"Good morning, Professor McGonagall!"
Lucas Summers's cheerful voice echoed across the courtyard.
Professor McGonagall turned around immediately. The faintly displeased expression she'd worn moments earlier softened almost at once after seeing him.
Lucas was unquestionably her favourite student.
Long before he officially enrolled at Hogwarts, she had already hoped he would end up in Gryffindor.
"Good morning, Mr. Summers," she replied warmly.
"Oh, Professor," Lucas said casually, pulling several sheets of parchment from his bag, "I wrote a paper recently. If possible, could you help me review it?"
Professor McGonagall's eyes brightened immediately.
"A paper?"
"Mm."
Lucas handed over the parchment stack.
"Of course," she said happily.
Given Lucas's current level, McGonagall was already certain the contents would be impressive. At minimum, she expected a highly advanced student paper.
And if it turned out exceptional enough…
Perhaps she could even help revise it and submit it to Transfiguration Today.
Professor McGonagall adored that journal.
As a student herself, she'd once received the magazine's Most Promising Newcomer Award, and even after becoming a professor, she still occasionally revised articles for publication in her spare time.
Naturally, the thought of Lucas publishing his first academic paper pleased her enormously.
After Professor McGonagall left, Lucas returned to breakfast casually.
Nearby, Hermione continued nervously lecturing everyone about proper broom safety precautions.
Neville listened with absolute seriousness, terrified of missing even a single word. His grandmother had never allowed him near a broom before Hogwarts, so this would be his first time flying properly.
Meanwhile, Kassandra looked completely confident.
"I already flew all the way to the Leaky Cauldron during the summer," she declared proudly. "That's how I went to find Lucas."
Most first-years looked nervous.
Lucas himself, however, remained distracted by a very different concern.
He still genuinely wanted to know whether broomsticks were physically uncomfortable to ride for long periods.
Unfortunately, when he accidentally asked Kassandra what she thought about "getting crushed by the broom," she merely stared at him in total confusion.
Lucas immediately decided to stop talking.
Meanwhile, after finishing a few minor tasks, Professor McGonagall returned to her office.
Conveniently, she had no classes scheduled that morning.
Which meant this was the perfect opportunity to review Lucas's paper properly.
She settled comfortably behind her desk, took a sip of tea, and unfolded the parchment.
Immediately, she smiled slightly.
Lucas's handwriting was elegant, neat, and extremely organised.
At the very least, it proved he had approached the work seriously.
Then she read the title.
And her expression changed instantly.
On the Possibility of Non-Animagus Human Transfiguration
Professor McGonagall sat upright immediately.
Human Transfiguration had always been among the most dangerous subjects in all of magical theory.
One mistake.
One tiny mistake.
And the damage became irreversible.
History contained countless examples of brilliant wizards attempting human transformation experiments only to end up trapped forever as horrifying half-human creatures before dying in despair.
At that moment, McGonagall's first emotion wasn't excitement.
It was fear.
Fear that Lucas had already begun experimenting recklessly on himself.
Still, she continued reading.
And as she read further…
Her expression slowly transformed from concern into shock.
Then from shock into disbelief.
Finally, without even realising it, she waved her wand sharply.
Several heavy Transfiguration reference books flew directly from her shelves onto the desk beside her.
McGonagall began cross-checking Lucas's theories line by line against established magical research.
Every equation.
Every parameter.
Every conclusion.
She verified them all personally.
Time passed quietly.
Eventually, she reached a terrifying conclusion.
The paper was flawless.
At least, flawless according to every authoritative source she possessed.
Not only were Lucas's arguments rigorous beyond belief, but several sections were actually more advanced and complete than existing professional Transfiguration texts.
By the time McGonagall finally finished reading the paper entirely, it was already noon.
She had spent the entire morning absorbed in it.
She'd even forgotten lunch.
Slowly lowering the parchment, Professor McGonagall realised her hands were trembling slightly.
If even half the theories in this paper proved correct…
…it could completely revolutionise the wizarding world's understanding of Transfiguration.
Unable to contain herself any longer, she stood abruptly and marched straight toward the Headmaster's office carrying the paper tightly in her hands.
Dumbledore was also a Transfiguration master.
She needed him to see this immediately.
Moments later, McGonagall entered the office after rapidly giving the password.
Dumbledore sat behind his desk happily eating a strange sweet called Cockroach Clusters.
The candies looked exactly like tiny moving cockroaches and leaked sticky honey when bitten.
Personally, Lucas would rather fight a basilisk.
"Oh?" Dumbledore asked pleasantly. "My dear professor, you seem unusually hurried today. Has something happened?"
Without answering directly, McGonagall handed him the parchment.
"Albus," she said firmly, "you need to read this."
Dumbledore accepted the paper curiously.
Then, after only several paragraphs…
He became completely absorbed.
The half-eaten Cockroach Cluster in his hand slowly dripped honey directly onto his beard without him noticing in the slightest.
Minutes passed.
Then more minutes.
Finally, Dumbledore lowered the paper slowly while exhaling in admiration.
"Remarkable," he murmured. "Professor McGonagall, I had no idea your Transfiguration research had reached this level."
"This paper alone could shake the entire wizarding world."
McGonagall looked at him strangely.
"I didn't write it, Albus."
Dumbledore blinked.
"…You didn't?"
"This was handed to me by Lucas Summers this morning."
She took a deep breath.
"I spent the entire morning verifying it against every source I possess."
"And I couldn't find a single flaw."
Dumbledore's eyes widened properly for perhaps the first time in years.
"Lucas wrote this?"
Even for him, that felt difficult to believe immediately.
"But…" Dumbledore frowned thoughtfully. "His current Transfiguration skill shouldn't yet support this level of theoretical understanding."
McGonagall's expression sharpened instantly.
"You think someone else wrote it?"
"Oh, no," Dumbledore said quickly. "Not at all. I trust Lucas's talent completely."
He leaned back thoughtfully.
"I noticed his potential long ago while teaching him personally."
Dumbledore glanced toward the paper again.
"But if he truly wrote this himself…"
A slow smile appeared on his face.
"…then we may have encountered a once-in-a-century genius."
Back outside, Lucas remained completely unaware of the chaos he'd caused accidentally.
At the moment, he was far more focused on listening carefully to Kassandra explain proper broom handling techniques.
Flying lessons would begin that afternoon, and Lucas genuinely looked forward to them.
Still, he vaguely remembered something from the original timeline.
Neville would get injured during this lesson.
A broken wrist, if Lucas remembered correctly.
Fortunately, now that he was here, there was no chance Neville would suffer that outcome again.
Just as Lucas continued thinking about it, an older student suddenly approached him.
"Lucas Summers?"
Lucas looked up.
"Professor Dumbledore wants to see you in the Headmaster's office immediately."
Lucas blinked in surprise.
He thanked the student politely before heading toward the eighth floor.
Naturally, he assumed Dumbledore had discovered something new regarding Quirrell and needed confirmation again.
He still had absolutely no idea how badly his "casual" paper had shocked both Dumbledore and McGonagall.
Arriving outside the office, Lucas gave the password and stepped inside.
The first thing he noticed was the Sorting Hat.
Spotlessly clean.
Fred and George truly had terrifying efficiency.
Then Lucas noticed Professor McGonagall standing nearby as well.
Dumbledore sat behind his desk with fingers folded together while his bright blue eyes sparkled strangely.
"Mr. Summers," he said pleasantly.
"You wished to see me, Professors?" Lucas asked politely.
McGonagall immediately stepped forward holding the parchment tightly.
"Answer honestly, Lucas," she said seriously. "Have you experimented with human transformation on yourself?"
Lucas froze.
"…Professor…"
"Do not lie to me," McGonagall interrupted sharply. "Some of these parameters are far too detailed for pure theory. You could not have written this without practical experimentation."
Lucas sighed internally.
Caught.
"…Yes," he admitted quietly. "I tested it a few times."
McGonagall closed her eyes briefly.
"You are incredibly fortunate those experiments succeeded."
Her expression finally softened slightly afterward.
"Otherwise…"
She clearly didn't even want to finish that sentence.
Still, compared to what Lucas expected, the scolding turned out surprisingly mild.
Just as he predicted, McGonagall cared far more about student safety than punishment.
"Tell me honestly," she said after calming down slightly, "how exactly did you write this paper?"
Lucas scratched his cheek awkwardly.
"I was doing Transfiguration homework," he explained honestly, "and suddenly lots of new ideas appeared in my head."
"So I wrote everything down randomly whenever inspiration struck."
"Then later I combined the notes into a paper."
Silence filled the office.
Dumbledore and McGonagall both stared at him.
A paper capable of revolutionising modern Transfiguration theory…
…had been written casually because inspiration appeared suddenly?
"…Merlin help us," McGonagall muttered faintly.
Lucas looked nervous now.
"Is something wrong with the paper?"
Dumbledore immediately laughed warmly.
"Quite the opposite, Lucas. I have rarely seen a better Transfiguration paper in my life."
Then his eyes brightened with curiosity.
"If possible, could you demonstrate the non-Animagus transformation described in your paper?"
McGonagall looked alarmed immediately.
"Albus! Encouraging him further is hardly wise if something goes wrong—"
"No problem, Professor," Lucas interrupted cheerfully. "I've already practised this many times."
Then he bent forward slightly.
His body transformed instantly.
One moment, Lucas Summers stood inside the office.
The next—
A massive male lion stood proudly in the centre of the room.
Portraits throughout the office erupted into shocked exclamations immediately.
At first, several former Headmasters had assumed Dumbledore exaggerated the paper's importance.
Now?
They realised the opposite.
This child was genuinely terrifying.
Professor McGonagall clutched her chest nervously while staring at the lion.
The lion paced calmly across the office before roaring twice proudly.
Then it transformed again.
This time into a tiny black kitten.
Several portraits made strangled noises.
Moments later, the kitten transformed once more into a brown owl, flying gracefully around the office twice before finally landing and returning smoothly to human form again.
Dumbledore applauded openly.
His eyes shone with genuine admiration.
"This will completely change the wizarding world's understanding of Animagus transformation," he said softly.
Then McGonagall stepped forward excitedly.
"Lucas," she asked eagerly, unable to suppress her smile any longer, "would you allow me to publish your paper in Transfiguration Today?"
....
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