Chapter 246: It's Effective!
Standing at the entrance of Sirius's house, no one knew how complex Harry Potter's feelings were at that moment.
This time, when he returned to Privet Drive for Christmas, he could clearly feel the change in his aunt and uncle's attitude.
An unimaginable change.
He never thought that after he turned his aunt into a balloon and then rescued her, he would have to flee the house to avoid punishment from the Ministry of Magic. But when he came back again, his uncle actually treated him with a bit more respect.
He said, "Harry, maybe I should start treating you like a man now."
His aunt still seemed to dislike him, but she secretly placed two new winter outfits on his bed, along with a warm coat that looked like it was of very good quality.
Even his cousin Dudley was a bit different, sharing some of his snacks with him.
The Dursleys had changed.
And Harry had changed, too.
In fact, Professor Lockhart's presence at Hogwarts had a much deeper impact on Harry than just teaching him a few spells.
Lockhart never talked to Harry about "bravery" but about "responsibility"—the responsibility a "Savior" should have.
So Harry changed.
And just as the professor said—you've changed, and everything that is affected by your "social side" will change with you.
So the Dursleys truly changed.
Harry had learned a lot of magical knowledge from Professor Lockhart, but what he was most deeply taught was about the magic of love his mother had cast on her blood relatives.
Professor Lockhart said that the blood magic not only protected Harry but also protected the Dursleys.
It was at that time that Harry began to understand the terrible risks his aunt and uncle had taken by taking him in, in the face of the deadly threat from Voldemort, the Death Eaters, and all their followers.
In the past, he would never have willingly returned to Privet Drive for the short half-month of Christmas vacation.
But he came back anyway.
He was determined to bravely face his own relatives and to take on all the responsibilities he should.
He wanted to mend the rift between his blood relatives.
Yes, not even Ron or Hermione knew that he was determined to make an effort.
He had the Weasley twins buy a lot of sweets and snacks, ordered a magazine specifically about interesting things in the wizarding world, and even bought a tie that cleaned itself automatically.
The effect was very good.
Uncle Vernon held the tie and no longer yelled about wizards being monsters. He actually received the gift with a sense of reverence.
As for his cousin Dudley, there was no need to say more. The gluttonous boy was immediately enchanted by the magical world's sweets.
A chocolate frog that could jump on its own... Oh, in his eyes, there was nothing more magical in the world than that.
Dudley was stunned and even smiled at him in an ingratiating way.
Aunt Petunia's attitude was strange; she just held the magazine and cried. When everyone showed concern, she couldn't bear to let go of it.
Harry felt he had done the right thing.
Professor Lockhart was right. Magic can bring about terrifying and strange things, but it can also bring about a beautiful and fantastical experience. It all depends on the wizard's attitude toward magic and life.
Harry felt great for a moment.
Until Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall arrived.
He didn't know how he left his uncle's house. As he stepped into the fireplace, he looked back at his aunt, uncle, and cousin watching him leave from the living room, a mix of emotions in his heart.
Did he hate them?
Maybe a little. The pain of his childhood would never disappear; it had already become a scar on his soul.
Did he love them?
He did. He remembered the past; no matter how much his aunt and uncle disliked him, they would still take him to the zoo. And every time he left or came back from school for vacation, they would specifically drop him off at the station...
He suddenly smiled before stepping into the fireplace, looking at his aunt and uncle. "Sometimes I want to come back and stay for a few days. Would you welcome me?"
His aunt and uncle smiled, too. At that moment, he felt as if his whole heart had become lighter.
Even Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall's expressions changed; it was a strange feeling. But no matter what.
Life moves forward. It was time to step into the wizarding world, to his godfather's home, to truly enter the life of a wizard.
It was time to move away from these helpless relatives, in the face of the terrible war with Voldemort and his evil minions.
This, too, was his responsibility as a blood relative of the Dursley family!
Sirius's house was very interesting.
It was located in a gap between Muggle buildings on a Muggle street, as if it had been magically created, squeezed between the two buildings.
Walking inside, you could clearly feel the solemnity and elegance of an ancient pure-blood family (this impression was from Grindelwald casting spells to fix the Black family's ancestral home).
Harry was a little reserved at first.
He didn't really know Sirius that well.
But he soon relaxed.
Professor Lockhart was at Sirius's house, as were Professor Lupin and Ron's brother, Percy.
After staying for two days, some familiar faces arrived.
Neville Longbottom.
And the annoying Snape.
Snape came with Neville's grandmother and uncle, escorting the Longbottoms. He wanted to observe every single change that the Longbottoms exhibited under the influence of the so-called "elevator," so he could determine a better treatment plan.
As for Crabbe and Goyle, there was no way they could appear at the Order of the Phoenix headquarters. Even if they were Lockhart's apprentices, they would not be brought here.
That night, many more people appeared at Sirius's house.
Among them, Harry recognized Ron's parents, the Weasleys.
Soon, with everyone watching, Neville helped his parents into the elevator, slowly backed out, and looked at the serious Professor Lockhart with a worried expression.
Lockhart was currently casting Dumbledore's "mental communication" spell to communicate with the black magical creature elevator. This was difficult because the unique creature "elevator" seemed to have little conscious awareness, making direct communication very challenging.
After a long wait, Lockhart raised his wand again, gently tapping the elevator, and whispered, "Bloodline slumbers!"
The elevator made a unique "ding" sound.
A warm, white light spread out from the elevator's cracks, flashing continuously as if it were falling downward.
Ding! The elevator door slowly opened.
Lockhart took a step back, letting the Longbottom family get closer to the door. He nodded at the serious-looking Snape, who was staring intently.
Both were ready to deal with any potential problems.
Fortunately, everything went smoothly.
As the elevator door fully opened, a heavy voice came from inside, "Who's out there?"
"Frank! It's me! It's us!" Frank's brother shouted excitedly. "Merlin's beard, you've finally 'woken up'!"
The elevator door opened completely, and a pair of surprised-looking but alert and hopeful spouses looked outside. Accompanied by the suppressed sobs of Grandmother Augusta, the family was finally reunited.
"Frank! Alice! Look! This is your son, Neville!" Frank's brother happily pulled the plump Neville in front of them.
"It actually works!" Snape exclaimed as he looked at the elevator, saying to Lockhart, "Can it be replicated?"
Lockhart shook his head. "It's difficult. You know, a black magical creature is a phenomenon. Unless it develops a biological nature, there's no way to start."
Snape nodded, carefully casting spells to check it. He finally turned and nodded to Dumbledore, who was looking on intently, confirming that there were no problems.
Or rather, the problem was just as Lockhart had expected. The Longbottoms looked like a Muggle couple at this moment.
They didn't look like they had any magic at all.
With the family reunited, there was so much to talk about. Everyone walked out of the room, leaving the space for the Longbottoms.
Before everyone had even left, the sound of joyous crying could be heard from inside.
Sirius leaned against the door frame, his arms crossed, and sneered at Snape, "Look at all the evil things you did back then!"
Snape just looked at him with an indifferent gaze, his voice low. "At least I'm willing to face everything from the past, to make amends, and to bear my own mistakes and mission."
"Sirius, you have no right to talk to me like that from your high horse."
"In my eyes, you also need to face your mistakes and your mission, but will you take responsibility?"
He mocked him mercilessly. "The noble Master Black obviously won't think about such things. He's always so self-righteous."
Sirius just sneered. "Dumbledore is willing to trust you, and everyone is willing to trust Dumbledore's judgment. But remember," he said, "I'll be watching you!"
Snape couldn't be bothered with him and walked straight out.
He didn't want to talk to the person who had caused Lily's death, whom he hated so much, just as he hated himself for causing Lily's death.
He only felt intense hatred in his heart.
He discussed the results of his physical examination of the Longbottoms with Lockhart and then left Sirius's house.
A little later, after waiting for Lupin to go in and try it, Lockhart would also leave with Percy.
This place would become the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix and was no longer a place for an outsider like him to be involved.
His students were still waiting for him.
Soon, the night grew even deeper.
Sirius quickly went inside, brought the Longbottoms downstairs to get settled, and then brought Lupin, who had locked himself in his brother Regulus's room, into his own room. Together with Lockhart, he cast spells to seal the room completely.
"Maybe I can just watch him myself?" Sirius looked at Lockhart with some worry. "He doesn't recognize anyone when he turns into a werewolf and doesn't realize how aggressive he is. We found a way to transform into Animagi to avoid the werewolf's attacks, but you—"
Lockhart turned and chuckled. "Don't worry, because I can be a werewolf, too."
"???" Sirius was a little confused.
He would soon find out.
As strands of wolf hair began to sprout from Lockhart's skin, Lockhart's body quickly swelled. In an instant, he had turned into a burly werewolf.
"See!" The werewolf chuckled, clattering its upper and lower fangs. Its chest quickly heaved as if it were suppressing an ultimate, vile wickedness.
Sirius looked at him in amazement and shook his head. "Merlin's beard, how did you do that? But you're not a werewolf!"
Lockhart stretched his werewolf arms, his long fingers wiggling. The sharp wolf claws shimmered with a terrifying and dangerous light in the lamplight. "Why am I not a werewolf?"
Sirius said with certainty, "Yes, you're not a werewolf! He was too familiar with werewolves!
"A werewolf's transformation tears their clothes off; only their body changes."
He looked Lockhart up and down. "Your clothes and wand transformed along with you. It looks more like an Animagus transformation."
Lockhart's body quickly collapsed and shrank back, returning to his human form. He raised an eyebrow. "You're right!"
This was a very interesting perspective.
The transformation of an Animagus and the transformation of a werewolf had a fundamental difference.
Next was a long wait.
The three of them chatted, and the conversation turned to the empty Wolfsbane Potion that Snape had discovered.
"I impersonated Lupin at the time. Snape thought I was him and gave me the Wolfsbane Potion," Sirius sneered. "I felt the malice in his potion and poured it out."
Lupin frowned, looking at his old friend with some helplessness. "Sirius, Snape has no hostility toward me now. He—"
He hadn't finished speaking when Sirius interrupted him with a sneer. "That's nonsense!"
"When we Black family members get our magical awakening, we have to learn some unique spells that aren't taught at Hogwarts. One of them is a potion detection charm."
"This spell can detect what kind of mood the potion-maker was in when they brewed the potion, and it can also detect whether a potion made for you is filled with malice."
His eyes were filled with rage. "I felt so many dirty emotions in his potion! He absolutely wanted something to happen to Remus!"
Lupin sighed. "Brother, you can't expect him to have any good intentions toward me. It's a miracle he doesn't hate me."
"I know he hates me, but he wouldn't try to hurt me with the Wolfsbane Potion."
Sirius still insisted on his judgment. "The magic has already given me the answer. I can't let you risk drinking his potion!"
"He's changed, Sirius," Lupin advised. "We can't always stay in the past, in what happened more than a decade ago."
"And we can't be so demanding of anyone."
Even with Sirius in front of him, Lupin didn't hold a grudge against him for excluding him when he used the Fidelius Charm to protect James's family and change the Secret Keeper.
He had been through too much in his life.
He had experienced the ups and downs and the difficulties of life, and he had felt the biting cold of favoritism and detachment. He had also learned that there was no need to pursue perfection in everything.
Because perfection has never existed in this world.
It was just like he knew that if it weren't for James, the little group of Sirius and Peter might not have been willing to accept someone like him.
He cared about friendship and the rare moments of kindness he had found in his life, so he had given up his determination to dwell on these things.
Finally, the bright moon appeared outside the window, high in the sky, casting its light.
Lockhart observed this state and finally had a clearer guess. "The thing that causes the werewolf transformation isn't the full moon, but the moonlight from the full moon!"
The moonlight was everywhere, penetrating every corner of the world.
Lupin's entire body began to become irritable, even exuding terrible emotions like malevolence, cruelty, and aggression, all churning and accumulating within his chest.
Following Lockhart's instructions, he quickly walked into the elevator, patiently waiting for Lockhart to cast a healing spell.
It turned out that people really did have favorites.
When the Longbottoms had tried using the "elevator" earlier, Sirius had not been this nervous. He watched Lupin enter the elevator, watched the elevator door close, and looked at Lockhart with great worry. "Are you sure it will work?"
Lockhart spread his hands. "In theory, yes. This is the first time we've tried it in practice."
"He has to try it to know whether it's good or bad."
Boom!
A huge thud came from inside the elevator, accompanied by a beast-like roar and the sound of the enraged werewolf constantly hitting the door because it couldn't open it.
Ding! The elevator suddenly became quiet.
As the elevator door opened again, Lockhart and Sirius were both on high alert, wands in hand.
Poor Lupin's fate had finally smiled upon him this one time.
When the elevator door opened fully, a smiling Lupin looked at the two of them.
"It's effective!" Sirius shouted excitedly.
"Yes," Lockhart said in amazement, stepping forward to give Lupin a detailed examination. He was completely relieved. "Sirius, you'll have to observe closely. How long do Lupin and the Longbottoms stay in this healed state after using this elevator?"
The elevator couldn't suppress a wizard's magical bloodline forever. Lockhart guessed that there must be a time limit.
It was extremely important to figure this out!