Whether there were actually werewolves in the Forbidden Forest of Hogwarts was a question that even Dumbledore himself might not be able to answer clearly. But the school had existed for so many years, and there had never been any reports of werewolf attacks on students within the grounds.
Eda inferred that there was a very high probability that there were no werewolves in the Forbidden Forest.
If there truly were werewolves, attacks should have happened long ago. During the full moon, werewolves have neither reason nor clarity—they are even more ferocious than real wolves, driven only by a thirst for blood and a disregard for life.
A werewolf that has lost its mind wouldn't care whether Hogwarts had a Dumbledore or not. In a werewolf's eyes, the headmaster would be nothing more than a lump of old, tough meat.
As long as any student dared to wander outside the castle, they would become a target of attack—turned into a full-moon feast for a werewolf, or the next victim of lycanthropy.
Moreover, before this there had been no Wolfsbane Potion. Werewolves were unable to suppress their inner craving for blood and life.
What's more, Eda didn't believe that humans who lived year-round among wild beasts could maintain sufficient clarity and reason even in their daily lives.
Entering the Forbidden Forest was like stepping into a primeval jungle. Towering trees blotted out the sky, casting the entire forest in darkness, making it look gloomy and terrifying. Even Hagrid, who frequently went in and out of the forest, couldn't clearly say what all was inside.
Unicorns, centaurs, Acromantulas, and countless other magical creatures lived there. Oh, and also a teal-blue Ford Anglia car…
It was precisely because there were so many unknowns in the Forbidden Forest that it was so fascinating.
Still, it was dangerous, and a single misstep could cost one their life. Rather than letting students venture into the forest to take risks, it was better to let them believe that there really were werewolves there—at least werewolves could scare most people into stopping.
Obviously, Eda and the twins did not fall into the category of "most people." Over the next few days, the three of them went into the Forbidden Forest three times in total.
The first time, they found nothing at all and returned empty-handed. The second time, they did make a discovery, but after following the tracks all the way, they only ended up finding a few wolf cubs. The last time, they didn't even see those little wolves.
Still, Eda and the twins weren't completely without gains. At the very least, they saw Mr. Weasley's beloved little car. The teal-blue Ford Anglia, with its wild and freedom-loving soul, had already been racing through the Forbidden Forest to its heart's content for a full year.
The Anglia was "free," just like the house-elf Dobby.
As the first week of term came to an end, the people who were so busy they could barely keep up were no longer limited to fifth- and seventh-year students—everyone became busy.
Aside from regular classes, various study groups and interest clubs began their activities as well. Quidditch team recruitment had also ended, and all four House teams were preparing for the November Quidditch matches.
This year, Eda became a prefect, so she naturally couldn't be as relaxed as before—going to the library whenever she felt like it, or heading into the underground passageways to fight the training dummies whenever she wanted.
Eda's time became somewhat fragmented. Most of her free time was spent patrolling the corridors together with Clark Gerald. Moreover, because Sirius Black had escaped from Azkaban, the prefects' patrol times and frequencies were significantly higher than last year.
Honestly, Sirius Black himself was something else. He had spent twelve years inside living side by side with Dementors—why did he choose this particular year to break out? Could it be that the new chef at Azkaban made bread that was too hard?
What was even more ridiculous was the timing of Black's escape. He ran away the very day after Minister Fudge went to Azkaban for a bit of face-saving political theater—equivalent to slapping the Minister squarely across the face.
No wonder Fudge was so furious, sending out so many Dementors and even daring to pluck Dumbledore's whiskers.
Who knew where the Minister got that kind of courage? First, he allowed Dementors to be stationed at Hogwarts, touching the tiger's backside for the first time. Who would have thought that touching it once wasn't enough—he actually got addicted and wanted to do it a second time! The Hippogriff case had dragged on without a conclusion for ages. Such a small case taking so long—who would believe there wasn't something fishy going on?
They say that kindness does not make for good command, and Eda felt that Dumbledore these days was indeed sometimes a bit too merciful.
Lucius Malfoy had been making underhanded moves right under Dumbledore's nose and even caused a major incident like the Chamber of Secrets, yet Dumbledore let Malfoy off lightly, merely expelling him from the Board of Governors.
Perhaps that was what made a true master—knowing when to stop. If it were Eda, she would definitely have made Malfoy regret opposing her. Even if she spared his life, she would have crushed him so thoroughly that he would never have a chance to rise again. She would never have brushed it aside as lightly as Dumbledore did.
Eda believed that whether it was the Dementors inspecting the Hogwarts Express or stationing themselves around the school, both were tests by Cornelius Fudge against Dumbledore. The Minister wanted to know where the Headmaster's bottom line lay.
No one wants to be a puppet for life, and Cornelius Fudge was no exception. Although Dumbledore had never regarded Fudge as a puppet—this was something the Minister himself played up by borrowing Dumbledore's authority—Fudge had ultimately lived in Dumbledore's shadow, and feeling resentful was only natural.
Hagrid and his Buckbeak happened to be caught up in all of this, and could only consider themselves unlucky. After all, they also ran into Malfoy, who was used to throwing his weight around. There was no need to drag this case out any longer—Eda had already guessed the outcome. Wizards were politicians too.
With Dementors roaming around, the area surrounding the school was bitterly cold. The once-lively Hogsmeade had become much quieter, but inside the school everything remained peaceful—except for the students taking Defense Against the Dark Arts.
It wasn't that Professor Lupin had revealed his true colors. His teaching ability was plain for all to see; he was the best Defense Against the Dark Arts professor in five years. But this most popular professor had fallen ill and taken sick leave.
The class still had to go on, though. They couldn't delay the students' studies just because the professor was ill, could they? And so, Snape finally got his wish and became the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher—albeit only temporarily.
These were also the happiest few days Snape had had since the Boggart incident. During the days when the Potions professor filled in, he barely deducted any points from Gryffindor. The caustic Snape was actually a tiny bit kind.
Even so, the popularity of Defense Against the Dark Arts plummeted instantly, sinking to the bottom of the rankings alongside Potions and Divination.
In October, when Snape stood in for Lupin to teach for the second time, rumors began flying all over the school. The gist of them was that, in order to obtain the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Snape would stop at nothing—even poisoning his new colleague, Remus Lupin.
The rumors were spread with such vivid detail that many students felt it wasn't entirely impossible. They believed Snape had planned everything from the very start of the school term, and that the Boggart-in-a-dress incident had been the trigger for this poisoning affair.
After all, look at it—less than two months into the school year, Professor Lupin, who was in the prime of his life, had already taken sick leave twice.
And every time Professor Lupin took sick leave, it was Snape who substituted for him. Moreover, whenever Lupin recovered and returned, his face was deathly pale, making it seem as though he might drop dead at any moment.
What the students clearly forgot, however, was that from the very first day of term, Lupin had already looked frail and unwell.
Even if Snape truly wanted to poison the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, why wouldn't he choose the much easier target—the idiot Lockhart—instead of the far more difficult Lupin? Was it just to increase the difficulty level of the game?
As the rumors spread unchecked, the friction between the Slytherin students and those of the other three houses grew more frequent. Naturally, they were determined to defend their Head of House. In the entire Hogwarts, only the little snakes thought that Snape was actually a good teacher.
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