The Return to Hogwarts

“Please sit down, Argus!” Amosta said kindly.

“Oh, Sir, Benedict Blaine, I can stand!”

Filch, with his large eye bags, was visibly nervous, his nose as red as a light bulb. But in the end, he couldn't resist Amosta's gentle gaze, and sat down with half his buttocks on the stool, trying to straighten his back.

"So now--"

Amosta, quickly getting into character, looked around and calmly said...

"Can someone explain the current situation in detail?"

Chapter 190 Eve of Dawn

"It's certain that Black didn't come from the school, and those Dementors won't be easily fooled by him again."

Remus rubbed his temples and said,

"And it's pretty much certain that he's left Hogwarts. We searched the entire castle, including the common rooms of the four houses, the student dormitories, the hospital, the underground corridors, the observatory, the library, and Professor Sprout's greenhouse, but found no trace of him. Hagrid is currently in the Forbidden Forest questioning those magical creatures and hasn't returned yet."

Amosta nodded slightly, pondering quietly. Suddenly, he remembered Myrtle, who had been hiding in the washroom last year, seeing everything but saying nothing.

“Now that the Fat Lady has confirmed that Black was the one who hurt it, I mean, sneaking into the Gryffindor Tower, finding himself unable to enter the common room, and then escaping the castle is quite a distance. Even if all the young wizards and faculty are celebrating Halloween in the Great Hall, there should still be some portraits and ghosts.”

"It's already been confirmed with them--"

Professor McGonagall pursed her lips and said,

"The ghosts were all celebrating Christmas in their own way in the basement, and the portraits were gathered together. None of them saw how Blake got in. Peeves, who had been kicked out of the ghosts' gathering for causing trouble, was the first to spot the terrified fat lady hiding in a landscape painting on the fifth floor. Anyway, Blake picked a good time."

"Yes, cunning Blake!"

Filch, who had little presence among the principal, department head, and professors, seized the opportunity to nod and agree.

"A good time—"

Professor McGonagall's casual remark caused Amosta's brow to twitch almost imperceptibly, and he muttered something under his breath.

Dumbledore, who had been sitting quietly with his fingers interlaced on his right leg, seemed to have no intention of intervening in the conversation and was simply letting them discuss it. But after hearing Amostella mutter a few words, Dumbledore's face suddenly twitched, and a glint of light flashed in his eyes. He turned to look at Amostella, and the gazes from their two heterochromatic eyes met in mid-air.

"Oh, please!" Professor McGonagall said, sounding a little annoyed. "Don't make me guess at a time like this!"

Cough!

Amosta coughed twice, a little awkwardly, then mentally organized his thoughts and slowly said,

"It's just a thought. Was Professor McGonagall Black's decision to specifically choose Halloween to break into Hogwarts unintentional or deliberate?"

If it was unintentional, then his luck could only be described as coincidence, probably because he was confused while in Azkaban. But if he intentionally rushed into Hogwarts on the night of the Halloween dinner, then what was his purpose in trying to break into the Gryffindor common room? He should have known that the young wizards, including Potter, were in the Great Hall, and there was no one in the dormitories.”

Amosta's statement surprised both McGonagall and Lupin; to be honest, they had indeed overlooked this point.

"Maybe--"

After a long pause, Professor McGonagall hesitated before guessing, "Blake wants to sneak into the student dormitory and wait for the boy to return—"

"That is indeed a possibility."

Amostella nodded, but her gaze was fixed on Remus, whose brow was hidden in deep shadows.

"But if that's the case, does it mean he never intended to leave after committing the crime? Was that his choice?"

What is top secret to the students might be common knowledge among the professors, and everyone here knows it. Of the group, only Lupin truly understands Blake.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what Blake will do."

Lupin apologized in a somber tone,

“I used to think I knew him very well, but it turns out he’s not what I thought at all.”

Discussions of betrayal are never pleasant, Professor McGonagall whispered to Lupin, and Amosta stopped pressing him with her gaze.

“Okay, let me think about Argus,”

After a moment's thought, Amosta looked at Filch.

"I hope all the secret passages leading to the outside world in the castle are sealed off. I don't want us to make such a basic mistake."

"There are four secret passages in total, and they were sealed off before the start of the semester, Mr. Blaine!"

Filch stood up abruptly, his tone so respectful that it surprised Amosta. But upon reflection, Amosta understood. Last semester, his titles were that of an investigator sent by the Board of Governors to Hogwarts to investigate the Chamber of Secrets and a professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts. Both of these roles were temporary, and he wouldn't hold either position for long. However, the position of Head of the Student Safety Office was permanent. In particular, Dumbledore had explicitly stated that the Castle Keeper was under the jurisdiction of the Head of the Safety Office.

Although Filch was just an unpopular jerk in the castle, he had a job that many capable wizards envied. As a Squib, he was naturally afraid of upsetting himself and losing his 'golden rice bowl'!

When Amosta mentioned the secret passage, Remus's body trembled violently, and his lowered gaze revealed a fierce struggle, but in the end, he said nothing.

As dawn approaches, the world outside the window is no longer a deep, pure black; in the distant sky, the gray-white light is awakening all things from their slumber.

"All right--"

Amosta walked to the window and opened it, letting the damp, cold morning breeze blow through his hair.

"Hagrid hasn't returned yet, but I don't think he's likely to bring good news."

I'll reset those panoramic telescopes as soon as possible. Until then, I need to add a spy camera function to them. Whenever Blake tries to break into the castle again, no matter which corner he enters from, as soon as his face is captured by the camera, all the telescopes in the castle will sound an alarm simultaneously, notifying the young wizards to evacuate immediately.

Amosta's plan is undoubtedly a good one. Given the current inability to find a way for Black to invade, the most important thing is to ensure that he cannot invade again.

As dawn broke, Amosta was the only one left in his office. He hadn't slept all night, and everyone else was taking advantage of the time before class to rest. Amosta lay on his bed, closed his eyes, and quietly pondered the unanswered question.

Was Black simply walking into Hogwarts on Halloween by chance, or was it intentional? Amostella couldn't answer that question, but his keen intuition told him it wasn't a coincidence.

Sirius Black, like Remus Lupin, is an important character in the story. Amos Tower only has a vague image of him, and it seems that both of them died in the end.

"perish together?"

Amosta murmured softly.

"Could Remus have died because of a curse from the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor? Hmm, if that's the case, I'll feel a little guilty. Should I break his wolf legs beforehand?"

Chapter 191 Passionate

On his first day back at Hogwarts, Amosta didn't plan much work. He took a leisurely nap in the morning, spent some time in the afternoon modifying the panoramic telescope that had been gathering dust in Filch's office for half a year, rested for the first half of the night, and put the telescopes back in their original places while the young wizards were resting in the second half of the night.

But as it turns out, he was being far too naive.

Just two hours after closing her eyes, Professor McGonagall returned to her dormitory, washed up, and re-braided her hair into a bun. She then knocked on Amosta's office door with a pile of parchment covered with tables.

Professor McGonagall's tone was tinged with excitement as she looked at the sleepy-eyed Amosta.

"This stack is the prefectural patrol schedule submitted by the student council presidents and vice presidents; you need to review it. This stack is the approval for the November hunting grounds and castle maintenance expenses submitted by Hagrid and Filch respectively. This stack is Filch's updated list of prohibited items for junior wizards. You need to keep a copy of the application forms for junior wizards from third to seventh year to go to Hogsmeade on weekends. Oh, and this too."

Ten minutes later, Professor McGonagall, who was in such a good mood that she was practically walking on tiptoe, hurriedly left.

"Who am I? What am I doing here?"

A bewildered Amosta stood in front of his office, holding a three-foot-thick sheet of parchment, questioning his very existence.

"We are all your loyal supporters, Professor Blaine!"

At nine o'clock, Marcus, who had no classes in the morning, stormed into Amosta's office with several members of the Slytherin team. He spoke to Amosta, who was sitting behind his desk, frowning as he studied the forms.

"We rushed here as soon as we heard the news. If you'd like, we can also help you patrol the castle and maintain order!"

"Thank you for your support, Flint--"

Amosta frowned, his expression somewhat strange, and said...

"But I'd prefer you focus your energy on Quidditch and your studies. If I remember correctly, you should have graduated from Hogwarts last semester. By the way, how many years has it been since this school had a student repeating a year?"

Flint left, looking embarrassed as he went.

At ten o'clock, Malfoy, having finished his first class, knocked on the door again with Crabbe, Goyle, and Parkinson. He first said, "It's so good to see you back, Professor," and then grinned wickedly.

"Potter doesn't seem to know what Black did back then, Professor Blaine. Otherwise, I bet that brainless rascal would definitely seek revenge on Black. Oh, I really hope he would, if Professor Snape hadn't forbidden me from telling Potter these things."

Professor Snape forbade Malfoy from telling Potter that his parents died because of Black's betrayal. Sure enough, Professor Snape's feelings for Potter were as complicated as he had imagined.

"I have to say--"

With a shift in his gaze, Amosta pointed to Malfoy's arm, which was in a sling and covered in bandages, and said kindly,

“Your new outfit is very stylish, Malfoy.”

Draco's face flushed red. He hurriedly took the rope off his neck, looking somewhat uneasy, because he suddenly remembered that Hagrid, that big oaf, was now under the jurisdiction of the head of the student safety office. In other words, he was currently framing Professor Blaine's men. In a daze, Malfoy also thought of the eight-eyed spider in his dormitory.

"The Ministry of Magic has accepted the case, Professor. If you are unhappy, I can have my father withdraw the charges."

Malfoy stammered.

"I won't interfere in this matter, Malfoy, do as you please."

Amosta blinked, thought for a moment, and then spoke.

Hagrid's fascination with and indulgence of magical creatures has indeed gone a bit too far, to the point that he often misjudges the danger of those creatures. Previously, this had nothing to do with Amosta, and he didn't want to interfere with other people's hobbies for no reason. But now that Hagrid is under the jurisdiction of the Office of Security, Amosta thinks it's a good thing to teach him a lesson so that such incidents won't keep happening in the future. Dumbledore, who doesn't want to interfere too much with the Ministry of Magic, throws himself out as a scapegoat.

“I haven’t had a chance to thank you yet, Professor Blaine—”

After Malfoy left, several Hufflepuff students who had been waiting outside rushed in. Justin Finley excitedly said...

"My mother didn't want me to go back to Hogwarts after she found out I was petrified for half a semester because of my Muggle blood, and after learning from the Daily Prophet that Gilderoy Lockhart was a big liar. But I told her that you had dealt with the basilisk that petrified me, and she reluctantly agreed to let me come back. I want to tell her that you have returned to Hogwarts and will be in charge of our safety. I think she will feel at ease because of this!"