In those sky-blue pupils, there was no trace of impurity, only a pure conviction.
A twelve-year-old, top student, coming in the middle of the night to gamble her future on a tall tale.
A strangely shaped cat, suspected to be a natural Animagus, using intuition beyond that of a human to corroborate the story.
Professor McGonagall's breathing became rapid.
She remembered that night twelve years ago that had broken her heart.
She thought of James and Lily, and of Black, whom she had always believed to be of good character.
What if... what if there really was more to this?
"This matter is beyond my authority." Professor McGonagall stood up, pacing back and forth in the office before slowly stopping. "Miss Granger, Miss Lia. Come with me."
Without the slightest hesitation, she strode out of the office.
Hermione immediately pulled Lia along to follow.
The gargoyle leading to the Headmaster's Office slowly moved aside upon hearing Professor McGonagall say the password "cockroach clusters."
This was the first time Hermione had stepped into this circular office. The portraits of past Headmasters on the walls were all asleep.
Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk, looking at a copy of The Daily Prophet, his long silver beard almost reaching the tabletop.
Seeing Professor McGonagall arrive with two young witches, a flash of understanding passed through his blue eyes behind the half-moon spectacles, but there was no surprise.
"Minerva, it's so late. Has something interesting happened?" He put down the newspaper and interlaced his fingers on the desk.
"Albus, listen to me." Professor McGonagall's tone was more serious than ever. "Miss Granger has made a discovery."
Under the gaze of two top-tier Wizards, Hermione felt immense pressure.
But at the thought of the warmth and trust of the one holding her arm, she gathered all her courage and repeated what she had just told Professor McGonagall, word for word.
Dumbledore's expression didn't change at all; he just listened quietly.
Only when Hermione mentioned that "Lia can smell lies" did his gaze truly and intently fall upon the cat in Hermione's arms for the first time.
"Oh?" He let out a gentle exclamation, as if seeing an interesting magical bauble. "You smelled the scent of a lie?"
"Yes," Lia said succinctly.
"Albus, this is too incredible. But Miss Granger's attitude is very firm, and..." Professor McGonagall glanced at Lia, "Lia doesn't seem to be joking either."
Dumbledore fell silent.
The office was so quiet that the faint sound of Fawkes the Phoenix preening its feathers could be heard.
He remembered that tiny but pure golden light on the Quidditch Pitch that could even repel Dementors.
He remembered Snape's recent report, saying this cat could sense the sorrow deep within his Occlumency.
Now, she could "smell" a lie that had been silent for twelve years.
Constant Body Temperature, Danger Intuition, Super-speed Regeneration... these could all be explained by the bloodline of a Magical Creature.
But sensing emotions, repelling Dementors, sniffing out lies... this had already touched upon the level of the soul and laws.
"Lia," Dumbledore spoke gently, his voice possessing a power that seemed to soothe the heart.
Deep blue eyes met the wise spectacles.
"Child," Dumbledore smiled, "can you tell us what that 'lie' smells like?"
Lia hesitated for a moment, then said clearly:
"It's... it's like old dust, and that kind of... rotting rat smell from the sewers. Very stinky, very disgusting. Like a secret that's been hidden for a long, long time and has gone moldy."
This childish description, however, caused both battle-hardened Wizards to feel a chill run down their spines at the same time.
A secret hidden for twelve years, already rotten and moldy.
Twelve years was a quite significant amount of time.
In Dumbledore's azure eyes, a sharp light flashed and vanished.
He made a decision.
"I understand." He stood up, walked over to Hermione, and took a deep look at Lia. "I believe you."
Hermione could hardly believe her ears.
"I believe in the prudent judgment of an excellent student, and I am willing to trust the intuition of a pure heart." Dumbledore's voice returned to its usual composed calm. "Minerva, it seems our little trouble is much larger than imagined."
Professor McGonagall's tense shoulders finally relaxed. "Then what should we do? Go directly to question Ron Weasley?"
"No, that would only alert the enemy." Dumbledore shook his head, walking around the desk as if conceptualizing a complex chess game.
"We need an opportunity, one where no one can argue. We need a stage for the actor to appear on their own."
"Minerva, you know," Dumbledore said meaningfully, shaking his head at Professor McGonagall, "killing a traitor isn't hard; the hard part is the heavy truth."
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded 70 chapters of this story on Patreon!
If you enjoy it, come check out the latest chapters in advance.
Here's the link:
[patreon.com/Greyhounds]
Thank you so much for your support!!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"