Chapter 24: A Turning Point

"My goodness, what happened here?"

Professor McGonagall looked in shock at the Elemental Magic classroom, which had been completely burned to a crisp, disbelief written all over her face.

Dumbledore was equally taken aback, his long robe in hand as he walked by, almost as though afraid that the disastrous surroundings would soil his attire.

Dumbledore looked down at a vine on the floor, then picked it up and inspected it. "Devil's Vine?" he murmured.

This black vine was extremely tough, fire-averse, and would attack any intruder that entered its domain, wrapping them up until they suffocated. It would then bury the victim nearby, secreting a liquid from its body that would decompose the body.

The Devil's Vine was also commonly used by dark wizards to trap or attack others.

But why would there be Devil's Vine here?

"Professor Callister, what's happened here?" Professor McGonagall asked, approaching Callister.

Callister smiled slightly, glancing at Harry and Hermione before answering, "I'm not entirely sure myself. When we arrived, Harry and Hermione were already trying to put out the fire."

Upon hearing this, McGonagall didn't doubt Callister's words and turned her gaze toward Harry and Hermione. Her face grew serious as she said, "Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, you two need to give me an explanation."

Professor McGonagall then noticed Ron, who was unconscious, and asked in alarm, "Oh, and who's this poor soul? What happened to him?"

"He's just unconscious, no serious harm," Callister replied with a faint smile, then waved his wand. "Light Spirit, heal his wounds and soothe his mind."

A beam of light shot out, and a Light Spirit appeared, floating around Ron's body before vanishing into his head.

Harry, Hermione, Professor McGonagall, and Dumbledore, who had come over, all watched the scene with curiosity, drawn in by the elemental magic Callister had performed.

Then, they saw Ron wake up. McGonagall and Dumbledore's eyes lit up with a gleam of admiration and joy.

Light Element magic had such benefits—not only could it heal, but it could also heal the mind.

Harry and Hermione, seeing Ron sit up, immediately cheered and embraced him.

The events they had just gone through seemed to have made their friendship stronger.

They were all worried about each other.

Callister smiled at this, but there was a knowing expression at the corner of his lips.

"Harry, Hermione, Ron, you three now need to answer my question. What exactly happened here?" Professor McGonagall said sternly.

In an instant, the smiles faded from Harry, Hermione, and Ron's faces.

Faced with McGonagall's serious expression, none of them felt like smiling.

"Silence means you've already admitted to doing something wrong, doesn't it?" Professor McGonagall said coldly.

"Given the severity of the situation, I'm deducting ten points from Gryffindor for each of you," McGonagall said seriously.

Harry's expression changed slightly.

This past week, Snape had seemed to hold a grudge against him, and Gryffindor had already lost points because of that. Now, with ten points deducted from each of them, things were looking pretty bad.

Thinking back to Snape's Potions class, Harry and Ron couldn't help but feel frustrated, as there were so many things they didn't know and couldn't figure out.

Before attending Hogwarts, Harry had studied hard, going over all the textbooks, but in such a short time, could he remember everything?

No, he couldn't!

Harry wasn't stupid, he just didn't have photographic memory.

And Snape didn't even give them a chance to settle in—after some stern warnings, he'd started asking them questions about things they hadn't even covered yet. Wasn't that a bit too much?

Then there was Hermione—she had been raising her hand desperately to answer but was always ignored.

Good heavens, Snape was so biased in favor of Malfoy!

Malfoy was a jerk, always so pompous and nasty, worse even than Dudley.

"Professor McGonagall, we were drawn here by the magical fluctuations. We suspected someone was trying to sabotage the Elemental Magic classroom, so we came to investigate."

"We arrived and found the place completely dark, with nothing visible. After that, we were attacked. It's clear someone is trying to destroy the place."

Harry left out the part about him setting the vine on fire and gave a serious explanation of what had happened.

McGonagall frowned after hearing Harry's words. "Harry Potter, what happened here is not something first-year students should be involved in."

"Especially when your unauthorized actions have put you in danger. The points deduction still stands."

After McGonagall finished speaking, Dumbledore, holding the Devil's Vine, smiled and said, "However, considering your bravery and adventurous spirit in fighting the dark forces, Gryffindor will be awarded thirty points."

"Now, you three need to go back and rest, and forget about what happened here. Understood?"

Harry, Hermione, and Ron's faces lit up with joy at this.

What a twist of fate!

Had they been docked thirty points each, they knew tomorrow, many of the Gryffindors would've been ready to drown them in spit.

That was something they did not want to experience.

"Thank you, Professor, we'll head back right away!"

Harry said excitedly, grabbing Hermione and Ron to leave the Elemental Magic classroom.

Callister and Dumbledore exchanged a look, then smiled.

"Your leniency is just encouraging these little ones," Callister said.

Dumbledore chuckled. "They're still young, naturally restless. We need to show them enough patience."

With that, Dumbledore looked at the Elemental Magic classroom and waved his wand. "Restore it to its original state!"

In an instant, the charred desks and chairs were fully restored and perfectly clean.

The Devil's Vine and the water on the ground disappeared as well.

Callister, seeing this, gave Dumbledore a thumbs up and, noticing the Devil's Vine in his hand, asked, "Did you discover something?"

It was then that Professor McGonagall noticed the Devil's Vine in Dumbledore's hand. Her expression became serious. "The Devil's Vine… someone deliberately left the seeds of the Devil's Vine here and used dark magic to accelerate its growth."

Dumbledore nodded. "Someone has infiltrated the school and started causing trouble."

"Let's hope it's not someone of great consequence, or else the children will be in danger!"

At this, Dumbledore turned to Callister and smiled. "Professor Callister, are you ready?"

Callister, with a knowing smile, responded, "Albus, you did promise to help me with these matters so that I can focus on teaching."

Dumbledore chuckled and, turning away, said, "Yes, Professor Callister!"

Meanwhile, back at the Gryffindor common room, Harry, Hermione, and Ron were all discussing the water-element magic Harry had released in the Elemental Magic classroom.

"Harry, how did you do that?" Hermione asked, unable to hold back her curiosity.

Ron, overhearing Hermione, looked confused and asked, "Did something happen that I don't know about?"

Harry understood what Hermione was asking and explained, "It's a secret I discovered by chance."

He then told them the details of the situation.

"So, all you need to do is channel magic, feel the surrounding elemental energy, and cast the spell to release elemental magic?" Ron asked, wide-eyed in disbelief.

"That's what it seems like," Hermione responded, recalling her own experience with the elemental magic and nodding.

"This is just one elemental spell we managed to cast. I believe there are even more powerful elemental magic spells out there," Harry said earnestly.

"I believe so too. But right now, we need to head back. If we get caught, we'll still lose points," Ron said, concerned.

"Let's go back first, then we'll find an opportunity tomorrow to ask Professor Callister and also inquire about Potions," Harry agreed.

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