Hermione's words reminded Andy of what he had been wondering.
How on earth did that woman, Rita Skeeter, manage to pry into the privacy of so many people?
It would be fine if she were just making things up, but her reports were actually true to their word. It's just that she habitually takes things out of context, which makes her reports look a little outrageous.
Consider two recent events.
Whether it was Snape's private meeting with Lucius Malfoy or Lockhart's use of the Memory Charm to claim someone else's adventures, these could be their most personal secrets.
But not only did Rita Skeeter know about it, she was able to snoop around and get this information without anyone realizing it.
Even Snape didn't realize he was being spied on.
(Off-screen: Snape: "Collins ... you have no right to speak such words!")
"Hermione, how do you think Ms. Skeeter managed to spy on Lockhart's secret?" Andy asked for input.
If Rita Skeeter had just made up a report after receiving Andy's letter, it could be argued that she had a rather whimsical brain, always guessing about other people's privacy.
But she came to Hogwarts to investigate in person!
Moreover, she only used less than a night's time to find out Lockhart's secrets.
007 isn't even that awesome, right?
"Well ..."
Hermione pondered for a moment and shook her head, "I can't think of anything, maybe she has a way to secretly sneak into someone's office!"
Secretly sneak into someone's office?
Andy nodded, it was possible.
But how exactly did she do it?
Disillusionment Charm?
That couldn't be possible!
Because Andy had already tried it personally, and the Disillusionment Charm couldn't deceive Snape at all.
Moreover, there was no way Rita Skeeter could have used the Disillusionment to knock on Lockhart's door - if you opened the door and saw that there was no one outside, any fool would know that there was a problem.
Andy recalled all the spells he knew.
"Hermione ..."
Andy turned his head sharply to look at Hermione, "Do you think that Ms. Skeeter is an illegal Animagus? Only that the animal she transfigured into was very small, maybe the size of a bug!"
"What makes you think that?" Hermione asked curiously.
Andy spread his hands and said, "Other than that, I can't think of any other way to secretly sneak into someone's room."
Excluding all the impossibilities, the remaining one, no matter how unbelievable it was, was the truth.
Andy thought it might be the truth!
"Maybe you're right!"
Hermione said, "What do you want to do, report her?"
Andy smiled at that, "Of course not! Besides, I need to verify it. If Ms Skeeter really is an illegal Animagus ... Hermione, we won't have to worry about her making up news about us in the future."
Hermione was silent for a moment and raised an eyebrow, "Andy, we have no value in being reported at all."
Andy: "..."
There was no need to be so direct.
"My Patronus Charm paper will be published soon, and I'll be the eighth registered Animagus in the British wizarding community."
Andy laughed softly and said smugly, "Hermione, I'm going to be famous soon."
"Right! You're amazing." Hermione felt a little chatty today.
***
There was no doubt that when the truth about Lockhart was reported in the Daily Prophet, the whole of Hogwarts was ablaze.
The attack on Azkaban was a big deal, but those things were so distant from the young wizards' lives that they didn't have much sense of immersion at all.
They didn't even know what to say when discussing it.
But Lockhart was different, he lived right next to the young wizards and was also their Defense Against the Dark Arts class professor.
The sense of immersion was practically through the roof!
"Draco, look at this paper, you're in the newspaper!" An exaggerated voice was heard from the Slytherin side.
Andy turned around at the sound.
Malfoy first looked at the newspaper curiously, and then his whole little face instantly turned pale, and his whole body looked panicked.
The content of the newspaper reminded Malfoy of a not-so-wonderful experience.
The same watered-down professor.
The same Andy behind all of it.
The same way he, Draco Malfoy, the sole heir to the Malfoy family, had been the pawn at the front of the charge.
Last year, he was attacked twice by Quirrell.
So what about this year...?
Malfoy's entire being is on the verge of tears.
He wanted to go home, he didn't want to go to school, Hogwarts was too dangerous.
Soon, the entire Great Hall was abuzz with chatter, all of them debating the authenticity of the story, some believing it, some not.
Ron was one of those who didn't believe it, he said, "If you ask me, there is no way that Lockhart could have used the Memory Charm. We all know his level, he can't even use the simplest magic."
George took the paper and said aloud, "That's right, the paper says that Lockhart's only a little better than a Squib when it came to magic, and that Ron is better than him with a broken wand."
"Maybe Lockhart could use the Memory Charm fairly well?" Angelina guessed.
Fred rushed to agree, "Maybe the Memory Charm is the only spell that Lockhart is good at."
Harry took the opportunity to interject, "I just want to know if we still need to go to our Defense Against the Dark Arts class today."
Of course, there was no need to go to class!
When Lockhart saw this morning's Daily Prophet, his entire mind was on the verge of going insane.
"This woman!?"
Lockhart's face twisted, "How does she know all this? NO! No one is supposed to know. That's right ... she must have made it up, it's what she is best at."
Lockhart looked at himself in the mirror.
His face was pale, his eyes held a hint of undisguised panic, his clothes were dishevelled, and he had completely lost his usual elegance.
"Listen, all of this was made up by that woman, no one will believe that woman's words."
"You don't need to panic at all!"
Lockhart said to himself in the mirror, "Take a deep breath ... Now you need to gracefully walk outside to refute the lies that woman made up."
"You are a master of magic, yes, a master of magic!"
Lockhart said loudly, clawing wildly at his hair all of a sudden.
He was a Master of Magic ... that was true!
But he had no way to prove it.
Aside from the Memory Charm, Lockhart couldn't even cast the simplest spell properly.
"Damn it! How the hell did that Rita Skeeter woman know all this?"
Lockhart walked around the office.
He had to come up with a plan as soon as possible, he had to reverse all this and poke holes in Rita Skeeter's lies.
"I've got to get out of here first!"
Lockhart suddenly stopped in his tracks, he felt that he couldn't continue to stay at Hogwarts.
If it wasn't for coming to Hogwarts as a professor of some bullshit Defense Against the Dark Arts class, he wouldn't have exposed his biggest secret at all.
"I have to get out of here, Hogwarts is too dangerous!"
----
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