Professor McGonagall's Advice

Sunday passed quickly and simply, especially with no daylight in the dormitory. By the time Jon had been forced to get acquainted with all his roommates, it was already noon.

"Come to think of it, tomorrow is the first day of class. Jon, did you preview anything?"

Preview? Jon shook his head. "No. Did you?"

"Of course... not."

Stephen chuckled. "It's just that we heard you used Lumos when you enrolled yesterday. Everyone thought you'd learned it beforehand."

"Oh, my family taught me that at home."

"That's nice." A freckled little boy said. He was Fren Desley, one of Jon's roommates, a Muggle-born wizard. "I really envy children from Pure-blood Wizard families."

"There's nothing to envy, Fren."

Sitting to Fren's right was Scaly Lanchi, a child from a half-blood family with very large eyes.

"You know, wizard parents are always very strict with you. They think you have to go to Slytherin or Gryffindor, that those are the places Pure-blood Wizards should go. Speaking of which, Jon, why did you end up in Hufflepuff?"

"Uh... actually, my parents don't really control me. They let me make all my own decisions."

"Wow!"

The three boys stared at him in shock. They could hardly imagine what kind of parents would let their child make his own decisions.

"It's a long story. If I get the chance later, I'll tell you."

Strangely enough, whether Jon had wanted to or not, he had gained three friends on his first day of school. It was truly beyond his expectations.

Because the Original Work had provided so little information, he genuinely had never imagined that Hufflepuff students would be so enthusiastic about making friends.

Well, having a few friends was not a bad thing. Maybe they could even help cover for him sometimes.

That was not the only thing that surprised Jon. Ever since arriving at Hogwarts, Bella had not come to see him even once, as though she did not have a younger brother at all.

That woman. And here he had thought she had a little warmth in her!

Monday came quickly. That morning, his three excited roommates dragged him out of his little room. If Jon had not had the habit of sleeping in his clothes, those three would have seen everything.

Hogwarts' first class of the day began at nine. When they arrived after breakfast, the classroom was still completely empty.

"I told you, there was no need to come so early. Class doesn't start until nine, and it's not even eight yet. Transfiguration doesn't need previewing anyway."

Stephen pulled Jon into a seat. There was no cat on the podium now, so it seemed Professor McGonagall had not arrived yet either.

"Coming early lets us get good seats. I heard Gryffindor students always arrive early. Professor McGonagall is their head of house. If we get here before them, maybe we'll earn some points."

Fren and Scaly shared a desk directly behind Jon and Stephen.

"Earning points isn't that easy. The requirements are strict. If arriving early could earn points, Hufflepuff wouldn't always be at the bottom of the House Cup."

Jon casually opened his copy of A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration and flipped through it at random.

"Jon, I really don't appreciate that attitude. Why can't we win the House Cup at least once?"

Fren clearly did not know much about Hufflepuff's history, and he spoke with some defiance.

His words earned sympathetic looks from Stephen and Scaly, but they did not want to dampen Fren's enthusiasm, so they changed the subject.

"I heard Professor McGonagall is a powerful Animagus. I really want to know how far you have to train in Transfiguration before you can master that magic."

"Don't even think about it. I heard only geniuses among Pure-blood Wizards can learn that magic, and it takes a huge amount of time and effort. Our house seems never to have had anyone master it."

Jon listened silently. He held a different opinion, one concerning the principles behind Animagus magic. Unfortunately, he could not voice it in a Transfiguration class, or Professor McGonagall would surely come to dislike him.

Moreover, this transformation magic involved a very dangerous hypothesis for Jon. Before he had sufficient evidence, he would not casually reveal it.

"Yeah, that magic is really too difficult."

Jon casually humored them, but his mind was occupied with other matters.

He should subscribe to The Daily Prophet. Britain certainly would not remain peaceful in the days ahead. The Original Work of Harry Potter had not described some of the events that had happened at the time, but Jon knew about them.

While Jon was lost in thought, the first-year students gradually began to arrive as well.

Gryffindor and Hufflepuff took Transfiguration together. The two houses had never had much conflict, and their relationship was fairly harmonious.

At some point, a cat had appeared on the podium.

An Animagus could still use magic after transforming. Wizards were not allowed to Apparate within Hogwarts Castle, but magic at the level of the Disillusionment Charm posed no difficulty at all for Professor McGonagall.

The moment nine o'clock arrived, Professor McGonagall suddenly appeared, startling every student in the room.

"I believe staying alert should be a wizard's first lesson. At the very least, do not look so shocked. It makes you lose your composure."

Professor McGonagall truly was a decisive female professor. She spoke only a few simple words before beginning the Transfiguration lesson.

Minerva McGonagall, Hogwarts' deputy headmistress, possessed outstanding magical ability. At the very least, her mastery of Transfiguration was profound. After a fluid series of demonstrations, she directly stirred the students' enthusiasm for learning.

Jon was among them, though his attention had wandered somewhat. He was wondering whether he could use Transfiguration to make a key.

Hmm, the principle did not seem difficult. He only needed to first transform something into a lump of putty, then press the putty into the keyhole, and use Transfiguration to harden the putty's soft properties... This train of thought continued until Transfiguration ended, and Jon still had not turned his matchstick into a needle.

"Your magical talent is not the problem, and your technique is very precise."

Before class ended, Professor McGonagall stared straight at Jon, making him nervous for no apparent reason. His mind immediately began frantically constructing strings of complicated mathematical formulas in an attempt to ward off Legilimency.

But Professor McGonagall was clearly not as terrifying as Jon had imagined. She merely studied him for a while, then said in a disappointed tone, "Mr. Smith, you are not focused enough. I hope you maintain sufficient concentration when casting magic. Only then will you avoid wasting the powerful magic granted by your Pureblood Family heritage. Although you were sorted into Hufflepuff, I hope you remember one thing: Hufflepuff is also a very powerful house, and its Founder was likewise a great Legendary Witch."

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