Muggle Studies

Professor Bubage, with a focused expression, is repairing an old-fashioned tin Flashlight on the table.

The various parts of the Flashlight were disassembled and scattered on the table. Professor Bubage, wearing a plain blue woolen coat decorated with small flowers and with blonde hair, examined the various parts. After some thought, she put the battery into the casing and then fell into deep thought again.

Knock knock knock.

A knock came at the door.

Burbage was startled from his reverie. He quickly grabbed a newspaper to cover the parts and replied somewhat flusteredly, "Please come in."

Hermione pushed open the door and entered.

Metal speedboat models, broken electronic watches, disassembled cassette tapes... many items with distinct Muggle characteristics are displayed on the shelves along the wall.

If Charity Burbage's office were exposed, even as a professor of Muggle Studies, it would certainly attract scrutiny from the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office.

This was Hermione's first thought upon entering the office; however, judging from Mr. Weasley's behavior during their last meeting, Professor Bubage might become good friends with him.

"Good afternoon, Professor Bubage."

"Good afternoon, it's Miss Granger ..." Burbage breathed a sigh of relief, then happily lifted the newspaper covering him. "I thought it was Professor McGonagall. I'm going to get scolded again if she sees me fiddling with these Muggle gadgets. You've come at the right time, Granger. Quickly, help me figure out how to assemble this thing."

Looking at the scattered Flashlight parts, Hermione was silent for a moment. She knew how to change the batteries in the Flashlight, but she wasn't confident she could put it back together after taking it apart like this.

She tentatively asked in a low voice, "Can't we use Mending Charm to assemble it?"

"Mending Charm ...that would be fine. But I'd much rather assemble it myself." Professor Bubage sighed, looking at the parts. "After all, I'm the one who took it apart."

"There should have been instructions when you bought the Flashlight, right? Professor, you can try assembling it according to the instructions. If you really can't, use the Mending Charm to restore it and take it apart a few more times. You'll eventually be able to assemble it by slowly figuring it out."

"Instruction manual... I bought it from Knockturn Alley without an instruction manual. As for using magic, that's no fun; I want to experience the authentic Muggle life." Seeing that she couldn't assemble it either, Professor Bubage clicked his tongue regretfully, opened a drawer, and shoved the parts inside. "By the way, Miss Granger, what can I do for you?"

"Tumble, Knockturn Alley?" Hermione paused, taken aback.

So Muggle items and Dark Arts items are sold together?

Thinking about it carefully, it seems quite reasonable, since they are all contraband to wizards.

Upon hearing the professor's question, Hermione quickly replied, "I had a lot of thoughts after attending the first class last week, so I wanted to talk to you more about the Muggle Studies course."

Professor Bubage smiled gently and poured a cup of tea for the guest. "Sit down first. Here, have some tea. Don't be so nervous. Speaking of which, I remember you're Muggle-born wizard. Perhaps you know more about Muggle than I do. Is there anything you'd like to know from me?"

Hermione picked up her cup, took a small, symbolic sip, and quickly put it down upon hearing this. "Don't say that, Professor. I want to understand the mutual influence between Muggle society and the Wizarding World."

Professor Bubage immediately became interested. "Oh, mutual influence?"

"Yes." Hermione nodded seriously. "In terms of transportation, the means of transport in the past were very primitive. Muggle used horse-drawn carriages and oxcarts, and wizards used Fantastic Beasts to pull their carts. Later, when buses were invented, wizards also had Knight Bus ..."

The influence of wizards on Muggle is undeniable; the strange events recorded in various theological and religious texts are mostly attributed to wizarding magic. However, the influence of Muggle on wizards only gradually became apparent after the Industrial Revolution. Beyond various intangible institutions, the pervasive influence of things like the Knight Bus and the Hogwarts Express became even more evident.

"... So, I'm wondering if Muggle society has some profound influence on the Wizarding World."

After Hermione finished speaking, she looked at Professor Bubage with some nervousness. These were just rough ideas that came to her after listening to the first lesson, and she hadn't even discussed them with Loren.

Professor Bubage looked up at the third-grade girl, his heart seemingly touched, his eyes trembling slightly. He took a deep breath, gathering all his thoughts, and said, "You possess the insight to see the essence of things and a brilliant mind, Miss Granger. If you would like to hear my opinion, then I must say, please remain silent, Granger."

Hermione stared in surprise. "Keep quiet!?"

"Yes, remain silent. Revealing shocking truths will do no good to the corrupt Wizarding World; they will only see you as a madman."

Professor Bubage's eyes held a deep, dark gleam, like swirling eddies in Black Lake. She looked at Hermione with a profound gaze. "The Ministry of Magic and Pure-blood Families occupy all the key positions in the Wizarding World. Expressing opinions is unimportant, at least not so important now. When I first graduated from Hogwarts, I spent a lot of time traveling through Muggle society. Those years of experience made me think I understood the truth of both societies, and I published many... well, immature articles in the Daily Prophet."

At this point, Professor Bubage paused, seemingly recalling memories of his youth, and after a few seconds of thought, continued, "At first, some people echoed my sentiments, but there was more abuse, slander, and even threats. The people at the Daily Prophet were delighted to see their newspaper sales soar and were willing to continue publishing my articles. I argued back and forth with those who upheld Pure-blood beliefs for several years, only to find that nothing had changed, even though I had rendered them speechless."

Hermione listened quietly as the Muggle Studies professor recounted her past. Her hand rested on the barely touched teacup, the clear tea occasionally rippling in circles.

She knew about Professor Bubage's statements: advocating equality Muggle and wizards, believing that marriage between Pure-blood and Muggle was not abhorrent, but even worthy of promotion...

"It took me a long time to realize that such articles were nothing more than a joke to them. By the time I came to my senses and wanted to do something for both societies, I was already shut out by an invisible door, and in the end, I could only teach an obscure elective at Hogwarts, playing a negligible role..."

Professor Bubage snapped out of his reverie, poured himself a cup of tea, and took a small sip. "So I suggest you keep quiet for now, and only say these things when you have the ability to get them to listen to you seriously, instead of treating you like a joke."

"Muggle Studies isn't a trivial subject..." Hermione couldn't help but retort. She pursed her lips, her thoughtful gaze shifting for a moment before she asked,

"Professor, do you think there will be a war between Muggle and wizards in the future, or will they be able to develop peacefully together? You know, the situation in the Wizarding World seems very complicated. Even at Hogwarts, there are professors like Headmaster Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall who are close to Muggle, as well as Snape— "

Before the little Witch could finish speaking, there was a crisp sound of a teacup hitting a solid wood table. Professor Bubage shook his head with a smile, "Severus is not the kind of wizard who is obsessed with Pure-blood and alienates Muggle. On the contrary, he is my friend and we get along quite well."

Hermione's eyes widened in disbelief. No one could believe what Professor Bubage had said: the Head of House Slytherin House, where the Pure-blood ideology was most prevalent, was not a Pure-blood Supremacy supremacist.

After refilling his teacup, Burbage picked up his teacup again and said while taking a small sip, "In fact, the professors at Hogwarts haven't been supporters of the Pure-blood concept in recent years. To be honest, I suspect this might be one of Albus's criteria for hiring faculty members."

"Besides, I can't answer your question." Burbage sighed softly. "No one can predict the future. In 1945, Albus defeated the first Dark Lord Gellert Grindelwald, in that legendary duel, and many people thought Dumbledore would take the lead in the Wizarding World and begin to embrace the Muggle era. But things didn't turn out that way..."

Later, the second Dark Lord launched the Wizarding Wars and was defeated once again... Hidden Acolytes, ambitious Pure-blood Families, Death Eater who escaped judgment... Sigh, who knows what the future holds?

"An uncertain future..." Hermione murmured softly.

For the next hour, the two chatted about everything under the sun in Muggle society and the Wizarding World. From snacks and candies to the Ministry of Magic and the Royal Cabinet, they talked about whatever came to mind, and had a very pleasant conversation.

The conversation ended when the light outside the window gradually dimmed and the magic candles in the office lit up on their own.

Burbage didn't know how many times she had picked up the teapot to add tea, but she found that not a drop could be poured out of the spout. She put the teapot down with some regret. "Miss Granger."

"Um?"

"With your current knowledge base, this course on Muggle Studies is no longer of any help to you. Much of the content covered in class is common knowledge to you. I suggest you drop the course."

Seeing the little Witch's eagerness to refute, Burbage gestured for her to hold back. "This is just a suggestion. Whether you choose to take this course or not, you are always welcome to come here and talk to me."

Hermione pursed her lips, but ultimately shook her head. "Thank you, Professor. I know you mean well, but I still want to give it a try."

At dinner, Loren and Hermione met in the Great Hall.

The two arrived a bit late, and since weekend dinners aren't all-you-can-eat, the selection at the table wasn't extensive. After getting their food, they found a seat at the end of the Gryffindor table.

Both of them were preoccupied with their own thoughts, and seemed somewhat silent while getting their food.

But for Loren, nothing was more important than eating. The moment he put the delicious roasted chicken leg into his mouth, he suddenly snapped out of his afternoon reverie and started eating.

Hermione remained silent, munching on her Cornbread in small bites.

Hermione couldn't take it anymore when Loren put the Cornbread he didn't like on Hermione's plate again and took her roasted chicken leg.

"Do you think I'm blind?" Hermione stared at her plate, furious. She held the last roasted chicken leg, and the plate was piled high with three or four Cornbread.

"I'm trying to help you!" Loren said confidently. "I thought you liked Cornbread but didn't like roasted chicken legs."

"Ha, what a coincidence." Hermione sneered, not following his logic. "I don't like Cornbread either, so you can eat all of these for me."

"I can't eat anymore," Loren said loudly.

"Then I'll just shove it into your mouth!"

Seeing that the man was about to resort to violence after being unable to win an argument, Loren used the tactic of changing the subject. "Let's put the Cornbread matter aside for now, I have something to tell you."

Hermione remained unfazed, placing her right hand on his shoulder and grabbing a croissant with her left, ready to strike.

Loren was a little flustered and spoke quickly, "It's about Wormtail Peter. I found his trail this afternoon!"

"..."

Although she knew it was a clumsy attempt to change the subject, Hermione stopped; she was genuinely concerned about the matter.

Loren breathed a sigh of relief and recounted the discovery of mouse footprints in the Room of Requirement that afternoon, "... the shape of those forelegs must belong to Wormtail Peter."

Hermione glanced up at the man; he still had that grinning expression on his face, seemingly wary of her stuffing the croissant into his mouth...

He seemed indifferent, but how could he really not care?

That's that Wormtail Peter.

The little Witch's heart skipped a beat. She didn't know if this was just him putting on an act of indifference, or if he truly didn't care. Hermione didn't want to call him out directly, nor did she want to utter any platitudes like reporting to Dumbledore.

She picked up her plate, poured half of the Cornbread into Loren's plate, and took back two roasted chicken legs. Hermione took a bite of the chicken leg; the skin was already a little cold, but the flavor was still very good, though slightly greasy. She asked calmly, "Do you have any way to catch him?"

Loren grinned. "George and Fred have a Marauder's Map with names on it, which can be used to track people in the Castle."

Hermione put the leftover chicken bones into another plate and wiped the grease from the corner of her mouth. "They must check the map often. Wormtail Peter's name is quite conspicuous to the Weasley family. It's been almost two weeks since school started, and if they haven't noticed, that rat might have used magic to cover up his name."

"I've considered that possibility." Loren picked up a Cornbread, held it to his mouth for a couple of moments, but still found it hard to take a bite. "If the Marauder's Map Sneakoscope n't work, I can make some Sneakoscope to catch that lurking rat."

"Sneakoscope?"

Sneakoscope, a commonly used alarm device by wizards, is generally used to detect Dark Arts. Ordinary Sneakoscope are typically transparent and shaped like a spinning top, but they can also be button-shaped, hat-shaped, or even sock-shaped, and can be customized to suit different applications.

If there are suspicious people nearby, it will light up, heat up, and emit a piercing alarm. Of course, the alarm can also be customized.