Chapter 185 Hiring Lupin

Professor Lupin looked completely disheveled. His worn-out robe was covered in dust. He appeared thinner than usual, with deep shadows under his eyes, but a broad smile graced his face.

Upon seeing Lupin, Evan, Harry, and Hermione rose from their beds and shouted with joy, "Professor!"

"Good evening, Harry; Good evening, Evan; Good evening, Hermione," Lupin greeted with a smile.

"Professor, yesterday I heard Hagrid saying that you were locked up in Azkaban. What did those monsters do to you?" Harry asked anxiously.

"I'm fine, Harry," Lupin looked past Harry, Evan, and Hermione. "In fact, I want to thank the three of you. It was thanks to your efforts that I could get out of there so swiftly."

"You are innocent, and Ron was merely under the control of Peter Pettigrew to frame you."

"Peter Pettigrew," Lupin repeated, a hint of sorrow in his expression. He slowly closed his eyes and then immediately opened them, saying somberly, "I saw Sirius at the Ministry of Magic; he and Dumbledore told me everything. I shouldn't have doubted him that year; I actually thought he had betrayed James and Lily..."

When it came to Harry's parents, silence fell, and the atmosphere grew somewhat heavy.

"Professor, I managed to conjure a full Patronus last night, it's a stag!" Harry whispered after a long pause.

"Your father always transformed into a stag when he changed," Lupin smiled again. "You're right, Harry, so we called him Prongs."

"But there was another Patronus then, and it was a doe."

"A doe?" Lupin was stunned and seemed momentarily speechless.

"The doe, I mean, could it be my mother?"

"Lily's Patronus was indeed a doe," Lupin looked at Harry with concern. "I once told you that the form of the Patronus varies from person to person and is connected to the wizard's character and inner world. You know, the Patronus won't always remain the same; it will change when the conjurer undergoes emotional blows and significant changes."

"What do you mean?"

"Harry, the Patronus you saw cannot be Lily," Lupin continued. "I don't know who conjured it, but that person must have something to do with Lily. Otherwise, their Patronus couldn't be a doe!"

Indeed, upon hearing Harry's description of Lily's Patronus, Lupin thought of Snape; perhaps it was his Patronus. Lupin knew more or less about part of the history between Lily and Snape. Before arriving at Hogwarts, they came from the same place. Lily was very kind to Snape, but then...

Lupin hesitated for a moment and ultimately said nothing.

In his view, there were things that were not suitable for Harry to know.

Moreover, he did not have such authorization. In fact, James and Lily had designated Sirius Black as Harry's godfather.

Absorbed in his thoughts, Harry did not notice Lupin's strange reaction. His expression was perplexed as he pondered intensely. Who could be related to his mother?

At that moment, there was only Snape; could it be him?

Harry knew he had a strained relationship with his father during his school days, just like he and Malfoy disagreed with each other.

From the information he later learned, Snape despised his father.

As for Snape's relationship with his mother, Harry knew nothing about it. They were not supposed to have had any connection.

But now, that no longer seemed to be the case.

Yet, even if Snape conjured the Patronus, Evan did not expect it to be fair and friendly. In his first year, Snape had saved Harry, but subsequently, he became more and more hostile towards him. Dumbledore once said it was because he felt he had to settle scores with his father. And owing nothing to anyone, he could revive the hatred he felt for James without remorse.

Harry did not delve into it at that moment, but now he still felt that something was amiss, and that Snape's relationship with his parents was much more complicated than that.

He struggled to ponder over it, but it brought on such an intense headache that he had no choice but to stop thinking about it.

Harry looked up and heard Hermione say with concern, "Professor, is there anything wrong with Sirius? When will he be back?"

"He's fine, but it will take him some time to come see you," Lupin said. "The Wizengamot has initiated a special trial procedure and should issue a final verdict before Christmas ends. Since you captured Peter and Dumbledore is there, you don't need to worry about him at all."

"And you, Professor?" Harry inquired. "I just heard from Prof. Dumbledore that you resigned. You didn't, did you?"

"I'm afraid I did, Harry."

"Why, surely you didn't attack Ron?"

"This has nothing to do with whether I attacked Ron or not. You should have seen during those two days. The parents of the students are not willing to have a werewolf teach their children. I think they are right; I could bite any of you... This kind of thing should never happen again."

"Don't go, Professor! You are the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher!" exclaimed Harry, as Evan and Hermione hurried to agree.

Lupin shook his head and remained silent.

Just as Harry was pondering the reasons for him to stay, Lupin continued. "Harry, Evan, Hermione, teaching at Hogwarts was a happy time I will never forget in my life. If there's anything I'm proud of, it's you! The three of you are the best students I have taught."

"Professor!"

"Well, it's getting late; I should go back and pack my bags," said Professor Lupin, rubbing his eyes to dry his tears with the back of his hand.

"Wait a moment, Professor!" Evan hastily stopped Lupin. "What will you do after leaving Hogwarts?"

"I'll probably keep looking for the next job," Lupin smiled bitterly. "Don't worry about me."

Lupin's heart was filled with bitterness. As a werewolf, there would be no one but Dumbledore who would hire him.

He didn't know where he should go. When Sirius cleared his name, maybe he would move in to live with him for a while, and then find a way.

Lupin didn't mention anything about it. There was no need to tell Evan, Harry, and Hermione about those things.

"Professor, you know I have the 'Magic of Hogwarts,' I am going to expand the distribution of this newspaper, selling it to all wizards in the magical world and turning it into a daily newspaper," said Evan, looking at Lupin. "But I don't have enough time. If you want, I hope you can help me manage it."

Evan gave a detailed account of his ideas. Lupin seemed astonished. He remained silent for a long time before asking incredulously, "Are you going to hire me?"

"Yes," Evan nodded.

"To manage a newspaper?" Lupin continued.

"Yes," said Evan, smiling a little more.

Seeing Lupin's reaction, Harry and Hermione also chuckled aside. If Evan hired Lupin, they could continue to see him often.

"Say yes, Professor," Harry and Hermione said in unison.

"But, I had no relevant experience before..." Lupin hesitated.

"I trust you, Professor, you will prove to be qualified for this job."