The Return to Hogwarts

Chapter 703 Getting to the Bottom of Things

2024-01-21

Regardless, Christmas, which many people have been eagerly anticipating, arrived amidst a flurry of snowflakes.

The air around the castle and the campus was filled with a joyful atmosphere. Never before had there been so many little wizards staying at the castle for Christmas. You could hear their cheerful laughter in every corridor. The students huddled together in twos and threes, laughing and talking about the evening's ball.

The only downside is that the weather these past two days has probably been the coldest it's been this year.

When Amosta climbed to the top of the tower to the owl hut carrying a large bag, he found that the entire outdoor walkway leading to the hut, exposed to the air, was covered with a thick layer of solid, frozen ice on the ground and the walls on both sides.

This is undoubtedly dangerous; if a student slips on the ground, Mrs. Pomfrey will have something to do.

Amosta blinked, then pulled out his wand and waved it backhand. A sudden gust of wind swept through the snowflakes in mid-air, and the ground covered by ice seemed to be heated by underfloor heating, radiating intense heat. The solid ice surface melted rapidly under this heat, and even the melted ice water was washed away, leaving the brown rock tiles dry.

The owl hut, still reeling from the strong wind, was in a bit of a commotion. Many owls flapped their wings and cried out as they frantically darted out of the hut's windows.

"Oh, it's you guys—"

As Amos Tower stepped into the corridor, Harry, Harry, and Amos scrambled out, clutching their heads in a flurry of activity, their faces and cloaks covered in owl feathers.

"Professor Blaine?!"

Harry, Harry, and Amosta also discovered that the culprit who had made them look a bit disheveled was Professor Blaine, and they all greeted him. However, Amosta seemed to notice that the three little ones, besides being a bit caught off guard when they saw him, also seemed to have something to say but held back.

What are you doing here?

Amosta let the large package float behind him, walked into the slightly dark shed, and casually asked Harry and his two companions who were still standing at the door.

"Oh, I'm writing a letter home, Professor Blaine—"

It was Hermione who spoke; she answered the question, looking slightly nervous.

"I sent them Christmas presents. Well, I ordered them via owl, but they arrived late."

Amosta glanced at Hermione's face out of the corner of his eye and easily realized it was a lie. However, he didn't call her out on it; people who meddle in everything only make others dislike them.

"I'm in the same situation as you—"

Amosta glanced around at the owls in the shed and casually remarked...

"I bought some magical candy for the kids at the orphanage where I grew up. It took me a lot of time, you know, I had to pick and choose. If I sent them something like chocolate dolls, oh, you know, it would be a disaster for them and for me. Maybe it's this snow, but the owls aren't very efficient—"

"Children from an orphanage?"

Ron instinctively cried out in surprise, and then he was kicked by both Harry and Hermione at the same time. Only after he realized that he had attracted everyone's attention did Ron vaguely remember that last year, Harry and Professor Blaine had indeed mentioned in their conversation that Professor Blaine was an orphan.

Amid Ron's stammering apology, Amosta looked at Harry with slight surprise.

"You didn't tell Hermione and Ron about what happened to me?"

"No--"

Harry shook his head earnestly, then, with eager eyes, he asked cautiously, "May I ask, Professor?"

"That's truly astonishing--"

Amosta reached out and caught a gray owl.

"Since you've kept this a secret for so long, then keep it a secret. Harry, could you please hand me that strong-looking brown owl on your head, Harry—"

Amosta's gifts were so heavy that even the four owls struggled to carry them together. So, Amosta unloaded the package and took out several large bags of Bee Duke candy to lighten the load.

Consider it a Christmas present for you all.

Amosta tossed a bag to each of the three children, tucking the remaining bag under his arm, intending to take it back to Headmaster Dumbledore. Earlier, when Dumbledore was released, he had openly hinted that Amosta wanted to give him Christmas presents, so this bag of candy would be a good gift.

"Speaking of -"

As he watched the four owls disappear off the horizon, Amosta breathed a sigh of relief and walked out of the owlhouse toward the tower, with Harry and the other two following behind him.

"You're going to lead the dance with the other warriors tonight, right, Hermione? Who's your partner?"

Hermione was planning to get information from Professor Blaine when she was completely taken aback by his sudden question. She instinctively looked at Ron, whose face turned bright red in just two seconds.

"Hmm," Hermione hesitated for a moment, but still answered truthfully, "It's Ron, Professor Blaine."

Ron quickly lowered his head and stared intently at his toes.

"is it?"

Amosta was slightly surprised, but his expression quickly returned to calm.

"I thought... Oh, that's a pretty good choice. So, what about you, Harry?"

Before Harry could answer, Amosta gently patted his forehead.

"Oh, sorry, Harry, you're going to the ball with Fleur, I forgot you already told me about that—"

Harry's lips twitched, unsure what to say. However, after several days of brooding over this incident, he suddenly felt an urge to laugh. Fleur wanted to make her presence felt in front of Professor Blaine, but Professor Blaine had completely forgotten about it—

As they descended the stairs, they encountered more and more young wizards. Hermione knew that if she didn't ask soon, it might be too late to speak up in a crowded place. She glanced at Professor Blaine's calm profile, took a deep breath, and stepped in front of Harry.

“So, Professor Blaine—” Hermione asked softly, controlling her breathing, “You and Professor Dumbledore released Sparkle, didn’t you? May I ask where it went?”

Amosta's brow twitched slightly; the heaviness in his casual glance nearly crushed Hermione's hard-won courage.

"You're really well-informed, Hermione—"

Professor Blaine's tone didn't reveal any obvious displeasure, but her cheeks flushed red as she stammered an explanation.

"Well, Professor, we... well, we went to visit Dobby. From him, we learned that Gilgamesh hasn't returned to the kitchen to work since that night, so we're guessing... could it be that you and Professor Dumbledore released Dobby—"

Hermione downplayed the issue, saying that she hadn't told Professor Blaine that it was only after she shared her suspicions about Crouch with Harry and Ron that Harry suggested they go ask Gilgamesh, and that's when she unexpectedly heard from Dobby that Gilgamesh was no longer at Hogwarts.

“A very astute judgment, Hermione—”

Amosta said calmly.

"Glimmer has indeed been released. There's no harm in telling you this; you probably all know how much Glimmer didn't want to work at Hogwarts, and how much it dreamed of returning to Barty's side."

A while ago, I visited Barty Crouch. Oh, you probably don't know, Mr. Barty Crouch was sick and on leave. When I saw him, he was very ill, but he didn't want to go to St. Mungo's or have anyone take care of him. So, I suggested that Gilgamesh come back to look after him.

“Um, Professor Blaine—”

Is Barty Crouch sick?

Harry and Ron exchanged a knowing glance, both sensing that things might not be so simple.

Hermione knew it would be impolite to press further, but she couldn't suppress her desire to know the truth, so she forced herself to continue asking.

"You went to visit Mr. Barty Crouch, um, Professor Blaine, because you suspect it's related to the Dark Mark that appeared on the field on Quidditch final night, is that right?"

Chapter 704 A New Twist on the Banquet?

2024-01-21

Amosta sighed inwardly. He knew that his question to Dumbledore had alerted the three boys to something, but lacking information, they had gone in the wrong direction. Amosta had no intention of explaining things to them, as this was not something he could let them interfere with.

"Just my humble opinion, Hermione—"

They had now descended to the second floor, where young wizards from all directions were gathering to go to the Great Hall for breakfast. On the second-floor platform, Amosta stopped, watching Harry and his friends engrossed in their 'detective game,' and smiled.

"At this moment, instead of wasting energy on getting to the bottom of things, why not let go of the burdens and fully enjoy this wonderful Christmas? What do you think?"

Hermione's lips tightened instantly, her cheeks flushed red, while Harry and Ron behind her avoided Professor Blaine's gaze. To Professor Blaine in his normal state, such remarks were tantamount to criticism.

Du, du, du—

Just as Harry, Harry, and his friends were racking their brains for something to apologize for, a clear sound of a wooden stick striking the floor came from the stairs beside them. This sound, which they were all too familiar with, not only caught their attention but also Professor Blaine's.

“Oh, Professor Moody--”

Amosta's gaze swept over Alastor's snow cloak and snow boots, and she raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"What's going on? Are you planning to go out?"

“Oh, Blaine—”

Professor Moody's Magic Eye seemed to have failed him. He was also somewhat surprised to encounter Amosta and Harry here. After a moment of breathlessness, Professor Moody limped over and said in a gruff voice,

“That’s right, Blaine, I have to patrol the Forbidden Forest!”

Moody's said,

"Of course, you all know I usually prefer to be active at night, because those damned, despicable people love to do bad things under the cover of darkness. However, Albus seems to think I shouldn't miss out on evening activities, haha, the Christmas ball, how wonderful!"

Professor Moody let out a series of cryptic laughs, then said to them,

"Since Albus says so, I will participate, but I can't just leave that forest unattended. Who knows how many cunning people are hiding there!"

Harry, Harry, and the others all looked at Professor Moody with admiration. In such cold weather and heavy snow, he was patrolling the Forbidden Forest just to guard against a terrorist attack that probably would never happen. His spirit was truly admirable!

"Oh, really?"

Amosta nodded, and after a moment of silence, he suddenly tossed the bag of candy he was carrying under his arm into Professor Moody's lap. Amidst the bewildered gaze of Professor Moody's large and small blue eyes, Amosta shrugged innocently, his tone casual.

"I guess you probably won't have time to make it back for lunch, Professor Moody. Consider it a New Year's gift—"

Harry guessed that Professor Moody had probably never received candy as a gift in his life, otherwise he wouldn't have been so surprised when he received the candy from Professor Blaine, and there was even a hint of emotion in his normal blue eye.

but--

Harry glanced at the candy in his hand and took out the unmailed candy, using it as a legitimate Christmas present to give away to people. This was just like Professor Blaine's style. A secret smile appeared on Harry's lips, and the slight resentment he felt towards Professor Blaine because of Fleur vanished.

Just like Professor Blaine's attitude towards Fleur, there's really nothing to worry about, isn't there?