Professor McGonagall was stunned. She had been transforming into a tabby cat for the first-years' first Transfiguration class for many years.
Because this little act was required to be kept strictly secret like the Sorting Ceremony, she had been able to observe new students from a cat's perspective year after year.
It was quite interesting.
The vast majority of new students couldn't see through this cat's mystery, thinking the teacher hadn't arrived yet, and would talk loudly without restraint, continuing even after class time began.
This year was no exception.
Perhaps because of Harry Potter's enrollment, this year's little lions were particularly excited, glancing toward Harry every few sentences.
Watching their behavior, McGonagall had already thought of her concluding remarks for the end of class:
"You're the worst class I've ever taught!"
But she never expected that one day, a student would grab her by the neck and lift her up.
It was Unbelievable!
Friends who regularly pet cats know that cats have a fatal weakness:
Once grabbed by the scruff of the neck, no matter how fierce or unruly they usually are, they become docile and compliant, letting you handle them as you please.
Magical world cats are no exception.
Furthermore, any wizard who transforms into an animal through Animagus magic acquires that animal's characteristics.
This tabby cat was precisely McGonagall transformed through Animagus magic.
So, she was careless and didn't dodge, falling victim to Sherlock's surprise attack.
She wanted to resist but couldn't break free due to this catlike instinct.
By the time her human nature overcame her animal instincts, Sherlock had already released her neck and placed her in his arms, switching from grabbing to petting.
Sherlock's cat-petting technique was quite skilled—gentle and rhythmic—quickly making Professor McGonagall sink into the experience, unable to extricate herself.
"Sherlock, don't you think the markings around this cat's eyes are very similar to Professor McGonagall's glasses?"
After Sherlock's explanation about the difference between looking and observing, Harry had been trying to learn.
So, when he discovered this detail, he was very excited.
He had heard that when pets are kept for a long time, owners and pets become increasingly similar.
Sherlock had just said this wasn't Professor McGonagall's pet.
Now it seemed that this time he was finally wrong!
Harry felt slightly proud, though he didn't say this outright.
After all, Sherlock was so smart that he must have already understood his meaning.
Unexpectedly, before Sherlock could respond, the cat seemed to understand what he had said and suddenly struggled free from Sherlock's hands, dropping to the ground.
The next moment, the tabby cat disappeared, and a stern-looking woman appeared in everyone's sight.
She wore an emerald green cloak, her black hair pulled back in a tight bun.
The square glasses she wore looked exactly like the markings around the cat's eyes.
It was none other than Hogwarts Deputy Headmistress, Head of Gryffindor House, and Transfiguration Professor—Minerva McGonagall.
Σ(っ°Д°;)っ
All the new students who witnessed this scene were dumbfounded.
Harry and Ron, who had watched Sherlock pet the cat, were so shocked their mouths hung open wide enough to fit a bezoar.
Ron even stuttered: "Pr-Pr-Pr-Pr-Pr... Professor McGonagall!"
McGonagall first looked at Harry gratefully, then fixed her keen gaze on Sherlock:
"Mr. Holmes, did you recognize me from the beginning?"
Having seen Sherlock deduce that Hogwarts was in Scotland from the texture of his acceptance letter during their first meeting, she had every reason to be suspicious when faced with such a remarkably gifted young wizard.
Seeing Professor McGonagall's serious expression, Harry and Ron suddenly realized what Sherlock had just done.
Both immediately broke into cold sweats.
They looked at Sherlock with a mixture of admiration and worry, secretly sweating for him.
"Not exactly," Sherlock said calmly, "but I've never seen a cat sit so rigidly."
Seeing Sherlock's clear, honest eyes, Professor McGonagall's expression softened slightly.
He was just a young wizard who yearned for the magical world and had just enrolled—what bad intentions could he have?
"If you watched your students behaving like this, you'd be rigid too."
McGonagall's transformation had already captured the new students' attention, but this remark made everyone fall silent.
"The Professor's transfiguration was almost flawless, and I couldn't even sense any magical aura. It's truly amazing!"
Only Sherlock continued to marvel at Professor McGonagall's spectacular performance, as if he wasn't the one who had just been handling her like a pet.
"Mr. Holmes, this transformation is called Animagus. It allows a person to truly become an animal and is a very difficult form of transfiguration.
During practice, one might even become mentally confused and unable to transform back into a human—it's far too dangerous for you at your current level!
Now, everyone return to your seats—I'm going to begin the transformation!"
Hearing that Sherlock hadn't noticed anything unusual about her, McGonagall secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Her behavior earlier had been rather... embarrassing.
Initially, when Sherlock was petting her, she had resisted.
But while in her Animagus transformation state, she had unconsciously succumbed to feline instincts.
Combined with Sherlock's skilled technique, she had quickly become completely relaxed and content.
Fortunately, Harry's sudden observation about the markings around her eyes had awakened her from this comfortable state, allowing her to struggle back to her original form without being too disgraced.
But the fact that she had been petted by a student was now established.
At this point, she could only use other methods to divert attention.
Fortunately, this wasn't difficult for her.
She first transformed her desk into a pig, then changed it back.
The students were indeed captivated and couldn't wait to begin learning.
However, her opening words immediately dampened everyone's enthusiasm:
"Transfiguration is the most complex and dangerous magic you will learn at Hogwarts."
Her gaze swept over everyone, lingering briefly on Sherlock and Harry before she continued slowly:
"Anyone who fools around in my class will be asked to leave and never allowed to return—I have warned you."
Seeing the students sitting up straight and proper, McGonagall was satisfied and began her lesson.
This lesson also made everyone understand that turning furniture into animals would take a very long time.
They had to start with the basics.
For example, this lesson's content was turning a match into a needle.
But even this seemingly simple task stumped almost everyone.
By the end of class, only Hermione's match had changed—though one end was still a match head, the other had become very sharp.
McGonagall smiled at her.
Seeing the usually stern McGonagall show a rare smile, Hermione held her head high like a proud swan.
This was what a true Gryffindor should be—one must possess talent in Transfiguration!
Then...
"Five points to Gryffindor!"
Hermione looked surprised.
'This shouldn't be right!'
She had heard that Professor McGonagall was always stingy with points. Although her performance was good, earning a smile from McGonagall should have been victory enough—it shouldn't have warranted points, should it?