the Great Hall, the dome revealed a pure and flawless starry sky. Harry rolled over, feeling little fear, but rather a sense of relief, as if a boot that had been lifted halfway down had finally landed.

Hermione was explaining to everyone why Black couldn't enter Hogwarts through Apparition and flight, while Ron's brother, Percy, who had been promoted to student council president this year, was striding past rows of sleeping bags, ordering the chattering young wizards to shut up and go to sleep.

The professors were busy searching the castle, and every hour, one of them would rush back to the Great Hall to make sure nothing had happened.

At 11 p.m., Professor Flitwick returned to the Great Hall after checking the Ravenclaw dormitories. After confirming that it was still safe, Professor Flitwick did not leave immediately. Instead, he jogged over to a group of Ravenclaw students, squatted down, and said something to a young wizard.

Curious Harry tilted his head slightly to look in that direction. After glancing around, he discovered that a Ravenclaw girl was crying softly because she was frightened, and Professor Flitwick had come down to comfort her.

The little witch looked a bit older than them, with a gentle, oriental face and was very beautiful. So Harry tilted his head back and glanced at her a few more times.

The professors went in and out of the Great Hall, but they never saw Professor Lupin. When they met earlier in the day, Professor Lupin told them that he would not be attending the Halloween dinner, but would be going to Hogsmeade to spend the holiday with a friend. But by now, Professor Lupin should have been back.

A little while later, Dumbledore, who had also gone to inspect the castle, walked in with a serious expression. His cold gaze swept around and he spotted Percy patrolling near Harry and the others, so he quickly approached them.

"Professor, do you have any leads on him?" Percy asked in a low voice.

"No, what's the situation here?"

“Everything is fine, sir,” Percy replied eagerly.

As Dumbledore and Percy were exchanging information, the doors of the Great Hall creaked open, and a grim-faced Snape rushed in, bringing with him equally fruitless news.

"Have you considered how he got in here, Headmaster Dumbledore?"

Percy was sent away, and Harry lay on his side pretending to be asleep. One of his ears looked like it was stuck to the pillow, but it was actually floating. Hermione, Ron, and Dean were basically in the same situation.

Professor Snape's sinister expression was no different from usual, but his dark eyes were clearly flashing with fire.

“There are many possibilities, but none of them stand up to scrutiny, Severus,” Dumbledore said in a deep voice, looking down at Snape with a blank expression.

"Of course, if you have any insightful opinions, I would be happy to hear them."

The fire in Snape's eyes vanished instantly, replaced by deep resentment.

“Indeed, I have some minor insights, Headmaster Dumbledore, and I frankly discussed this possibility with you before the start of the semester when you decided to hire that person, and the current situation seems to confirm my guess, doesn’t it?”

Dumbledore glanced at the group of little ones pretending to be asleep on the ground, his deep blue eyes, shining through the half-moon frame of his glasses, carrying a stern warning.

"Excuse me for speaking frankly, Severus, but I don't see any connection between the current situation and the possibility you mentioned before."

Dumbledore's tone made it clear that he wanted the topic to end, but this had no effect and instead thoroughly enraged Snape.

Snape's sallow cheeks flushed red in a few breaths, his thin lips tightened, and the anger emanating from him made Harry, several feet away, feel a chill run down his spine.

"Of all times, it has to be tonight!"