Hogwarts: Bourne Returns from Warhammer

Chapter 45 Wherever you walk, there must be footprints

"I knew that was the case." Bourne smiled and took out his wand.

The gift from Grandpa Horace came with a card containing a description of the Whomping Willow bat.

The first time he saw this card, Bourne noticed something. However, at that time, because he was surrounded by Gryffindor little lions, he could not tell what he had discovered.

After lunch, he went to the library and found a deserted corner to sit down, and then he began to try to decipher the secrets on the cards.

There was a passage written on the card, and while it wasn't obvious, a few letters did have a different font than the others.

"TEST, test."

After thinking about it, I felt that since this was Horace's test, it was probably related to the knowledge he had learned this week.

"If it's a piece of paper..."

He suddenly thought of the piece of parchment that Professor McGonagall had given him after the Transfiguration class, and his intuition told him that he might have guessed it right.

So, Bourne whispered a spell and cast a transformation spell on the card.

He didn't deliberately guide the transformation spell. He just repeated the technique of turning matches into needles that Professor McGonagall taught them in class, but that was enough.

When the transformation spell took effect, the card immediately floated more than an inch high from the library table, then began to fold itself, eventually transforming into the shape of a small paper crucible.

By folding and splicing, the letters on the cards are also scrambled. On the rim of the crucible, a sentence consisting of a string of words appeared: Another gift, also hidden in the box.

Because he had his first flying lesson in the afternoon, Bourne did not put the Whomping Willow bat back in his dormitory. It and the box containing it were beside Bourne at this time.

What are you waiting for?
Opening the box, Bourne reached out and touched the raffia underneath the "triple speed", and as expected, pulled something out from inside——

A folding wallet.

It's not big, and its surface is dyed a color similar to dry raffia, so it's very inconspicuous when hidden inside.

However, Bourne, who had received a lot of general education in magic from Grandpa Horace, still recognized the specialness of this wallet.

Although its surface color is dyed brownish-yellow, if you look carefully enough, you can still see that there are silver stripes on the leather that look like banknote security lines. At the same time, there is no trace of cutting on this wallet - rather oddly - it is made from a single piece of leather folded into the shape of the wallet. Moreover, since those creases are not dyed, the original color of the leather, which is dark green, can be seen.

There are various indications that this wallet is made of deformed lizard skin and is a precious alchemy tool!

Shape-shifting lizards are magical animals that can be found across the UK and Ireland, often growing up to 10 inches long.

Newt Scamander wrote in "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" that shape-shifting lizards have never been discovered by Muggles. Even if the population size is not small, even wizards can rarely catch them alive. The shape-shifting lizards are very good at hiding because they have the ability to shrink their bodies at will.

Their skin is a valuable material that can be used to make wallets or money bags. The wallet made of deformed lizard skin shrinks when a stranger approaches, making it difficult to detect. Once the owner puts the item in the bag, only he can take it out.

Furthermore, due to the magical properties of magical animals like shape-shifting lizards, their skin is very suitable for fixing the Seamless Stretch Spell.

If the integrity of the material used in the wallet is high enough, it can even ignore the breaking spell of the Seamless Stretch Spell to a certain extent!

Bourne picked up the wallet, and a stripe on it gradually emitted a silvery light, but soon dimmed again. Just like fingerprint authentication, the magical contract of the alchemical item authentication holder is announced.

It would be hypocritical to say that I am not surprised when I receive such a magical gift. Therefore, after reaching the contract, Bourne happily opened his wallet and reached in.

really! There was something else hidden inside, and the wallet was indeed under a Traceless Stretching Charm!
He took out a piece of paper and a glass reagent bottle the size of a thermos cup, which was filled with a liquid that exuded a little silver light. The frosted stopper was sealed with wax.

"Dear little Bourne, seeing the words is like seeing the face..." Bourne read the letter written by Grandpa Horace to him.

"...I knew that my little Bourne would definitely be able to discover and solve the puzzle on that card. This deformed lizard wallet is your reward. Remember to carry it with you. There is a lot of space inside. You can put it in Put your little toys in there too.

In addition, that potion is a 'Liquefied Patronus Charm' potion, which has a certain restraint effect on all kinds of black magic. Dark wizards are also afraid of this potion. Although Hogwarts Castle is very safe, accidents can sometimes happen if you are not prepared.

If you encounter trouble, remember to go to your Grandpa Albus as soon as possible. If you can't find him, go to your Dean. Dumbledore's phoenix companion is called Fawkes. I'll send you some salamander jerky later. It likes this kind of food the most.

You need to find opportunities to build a good relationship with it. In an emergency, shout 'Fox' loudly, and it will be able to hear it as long as it is in the castle.

If the situation is particularly urgent and you or your friends have no time to ask for help, then use the 'Liquefied Patronus Charm' potion, which can be taken externally or internally. When you encounter a bad guy, you can just throw a whole bottle of potion at him without worrying about wasting it. We, the Slughorn family, dare not say anything else, but we have never been short of potions.

Finally, remember to commit and don’t forget to write home every week! Love, Horace Slughorn. "

After reading this letter, Bourne could guess why Grandpa Horace knew so much about his situation at Hogwarts - it was 100% that Principal Dumbledore acted as an informant.

Moreover, Horace most likely also learned from Dumbledore that Hogwarts Castle might not be peaceful this year. Otherwise, Horace would not have hurriedly sent Bourne a bottle of "Liquified Patronus Charm" potion before the first week of school was over.

However, even so, Horace still did not explain everything to Bourne. Because in the eyes of the old wizard, Bourne is just an eleven-year-old child and should not worry about the dark side.

"That's not a bad thing."

After putting his things away and carrying his lizard wallet with him, Bourne was ready to leave the castle for his afternoon flying lesson. However, before leaving the library, he had to return a few books he had borrowed over the past two days.

The Hogwarts librarian is a thin witch who looks about fifty years old. Many young wizards at Hogwarts secretly call her "The Vulture" because she has a pair of vulture-like eyes. Her eyes can instantly lock onto her prey - those dishonest little wizards in the library. Usually their actions are damaging the books.

"Mrs. Pince, I'm here to return the books I borrowed, "Analysis of the Principles of Household Charms", "Basics of Alchemy and Principles of Muggle Machinery (1921)", "Twelve Miraculous Uses of the Restoration Charm", and that "Is Napoleon a Wizard" by Magic Press."

Walking to the library counter, Bourne put the four books he had borrowed on the counter. The little wizards could not borrow more than five books at a time without the professor's approval.

In fact, Mrs. Pince was not even willing to let the little wizards borrow even one book. She believed that if you want to read a book, you should read it in the library.

The reason why she agreed to Bourne borrowing four books was because Bourne not only didn't have the habit of scribbling with a quill pen, but also wore rubber gloves every time he flipped through the books - this was actually Horace. The habit that Bourne has developed since childhood is that some magic books are actually dangerous, and readers must learn to protect themselves - however, in the eyes of Mrs. Pince, this is actually an advantage.

"Very good...um...not bad...no stains or folds," she didn't know how she did it. She just lightly swept the books with a feather duster and Mrs. Pince confirmed the books. status.

After making the confirmation, the Hogwarts librarian first sorted the books into several different baskets under the counter, then picked up a quill, dipped it in ink, and wrote some words on the book register.

Bourne waited patiently, because only after confirming that the borrowed books have been returned, he could borrow new books to read next time. This process also contains magic, and both professors and young wizards must abide by this rule in the Hogwarts Library.

At this moment, there was a sudden "bang" sound not far away. Mrs. Pinsi immediately raised her head and looked at the place where the sound came from. She looked like a vulture that suddenly raised its head and looked around while enjoying a meal.

"Rubbert!" Mrs. Pince shouted.

It turned out that it was Hagrid who had just made the noise. He was holding a tall (even for his size) large stack of books, and the top book had just fallen off.

"Sorry, sorry," Hagrid apologized to Mrs. Pince repeatedly and put the pile of books on the lending counter.

Bourne noticed that the books were indeed large, and several of them were hardcover with illustrations made of fire dragon skin. Noticing Bourne standing in front of the counter, Hagrid gave the little wizard a big smile. But when he thought about what he was doing, his smile immediately faded.

"Mrs. Pince, I would like to borrow these..."

Before he could finish speaking, Mrs. Pingsi interrupted him: "This book, this book, and... this book, these three are all hardcover rare books. They cannot be borrowed. You can only borrow " From Hatching to Nirvana", "A Guide to Raising Dragons", and "Raising Dragons for Fun and Profit" are three paperback editions."

After hearing what Mrs. Pince said, Hagrid was obviously crestfallen, but he did not dare to challenge the authority of the witch who had become the librarian when he was still at Hogwarts.

Therefore, he could only respond helplessly: "Okay. I'll borrow these books first."

Mrs. Pince asked him to move a few books away, write a few words on the register, and then handed it and the quill to Hagrid for his signature.

Hagrid glanced at Bourne, closed his mouth and shrugged his shoulders, picked up the quill that was indeed too small for him with his fingers, and carefully signed his name on the register.

Bourne had a good eye, and when Hagrid was signing the register, he happened to see a book borrowing information above him.

"...Borrowed book titles - "How to Deal with Biting Cabbage", "Bird and Snake Egg Yolk - Wizard's Natural Hair Conditioner", "Rope Art and Magic", "Is there Really Plasma in Bloody Lollipops"...Borrow Man - Quirinus Quirrell..."

(End of this chapter)