A Professor's Career

The last day of January happened to fall on a weekend. The weather was lovely today. Bright sunlight at eight or nine in the morning spilled over the shimmering lake, while the tender new buds on the row of willows along the shore and the emerald lawn swayed in a breeze carrying the vibrant breath of spring. The air was filled with the tranquil comfort of peaceful days.

On the grounds, the Quidditch teams of all four Houses, dressed in wildly different uniforms and colours, appeared on the pitch at the same time. After difficult, even heated negotiations, they each claimed a corner of the field and began practising their team tactics.

However, to avoid revealing their core secrets, aside from the straightforward Hufflepuffs, none of the other three Houses displayed their true abilities for their opponents to assess.

Having finally adjusted his body clock after two days, Amosta stood by the window and gazed out at the vibrant Hogwarts. He let the breeze tousle his soft grey hair, and his mood became unusually cheerful.

He made up his mind that if he ever came across another commission requiring consecutive night shifts, the fee had to be at least twenty percent above the market rate.

As he walked through the castle, the young wizards he encountered along the way all cast surprised looks at him. Almost everyone knew that the Investigator sent by the Board of Governors had habits similar to a bat's: he never appeared during the day and only liked to be active at night.

The odds of seeing him during the day were even lower than finding a Troll in the castle.

Only a scattering of late-rising students sat in the Great Hall. At the staff table, Professor Flitwick, Professor Sprout, and Snape were sitting together and talking quietly. When they saw Amosta approaching, Professor Flitwick immediately rose from his stool to congratulate him.

"We were just talking about you."

Flitwick lowered his shrill voice. "Minerva has already told us the delightful news, Amosta. We all think you'll certainly be equal to this job."

"That is, provided you show your true ability, Amosta."

Professor Sprout adjusted the patched, dust-covered hat on her head and teased with a smile, "Of course, as long as you're willing to show even one-thousandth of your strength, you'll definitely be far better than a certain attention-seeking fellow."

The three professors before him had all been teachers who guided and instructed him, so Amosta treated them with great warmth. He smiled and thanked them, then said modestly,

"Education is a profound discipline. Possessing knowledge yourself is one thing; passing it on effectively to young wizards is another. Professor Flitwick, Professor Sprout, I certainly can't compare to the two of you in experience."

Amosta's deft flattery pleased them both. Flitwick turned to Snape, who was pretending not to know Amosta, and said with a smile,

"Severus must be disappointed, isn't that right? I've lost count of how many times you failed in your bid for this post, and now you've lost to your own prized student again!"

"Perhaps Severus has long grown accustomed to losing?" Professor Sprout's perfect follow-up made even Amosta, who was eating toast, unable to stop himself from laughing.

Snape's face darkened. He gave a cold snort.

"There's nothing to be proud of in becoming the professor of this subject, Amosta. It takes real skill to leave this post safely."

"Just because you couldn't do it doesn't mean I can't, Professor." Amosta's smiling reply made Snape's face turn even darker.

After a relaxed and cheerful breakfast, they went their separate ways, agreeing to have a drink together at The Three Broomsticks Inn when they had time.

Rather than returning to his quarters, Amosta went to Professor McGonagall's office. This meeting had clearly been arranged in advance, and when Amosta knocked on Professor McGonagall's door, she showed no surprise.

"Oh, thank goodness, you've finally come!" Professor McGonagall complained, her lips pressed together.

Perhaps because the Heir of the Chamber of Secrets had not caused any trouble and everything was proceeding in an orderly fashion, Professor McGonagall looked in much better spirits and health than she had during the Christmas holiday.

"No matter what, Amosta, I must thank you. There are several children in the upper years who have always dreamed of becoming Aurors after graduation.

"You know, becoming an Auror requires at least five N.E.W.T.s, including Defence Against the Dark Arts. If Gilderoy's teaching had continued, those children would have had to face their shattered dreams ahead of time!"

"I can only do my best, Professor McGonagall."

Amosta agreed with a wry smile.

"But please don't place such high expectations on me. You know I've never been particularly good at exams, let alone helping young wizards pass them. Besides, if there are any clues regarding the Chamber of Secrets incident, I'll certainly have to deal with those first."

"Oh, we've all seen what you're capable of, Amosta." Professor McGonagall lifted her chin, sounding somewhat displeased. "I think you really need to change that habit of excessive modesty. As for that Chamber of Secrets—oh, I can't concern myself with that anymore, Amosta. Let Headmaster Dumbledore worry about it. It's about time he did some proper work."

What could Amosta say? He could only continue smiling wryly.

"As for the division of work between you and Gilderoy, this is what I think."

When it came to work, Professor McGonagall adopted an entirely different attitude. Her expression became extremely serious as she said,

"At present, the children who most urgently need your help are the fifth-years and seventh-years. They are about to face the two most important examinations of their lives, which concern their futures, Amosta. I hope you can divide the work with Gilderoy. He will be responsible for teaching students below the fifth year, while you will take charge of the fifth through seventh years."

Amosta pondered in silence. Professor McGonagall's arrangement was indeed reasonable, but it went against his original purpose in accepting this post. If he could not interact with the main group of protagonists, then what was the point of going to all this trouble?

"Regarding this matter, Professor McGonagall, I think Professor Lockhart and I should discuss it first."

In the end, Amosta did not give a definite answer.

After leaving Professor McGonagall's office, Amosta hurried off to see Professor Lockhart. Tomorrow marked the start of a new week, so he had to settle the matter this morning and use the afternoon and evening to make some preparations. Even if his motives for becoming a professor were impure, he had no desire to occupy the position without doing any work and ruin his reputation like Professor Lockhart had.

Speaking of Lockhart, Amosta could not help finding it very strange.

What kind of teaching method could earn the unanimous "praise" of every Hogwarts professor and the vast majority of young wizards, to the point that even Professor McGonagall and Headmaster Dumbledore had put aside their pride to invite him back into service?

Sorry, everyone, this chapter is a bit short. I've been very busy these past two days. I didn't get home until eleven at night, and I rushed this out before I'd even eaten.