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"It's only been a month and there's been no progress at all... Of course, this has little to do with Sirius and more to do with Harry snacking on mandrake leaves.
"I estimate that he ate at least half a pound of mandrake leaves."
The prerequisite for learning Animagus is to hold a mandrake leaf in your mouth for a month, but Harry couldn't even last a day.
The longest time was eight hours. I spent the whole day very carefully. I could only drink porridge for meals, and then swallow the leaves before sleeping.
It was only because Sirius's family was wealthy that Harry could eat the expensive mandrake leaves as snacks.
"Speaking of this..." Professor McGonagall asked, "Are you interested in learning this magic? I believe your basic abilities will be no problem. If you want to learn, I can teach you this semester."
"Animagus?" Kyle was slightly stunned, then shook his head, "Forget it, I'm not interested."
"Not interested in?"
"It's mainly useless." Kyle looked up and said.
If Animagus could turn him into a magical creature, Kyle would learn it no matter what.
Not to mention the fire dragon, even top animals like the Nectarine, even if it turns into a Niffler, have the ability to easily pass through gaps.
But if it were just an ordinary animal, it wouldn't be that attractive.
Previously, Kyle thought that the greatest function of Animagus was its concealment. It could transform into an animal to gather information, or escape if it could not defeat the opponent.
But he couldn't use it in either situation.
A Niffler or Bowtruckle could also help him gather information, but in a safer and more discreet way.
As for escaping, it would have been possible five years ago, but now... To be honest, there are not many wizards who can force him to escape, and if he can't escape even with the ring, then turning into an animal is useless.
So at this stage, Animagus is a bit useless to him.
Moreover, this kind of magic has a biggest limitation, that is, after turning into an ordinary animal, one will be subject to various restrictions and cannot change back immediately.
For example, Rita Skeeter, after she turns into a beetle, an ordinary bottle can trap her.
And if Professor McGonagall's tabby cat was caught by someone, she would not be able to change back. If the other party wanted to, they could easily crush her to death.
This limitation is equivalent to finding a weakness for himself. It is also for this reason that Kyle has been hesitating whether to learn this magic.
Oh, by the way, Animagus is the only known ability to escape from Azkaban.
But Kyle doesn't need this either, he has someone he knows there... maybe he's gone, but he can squeeze in another one.
In short, it is much better than turning into an animal and escaping.
Kyle gave a brief explanation, and Professor McGonagall thought about it after listening and didn't say anything else.
Indeed, Animagus was of little help to Kyle. Although this magic could detect a wizard's level of Transfiguration, the superb level of Transfiguration he demonstrated at Lupin's wedding last time did not require Animagus to prove anything.
Kyle heaved a sigh of relief when Professor McGonagall didn't mention it again.
In fact, in addition to these, he has another reason that is not really a reason...
Although it has not been truly confirmed, in most cases a wizard's Patronus and Animagus form correspond.
If the Patronus is a cat, then the Animagus will most likely also be a cat... just like Professor McGonagall.
There is Sirius, whose patronus is a dog, and James Potter's patronus is a stag, which also corresponds to his nickname Prongs.
One could be said to be a coincidence, but when so many are like this, it’s hard to say.
Actually, this is nothing, but Kyle's patronus is a jellyfish, an aquatic animal. What if the Animagus also turns into a jellyfish?
It would be so embarrassing if he transformed and fell to the ground with a thud.
……
(End of this chapter)
Chapter 806: Opening Party
From morning to evening, the Hogwarts Express traveled at a speed that was completely inconsistent with its name.
As they approached Hogwarts, Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick went to the prefects' carriage to explain things. Professor Sprout didn't go there. She was trimming the excess branches and leaves of a Christmas cactus.
Kyle sat there, staring out the window in a daze.
Before this, he was actually worried about how to hold the Hogwarts opening party.
If the most important thing before this event was the sorting of freshmen, then this year it must be Dumbledore's speech.
It’s not that the freshman sorting this year is not important, it’s just that people don’t care that much about it, especially in this situation, most people obviously want to see Dumbledore more.
He doesn't need to do anything, just showing up can put everyone at ease.
Maybe this is also the reason why Dumbledore prepared in advance and let Kyle impersonate him.
If he didn't even show up at the opening party, it would inevitably lead to bad associations, including the possibility that the Death Eaters would make some attempts on the school.
Of course, as long as he shows up, there is no need to worry about these.
Since the week before school started, Kyle had been wondering when Dumbledore would be back.
To be honest, he did disappear for quite a while, and the closer it got to the start of school, the more worried Kyle became.
First of all, time travel is actually not safe and is full of uncertainties. Under normal circumstances, there cannot be two Dumbledores in the same period of time. Once they see each other, they may accidentally kill their past or future "selves".
For example, if the Dumbledore in the past killed the "Dumbledore" who went back using the time turner, then he would have been truly dead during that time period and naturally could not come back.
If Dumbledore who returned killed his current self, the situation would only be worse. As for what exactly happened... no one knows, because the people who experienced it did not leave any information at all.
Although Kyle believed that Dumbledore would not make such a common sense mistake, he was not so sure when it came to Ariana.
Even the most sober-minded people can lose their composure when faced with the things they care about most, and even Dumbledore is no exception.
If he gets carried away and wants to save Ariana, he will inevitably have an intersection with his past self, and anything can happen.
Another very important point is his return.
If a normal wizard had used the time-turner, Dumbledore would have lived in the past for a hundred years until August of this year, when he would return to Bathilda's home in Godric's Hollow to complete the time loop.
That was when he used the time-turner to leave.
But this did not happen. A month has passed and he still hasn't shown up.
One of the reasons is the problem with the time-turner. According to Nico, because it has been repaired, it may cause Dumbledore's time point to fall into a special deviation.
In other words, the system is stuck, the screen is frozen, but the outside world is normal.
However, Nico also said that even if this situation occurs, it will only last for a few days at most, and will not be stuck for a month.
In order to avoid this risk, Nico also gave a second option, which is to use the time converter to come back.
This is also the reason why he chose to create another Philosopher's Stone and use it as the core of the time converter. The magic power provided by the Philosopher's Stone is enough to support him to travel through time twice.
But Dumbledore didn't seem to choose this method, he just disappeared out of thin air.
Before today, Kyle had wondered if Dumbledore was too old and had died of old age one day in the past hundred years. If that was the case, he really wouldn't be able to show up.
But he just dismissed the idea.
Wizards generally have a long lifespan. For example, the previous headmaster of Hogwarts, Armando Dippet, lived to be over 300 years old and is still alive and well. Bathilda is also over 100 years old.
Even a witch selling snacks on a train can live to be nearly 200 years old, not to mention Dumbledore who has profound magical powers. As long as he doesn't commit suicide, there is no problem for him to live to 200 years old.
But why hasn't he come back yet, Kyle couldn't figure it out.
Another whistle sounded, bringing Kyle back to his senses.
There was a commotion outside the box... The Hogwarts Express had arrived.
Kyle stood up subconsciously.
"You don't have to rush." Professor Sprout said, "It's best not to let others know that you are coming to Hogwarts."
Her meaning was simple, asking Kyle to wait a while before leaving. Kyle understood, nodded, and sat back down.
Professor Sprout then left the carriage and led the other students off the train.
Kyle just sat in the car and watched the crowds of people outside.
He also saw a huge figure. Hagrid, like in previous years, was holding the oil lamp that had been used for who knows how many years, and came to pick up the new students to cross the river to the castle.
Twenty minutes later, the last group of students took a carriage to the castle. The surroundings returned to silence. Kyle also came outside and looked up at the castle hidden in the night.
"How do you feel? Come back in another identity." Professor McGonagall, who was responsible for sending the students, turned back and walked to Kyle's side.
"I can't say." Kyle spread his hands, "But if I had a choice, I really wouldn't want to come. I believe that few graduates would want to come back either."
"That's understandable," said Professor McGonagall, smiling, "but Dumbledore must appear at the opening banquet."
"I understand, otherwise I would have run away long ago." Kyle said, "By the way, Professor McGonagall, how much is the headmaster's salary?"
"Salary?" Professor McGonagall felt a little confused as to what Kyle was thinking. How come they were just talking about school and suddenly they were talking about salary?
But she thought about it and said, "It shouldn't be less than 200 Galleons."
Her monthly salary is 200 Galleons, so the principal's should be higher.
"Is this money for me?" Kyle asked, "After all, I am here to replace Dumbledore, so it is reasonable for me to take his salary."
"That makes sense." Professor McGonagall couldn't help rubbing her forehead. "Well, we should go there too. Like I said just now, Dumbledore must be at the opening banquet."
"Okay." Kyle sighed and walked into the castle gate with mixed feelings.
However, they did not rush to the castle, but went to the principal's office on the eighth floor first.
Inside were several robes that had been prepared in advance.
"These are the styles that Dumbledore likes. Pick one," said Professor McGonagall. "Hurry up."
Kyle took a look.
Wow, purple... lavender... lavender stripes, dark purple with gold edges, this whole bunch of robes, not a single one that fits Kyle's aesthetic.
Professor McGonagall was urging him, so Kyle had no choice but to pick out a blue robe that he liked, put Dumbledore's hair into the Polyjuice Potion, and drank it.
Polyjuice Potion is a magical potion that smells terrible by itself, but when added to hair it becomes another different smell, and it's different for everyone, a bit like...Bibi Multi-Flavor Beans.
As for the bottle that Kyle drank... I wonder if the sugar that Dumbledore had added to the tea before had accumulated in his hair, a bit like syrup mixed with honey.
It was so sweet that it tasted bitter. Kyle almost vomited it.
……