A Professor of Magic at Hogwarts

"Happy birthday, Ron." The next day, Harry yawned as he got out of bed, halfway through his yawn, he subconsciously closed his mouth, cautiously sensing the mandrake leaf in his mouth with his tongue.

Looking around the dormitory, Seamus and Dean were already gone, and Neville wasn't there either. Harry found it strange, but then he remembered that Neville had to go to Professor McGonagall's office this morning for Animagus guidance.

"Thanks, mate." Ron mumbled sleepily. When he put his feet on the ground, he stepped on a small pile of parcels. Instantly, he became alert. "Presents!" Ron exclaimed, tearing into the gifts without even changing out of his pajamas.

Harry tossed a brightly wrapped box onto Ron's bed. "Here's your gift." Then he started getting dressed.

It only took him two minutes to strip off his pajamas and put on his robes. After he finished, he glanced at his watch and breathed a sigh of relief. Still on time.

"Where are you going—hey, thanks Harry, this gift is brilliant." Ron waved around the Quidditch goalkeeper dragonhide gloves Harry gave him. Sitting on the floor, surrounded by torn wrapping paper, Ron exclaimed with excitement, "This year's a real jackpot. All the gifts I got have leveled up. I really hope next year's just as good—Where are you off to?"

He asked again, finally tearing his gaze away from a heavy gold watch.

"I have an appointment with Professor Bathsheda." Harry muttered.

"Oh, what a downer. I was hoping you'd come with me to Hogsmeade," Ron said. "If Fred and George had an ounce of conscience left, they'd consider giving their little brother a discount on his coming-of-age day..." He went over the gifts again, grumbling, "Maybe I'm expecting too much. They've been pretty busy lately. I reckon they just deposited a box of dungbombs at the Hogsmeade branch."

Grindelwald was already waiting there.

They strolled slowly on the grass, gentle sunlight filtering through the treetops, mingling with the damp mist and the scent of fresh grass in the air. Harry caught sight of the Whomping Willow in the distance, swaying gently in the breeze, looking harmless.

"Harry," Grindelwald spoke, "You've learned a few spells, but I find you haven't unleashed your true power yet."

"I'm sorry," Harry said uneasily, "I'm still not very proficient..."

"That's not the reason." Grindelwald whispered, "Although I teach the theory and models of spells in class, it's to accommodate the progress of ordinary people, to accommodate... those mediocre students."

Harry looked at him in surprise.

"People are different, Harry—most of the people you've seen—unless there are accidents—will lead mediocre lives, their greatest use being the continuation of magic."

Grindelwald walked slowly ahead, and Harry followed, saying, "Sir, I disagree with that view." Grindelwald glanced at him, "Then tell me your thoughts."

"Um—" Harry said, "What's wrong with leading an ordinary, peaceful life? I quite like it that way, and I think it's too... utilitarian to judge a person's worth based on magical abilities."

"Utilitarian?" Grindelwald asked with interest.

"A bit," Harry said honestly. He felt that Professor Bathsheda must have been influenced by the dark wizard Grindelwald's thoughts. He had seen similar descriptions in the travelogue he found in the library.

"I believe—well, there's no need to categorize people into usefulness. Like my friend Ron's family. Mr. Weasley works at the Ministry of Magic and is currently preparing new Muggle protection laws, which I think is quite meaningful, but unrelated to magic, isn't it? And Mrs. Weasley, she's a homemaker, a good person, taking care of the whole family..."

"Their eldest son Bill used to work as a curse breaker at Gringotts, but he applied for an office job due to the war situation. I think with his personality, he must want a cooler career. Oh, not now... His girlfriend works there too; the second son Charlie breeds dragons in Romania; the third son Percy works at the Ministry of Magic like Mr. Weasley, but I reckon his job is to write reports all day..."

"Continuing to study magic after graduation, perhaps only Fred and George would do that. They opened a magical joke shop, always tinkering with various prank props. Ron dreams of becoming an Auror, Ginny is still too young, but I think she has the potential to be a professional Quidditch player..."

Harry counted on his fingers, listing each member of the Weasley family.

"If we go by your thinking, most of them would be classified as useless, but I doubt they care about that judgment. They just need to live their lives happily," Harry said in one breath, taking a few breaths afterward. Professor Bagshot remained silent for a while, which made Harry wonder if his tone had been too harsh or intense. He didn't dare to look the professor in the eye, instead staring at a patch of grass on the ground.

"I find myself envying them, Harry," Grindelwald said, then shifted the conversation, "I have a question though. When the Dark Lord was wreaking havoc, were your dear Weasleys living carefree lives?"

"Think about it. Without Dumbledore and Felix Harp, what would have happened? Oh, if I remember correctly, the Weasleys are pure-bloods. If they showed obedience to the Dark Lord, they would have lived comfortably..."

"They would never accept the Dark Lord's evil rule!" Harry countered loudly.

"Then they would be doomed," Grindelwald said calmly. "Just as fragile as this little plant." He walked up to Harry, crushing the plant that Harry had been staring at under his foot. Anger surged within Harry, but then he suddenly remembered something...

It was the scene in Professor Harp's office where he practiced the Patronus Charm. To evoke the will to fight, he entered the illusion the professor had set up. In that illusion, he saw many terrifying things, everyone was falling, and the Dark Lord was victorious. It was then that he summoned an incredibly powerful Patronus.

"If you don't want your fate to be controlled by others, you must have strong power, like Harp. There aren't many in the world who can threaten him. If he were ruthless enough, he would have no weaknesses." Grindelwald's eyes sparkled strangely. "I'm rather curious."

"But the war is over, Voldemort is locked away—"

Harry quickly stopped himself, not wanting to reveal the secret of Voldemort's Horcruxes in Classroom 7. But Professor Bagshot seemed not to notice his slip of the tongue. He continued in a calm tone, "Conflicts will always arise. Can you guarantee that there won't be a terrible dark wizard among your classmates? And don't underestimate the bellicosity of Muggles. Look at their history; it's a history of wars."

"There won't be a war," Harry said urgently, bringing up what Sirius had told him before. "The Ministry has found a way, and the Minister of Magic has been in constant contact with the Muggle Prime Minister. As long as—"

"What about the influence of the public?"

"—both sides can, uh, what?" Harry asked, somewhat bewildered.

"You've overlooked the influence of the public on the Muggle government. I know the nature of those politicians. They might deceive, incite, or manipulate the masses, but they would never position themselves against them. If there's a considerable number of Muggles opposing wizards, there'll be no shortage of spineless politicians to advocate for them. Even with just a spark..." Grindelwald trailed off, "Poom, your so-called peace disappears in an instant." Grindelwald stated coldly, "It's too easy, and it will happen."

Harry listened, dumbfounded. They had discussed Muggles and wizards before, but never so bluntly, and certainly not with such a hint of bloodshed. He swallowed hard, realizing he seemed to have lost his voice.

"Wizards are the ones who truly love peace. For thousands of years, we've managed to stay peaceful without strict order. We possess great power but refrain from abusing it. In contrast, Muggles have built their civilization on war. Yet, absurdly... when wizards should have established order, they chose to step back, because there will always be ignorant Muggles who will harm our children when we're not looking... This made Muggles arrogantly believe they are the true owners of this land. Wizards, on the other hand, have become the outcasts."

"With Professor Harp around..."

"Do you think he can succeed?" Grindelwald glanced at him calmly, causing Harry to feel a sense of dread, fearing the professor might say something terrifying again. But Professor Bagshot simply continued in a casual tone, "Maybe, so you're planning to pin your hopes on others while closing the door and pretending everything is peaceful? Sounds good. I remember that Potions professor did the same thing." He referred to Slughorn.

Harry's face burned, feeling somewhat embarrassed, but more so filled with fear.

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