During the few years Vid had been at school, Hogwarts, which had stood for a thousand years, had undergone many significant changes, but those changes seemed to have scarcely affected the Medical Wing.
The familiar scent of Magic Potions and Herbs permeated the air, and Madam Pomfrey, having been notified in advance, had prepared a small bed with rails, covered it with a soft blanket.
Dumbledore stood by the window, watching the snow falling outside. He only turned around when he heard footsteps.
Madam Pomfrey had already gone ahead to meet them. She wiped her hands and took the swaddled baby with a face full of affection: "Oh, is this the child? My goodness, he's adorable."
"Though he looks like a baby, he's actually a forty-seven-year-old man," Vid reminded her when he saw Madam Pomfrey seemed about to give a couple of kisses.
"Of course I know that, Vid, I haven't forgotten why he was sent here."
Madam Pomfrey, speaking as such, still carefully touched the soft hand of the child before bending down to lay him on the small bed.
Baby Hughes was staring around inquisitively with his clear eyes, and, perhaps because his limbs were finally freed, he showed a purely happy smile.
"Merlin…"
Madam Pomfrey clutched her chest, looking like she was about to faint from the cuteness.
After all, having been a school healer for decades, the youngest patients she usually treated were at least eleven years old, and it had been so long since she had seen a child whose whole body was less than three feet in length.
Vid gave a helpless smile and looked up to meet Dumbledore's gentle gaze.
"Vid," the headmaster said with a smile in his eyes, "is everything going smoothly?"
Vid smiled and replied, "Except the baby cries very loudly... it should be going smoothly."
Dumbledore nodded and said, "Then, later on, if you're willing, would you like to share your experiences with me?"
Vid softly agreed, "Alright, professor."
While they were speaking, Madam Pomfrey had already started her diagnostic examination.
She gave her wrist a slight shake, and the tip of her wand lit up with a gentle milky white light, evenly sprinkling over the baby. As a result, Baby Hughes's entire body also lit up, though the light varied in brightness, as if numerous bruises and spots suddenly appeared on him.
Madam Pomfrey frowned, and her initially relaxed expression turned serious. Her magic wand drew small spirals in her hand, waves of something substantial sweeping over the baby.
After a long while, Madam Pomfrey finally put down her magic wand.
"He's not like you were, Vid."
She said in a low voice, "Previously, you were a neat regression—every cell, every bone synchronized in reverse, like a precisely rewound film, making it relatively easier to reverse."
"But this child…"
She looked at the baby on the bed with pity, saying, "He's not a simple regression; he's... fragmented."
"The time inside his body shows a terrifying chaos. When time magic fell on him, it was like rain, but some parts had heavy rain, some had light drizzle, and others were just slightly dampened..."
"In a sense, it's already a miracle he survived... most people would have likely died from ruptured blood vessels all over their bodies in that instant."
Vid was silent for a few seconds before asking, "Then... is there hope if we send him to St Mungo's Hospital?"
He knew that while Madam Pomfrey had excellent Healing Magic, it didn't mean she could solve all ailments. When encountering extremely complex cases or serious magical injuries, she too would refer patients to St Mungo's for treatment.
But this time, Madam Pomfrey shook her head.
"If this were a curse, poisoning, or Dark Magic infection, I would have already packed him up and sent him off on a cart... The healers there have more experience and have seen more cases than I have in my lifetime. In some areas, they do indeed have better treatment methods."
"But this is Time Magic... Vid, when faced with such an ailment, they're as new to it as I am... no, maybe even less experienced!"
At least, she had the experience of successfully healing Vid.
"And, St Mungo's Hospital does not have a Time-Regulating Pot, which is key to the treatment."
Vid's eyes shifted: "You mentioned... 'the key to treatment'?"
"Exactly." Madam Pomfrey displayed a faint smile: "His condition is exceptionally tricky and difficult to treat, but I didn't say 'there's no hope,' did I?"
Just as Vid smiled, Madam Pomfrey continued: "Given the complexity of the situation, I must say—even for me, the success rate is less than half. If..."
"I understand." Vid nodded before she could say the worst possibility, "I will communicate well with his people. I think... they've already prepared themselves."
...
Sure enough, after Vid explained the situation to Hosone, a reply quickly came back from that side—
A 50% cure rate had far exceeded Hosone's most optimistic expectations, and he expressed without hesitation his desire for Hughes to remain at Hogwarts for treatment.
The Time-Regulating Pot was the same Golden Teapot that had made Vid and Harry grow smaller and larger before; it was actually a "Yin-Yang Pot," with foolproof operations.
The left side of the teapot poured out particles that accelerated time flow, while the right side poured out particles that reversed time in a small range. The handle had a switch button and a one-button recovery function to retrieve all released Time Particles.
But curing such a tricky patient required not only the Time-Regulating Pot but also precise calculations and adjustments.
Madam Pomfrey planned to adjust Hughes's internal time by region, each time adjusting a small time ratio, so his body gradually acclimatizes to normal time flow, at least keeping most of his organs on the same level, thereby achieving a cure.
This was evidently a highly time-consuming and meticulous task, possibly not even complete within a couple of months.
Meanwhile, to restore Hughes's body to a normal state, many rare Magic Potions were needed, fortunately, the rarest components—Phoenix's voluntarily offered tears and unicorn foal's first shed tail—could be easily obtained at Hogwarts.
As for the dosage of each time particle release, the conversion of time flow rate, and the stacking of spells to stabilize the body...
These were all topics Madam Pomfrey had discussed with Dumbledore during Vid's treatment, and only minor adjustments were needed now.
After settling the treatment plan, Madam Pomfrey busied herself, immersing wholly in an especially focused state.
Dumbledore did not disturb her further; he merely patted Vid on the shoulder, and afterward, they both left the room together.
It was already late at night, the window outside was pitch black, with only the sound of the howling wind and occasional snowflakes hitting against the window.
Dumbledore gazed at the thin layer of fog on the window glass, sighed, and said:
"The discussion on the treatment plan took longer than I expected... Vid, if you are tired, you can return to your dorm to rest, we can discuss your travels tomorrow morning, it's not urgent."
Vid shook his head: "Now is perfect, headmaster."
He looked at the castle corridors he hadn't seen in so long, saying with a bit of emotion: "Later... I might not want to talk about certain issues anymore."
Dumbledore turned his head, the curve of his mouth didn't widen, but there was a bright light in his eyes.
Soon after, warmth spread in Dumbledore's eyes, as if he had relaxed more.
He nodded slightly and said: "Indeed, some things are like chocolate frogs; you need to catch them before they hop away."
"Then, come to my office. I have a new batch of cream toffees from Honeydukes, likely with a hint of Euphoric Potion, guaranteed to lift the spirits."
"Of course, I also have newly released chocolate frogs in the drawer if you'd like to try them?"