Unexpected Situation

Chapter 18: Unexpected Circumstances

With no classes in the afternoon, Charles went to the library.

He found two Plant Identification Books on one shelf, then took a book about Fire Spells from another.

Then he saw Hermione watching him from the side.

"Want to see?" Charles dangled the spellbook in his hand.

Hermione nodded.

Charles handed the book to her and said, "You read it first, then. I'll finish marking the map and then read it."

Most of the herbs outside the greenhouse were marked now, but there was one plant he wasn't sure about. It looked like a weed, and Hagrid's chickens hadn't had any strange reactions after secretly eating it, but he couldn't be absolutely sure without checking.

Fortunately, these identification books were categorized by plant appearance, so he quickly found what he was looking for and confirmed it was indeed a weed.

Seeing Hermione still engrossed in the spellbook, Charles didn't disturb her and began searching the shelves for a book on the Patronus Charm.

He remembered that Professor McGonagall and Harry's father had the same Patronus and Animagus forms. There should be a connection between them, which he could use as a reference.

If his Patronus turned out to be something fierce or an animal he could use to scam free food at the zoo, he'd try to practice becoming an Animagus.

But if it was a fly, a bug, a worm, or an aquatic animal, he'd give up on that idea.

Of course, he was a bit special. If his Patronus turned out to be five pairs of wheels or a giant robot, he wouldn't mind.

Charles soon returned with a thick book and began to read it carefully.

A short while later, Hermione found the spell she was looking for. Seeing him focused on his book, she didn't disturb him and gently placed her book next to his.

The Patronus Charm was a very powerful and advanced spell. It wasn't top secret, and the book explained it clearly, but not everyone could master it.

It was like in school: the same textbooks and teachers, yet Hermione's and Ron's grades were vastly different.

Charles had bought a Self-Inking Quill in Diagon Alley. It could automatically dip itself in ink and write down whatever he wanted to record on parchment. He quickly jotted down the method for casting the Patronus Charm.

Finding the spell didn't mean he could learn it immediately. Just copying down the Patronus Charm looked difficult. He planned to write a letter to his old man over the weekend and ask if there was anything he should pay attention to.

At dinner, Harry asked Charles, "Do you have time tomorrow afternoon? Hagrid invited me to his hut for tea, you should come too."

Before Charles could answer, Fred, sitting on his other side, immediately said to Harry, "I'm sorry, Mr. Smith has already made plans with us to do research tomorrow afternoon."

As Fred spoke, he nudged Charles with his leg.

George also leaned in and said to Harry, "That's right, we made plans a while ago."

Seeing the twins act this way, Charles knew something was up. So, he shook his left hand and said to Harry, "I'm sorry, we did make plans to research this bag of mine tomorrow afternoon."

Harry said with some disappointment, "Okay, I wanted to introduce you to Hagrid."

Charles casually replied, "There will be other times."

By then, he had already figured out what the twins were up to.

Hagrid was still the Keeper of the Forbidden Forest, and one of his responsibilities was to prevent students from wandering into it.

If he invited Harry for tea tomorrow afternoon, it meant he wouldn't be in the Forbidden Forest at that time. Entering the forest then wouldn't get them caught by him.

That evening, on their way to the kitchens for a late-night snack, the twin brothers "got lost" with Charles.

In an empty corridor, Fred indeed said to Charles, "We're going into the Forbidden Forest tomorrow afternoon. There are many good things in the Forbidden Forest. We've checked, and we need some very expensive materials to make a Bag of Holding. We can find quite a bit of it in the Forbidden Forest."

George added, "It's a bit dangerous in the Forbidden Forest, but we won't go to the really dangerous parts. As long as you walk with us, you'll be fine."

Charles agreed without a second thought.

He had seen the Forbidden Forest in his old man's memories. It contained many precious herbs and other materials that could be sold for a good price among wizards.

On the Muggle side, after seeing Charles's memories, the old man made a fortune through shady dealings and then got an identity in Privet Drive. Charles had earned quite a bit from two World Cups, and his old man had a decent income as a county councilor. However, in his old man's eyes, only heavy, golden Galleons were real money, not the light, thin Pounds. Therefore, he spent money lavishly. Even Song Jiang, the "Timely Rain," couldn't spend money like him. Charles had to find his own way to earn some money to alleviate his financial pressure, otherwise, he wouldn't be able to wait until the 1994 World Cup.

The twin brothers also wanted to make money. They came from a large, not-so-wealthy family. They needed money to buy materials for their inventions, and their family naturally wouldn't provide it. They had to rely on themselves.

"Stop!"

Fred, holding the Marauder's Map, suddenly whispered to halt.

"It's Professor Quirrell!" he exclaimed, "Quick, get out of here!"

He led George and Charles back, and soon they hid in an abandoned classroom.

George frowned and asked, "What's going on?"

Fred, staring intently at the Marauder's Map with the light from the tip of his wand, asked doubtfully, "Professor Quirrell just went into that secret passage up ahead. What is he doing?"

"That secret passage?" George said, confused, "That passage collapsed and is no longer passable. Does it lead somewhere?"

Charles also frowned. Quirrell wouldn't go into a tunnel for no reason; Voldemort must have told him to do it.

But the secret passages in Hogwarts seemed to lead outside. There was only one that led to the Chamber of Secrets where the Basilisk was kept. Could there be other unknown places similar to the Chamber of Secrets?

Who knew what the founders of Hogwarts, past headmasters, professors, and others had left behind in the castle? Over the years, it was possible that a hidden treasure chamber or something similar could be triggered in any classroom.

The more Charles thought about it, the more likely it seemed. After all, his so-called "memories" must have deviated from "reality." For example, his "memories" didn't include Hermione's primary school years, yet he had been classmates with her for six years.

Connecting this to Voldemort currently being just a piece of skin on the back of someone's head, like a double electrical socket on a wall, his most urgent need now was to get a body. From this, it could be inferred that his target was something with the same or even higher energy as the Philosopher's Stone.

This was a big problem. Charles was certain that Dumbledore wasn't just guarding against Voldemort getting the Philosopher's Stone and giving Harry experience points, but he wasn't sure if he was guarding against Voldemort finding other ways to regain his body.

If Voldemort truly found a way other than the Philosopher's Stone and successfully regained his body, the situation would become truly dire.

This matter... Charles decided to wait and see. What if Dumbledore knew about it and was prepared?

Voldemort wasn't unkillable anyway. At worst, he could "divine" the existence of the Horcruxes and then use the Basilisk's venom to soak them. The soul fragment in Harry's head would be a bit troublesome, though.