Being escorted out of the Cave Heaven by Celestial Master Zhang, Aiden found the sky already darkening.
His plans for sightseeing were thoroughly ruined, so he simply washed up and went to sleep.
Lying in bed, he recalled the information the Celestial Master had revealed during their brief encounter.
"Wait... I was taken advantage of?" Aiden had a sudden flash of realization.
"Heh, silly boy," the system mocked with obvious amusement.
"That old man only told me about the formation of Cave Heavens, but didn't mention a single word about the most important cultivation methods!" Aiden covered his head with his pillow, wanting to throttle his foolish afternoon self.
"People won't give you their fundamental livelihood secrets just because of one sparring match. Being able to learn one of the most important secrets of Eastern wizards with just a gesture isn't really a loss," the system consoled.
"Sigh." Aiden curled up in bed, wrapped in his blanket like a dejected burrito.
Feeling thoroughly manipulated, Aiden couldn't enjoy himself anymore. He packed up hastily and returned to Britain with wounded pride.
It was currently the second day of Christmas vacation, and it looked like he could still make it to the school gathering.
With a spatial flicker, he appeared at Hogwarts, where the twins were enthusiastically building a snowman.
"Oh, look who this is," George said, spotting the newcomer.
"Our increasingly beautiful little brother," Fred added with theatrical flair.
Aiden smiled at the two brothers, who unknowingly became the second and third test subjects for his newly acquired Manipulator abilities.
George and Fred suddenly slipped on the icy ground, and both fell into perfect splits.
"Oh, Aiden, help us!" the twins called for rescue, their voices pitched higher than usual.
"Oh my, how careless of you two," Aiden said with feigned concern.
He approached to help them up, and two virtual personalities returned from their consciousness islands, having completed their brief reconnaissance.
Just as the twins were about to speak, fresh footprints appeared in the snow, immediately attracting their attention.
The two rushed over and grabbed the invisible person creating the tracks.
"Ow, you two, let me go!" Harry whispered from under his Invisibility Cloak.
"Pretty clever, Harry," George observed.
"But not clever enough," Fred added with a grin.
"Let me go, please. I want to visit Hogsmeade," Harry said quietly.
"We know," the twins replied in unison.
They brought Harry to a secluded stair corner and pulled out a worn piece of parchment.
"Now, Harry, come and join the big boys," they said together.
"Aiden probably doesn't need this thing," George noted, glancing at his little brother.
"Maybe even Dumbledore couldn't catch him if he really wanted to disappear," Fred marveled at Aiden's supernatural abilities.
"Alright, what rubbish are you giving me?" Harry asked, examining the worn parchment skeptically.
"Hehe, he says it's rubbish," George and Fred exchanged knowing glances and smiled.
The twins thoughtfully introduced the Marauder's Map to Harry and recommended the one-eyed witch passage as his best route.
Aiden also glimpsed from the map that Dumbledore was pacing restlessly in his office.
After Harry snuck out of the castle with his new treasure, Aiden made his way to the headmaster's office.
"Password," the stone gargoyle guarding the entrance tried to stop him.
But with just one penetrating look from Aiden, the gargoyle automatically stepped aside. Controlling these conscious magical constructs seemed remarkably easy now.
"Aiden? What brings you here? Don't tell me you've dismantled the guardian sculptures downstairs again," Dumbledore said with mild amusement.
"Of course not, Headmaster," Aiden replied, his figure flickering slightly in and out of visibility.
"You've become more powerful?" Dumbledore observed, no longer able to sense any magical emanations from the young man.
"Indeed. I still need to test my limits with you," Aiden said with a mysterious smile.
"You've completed magical creature transformation?" Dumbledore asked, shocked by his own deduction.
"Not yet. I still need one final step. Right now I have an incomplete transformation," Aiden replied, mixing truth with careful misdirection.
"That's still a remarkable achievement. By the way, what did you want to see this old man about?" Dumbledore inquired.
"Professor Lupin. I think we can start working on completing his 'curse,'" Aiden said, his eyes sparkling with strange light.
"Another piece of good news," Dumbledore said, feeling another burden lift from his heart.
"You won't want to travel far once you've finished dealing with everything weighing on your mind," Aiden observed, reading between the lines of Dumbledore's thoughts.
"You can already read my thoughts? That's remarkably fast progress," Dumbledore shook his head in amazement.
"No, let me stay a bit longer. Seeing excellent students grow is also one of life's great joys," Dumbledore smiled warmly.
Confirming the headmaster was telling the truth, Aiden left with peace of mind.
Meanwhile, Harry had snuck out of the castle with his Invisibility Cloak, helped Hermione and Ron drive away Malfoy's harassment, and then the three friends went to the Three Broomsticks together.
Ron volunteered to order drinks for everyone.
"How about ordering one for me too?" Aiden spoke casually from a nearby chair.
"Ah!" all three exclaimed in unison.
Obviously, they were startled by Aiden's sudden materialization.
"Aiden, can you please not appear and disappear like that? You nearly gave me a heart attack," Ron complained, getting up to place their order.
The other two also gave him accusatory looks, and Aiden shrugged apologetically.
"I'll pay the bill. Does that make up for it?"
Only then were Harry and Hermione satisfied enough to forgive him.
"Do you know why Ron volunteered to order? Because he wants to get closer to Madam Rosmerta," Hermione whispered, sharing Ron's embarrassing secret with her other two friends.
"Beautiful appearance, graceful curves, but she's a middle-aged woman. Does Ron prefer that type?" Aiden's face remained calm, but his mind was full of questions.
"Uh, your assessment is spot-on. I have nothing to add," Harry said, equally baffled.
Soon, four butterbeers were brought to their table. Aiden deliberately concealed himself to avoid his youthful face being noticed by the adults.
Ding. The pub door chimed as it opened, and Fudge walked in with Professor McGonagall.
"Professor McGonagall, Minister Fudge," Rosmerta greeted them professionally.
"Dear Rosmerta, how's business?" Fudge attempted small talk.
"Business? You have the nerve to ask! If it weren't for Dementors searching my pub every single day, would I have so few customers?" Rosmerta unleashed her frustration.
"My dear, you have to understand our position. There's a dangerous murderer wandering around nearby," Fudge apologized helplessly.
"Hah! Is Sirius Black actually in Hogsmeade? What would bring him here?" Madam Rosmerta looked at Fudge with genuine confusion.
"Harry Potter," Fudge stepped forward and said quietly.
"Harry Potter?" Madam Rosmerta raised her voice, which immediately caught Harry's attention.
Professor McGonagall and Fudge hurried to quiet her down.
Rosmerta glanced around the pub and led them into a private room for more discreet conversation.
But they failed to notice that someone in an Invisibility Cloak had silently followed them.
"It's okay, Harry... Harry?" Hermione turned around and found her friend had vanished.
"Can I have his butterbeer if he doesn't want it?" Aiden asked pragmatically.
"Aiden, you saw him follow them and didn't stop him?" Hermione reproached.
"But when someone desperately wants to learn the truth, you can't really stop them," Ron pointed out philosophically.
This observation made Hermione turn and glare at him with renewed irritation.
In the private room, Harry heard the adults' version of past events and learned that Sirius was supposedly his godfather—and his parents' betrayer.
Heartbroken and shattered, he didn't know how he managed to walk out of the Three Broomsticks. His feet carried him automatically toward the Shrieking Shack.
The other three followed his footprints in the snow and caught up, hearing Harry's quiet sobs by the frozen stream.
Hermione ran over and pulled off the Invisibility Cloak. "Harry, what happened?"
"He was their friend... but he betrayed my parents," Harry choked out through his tears.
Ron stood there helplessly, not knowing what words could possibly comfort his friend.
"If he comes for me, I'll fight him to the death. I'll kill him with my own hands," Harry's anguished roar echoed through the winter forest, startling the sleeping birds from their roosts.