The Return to Hogwarts

After lunch, the professors said their goodbyes; none of them planned to stay at the university for the rest of the holiday.

The young wizards scattered, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione stood in the foyer, discussing how to pass the afternoon. Even Hermione, who loved studying, wouldn't spend her time studying in the empty library or common room on Christmas Day.

Harry undoubtedly wanted to ride his Firebolt around the playground, but he knew it was best not to provoke Hermione's sensitive nerves, and Ron's suggestion to visit Hagrid was also rejected.

They had promised to help Buckbeak win the lawsuit, but so far, although they had reviewed a lot of case files, very few were actually helpful. Harry didn't want Hagrid to ask about it with high hopes, so they could only lower their heads in shame and helplessness.

Finally, the three of them decided to take a stroll on the grass to help them digest their delicious food more quickly.

The extreme cold of the past few days had turned the layer of snow covering the ground into powder. A gust of wind swept through, and all the snow dust on the surface flew into the air, making the vast campus seem like a sandstorm.

Ha used her scarf to tightly wrap around her neck, and then brought up a topic that she hadn't been able to discuss in detail earlier because of the dinner table.

"What do you mean, Hermione, that Professor Lupin is more concerned about that parchment?"

"Is that even a question, Harry?"

Hermione rubbed her rosy cheeks, which were red from the cold, and turned to look at the location of Professor Blaine's office.

“You can imagine Professor Lupin’s reaction when he learned from Filch that Professor Blaine was looking for your map. Harry, he was much more surprised than when he saw you holding a fire bolt.”

"I thought--"

Ron said, puzzled.

"Is he wondering why Professor Blaine is looking for a piece of parchment?"

Things are definitely not as simple as Ron says; even Harry dared to make that conclusion.

In fact, on the night he sneaked into Hogsmeade and was caught red-handed by Professor Blaine, Professor Lupin's behavior led Harry to believe that he had some connection to the Marauder's Map, but because of Ron's perfect lie at the time, Professor Lupin did not investigate further.

Later, Fred and George overheard Professor Blaine searching for the Marauder's Map. Harry, Ron, and Hermione discussed why Professor Blaine also knew about the Marauder's Map, concluding that Professor Lupin might be the map's creator.

This conclusion sounds incredible, because Professor Lupin doesn't seem to have any connection to violating school rules or playing pranks.

But if that's really the case, then the answer to how Professor Blaine knew about the Marauder's Map is quite obvious—Professor Lupin told him.

But what happened today overturned the previous conclusion once again. It seems that Professor Lupin and Professor Blaine have not exchanged any information about the Marauder's Map. Moreover, Professor Lupin even believes that Professor Blaine should not know that this thing exists at all - judging from his behavior.

This is indeed a perplexing question, one that even Hermione cannot fathom.

Between the two professors, Professor Lupin is undoubtedly more like the creator of the Marauder's Map, but if he hadn't told Professor Blaine, then who would have?

Moon face, bug tail, big feet, and forks—if Lupin is one of these four, theoretically, even if it's not Professor Lupin, it could be one of the other three creators who revealed this information to Professor Blaine. However, the other three are obviously not at Hogwarts right now, otherwise Lupin would definitely have guessed it.

They couldn't uncover the truth by guessing alone, and after discussing it for a while, Harry and the other two gave up on pursuing the matter any further.

The next few days, bathed in the pale sunlight, the three of them had a snowball fight in the snow. To make it more fun, they used their wands to knead powdery snowflakes into a ball and then attacked each other with snowballs. The game started out peacefully, but as Hermione added some 'special magic' to the snowballs, such as 'object manipulation charms', the situation quickly became one-sided.

Harry and Ron teamed up against Hermione, but they were still dazed and knocked around by the powerful ice lumps, and had to run away with their heads in their hands.

The cries of pain from the two young wizards and Hermione's cheerful giggles echoed through the cold, howling courtyard.

"No matter what,"

More than an hour later, the three exhausted individuals helped each other back to the castle. Standing in the entrance hall, they brushed the ice and snow from their clothes and boots. Hermione, in much better spirits, brushed the ice particles from her tousled hair and solemnly said…

“I hope you will remain vigilant, Harry. I expect you to hand over both the Firebolt and the Marauder’s Map voluntarily. The professors will help you check if there is anything wrong with them.”

"No, please, Harry!"

Taking advantage of the relaxed atmosphere, Ron grinned and made a face at Hermione.

"Perhaps the professors will return the Firebolt to Harry, but do you expect them to return the Marauder's Map as well? That map isn't dangerous at all; Fred and George have been using it for years, and they've already verified it for Harry—"

“If I hand over the map, Hermione—”

Harry also said with a grin,

"I can forget about Fred and George acting as my circus ball in Quidditch. They might just hit the ball at me directly, since that map is their most prized possession!"

A series of hurried footsteps came from the second floor, which were very noticeable in the empty castle. Harry, the other two recognized the sound as the caretaker Filch's footsteps. Seeing the mud and water all over the polished marble floor of the entrance hall, the three of them shrank back and quickly slipped away down the other staircase.

"Damn it! It's made a mess of the castle again! Who did this?!"

Sure enough, a minute later, Filch, now dressed in his usual brown jacket, appeared with Mrs. Lorris. He flew into a rage the moment he saw the stains on the floor.

"Smell it, darling, we have to find the little rascal who's been up to no good!"

The emaciated gray cat jumped off his shoulder the instant it received the command. After sniffing around for a moment, it darted towards the basement staircase entrance. Filch quickly followed and happened to see a student who had been hiding behind a tapestry emerge under Mrs. Lawrence's supervision.

"Ah, it's you!"

Snot bubbles hung from Filch's fleshy nose as he glared fiercely at Malfoy.

"You've made a mess of the castle on Christmas Day. No questions asked, come with me, Malfoy!"

"not me--"

Malfoy lowered his head and said woodenly, "It's Potter, Weasley, and Granger. You can see their footprints entering the castle from outside the door, Filch."

Filch looked skeptical, so Malfoy added again,

“They just went back to the lounge. If you go there now, they might not have had time to clean up the marks on their boots.”

"Alright, Mr. Malfoy, come with me!"

Hearing Malfoy's words, Filch had no further questions. He grabbed Malfoy's sleeve and rushed up the Gryffindor tower. The portrait of the Fat Lady was opened, and just as Harry, Malfoy, and their friends, who were playing wizard chess by the fireplace, were shocked by Filch and Malfoy's appearance, a mouse scurried out from under Malfoy's trousers, quickly disappeared under the sofas, and, using this cover, quietly climbed the stairs to the boys' dormitory.

Chapter 262 Return

Amos Tower returned to Hogwarts at dusk three days before the end of the Christmas holidays. At this time, the young wizards who had gone home for Christmas had not yet returned, but among the faculty and staff, the heads of the four houses had already returned to school to deal with the matters of the next semester.

He didn't disturb anyone, but went back to his office first, intending to see how the two rivals were getting along.

Unexpectedly, the spotless office was empty, except for the fireplace, which automatically lit up after sensing the return of the room's occupant.

After placing the suitcase on the sofa, Amosta turned around and saw a note on the desk, which appeared to have been left by one of them.

Amosta:

Lenny and I discussed it, and we decided that blindly searching would be useless if the mouse didn't give anything away. So, we decided to stay at Lenny's old house for a couple of days. I heard from Lenny that you have the right to use that house, and that you had planned to clean it during the Christmas holidays. I thought Lenny and I could help with that first.

If you go back to school, you can come find us at the old house, and we can have a party together to celebrate Lenny's freedom.

Your loyal Remus Lupin

The handwriting on the letter was not entirely consistent with Remus's usual handwriting. The lines of writing conveyed a lighthearted feeling, and it was clear that Remus was in an extremely good mood when he wrote this letter.

What does it mean to say 'I have the right to use that house'?

Amostella curled her lip. "Hopefully, those two won't forget that the Aurors from the Ministry of Magic are still waiting outside."

Amosta tossed Remus's message into the fireplace, and the stench of burning hair filled the air. As he watched the paper turn to ashes, Amosta casually remarked something, his brow furrowing slightly.

As he said, the Ministry of Magic is still watching, so those two shouldn't get too excited.

"All right--"

Through the monitor screen, Amosta glanced at the deserted Hogwarts Castle a few times. After a brief moment of thought, he picked up his coat, which was lying on the bed, and quickly walked out of the office.

As dusk fell, wisps of smoke began to rise from the chimney of Hagrid's hut, perched on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Amosta, with his exceptional eyesight, could vaguely see several different figures flashing by inside the dimly lit room through the window. He figured that Harry and his friends must be visiting there.

At this hour, if he waited for the train back to London, he would probably arrive at Grimmauld Place at least at midnight. The Knight Bus was a mode of transportation he absolutely did not want to take. Helpless, he could only choose Apparition, which consumed a lot of magic power, but at least it was fast.

The world was blurry before his eyes, and the sound of howling wind filled his ears. In an instant, Amosta crossed thousands of mountains and rivers and the barriers of the ancient defensive spells guarding the old house, and came to a steady stop in the narrow and dilapidated corridor of the entrance hall.

Upon seeing the condition of the house, Amosta raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.

Compared to last time, this place looks completely different.

Every inch of the once dusty floor seemed to have been wiped clean with a stain remover and polish, reflecting a jewel-like gleam under the brightly lit chandelier on the ceiling. The walls on both sides had been repaired; the dark green and blackened walls had been torn down and replaced with a more pleasing sky blue.

But whether intentionally or not, the portraits of the Black family ancestors on the walls on both sides have not been treated in any way and remain blackened by the passage of time.

The last time he came, the old lady who had yelled at him was hidden by the starched curtains, but they were not taken down.

Amosta clicked his tongue. Once the ownership of the house was officially transferred, he wouldn't keep these picture frames that might go crazy at any moment.

There was a clanging and banging noise coming from the basement, it looked like someone was cooking. Amosta stepped forward and pushed open the door leading to the basement.

"Ah, Amosta, it's you—"

Remus, his face etched with worry as he awkwardly dealt with the potatoes on the cutting board, turned around at the sound. Upon seeing who it was, a smile immediately lit up his face, his spirits lifted.

"When did you return to Hogwarts? You saw the note I left, right?"

Amostah nodded noncommittally. He walked down the stairs, his gaze sweeping over the kitchen and small dining room. After a moment, he nodded in satisfaction and casually asked,

"Who gave you permission to be in my house, Professor Lupin?"

Remus immediately gave a wry smile. Compared to most Slytherins, Amostella was relatively easy to get along with, but that didn't stop her from retaining some of the standard Slytherin traits.

"By the way, why did you end up cooking, Remus? Did Sirius secretly fire my house-elf while I was away?"

Amosta glanced at the potato slices of various shapes and thicknesses on the cutting board and curled his lip in disgust.

"That's a long story, Amosta—"

Remus threw away the cleaver, clapped his hands to shake off the juice, and...

"When we first moved in, it was indeed that house-elf named Kreacher who cooked for us, but you know, it's unlikely to be very friendly to a werewolf like me."

In fact, using the word 'not very friendly' is an understatement. To kick me out of the house, it tried to poison my food several times, attempting to kill me. Honestly, if I hadn't spent some years in the underworld and been wary of these kinds of poisons, I might have actually been killed.