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Chapter 17: You will definitely become a great wizard that everyone fears!
🕑 Added 2024-12-10 12:34:32 +0000 UTCVictor tested the wand and found it acceptable, so he did not ask for a replacement. After all, his casting methods differed significantly from most people in this world, and having or not having a wand made little difference to him.
However, Hermione was quite excited.
She ended up with a wand made of vine wood, paired with dragon heartstring, 10¾ inches long, and rather flexible. Ollivander commented that it suited her intelligence and diligence, and the wand's flexibility allowed for a broader range of spellcasting styles.
The Grangers happily paid several Galleons.
By the time the sky turned gray, the day's shopping spree had finally come to an end. Hermione and the Grangers, laden with large and small bags, returned to the Leaky Cauldron, still reluctant to leave.
In the early evening, the pub was still bustling with wizards and witches with their children. Some of the children had already returned home via Floo Powder, leaving the adults to enjoy a drink before heading back.
As the Grangers passed by, a few wizards took hearty gulps of their drinks and lamented:
"Thank goodness! I thought I was going to drop dead from exhaustion, but at least I finally sent that brat off. Did you know he even nagged me to buy him a Nimbus 2000?"
"Mine was the same! I can't wait for those professors to take over. Keeping him at home was driving me insane."
Professor Victor, feeling like the butt of a cosmic joke, froze in silence as he descended the stairs.
...Thankfully, he taught third years.
When the topic turned to raising children, it reminded him of a witch friend from a fairy tale world.
She was a witch who grew an impressive amount of lettuce. But because her lettuce was so appealing, neighbors couldn't resist stealing it. This led her to strike a deal: one child in exchange for a head of lettuce. She eventually took in the family's child and raised her until adulthood.
That kind of patience was something Victor deeply admired.
The only issue was that years later, the witch blinded the girl's romantic partner...
Ahem.
Victor's mind wandered until the Grangers reached the door, preparing to bid him farewell.
"Thank you very much for guiding us today, Professor Vanderboom," said Mr. Granger sincerely. "Hermione is new to the wizarding world and knows nothing yet. We’ll rely on you to look after her in the future."
"It’s no trouble," Victor replied with a nod before adding, "But I only teach third-year students and above, so I probably won’t cross paths with Hermione much in the next few years. Besides, I doubt she’ll choose my class."
"Ah?" Mr. Granger looked confused. "But Hermione probably will. She’s quite interested in Divination."
Victor, however, shook his head.
"It’s not about interest."
"The aura around her is very dim. She likely won’t get far in Divination. If she truly wants to study it, I’d recommend trying Arithmancy."
"I see..."
Mr. Granger froze awkwardly, while Hermione looked utterly shocked. Moments later, her eyes brimmed with tears.
What could be more crushing than being told by a professor that you had no talent before even starting school?
Hermione, who had always been the top student in her class, had never experienced such a blow.
To tell her she couldn’t learn something—it was more hurtful than saying she wasn’t trying hard enough.
But Victor meant exactly what he said.
Noticing Hermione’s sadness, he added:
"There’s no need to be upset, Miss Granger. I have many witch and wizard friends who have no talent for Divination, yet they’ve become some of the most feared sorcerers. Some excel in curses, while others are masters of large-scale offensive magic. Divination was never a necessity for them—just an optional step on their path to success."
"I’m confident that with your dedication, you’ll excel in fields where you’re more naturally gifted."
Hermione’s mood visibly improved.
"Oh... oh! Thank you, Professor."
As Victor waved goodbye and parted ways with her, Hermione couldn’t shake a troubling thought: “Most feared sorcerers—most feared??”
Something about that phrasing felt off!
Would wizards really make that their life’s goal?!
Having completed his shopping, Victor finally returned home from Diagon Alley. He tossed a fluttering owl and a small stack of books onto his desk, then placed a self-stirring cauldron he had bought for fun atop his fireplace.
Yes, Victor was the target audience for self-stirring cauldrons.
To Hermione’s shock and disapproval, he had calmly purchased this heretical tool for potion-making and brought it home. In fact, he couldn’t be more satisfied with it.
A cauldron that stirs itself? The witches he once knew would have gone mad with envy!
Witches in the fairy tale world often had multiple jobs and rarely specialized in potion brewing. If the cauldron could stir itself, why do it manually?
Even Baba Yaga was impressed. She remarked that from now on, she wouldn’t have to keep checking her cauldron while brewing something. The kettle by the sink seemed equally pleased, bowing slightly as if relieved of one of its own burdens.
...The next month flew by in no time.
With little to do, Victor mostly stayed home drafting his lesson plans and replying to the various letters sent to him. The rest of his time was spent tending to plants and playing with wands.
When it came to letters, Victor had even made a small chain for his owl, allowing it to come and go freely through the mist.
On the morning of September 1st, Victor tied his lesson plan to the owl’s leg and brought it to the balcony.
"Everything depends on you now," he said solemnly.
"Hoo?" The owl blinked, its clear eyes full of confusion as it lay belly-up in Victor’s hands.
"...You need to fly quickly. Ideally, get to Hogwarts before noon today. Then pretend to be very tired when you deliver the letter to Professor McGonagall. That way, I can tell her I sent it yesterday, but the owl was too slow."
????
Don’t make things hard for the owl!
The owl looked even more bewildered, unable to comprehend the human’s mutterings.
Still, Victor cheerfully tossed it into the air, watching it slowly vanish into the mist...
Baba Yaga, watching from the living room, commented slowly, "Relax. The mist has drifted back to southern England. Based on your earlier tests, that’s about a morning’s flight away."
"Excellent. Thank you, Baba," Victor said casually.
Yes, laziness had struck again. Despite having ample time to write his lesson plan, he had only written three lines in the first 30 days, finishing the rest in a single overnight sprint.
"What’s your plan for getting to Hogwarts this time? Using mirrors like last time?" Baba Yaga asked lazily.
"No, no," Victor replied. "Dumbledore knows we can’t use Floo Powder here and specifically gave me the location of a nearby colleague to travel from. He said I can return to Hogwarts from there."
"A colleague? Who?"
"Severus Snape, I believe. He teaches Potions," Victor said easily. "Dumbledore gave me his address—Spinner’s End. It’s nearby."
