A certain Hogwarts professor of runes

Chapter 709 Unexpected Visitor

"...I hereby declare you to be lifelong partners."

As a short, thick-haired wizard announced their arrival, Bill and Fleur embraced tightly, surrounded by a sea of ​​silver stars that made them appear even more radiant. Charlie, Ginny, and Gabrielle, who were closest to them, clapped excitedly, their smiles radiant. The sound of Mrs. Weasley and Mrs. Delacour's joyful sobs rose from the audience.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Please stand!"

The guests rose to their feet. The canvas of the white tent was rolled up, and golden sunlight streamed in through the orchard, seemingly filling the air with the scent of fruit. By magic, tables and chairs were moved to a corner, and a pool of molten gold slowly spread out beneath the newlyweds' feet, forming a glittering dance floor. A band sang and danced, and waiters, carrying trays overflowing with food, surged in, weaving nimbly through the empty space and amidst the colorful confetti and bells floating in the air.

Felix took a glass of champagne from his head and walked to a table.

"Mr. Ephias Dorji, may I sit down?"

"Felix Heip?" The old man wearing a Turkish hat looked up in surprise, a few strands of soft, sparse hair peeking out. "Sit down, child! I've been wanting to talk to you for a while, but the timing wasn't right last time..."

Felix knew he was referring to Dumbledore's funeral, where the two had a chance to speak, but then the major incident that exposed the wizarding world occurred. Felix had known him for a long time; Doge had been a member of the Order of the Phoenix, but had since retired.

He and Dumbledore were very close friends; they entered school in the same year and immediately became good friends, a friendship that lasted for a century.

"Mr. Dorje—"

"Call me Ephias, if you don't mind," Dorje said hastily.

Felix paused, "Ephias, I read your obituary for Dumbledore, it was very moving—"

"Yes, I feel I have this obligation, as I have known him the longest."

"—You refuted Grindelwald's claims in your article."

"That's it!" Doge exclaimed immediately, his soft, almost translucent hair floating in the air with excitement. "Don't believe him. From the first day I met Dumbledore, he's had compassion for Muggles. His noble character—"

"As far as I know, those claims are largely true," Felix said calmly.

Dorjee quieted down, as if under a spell, his expression turning one of intense pain.

"Alas, I also had my doubts. That was the period in our lives when we had the least contact. I went on a trip at the time, and when I came back, he had changed a lot." After a long while, Dorje said in a dejected tone, as if he had been greatly shocked. He had undoubtedly been an admirer of Dumbledore—admiring his ideals, his personality, and his ability to turn the tide.

"—Perhaps he did support Grindelwald, but I think he was only temporarily blinded. I can assure you, as I said in the article, that painful experience gave birth to his true thoughts, a broad, kind, and compassionate heart."

"You don't need to convince me," Felix said seriously. "Just like your obituary has limited space, only allowing you to pick out one or two things to talk about, so too does Grindelwald. Besides, he only had two short months of actual contact with Dumbledore, which is clearly subjective and biased. I think you agree that his words are somewhat misleading, leading some to conclude that Dumbledore was once obsessed with dark magic—"

"Who?" Dorje's face flushed red with anger, as if he had been insulted.

"That's not important," Felix said lightly, changing the subject. "What's important is that there are already signs of it. Dumbledore is studying dark magic, Dumbledore hates Muggles, Dumbledore is seeking fame and fortune, and it's even affecting his family, with claims that his mother imprisoned her daughter to avoid bringing shame to the family..."

Dorjee's face grew increasingly red, burning with rage.

"...Someone has to step forward and clarify things," Felix said.

"That's right, someone has to step forward!" Dorje repeated loudly, looking expectantly at Felix. "My dear child, I want to use your reputation—"

"I can't." Felix shook his head, and before Doge could show his disappointment, he turned his head to the side. "There is someone who can. He knows Dumbledore better than anyone else alive in the world and is a perfect successor to his brilliant ideas."

Dorjee followed the gaze through the crowd and saw a young man with black hair grabbing a sandwich and munching on it.

"You mean him... Harry Potter?" The old man stared at Harry and muttered softly, but it sounded more like he was talking to himself: "That's possible... I read in the newspaper... that the kid could take on a dragon single-handedly... at his age, he must have been taught by someone."

Felix didn't refute this point. Part of magic originates from the heart, and from this perspective, Dumbledore's support for Harry was unprecedented. He pressed his advantage, saying:

"So, it's settled? The two of you will collaborate on a biography of Dumbledore? I know I may not be able to ask you to, and I'm not sure if you can find the time, but I can feel the sincerity flowing through your writing. If you're willing—"

"Of course I'd love to!" Dorje exclaimed eagerly. "It would be my honor!" He then hesitated. "Have you spoken to the child, and did he agree?"

"I was just about to tell him."

Felix stood up, at which point Dogi called out to him. "Mr. Hyp—Felix, may I ask why you did this? I know you've been busy lately with something that affects the fate of the entire wizarding world. What is it that has you focusing your attention on—"

"Dumbledore has been very kind to me. And objectively speaking, Dumbledore has truly become a symbol of wizardry. He may have made mistakes, but those mistakes shouldn't be portrayed as evil. Of course, the effects of the rumors haven't manifested yet and can be delayed—I'm doing this because of someone else."

"Harry Potter?" Dorje guessed, this was the second time he had uttered the name that night.

“That’s right,” Felix nodded. “He doesn’t yet know the immense fortune he’s acquired, and I must remind him so he doesn’t forget.” With that, he stepped onto the dance floor and through the joyful crowd.

On the other side, Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Hermione were huddled around a table, watching Luna and her father dance while they ate heartily. They were clearly starving.

"Eat quickly, then we'll go dancing!" Ginny said, her thoughts written all over her face. She looked at the noisy crowd, her gaze suddenly freezing, and whispered, "Oh, look—"

The group looked away from their food and at Professor Hyp approaching. Hermione choked on her champagne, put down her food, quickly wiped her mouth, and sat up much more upright.

"Miss Granger." Felix nodded to her, sat down in the empty chair next to her, and explained his purpose to Harry.

"You want me to write a biography of Dumbledore?" Harry said blankly, thinking of his unfinished book. The others stared wide-eyed as well.

"It's you and Ephias Dorgi," Felix said, gesturing with his chin towards the other side.

Following the professor's directions, Harry saw an old man wearing a small round hat craning his neck and staring intently in their direction.

"...You provide the information, specifying what to say and how much to say, so you have a clear idea. It will probably take a year and a half, and it may not be ready for the first batch of books for exchange—the Ministry of Magic believes that the selected list should best showcase the wonder of magic—but the matter itself is quite meaningful."

"But Professor," Harry said, his mind wandering, "I heard the negotiations aren't going well?"

“Oh, Harry, you need to see beyond the surface,” Felix said with a smile, glancing at Hermione. Hermione raised an eyebrow. “Professor, do you mean the recent slow progress is just a negotiation tactic? Or are we stuck on a key issue?”

"Pretty much. Another reason is that some government officials are being influenced by external forces, and I need to deal with that problem immediately," Felix said tactfully. "Let's not discuss such serious topics at the wedding. I think—" He suddenly stopped, stood up nimbly, and looked outside.

"What's going on, Professor?" Harry asked. Ron, Ginny, and Hermione looked around, puzzled, but didn't see anything unusual.

"An unexpected visitor, no big deal, I'll go check it out," Felix said, getting up and walking towards the orchard outside the tent. Hermione thought for a moment and followed.

The fruit trees shimmered in the brilliant sunset, and the tent was surrounded by a pleasant pastoral scene. Hermione walked through the crowd and peered out from the edge of the tent for a while, only to find Felix returning with a strange girl. The two walked and talked.

"...Would you treat it like a dream and close the deal?"

The girl nodded, then looked up timidly and dreamily at everything inside the tent. Felix pointed at her, and her clothes instantly transformed into a beautiful evening gown.

"Go ahead," Felix encouraged. The girl, lifting her skirt, walked excitedly into the tent, stepping onto the golden dance floor and looking around. A bottle of champagne and an empty glass were pushed in front of her, jingling as they went. She poured herself a small glass with interest, then searched through the crowd. Suddenly, her eyes lit up, and she strode off in one direction.

"Professor, she's... a Muggle?" Hermione asked in surprise.

"She lives in a nearby village where her parents run a flower shop," Felix said. "Just a few days ago, Fred and George traded a bag of snacks for flowers to use for today's wedding, and this clever girl took it to heart, looking out from the village entrance every day. But the Weasleys' house is protected by a spell, and ordinary people can't find it at all—but she was quite persistent, and after several days, she unexpectedly saw guests arriving from the distant hills with a Portkey."

"Oh." Hermione turned to look at the girl who had disappeared behind the phoenix cake; no one at the wedding had noticed a non-magical person had sneaked in. She turned away, quietly gathering her courage, and was about to speak when Felix cleared his throat. "Um—may I have the pleasure of dancing with you?"

Hermione looked at him in surprise.

"Since you put it that way," she nodded demurely, extended a hand, and the two walked toward the dance floor.

"By the way, I wanted to ask, what did you see during your time travel?"

Why did you suddenly think of this question?

"Purely out of curiosity."

"A cave filled with stalactites—"

"Cough, stop talking," Felix quickly stopped him; that was where he secretly practiced the Killing Curse.

……

The lights were still on in Sword Castle at night.

"Are you ready?" Felix asked. Lupin nodded silently, closed his eyes, and prepared to face his fate. Tonks stood by, his fingers tightly intertwined.

Felix opened his hand, and countless tiny magical runes danced in the air. Then, like weary birds returning to their nests, they turned into a ball of silver moonlight before the other two could react. A chilling roar seemed to echo within the moonlight.

Felix put his hand on Lupin's shoulder.

A strange feeling surged through his body in an instant. He was familiar with this feeling; he had experienced it every full moon since he was five years old. Lupin suddenly opened his eyes, his pupils dilated, as if they had been blackened. But this time was different from all before. He had just used his not-so-skilled 'Reverse Werewolf Transformation' spell on himself—although he had failed several times.

Lupin's head began to deform, his body stretched, and the tuxedo he hadn't had time to change out of couldn't bear the weight. He let out a low growl, revealing sharp teeth—Tonks covered his mouth and couldn't help but take a step closer—but then all the discordant parts of Lupin's body disappeared, and he returned to human form. When he raised his head again, his eyes were still so sincere and reliable.

Tonks trotted over, grabbed Lupin's hand with great interest, and examined it repeatedly, thoroughly enjoying himself. Then he rolled up Lupin's sleeve to make sure all the brown, stiff hairs that had sprouted on his arm had disappeared before he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"We succeeded? The magic worked?" she asked, swallowing hard.

Felix said happily to Lupin and Tonks, "It's a success without a doubt."

"How long can this magic last? Can it last through the night of the full moon?" Tonks' voice sounded somewhat abnormal.

"If we don't force it, it should be fine," Felix said.

Tonks cheered excitedly, and Lupin looked at her with a gentle smile. "Let's see what Mom has to say now!" she muttered softly, turning her hair a dazzling gold.

Despite his immense joy, Lupin remained calm, saying succinctly, "I've only completed the first step. Next is mastering the werewolf transformation spell, which is to transform into a werewolf during periods other than a full moon. With the foundation I've built, I think I can master this spell within a month or two."

"Why do you do that?" Tonks stopped and asked, puzzled. "Why would you willingly become a werewolf?"

Lupin looked at Felix. Felix explained, "To put it another way, the effects of wolfsbane vary from person to person. If an ordinary person is bitten by a werewolf, the wolfsbane will kill that person; but if I am bitten by a werewolf, the wolfsbane won't do me any harm at all, at most it will cause some minor trouble..."

"...Dumbledore was the same. Our bodies and magic underwent a strange transformation, and the connection between us became much stronger. I call it magical biomorphism. An important sign of this is that no matter how the body changes, the magic can perfectly adapt to the current state. This is very different from the wizards' Animagus."

"The werewolf's transformation lies somewhere in between—it's beyond the capabilities of a normal wizard and difficult to control; but it won't completely kill the wizard."

"If Remus masters both the werewolf transformation and reversal, he can become familiar with the process while fully conscious. This will help him grasp the most subtle changes in his body, thus clearing the way for learning advanced human transformations. The ultimate goal is to fix this state indefinitely."

"You can think of it as a human Animagus transformation specifically designed to counter werewolves."

"After these three steps, the werewolf identity will no longer be affected. The only drawback is that this method is very difficult. If we want to promote it on a large scale, we should hope that potion makers can create a potion that can completely cure wolf poison," Felix said calmly. Although ancient runes are very adaptable, they certainly cannot replace all magic.

“I asked Belby,” Lupin shook his head and said, “He spent many years developing the wolfsbane potion, but in the end, he could only barely suppress the wolfsbane and keep werewolves rational when they transformed. It’s very difficult to eradicate it completely… I plan to go through the whole process myself, and if things go smoothly, I might as well pick some qualified werewolves—”

He hesitated and looked at Felix, who shrugged at him.

"What you want to do outside of work is none of my business. Anyway, you already have the key to solving the problem."

(End of this chapter)