HP: Azkaban's Outstanding Graduate

A chorus of sighs, a mixture of disappointment and resignation, filled the auditorium.

"Oh no—!"

"Professor Lupin didn't even forget to give us a test after he left!"

"I knew it... he's such a good and responsible professor..."

“I know he’s a good person, but he doesn’t actually have to be so responsible…”

Defense Against the Dark Arts is the penultimate exam on Thursday morning.

Professor Lupin designed a practical exam similar to an obstacle course.

The students must wade through a deep pool with Grindylows, navigate a series of pits filled with red hats, grunt across a swamp, ignore the misleading pronouncements of a Hinkpunk, and then climb into an old chest to fight a new Boggart.

This exam instance lacks the ruthless efficiency of Sargeras; each challenge here feels more gentle.

This is more like a heartfelt review of what we've learned this semester than a cold, hard assessment.

When many students successfully defeat the red hat or finally make Boggart look ridiculous in front of them, they don't feel the triumph of clearing the level, but rather a faint sense of nostalgia and gratitude.

……

As the school year drew to a close, Harry Potter's heart was filled with another kind of bright joy.

His godfather, Sirius Black, stood right in front of him.

Although his face was still a little pale, after this period of rest, Blake had regained some of his youthful appearance.

"Harry, I'm all ready!"

Sirius's voice was a little hoarse with excitement, and he pressed one hand firmly on Harry's shoulder. "Number 12 Grimmauld Place, I cleaned it out completely—well, mostly thanks to Kreacher—it's a house-elf."

"Your room is right next to mine! The window faces east, so the morning sun shines in. You don't have to go back to that Muggle family anymore!"

Harry felt as if countless fireworks were exploding in his heart; the immense joy almost overwhelmed him.

He almost nodded in agreement immediately.

Just then, Sirius noticed Sagrais, who had just come out of the library.

He turned to Sagles, a hint of embarrassed sincerity on his face.

“And you, Professor Greengrass,” Sirius said, his tone much more serious than usual, “I formally invite you to visit me during the holidays. I must apologize for everything you’ve done… and also for Kreacher’s foolish and malicious offenses. I’ve given him a stern warning. There are many ancient books and magical artifacts in Black’s old house; I think you might be interested.”

A subtle flicker crossed Sagles's grey eyes, and he nodded slightly. "Thank you for the invitation, Blake. I'll consider it."

But this warm atmosphere was interrupted by a voice.

“I’m sorry, Sirius, but Harry has to go back to the Dursleys this summer.”

Albus Dumbledore descended the stairs slowly, his long, silvery-white hair and beard gleaming.

His expression was unusually serious, and his blue eyes, peering through his half-moon spectacles, looked in turn at Sirius, who froze for a moment, Harry, whose expression changed drastically, and Sacramento, who raised his eyebrows slightly.

"But why, Dumbledore?"

Sirius's voice was full of doubt and confusion, "Harry is my godson! It's safe and legal for him to be with me."

"Safety……"

Dumbledore repeated the word softly as he walked up to them, his gaze falling heavily on Harry. "True safety, Harry, comes from the gift your mother left you when she sacrificed herself. An ancient bloodline protection magic."

"It exists in your blood. I have strengthened it, but this magic needs an anchor point—the home of your mother's blood relatives. As long as you still acknowledge that place as your 'home,' and as long as you can go back and stay there for a period of time each year, this protection will continue to be effective, preventing Voldemort from truly touching you."

Harry's face turned pale, his previous joy replaced by a cold disappointment.

“No…” he murmured, shaking his head, “Why does it have to be there? Why does it have to be them? That magic… can’t something else be used instead?”

“I’m afraid not, Harry,” Dumbledore said, his voice filled with compassion. “This is the most unique protection your mother gave you. We cannot risk letting it fail.”

Harry felt a surge of desperate anger.

"But that was never my home! They hate me, and I don't like them! Why do I have to go back?"

Harry said excitedly, "Voldemort is back. I need to stay with Sirius to learn how to protect myself and be prepared, instead of living in a place where I can't even take out my wand and relying on magic that I can't feel at all!"

"Just because you can't feel it doesn't mean it doesn't exist, Harry."

Dumbledore's voice was heavy. "That's the wall your mother built for you with her life. We can't underestimate it just because we can't see or touch it. I know it's difficult, but for your safety..."

Just then, a calm voice came from behind them.

"Please allow me to have a different opinion, Principal."

Sagles leaned against the doorframe, his gray eyes filled with undisguised skepticism.

"I believe this plan is unfair to everyone, and its necessity is questionable."

Dumbledore looked at him and raised an eyebrow slightly: "I'd love to hear your analysis, Sagres."

Chapter 265 I Choose My Home!

Sagles's gaze swept across Harry's face, then turned to the headmaster, before calmly speaking:

"First of all, forcibly sending a wizard child back to a family that clearly hates and rejects him every year, calling it a 'home' and demanding that he develop an emotional connection with it, is a paradox in itself and a continuous torment to the emotions of both parties."

He paused, then continued his calm analysis: "Secondly, the Dursleys, as Muggles, have no obligation, nor should they be forced to, bear this responsibility. Even though I personally despise them, this approach is neither fair nor humane."

Dumbledore looked at him, remained silent for two seconds, and then spoke again.

"You also care about fairness and humanity? And it's about a few Muggles..." Dumbledore asked calmly. "I thought I knew you well enough, Sacramento."

"That means you clearly don't understand enough."

Sagrais calmly shook his head. "You once said I was arrogant without realizing it, but what about you, Dumbledore? You arranged everything for Harry without ever asking for his own opinion, and as for the Dursleys' opinion... well, I suppose they were never even in your consideration, were they?"

"Honestly, Zagreb, I never knew you cared so much about what Muggles thought."

“I just often dream that I’m a Muggle,” Sagrais said with a laugh. “The dreams are so vivid that I can’t help but wonder: what would I do if I were just an ordinary person facing a powerful wizard like you?”

"So, have you found the answer?" Dumbledore asked expressionlessly.

"Found it, the answer is: there's nothing we can do."

Sargeras replied, “As the Muggle in the dream, I can only hope that you are a law-abiding wizard and pray that you will respect my free will.”

Dumbledore was silent for a moment, a barely perceptible emotion flashing in his blue eyes.

“Protecting Harry’s safety has always been my top priority,” he finally said. “The bloodline protection that Lily sacrificed can only be effective in the homes of his blood relatives. This is the only force that can resist and defeat Voldemort.”

“Ah, yes, for the greater good,” Sagres nodded. “It’s always such a convenient reason. For some noble goal, individual suffering and freedom seem insignificant.”

He took a step forward, his robes swaying gently behind him.

"But have you even once sat down and explained all this to Harry? Or offered the Dursleys a choice instead of leaving them with no choice?"

Dumbledore fell silent, and Sargeras continued, "Indeed, Voldemort has returned, but he is more like a broken-backed wild dog, far from being able to act openly."

"So what we need most right now is not to keep Harry in a 'safe box' he hates and passively charge him up with protective magic, but to let him grow up and become strong as soon as possible. Because we should all understand that depriving him of the opportunity to improve his strength and build emotional connections with others is a passive and short-sighted defense."

Harry's heart pounded as someone spoke those words for him.

Dumbledore's eyes sharpened immediately: "You call it shortsightedness, but I call it a cornerstone. Lily's magic is unique, Sagrais, and we cannot risk it."

"Could we change our approach and adopt a more proactive defense?"

Sagres suggested, “If Mr. Potter chooses to go to Black’s old house, we can immediately cast the ‘Loyalty Charm’ on the property. I think we all know how reliable that charm is. We can appoint an absolutely trustworthy secret agent to hide Grimmauld Place. This is a controlled, proactive magical protection, rather than a passive waiting for it to ‘charge’.”

"The Curse of Unwavering Loyalty... is indeed powerful."

Dumbledore began slowly, “But it’s not without flaws. The case of Peter Pettigrew proves that the Secret Service itself is the biggest weakness.”

"Therefore, we need to choose a person who can keep secrets without fail!"

Sirius couldn't help but interject, hope rekindling in his eyes, "You do it, Professor Dumbledore, or Professor Greengrass!"

"This isn't just a problem with the spell itself!"

Dumbledore emphasized, "Lily's magic is a power that Voldemort cannot comprehend, and therefore cannot break! We cannot measure or replace it with cold logic!"

"But we can reinforce it with more powerful active protection."

Sagres said calmly, “To send a child back year after year to a painful environment to ‘recharge’ with a love he can’t feel is less a form of protection than a form of punishment.”

"But Voldemort..."

“I think I’ve already told you, Professor Dumbledore,” Sargeras interrupted him, “that defeating Voldemort never required a child.”

Dumbledore wanted to retort, but Sagles didn't give him the chance. He turned to Harry and said, "Mr. Potter, if you choose to go to your godfather, then you must understand one thing."

Harry looked at Sagrais with some nervousness.

"This choice is not a matter of unrestricted indulgence. On the contrary, to ensure your safety, you must agree to abide by a series of strict rules: you may not leave Number Twelve Grimmauld Place without permission; if you need to go to Diagon Alley or anywhere else, you must be accompanied by Sirius Black at all times; you cannot even walk on the streets of Muggles, and even in Hogsmeade, your movements will be strictly restricted. Is that acceptable?"

Harry answered almost without hesitation: "I can! I'll take anything as long as I don't go back to the Dursleys!"

Sagres nodded, then did something that made Dumbledore frown slightly.

He took out a bronze nut that looked a bit worn at the edges from his robe. With the help of a transformation spell, the bronze nut melted and transformed into a ring in the blink of an eye.

“This is a one-time use door key,” he explained. “Illegal, but very effective. Infused with magic, it will bypass all anti-apparition barriers or spatial anchors, instantly transporting you to Black’s old house. Use it as a last resort, only when you believe your life is in absolute danger. Understand?”

Harry looked at the cold ring and felt that it was more than just a door key; it was a right to choose, a heavy trust.

Dumbledore watched all this without saying anything more to stop it.

His gaze shifted between Sagres's almost cold face and Harry's resolute green eyes, before finally letting out a sigh.

“Well then, Harry,” Dumbledore’s voice was tinged with weariness, but also with a hint of concession, “the choice is yours. Return to Privet Drive and rely on your mother’s blood for protection; or head to Grimmauld Place and embrace a freer, but also more dangerous, life.”

Harry took a deep breath and, with a determined look, reached out and took the illegal door key.

"I choose Sirius."

He stated clearly, "I choose my home."

Sagles nodded slightly, seemingly approving of this logical and emotional choice.

Dumbledore simply gazed at Harry and finally nodded slightly.

“In that case,” the headmaster said softly, “may Merlin protect you, Harry. This summer…be extra careful.”