"Hermione, come have dinner," she heard her mother call from her room.
Hermione reluctantly put aside the letter to Harry she had just finished writing. 'I'll read it over again after dinner and send it then,' she thought. It was already the third letter that week, but there was still no reply from Harry. One thought kept circling in her mind: 'Why is he silent? What's happening over there with the Dursleys?'
When Hermione came into the living room, her mother was already serving dinner, and her father sat in his favorite armchair with a newspaper in his hands. Hermione glanced at the newspaper and realized it was the 'Daily Prophet'. She couldn't help but smile — her father was reading the latest issue again. The owl must have brought it not long ago.
Ever since Hermione had gone to Hogwarts, John Granger had taken a growing interest in news from the wizarding world. Every time the 'Daily Prophet' arrived — delivered by an owl for Hermione — he went through it with the same concentration he gave his professional journals, and sometimes, to Hermione's surprise, he asked her sharp questions about wizard life.
"You look a bit gloomy today," Emma said, glancing up at her daughter. "Did your walk around the city not go well? Is everything okay?"
"The walk was great," Hermione answered without thinking, as she sat down at the table.
"I'm glad you finally got out of the house," Emma went on with a smile. "I just don't get why you didn't invite Tommy. You could've gone together."
"No… er… I just wanted to walk around the shops by myself," Hermione said quickly, stumbling slightly over her words. She couldn't exactly tell her mother she'd been serving as bait for the League of Light — her parents would hardly approve of that. "I bought a few books, had some coffee at a café…"
"Books are good," her mother smiled. "But sometimes you need to take your mind off studying. So, what's bothering you then? I can tell something's wrong."
Hermione sighed.
"Harry isn't answering my letters," she said quietly, poking at her roast beef with a fork.
Emma threw up her hands at once, her face taking on a slightly reproachful look.
"Oh, Hermione!" she said, shaking her head. "Honey, isn't it a bit early to start worrying about boys not writing you back?"
Hermione froze, blinking as if she'd just been splashed with cold water.
"What? Mum, that's not what this is about at all!"
"Then why keep writing?" John cut in, setting down his newspaper and picking up his fork and knife. "If he's not answering, why waste your time? From what you've told us, Harry's a famous kid. Maybe he's just… well, gotten a bit full of himself? Why bother with a friend who ignores you?"
"Because it's not about Harry!" Hermione burst out, louder than she meant to. "It's his uncle and aunt — the Dursleys. They're the ones not letting him write back, or maybe they're even taking his letters away! I know they are!"
"His uncle and aunt won't let him write to his friends?" Emma looked at her daughter in surprise. "Hermione, that sounds a little strange to me. Don't you think you might be exaggerating?" she added, raising an eyebrow and smiling faintly. "Maybe they just went on a trip together. Spending time like one big happy family. They haven't seen Harry for a whole year, after all…"
Hermione snorted, as if she'd just heard something completely absurd.
"The Dursleys? On vacation? With HARRY?!" Her voice was full of disbelief and sarcasm. "They'd sooner make him dig coal in a mine than take him on holiday!"
"Dig coal?" John repeated, leaning back in his chair. "That's quite an imagination you've got." He looked over at his wife and added with a small smile, "See, I told you — kids often don't understand adults' motives and tend to dramatize things when they're…"
"I'm not dramatizing!" Hermione snapped, cutting him off and slamming her knife down on the table. "You just don't know what they're like! They hate Harry!"
John and Emma exchanged a glance, not sure what to say to such an outburst. Hermione went on, her voice tight with anger:
"And besides, even if that ridiculous idea were true — that the Dursleys actually took Harry on vacation — the owl would have found him anyway, no matter where he was!"
"Wait, wait, wait…" This time it was John who interrupted her, raising a hand to stop the flood of outrage.
"How can you be so sure the owl would've found him? I mean…" He frowned, knitting his brows, and rubbed his chin. "I get that an owl can deliver a letter to a specific address — like Hogwarts, or our house. We do write down exactly where it's supposed to go. But how would it find Harry if no one knows where he is?"
Hermione rolled her eyes.
"Dad, owls don't just fly to an address. They somehow sense the person they're supposed to find."
"Sense?" John repeated, raising his eyebrows as if he'd just heard something absurd. "That sounds like nonsense to me…"
"It's magic, Dad!" Hermione snapped.
"Magic, sure… but still…" John started to argue, then stopped when he met his daughter's burning stare. He sighed, looked away, and muttered, "Yeah, right… magic. One answer for everything."
John kept eating, still shaking his head a little, as if trying to come to terms with what he'd just heard. For someone used to logic and facts, explanations like that were hard to swallow.
"But why do you immediately assume they're just being nasty about it, not letting Harry write?" Emma joined in, watching her daughter with a gentle expression. "For example, one of the doctors at our dental clinic has a terrible allergy to birds. Just one feather and he starts choking, poor man. Maybe the Dursleys have an owl allergy too, and that's why they don't let them in the house?"
"Mum, the Dursleys don't have a bird allergy!" Hermione snapped. "If anything, they're allergic to magic!" She glared down at her plate. "They hate everything even slightly connected to it and do everything they can to keep their house free of it. And along with that — keep Harry away too! They think magic is something wrong." Hermione looked up at her parents. "In their eyes, magic just doesn't belong in our world."
"Well, in a way, I can see where they're coming from," John said thoughtfully. "I used to think the same — that it was all just fairy tales. Nonsense." He sighed. "But they know now that magic exists. So why deny it? Sometimes you've got to face the facts, even if you don't like them."
Emma gave a slight nod, and John suddenly perked up.
"By the way, speaking of facts and magic," he said, pausing to adjust his glasses and pick up the newspaper he'd set aside. "I read something in the 'Daily Prophet'. It's about your Hogwarts and Professor McGonagall. She's your head of house, right?"
Hermione's head shot up, and she nodded, watching her father warily.
"The article mentioned some boy from your school who went missing," John went on, looking at her over the top of his glasses. "Do you know anything about that? Why didn't you tell us?"
Hermione twitched slightly but tried to keep her face neutral, though inside she felt herself tighten up. She never imagined her father would read about Honeydew's disappearance in the 'Daily Prophet'. For the first time, she really regretted how interested he'd become in the wizarding world. She slowly put down her fork and started chewing a piece of roast beef with exaggerated care, as if it were keeping her from speaking. In truth, her thoughts were racing, searching for the right thing to say — something calm and convincing, so her parents wouldn't start asking more questions. And most importantly, she couldn't let them see how serious it really was.
"Yes, Dad, I've heard about it," she said finally, forcing herself to meet John's questioning gaze. "It's a really unpleasant situation, but I didn't want to worry you for no reason. The professors are already looking into it, and the Ministry of Magic got involved too. Besides, they haven't told the students much about the whole thing."
That part wasn't a lie. Most students really were still guessing, knowing only bits and pieces. Only she and a few others understood how serious it was — because they had been there, on the roof of the Astronomy Tower.
"So we were told not to talk about it too much, so people wouldn't panic…"
She regretted the word the moment it left her mouth. John immediately frowned.
"Panic?"
Hermione swore silently — what a terrible word to use. Emma also looked up, watching her daughter with a questioning look.
"Well, yeah…" Hermione tried to keep her voice steady. "You know how it is — a student disappears, and of course parents start to worry. But from what I've heard, that boy just did something really bad and ran off to avoid getting punished." She paused, trying to sound confident, and added, "So there's really nothing for you to worry about. The teachers have it under control."
But her father was watching her closely, not blinking, studying every detail of her answer. Hermione knew that look. He was picking her words apart, matching them against what he'd already read in the paper.
"From what the article says, it doesn't sound as simple as you make it," he said finally, narrowing his eyes.
Hermione grew more tense.
"Hmm… Can I see the paper? I want to know exactly what they wrote."
John hesitated. It was clear he wasn't sure whether to show her the article or try to draw a bit more out of her first about what had happened at Hogwarts. His instincts told him to keep asking questions, but he sighed and, instead of turning it into an interrogation, handed Hermione the 'Daily Prophet'. After all, she was his daughter, not a suspect to be questioned.
Hermione took the paper and unfolded it. She could feel her parents' eyes on her.
'Stay calm… just read it and explain that everything's fine,' she told herself, trying to look relaxed. But as soon as she saw the headline, her chest tightened.
SCANDAL AT HOGWARTS: MISSING STUDENT CASE TAKES NEW TWISTS!
Or What Is Professor McGonagall Hiding?
Hogwarts is once again at the center of a scandal. The mysterious disappearance of third-year student Casper Honeydew keeps gaining disturbing new details. A fresh investigation sheds light on circumstances that could shock even the most trusting parents.
What if the boy's disappearance was the result of malicious intent? What if the school's administration is deliberately covering up the truth?
After failing to get any clear answers from the Hogwarts staff, the Honeydew family has hired well-known private investigator Archer Falcon, a specialist in magical crime.
"We just want to know what happened to our son!" Mrs. Honeydew told our reporter, tears in her eyes. "Every day without him is torture. We're hoping Mr. Falcon will help us find out the truth… because Hogwarts never told us the real story!"
But Falcon himself sounds far less hopeful.
"This is one of the most complicated cases I've ever worked on," he admitted in an exclusive interview with the 'Daily Prophet'. "I'm almost certain Hogwarts is hiding something. The staff — and especially Professor McGonagall — are clearly keeping quiet about important details."
"What exactly are they trying to hide?" the detective asks. "This case isn't as simple as they want people to think. But despite the obstacles, I've already found key evidence. And believe me — I won't stop until I get to the truth."
But to everyone's horror, the truth might be far darker than anyone expected.
According to information gathered by the detective, the disappearance of Casper Honeydew may be connected to the League of Light — a radical group that fights for blood purity. It's led by the notorious Thomas Nightshade, a wizard with great talent and a dark past, whose name has long been linked to secret plots. Some reports claim he was the one who brought the League back after decades of silence.
What's more, Mr. Falcon says he has found evidence clearly proving that Nightshade was seen near Hogwarts shortly before Casper's disappearance. Yet it still remains unclear what could have drawn the group's interest to a boy whose pure-blood heritage had never been in doubt.
But the real shock came from information about Professor Minerva McGonagall!
According to one of her former classmates, during her time at Hogwarts the current head of Gryffindor House had a romantic relationship… with Thomas Nightshade — the leader of the League of Light. Of course, this information alone doesn't prove she was involved in the student's disappearance. Still, the revelation has stirred up a wave of suspicion.
These new details have led the Ministry of Magic to reopen the investigation. According to recent reports, Professor McGonagall has been summoned for questioning by the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Let's hope the experts will finally get to the truth.
Unfortunately, Professor McGonagall refused to comment to the 'Daily Prophet', leaving us in the dark about her possible role in the case.
"Silence is an answer too," said the Honeydew family's lawyer, Argumentus Scribble. "If she has nothing to hide, why won't she give a straight explanation for her actions? Why did she keep quiet about her connection to the pure-blood extremist Thomas Nightshade?"
It seems there are still far too many dark spots in this story.But more than anything, this scandal has alarmed hundreds of worried parents who send their children to Hogwarts every year. The school was once seen as a safe haven for young witches and wizards — but what if that's just an illusion? What if, under questionable teachers, it's sunk into intrigue, or worse — become a refuge for radical groups?
Can Hogwarts still be considered a safe place? Will its walls go on protecting its students — or turn into a deadly trap?
Stay with us for updates as the story unfolds. With any luck, the wizarding world will finally get the answers it's been waiting for.
Special correspondent,
Isolde Peregrine.
In the photo next to the article, Professor McGonagall appeared. Normally the very picture of calm and confidence, she looked completely different here — tired, irritated, her lips pressed tight. She was turning away sharply from a pushy reporter, her robe whipping through the air with the movement.
"So, what do you have to say about this?" her father asked, looking at Hermione over the top of his glasses. His voice had none of its usual warmth — only quiet seriousness. "Your mum and I count ourselves among those 'hundreds of worried parents.' And I don't like what's written here. Especially about your head of house, Professor McGonagall. I didn't like her from the start — even back then, a year ago."
"Dad, a lot of that is just rumors and guesses," Hermione said, trying to stay calm. "The 'Daily Prophet' loves to exaggerate. Don't believe everything they print."
"Rumors don't start from nothing," John said firmly, not looking away. "If she was called in for questioning, then the Ministry must have a reason to suspect her. And that's serious."
"But Dad, that doesn't prove anything!" Hermione burst out, her voice rising. "McGonagall is a great teacher and —" She cut herself off, realizing she'd almost slipped about McGonagall's part in the Honeydew case. She forced her tone steady. "— and I promise, if something really serious happens, I'll tell you right away. There's no reason to worry before that."
Her father gave her a doubtful look, then turned to Emma. Her mother looked uneasy; she was biting her lip, clearly wondering if she should say something. Finally she spoke, slowly.
"Hermione… we're not stupid. I can see you're nervous. If there's something you need to tell us, it's better to say it now."
Hermione made herself hold their gaze, shook her head, and kept eating her roast beef, though she'd lost her appetite. The main thing was to look calm. But inside, everything was churning. 'So, McGonagall really was connected to Thomas?'
She'd suspected it back at school, but guessing was one thing — having it confirmed was another. The memory of that night on the Astronomy Tower came rushing back, making her heart pound faster.
'If Detective Falcon is right, and there really was a romantic relationship between McGonagall and Nightshade… could she have been hiding something? What if my father is right not to trust her?' The very thought made Hermione feel unwell, but she pushed it away at once. 'No. This is nonsense.'
"Hermione!" her mother's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. "Do you want some more?"
Hermione blinked and only then noticed that her plate was empty, the knife and fork still clenched in her hands.
"No, Mum, thanks," she said quickly, setting them down. "I think I'll go to bed early. I'll read the paper for a bit and then sleep."
She got up, picked up the 'Daily Prophet', and left the dining room. She could feel her parents' eyes on her back — worried and doubtful.
Lying in bed, Hermione unfolded the newspaper, but her eyes drifted over the lines without taking anything in. Her thoughts went back to the Honeydew family. What was really behind Mrs. Honeydew's concern? Did they truly not know where Casper was, or was it all an act? But if it was, why hire a detective?
The questions spun in her head, keeping her from falling asleep.