At precisely eleven o'clock, Douglas began his speech with a few brief remarks. Camera flashes popped incessantly, but the reporters weren't rushing to jot anything down—after all, Douglas had already instructed Mr. Slane to inform everyone that copies of the full speech would be handed out at the end.
By eleven-thirty, after much anticipation from the crowd of eager fans, Douglas finally wrapped up his lecture.
In the audience, several Hogwarts students whispered to their parents:
"Dad, I told you—when Professor Holmes says he'll keep it short, it's never actually short."
...
The reporter Q&A session began.
At first, the questions were fairly routine:
"Under what circumstances did you write Magic Chef?"
Douglas replied, "As everyone knows, I'm a Hufflepuff..."
"How do you come up with so many ideas?"
"That's thanks to the wonderful resources of the Hogwarts Library..."
"Did you take the job at Hogwarts because you'd run out of inspiration? I remember you hadn't published for quite some time before that."
"That's a good question. Honestly, I find real-life travel much more interesting than fictional adventures..."
"Professor Holmes, I'm Grizelda Hotts, advice columnist for the Daily Prophet, specializing in relationships. I'm curious about your own romantic experiences—after all, your stories are full of love and drama..."
Douglas smiled. "Ms. Hotts, lovely to meet you. I'm afraid I'll disappoint you—I haven't had many romantic experiences myself, but that's never stopped me from observing others' relationships for inspiration..."
Throughout all this, Douglas kept a close eye on Rita Skeeter. He watched as a fancy quill scribbled nonstop across her notebook.
When she heard his answer to Ms. Hotts, Rita's eyes lit up as if she'd struck gold. She gave her bizarre curls a triumphant shake and, with a sly smile, asked:
"Professor Holmes, am I to understand that, like Gilderoy Lockhart, you secretly use Memory Charms to peek into other people's minds for your stories?"
The atmosphere changed in an instant. Faces in the crowd turned pale.
Douglas merely wore a faint, knowing smile. The fish had finally bitten.
He'd tossed out just enough bait to lure Rita into asking exactly what he wanted—he had no intention of letting her control the narrative.
"Oh, is that a compliment, Ms. Skeeter? After all, everyone knows I wrote my first book as a first-year at Hogwarts. So apparently, I could outwit adult wizards back then... how impressive, don't you think?"
Laughter rippled through the crowd at Douglas's dry sarcasm.
But Rita Skeeter seemed oblivious, her quill darting across the page: Holmes admits he mastered some kind of sinister Dark Magic in his first year, stealing stories from the minds of unsuspecting wizards...
Rita pressed on, "As I understand it, you published a series under the same title and pen name in the Muggle world, one even grander and more spectacular than the magical version. Does that mean you think wizards have less taste for stories than Muggles?"
Douglas grinned. "I'm genuinely surprised you're so interested in the Muggle world, Ms. Skeeter. I'm delighted to hear you've read Muggle literature.
Actually, I believe the Muggle version could be misleading for our underage wizards—not everyone can tell the difference between real magic and fiction.
More importantly, I have deep respect for the pioneers who contributed to modern magic. Using purely fictional magic in my stories would be disrespectful to them.
And, of course, I'm a law-abiding wizard who staunchly supports the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy..."
Her quill scratched out: Professor Holmes is a wizard, but apparently wishes he were a Muggle. He thinks wizard children are too dim to distinguish fact from fiction...
Mr. Slane glared daggers at Rita from the side.
Seemingly satisfied, Rita gave no other reporters the chance to speak and pushed forward:
"So, whose life will your next book be based on—oh, excuse me, I mean, who will inspire your next protagonist? Albus Dumbledore? Minerva McGonagall? As your colleagues, you must know plenty of their secrets by now, don't you?"
Douglas let out a cold laugh. At last, she'd asked the question he'd been waiting for. If she hadn't, he would have brought it up himself.
"Actually, that's not the case at all.
Thank you for asking, though.
I already have a concept for my next novel.
It's the story of an unregistered Animagus witch—a woman who spends her life moving between countries, risking everything for her homeland.
She's cold yet passionate, clever and brave, always able to turn the tables in a crisis, and constantly finding herself caught up in romance—never short of handsome admirers...
Ms. Skeeter, what do you think would be the safest Animagus form for a witch like that?
Personally, I think a beetle would be rather fitting... don't you agree?"
At those words, Rita Skeeter snatched her quill out of midair, clutching it tightly.
She stared straight at Douglas, who grinned back at her, unblinking.
Around them, the other witches and wizards were already debating Douglas's new book—some excited, others skeptical about a witch as the main character.
Rita Skeeter forced a smile. "Well, compared to your previous books, I suppose this one might not be quite so thrilling..."
Douglas just shook his head, still smiling. "Oh, I'm sure it'll be both thrilling and entertaining—and I'm certain you'll love it, Ms. Skeeter.
In fact, I'd like to invite you to serve as my new consultant—keep an eye on me, make sure I'm not stealing anyone's memories for inspiration. And of course, you're welcome to offer suggestions at any time—after all, it's a story with a female lead..."
The other reporters immediately picked up on the tension between the two—especially Skeeter's sudden change in attitude—but none could quite figure out why.
Skeeter's face went rigid. Now she was certain: he absolutely knew her secret.
She needed to drop the subject before Douglas said anything that might make people connect the dots. She decided to wait until after the signing, then find him in private.
"Professor Holmes, perhaps we can discuss this matter... privately."
The fans around them were clearly unimpressed by the idea of Rita as a consultant.
"If she's the consultant, does that mean the main character will have three gold teeth too?" (A not-so-subtle jab at Skeeter's own golden dental work.)
"Has Professor Holmes been hoodwinked by her?"
"Uncle, you're underestimating Professor Holmes... I bet he's just trying to bribe her—after all, no one ever enjoys being the subject of one of Rita's articles!"
PS: Happy New Year to everyone!
A friendly reminder: No calling the chapter 'filler' during New Year's! If you must comment, just say, "Too hot!"
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