Where Did This Living Father Come From?

James was quite taken aback.

He had a fight with Sirius, and then they stormed out of the lounge one after the other, wanting to "take responsibility" for the matter in their own way.

……well.

Then Professor Slughorn immediately deducted 30 points from his score.

That night, Remus, who always suppressed his emotions, broke down for once, and James sensed a hint of danger in Remus's roar.

More despair?

"You know nothing... you don't know how to cherish, you don't know how to be grateful... you simply don't understand how important it is to me to be able to stay in school."

More words, more, almost resentful words—washed through James's mind.

More importantly, he couldn't forget Remus's face, which was paler than moonlight.

…………

The next day, the Gryffindor students learned that the three of them had been penalized 30 points by the Head of Slytherin, which was another kind of shock.

James had never been treated with so much contempt in his life. He felt wronged and angry.

In the end, it was Evans who stepped forward, while Professor McGonagall maintained her stern little face:

"In every class from now on, I will strive to improve the college's reputation—what's done is done. What's the point of dwelling on it? We will do our best to change it!"

This finally made the older students stop looking at them as if they wanted to stew them alive.

But that anger and contempt... still left James feeling bewildered.

Having calmed down, Remus Lupin also made a promise. He didn't reveal that Sirius was entirely responsible for everything, but only emphasized:

"I will also try my best to make up for my mistakes."

...What kind of nonsense is this?!

James was really upset. Normally, since he'd already argued with his friend, the matter should have been over.

But he still couldn't put his mind at ease and wanted to figure out the source of this confusion.

But as soon as his eyes met Sirius's, he was startled again.

Sirius seemed perfectly at ease. He stood there indifferently, as if listening to the wind.

In the instant his eyes met James's, Sirius even had the urge to shrug and whisper, playfully, "..."

"Looks like it didn't scare him after all."

Even James was surprised.

He almost blurted out some terrible things, but then he remembered that Sirius was his best friend.

Therefore, after processing this for a while, James spoke to Sirius in a very sincere and gentle manner:

"You're quite eccentric, Sirius."

"To be honest, I even thought you were a bit evil and extremely malicious yesterday."

……

There's no doubt they had a fight.

It wasn't just arguing. The argument escalated to the point where they started fighting.

Sirius angrily jumped onto James's bed and punched him in the left cheek.

Peter, who was still in his dorm room, was terrified. He screamed like a mouse, adding an unnecessary element of horror to the scene, which was utterly ridiculous.

Of course, James retaliated.

He was much smaller in frame than Sirius, but had more muscle mass. As a result, he held his own and landed a black eye on Sirius with a single punch.

The wizard friends fought like apes for a while before Lupin, returning from the library, pulled out his wand and forcibly tore them apart.

…………

Let's go back to the present.

Although James had thought about this matter many times in his mind, he actually wanted to find someone to have a serious talk with.

But he would never tell Edmund these things.

This is a matter between him and Sirius. If a third person gets involved, it's tantamount to speaking ill of Sirius behind his back, something James would never do.

However, his purpose in coming here this time was indeed something other than "getting back at Edmund."

After James repeatedly hinted at it, Edmund reluctantly agreed to his private chat invitation.

He first asked Travers to bring him dinner back to his quarters; then he gave Pollyanna a look that the evening's plans were canceled.

Then they followed the magical monkey... oh no, they followed James, and arrived at a lawn outside the castle.

"Just say what you want to say, don't lead me to a deserted place."

Edmund said coldly.

Those who know you might think you have something to hide, but those who don't might think you've brought dozens of Gryffindor masters to ambush me.

The joke was indeed funny. James, at least, was very good at playing the straight man. He burst out laughing, almost unable to breathe.

...which only made him seem more preoccupied.

But that sounds disgusting. The word "thoughts" shouldn't be in the same sentence as James.

James hesitated for a moment, but ultimately spoke his mind:

"Do you remember the giant who carried us across the river in a boat on the first day of school?"

Edmund raised an eyelid.

"Rupert Hagrid, the gamekeeper at Hogwarts. If I'm not mistaken, he's a half-giant."

Edmund lowered his eyes, his expression ambiguous.

The reason he was able to understand so clearly was because he began reading materials related to Dumbledore after he became interested in manipulating him.

Hagrid, on the other hand, is a complete "Dumbledore's man".

...Isn't that strange? The greatest wizard of this century has a loyal follower who is a half-giant—that's really incongruous and lacks class.

No wonder pure-blood proponents hate Dumbledore.

But for a little wizard like James Potter: this is so cool.

Seeing that Edmund remembered Hagrid, James smiled smugly.

"That's great! I was worried you'd suddenly develop dementia and lose interest in him."

This was disrespectful to both of them. Edmund's reaction was to kick him without hesitation.

James was caught off guard and was successfully kicked, causing him to yell in pain.

But this brat was surprisingly humane and didn't fight back.

...temporarily escaped the tragic fate of being turned into a decorative vase and mocked.

"Okay, I've returned it—this time I'm truly not angry anymore."

"I'm curious how you became acquainted with him. As far as I know, he doesn't really welcome visitors and doesn't often appear in the auditorium. How did you get to know him?"

James laughed, winking mischievously.

"It's because someone never comes to the court for a break unless they're in class—"

"Get to the point. I haven't had dinner yet. If you keep beating around the bush, I'll roast you and eat you."

"Tch," James scoffed.

"Unlike you, I'm a rising star on the Quidditch pitch, already slated to join the House team in my sophomore year—don't pull out your wand, Edmund!"

Edmund wasn't joking; he was genuinely hungry.

"Alright, alright!! After I hit the wandering ball into his pumpkin patch for the third time, he naturally recognized me!"