Dumbledore nodded slightly: "He's still a child, even if he made some mistakes, I think he should be given a chance to correct them... Besides, he was supposed to be a student at Hogwarts."
Vid had already guessed the headmaster would say this.
After all, Carrel was only thirteen, and Dumbledore had given Voldemort chance after chance. Naturally, he wouldn't just send away a child who had been abducted.
"But..."
Vid frowned slightly and said, "Mr. Johnson has been looking for him. Maybe we should let father and son reunite first? I think Mr. Johnson might not want Carrel to enter any magic school again."
"That's another bad news, Vid."
Dumbledore said, "Mr. Landon Johnson is missing. I went to the place he previously stayed and found that it hasn't been occupied for a long time."
Vid was taken aback: "He... does it mean he's already..."
Dumbledore shook his head slowly: "I don't know. But Mr. Johnson Jr. has nowhere to go except Hogwarts."
"Over the past two years, he's received some bad education within the organization, Vid. I hope you can help me monitor his state and guide him to correctly distinguish right from wrong."
...
Leaving the Headmaster's Office, Vid felt a bit troubled.
He didn't refuse Dumbledore's request, after all, the headmaster, worn out, made a plea... but the thought of meeting that annoying guy Carrel again made Vid frown involuntarily.
Vid's friends were very mindful of personal boundaries, and when he wanted to be alone, nobody would indiscreetly try to pull him into their circle.
But Carrel?
He simply didn't know there was such a thing as "boundaries" in this world.
No matter how reluctantly, Vid knew Carrel would blatantly appear in front of him.
At dinner, Vid entered the Great Hall and saw students from all four houses almost filled the four long tables — something rare on usual days.
"Why so many people?" Vid asked casually as he sat down.
Michael, who saved a seat for him, said, "No idea... Professor Flitwick had the prefects notify everyone to be in the hall on time for tonight's dinner."
Several senior students first looked towards the teachers' table.
"Professor Abigail is still here." Penelope breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank goodness, it's not the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher in trouble."
"She wouldn't be in trouble no matter who is; have you forgotten how formidable Professor Abigail is? I suspect she could defeat a troll without a magic wand!"
Marietta chimed in casually.
"Who knows?" Penelope said, "Our school's Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers always seem to have high-risk jobs."
There was a lot of chatter, and some tardy students slowly trickled in.
Suddenly, someone walked up to Vid from behind and patted him on the shoulder.
He turned and was surprised to see it was Percy Weasley — they hardly ever spoke.
Percy's demeanor was good, though his tone still held a bit of haughtiness, he tried to put on a smile.
"Gray, I heard you also chose twelve subjects?"
"Yes—" Vid replied, unsure of Percy's intentions.
"So you've also got— that, right?" Percy gestured with his fingers.
"Of course," Vid said.
"Use it cautiously, always remember the professors' warnings, don't break any rules."
Percy sounded like Professor McGonagall, speaking with an elder's tone: "It's all for your safety."
"Uh... thanks?"
Vid responded, puzzled, while Michael rolled his eyes beside him.
Then Percy continued forward, walking slowly, before being called by the girls: "Weasley, what did you say to Gray just now? Was it a secret?"
The surrounding girls giggled at him, and Percy's freckled face turned slightly red, yet he feigned seriousness and said:
"Just some... necessary guidance on balancing your schedule when choosing multiple subjects..."
Marietta was enlightened: "Makes sense, since you got twelve OWLs certificates..."
Cho Chang, sitting beside her, smiled without saying a word.
Percy coughed, casually adjusting the student council badge on his chest to catch the light, making it look even brighter.
"Ahem, I definitely wasn't showing off, only few students can achieve this. I just hope Gray can persevere like me, and not give up midway..."
Baffled, Vid glanced at Percy and then at Michael: "What does he mean? Does he have something against me?"
"What else could it be?" Michael scoffed: "He's just looking for a chance to talk to Penelope — you're just the stepping stone for their romance, whatever he says, just ignore it."
Vid looked again, and sure enough—when Penelope started talking to Percy, his expression became visibly more enthusiastic, almost completely ignoring everyone else nearby.
"Why are they being so secretive... Do they really think this relationship is being hidden well?" Vid asked, bewildered.
"Not everyone has keen eyes like ours." Michael nodded towards a direction: "Look, some there haven't noticed."
He was referring to Marietta.
During Percy and Penelope's conversation, Marietta kept trying to chime in, and Cho Chang next to her repeatedly interrupted without understanding why.
But Percy didn't talk for long; soon he had to head towards Gryffindor's front row, keeping a wary eye on what his twin brothers were doing.
Fred and George weren't causing trouble; they eagerly anticipated something fun would happen that night.
The teachers' table was gradually filled, except for the seat next to Dumbledore — McGonagall's seat.
Seeing most students had arrived, Dumbledore picked up a fork and tapped the glass.
"Ding— ding—"
The crisp sound echoed throughout the hall, and everyone quieted down.
"Good evening, students—" Dumbledore stood up, smiling: "I hope you had an enjoyable weekend."
"Today, we gather to welcome a transfer student — Carrel Johnson!"
A buzz of discussion instantly arose in the hall—
"Who is this? Have you heard of him?"
"Johnson? Is there such a pure-blood clan?"
"Hey Angelina, is he a relative of yours?"
"No, I've never heard of him."
"I recall the Avery Clan had intermarriage with someone named Johnson before... wonder if it's the same family..."
The hall doors suddenly opened, and Professor McGonagall stood at the entrance with a boy unfamiliar to everyone, glaring sternly at the whispering students.
But the crowd didn't mind being scared, as they were all busy sizing up the unfamiliar student.