There is still a moment before dawn, and it is the darkest time of the day. Add to that the fact that the sky has been covered with a thick layer of dark clouds lately, so much so that it is pitch black in the living room of Granger's house.

With her magic, Maca silently unlocked the door, and then took on the form of Animagus, skimming through the slightly pushed open crack of the door, and in the blink of an eye, she disappeared into the darkness behind the door.

In fact, if he had expected it, he might have been able to extract some clues from Snape's mouth next. But even so, his actions were unlikely to bring about a fundamental change in Snape's hijacking of Hermione.

The most likely thing is that Snape used Hermione to coerce him and forcibly hold him back until Greenwald opened the floor-to-ceiling mirror.

Therefore, Maca did not intend to swagger in front of Snape and Hermione, but was ready to surprise Hermione with the portkey. In that case, he would be able to negotiate with Snape on an equal footing.

However, the next series of accidents clearly told him a truth. "Unknown" is called "unknown" precisely because without you knowing, even seemingly unlikely events have an absolutely fair chance of happening.

"Meow—"

As soon as Maca, who had transformed into a hummingbird, flew to the stairs leading to the second floor, he sensed a small source of mana rapidly coming down the stairs.

If it weren't for the meow, he wouldn't have been able to guess what it was. But now he knew in an instant that it was Hermione's pet, that clever half-breed cat - Crookshank!

Speaking of which, Maca's Animagus form and this guy really have an indescribable fate. When he was transformed for the first time, he was chased all over the house by this guy, and he almost didn't tire him into a dead bird.

But the current Maca was not the stupid bird that couldn't fly when he first transformed, and when he sensed that Crookshank Mountain was coming towards him, he reacted immediately.

I saw him rush up, and I wanted to avoid the other party silently, but who knew that this rapid leap made him directly hit the bottom of the stairs above.

But hearing a soft "bang", Makaton felt a pain in his brain, followed by a whirlwind of the world.

No way, it's too dark in this room, and how can the magic sense detect a dead thing like a wooden staircase? If you move forward carefully, it won't be too much of a problem, but this sudden rush can be a big problem.

However, just because Maca can't see clearly doesn't mean that Crook Hill is the same. In the darkness, a pair of greens flashed and rushed towards the hummingbird that fell from the sky.

"Smack! Boom! Whoa—"

Caught off guard, Maca was accurately hit by a cat punch and flew upside down in an instant. Eventually, he probably hit an empty teapot, and there was a crisp cracking sound of porcelain.

……

Meanwhile, upstairs in Hermione's bedroom.

"What's wrong? Is there anyone else down there? Hermione, who was sitting on the bed, wondered, "Professor Snape, did you bring someone else with you this time?" ”

Snape, who was leaning back in the chair next to his desk, tilted his face slightly, as if he was also a little concerned about the movement downstairs. He knew that he did have a so-called "accomplice", but that old fellow would never come here now.

Then, I'm afraid there is only one person who can silently break the spell he casts and try to infiltrate.

Snape thought about it for a moment, and then sprang to his feet. But instead of trying to open the bedroom door and go down, he walked straight to Hermione's bed. The wand in his hand never left Hermione's direction from beginning to end.

Hermione, of course, was not a stupid person, and she quickly understood Snape's reaction. Although she wasn't as sure as sure about the situation downstairs as Snape, she had a corresponding guess.

"Oh-" Hermione paused, a few thoughts passing through her mind for a moment, and then immediately spoke, "I see, probably Crookshank went to the kitchen to steal food and accidentally broke the plate!" ”

Her voice was a bit loud, especially in the dead of night.

"Shut up!" Snape said coldly.

"It's true," Hermione said in a louder voice, "Crookshank Hill is like this a lot, it's-"

Snape didn't give her another chance, and a silence spell interrupted Hermione's words. I saw that she opened her mouth several times in a row, but she couldn't make a sound, so she had to purse her lips in annoyance.

“…… Mclean. ”

Snape stared at the closed door, his wand motionless, his body almost reduced to a rock that had not yet fallen. It's just that in his eyes, there was a faint flicker that could not be detected.

……

Downstairs, Maca, who had been slapped away by Crookshan, was finally free, and he immediately lifted his Animagus form and changed back into human form.

Crook Mountain, which was rushing towards him, crashed into his arms at once. He pinched Crookshan's neck and glared at the guy helplessly.

In the commotion just now, Snape's shrewdness was probably ready at once. Now, if he still wants to turn the tide with a sneak attack, he would look down on a wizard who is the head of Slytherin.

So, Maca had no choice but to hug Crook Hill and walk generously towards the stairs.

In a few moments, as the door to Hermione's bedroom gently opened, Marca Shiran stepped into Snape's and Hermione's field of vision. Crookshan, which was a little restless in his arms, was now quiet again.

Magical creatures such as cats are actually very intelligent, and they can quickly spot those who are suspicious or untrusted, and hybrids like Crookshank also have this ability.

Its round eyes were now aimed squarely at Snape's expressionless face.

"Professor...... Uh, good evening? ”

Before coming here, Maca had a lot of things to say and questions to ask, but now that he saw Snape, he found himself a little unsure of how to start.

"Seeing you here, I don't think I might feel how 'good' I am." Snape's opening was very straightforward.

Hearing him say this, Maca couldn't help but feel a little stunned.

It stands to reason that Snape is not the kind of person who likes to be tough. More often than not, he chooses to avoid this thankless move and solve the problem in a roundabout way rather than picking out the topic face-to-face.

Now, for example, he wouldn't be surprised if Snape pointed his wand at Hermione and talked to him as he always did. Because Snape's current task is only to stall for time.

Unexpectedly, as soon as Snape came up, he directly smashed the road.

"Professor, you'......" Marka frowned slightly, "you really think Greenwald can let you meet Harry's mother?" ”

"Don't call her that filthy name, she's Lily—Lily Evans." There was no expression on Snape's face, and his eyes were even more misty, obviously he had taken the Occlumency technique to the extreme, "McLean, you seem to know a lot?" ”

"No, not much—" Maca shook her head, "well...... Not much, really. ”

"At least you know what Greenwald promised me!" Snape said lightly, "I thought that only me and him knew about this matter......

Maca looked at him noncommittally, but sighed silently in her heart.

The secrecy was so good that it kept him in the dark until he used the time turner.

"Remember the story I told you that day in the basement of the Black house?" Snape said word for word, "I don't ask you to understand what I've done, or to forgive me...... To me, none of this has the slightest value. I just hope that you can sit down honestly and wait until dawn. ”

"Do you think that's possible?" Maca asked rhetorically.

“…… I'm just 'hoping,'" Snape said, pausing slightly, but the tip of the staff was a few inches closer to Hermione's neck, almost touching her snow-white skin, "I wonder if I can give me a chance to 'make my wish come true'?" ”

Maca stared at the wand, a birch wood, thirteen to fourteen inches long, and judging by the fluctuations in mana, the core of the wand should have been taken from a unicorn. Whether it is birch or unicorn, it is a material that drives away evil, is sacred, and beautiful. And its owner is Snape, who has always acted ruthlessly.

Like now, it was being used by Snape to point at Hermione.

Hermione still couldn't speak, but she still shook her head firmly at Maca, as if signaling that he didn't have to worry about his own safety.

Now Hermione, she probably doesn't know what will happen after dawn, right? But she didn't care about Maca's purpose, because she knew that Maca would never do anything senseless.

Since he came overnight today, he must have a very clear purpose.

Seeing that the situation has evolved into this situation, in addition to feeling the power of the rules of containment, what else can Maca feel about?

But before he could implement his original plan, another accident smashed his feelings to pieces.

Hermione suddenly became short and slammed her head into Snape's stomach with all her strength. Snape was knocked to the ground by her, but when the force was not in a good position, the effect did not seem to be great.

Because of the quilt just now, it wasn't until now that Maca noticed that Hermione's hands were tied with magic ropes.

At that moment, the tip of Snape's staff suddenly lit up.