Dumbledore's Considerations

The Sorting Hat continued to ponder, "Death metal... it has quite a few elements, but none of them are really suitable for singing at the start of the school year... so I replaced them with elements of fighting and courage, and it seems to be working well!"

"Ah... that won't work either! That's too Gryffindor! As a Sorting Hat, it can't be like that! I need to think about it some more... By the way! Albus, have you found a band yet?"

"A band?" Dumbledore picked up another document and began to edit it. "I'm planning to invite the ' The Weird Sisters ' over."

"They're popular among young people, and their styles seem somewhat similar, what do you think?"

"I trust your judgment!" The Sorting Hat twitched, as if laughing. "Let me think about the lyrics again..."

The Sorting Hat fell silent, and the Headmaster's Office fell quiet, save for the rustling sound of a quill pen tracing documents.

As night fell, a knock on the door broke the silence.

"Please come in!"

Dumbledore picked up his wand and gently waved it at the pile of documents that reached the ceiling.

Professor McGonagall appeared at the door, still wearing her familiar dark green robe, which was her favorite style.

Dumbledore were the corrected documents. "Minerva, good evening!"

"Albus, good evening!" Professor McGonagall stepped forward and handed over a letter with a blue stamp of crossed wands on it.

"It's quite rare for them to send a letter at this time..." Dumbledore accepted the letter but did not open it; he simply placed it aside.

"This is the list of Hogwarts collaborators for this year." He pushed the stack of documents toward Professor McGonagall. "As usual, review them and then submit them to the Board of Governors."

Professor McGonagall nodded slightly, glanced through the documents briefly, and a hint of displeasure appeared on her face.

"Professor Lockhart's books are quite expensive, and the original scholarships are simply not enough."

Dumbledore rested his head on his hand and turned it from side to side. "Of course I know, that's why I wrote the application, Board of Governors will approve another grant."

He tapped the table with a low murmur. "Minerva, I've been busy lately. From your perspective, what do you think of Professor Lockhart?"

A tea set appeared before Dumbledore, along with a plate of colorful macarons.

Professor McGonagall pressed her lips together even tighter, gazing at the steaming tea before slowly speaking, "Similar to my views before the start of the semester, I must say..."

"The position of Defence Against the Dark Arts professor isn't really suitable for him." Her words were very conservative. "Professor Snape even asked me to inquire why he wasn't chosen."

"He asks you to ask me this question every year." Dumbledore picked up a macaron and took a bite. "I feel like something's missing these days since I haven't heard that question."

"As far as I know, apart from his poor performance in the first class, he seems to have continued to surprise his students in the subsequent classes."

Professor McGonagall glanced at the stack of documents again. "Albus, it seems you've been busy all afternoon. You didn't know he was up to something..."

"Fred and George... you know, the Weasley twins, they blew up the big iron cage and the Pixies flew out."

"The Pixies stole Lockhart's wand, and then they pointed it at... cough... pointed it at... cough cough cough!"

She coughed violently, a barely concealed smile playing on her lips.

"It seems I've missed something... well, something sad." A slight smile played on Dumbledore's lips. "Perhaps he needs some blood-replenishing medicine?"

"That was really out of line!" Professor McGonagall had excellent self-control and quickly stopped coughing.

It's unclear whether he was speaking to Lockhart or to himself.

She let out a soft breath and continued, "That was just a normal injury. Poppy healed it in just one second."

"Back to the main point! Given Fred and George's abilities, and their close relationship with Hufflepuff, I'm afraid that by tomorrow... this matter will have spread throughout Hogwarts."

"Albus, these past two years... especially this year's Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, have really... you should understand what I mean. Could the He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's curse be real?"

Dumbledore's expression turned serious. "That's something I can't be sure of, just like... I can't be sure whether Voldemort is really dead."

"What is certain is that the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts professor does indeed have its unique characteristics. After all, a new professor needs to be found every year, and even I would find it very difficult..."

"We paid a heavy price in those years fighting Voldemort, and there are very few people suitable to become Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, so the choices are really very limited."

Professor McGonagall nodded and sighed softly. "Of course I understand that."

Dumbledore continued, "Minerva, you should know that I am certain Voldemort will return."

Professor McGonagall nodded in agreement, "Of course!"

Dumbledore interlaced his fingers and leaned forward slightly. "I noticed Quirinus's strangeness and, through the Gringotts Theft Case, confirmed my suspicions."

"Albania is Voldemort's hideout, and Quirinus just happens to be there. If I'm not mistaken, it's better to keep Voldemort under my nose than to refuse Quirrell."

"Having a goal is better than having no goal at all... I want to observe Voldemort, and I also want to try to help Quirinus. I must admit, without Wizet ..."

He paused, his fingers clenched tightly together. "Without Wizet's help, we wouldn't have been able to uncover Quirinus's other side, and perhaps his fate would have been different."

"As for Professor Lockhart, the knowledge in those books is actually very useful." Dumbledore waved his wand, and a copy of "《Wanderings with Werewolves》" flew to his side.

He opened the book and began to read it carefully. There were many annotations on it as well. "Minerva, have you read this book? The contents are very interesting."

"I once visited Professor Marlowe Forfang, a leading expert in Werewolf research, for a certain reason. I went to Armenia with Professor Fufang..."

"Professor Fufang told me that he found a clue from the slightest clues: there is a wizard in Armenia who may have magic to free Werewolf from their tragic fate."

"Werewolf?" Professor McGonagall adjusted her glasses. "Could the story in that book... be related to this Armenia wizard?"

"That's right!" Dumbledore flipped to three-quarters of the way through "《Wanderings with Werewolves》" and pushed it toward Professor McGonagall.

"The Human-Shaped Restoration Spell?" Professor McGonagall quickly grasped the key point.

Dumbledore nodded. "This magic does exist. It can temporarily weaken Werewolf, making Werewolf easier to control, but it doesn't last long."

"This is an extremely niche magic. Due to its extreme difficulty in learning, it is almost facing extinction. Only a few people know this magic."