The Fool in Hogwarts

The Slytherin common room.

The Halloween feast continued here. When Vade entered through the doorway, he did not attract much attention, except from Daphne, who had been distractedly watching the entrance the entire time.

"Thank goodness, you’re finally back." Daphne sighed in relief and beckoned Vade over to sit in the first-year section.

Vade glanced at Draco, Pansy, and the others sitting on several sofas around her, then sighed helplessly to himself as he walked over.

Unless something unexpected had happened, they probably already knew why he had returned late.

"I heard you went looking for Granger?" Draco was the first to raise the subject, asking with interest, "You divined that she was in danger, didn’t you?"

"Divination is nothing but nonsense, Draco," Pansy said mockingly. "Just look at him. Everything clearly went smoothly, and nothing happened.

"I simply never expected him to care about a Gryffindor, especially a Mud..."

"Shut up, Pansy," Vade interrupted impatiently. "I’m warning you, don’t say that insulting word.

"Especially not in front of other people, or I’m afraid I might not be able to stop myself from hitting you."

Pansy could not help scoffing, as though she had heard a particularly amusing joke. "Don’t forget, you’re only a half-blood, while I’m a Parkinson."

"So what? I’m a friend of the Greengrasses, and I share a dormitory with Malfoy." Vade decisively called upon his connections.

Relying on other people’s influence was rather ridiculous, but it still had some effect on Pansy.

She might not care much about the Greengrass family, but Draco held a very important place in her heart.

"All right, tell us what happened instead," Daphne said, smoothing things over. "This is the perfect opportunity to prove your divination abilities."

Vade casually picked up a cake from the table and spoke while eating. "You can’t possibly imagine how exciting, absurd, and entertaining tonight was..."

More than ten minutes later, his classmates sat there dumbfounded after hearing the story.

"Is that really true?" Theodore asked suspiciously.

"Of course it is. Tomorrow morning, you’ll see that Gryffindor’s hourglass has lost twenty points, while Slytherin’s has gained twenty.

"Professor Snape certainly enjoyed himself. He defeated the troll with only two spells, while Harry Potter and Ron Weasley did not dare raise their heads the entire time."

"Those two idiots." Draco laughed happily. "With their talent for causing trouble, they’ll be expelled sooner or later."

Vade remained noncommittal outwardly, though he disagreed inwardly.

Given Dumbledore’s favouritism towards Harry Potter, there was no chance Harry would be expelled. Even if someone had to be expelled, Draco would be sent away before him.

"So your divination really is accurate," Theodore said thoughtfully.

"That depends on the circumstances," Vade said seriously. "There are certain people and certain matters that I cannot divine, such as Merlin or Death.

"Existences of that level are far beyond me. It is impossible to obtain any useful information about them through divination, and trying to pry into them too forcefully would only cause a backlash."

"Like what happened to Professor Trelawney during the Sorting Ceremony?"

"I can’t be certain. Divination is my talent, but risking my life out of curiosity is not one of my hobbies."

"Besides, divination has never been infallible. For example, I might divine that a wizard will count money until his hands cramp, only for him to become a teller at Gringotts.

"He would handle countless Galleons, yet not a single one would belong to him."

"That example is... remarkably vivid," Theodore said solemnly. "I now believe you truly possess the ability to perform divination."

"It’s accurate and inaccurate at the same time. That doesn’t sound very useful," Pansy said sarcastically.

"Someone who can predict the future with complete accuracy is called a prophet. Divination is merely an interpretation of fate."

The Defence Against the Dark Arts professor’s office.

Quirrell locked the door and stood before a full-length mirror, staring at himself.

"Master, I went to inspect the room on the fourth floor. It is guarded by a fully grown three-headed dog.

"Even if I could get past it, I would create a great deal of noise, so I did not act rashly."

"Rubeus Hagrid, the gamekeeper. Go to him.

"All the magical creatures at Hogwarts have some connection to him," Voldemort said with certainty. "He must know a way to keep the three-headed dog calm."

"Hagrid won’t tell me. He is far too loyal to Dumbledore."

"That is why you must find a way to coax it out of him. Extracting information from a half-giant is not difficult. The difficult part is keeping him from becoming suspicious and making him believe he has protected the secret perfectly."

"Master, that will not be easy."

"If it were easy, what would I need you for?" Voldemort’s voice was cold and filled with anger. "Do it as soon as possible. I am growing weaker.

"If we cannot obtain the Philosopher’s Stone before I reach my limit, I will be forced to leave your body."

"Yes, Master. I will do it as soon as possible," Quirrell said anxiously. "There is one more thing, Master. Among this year’s first years is a Slytherin who can perform divination.

"Vade Moria, the half-blood wizard who grew up in the Muggle world."

"You want him to perform a divination?"

"It may be worth trying. We might gain something unexpected."

Voldemort remained silent for several seconds. "Do it, but do not let him notice anything."

"Rest assured, Master. I have been observing all the first years. Moria is merely a fortunate child with a gift for divination. In every other respect, he is completely ordinary.

"As long as I prepare in advance, I am entirely confident that I can deceive him."

The next day, the first-year Slytherins and Gryffindors happened to have Defence Against the Dark Arts together.

Quirrell stood at the front of the classroom and stammered through the lesson. This time, he was teaching them about a type of Dark creature, the vampire.

Everyone knew that Professor Quirrell had once been attacked by a vampire while travelling through a dark forest. After returning, he had become exceptionally nervous and had begun to stammer.

"V-vampires are terrifying creatures that feed on blood. Human blood is their primary source of nourishment.

"Of course, there are also some vegetarians among them. They do not drink the blood of living people and instead survive on animal blood."

Hermione raised her hand. Having grown up in the Muggle world, she knew something about vampires, but vampires in the magical world might not be quite the same as those described in books.

"Miss Granger." Quirrell forced a smile. "D-do you have a question?"

"Professor Quirrell, your turban smells strongly of garlic. Is that meant to protect you from vampire attacks?"

"Y-yes." Quirrell seemed to recall something terrifying, and the right hand holding his book trembled involuntarily. "I was once attacked by a vampire. It was an absolute nightmare."

"But Professor, you’re a wizard. Couldn’t you defeat a vampire?"

"Great strength, remarkable speed, and extraordinary vitality are traits shared by almost all vampires. These qualities give them a considerable advantage over Muggles.

"For wizards capable of using magic, vampires are not especially powerful, but not all vampires are like that..."

(To be continued.)