In a place he was still unaware of, Mr. Weasley had already been thoroughly set up by his own son.
Having determined their next course of investigation, the tense nerves of Hermione and the others slowly relaxed.
In particular, Harry's complexion looked visibly better.
He reached into the pocket of his wizard robe, pulled out something that looked like parchment, and spread it out on the table in front of the four of them. At the same time, he looked at Amanda and Hermione opposite him and began to introduce it.
"This is the thing that helped me sneak out of Hogwarts Castle."
Amanda looked down with a calm expression at this seemingly blank "parchment," speaking at the same time as Hermione.
"A Concealment Charm?"
The fact that Amanda and Hermione spoke in unison truly startled Harry for a moment. He raised a hand to scratch his head and admitted with a smile,
"Yeah, the contents on here are usually hidden."
After saying that, he pulled out his wand and tapped the tip against the blank "parchment." "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."
Almost as soon as the words left his mouth, complex lines and densely packed, constantly moving names slowly emerged on the previously blank "parchment."
Harry pushed the "parchment" toward the middle of the table. "This is the marauders map. You can see every secret passage in Hogwarts, and you can also see people moving within the Hogwarts grounds."
"But it doesn't show anything beyond that range."
Amanda listened to Harry while carefully examining the information on the marauders map. Indeed, it contained information for the entire interior of Hogwarts.
Every secret passage inside and every person currently moving was marked.
"A Tracking Charm, an Identification Charm, and some assistance from Hogwarts itself."
Making her judgment in a flat, mechanical voice, Amanda's eyes slowly moved to the edge of the marauders map.
Whether it was because it couldn't obtain help from the school itself once it went beyond the Hogwarts range, the coverage of the marauders map ended there.
However, a small portion outside Hogwarts Castle was still included, such as a tree called the Whomping Willow and the secret passage that ran beneath it.
Matching the direction of this secret passage with the terrain near Hogwarts, the final destination of the passage should be somewhere in Hogsmeade.
Amanda quickly constructed a simple 3D map in her mind and combined this hastily built map with the terrain map of Hogsmeade she had already constructed. The final resting point of the secret passage landed on the Shrieking Shack.
The Shrieking Shack... the place where Professor Lupin and his friends went on nights of the full moon, used to help Professor Lupin get through his Werewolf periods.
That meant back then, Professor Lupin and his friends must have all passed through here to eventually reach the Shrieking Shack.
Seeing that Amanda's gaze remained fixed on the location of the Whomping Willow, Harry thoughtfully reached out and tapped the secret passage.
"The Whomping Willow is above this passage, making it impossible to pass through. I don't even know why they built this secret passage in the first place."
"This secret passage can be used; we just don't know the method."
Amanda shook her head, contradicting Harry in a flat tone.
"Why do you say that?" Harry looked at Amanda curiously. Amanda wouldn't speak without reason, so had she discovered something?
Amanda fell silent for a moment, her mind quickly making a judgment.
If she were to explain this, she would need to reveal the fact that Professor Lupin was a Werewolf.
And this situation was clearly being kept secret by Professor Lupin. It was personal privacy; if Professor Lupin was unwilling to disclose it, she shouldn't take it upon herself to tell others.
But this matter was also related to Harry's father, James Potter. Harry himself should have the right to know.
The conflict between these two lines of thought made Amanda's brain throb uncontrollably.
"If it's for some reason I shouldn't know, you don't have to say it. I was just curious,"
Seeing Amanda's silence and the faint trace of hesitation on her face, Harry quickly added a considerate remark.
Beside them, Hermione also gently put an arm around Amanda's shoulder. "That's right. No one here will force you, Amanda. If you can't say it, then don't."
Amanda looked up, her somewhat hollow eyes meeting Harry's. "It's not that I can't say it, but that I can't say all of it."
"At least part of this matter is something you, Harry, have the right to know."
"I have the right to know?" Harry pointed at himself, looking completely bewildered.
He had just asked out of curiosity; how had it turned into having a right to know? Those two things were completely different.
Amanda nodded with an unchanging expression. She placed her finger on the Whomping Willow, then moved it along the deduced path of the secret passage, completing the bottom half of the tunnel.
"The path of this secret passage is roughly like this. In the end, there is an 83% probability that it ends at the Shrieking Shack in Hogsmeade."
"The Shrieking Shack?" Ron clicked his tongue and said somewhat apprehensively, "That's the place that's supposed to be really haunted."
"No wonder they planted a Whomping Willow over the entrance to that passage—to keep the ghosts from getting out."
"Ron..." Hermione sighed helplessly. "Please think about it. Can a ghost be hit by the Whomping Willow?"
"Aside from a special existence like Peeves, other ghosts don't have physical bodies at all."
"Yes," Amanda nodded, affirming Hermione's statement.
"Alright then."
Ron shrugged, not caring that his mistake had been pointed out. Please, he made plenty of mistakes usually; he was used to it.
Besides, wasn't it perfectly normal to have your mistakes caught by Hermione?
It would be abnormal if he and Harry weren't being corrected by Hermione.
In that case, they'd have to seriously suspect whether Hermione had been placed under the Imperio curse, or if he and Harry had been.
Seeing that no one had further questions, Amanda continued to press her finger against the table, pointing to the spot she had just moved to—the Shrieking Shack, representing the secret passage's final destination.
"This place is somewhere your father once visited, Harry."
"My dad went there?"
Harry looked at Amanda in confusion. "I don't quite understand. Isn't it haunted? Why would my dad go there?"
Amanda opened her mouth, but in the end, she still didn't know how to say it and could only close her mouth again.
"Okay," Harry scratched his head. "It's fine. Thanks for telling me that. Maybe I can find some time to go check out the Shrieking Shack in the future."
With that topic concluded, Amanda's gaze moved toward other areas of the marauders map once more.
"Hagrid's hut isn't on here."
Ron squinted at the marauders map, speaking with a hint of regret.
"I was a bit curious if he made it back after drinking. After all, he looked a bit drunk just now."
"True, there's no Hagrid's hut, and no Forbidden Forest, but there is the Quidditch Pitch."
Hermione agreed, pointing to the Quidditch Pitch on the marauders map.
After saying this, she seemed to remember something and looked up at Harry.
"Harry, can you be sure that Sirius Black or Peter Pettigrew won't use any of these secret passages to sneak into Hogwarts?"
"Any single one of them. Your safety is very important right now."
Even if Harry said he couldn't be certain about the safety of any of them, Hermione would have suggested handing this marauders map over to a Professor.
This was to ensure Hogwarts wouldn't be infiltrated; regardless, nothing was more important than the life and safety of her friend.
Of course, if Harry could ensure the safety of these passages... then she would also support her friend enjoying this bit of fun while remaining safe.
"I'm sure," Harry said, a bright smile breaking across his face. "Fred and George gave me this marauders map. Nothing ever happened during their previous use, and no one has ever sneaked into Hogwarts through these passages."
Reaching out to point to each secret passage leading out of Hogwarts one by one, Harry explained in a lowered voice.
"We already talked about this one. The Whomping Willow is over it; it's impossible for a person to get through."
He couldn't help but pause and add, "Except for my dad, who used some unknown method." He felt that if he didn't add this, something would seem off.
"And this one," Harry's hand pointed to a passage hidden behind a mirror, "according to Fred and George, it's already collapsed and can't be used now."
"Finally, this one," Harry tapped firmly on the mark of a small statue, above which was written in even smaller script 'Finite Incantatem,' "is the passage I used to come to Hogsmeade today."
"The entrance to the secret passage on the Hogsmeade side is on the second floor of Honeydukes Sweetshop. If someone were to pass through here recklessly, I'm sure the owner of Honeydukes would definitely notice."
After all, not everyone had an invisibility cloak like he did, and not everyone could achieve flawless invisibility without one like Amanda and Headmaster Dumbledore could.
"Filch knows about the rest of the passages, so they're essentially useless."
Harry spread his hands. According to his detailed count, all these secret passages were actually quite safe.
Sirius Black would have no way to enter Hogwarts through any of them.
"As long as there are no hidden risks."
Amanda also withdrew her slightly dull gaze and took a sip of the butterbeer next to her.
Harry carefully put away the marauders map. Amanda set down her beer bottle and looked steadily at Harry.
"Harry, you must keep a close eye on the marauders map at all times. If either of the names Sirius Black or Peter Pettigrew appears on it, remember the location where they appear, move away from there quickly, and then go find a Professor to go there with you."
"I understand."
Harry nodded solemnly. Once he saw those two names, he would definitely go find a Professor.
No one desired more than he did for the truth of everything to come to light and for the traitor who betrayed his parents to be caught.
Having finished discussing the marauders map, the four of them chatted as they finished their butterbeer.
After walking out of The Three Broomsticks pub, Amanda and Hermione separated from the two boys.
Of course, Harry and Ron left of their own accord. They didn't want to stay with Amanda and Hermione as a group; wouldn't that be obviously getting in the way?
They also knew Hermione's feelings for Amanda, so it was better not to be the third and fourth wheels.
Strolling through Hogsmeade with Hermione, Amanda suddenly felt Hermione lean in close, a slightly warm breath puffing into her ear.
This caused Amanda's entire body to go stiff for a second, her cheeks and ears rapidly flushing red.
"Blushing already?"
Hermione chuckled, breathing out more air along with her words. The breath hit Amanda's ear, stirring an even more vivid crimson glow on her face.
"My face and ears feel very hot..."
Amanda said this in a voice as calm as water, though if one listened closely, a faint tremor could be heard in her words.
With a light laugh, Hermione reached out to gently support Amanda's back, preventing her from having weak legs and sitting down in the snow.
Sitting in the snow in the middle of winter would be an unfriendly and unhealthy thing for a girl.
At the same time, she looked around. After ensuring no one was nearby, she leaned into Amanda's ear again, speaking of serious matters with a breath like orchids.
"Professor Lupin must be a Werewolf, right? And the Shrieking Shack is where he used to spend the nights of the full moon when he was in school."
Hermione spoke very quietly. Aside from her and Amanda, even if someone were passing by them now, they wouldn't be able to hear it.
"Yes, both points Hermione mentioned are correct."
Amanda likewise lowered her voice, nodding her head without expression to admit it.
She had long expected that Hermione would be able to figure these two points out. With Hermione's reasoning and keen observation, it was impossible for her not to notice that for three consecutive months, Professor Lupin had taken leave on every night of the full moon.
Furthermore, he always returned looking extremely weak and exhausted, which was clearly the behavior of a Werewolf after a full moon night.
Coupled with Senior Penelopa's previous introduction to the Shrieking Shack and Amanda's own reticence regarding the Shrieking Shack and the Whomping Willow passage, it wasn't strange at all that Hermione could guess it was the location Professor Lupin once used to get through the full moon.
Or rather, it would be strange if Hermione couldn't guess it, as that would mean a low-probability event with only a 2.1% chance had occurred.
"So it really is like that," Hermione nodded thoughtfully, continuing to lean close to Amanda's ear.
She wasn't worried about Professor Lupin's identity as a Werewolf. Like Amanda, she also believed this was something Headmaster Dumbledore had arranged in advance.
Since he could agree to let Professor Lupin come to Hogwarts to teach, it meant he was certain the Professor wouldn't harm the students.
And over these past three months, she had already realized what a refined and gentle person Professor Lupin was.
She was also willing to believe that such a Professor would absolutely never harm a student.
"Is that why you didn't tell Harry the whole truth about this?"
"Yes," Amanda's heartbeat slowly accelerated, yet the expression on her face didn't change in the slightest. "According to my analysis, Harry's father, Sirius Black, and Peter Pettigrew should have all accompanied Professor Lupin to the Shrieking Shack as his friends."
"But to explain this, I would need to state the fact that Professor Lupin is a Werewolf. This belongs to Professor Lupin's personal privacy and is not something I should disclose."
"Pfft," Hermione laughed proudly, turning her head to give Amanda a firm kiss on the cheek. "That's so you—politeness and respect are written into your very bones."
Her breathing gradually became hurried. Amanda felt her heartbeat had accelerated far too much; even her eardrums were thumping in sync with the beats.
Thump, thump, thump... the sounds of heartbeats echoed in her ears.
"Th-this is the most basic rule of etiquette that I should uphold."
Mechanical words, yet at this moment, they were spoken with a trembling voice and a softened tone.
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