009 Tracing (Re-Written)

The gloomy clouds that had lingered for days finally dissipated on the first day of the new year. The rising sun shone on the snow-covered field, casting a layer of pale golden gauze over Hogwarts Castle.

After preparing the essential recovery potion for Hermione early in the morning, Madam Pomfrey went downstairs to the Great Hall for breakfast. In the hospital wing, only Harry and Ron accompanied a dejected Hermione. After hearing the narration about Hermione's ordeal, the previous night, their expressions were far from cheerful.

"Professor Snape must have found out!" Hermione said, her voice muffled as she covered her furry face with her hands, looking depressed. "Professor Snape called out my name before the door opened, which shouldn't have happened. No one knows about my condition except Madam Pomfrey. Professor Snape is a Potions Master; he must know the consequences of using Polyjuice Potion for animal transformation. So, this implies that he knows I stole ingredients from his storeroom."

Harry stared blankly at the tall goalposts on the field. Today, he and Ron had originally planned to visit Hermione and then play Quidditch together, but now it seemed that plan would undoubtedly be canceled.

Moreover, since the Christmas holidays, his good mood brought about by no one in the castle secretly discussing his Parseltongue or accusing him of being the Heir of Slytherin was quickly fading. The reason for everything stemmed from the young wizard named Bryan Watson that Hermione had just told him about.

"Bryan Watson who claims of being an investigator," Harry asked worriedly, "Hermione, what do you think Watson wants to investigate at Hogwarts?"

"Isn't it obvious, Harry? What else is worth investigating at the school right now?"

Harry and Ron didn't seem worried about being expelled because of this, which made the already upset young witch even more irritated.

Harry felt his stomach, warmed by the rice porridge he had drunk in the morning, twitch with an inexplicable chill. He had never heard this name before, and apart from Mr. Weasley, he had never dealt with any wizard with an official title. However, this did not prevent the heavy pressure that arose in his heart after hearing the title "investigator."

Because of his Parseltongue ability, he was already the object of suspicion among the young wizards. If everyone learned that an investigator had come to the school in the second half of the year, how much more criticism would he have to bear?

Harry could already imagine the smug expression on Malfoy's disgusting face. Perhaps he would be the first to report Harry to the investigator.

"Why would the Ministry of Magic suddenly send an investigator to the school? I mean, the school has Headmaster Dumbledore, and he never mentioned it to me either."

Mentioning this, Harry suddenly remembered the night Justin was attacked. He had a conversation with Headmaster Dumbledore in his office. At that time, for various reasons, especially fearing that Dumbledore would mistakenly think he had some connection with the founder of Slytherin House, he did not confess about Dobby's warning and the terrible voice that appeared before each attack.

Could it be that Headmaster Dumbledore was dissatisfied with his concealment and thus agreed to let the Ministry of Magic take over? Then would the Ministry of Magic take the easy way out, listen to the rumors in the school, and directly lock him up in the wizard prison Malfoy mentioned?

"It goes without saying, Harry. It must be that old bat Snape secretly making trouble!" Ron said, holding half a potato pie in his hand, raising his freckled nose with certainty. "Think about it, Harry. This Watson has a close relationship with Snape. Maybe he was from Slytherin too."

Ron began chewing his potato pie again, analyzing in a plausible manner, "Who wants to kick you out of this school the most? Undoubtedly, it's Snape. I bet, Harry, this investigator was brought in by Snape to do the job..."

"Thanks, Ron. After hearing your analysis, I feel much better," Harry said, slouching on the edge of the bed, looking listless.

"Don't talk nonsense, Ron." Regardless of the reason, since Snape did not directly expose her last night, it seemed to imply that she would not be expelled for stealing from a professor's supplies.

Realizing this, Hermione became slightly less nervous. She folded her arms across her chest and glared at Ron aggressively. "Even the Minister of Magic has no right to expel a Hogwarts student at will, unless Headmaster Dumbledore agrees. But Harry, Headmaster Dumbledore won't expel you, right?"

If it were before that conversation, Harry might have been able to give a definite answer. He had always felt that the white-haired old man treated him a little differently from the other young wizards, although they had rarely spoken directly.

"Maybe, Hermione," Harry answered hesitantly. "At least Dumbledore told Hagrid that he didn't think I was the one who attacked Colin and the others. He can't possibly agree to expel me just because I hid some things from him."

While Harry was feeling anxious, Ron, who had been refuted by Hermione, was still muttering to himself, expressing his own views. Suddenly, he frowned, looked up at the pure white ceiling, and made a thoughtful expression. "Bryan Watson... I feel like I've heard this name somewhere before."

This whispered murmur immediately woke Harry. "Ron, since this Watson claims to be an investigator, it stands to reason that he must be a colleague of your father's or something. Perhaps they have a good relationship. Maybe... you could write a letter to ask, I mean, to explain in advance, before he finds me—"

Ron's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, were Harry's favorite wizards, and they were also very kind to him. The week he spent with the Weasley family last year was the most wonderful period of his summer vacation in many years. If Mr. Weasley knew Bryan Watson, he would certainly not refuse to help Harry defend himself.

The golden sunlight gradually crept up the goalposts on the field, and the breeze wandering over the spacious lawn carried a hint of spring.

"Of course, no problem, Harry. I can write a letter..." Ron responded hesitantly, still trying to recall where he had heard this name. "Fred and George may have heard of it too. As for Prefect Percy, oh, we'd better not ask him. For the sake of his career, he might be even more eager to betray us than Malfoy!"

"That's your brother, Ron," Hermione said, pulling back the covers and sitting on the edge of the bed to put on her boots. "You shouldn't talk about him like that."

Among the trio, Hermione had the highest opinion of Ron's brother, Percy Weasley. In private, she had asked Percy for help with difficult problems many times, and Percy had indeed used his extensive knowledge to help Hermione solve many issues.

"Before he became a prefect and aspired to be Head Boy, we were indeed brothers. But now, it's hard to say." Ron's ears turned red as he said angrily, "I'll never forget the five points he deducted from me in front of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom!"

"Percy is a prefect. Maintaining discipline is his responsibility, Ron." Although she was present when Percy deducted points from Ron, she did not think there was anything wrong with Percy's behavior.

Hermione stood up, stomped her boots, then turned up the collar of her wizard's robe, trying her best to cover the fur on her cheeks. "Go get your Invisibility Cloak, Harry. Do you want me to walk out of the hospital wing looking like this?"

"Oh, going out?" Harry, who had been lost in thought, suddenly came back to his senses. "Do you want to play Quidditch with us, Hermione?"

"When will you ever get Quidditch out of your head, Harry?" Hermione looked defeated. "Of course, we're going to investigate Mr. Watson. We need to find out his background first, don't we?"