Harry Potter: Becoming a Study God

As long as there's enough incentive, there are always reporters willing to publish stories that those in power would prefer to keep quiet.

Fortunately, once the responsibility was shifted to Barty Crouch Senior, the Ministry of Magic's initially rigid stance indeed began to soften.

Barty Crouch had once been the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and was considered a prime candidate for Minister of Magic.

In other words, he had once been a strong competitor of Fudge.

However, after Voldemort's downfall, Crouch's own son was discovered to be a Death Eater, and he personally sent him to Azkaban.

This incident gradually eroded Crouch's credibility, and he failed to become Minister of Magic. Instead, he now serves as the head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation.

This position is similar to the Muggle government's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but it carries much less importance, and mostly deals with trivial matters like "cauldron thickness regulations" and "differences in prohibited item standards across countries."

The reporters had no fear of retaliation from Crouch and freely painted him as a ruthless tyrant from the wartime era, and even dug up cases of others who had been sent to Azkaban without a trial.

The Ministry of Magic was more than happy to let Crouch take the blame. During interviews, Fudge tearfully confessed on camera and lamented that he had "put his faith in the wrong person."

The Ministry's stance on releasing Sirius Black remained ambiguous, but public opinion had become a powerful force, pressuring the Ministry to make a prompt decision. Dumbledore had also been tirelessly advocating for Sirius's case.

"Lupin said that the trial is likely to be held after Halloween to review Sirius's case," Harry told his friends. "A lot of people believe he's innocent, and there's a good chance he'll be acquitted."

Michael, who was aware that Harry tended to focus on the more optimistic aspects, quietly asked Wade, "Is that really true?"

Wade nodded. "This time, it actually is."

Only a small group within the Ministry still opposed Sirius's release; most people didn't really care.

Marchionne informed Wade that most prisoners in Azkaban lose their sanity within weeks, unable to hold onto even the simplest thoughts.

Many, therefore, believed there was little reason to worry about releasing someone who was likely to have lost all self-awareness, especially when he was likely innocent.

The students at school remained largely unaware of the shifts in public sentiment and the mounting pressures from all sides.

All they saw were the continuous newspaper reports on Sirius Black's story, sometimes accompanied by photos of him as a young wizard during his school days.

Sirius's striking appearance and tragic fate stirred the sympathy of nearly all the young female witches, which unexpectedly boosted his support.

Gilderoy Lockhart seemed to see this as an opportunity to jump on a trending topic. During Defense Against the Dark Arts that week, he actually skipped his usual dramatic re-enactments and instead launched into an elaborate story about his supposed friendship with Sirius Black.

Though the Marauders were close to graduating by the time he entered Hogwarts, Lockhart's tale made it seem as if they shared a deep bond.

"I saw through Peter Pettigrew right away, and sensed his treacherous nature immediately," Lockhart declared, "I even warned them about him. But alas, no one heeded my words."

He shook his head regretfully, adding, "Ah, I was as young as you are now. My vision was sharp, my insight was extraordinary, yet I wasn't given the respect I deserved."

"If only they had listened to me sooner, things might have turned out differently."

As he spoke, the girls in the class gazed at him in admiration, their eyes misting over, and they reassured him, "It wasn't your fault, Professor! You did everything you could!"

Noticing that Harry seemed to waver, Ron quickly said, "You don't actually believe that nonsense, do you, mate? You know Lockhart's just an airheaded fool."

"But… but he's written so many books, hasn't he?" Harry replied, "Maybe he really does have a good eye for things."

When he finished his homework, Harry reached out to Lupin with his Book of friends and asked about Lockhart's claims.

[Lupin: Gilderoy Lockhart?]

Lupin's response almost radiated confusion: "Who is that?"

Harry proceeded to tell him about Lockhart's self-aggrandizing tales.

After a while, Lupin finally seemed to remember him.

[Lupin: Oh, I do recall that name. He was a rather famous Ravenclaw, but not for his powers of insight or strong magic. 

Shortly after starting school, he claimed he'd create a Philosopher's Stone by the time he graduated and would lead England's Quidditch team to win the World Cup.]

[Lupin: Ravenclaw's Quidditch team even let him try out as an exception… and he promptly fell off his broom.]

[Lupin: He was also known for some other stunts, like carving his name in 20-foot letters across the Quidditch pitch.]

[Lupin: Anyway, we were too busy in our later years dealing with Slytherins, exploring and creating the Marauder's Map, or following the war's progress to bother with a younger Ravenclaw like him.]

Lupin's reaction seems to be very intense…

Watching the words appear rapidly on the parchment, Harry thought to himself.

Michael hit the nail on the head: "Looks like he wants absolutely nothing to do with Lockhart. Best if you don't bring him up again."

Harry nodded silently.

Harry set aside his unrealistic expectations about Lockhart and turned to ask everyone: "Hey guys, do you want to go to Nearly Headless Nick's Deathday Party? It's on Halloween."

Everyone went quiet for a moment.

Michael: "I think I misheard… a what kind of party?"

Theo: "Who's Nick?"

Neville: "Nearly Headless Nick, the Gryffindor ghost."

"A ghost's deathday party?" Padma wrinkled her nose. "Will there be a lot of ghosts there?"

"Um… probably," Harry said hesitantly, then tried his best to persuade them: 

"This year marks Nick's 500th deathday. Just think… Halloween happens every year, but a deathday party like this, you might only see once in a lifetime! Don't you want to go?"

"Uh…" Michael asked, "You didn't already say yes, did you?"

"I did!" Harry said as he looked at his friends with a pleading expression.

"I'd like to go," Hermione said enthusiastically. "It'll be so interesting!"

"Is anyone else going, Harry?" Theo asked. "Or is it just you… and Hermione?"

"… Ron agreed to go with me too," Harry replied.

"Well… if you really want, I can come along…" Neville said hesitantly.

But judging from his expression, he regretted it almost immediately.

Not giving him a chance to back out, Harry quickly said, "Great, it's settled then! And the rest of you?"

"I'm not going," Wade shook his head. 

He knew that the food at the party was all… unusual ghostly dishes, and he had no interest in attending.

"Of course we're going!" Fred said excitedly. "Ghosts! I've never seen ghosts from anywhere outside Hogwarts!"

George nodded in agreement.

Harry felt a bit relieved, but then did a quick headcount…

Wait—aren't they all Gryffindors?

He looked around at the others.

Theo glanced at Ryan and laughed, saying, "We're sitting this one out too… but I'll make sure to save you some dinner."

"What do you mean?" Harry felt a sense of foreboding. "The deathday party… doesn't serve food?"

Theo said gently, "They probably only serve ghost food."

Harry blinked.

"So maybe… I shouldn't have said yes to Nick's deathday party?"

"But you already did," Padma said gleefully.

Hermione nodded and said: "A promise is a promise! And besides, a party isn't only about the food!"

Michael smiled and said: "It's a rare party, isn't it? Most people never get this chance."

"Then do you want that chance?" Neville asked nervously.

"Hmm… I think I'll pass." Michael responded kindly but firmly.

"Wear something warm," Wade advised. "Places full of ghosts can get pretty cold."

---

Before they knew it, Halloween arrived.

In the evening, Wade and his friends entered the Great Hall. Like last year, countless candles floated above them, while bats decorated the ceiling. 

Huge pumpkins had been carved into various lantern shapes, and fairies flitted along the vines, sprinkling colorful sparks from the tips of their tiny wands.

The long tables were filled with delicious-smelling food, most of it were dishes that they rarely saw on the table.

Michael grabbed two pieces of crispy fried cheese and took a big bite. The rich, savory taste was almost addictive. 

He quickly finished in a few bites, then put two more pieces on his plate and happily said to Wade: "If Harry and the others knew what they were missing tonight, they'd definitely regret it."

"I bet they already do," Wade said, spearing a piece of French lamb chop. "Ghost food is all rotting."

"Uh…" Michael pleaded, "Could you not say such horrible things while we're eating?"

As they ate, a skeleton dance troupe performed on stage. 

The pale skeletons moved to the upbeat music, sometimes linking hands to dance, sometimes bending like rubber snakes, and they even collapsed into piles of bones and then magically reassembled themselves.

Their teeth clattered in rhythm, prompting the whole audience to clap along and cheer, making for an incredibly lively atmosphere.

Aside from Professor Snape's usual scowl, students and teachers alike were in high spirits, with round after round of applause.

"This is amazing!" 

Lee Jordan from Gryffindor grabbed a dark-skinned girl, and the two jumped onto the stage to dance along with the skeletons, bringing the energy in the room to a new high.

After the banquet, as the students headed back to their common rooms, Wade noticed Harry and his group just coming up from the dungeons.

Apart from Fred and George, who still had smiles on their faces, everyone else looked utterly exhausted.

"That was horrible," Ron groaned. "Moldy, maggoty, rotten food… everything there was disgusting."

Theo and the others laughed, and shared food they'd brought from the Great Hall with them.

"Thank you so much." Harry stuffed the food into his pockets and sighed. "But I can't eat anything right now… I feel like my sense of smell is permanently ruined."

The group walked out of the entrance hall, then parted ways and each followed the stream of students back to their respective common rooms.

"This was the best Halloween of my life!" Michael said excitedly on the way back to the dorm.

Padma was unconsciously humming one of the skeleton troupe's songs and responded, "Yeah, it really was. Last year was great too, but the troll kind of ruined everything."

"Well, I wouldn't say that exactly," Michael replied. "After that night, you joined our group, so that Halloween was still pretty amazing."

Padma looked at Michael and gave him a sweet smile.

Sensing the moment, Wade tactfully distanced himself and headed back to the common room on his own.

There, he took out the gifts he'd prepared for the house-elves—a set of magical masks that could transform into different shapes. He wrote a message of thanks on the package and left it on the table so they'd find it later in the evening.

Though Wade had a good relationship with several house-elves by now, they still adhered to their own code of conduct and only appeared before him if summoned.

Wade stood by the window and waited for a while.

The large castle gradually quieted down as the Ravenclaw students drifted off to sleep, and likely, the students in the other houses did the same.

No screams, no petrifications, no chaos or fear.

It was exactly what he hoped for—a peaceful, fulfilling, and fun school life.

Wade smiled.

---

The day after Halloween, after the afternoon classes ended, Wade received a note from Professor Sprout:

[Come to Greenhouse Three after dinner.]

Feeling a surge of excitement, Wade went straight to Greenhouse Three after dinner and saw that the now-larger mandrakes were swaying slightly.

"Though the mandrakes aren't fully mature yet, their leaves are already usable," Professor Sprout said.

A purple vine tried to wrap around the witch's shoulder, but she calmly brushed it off.

"That's great!" Wade said excitedly. "So, I can use this to practice becoming an Animagus, right?"

"Yes, exactly." Professor Sprout smiled. "In fact, you could have started a week ago, but I thought it would be a shame for you to miss the Halloween feast over this, don't you think?"

"Thank you, Professor." Wade said gratefully.

"Learning to become an Animagus is a long process, Wade."

As Professor Sprout spoke, she pulled out a large pair of scissors and began carefully searching through the mandrakes.

"You've always been smooth sailing in your magical studies, but you need to understand that failing a few times when practicing to become an Animagus is completely normal, especially with the first step."

"For a full month, you'll have to hold a leaf of mandrake in your mouth at all times. You can't swallow it, and you can't take it out. If you fail, you'll have to start the process all over again."

"Today, we'll pick out the leaves. Before the full moon, you'll need to get used to the feeling of speaking, eating, and sleeping with a leaf of similar size in your mouth, and be careful not to swallow it. 

Practicing in advance will help you avoid making mistakes when you officially start."

Professor Sprout held up the scissors and smiled. "Now, pick a leaf, Wade."

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⭐Harry Potter: Becoming a Study God (HP:BSG)- +139 Chapters & 2 Chapters/Day

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