The House-Elf looked at him with childlike clear eyes.
"Vid Gray is sad?"
"Uh—" Vid was stunned for a moment, sighed, and turned the Magic Bean in his hand, saying, "I wouldn't say sad, really. I just suddenly realized my thoughts were a bit too—"
Dark.
He swallowed the word and said, "—paranoid, perhaps? I was suspecting a professor, who was full of goodwill towards me, with very poor intentions..."
"Vid Gray is not wrong!" Zoe suddenly said loudly.
"—Zoe?"
"Professor Morry is a good person, but Vid Gray is right to remain cautious." Zoe nodded vigorously, "Zoe knows a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor who tried to have a bad relationship with a third-year girl and went to Azkaban. Zoe also knows a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor who used Dark Magic on students and also went to Azkaban. And another Defense Against the Dark Arts professor who exploited students' trust to invite them to parties and then contacted Dark Wizards to kidnap the students for ransom."
Vid chuckled, "Did he also end up in Azkaban?"
Zoe shook her head, "A wrong spell made his wand explode, and he died."
"All Defense Against the Dark Arts professors... that position is really jinxed," Vid muttered.
"Defense Against the Dark Arts professors get replaced very quickly, lots of bad ones. Quirrell is also bad. Vid Gray must always stay vigilant," Zoe said earnestly.
Vid sighed, "I will."
...
In the morning, Vid woke up and waved his Magic Wand to check the time.
Golden text appeared: [07:00 am].
Today was Friday. They didn't have classes in the morning, and most students wouldn't rise early. As Vid passed through the common room, only two fifth-year students were sitting by the fireplace reading.
—Poor seniors.
Vid felt a bit sympathetic.
He conjured a ball of blue flame with his Magic Wand and bottled it. Carrying it would keep him warm outdoors.
Vid would be taking the train home tomorrow. He decided to visit the library after breakfast to borrow as many books as possible, so as not to waste time at home.
After spending the morning in the library, Vid returned to the hall to find Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick busy setting up Christmas decorations. He immediately went up to help.
"Ah, Vid, thank you," Professor Flitwick said happily, "We need to hang those streamers on the walls."
Working together with their Magic Wands, vibrant hanging garlands decorated the walls, and twelve towering Christmas trees stood at either side. Hundreds of candles queued under Professor Flitwick's direction, wrapping around the Christmas trees, burning quietly. His Magic Wand also produced golden bubbles that hung from the branches.
Meanwhile, Professor McGonagall lightly tapped the dangling icicles on the branches with her Magic Wand, transforming some of them into glistening little animals or little bells. Her effortless Transfiguration made the students in the hall click their tongues in admiration.
More students joined in to help, unleashing their creativity. Some conjured golden stars, others proud deer, and others still had sleighs running across the hall sky, showcasing considerable magical prowess, earning points for their houses from the professors.
Of course, there were also failed Transfigurations. A Slytherin boy originally intended to summon a few candles, but a spell error caused his Magic Wand to explode, leaving his face blackened, drawing laughter from the others.
Soon, the hall was refreshed anew. Coming downstairs to eat, Michael said in a conflicted tone, "You know, Vid, I really miss my family. But—"
He flicked a branch, and the hanging ice hamster squeaked loudly.
"Christmas at Hogwarts seems fun too..."
He seemed quite tempted to stay.
"Vid, Michael, good timing." Sixth-year Prefect West approached, pulling out two papers to give to them, "Here, sign this."
Michael took it, "'Holiday Prohibition of Magic Notice'? Why do we have to sign this? I'm a wizard!"
"Yes—an underage wizard." West nodded perfunctorily, urging, "Hurry, I have to find Anthony and the others."
Vid looked down at the notice—
[ According to the "Reasonable Restriction of Underage Wizardry Act," underage wizards should be aware of the following prohibitions during holidays:
First, wizards under seventeen are considered underage and are forbidden to use magic outside school;
Second, underage wizards should consciously comply with and uphold the "International Wizarding Confederation Secrecy Laws," and must know that any magical activities likely to attract the attention of non-magical members (Muggles) constitute a serious violation;
Third, knowingly using magic in front of Muggles constitutes a criminal act and will result in a warning from the Ministry of Magic, with severe cases leading to expulsion... ]
There were seven or eight more prohibitions, but they essentially conveyed the same thing—not to use magic or reveal any Wizarding World information to Muggles.
Vid had read in books on Magic History about large-scale Muggle witch hunts starting in the 15th century. Although individual wizards were often more powerful, their society was entirely decentralized, and their clothing, food, and shelter—except for 'movement'—all relied on the Muggle World, which led to frequent exposure of their identity.
For over two hundred years, many wizards were persecuted to death by Muggles. Especially wizard children, unable to control their magic, often drew attention, leading to capture, imprisonment, or even being burned. To protect the wizarding group, the "Secrecy Laws" were established in 1692 and have been strictly adhered to as a cardinal rule in the Wizarding World ever since.
Of course, wizard books only recorded wizard persecution by Muggles, with no mention of the sudden deterioration of relations between the two sides or any wizard retaliation or revenges against Muggles.
Perhaps to ease wizard-Muggle hatred and avoid exacerbating conflicts, their textbooks "Magic History" vaguely described this period, with a focus instead on the deeds of the strange Wendelin—a very peculiar and powerful witch who delighted in being burned at the stake, deliberately changing her appearance to get caught forty-seven times.
"Magic History" used this particular case to prove that burning witches was sheer nonsense. But in reality, many witches were indeed burned at the stake to death.
Of course, far more ordinary women were erroneously burned as witches, or rather, almost all of them were.
As Vid looked at the notice—seemingly ordinary parchment revealed complex Magic Rune Circuits. Under West's cajoling, he didn't have much time to investigate more closely and had to sign his name.
As he signed, Vid felt something invisible, like a contract, wrapping around him.
"Don't think you can secretly use magic at home." West warned, "Every underage wizard carries a Trace. Once you use magic, the Ministry of Magic will immediately know. Every year two or three fools receive warning letters from the Ministry of Magic, and I hope you won't be one of them."