Hogwarts' Golden Glory

"This is fantastic!" Harry finally found his voice. "I mean—Merlin's beard! We can all be in the castle together! You can watch Quidditch matches, and you can—"

"—Also, I can keep an eye on you to make sure you don't cause any trouble."

Sirius blinked, his gray eyes gleaming with mischief. "Imagine the second generation of Marauders reuniting at Hogwarts! Although none of them will be as well-behaved as Moonface..."

"But there are just as mischievous as Bigfoot," Harry added, and the two laughed at the same time.

Harry felt a warm current flow from the bottom of his heart to his whole body.

This was the first time he had truly felt at ease since meeting the Dursleys on Privet Drive.

With Sirius Black at Hogwarts, Voldemort and other monsters didn't seem so scary anymore.

"However," Sirius suddenly lowered his voice, his expression turning serious, "this matter will be kept secret for now. Dumbledore doesn't want to alert them."

Meanwhile, in the headmaster's office at Hogwarts.

"Albus, I must make this clear—Hogwarts has Black, but not me."

Snape stood in the center of the headmaster's office, his black robes billowing even without wind, his voice as piercing as a poisoned ice pick.

Dumbledore looked at him from above his half-moon spectacles: "Severus, I thought we were long past this either-or phase."

"This is not a choice, it is a fact." Snape's pale face was tense.

"If that megalomaniac were to step into the castle on the first day, the entire school's discipline would crumble. Do you expect a vandal to be a good teaching assistant?"

Fox called out softly from its perch.

The portraits of past principals on the wall pretended to be asleep, but the frames were quietly moved closer together.

Dumbledore crossed his fingers: "Sirius has proven himself in Defense Against the Dark Arts, which is exactly what we need right now—"

"What we need is order!" Snape suddenly raised his voice, then immediately suppressed it into a dangerous whisper.

"The Dark Lord is operating in the shadows, and you're going to throw a spark into a powder keg? Black, along with Potter and his gang, will turn the school upside down. Who's going to clean up the mess then?"

A sharp glint flashed in the old principal's azure eyes: "Perhaps it is precisely a little...unexpected change that is needed to disrupt the carefully laid plans of certain people."

Snape's pupils contracted slightly.

A silent contest flowed between the two, as if they had returned to those moments of negotiation about double agents.

"You're always like this," Snape finally sneered.

Dumbledore stood up, his pale white robes trailing on the ground. "I need you to operate in the shadows, Severus. And Sirius... his flamboyance is the perfect cover."

"Besides, his arrival will be a good protection for Harry."

"My classroom and office." Snape turned abruptly, his black robes tracing a resolute arc. "If Black dares to take a single step, I'll make him experience the latest scabies medicine firsthand."

Dumbledore's lips curled into a slight smile: "Very reasonable precautions."

Snape paused at the door, without turning around: "Remember the price of your choices, Albus. When that fool gets into trouble you can't handle—"

"I believe you'll resolve this in the most Slytherin way," the old headmaster gently interrupted him. "After all, this is another way for you to protect Lily's son, isn't it?"

The principal's office door closed silently, as if nothing had happened.

In the VIP room on the second floor of Flourish and Blotts bookstore.

Kane Malfoy was gently tapping a crystal box with the tip of his wand.

The box contained dozens of pearl-colored candies arranged neatly.

Each one has a faint golden halo floating on its surface.

"An improved version of nitrous oxide candy," he said to the air, "with added sunlight powder, even the coating glows—like some people's exaggerated smiles."

The door to the VIP room creaked open.

Fred and George Weasley scurried in like two red weasels.

She still carried the lingering warmth of Lockhart's book signing downstairs.

"Merlin's stinky socks!" George whistled, leaning closer to examine the glowing candies.

"This is much fancyer than the candy we just gave you."

Kane's lips curled into a slight smile: "You guys want to make some money, right? Commercial packaging is very important. Imagine..."

He suddenly waved his wand, and all the candies floated in the air, arranging themselves in the shape of Lockhart's signature smile.

"If these candies were all labeled 'Giddro Lockhart's exclusive recommendation,' we could sell two more scoops per candy."

Fred slapped his thigh: "You want that narcissist to be the spokesperson?!"

"Exactly." Kane pulled a copy of the Daily Prophet from his dragon-skin wallet.

The headline prominently featured a photo of Lockhart holding up a tube of toothpaste, captioned, "Look, he'll even endorse this kind of toothpaste. As long as the price is right..."

George suddenly gasped: "But what if something happens to him later..."

"So we need to do something shady in the contract."

Kane suddenly lowered his voice and tapped the newspaper lightly with his wand.

Lockhart's smile suddenly twisted into a crying face. "Didn't you guys notice? In his 'adventure stories,' he even drew the vampire's fangs in the wrong direction."

A brief silence fell over the storage room.

Lockhart's signature loud laughter echoed from downstairs: "My dear fans, my secret to smiling is thirty times a day—"

"We'll know after thirty practice sessions in front of the mirror."

Fred rolled his eyes. "He listened to it eight times when he gave a speech in Diagon Alley last time."

Kane suddenly closed the box, extinguishing the glow of the pearl sugar in the darkness: "The opponent's true spellcasting level is not even comparable to that of a normal Hogwarts graduate."

He handed over a parchment contract, "And all you have to do is get him to sign this nitrous oxide candy endorsement agreement before he's ruined."

George took the contract, his eyes widening in disbelief: "Merlin... this penalty clause..."

"He can't afford it." Kane smoothed out non-existent wrinkles on his cuffs. "When he's exposed as a fraud, we'll not only walk away unscathed, but we can also gain some goodwill by 'exposing a black-hearted advocate'."

Fred suddenly burst into laughter, but George quickly covered his mouth.

Downstairs, Lockhart was loudly reciting an excerpt from "I Am Magic."

"It's settled then!" the twins whispered in unison.

Not long after, the oak door to the attic was suddenly pushed open.

Gilderoy Lockhart swept into the VIP room like a whirlwind, bringing with him a pungent scent of cologne.

"Ah ha! My dear young friends!"

Lockhart spread his arms wide, his snow-white teeth almost blinding under the carefully designed lighting.

"Please forgive me for keeping you all waiting—the fans have been incredibly enthusiastic!"