Hogwarts: A little lion in the skin of the Eagle School

Professor Lupin was taken aback by John's straightforward answer.

He then laughed again.

He thought John might come up with a more impressive or respectable reason.

But none of them were available; he simply chose the most unsolvable answer.

do not know.

But I just want to.

This indifferent attitude towards right and wrong is often the hardest to shake.

But isn't this precisely the most precious straightforwardness and innocence of youth?

Well, maybe it was a bit reckless.

Professor Lu Ping's gaze softened, and he made up his mind, speaking slowly.

"In that case, take me to see him, John."

Lupin thought about it all night.

He noticed some problems.

If John can truly get along with Black Dog, it means he's not as crazy, murderous, and averse to Muggle-borns as rumored.

Is there something wrong with the rumors, or rather, is there something wrong with the truth of what happened back then?

Perhaps he is still the same person I know.

If that's the case, then John's request isn't impossible to grant.

However, just to be on the safe side,

"But before that, John, you have to grant me a few requests."

"What are your requirements?"

John asked, somewhat puzzled.

"I agree to let you come with me, but you must follow my instructions and not act on your own."

"If things go well, you may learn some secrets, which you must keep to yourself for the time being."

"And lastly, if things take the worst possible turn, you can't interfere with my decision."

Do you understand what I mean?

Professor Lu Ping said very seriously.

These requests were reasonable, and John nodded without hesitation.

The worst-case scenario is that Blackie is actually a very dangerous creature.

Professor Lupin made this request in advance to prevent John from being unable to distinguish right from wrong.

The reason for taking Professor Lu Ping to find Xiao Hei.

The main reason was to determine Xiao Hei's composition, whether he was good or evil.

If it's determined that Blackie is harmful, then John certainly wouldn't stop Professor Lupin.

"Let's go, professor. I have class this afternoon. Let's hurry back."

As John spoke, he turned and walked toward the other side of the covered bridge.

Professor Lu Ping nodded and followed.

Soon, they arrived near the Willow Tree.

Professor Lupin's expression became quite interesting after John stopped ten meters away from the Willow Tree.

He already knew where the black dog was.

More than a decade ago, when he was still studying at Hogwarts, he would come here once a month.

This was arguably the place he was most familiar with at Hogwarts.

Unexpectedly, it has now become his hiding place.

"Professor, the place we're going to is..."

"Scream Shack"

John was about to explain how to get there, but Professor Lupin revealed the name beforehand.

"?"

John was taken aback when he heard Professor Lupin's words.

Professor Lu Ping wore a look that was both amused and helpless.

"Go inside first, I'll tell you on the way."

Professor Lupin waved his wand, skillfully controlling a pebble to fly up and strike the mechanism under the roots of the willow tree.

Then he led the way into the secret passage under the roots of the willow tree.

John was completely stunned by what he saw.

The two quickly made their way through the secret passage.

Professor Lupin also began to tell John about the Screaming Shack.

It turns out that both the Whomping Willow and the Screaming Shack were specially prepared by Dumbledore for Professor Lupin.

More than a decade ago, wolfsbane medicine had not yet been invented.

So every full moon night, Professor Lupin transforms into a werewolf who only knows how to kill.

To help Professor Lupin safely pass the night of the full moon, Headmaster Dumbledore specially built him a cabin.

This way, after he transforms, he can be confined to that small plot of land and won't harm anyone else.

The "Hit-and-Beat Willow" was planted specifically to protect the secret passage from being accidentally entered by students.

The screams in the Screaming Shack are actually Lupin's howls when he transformed into a werewolf.

The reason why there have been no more cries of anguish in the last ten years or so is because Professor Lu Ping graduated.

Now that Professor Lupin has returned to Hogwarts as a professor, Professor Snape will brew him wolfsbane potion, so there is no longer a need to go to the Shrieking Shack.

Thankfully, John confronted Professor Lupin beforehand and found out the werewolf's identity; otherwise, Professor Lupin probably wouldn't have told him so much.

"I never imagined this place had such a past, so those hideous scratch marks in the Screaming Shack were from when you turned into a werewolf back then, Professor."

"Hehe, yeah, if it weren't for the principal's magic protecting the shed, it would have been torn to shreds long ago."

The two chatted as they walked.

John also told Professor Lupin how he had followed Orange to the Screaming Shack.

Professor Lu Ping understood immediately after listening, and his anticipation grew even stronger.

That orange cat has the blood of a tabby cat, and it trusts him, bringing him food every day.

That means he might not actually be the case as rumored, but rather there might be some unknown misunderstandings involved.

"So, after all these years, why is this secret passage still standing?"

At this point, John continued to ask curiously.

"Naturally, we'll keep it just in case."

"Just in case? Are there any other werewolf students who need it?"

Professor Lu Ping shook his head and said with a smile.

"Hogwarts has many secret passages leading to the outside world."

"This is to prevent the students from being trapped and dying here in the event of an external enemy."

"Therefore, there must be some secret passages leading to the outside world to ensure the students can be safely evacuated in the event of war."

So that's how it is. This magic academy has existed for ten centuries; there must be some tricks to it.

The secrets of this castle are far more numerous than one might imagine.

"By the way, Professor, now that we're here, could you tell us what exactly Xiao Hei is?"

"Uh...John, I think you should be mentally prepared for this."

"Huh? What kind of mental preparation?" John was taken aback.

"...You'll have to see for yourself when it comes."

John was completely bewildered by Professor Lupin's words. At this point, what was there left to hide?

Just as the two had gone about halfway through, a noise suddenly came from the front of the secret passage.

Professor Lupin immediately pulled out his wand and held out his hand to protect John.

From the darkness ahead, came the rustling sounds of small animals, seemingly the sound of claws scraping the ground.

"Meow!!"

Just then, a rapid meow came from behind.

"A big orange?"

John, who was standing behind, was startled. It was Big Orange's voice.

Soon, the big orange cat came running out of the darkness. It hurriedly ran to John's feet and hooked its paws onto John's pants.

Professor Lupin also recognized that this cat was the orange cat John had just mentioned, the one with cat-raccoon ancestry.

At this moment, the orange cat kept meowing.

As it called out, it ran back and meowed at the two of them, seemingly urging them to hurry over.

John and Professor Lupin exchanged a glance, realizing something might have happened over there, and immediately followed Orange, speeding up their run toward the Screaming Shack.