C109(1)

Kain and Dumbledore reached a consensus, and the two smiled like profiteers. 

Kain provided the basilisk to help Hagrid prove his innocence, while Dumbledore used magic to ensure the creature was hidden from the Ministry of Magic. 

Meanwhile, Hagrid's future harvests from the Forbidden Forest could now be sold to Kain's potion materials store.

The Forbidden Forest contained many valuable resources. Hagrid occasionally traded with the centaurs, exchanging items they didn't need—often things highly prized (and expensive) among humans.

The Chamber of Secrets incident was resolved satisfactorily, though poor Tom Riddle didn't fare as well. Kain, ever opportunistic, planned to take some of the spoils to the ninja world to strike a deal with Orochimaru.

The person who suffered the most, however, was Percy. As a fifth-year student, he'd lost an entire afternoon of study time for his exams. 

Thankfully, he wasn't too shaken by the ordeal. News of the incident never made it beyond Hogwarts; Dumbledore and the other professors worked to suppress it.

When Kain returned to his office, the door creaked open, startling Hermione. She jumped down from the high chair like a frightened rabbit.

"Why didn't you brew yourself a calming draught? I remember you know how to make it," Kain remarked as he entered.

Hermione looked despondent, likely consumed by guilt ever since leaving the girls' bathroom. So preoccupied, she'd forgotten even the basics of magic.

"Luckily, I turned to Professor Snape and got a vial from him. Of course, the man's a master extortionist—he demanded at least five potion ingredients as payment."

Hearing Kain's disgruntled tone, Hermione couldn't help but laugh softly, imagining his expression as Snape exploited the situation. She sipped the potion in her hand, and after a moment, her mood noticeably improved.

"Godfather, this incident—"

"Forget it. It's over," Kain interrupted gently. "Just be more careful next time. However, you do need to learn Occlumency and Memory Magic. I'll write to Lupin later to find a suitable teacher for you."

"Oh, and one more thing—the honey for the milk is gone. Let this incident serve as a lesson."

Hermione's brown eyes widened slightly in response. Was this punishment? Would she really have to drink unsweetened milk in the future? To others, this might seem trivial, but to Hermione, it felt like a significant consequence.

She was grateful Percy hadn't been harmed, but guilt still gnawed at her. She'd relied on dark magic to mislead others and even bypassed the anti-lock spell on Kain's drawer.

Kain, on the other hand, felt a twinge of regret. If Tom hadn't met his end so prematurely, Kain could've extracted a wealth of dark arts knowledge from him. 

Seventeen-year-old Tom had scoured the entire Restricted Section and was, in some respects, more knowledgeable than Kain in that field.

After spending some time with Kain, Hermione eventually got up to return to the Gryffindor common room. The moment she stepped out of his office, she let out a relieved sigh, patting her chest as if to calm her nerves.

Fortunately, her godfather hadn't asked about her conversation with the diary. If he had, she wasn't sure how she would've answered.

The incident in the Chamber of Secrets didn't cause any public disturbance, but Lucius Malfoy still learned about Percy's involvement through Draco.

However, Lucius found himself unable to rally the school board against Dumbledore. With Kain's influence, Dumbledore's reliance on the board had significantly decreased. 

Besides, the Malfoy family was preoccupied with their own problems. Although Lucius considered attacking Dumbledore, the presence of Kain at Hogwarts made him abandon the idea in frustration.

The Malfoy family's business in dragon-related products had taken a hit, leaving Lucius unable to meddle in Hogwarts affairs effectively.

Kain continued his usual activities at Hogwarts: practicing magic, exploring the Restricted Section, and teaching. However, his enthusiasm for teaching had waned. He had covered most of the material he wanted to share, and his knowledge reserves were not endless.

In fact, Kain harbored an unusual idea: teaching Hogwarts students to use the Levitation Charm to control ten Gatling guns simultaneously. 

He believed it would be an effective way to combat dark wizards and dangerous creatures. In the current wizarding world, only magical creatures rated four stars or higher could withstand such modern firepower. 

But this was, of course, something he couldn't teach at Hogwarts.

Instead, he planned to invite Lupin to assist as the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor's assistant. Hermione could help by brewing the Wolfsbane Potion. 

With her current skill level in Potions, even Snape would struggle to deduct points—though he might resort to criticizing her attitude instead.

One thing that amused Kain was the resolution of the rumor about his supposed love of garlic and onions. The price Hermione paid to clear his name? A glass of fresh milk every morning.

Towards the end of the school year, Kain finally completed all the steps required to master Animagus transformation. He had spent months working with mandrake and now needed to thoroughly cleanse himself to rid the lingering smell.

"Godfather, can I come and watch?" Hermione asked, her eyes brimming with curiosity and excitement.

Before Kain could refuse, she quickly added, "I'll need to learn Animagus transformation in the future. Watching you now would give me valuable experience and help reduce the risk of failure later."

Kain sighed, seeing through her reasoning but relenting nonetheless. "Fine. Midnight, on the lawn near the Forbidden Forest by the south side of the Great Lake. That's where I usually practice spells. But you'll have to avoid Filch on your own."

Of course, Kain planned to deal with Filch for the evening. He had a feeling there might be a little wizard night tour happening anyway.

Sure enough, at midnight, Kain stood on the lawn, staring with a mix of amusement and disbelief at the three young wizards in front of him.

"The three of you actually made it. Does the Invisibility Cloak even fit three people?"

"We used the cloak to cause a distraction in the library," Ron explained. "After Filch went to check it out, we slipped out."

"It was Hermione's idea!" Harry quickly added, throwing Hermione under the bus.

Hermione shot them both a sharp glare before straightening up and pretending to be indifferent. She waited patiently for Kain to begin his Animagus transformation.

….

patreon.com/Vks_sh