He Must Have Had a Hard Life, Maybe Scavenging Food from Some Dumpster

Knock, knock, knock.

Professor McGonagall waited for a moment before someone she knew only one-sidedly quickly opened the door.

"Who are you looking for?" Harry asked her politely.

"Hello, Harry. Long time no see. I'm looking for a young man named Kane Hiss, about your age." As she spoke, Professor McGonagall took an envelope from her robes and handed it to Harry.

"I brought this for you as well."

After saying that, she politely stepped around Harry and entered the house, stopping at the entrance hall to wait for the two adults of the household to come out.

"And you are?" Vernon, who was off work that day, came out and politely asked when he saw the splendidly and impeccably dressed Professor McGonagall.

"I am Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I have come to inquire about a missing young wizard, Kane Hiss, and to deliver Harry Potter's acceptance letter."

"We won't let them attend some freak school. You can leave. You're not welcome in this house." The moment Vernon heard the words Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he reacted as though he had PTSD and instinctively wanted Professor McGonagall to get out at once.

"In the wizarding world, a guardian's wishes are merely opinions. The real decision belongs to the wizard himself. Besides, even if you refuse to let the two children attend Hogwarts, you should at least know where Mr. Heath is now, shouldn't you?"

Professor McGonagall strode toward Vernon from above, forcing him all the way back into the living room before she stopped.

"I've already reported that annoying little brat Kane Hiss to the police. They'll find him. We don't need you here making trouble," Vernon said stiffly.

"No, let her investigate. She might be able to find him." Petunia Dursley heard the commotion downstairs and hurried down. After listening to the situation for a while, she quickly spoke up.

"Petunia... sigh." Vernon sighed and returned to the sofa he usually occupied, turning the television up as loud as it would go. He muttered viciously, "Two freaks. One freak has already run off, and now another one has come."

With a wave of her wand, Professor McGonagall shielded herself, Harry, and Petunia from the noise.

"Can you find Kane?" Harry asked firmly.

"Perhaps... Do you have anything that has been touched by Kane's power? Clothes, personal jewelry, his room, or paintings he made?"

Harry and Petunia exchanged a glance, then both shook their heads. Suddenly, Harry remembered something. He returned to his tiny room beneath the stairs and brought out the clothes he had worn when he chased Kane that night.

The clothes had not been washed yet. There should still have been traces of the shadows Kane had used on the shoulder.

"Could you take a look? Might there be some traces on the shoulder?" Harry handed the clothes to Professor McGonagall.

Professor McGonagall prodded the clothes with her wand. Sure enough, she drew out a wisp of shadow from within. But in an instant, it flew toward Hogwarts and vanished in the blink of an eye.

"Um, Professor, that..." Harry stared blankly at the sight, while Petunia, forcing herself to watch, slowly took half a step back.

"I can only say that Mr. Heath is at least still alive," Professor McGonagall said carefully.

"Mm. He's so capable, he'll survive somehow. But he probably isn't living very well. It's lunchtime now. Maybe he's rummaging through dumpsters for food in some corner..." Harry pessimistically spoke of things that had not happened.

Then he quickly looked at Professor McGonagall again. "Can you find him?"

"Certainly. Even if I cannot, Dumbledore will not ignore a missing young wizard," Professor McGonagall promised.

"Then, Professor, I'll definitely see him at that Hogwarts place, right?" Harry waved his acceptance letter.

"You will. You want to..." Professor McGonagall asked in confusion.

"I'm going to knock his teeth out!" Harry said viciously.

Professor McGonagall recalled that wisp of incomparably pure dark magic shadow and could only feel that Harry was a bold child who dared to act. He was someone remarkable.

Then she looked at Petunia. "This child needs a room, clothes of his own, and to enroll at Hogwarts. Of course, this is only a suggestion."

"That's impossible!" Vernon suddenly roared in fury from in front of the television.

Professor McGonagall gave him a look.

"...Fine, fine. Petunia, go clean up a room for Mr. Potter." Vernon's voice softened somewhat.

"And..." Professor McGonagall continued.

"We'll let him go to that school, but we'll only allow him to leave this house. We won't concern ourselves with anything else."

That was Vernon's bottom line. He likely would rather die than go somewhere full of wizards to buy Harry textbooks or attend some parent-teacher meeting.

"I'll arrange for someone to take your place." Professor McGonagall turned to Harry again. "Tomorrow morning, someone from the Weasley family will come help you buy what you need for school. They are excellent people. You'll recognize them by their red hair."

"I understand, Professor." Harry nodded.

After Professor McGonagall left, she Apparated back to Hogsmeade, then found a secret passage and returned directly to Hogwarts Castle.

A young wizard had gone missing, and that young wizard's magic was exceptionally potent dark magic. This was something she needed to discuss properly with Dumbledore.

Soon, she entered Dumbledore's Office. Two cups of black tea and a crystal ball sat on his desk.

"Dumbledore, about this matter..."

Dumbledore raised a finger and shushed her. "A missing young wizard with traces of dark magic. I know."

"You know, yet you're still sitting here?" Professor McGonagall asked sternly, folding her arms.

"Because I have already found him and brought him back. He is currently treasure hunting in the Forbidden Forest."

As Dumbledore spoke, Professor McGonagall stepped closer and looked at the crystal ball in the center of the desk.

The scene inside showed Kane and Hagrid in the Forbidden Forest.

They had already been wandering around the Forbidden Forest for quite some time.

"So, Kane, are you really sure that this so-called Tree Demon is in the Forbidden Forest?" Hagrid asked, panting heavily.

Kane shook his head. "Not sure."

"Alright, I was just as fanciful when I was eleven. I understand you completely. Let me put it another way: what do you need a Tree Demon for?" Hagrid continued.

"I'm going to kill the Tree Demon and take the Living Wood from its body to use as wand material," Kane said with complete honesty.

"The problem is... Kane, there might not be any Tree Demons here," Hagrid said bitterly.

"No problem. I have my ways." Kane took out an oak seed. He had corrupted the seed thoroughly with shadow. Once the tree grew up, it was guaranteed to become a Tree Demon.

All that was left was magic that could make the seed sprout and grow quickly.

And Hagrid happened to have that very magic.

"What are they doing in that little dirt pit?" Professor McGonagall frowned as she watched Kane and Hagrid squatting on the ground, digging and digging.

"I don't know either. Perhaps they're planting trees to reforest the Forbidden Forest..." Dumbledore had originally been smiling, but his smile suddenly vanished. He stared blankly at the scene in the crystal ball. "What is that?"