Chapter 219: Stage Two

Allen left the basilisk sleeping in the underground tunnel and quietly departed the abandoned girls’ bathroom.

It was already past nine at night; he needed to return quickly.

But today he unexpectedly found a large crowd gathered in Gryffindor Tower.

He spotted Harry and his two friends at once amid the crowd.

“What’s going on? Why is everyone standing here? Why aren’t you going in?” Allen asked, stepping up to them.

“The portrait seems to have been shut!” Hermione said.

Allen tiptoed to take a look; the portrait was indeed closed, but he could see no further details.

“Let me through,” Percy’s voice rang out as he stepped proudly forward from the crowd. “Why are you all blocking the way? Surely none of you have forgotten the password—excuse me, I’m the Head Boy—”

The crowd fell silent, starting from the front, like a cold wave spreading down the corridor. They heard Percy’s voice suddenly sharpen: “Someone go get Professor Dumbledore. Quick!”

After a moment, Professor Dumbledore arrived and hurried toward the portrait; Gryffindor students pressed together to let him pass.

Allen’s curiosity stirred; he cast a Levitation Charm on himself, suspending midair to see clearly what was happening inside.

His Phoenix Eyesight was excellent—he saw that Fat Lady had vanished from the portrait; the canvas had been viciously torn, small fragments scattered on the floor, large sections ripped clean from the frame.

Dumbledore glanced swiftly at the damaged painting, then swiftly issued orders to find Fat Lady.

News soon returned: Fat Lady had been attacked while trying to block someone from entering—and that person was Sirius Black...

Professor Dumbledore ordered all Gryffindor students back to the Great Hall. Ten minutes later, students from Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin arrived, all looking bewildered.

“The staff and I will conduct a thorough search of the castle,” Professor Dumbledore told the students, as Professor McGonagall and Flitwick shut all the doors of the Great Hall. “For your own safety, I expect you may need to spend the night here. Prefects, take positions at the entrance. Head Boy and Head Girl remain inside to maintain order. Report any incidents to me immediately.”

With a casual wave of his wand, the long tables flew to the walls and stood upright; another wave spread hundreds of purple sleeping bags across the floor.

“Get some rest,” Professor Dumbledore said, closing the door behind him as he left.

Instantly, the Great Hall buzzed with excited murmurs: Gryffindor students rushed to tell others what had just happened.

Harry and his three friends talked for a long time in their sleeping bags, but ultimately drew no useful conclusions.

In the following days, everyone at school talked only about Black. Rumors about how he entered the castle grew wilder: a Hufflepuff student named Hannah Abbott claimed Black could transform into a flowering shrub, and spent her entire next Potions class telling anyone who would listen.

The damaged portrait of Fat Lady had been removed from the wall; in its place hung Sir Cadogan and his fat gray pony.

Sirius Black’s appearance gave students plenty to gossip about, but it barely affected Allen’s routine.

During this period, he used his magical material affinity to transmute dragon scales and invisibility creature fur, successfully obtaining their ancient magical script parameters.

Though invisibility creatures were rare, invisibility cloaks were woven from their hair, so they were still fairly easy to buy on the market.

He continued using his catnip training method; with it, he could endure longer each time, and finally, after a Transfiguration Club session, he held the transformation for three full hours.

Other wizards could only maintain transformed form for about an hour.

Though this result far exceeded Professor McGonagall’s expectations, she kept her promise and announced the transition to the next stage.

Two more students had dropped out of the Transfiguration Club; Professor McGonagall gathered the remaining ones.

“Since Mr. Finis has now maintained the transformation for three hours, I announce that your course has entered the second stage,” Professor McGonagall said, scanning the students in the staff lounge.

A sparse round of applause broke out; everyone felt uneasy about losing to a third-year student.

But one witch caught the unusual phrasing in Professor McGonagall’s words.

“Professor, did you just say ‘your course’?” the witch asked uncertainly.

“Yes. All of you will now enter the second stage,” Professor McGonagall said.

The wizards in the room exchanged surprised glances. “But we’re still far from meeting your standard,” one wizard raised his hand.

“The preparation for the second stage has nothing to do with how long you can maintain the transformation. The two are not mutually exclusive—you may all begin preparing for the second stage now,” Professor McGonagall explained.

The wizards exchanged glances, their faces brightening; though transforming into animals had been fun at first, they had grown bored. Learning something new was welcome indeed.

Allen had no particular reaction—he was already far ahead of everyone else.

“The first step to becoming an Animagus is to hold a single mandrake leaf in your mouth continuously for one full month—from full moon to full moon. You must never swallow it or remove it from your mouth. If the leaf leaves your mouth, the entire process must restart,” Professor McGonagall began distributing fresh leaves to each student.

Everyone turned their leaves over in their hands; morale suddenly soared.

“The leaves you’ve been given are enchanted. When we meet again, I expect each of you to confirm the leaf is still in your mouth!” Professor McGonagall continued.

“Professor, do you have any advice to share?” Allen raised his hand.

“My experience may not suit you—you must discover your own best method. Also, continue practicing how long you can remain conscious while transformed. Three hours is only a beginning,” Professor McGonagall added, her final words clearly directed at Allen.

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