Rewind the clock by twenty-three seconds. As Hermione stepped out of the compartment, drawing everyone's attention, Glenn silently cast a Disillusionment Charm, a Silencing Charm, and a Presence Concealment Charm on himself.
Simultaneously, he retrieved an alchemical automaton from the black ring—a prototype modeled after himself. Activating it, he extracted a fragment of his soul essence and placed it within the automaton, linking it to his consciousness. This allowed Glenn to control the automaton's movements remotely.
The automaton's current capabilities were basic: it could walk, raise its hands, and perform simple actions. It couldn't mimic facial expressions, speak, or handle intricate tasks. But for now, that was sufficient.
After all, Glenn wasn't particularly expressive, and his friends wouldn't notice the difference unless they scrutinized its behavior closely.
The automaton was constructed from synthetic materials derived through alchemy. Glenn's ultimate goal was to perfect it into a semi-living construct: an alchemical framework powered by internal mechanisms, a soul essence as the central hub, and an external consciousness guiding its actions.
Controlling the automaton required splitting his attention, essentially operating with a dual consciousness. The automaton could also store information, recording its observations for later review.
This was also the solution Glenn had devised for Hermione's potential scheduling conflicts—when she might need to attend two classes simultaneously. There were two automatons: one modeled after Glenn and the other after Hermione. The soul essence could be transferred as needed, making it highly convenient.
For Glenn, this meant he could easily play dual roles in the future, appearing simultaneously as a student and as the Night Watchman professor.
Just like now.
Glenn's appearance seemed unchanged, but in reality, the moment the Disillusionment Charm took effect, he had swapped places with the automaton.
Positioning the automaton in his original spot, ensuring it held Crookshanks properly, Glenn, now invisible and silent, stood up and cracked open the window.
Dissolution.
Glenn's form began to transform into an Obscurial state. Although he couldn't yet dissolve his clothing, once his entire body turned into unstable black-and-red matter, clothing became irrelevant.
In an instant, his body lost its shape, becoming an amorphous black-and-red substance. Glenn stored his clothes into the black ring and controlled his Obscurial form to flow upward through the narrow gap in the window.
Once his "body" had fully passed through the window, Glenn immediately reverted from the Obscurial state. His left hand, the last part to reform, gripped the train's roof, altering his trajectory. Using his left hand as a pivot, the rest of his body swung onto the top of the Hogwarts Express.
His clothes reappeared mid-air, and the remaining black-and-red substance surged into them, followed by the reformation of his body parts.
This instantaneous full-body transformation into an Obscurial was Glenn's temporary workaround until he gained better control over the state. From a practical standpoint, it was quite effective.
Crouching on the train roof, Glenn remained indifferent to the downpour.
He opened his eyes, their pitch-black pupils seemingly piercing through the rain and mist, locking onto the Dementors circling in the distant sky, awaiting orders.
Ever since Hermione resolved to protect everyone on the train from the Dementors, Glenn had decided not to let these creatures return to the Ministry of Magic or Azkaban.
Ginny's earlier words had been spot on. The Dementors' interception of the Hogwarts Express was no accident; it was orchestrated by the British Ministry of Magic. These creatures had official sanction to appear on a train filled with the wizarding world's future witches and wizards.
The search was deemed necessary, and any collateral damage caused by Azkaban's wardens during the process was considered an unavoidable sacrifice.
This reasoning seemed sound, but was it genuine?
Absolutely not. If the Ministry truly intended to search for Sirius Black on the Hogwarts Express, the operation should have taken place before the train departed.
This was merely an excuse from the decision-makers.
The Ministry's interference with Hogwarts had already begun, and this Dementor search was a probing step, testing Dumbledore's boundaries.
So, should one comply?
Conceding to this unjust search would only embolden the Ministry to intensify its interference, accelerating its encroachment on Dumbledore's authority.
Then, should one resist?
Resistance, as Hermione had resolved, would lead to the Dementors reporting back to the Ministry, which would then seize the opportunity to spin a narrative: "Hogwarts obstructed the Ministry's pursuit of Azkaban escapee Sirius Black."
With such a narrative, the Ministry could justify adopting a tougher stance toward Hogwarts—monitoring, overseeing, reforming—until the school was entirely reshaped in the Ministry's image.
It was an open conspiracy, one impossible to avoid.
The former path led to gradual erosion; the latter, to inevitable retaliation.
Hermione chose the latter because she couldn't bear to see her friends harmed. Her decision was driven by nothing more.
Glenn's initial intention was to avoid trouble, but since this was Hermione's wish, he would support her wholeheartedly.
The consequences of resistance depended on the Dementors' ability to safely return to the Ministry—a future Glenn intended to rewrite.
Of course, this was only part of the reason.
"Dementors should not exist in this world."
To Glenn, the most valuable and cherished part of his identity—the thing that made him feel truly alive—was the profound beauty and emotions found in the rare, precious memories of his family. These memories were treasures he safeguarded deep within his heart.
Yet Dementors, feeding on human joy, hope, and happiness, posed a significant threat to him.
And when faced with a threat, Glenn had only one response.
"Erase it."
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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