And the Earth Still Turns

After floating in outer space for a week, He Shenyan opened his eyes once again.

He kept the magic within his body at an intensity he could manage. However, it was foreseeable that until he fully mastered this surge of extra power, he would not be using any high-yield spells.

Otherwise, the magic, should it riot again, would likely trigger an explosion inside his body that would show no mercy—a blast that would be unprecedented and, for all he knew, never to be repeated.

"High-yield" referred to spells capable of shattering a planet; he had only cast such things a few hundred times himself, a mere pittance.

Not yet planning to return to Hogwarts, he flew to the nearby moon. The magical barrier that had been circulating around his body prevented him from dying upon impact during his freefall and ensured he could breathe freely in the vacuum of space.

He Shenyan recalled the Ancient One's assessment of magic; as she had said, magic was indeed omnipotent.

The mage descended slowly, the dust on the lunar surface scattering beneath his feet, yet not a single grain touched the hem of his black robes. He stood there, his dark hair fluttering across this silent, uninhabited celestial body.

Just like that, He Shenyan gazed quietly at the azure planet not far away.

It floated in the dark universe, rotating slowly and firmly. Such a rotation might continue for a very, very long time—long enough for the life upon it to come and go, cycling through countless generations.

And yet, the Earth remained.

In his previous world, he had roamed the cosmos, witnessing too many beautiful planets in that boundless sea of stars; the scenery of Earth was but a grain of sand among them.

As for this world, he had only just arrived a year ago.

Why risk his life to protect them? He did not know the answer himself.

In this moment of complex emotion, He Shenyan thought of the Ancient One and smiled involuntarily. He thought that perhaps this was why the Ancient One had agreed to let him enter Kamar-Taj to study in the first place.

"You really did see through everything, Teacher," He Shenyan murmured to himself.

"Professor He hasn't come to class for a week. Although Professor Snape's lectures aren't bad, and he isn't as fierce as he used to be, I still prefer Professor He to teach us."

A Gryffindor girl and her companion walked past the noisy corridor. Harley, Ron, and Hermione were resting by the floor-to-ceiling windows, and their expressions turned strange upon hearing this.

Ron whispered, "Do you think if Snape knew they evaluated him like that, he would revert to his old self?"

Harley shot him a glare and said crossly, "First, you should call him Professor. Second, I don't think he was ever that fierce to begin with!"

Having said that, she turned and walked straight away, leaving Ron standing there looking innocent. The silly boy turned to look at Hermione, asking in total confusion, "Did I say something to make her angry?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. She shoved the books she was holding into Ron's arms, looked down to tie her shoelaces, and began to complain about how dense Ron could be.

Sunlight pierced through the clouds, hitting the window and shining onto her brown, bushy hair.

Ron wasn't listening to a word Hermione said; he stared blankly at her profile, completely unaware of how obvious his gaze was. Consequently, he was jabbed hard in the ribs by Hermione, who had just finished tying her laces and stood up.

She snatched her books back and ran off, blushing. Watching the girl walk away, Ron smiled foolishly. Just then, a flash made him cover his eyes and cry out.

"Whoa! Little Ron is finally catching on!"

"Yes! He's catching on!"

Ron opened his eyes to see his twin brothers standing before him, grinning and singing a song in a weird tune about little Ron catching on. Fred was still clutching a camera in his hand.

Ron immediately lunged at them.

In the scuffle, the photo fluttered to the ground and was lost. Ron would likely never know that the photo—which had caused him to chase his two brothers down the hall and even get punished by Filch with two weeks of classroom cleaning—was completely pitch black.

Fred had forgotten to take the lens cap off.

When he thought about it later, he didn't tell Ron, but instead smirked and plotted with George to blackmail Ron out of two months of pocket money using the long-lost black photo.

They used that money to buy him a fantastic gift on his birthday.

"I think it's better if we don't tell the boy that his pet rat is an Animagus."

Professor McGonagall looked at the twitching, obese man on the floor with disgust and said to Dumbledore, who was standing nearby.

"I agree, Minerva. I agree."

As he spoke, he intercepted Lily Potter, who was still trying to cast a few hexes at Peter to vent her anger, and gave Snape a look, signaling him to take the emotionally fragile Lily out of the room.

Snape's emotional intelligence in interpersonal matters had never been more prominent; he immediately understood, comforted Lily in a low voice, and led her away.

As Professor McGonagall looked down at Peter Pettigrew, this serious woman, who was usually devoid of humor, wore a complex expression for the first time in her life.

She said to Peter, "I never imagined the traitor would be you, Peter."

Peter, still twitching, gasped for air. He spoke in broken sentences, tears actually streaming from his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Headmistress... but I had no choice. He... he was too powerful. The Dark Lord... I was so afraid, Headmistress, I was so afraid. I'm not as brave as James, Lupin, and Sirius. I didn't do it on purpose. He forced me! He forced me!"

The man who had been willing to turn into a rat to escape justice and live in hiding for years was now weeping and snotting, offering confessions to his former headmistress and respected teacher.

But Professor McGonagall only shook her head sadly: "You tore a family apart. You let an innocent man spend years in Azkaban, bearing a crime he never committed. Peter, if you still consider yourself a Gryffindor, you should be ashamed of yourself."

"I... I repent! I repent! Headmistress! Please!"

Peter seemed to realize what was about to happen. He screamed for mercy, calling her Headmistress in an attempt to soften McGonagall's heart.

But a white light had already ignited in Dumbledore's hand.

The light flashed, and Peter froze in his terrified expression; he had been turned into a statue.

Dumbledore supported McGonagall, who could barely stand due to her grief, led her to a chair, and said, "I will take him to the Ministry of Magic. Let him face trial. I will communicate with Sirius. Minerva, don't push yourself too hard. This was the choice Peter made himself."

Professor McGonagall offered a bitter smile. She looked at the floor ahead, her tone desolate: "I understand... I just... feel it wasn't worth it for them."