A Professor of Magic at Hogwarts

As they exited Hagrid's hut, the trio encountered the young wizards who had been observing earlier. Despite Harry expecting them to rush back to the castle, they lingered on the path, debating whether to return.

"Those kids," Ron remarked sentimentally.

Harry glanced back at them, speculating that they probably weren't aware yet that he might soon be sewing clothes for Hagrid's beloved brother in Care of Magical Creatures; the items were currently hanging in Hagrid's wooden cabin, larger than a tent.

Walking along the stone steps, they spotted Valen out near the castle gates. Harry's spirits lifted, and he hurried over to meet the Niffler.

"Is the professor nearby?" he asked eagerly.

Since that long night, Valen had regained his appetite for treasure. Every day, Harry carried him around, reassuring himself that all his treasure was safe inside. Valen looked up quizzically and, upon hearing Harry's question, gestured in the direction of the Great Hall with his free hand.

The three walked into the Great Hall, but their target wasn't in sight. "Over there," Hermione pointed towards the staff room. Harry had a slight hesitation, aware that Snape might be in there, and lately, he'd been avoiding any encounters with him.

"Let's go, let's just check inside," Hermione encouraged.

As Harry reached for the door, they were surprised to hear Draco Malfoy's shaky voice from within. "Yes, I'm sure," he said. Harry's hand recoiled. The three exchanged confused glances. Then, Professor McGonagall's stern voice filled the room. "Mr. Malfoy, do you understand the consequences of perjury?"

At that moment, Professor Flitwick's voice joined in, "Let me ask — Malfoy, am I to understand that you were unaware of Avery and Mulciber's intentions, but because they claimed to be friends of your father, you let your guard down?"

"...Yes, Professor."

"Felix—" Professor McGonagall interjected sternly.

"Were you afraid and kept avoiding them?" Felix continued questioning.

"Yes," Draco's voice was subdued.

"Well, I see," Felix's tone became more relaxed, confident. "I assume Avery then found Crabbe and Goyle on his own, cast a Confundus Charm on them—"

"Felix, I must remind you, the Confundus Charm has a time limit," Professor McGonagall interjected sharply.

"I know, Milerva. But Crabbe and Goyle's minds—" Felix paused, "aren't the sharpest; they're in a perpetual state of confusion, so much so that even after the spell wears off, they might consider these thoughts their own, only those who know them well can detect the anomaly... like Mr. Draco Malfoy."

There was a sharp intake of breath from McGonagall. Harry listened, feeling a mix of anxiety and tension, picturing McGonagall biting her lip and her chest heaving, much like when he had convinced her a few days earlier to allow students to support Hogsmeade.

She must have been furious.

"Very well, Mr. Malfoy," McGonagall said, "Thank you for your testimony. I will consider suspending the expulsion of Crabbe and Goyle unless there is new evidence suggesting—" She paused, "suggesting they willingly collaborated with the mysterious figure."

"Thank you, Professor," Malfoy's voice sounded grateful.

Footsteps approached the door. Harry, Ron, and Hermione hurriedly stepped away from the door handle as it opened. Draco Malfoy looked surprised to see them, Ron grinned cheekily, and Draco shot them a glare, slammed the door shut, and walked away without saying a word.

After the "father-son sparring" at Christmas, Lucius had told him a few things—not just about the present situation, but also considerations for the future. According to his father, even if the war ended and Dumbledore's side emerged victorious, he planned to gradually fade his influence.

"I'm an undercover agent, but I'm also a Death Eater. As long as I'm active, both these labels will persist. So, the Malfoy family will rely on you by then."

...

Harry knocked on the door, but inside, McGonagall was speaking loudly, and their knocking went unnoticed.

"Felix, there's no trace of any curse on Crabbe and Goyle."

"...It's hard to say."

"Malfoy's testimony is full of holes, and he mentioned having an argument with Crabbe."

"Hmm, it's a bit odd, but after my touch-up, it might sound plausible?"

Harry, Ron, and Hermione stood awkwardly at the door, watching as McGonagall, hands on hips, cornered Snape against the wall, gesturing for her to calm down.

"Snort." Laughter came from the corner, and Harry turned to see Sirius sitting in an embroidered chair, sipping tea, enjoying the spectacle.

"Potter, Weasley, Granger," McGonagall noticed the three in the room. She stepped back, took a few deep breaths, and her expression calmed. "Very well, I'll inform Professor Dumbledore of the situation." She briskly left the room.

Apart from Harry's group, the staff room was now left with Sirius and Snape.

"Um—can you tell us what just happened?" Harry asked eagerly.

Sirius smirked, "Congratulations, you've witnessed quite the show. Someone's twisting the truth, disregarding rules and laws. Sheltering not just two but three potential Death Eaters."

"You mean Draco Malfoy?" Ron said, "He came over to plead for Crabbe and Goyle? That's not like him."

"Exactly. When he realized these two not only broke the rules but also faced the possibility of being dragged into a trial at Azkaban, he wanted to back off." Sirius leaned back, propping the chair's front legs up, disdain evident in his tone. "And after a few questions from Minerva, he was in a panic. That's when our noble and righteous Snape swooped in to fabricate a plausible excuse for Malfoy. Such a noble act!"

"Tell me, Felix, how much did the Malfoy family pay you?" Sirius grinned.

"You should ask Lames, Malfoy bought quite a few products from the 'Future World' company. He knows the exact numbers," Felix said airily.

He strolled over, picked up the teapot from the table, and poured himself a cup of tea. Three cups were left by the chairs; Felix gestured to Harry's group, and they took a seat, holding their cups.

"Well, Harry, what brings you here?" he asked.

Harry hesitated.

He had many questions, but he figured Snape wouldn't easily divulge. Over the past few days, discussing and analyzing with Ron and Hermione, they'd noticed several suspicious occurrences.

If Dumbledore had arranged for members of the Order of the Phoenix to infiltrate the school beforehand, it might explain detecting traces of Voldemort's actions. But some things seemed too coincidental.

Why was Snape near the Headmaster's office, coincidentally around Umbridge's presence? But if his task was simply to deliver a password, that could explain it. And then there was Hagrid's sudden appearance, filled with drama; a few seconds later, Umbridge and the Horcrux would've vanished.

But what if Hagrid had been there all along...

"It's like the adults set up a trap together," Hermione said at the time.

Neville's parents seemed to know something, but they had left. Harry tried to bring it up casually with Neville a few times, and each time, Neville became fidgety. Ron, being nosy, asked, "Did you get in trouble with your parents? Come on, spill it, we won't laugh." But Neville just shot him a glare.

Harry had to leave it at that. He slowly said, "What do you think will happen to Crabbe and Goyle in the end?"

"Probably kept under observation at school," Felix said nonchalantly.

"Their father—"

"Caught on the spot," Sirius suddenly interjected, "for attacking the Ministry of Magic. He's probably keeping company with the Lestrange brothers right about now." He glanced challengingly at Felix, seemingly expecting a retort, but Felix remained indifferent.

"Oh, um, what about Malfoy?" Harry asked, holding his breath. "I mean Lucius Malfoy?"

Sirius's face suddenly creased.

"He got away," he said.

"How did that happen?" Ron asked.

Sirius lowered the chair he had raised, looking at them. "It's safe to say it's fortunate the anti-illusion displacement wards were not lifted before."

"What's that?" Harry asked, surprised.

"Remember the ancient rune conference held at Hogwarts earlier?" Felix asked, and the three nodded. They did more than remember; it was still vivid in their memories. Voldemort had killed the Headmaster of Durmstrang that day, seized Salazar Slytherin's wand, and shortly after, destroyed nearly half of Hogwarts.

"...We speculated that Voldemort might try to break into the Ministry—they had something crucial to him there. So, both the Ministry and the Order set traps, and the anti-illusion displacement wards were one of them. Too bad he didn't show up last time."

Felix's tone sounded casual, but everyone present sensed the underlying gravity. Anti-illusion displacement wards... if Voldemort were trapped and cornered by Dumbledore and Professor Snape, the war might have ended that day.

"Professor?" Hermione asked. "I saw in the paper about the Shafiq family—"

"Oh, I know about that," Felix interrupted her, and Hermione fell silent.

Before leaving, Harry asked one more question, "Do you still believe in Snape after all this?"

"You should call him Professor Snape," Felix evaded.

And so, Harry found his answer.

---

"Is Lucius Malfoy your man?" Sirius suddenly asked after closing the door.

Felix looked at him with a smirk. "Caught a whiff of him, did you?"

"Don't use that analogy," Sirius grumbled disapprovingly.

"I thought you'd appreciate it—yes, you're right," Felix said.

Sirius sat up in surprise. "You're just telling me like this?" He couldn't help but scan Felix up and down. "You haven't sold him because he's no longer useful, have you?"

Felix rolled his eyes.

"What image do I have in your mind, anyway?"

"A cunning schemer, devious and sly," Sirius instinctively replied.

Felix glared at him, debating whether to find an excuse to give him a beating. Sirius shuddered and quickly changed the subject, "Any plans for Valentine's Day? Got a date?"

"Of course."

"Really? With whom?" Sirius asked, quite interested.

"Hmm," Felix scoffed.

February 14th, Valentine's Day. Students lined up, preparing to spend a delightful day at Hogwarts. They saw Filch standing at the school's entrance, glaring at passing students, checking for forbidden items.

"Filch is still as unpleasant, enjoying catching students doing wrong," Ron remarked.

"But at least he's on our side, isn't he?" Harry said.

"Your standards are too low," Ron quipped, suddenly hiding behind Harry. "Help me dodge this."

"What's wrong?" Harry looked in the opposite direction of Ron and saw Parvati and Lavender passing by together.

"She wants to spend the day with me," Ron whispered, waiting until they passed before emerging.

"Parvati?" Harry guessed.

"Exactly," Ron said proudly. "Can't help it, I'm too popular. Got several cards."

Harry belatedly realized he had received quite a few cards himself this year; Ginny mentioned her fingers were sore from opening them. At that moment, they saw Professor Snape appearing at the door, dressed formally, and Disapparating from the school gates.

"Someone scored a date with the professor?" Ron asked, surprised.

"Don't know," Harry said bluntly, noticing Ginny approaching in a beautiful purple dress and pretending not to see Luna beside her, wearing a sparkling outfit with carrot-shaped earrings.

"More people aren't bad; it can reduce a lot of awkwardness," Harry thought.

Diagon Alley, Knockturn Alley.

Felix stood at the door, surveying the area for a while before entering. In the spacious lobby on the ground floor, a few people had already gathered, most of them covering their faces tightly with scarves.

These people kept some distance from each other, seemingly uninterested in chatting.

Clementine hurried over.

"Is everyone here?" Felix asked.

"Everyone's here! Seven Mutes and twelve wizards with spellcasting impediments, all here," Clementine said quickly. "These are their profiles." She stuffed a stack of parchment into Felix's arms and looked at him expectantly.

"Enjoy your—"

"Goodbye," Clementine said briskly and ran off.

Felix clicked his tongue, suddenly feeling a bit down. He raised his hand abruptly, and the heavy door behind him slammed shut.

"So, everyone, ready to experience the magic of the spells?" he said.

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