Inside the headmaster's office, after Harry left, McGonagall also stood up to leave.
"I still need to prepare for this afternoon's Transfiguration class."
But when Snape was preparing to depart as well, Dumbledore called him back.
"Severus, what's your impression of this student Leonardo Grafton? He should've attended your class by now."
Snape's body stiffened, then he composed himself. "Quite talented in Potions. Very humble as a person."
Great Hall.
There was still time before class, and Leo sat at the long table with a group of students.
Soon, someone with sharp eyes spotted their target.
"Oh look, Harry's back!"
Leo glanced over to see Harry striding confidently, head held high like a returning conqueror.
Wasn't this kid called away for disciplinary talks? How come he looked like he'd gone to receive an award, face full of pride and satisfaction?
"Harry, you alright? What'd the professors say?"
Someone asked anxiously.
Harry detailed his punishment—including fifty points deducted from Gryffindor, directly zeroing out their recent achievements.
Silence. Complete quiet.
Two or three seconds later...
"Oh yeah! We won!"
"Gryffindor defeated Slytherin again!"
"Even the professors gave punishment—that's official recognition!"
A group of older Gryffindors erupted in cheers.
First-year students still didn't understand what'd happened. Students from other houses who'd stayed to watch the drama were used to this—they all knew what lions were like.
Only the Slytherins who'd remained to watch and laugh snorted coldly and left.
Leo, initially confused by Gryffindor's sudden celebration, understood their logic after listening awhile.
In the lions' view, Harry knocking down Malfoy roughly equalled Gryffindor defeating Slytherin. And punishment from professors? Well, from a certain perspective, that could be considered official certification too.
Leo couldn't help shaking his head. These two houses were sworn enemies—scores and the House Cup mattered less than directly confronting each other and watching the other side suffer.
Sure enough, the Weasley twins had already lifted Harry up like they were displaying a brand-new little lion fresh from the factory.
Afternoon, Transfiguration classroom.
Leo arrived early, glancing toward the podium. As expected, he spotted a tabby cat with markings around its face that looked remarkably like spectacles.
Leo nodded acknowledgement toward the cat Professor McGonagall had transformed into, then found his seat.
Did Professor McGonagall enjoy being feline, or was this customary showmanship before new students' first Transfiguration class—demonstrating transformation's magical allure?
Leo scanned the classroom. This time they were paired with Slytherin.
Even with class about to start, no young wizard had approached the podium attempting to pet the cat.
Made sense. Only Hufflepuffs who loved small animals, or Gryffindors who specialised in producing "heroes" would have students trying to play with mysterious cats before their first Transfiguration lesson.
The moment the class bell rang, the tabby leaped down from the podium and transformed directly into a witch wearing dark green robes.
Seeing a cat actually become Professor McGonagall, many young wizards cried out in amazement.
Terry beside Leo looked stunned. "Leo, look at that! What kind of magic was that? Incredible!"
"Animagus—wizards who can transform into animals. It's considered Transfiguration's highest art."
Leo casually explained while pondering Animagus knowledge. It involved human transformation, and after becoming an animal, one retained magical power.
But this couldn't involve magical creatures—that was strictly forbidden. Generally, an Animagus could only transform into one animal type.
"Transfiguration is a profound subject that also carries considerable danger—magic you'll encounter frequently in your futures."
"Learning this subject requires absolute rigour and seriousness."
"Anyone causing trouble in my classroom will be asked to leave immediately!"
Worthy of being Hogwarts' Deputy Headmistress and Gryffindor's Head of House. When Professor McGonagall turned serious, young wizards immediately straightened.
"Of course, Transfiguration will also bring you tremendous joy."
She pointed her wand at the podium, which transformed into a fat pig that flapped its ears playfully.
This made many students' eyes light up, giving them their first taste of Transfiguration's charm.
Seeing their reaction, McGonagall nodded with satisfaction and prepared to begin her lecture.
Tap Tap Tap .
"Professor McGonagall, I apologise for the disruption, but as you can see, I've suffered significant injuries. My father always taught me that education comes first, so I insisted on attending despite my condition."
A young wizard wrapped in bandages with plaster casts on his right hand and left leg hobbled into the classroom on crutches. Two tall, stocky boys followed closely, afraid he might fall.
"Malfoy, you needn't rush to attend class. You can rest in the hospital wing."
Professor McGonagall frowned slightly. She remembered Snape mentioning letting Malfoy temporarily skip classes to recuperate.
But Malfoy raised his head proudly. "Professor, Harry Potter just went to the hospital wing for volunteer work, and he was assigned to take care of me."
"Oh right, he also gave me a sincere, humble, heartfelt apology."
"Professor, I can attend class! I feel fantastic now!"
Leo stared at Malfoy speaking eloquently as if the bandages and casts didn't exist.
Wait, was he here to attend class? Or to "show off" that Harry had cared for him and apologised?
An apology both humble and heartfelt—what was this, literary analysis?
Leo suddenly understood. Dumbledore, you were right. Love really is the most powerful magic in the world.
Professor McGonagall had the three sit down and continued the lesson.
After explaining basic theoretical knowledge, she had students begin practical attempts.
This lesson's task: transform a match into a needle.
The most basic Transfiguration is inanimate object to inanimate object.
Going further up, from simple to difficult: inanimate to animate, animate to inanimate, and animate to animate.
Later stages required wizards to suppress living beings' consciousness, with difficulty increasing dramatically.
But this first lesson—the simplest Transfiguration—had already stumped most students.
Terry kept poking his match vigorously with his wand. Finally, he managed to turn it silver—at least the colour resembled a needle.
Malfoy struggled waving his wand with his non-dominant hand and successfully made his match emit light and heat, so he needed another one.
Actually, their attempts were decent—at least their matches had changed somewhat.
Most students' matches hadn't changed at all.
Leo raised his wand and pointed at his match.
A faint light flashed. A well-proportioned silver needle replaced the wooden stick.
He pointed his wand again.
The needle's surface gradually became hollow, forming several complex patterns as exquisite as artwork.
But Leo felt it wasn't enough. Basic inanimate-to-inanimate transformation had two ultimate directions.
One was property transformation—like turning stone into explosive barrels that could actually detonate.
The other was complex mechanical structures—extremely precise transformations representing fine magical control.
Following his instincts while constructing the form mentally, Leo let his magic flow through his wand, delicately moulding the silver needle.
After several seconds, the needle had become a small, exquisite monocular telescope.
With soft clicking sounds of gears turning, the telescope automatically extended and contracted.
Just as Leo reached out to pick up the telescope and verify whether it had real functionality rather than being purely decorative, his finger touched the brass-coloured body.
[Ding! Congratulations host on triggering a loan!]
[Loan Name: Mechanical Transformation Pocket Watch.]
[Evaluation: Except for being unable to tell time, all other functions are complete.]