Carrying his doubts about Animagus, Harry bid farewell to Professor.
Animagus. His understanding of this magic was too superficial. Although it had been more than once—
"Harry!"
Draco's shout directly interrupted his thoughts. In the corridor, many people looked over. Draco rushed over, panting.
"Marcus!" Draco said quickly, then hurried closer.
"Marcus Flint is leaving," he said quickly.
"What?" Harry was a bit slow to react. "What do you mean, leaving?"
"It means exactly what it says. Didn't we go to the infirmary this morning? Then after you left, we talked about it."
Draco didn't tell Harry how they started the conversation—it came from his father!
"He said his dad is coming to the Headmaster's Office at noon today to handle his withdrawal. He's transferring to Durmstrang."
"Why—well." Harry was a bit confused: "He's already studied here for five years, and OWLs are coming up soon. Transferring now, that's not…"
"His dad is worried about him," Draco explained.
"What?"
"It's the conflict between the families and Hogwarts," Draco whispered. "Old Flint is worried that the Hogwarts Professors will do something to Marcus. You know."
"How is that possible? That's simply alarmist!"
"Old Flint is scared," Draco shrugged. "It seems you don't quite understand what Dumbledore looks like in the eyes of the Pure-blood families."
Harry fell silent, his mind involuntarily recalling what Draco had said himself on the day of the first-year welcoming feast.
"Old lunatic?"
"Exactly, lunatics don't care about reason. And OWLs? To put it inappropriately, no one cares about them, in fact, I don't even care."
"Alright," Harry nodded. "It's none of my business."
"Alright." Draco looked at Harry and suddenly felt a sense of dullness. "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to find Hagrid. I need to ask him what animal organs can be used to make a wand."
"You can use the word 'materials'."
At the same time, in the Headmaster's Office.
Old Flint was a somewhat bald man, looking close to fifty-six, slightly overweight, with a face as round as a ball. His features, like Flint's, resembled a Troll.
"You can leave Flint here, absolutely. Hogwarts will definitely be a reassuring place. Furthermore, Flint's friends are all here." Dumbledore still offered his suggestion: "We do not wish to hold anyone accountable. What your son did did not result in serious consequences, and we certainly haven't publicized it."
"Yes, thank you for Hogwarts' generosity." Cold sweat gradually seeped from Old Flint's forehead.
"Actually, the fundamental reason is that I've already moved my business to Northern Europe, and I have no choice but to take my child with me."
"Is that so?" Dumbledore's voice was meaningful. "If that's the case, then I can only offer my blessings."
Hearing Dumbledore relent, Old Flint's hanging heart finally eased a little.
However, Dumbledore's next words made his heart clench again.
"But."
"Next week, Hogwarts will welcome a special, professional Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor. My suggestion is that Flint can attend next week's classes before leaving."
"This…"
"Mr. Flint, this is a very sincere suggestion. You know what your son did, and you're also transferring him to Durmstrang," Dumbledore said. "To be honest, I'm very worried. Not to mention whether he will harm others, the main thing is—harming himself."
"May I ask who that Professor is? Perhaps I could invite him for private lessons," Flint said.
Dumbledore was so surprised by this that he choked a couple of times, then slowly said: "I'm truly sorry, this is a friend. Even for me, getting him to come is no easy feat. He doesn't care about money. One could say, anything the Wizarding World can offer him, he doesn't really care about."
Just as he finished speaking, Dumbledore added another sentence.
"Oh, and he also comes from Durmstrang."
"I see." Old Flint could only nod: "Alright, your suggestion is so pertinent, I really can't find a reason to refuse."
It just so happened that the asset transfer still needed some time, so he would let him continue to recover at Hogwarts.
He was determined to stay away from the conflicts here. The conflict between Hogwarts and the Ministry of Magic was escalating, and Fudge had completely sided with the Pure-blood families, moving away from his previous wavering stance.
If a substantive conflict broke out between the two sides, there was no doubt that he might be the first to be pushed out.
He could not accept such an outcome.
"Then I will take my leave, sir." Old Flint stood up, bowed his head, and left the Headmaster's Office.
Soon, he went down to the infirmary and informed Marcus, who was doing rehabilitation after being confined to bed for a long time, of the news.
"Okay." Marcus nodded, then said somewhat sadly: "Dad, will we ever come back?"
"No, at least not for now," Old Flint whispered. "The situation is unstable now, Marcus. You know, the Pure-blood families are in a very difficult situation. So many families are selling off their assets to maintain a glamorous life.
I've worked for decades, and finally have this winery. The correct choice now is to refuse to participate in politics, first stabilize our family affairs, and accumulate capital.
Only then will you, and your future children, have a chance to endure in the Wizarding World. And not follow in the footsteps of the Weasley and Abbott families."
Marcus was silent for a long time, then nodded: "I understand, Dad. But what if—"
"What if?" Old Flint looked at his son.
"What if, You-Know-Who comes back? We could take the opportunity to—"
"Enough!!" Old Flint's roar interrupted Marcus's next words.
Then, his chubby face, with a rat-like cunning, looked around, ensuring that his child's recent statement had not been overheard through the walls.
"He won't come back. I think you've been scared silly by Dumbledore's foolish words and lost your own mind!!" Old Flint scolded.
Marcus suddenly looked confused. He looked up, his face full of bewilderment: "Father, I thought we were supposed to revere him?"
"Revere?" Old Flint chuckled twice: "Those who revere him are now locked up in Azkaban."
"But, didn't he do it for us Pure-blood—"
"There is no such thing as Pure-blood!" Old Flint interrupted him again, his neck flushed with anger: "There are no such stupid things. Do you have no brain? In this world, there is only profit!!"
With that, Old Flint shook his head in disappointment: "Marcus, it seems you need to start focusing more on the essence of things. From now on, every holiday, you'll follow me to work!
That's it. I'll come pick you up in a week."
Amidst Marcus's confusion, Old Flint walked to the door, opened it, and suddenly turned back.
"From now on, don't call him the Dark Lord. He is You-Know-Who, the great enemy of the entire Wizarding World."
As his words fell, Old Flint's figure disappeared.
Marcus sat weakly on the bed.
"Damn it…"
In the evening, on the third floor of Hogwarts, in the Defense Against the Dark Arts office.
A hand dipped a brush made of Unicorn tail hair into water to wash it, then re-dipped it in indigo paint.
"Mr. Cat! Up there, yes, up there, I want to add a small yellow chrysanthemum."
"Are you sure? I don't think it matches very well," Howl's brushstrokes paused, a little hesitant.
At this moment, Howl was sitting in front of an easel, holding the Unicorn hair paintbrush Hagrid had given him.
Beside him, Sindel was offering suggestions on the painting.
"I think we can try it. Also, this dress… can it be longer?"
"If it's longer, won't it drag on the ground?"
"I'm not that short," Sindel pouted, her pretty face flushed as if sulking, and her ears were a little red: "Also, this corset… why is it empty on top? Both sides of the waist are exposed, it feels like it's just a piece of cloth."
Howl chuckled awkwardly: "This… this is a paradigm of Ancient Greece classicism combined with Gothicism."
"Really? It's not really that you want to…"
"What do I want?" Howl retorted righteously.
Sindel's face was completely red, unable to say anything, or more accurately—unable to speak it out loud.
Happy New Year, everyone! Love you all!
More to come later, I'll be coding hard on New Year's Day!!
Wishing everyone a smooth and healthy New Year!!
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