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After class, Anthony returned to his office and opened his Transfiguration textbook to begin today's studies. He was gritting his teeth trying to turn his desk into a horse when the cat lying on his lap serving as a small desk suddenly twitched its ears, stood up, and sent the textbook sliding to the floor.
Anthony and the cat listened together. Arguing voices came from the corridor outside. His and Professor Quirrell's offices were both on the same corridor, relatively isolated. Apart from students coming to ask them questions, few people passed this way.
He pulled his office door open a crack and looked out. Neville again. And a student he didn't recognize—judging by his manner of speaking, a Slytherin. Truly remarkable how they could learn their Head of House so perfectly—was lazily waving his wand, pressing Neville back to the ground each time he tried to stand.
"You'd better look up at me when you speak to me, you weak coward." The Slytherin said. "Bullying a wimp like you is really boring, but your existence troubles her... I don't want to hear any more nonsense about 'her distant aunt drove Longbottom's parents mad.' Oh, Longbottom, your parents are mad, like that's something to be proud of. If I were you, I'd let this rot in my belly."
Neville trembled, tears welling in his eyes. He stubbornly glared at this older student.
Anthony touched his wand. This student's language was truly excessive, but the spell he was using didn't even qualify as a regular Hogwarts brawl. The professors in the staff room seemed to take disputes between the two Houses for granted, even thinking this could cultivate students' combat abilities.
"If you see fighting within a House, you can call their Head of House." Professor Burbage had instructed him. "If you see fighting between Houses, you can dock points from both sides. But if you see Gryffindor and Slytherin fighting, let them fight. They've been fighting for many years, both inside and outside school."
Anthony watched the corridor situation, resolving that if this older student used one more spell, he'd rush out and dock points. If Snape wanted to settle accounts with him, let him come. He'd discuss student moral education with him.
"I'm not a weak coward!" Neville shouted, hands braced on the ground, gasping painfully.
Malicious light flashed in the Slytherin's eyes. "Hey, if you're not a coward, do you dare go to that corridor upstairs?"
"But that corridor..." Neville stammered. "That corridor we can't go to! If we're caught, points will be docked..."
"Ha! Points docked!" The other sneered. "Listen to yourself! You should be able to find a better excuse for your cowardice, shouldn't you, Longbottom? Think carefully... Oh, I forgot, thinking is difficult for you too, isn't it?" He laughed loudly.
Neville's face flushed red and white. He took a deep breath. "Then..."
Anthony felt he had to intervene. Even if this student wanted Neville to raid Snape's office, he might continue watching developments. But not that third-floor corridor. Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall had emphasized that corridor's importance to all staff, telling them it was truly dangerous. If they saw students wandering nearby, they should immediately drive them away.
"If it's Gryffindor." Professor McGonagall had said through gritted teeth. "I suggest starting at twenty points per person. Point deductions below ten don't work on them anymore."
The professors all thought Gryffindor was most likely to want to challenge that corridor. Since the Start-of-Term Feast, Anthony had felt Dumbledore's speech was a disguised "brave heroes please help me slay the dragon." He'd been worried some reckless student would test their courage. He hadn't expected to encounter a Slytherin goading a Gryffindor today.
He pretended he was just going out, shuffling around putting on shoes at the door for a while, then walked into the corridor holding his lesson plans. The Slytherin released Neville with astonishing speed, passing right in front of Anthony as he opened the door, even politely nodding at him.
Neville stood against the wall, tear tracks and dust still on his face, staring blankly in the direction the Slytherin had vanished.
"Professor Anthony." He looked at Anthony standing in the doorway and asked quietly, "How would a brave person respond to bullying?"
"I don't know, Mr. Longbottom. You must find the answer yourself. But I know bullying others isn't a brave thing in the first place." Anthony said gently, walking over to wipe Neville's face—thanks to his emotional students, he now always kept tissues in his bag—then patted his shoulder. "No idea where you got a face full of mud, young man."
...
After sending the comforted Neville away, Anthony stood in the corridor, lost in thought. He'd only gradually realized after coming to Hogwarts that the last war's influence in the magical world was so far-reaching that traces could still be seen among students. Perhaps because he hadn't experienced those war-torn years, his feelings about Voldemort were almost the same as his feelings about goblin rebellions: a few chapters in History of Magic.
Through his exchanges with students ("I'm half-blood among half-bloods. My dad was Muggle-born, my mum was a Muggle, but they both died in the wizarding war. I want to know how they might have lived if they were still alive."), he'd learned more and more about that war.
He'd once asked Professor Burbage how many children at Hogwarts had lost relatives in that war. Professor Burbage had looked at him for a while, then told him that because Britain's wizarding community was small, it was almost everyone with wizard relatives. This was also why Harry Potter was so famous.
"I'm really glad Voldemort is dead." Anthony had said.
"Me too." Professor Burbage had smiled.
...
When he planned to return to his room, he happened to see the Weasley twins coming down the stairs. Those stairs happened to connect to the third-floor right corridor of "don't go there unless you want to die horribly." Perhaps because he'd just heard that Slytherin student trying to goad Neville into "exploring," Anthony was somewhat worried about what the Weasley twins were doing up there.
He called out to them. "Good afternoon, Weasley."
"Good afternoon, Professor." They answered in unison.
"What were you doing upstairs?" Anthony asked directly.
"The weather today is really very nice—" one said.
"So we decided to admire Hogwarts' beautiful scenery." The other picked up.
"Professor, seriously, you should go up there and look."
"You can even see deep into the Forbidden Forest."
"Sunlight on the lake surface—absolutely beautiful."
"I even wanted to write poetry."
Anthony rubbed his forehead, torn between laughter and exasperation. He didn't know what the Weasley twins had done, but it sounded like they'd gone somewhere very high, unrelated to the third-floor corridor.
"I remember Gryffindor dormitories are in a tower. The view there should be just as good." He said before waving them past.
The brothers said in unison, "Yes, Professor."
Anthony smiled as he watched them run off. When he turned around, he discovered Professor Quirrell was also just coming down the stairs.
"G-good afternoon, Professor Anthony." Quirrell said, staring in the direction the Weasley twins had gone.
Anthony suddenly remembered the prank he'd heard about in the staff room. The Weasley twins weren't very well-behaved in Defense Against the Dark Arts class.
"I was worried they'd gone to the third-floor corridor." Anthony explained to Quirrell.
Quirrell's body jerked violently. He stared wide-eyed at Anthony. "S-students can't go there."
"Yes, they shouldn't have gone." Anthony reassured him before returning to his office.
As soon as Anthony sat down, his cat jumped onto his lap. It didn't like the scent of living people. Anthony hugged the cat. "I know. Today's corridor was too busy."
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