Chapter 119: Seer

At present, Hogsmeade village was empty, save for a few groups of Aurors patrolling its length and breadth. On his journey back to Hogwarts, Sherlock Forester, Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, had been halted and interrogated thrice already, once even by the newly graduated trainee Auror, Tonks. She used to be assigned to trivial tasks in the office, but due to the ensuing shortage of staff, she had been appointed to the field duty as well.

The presence of such an abundant number of Aurors wasn't only to capture the mysterious soul-sucking creature. Their main agenda was the capture of the infamous escaped prisoner, Sirius Black. Despite there being reports of seven attacks, five of which targeted Muggles, only two wizards had died. This wasn't sufficient to eclipse the news of Black's escape from Azkaban.

However, those who grasped the gravity of the situation realized that these attacks were of a more serious nature than Sirius Black's escape. The British Aurors, fixated on the case at hand, had hardly any leads. The significant information was still in the possession of the three German Ministry of Magic employees. Sherlock didn't know whether the German Ministry of Magic had shared any useful details regarding the killer's profile with the British authorities.

Their only strategy in catching Sirius Black seemed to be to safeguard Hogwarts and hope he risked returning. As for the actual confrontation, the matter was primarily restricted to Hogsmeade. All these problems stemming and converging at Hogwarts, even before the academic year had begun, induced a great deal of urgency.

Upon reaching the outskirts of Hogsmeade, as he was about to set his foot on the pathway to Hogwarts, Sherlock noticed a black stray dog next to a garbage bin in an alley. This dog seemingly looked like a stray but had a smooth coat of black fur indicating it had been well cared for before being deserted.

Although it piqued Sherlock's curiosity, he didn't dwell on it much as he wasn't particularly fond of animals and had no intention of taking it in. Upon stepping through the grand entrance of the castle, the school seemed relatively empty. To Sherlock's discomfort, Dementors could be seen guarding either side of the entrance. As he moved further in, they drifted towards him as if to size him up.

They eerily stared at his face, presumably to determine if he was the escapee Sirius Black. He didn't resist as the two Dementors stared into his face, but just then a bone-chilling wave of despair suddenly rolled off one of the Dementors which made Sherlock feel as if his body was drained of warmth and happiness. Consequently realizing something was amiss, he swiftly drew out his wand and proclaimed, "Expecto Patronum".

Instantly, a glorious silver light shimmered forth while thousands of glowing strands gushed from the end of his wand. The two Dementors wailed a soundless cry as they were engulfed and eroded by the onslaught of the silver strands, trying desperately to free themselves. They fluttered away hurriedly into distance, not daring to take another glance at Sherlock.

"Cowards are always the quick to prey on the weak and run from the strong," Sherlock scoffed. From their behavior, he inferred that if these Dementors lingered near Hogwarts for the school term, it would undoubtedly lead to chaos. They were becoming bold and reckless already and in the absence of a constant supply of emotions to feed on, like in Azkaban, they might resort to desperate measures. But that was a concern best left to Dumbledore who likely had a better sense of the situation at hand.

Upon entering the castle, Sherlock found himself at the first-floor entrance hall where he crossed paths with Professor McGonagall, seemingly lost in thought.

"Good morning, Professor McGonagall," Sherlock greeted.

Upon noticing him, her tensed expression softened and was replaced with a warm smile, which was quite uncharacteristic for her.

"Good morning, Sherlock. You arrived right on time, after you've settled in, you'll need to meet with Dumbledore, the password for his office is lemon drop. It's nothing urgent, nothing more than administrative matters," she informed him.

Sherlock nodded in acknowledgment. After parting ways with Professor McGonagall in the entrance hall, he proceeded to his office on the third floor to unpack. Despite his two month's absence, his office was in pristine condition as the school's elves efficiently carried out cleaning duties. After hastily stowing away his things he headed to the Headmaster's office, guarded by a stone gargoyle, situated at the end of the third-floor corridor.

"Password," the gargoyle demanded. "Lemon drop," replied Sherlock.

In his opinion, one could realistically break into the Headmaster's office effortlessly just by reciting the names of his favorite sweets, to eventually chance upon the correct password. Having received the password, the gargoyle swiftly moved aside, granting him passage, and Sherlock entered the study.

Inside, he ascended a spiral staircase to the eighth floor and pushed through the door into Dumbledore's office. Dumbledore sat reclined in his chair, his eyes shut as though in deep thought. The portraits of the previous headmasters hung on the wall, exhaling faint snores as if they were perpetually in slumber.

On another note, Fawkes was diligently combing its bright red feathers while perched on a perch nearby. At the sound of Sherlock's entrance, Dumbledore awakened and greeted him warmly upon noticing him.

"Did you enjoy your holiday?" Dumbledore engaged in small talk. Sherlock positioned himself on the chair opposite Dumbledore. A steaming cup of tea appeared before him.

"Indeed, it was quite relaxing. France was an exhilarating experience, especially the cuisine which I'll have to admit is far superior to ours" he replied.

"I'm glad to hear. Indeed, Nicolas penned down a letter apprising me of your and Harry's escapades. Oh and I hear both of you have been awarded the French Amity Wizarding medal, congratulations!" Dumbledore seemed surprised, clearly even he hadn't anticipated the experiences Sherlock and Harry would have together.

"We certainly didn't see that coming. The wand thief dared to impersonate Nicolas Flamel! If he hadn't tried to dabble in human trafficking, which is what aroused my suspicion, he might have even managed to walk free without any consequences," Sherlock confessed. They casually conversed about their vacation until Dumbledore steered the topic to the reason he had summoned Sherlock.

"You must've noticed the situation in Hogsmeade when you arrived?" asked Dumbledore, to which Sherlock simply nodded.

"Many critical events seem to be converging at Hogwarts this year," added Dumbledore as the light glinted off his half-moon spectacles, giving his blue eyes a stern depth. "While Sirius Black's case is a relatively simple one to tackle, the mystery of the soul attacks pose a far greater challenge," he concluded.

"Last semester, you encountered Miss Hilke when she came here to visit the graveyard in the Forbidden Forest, if I recall. As of a few days ago, she registered a request to temporarily reside within Hogwarts," informed Dumbledore.

Upon hearing this, Sherlock knotted his brows in a frown. "She suspects the killer might pay a visit to Hogwarts," he said.

"I wouldn't categorize it as suspicion," Dumbledore corrected him, his words carrying an underlying hint. "She foresaw that the creature will come to Hogwarts."

Dumbledore's statement seemed a bit bewildering, but Sherlock remembered the moment at the end of last semester when he saw the true appearance of Miss Hilke in front of the two graves in the Forbidden Forest. What he remembered most vividly were her eyes, tightly bound by a strip of bandage.

"Is she a Seer?" Sherlock queried inquisitively.

"In certain aspects, her vision transcends ours," Dumbledore diplomatically neither confirmed nor denied this, thereby subtly affirming Sherlock's suspicion. Intrigued, Sherlock further questioned him.

"Her being a German witch, why did you consent to bury her father's remains in the Forbidden Forest of Hogwarts?"

On hearing his question, Dumbledore seemed to lose himself into the depths of his memories for a moment before softly replying, "Her father served as an Auror in the British Ministry and passed away roughly a decade ago while on duty. She was then taken to Germany by her mother."

Respecting Dumbledore's reminiscence, Sherlock refrained from pressing any further and inferred that her Auror father must've been one of the many fatalities in the war against Voldemort which would explain why Dumbledore agreed to bury his grave in the Forbidden Forest.

"I approved of her request to stay within Hogwarts but also mandated that she must be accompanied at all times during her investigation," said Dumbledore. "Cornelius wasn't too enthusiastic about these three German wizards. He has repeatedly asked the German Ministry for information about the killer's identity, but encountered only delays in response. Due to the staff shortage, our ministry Aurors are currently overworked not only with Sirius Black's case but also in maintaining law and order in the wizarding realm. Therefore, the ministry wants to assign a Hogwarts professor to act as a supervisor on the Germans' actions and ensure they don't indulge in activities that might compromise British wizarding society."

As Dumbledore insinuated this, Sherlock comprehended that he intended to assign him this duty.

"What about my teaching obligations at the school? I can't shadow Hilke all day either." could be heard as Sherlock's immediate protest, but, as was to be expected, Dumbledore had an arrangement for the same.

"Your assistant for this year, Remus Lupin, should be on the Hogwarts Express as we speak. With his assistance, your work load will be reduced and you can allocate more time to oversee the investigation," he explained.

Suddenly, Dumbledore broke into a smile and said, "Speaking of your teaching duties, congratulations are in order for you, Sherlock. Last year, under your guidance, the students who took their OWLs as well as NEWTs scored exceptionally well in Defense Against the Dark Arts exams. most surpassing an 'A' grade, a whopping 80% students secured either an 'O' or 'E'.

"So, this year, I recommend you concentrate on the upper grade students in Defense Against the Dark Arts, as their exam pressures are considerably higher. In the meantime, Remus can manage the junior classes," Dumbledore sagely advised.