When Tver returned to Hogwarts, it was already evening.
The weather was awful. Not only was there no chance of seeing a beautiful sunset, he also had to face a rainstorm cold enough to seep straight into his bones.
Sheets of heavy rain fell like a curtain, shrouding Hogwarts in a hazy blur beneath the oppressive, cloud-thick sky.
It looked anything but welcoming.
Especially since Tver knew exactly who was responsible for this: the Dementors stationed around Hogwarts.
He suddenly understood why Dumbledore hated these bizarre creatures so much. In his place, Tver would too.
Particularly after being stopped at the gate and surrounded by several Dementors.
"State your business. This is Hogwarts. Unauthorized individuals may not enter."
Marvolio approached with three Dementors in tow, wearing a serious expression—yet the slight upward twitch at the corner of his mouth was painfully obvious to Tver.
"I'm a professor at Hogwarts!" Tver snapped, shooting Marvolio a glare.
If he weren't trying to hide their close relationship, he would have pulled out his wand already.
"My apologies, please present valid identi—… Fine, Gerard, open the door!"
The moment he saw the fire in Tver's eyes, Marvolio abandoned the joke.
The patrol members guarding the entrance looked confused—when had their fearless superior ever backed down like this?
Still, none of them dared to question him and immediately stepped aside.
Tver gave Marvolio one last glare before turning his attention to the Dementors.
They wore thin cloaks—even thinner than Lupin's—hiding their faces completely. Only when consuming a soul would they lift the hood.
The fabric concealed their ghastly gray-white skin, slick with mucus and mottled with spots.
But it didn't suppress the suffocating aura of despair that seeped from them.
Even Tver had to actively maintain his Occlumency to fend off the emotional corrosion.
It was, in fact, his first time seeing a Dementor.
They were a peculiarity of Britain—and of Azkaban specifically—just as Peeves was unique to Hogwarts. No other place had them.
The two beings even shared similarities.
Both were classified as "non-beings."
Yes—an actual magical category.
They had no true physical bodies, no birth, no death. They were composed entirely of emotion.
Muggles couldn't see them at all, only indirectly sensing the emotions they emitted.
Which meant they could never be fully eradicated. Even if one destroyed some—or all—of them, as long as those negative emotions existed, new ones would inevitably form.
This was also why successive Headmasters could do nothing about Peeves.
He was the embodiment of generations of students' mischief…
But that didn't mean Dementors were impossible to deal with.
If they dared bother him again, he'd gladly let them experience every known counter-Dementor technique.
Holding an umbrella formed from gathered water droplets, Tver headed toward the castle.
With the Dementors amplifying the weather, today's rain felt colder than usual—a chill that reached down to the soul.
Despite being only early September, it already felt like winter.
And since the Dementors were expected to stay until the end of term, he couldn't help wondering how many students would fall ill.
But just as he stepped into the entrance hall, Tver's thoughts abruptly halted.
Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall stood by the doorway, their expressions solemn as they watched the gates—as if awaiting returning students.
Something was off.
Tver frowned. A sudden, ominous feeling crept into his chest.
Dumbledore's expression made him feel as though he'd committed some great offense—something massive, something he didn't even realize he'd done.
"Long time no see, Tver," Dumbledore said with a faint glance.
Even though they'd seen each other only during the summer…
Tver gave an awkward chuckle, quickened his steps, and approached them—already planning how to probe for information.
"I'm just a little professor—hardly worth two headmasters greeting me in person, am I?"
Professor McGonagall's tightly pressed lips finally loosened a little.
"We're waiting for the students. Their train was subjected to a sudden Dementor inspection. Lupin wrote that Potter felt unwell because of it."
Dumbledore shifted his gaze to Tver, his expression grave.
"I believe we agreed that Dementors are allowed only around the outer perimeter of Hogwarts. So tell me, Professor—why did they suddenly decide to inspect the train?"
Tver nodded as if he understood perfectly.
Of course he knew this incident would happen, but the real issue was—
Go ask Marvolio!
What does this have to do with me?!
As for the "sudden inspection," if he hadn't recently dealt with Fudge, he might have genuinely assumed it was a simple accident.
But based on the information Marvolio provided in the past few days, Fudge had probably grown bold after Dumbledore's concessions, letting ambition get the better of him.
And with Sirius Black still missing, some people had even begun shouting for Fudge to step down.
All of that must have rattled him enough to trigger such a rash action.
But judging by the frost on Dumbledore's face, he clearly had no patience for excuses.
"The Dementors are outside the school grounds," Tver said naturally. "And hiding on the train—or pretending to be students—that would be the perfect way for Black to slip in, wouldn't it?"
Professor McGonagall looked displeased with Tver's casual tone. She still had no idea whether the students on the train were truly safe.
"That still doesn't justify searching the students! No—I'm having Dawlish remove the Dementors from the gates."
"Leave them," Dumbledore sighed. "Tver, I'd like a word with you."
Without giving him any chance to refuse, Dumbledore turned and headed deeper into the castle.
Tver gave McGonagall a helpless shrug before quickly following him.
They walked into the Great Hall, still unlit, the ceiling overhead flickering with lightning behind heavy clouds.
As Dumbledore lit torches and candles, he said, "I'm very grateful for the hospitality you and your teacher showed me over the holidays."
"If you ever wish to visit, you're always welcome. My teacher would be more than happy to host you again."
Dumbledore let out a quiet chuckle as he turned back.
"Perhaps. But what I'm truly grateful for is that he shared so much with me."
"Tver," Dumbledore suddenly said, turning fully to face him, "I very much hope—and choose to believe—that Grindelwald told me the truth."
"So I ask that neither you nor he betray that trust. Will you?"
Instead of feeling offended, Tver had to work his Occlumency overtime just to conceal the joy bursting inside him.
So the holiday conversation had worked!
As expected of his teacher—achieving in a single day what Tver couldn't accomplish in two years!
"As you can see," Tver said with a smile, bowing with impeccable grace, "I shall always remain Hogwarts' most… diligent professor."
...
If you'd like to support my work and unlock advanced chapters, you can follow me on P@treon.
[Upto 50 chapters ahead for now]
[email protected]/BlurryDream