The Wind and the Wings of Hogwarts

His gaze rose higher and higher, his body rapidly approaching the ceiling of the auditorium.

He saw that everyone was looking up at him.

The flight became increasingly fluid and agile, and Scott increased his speed, circling several times above the auditorium.

He saw his reflection flash by in the glass window.

It was a peregrine falcon exactly as he had imagined, with a lithe figure and broad wings.

Outside the window, there was still lightning and thunder, and torrential rain.

But his body's instincts urged him to leave and soar through the sky.

Scott suppressed the instinct and began to slow down.

"Very good. Now try to transform back into human form. Don't panic. Imagine your human form as clearly and vividly as possible!" Professor McGonagall's voice came again.

Scott landed back on the floor.

He imagined himself in human form and initiated the transformation.

The magic that had disappeared from his body surged forth, and Scott's gaze rose higher and higher.

Soon, much faster than he had become a peregrine falcon, he recovered.

"I did it!" Scott looked down at his hands with delight.

"Very good, a brilliant and successful Animagus transformation attempt."

Professor McGonagall was the first to applaud.

The other professors and Scott's two roommates also began to applaud.

"Thank you for your guidance, Professor McGonagall."

Scott bowed to Professor McGonagall.

Professor McGonagall smiled with satisfaction. "You are the most talented student I have ever taught. Just keep trying to transform, and I believe you will master it very quickly."

Scott nodded repeatedly.

"congratulations!"

Roger and Milton walked over, and Roger reached out and handed Scott's wand.

"Thank you!"

Scott smiled and took his wand.

The three of them huddled together and said a few words, while the other professors turned and left the auditorium.

Scott, however, remembered what had happened before and thought about talking to Dumbledore.

"Professor Dumbledore..."

Dumbledore turned around and smiled at him, “Oh, Scott, I think what you need most right now is a good rest. Trying to transform for the first time is always exhausting. We can talk about the rest tomorrow.”

Hearing Dumbledore say this, and with his earlier excitement fading, Scott did indeed feel weak all over, and his hands and feet were too sore to move. He could only nod in agreement.

Scott was even helped out of the auditorium by his two roommates.

Rimbaud was still waiting at the entrance of the auditorium, glancing at him curiously from time to time.

Scott managed to wave the wand with difficulty, restoring it to its original size.

Rimbaud stared at him for a few seconds, cawed a few times, spread his wings, and flew away, disappearing into the rain.

Roger and Milton helped Scott walk toward the Ravenclaw Tower.

The two had just witnessed Scott's Animagus transformation and were still somewhat excited.

“Once you get the hang of it, you can fly around everywhere, it’s so convenient,” Roger said. “You can even watch all the Quidditch World Cup matches without a ticket!”

"..."

Scott gave him a speechless look.

Milton said, "No, Scott will probably have to register his shapeshifting form with the Ministry of Magic."

"Oh...that's so boring. Couldn't you have just kept it a secret?"

"It is illegal for a wizard to conceal his Animagus transformation."

"With so many people seeing this today, I'm afraid we'll have to register it. Scott, you should try transforming in secret."

“There’s nothing I can do, even though I really want to keep it a secret,” Scott said helplessly. “The entire Animagus transformation process was carried out with the help of Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick.”

The three of them arrived at the foot of the tower and looked up at the spiral staircase.

For Scott at this time, the tower's narrow, steep spiral staircase was a formidable challenge.

“Oh, let me use a spell to take you up there,” Roger said to Scott with a grin.

"Alright."

There were no other students in the school at the moment, and Scott didn't feel ashamed. He simply lay down and floated up under Roger's spell, following the two back to the common room.

Roger placed Scott on a sofa.

Scott lay on the sofa, drank another bottle of potion, and it took him a long time to regain some strength.

It wasn't until the next day, after a good night's sleep, that Scott finally returned to normal.

After breakfast, he and his two roommates went to Professor Flitwick's office, where Dumbledore was also located.

Professor Flitwick began by discussing Milton's question.

“Have you thought this through? To reiterate, from a teacher’s perspective, I do not approve of you giving up your studies at this time.” He said to Milton somewhat seriously, “I hope you think rationally and don’t let your emotions influence you.”

Dumbledore also said to Milton, "I have heard about what happened to you, son, but I think you need more time to think and not to jump to conclusions."

Milton looked at the two professors, a bewildered expression on his face.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know..."

“Perhaps you could have a good talk with Mr. Grevis,” Professor Flitwick added. “He works at the Ministry of Magic now, and of course, I can arrange a meeting with him discreetly.”

Milton shook his head somewhat reluctantly. "No need, I don't know how to talk to him right now... Anyway, sorry, and thank you for your help."

“Oh, don’t be nervous.” Professor Flitwick looked at him with kind eyes. “Well then, the situation in Austria has calmed down. You can continue to study your favorite music this summer.”

Milton also looked up at him.

Professor Flitwick continued, “You can take more time to think things through and figure out your future. I will meet with you before the start of the semester, and then you can tell me your final answer.”

Milton nodded subconsciously.

"I will follow your arrangements," he said, his eyes reddening. "Thank you for thinking of so much for me."

“That’s only right, you’re my student,” Professor Frivi said with a smile.

Scott and Roger, who were standing next to Milton, both reached out and patted him on the shoulder.

“Now it’s your turn to ask your question, Scott.” Dumbledore looked at Scott.

Meanwhile, he told Roger and Milton to leave first.

The two looked at Scott with concern, then obediently left the office, closing the door behind them.

"I guess you want to talk to me about Broderick's problem?" Dumbledore asked Scott with a smile.

“Yes, Professor,” Scott replied. “Bill told me that Mr. Bode has been imprisoned. It was Mr. Weasley who discovered something, but he didn’t say the details.”

Dumbledore nodded.

“Few people know, and of course, I don’t either, that Broderick is an expert in memory manipulation,” he said. “People don’t know what he, as a taciturn man, researched in the Department of Mysteries.”

Scott immediately recalled the trial.

"During that trial, the defendant and his witnesses claimed they could be tested for truth serum, indicating that their memories had been fundamentally altered. Was that a collaboration between Mr. Bode and the Death Eaters, or rather, the Carroll family?"

“You could say that,” Dumbledore replied, “but he didn’t admit it. He was imprisoned because Arthur discovered his crimes—his secret manipulation of the memories of the other Silent Men in the Department of Mysteries.”

Scott wanted to ask Mr. Bode what his purpose was in doing this, but Dumbledore seemed unwilling to say more.

So Scott could only thank Mr. Weasley, "Thank you for your hard work, Mr. Weasley. I think I must thank him."

To be honest, even though he already knew that Mr. Bode was arrested because of Mr. Weasley, Scott was still surprised when he heard Dumbledore say that.

Mr. Weasley's image is tall and thin, and quite interesting, but he doesn't quite fit the descriptions of "powerful" and "meticulous".

Dumbledore smiled and said, “Your friend, Arthur, the father of the Weasley twins, is an upright and powerful wizard, though of course, he is better at things than most wizards.”

Scott nodded in agreement. "Oh, I think Fred and George's inventions, and that flying car that caused havoc at Hogwarts, are enough to illustrate the point."

Dumbledore nodded in agreement.

However, Scott was already thinking about another problem: "That is to say, we still cannot find the Death Eaters, or even Voldemort, their hidden base through Mr. Bode."

“I’m afraid that won’t work,” Dumbledore said. “Not just us, I think Lady Slytherin has also been searching for Voldemort.”

Scott was somewhat disappointed.

But he wasn't particularly disappointed, because by then his crows had already set their sights on Malfoy Manor.

But he decided to wait until he found conclusive evidence before telling Dumbledore.

At this moment, Professor Flitwick spoke up, "Scott, I know you will be angry because of the Carol siblings' attack, but I hope you will not act impulsively."

“I understand, Professor. They might be hiding with Voldemort,” Scott replied.

He won't take risks unless he's certain of success.

In short, the conversation ended there, and it was somewhat regrettable that Scott was unable to obtain any further intelligence.

Therefore, he decided to speed up his efforts to become self-reliant, hoping to learn how to use the new magic rune circuits as soon as possible and update his methods.

However, they were not able to stay at Hogwarts for long, and instead went to London with Professor Flitwick that afternoon.

After the Ministry of Magic saw Milton off as he continued his journey to Vienna, Scott declined an invitation to visit Roger's home.

Having been attacked twice by the Carol siblings, Scott was worried that something like this might happen again and implicate others.

After making a phone call home to explain the situation to his parents, he returned to the Oak Cottage in Raven Territory using the door key.

Chapter 420 Surveillance of Malfoy Manor