Chapter 11: Flying Dumbledore's Banner
When Slane heard Percy call Douglas Boss, he blinked at him in surprise.
Douglas rolled his eyes at the man at once.
He could already tell what Slane was trying to do.
The sneaky fellow was clearly attempting to "accidentally" expose his identity without technically violating the agreement between them.
That way, Slane could finally satisfy his dream of organizing enormous autograph events.
Douglas suddenly felt that, in hindsight, he really should have forced him into some kind of magically binding secrecy oath.
Then again, Douglas no longer cared quite as much as he once had.
He used to worry that if he became too famous in the wizarding world, the resurrected Voldemort might notice him.
But now?
Now he was going to be a professor at Hogwarts.
Sooner or later, he was bound to cross paths with Voldemort anyway.
Assuming, of course, that he could collect ten thousand points before the end of the school year—
And break that absurd curse.
Douglas lowered his head and smiled at Percy.
"This isn't the place to discuss it."
"I'll ask Slane to send you a complete set of my books later."
He gave Percy a knowing look.
"I assume Bill and Charlie never left behind the copies I gave them."
Then he lowered his voice.
"But you must keep it secret for me."
Percy stared at him, stunned.
Then, as Douglas turned away, Percy's eyes widened even more.
Something seemed to click in his head—but then he shook it off again.
It couldn't be right.
If he remembered correctly, those books had first appeared when Douglas should still have been a first- or second-year student.
And yet…
Bill and Charlie had owned two complete identical sets.
Percy had borrowed them more than once.
When the two older boys left home, they had taken the books with them, claiming they were excellent entertainment during idle hours.
Douglas, meanwhile, looked up at the enormous display of Gilderoy Lockhart smiling brilliantly from every angle.
The wizard in the magical photographs kept flashing dazzling white teeth at the crowd.
And there stood the real Lockhart beneath them all, dressed in robes of forget-me-not blue that matched his eyes perfectly.
Douglas nudged Slane with an elbow.
"Tell me honestly," he murmured. "Do you think I'd look good dressed like that?"
Slane gave him a sidelong glance and frowned.
"You mean to say you think that doesn't look good?"
Douglas instantly decided he would continue publishing under a pseudonym forever if necessary.
He had no desire to end up like Lockhart one day, strutting about like a peacock in full display.
Without another word, Douglas squeezed through the crowd and approached the counter at Flourish and Blotts.
A short while later, he returned with a complete set of first-year textbooks.
Slane looked down at the books in surprise.
"Who are you buying those for?"
Before Douglas could answer, Percy blurted out in disbelief,
"Boss, you didn't buy those for Ginny, did you? Then did you lie to Mum?"
Douglas passed the books to Percy and patted him earnestly on the shoulder.
"My boy, it seems you've forgotten one of the little lessons I taught you."
"This isn't lying. It's simply phrasing something in a way that allows the other person to accept a gift without feeling burdened by it."
Then he narrowed his eyes slightly.
"And don't let anything slip later."
Slane snorted from beside them.
"Hmph. Don't go poisoning the child with the habits of politicians."
He folded his arms.
"No wonder you can write those novels. You know far too much."
Then he added dryly,
"It's a shame you didn't decide to become Minister for Magic."
Before Douglas could reply, they saw Mrs. Weasley hurrying toward them with Ginny.
At the same time, Arthur was coming from the direction of the Leaky Cauldron with a couple beside him.
Douglas quickly said goodbye to Slane—who was still openly studying the entire scene like research material—and led Percy out of the crowd.
The moment Mrs. Weasley reached them, she handed Ginny off to Douglas and Percy without ceremony.
Then she grabbed a copy of Magical Me from the nearest display and hurried straight into the signing line.
Percy quietly slipped the books Douglas had bought into the cauldron Ginny was carrying.
Arthur reached them with the couple at his side.
"Douglas! Have you finished your business?"
He looked genuinely pleased.
"I was hoping to have a proper chat with you. Mr. and Mrs. Granger were just telling me all sorts of things about Muggle cars."
Before Douglas could answer, Ginny lifted the cauldron eagerly and announced,
"Dad, Professor Holmes gave me a whole set of books—"
Percy added at once,
"And Mum has invited Boss—I mean, Douglas—to dinner tonight to celebrate his becoming a professor at Hogwarts."
Arthur did not seem surprised by Percy's choice of title.
He had heard it before at the Burrow.
He glanced at the brand-new textbooks in Ginny's cauldron, then nodded when he heard Molly's plans.
"Of course. Of course."
At that moment, the couple beside him spoke cautiously.
"Excuse us," said Mr. Granger, "did Mr. Weasley just say you were a professor at Hogwarts?"
Arthur slapped his forehead lightly.
"Oh! I forgot the introductions."
He gestured enthusiastically.
"This is Douglas Holmes, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts."
Then he turned toward Douglas.
"And these are Mr. and Mrs. Granger—the parents of Miss Granger, whom you met outside Gringotts earlier."
He lowered his voice only slightly.
"They're Muggles."
Arthur knew Douglas's background, so he saw no reason to avoid mentioning it.
Douglas looked at the Grangers, who were doing their best to appear calm inside the wizarding world, and gave them a reassuring smile.
"Hello. There's no need to be nervous."
He winked lightly.
"I'm Muggle-born too—just like your daughter."
At that, the Grangers visibly relaxed.
Though Arthur had been kind and enthusiastic, they had still felt more than a little out of place in the magical world.
And if they were honest, they had already sensed a trace of disdain from one or two witches and wizards around them.
But this man—
This Hogwarts professor—
Was like Hermione.
An ordinary child from an ordinary family who had become a wizard.
Instantly, they warmed to him.
Mr. Granger smiled.
"That's wonderful."
Then he added, with growing enthusiasm,
"I should really learn from Mr. Holmes's parents. How did they manage to raise their son so well that he became—"
Before he could finish, Arthur coughed sharply and leaned in to whisper something in his ear.
"Ahem… Douglas's parents died before he ever went to Hogwarts."
Mr. Granger's face changed at once.
Panic and regret flashed across it—not because he feared for himself, but because he had just realized that he might have offended his daughter's teacher within moments of meeting him.
He hurriedly apologized.
"I'm sorry—terribly sorry, Professor Holmes. I didn't know…"
Douglas immediately waved the concern away, while Arthur began loudly assuring the Grangers that Douglas was one of the most good-natured people imaginable.
It took a fair bit of reassurance to calm them down.
At last Douglas said gently,
"Please don't worry, Mrs. Granger. I'm quite sure Miss Granger will grow into an excellent witch."
As they spoke, Harry and the others came back over from wherever they had been amusing themselves.
The moment they noticed Douglas was still there, their expressions shifted slightly.
Mr. and Mrs. Granger promptly pulled Hermione closer and introduced her properly, clearly proud of her even if they had no precise idea how she performed at school.
Still, a girl who could spend the summer memorizing her textbooks was enough to impress any parents.
A few moments later, Molly emerged from the crowd, cheeks pink with excitement.
"Oh, splendid—everyone's here."
She held up the signed copy of Magical Me.
"It's Gilderoy's autograph. I thought you'd all be interested…"
At that moment, Douglas's gaze drifted past her and landed on a familiar figure in the distance.
Lucius Malfoy.
Douglas remembered him very clearly.
Especially during Douglas's early years at Hogwarts, when Lucius had been making frequent appearances in the Daily Prophet in an obvious effort to improve public opinion of himself after Voldemort's fall.
And then another thought struck Douglas.
The diary.
His expression tightened.
Arthur noticed at once and followed his line of sight.
Then he snorted in disgust.
"Malfoy."
He practically spat the name.
"Looks as though he's just come out of Knockturn Alley."
Arthur folded his arms.
"The Ministry's recent investigations have made him a bit jumpy."
Douglas glanced toward Ginny.
Then, suddenly, he clapped his hands once and smiled at everyone.
"By the way—didn't Mrs. Weasley just say she wanted to celebrate my appointment?"
He looked around at them all.
"In that case, allow me to invite everyone to my home."
His smile broadened.
"I trust none of you would object to trying my cooking."
Then he added casually,
"My house is near London, so it isn't far."
For one perfect instant, every expression froze.
No one even had time to cheer.
Douglas simply turned and began walking toward the Leaky Cauldron, then looked back over his shoulder with an inviting smile.
"It's getting late. Let's not block the shop entrance."
"We can go outside and discuss it properly."
The Weasleys rushed after him at once, practically glowing with excitement.
Mrs. Weasley noticed Harry and Hermione hesitating and immediately reached out to pull them along too.
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