HP: Azkaban's Outstanding Graduate

No one answered, so Hermione continued knocking.

dong dong dong-

It remained silent; Professor McGonagall was clearly not in her office.

dong dong dong!dong dong dong!

"Why isn't he here? How could he not be here..."

Hermione turned around, looking lost and dejected, and walked back like a ghost.

Her eyes were blurry with tears, and she almost bumped into someone at the corner of the corridor.

"I'm...I'm sorry..." she apologized hastily, wiping away the tears on her face, not wanting anyone to see her in such a disheveled state.

The person seemed to be walking forward, but stopped after hearing the apology and turned their head slightly to look at her.

"You seem to have encountered some sadness, Miss Granger?"

A calm and gentle voice came from inside.

Hermione looked up as the last rays of the setting sun slanted in through the corridor window, casting a halo around the man.

He was wearing a simple black robe, standing with his back to the light, his face somewhat blurred and not very clear.

But that silhouette, that calm demeanor, made Hermione's heart skip a beat, and an indescribable, absurd hope instantly seized her.

Hermione blinked hard to wipe away the tears in her eyes, eager to see the person's face clearly.

In that instant, she seemed to see a faint smile curving up the corner of the other person's lips, or perhaps it was just a trick of light and shadow, her illusion.

"Do you need any help? I can't give advice on matters of the heart, but I'm pretty good at other things."

Chapter 416 Guess Who's Outside the Door? (Bonus Chapter)

"Do you need help? I can't give advice on matters of the heart, but I'm pretty good at other things."

Hermione froze, staring blankly at the figure standing backlit.

The setting sun cast a soft and beautiful halo around him, and the face she thought she would never see again was now clearly visible in her eyes.

"Professor?" she choked out, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible.

The next second, the pent-up grievances burst forth like a dam breaking.

She could no longer hold back, tears streaming down her face: "They're going to fire me... Umbridge said... said she's going to fire me..."

Sagles watched her weep silently until her sobs subsided before speaking gently:

"Expel you? Unless you burn the entire Forbidden Forest to the ground with Fiendfyre and then threaten your professor with a wand, no one can expel you."

He paused, his gaze falling on the badge on her chest. "And even if you do that, as long as the reason is sufficient, I will do my best to keep you here. Besides, you are a prefect."

These slightly teasing words made Hermione burst into laughter through her tears.

She wiped away her tears sheepishly, only then noticing that the corner of her professor's robe was still covered in glittering dust.

"What time is it now?" Sagrais asked after Hermione had calmed down.

"September 24, 1995, Professor," Hermione sniffed and answered honestly.

Sagres nodded thoughtfully.

After a few seconds of silence, he turned to Hermione. "Let's go, find a quiet place. I want to hear what happened while I was gone."

They walked slowly down the corridor, and Hermione began to eagerly tattle.

She spoke rapidly about how Umbridge took control of Hogwarts, how she punished Harry, and how the Ministry of Magic denied Voldemort's resurrection.

"Doesn't Dumbledore care about these things?" Sagres asked with some curiosity.

"Professor Dumbledore and Hagrid have disappeared. We haven't seen them in the castle for a long time."

Hermione hesitated for a moment before adding, "There's one more thing. The Ministry of Magic has issued an arrest warrant for you!"

Sagres paused slightly in his steps.

As dusk fell, the lines of his profile suddenly hardened, and a chilling glint flashed in his calm eyes.

"An arrest warrant?" he repeated softly, his voice almost a whisper. "And the reason?"

……

The air in Umbridge's office was thick and oppressive.

Harry moved the quill mechanically, the tip slicing through the parchment with a soft rustling sound.

With each stroke of his pen, the wound on the back of his hand that read "I cannot lie" deepened, and blood seeped out continuously, gathering into tiny droplets that slipped through his fingers.

Umbridge held a pink teacup, staring at Harry's face with a smile, as if trying to catch a trace of pain or submission in his calm expression.

Harry remained expressionless, but his writing speed unconsciously increased, as if he wanted to end this endless torment as soon as possible.

"Tap, tap, tap."

A dull knock on the door broke the silence.

Harry looked up, a hint of surprise flashing across his mind.

This was the first time anyone had come to see Umbridge since he was put in solitary confinement.

who can that be?

“Keep writing, Mr. Potter,” Umbridge’s sickeningly sweet voice rang out immediately. “You can’t stop until I tell you to.”

She slowly put down her teacup, tidying up the cat-patterned teacups on the table with a cheerful expression, seemingly unsurprised by the visit.

"Guess who's knocking?" Her gaze shifted between the door and Harry.

Harry lowered his head, not wanting her to see the raging anger in his eyes, and simply replied in a flat voice, "I don't know."

Umbridge grinned, straining to adjust her bulky frame to sit more comfortably. "Let me think... Oh, I guess it's McGonagall, with that little girl named Hermione Granger. They're probably here to plead for her expulsion, but I must say it's a waste of their time."

She deliberately dragged out her words, seemingly enjoying the thrill of controlling others' destinies: "I will never compromise. Hogwarts discipline must be upheld."

"Aren't you going to open the door, Professor?" Harry asked without looking up, his pen still moving.

“Let them wait a bit,” Umbridge said smugly, shaking his head and crossing his chubby fingers over his protruding belly. “People need to know who’s in charge here. You too, Potter, don’t stop—”

She had barely finished speaking—

Click.

With a soft click, the office door lock disengaged, and the heavy wooden door slid silently inward.

Umbridge's confident smile froze instantly, turning into astonishment and anger at being offended.

She opened her mouth wide, about to sternly rebuke who dared to trespass into the senior investigator's office.

However, when her gaze passed over Hermione standing in the doorway and landed on the figure beside her, all the accusations that were about to burst out caught in her throat.

It was as if someone had suddenly grabbed my neck, and I could only make a faint "hoarse" sound.

Umbridge's eyes widened, his mouth remained in an "O" shape, revealing a mouthful of pink gums.

The color drained from her large face at a visible speed, eventually being replaced by an unbelievable terror.

Harry was stunned.

The moment he saw that figure, he felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

The quill pen in my hand fell onto the parchment with a "thud," rolled a few times, and left a crooked bloodstain.

He stared intently at the person at the door who shouldn't have been there, as if he were seeing a ghost that should have vanished from the world forever.

He is back.

Sagres's gaze swept across the office, first passing over Harry's shocked expression, then settling precisely on Umbridge's face, which was filled with terror.

Good evening, Ms. Umbridge.

He greeted me casually, "I heard the Ministry of Magic has been looking for me lately?"

The office fell into a deathly silence, with only Umbridge's heavy, disordered breathing clearly audible.

"Oh, to be precise, it's 'wanted'."

Sagrass seemed to recall a crucial detail, nodding slightly to himself, "One of the charges seems to be... allegedly threatening a high-ranking official of the Ministry of Magic?"

He took a step forward, his deep eyes fixed on Umbridge, who was practically shrinking into his chair.

"So now..."

He slowly took out his wand. "...Are you going to arrest me, Lady Umbridge?"

Chapter 417 You Can't Lie! (Bonus Chapter)

“This…this must be…a misunderstanding…” Umbridge finally found her voice, but her tongue was tied in knots, and she was incoherent.

Sagles nodded slightly, seemingly accepting the explanation.

He raised his eyes, his gaze sweeping over Umbridge's trembling, bloated body, and a cold, chilling smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

"I also heard that you're going to fire Miss Hermione Granger?"

He pressed on, still curious, "Is this also a misunderstanding?"

“Yes…yes! Of course…this is of course a misunderstanding!” Umbridge hurriedly agreed, nodding vigorously.

Sagles nodded again, as if this answer was exactly what he expected.

He walked over to Harry's desk and looked down at the bloody scar on the boy's hand.

"I can't lie."

He read aloud the line of grotesque words on the back of his hand, as if savoring their meaning.

He then reached out and picked up the blood-stained black quill pen with two long, slender fingers.

"So, this is also a misunderstanding?"