Meanwhile, on the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest.
Raichel, leaning against a tree, opened his eyes.
"The unlucky bastard we sent out is dead..."
Another Raichel lying on the grass lifted his head. "But he told us who the enemy is."
"That's enough," said the Raichel who was tearing into a deer, baring a bloody smile.
One Raichel after another rose to their feet. They all looked different, and strange light flickered in their eyes.
"I'm really looking forward to meeting them properly," they said.
A leaf drifted down from a tree. It was like an eye, gliding through the middle of the Raichels.
"What kind of monsters are these..."
By the Black Lake, Leonard's eyes glowed green as he watched through the eyes of the plants, observing the Raichels wandering around the outer edges of the Forbidden Forest, beyond the areas patrolled by the Dementors.
"It won't be long before a dog comes running over to tell you who he is." Another Leonard sat by the lakeshore with his hands and feet submerged in the water, roots trailing from him beneath the surface as they absorbed moisture.
Leonard looked at his other self. "Why can't you tell me yourself? Do you enjoy playing the riddler? What's the point of acting so mysterious?"
At the start of term, this plant-man had secretly given him a note and never taken the initiative to meet him.
And now he had suddenly shown up in person.
"Because I can't say it. I'm not exactly a complete Leonard William, but this consciousness is still your future self. You can't get information from yourself, or it'll create a closed loop."
Plant Leonard continued, "So there's no way I can hand you some kind of strategy guide. A Time-Turner can't be used as a tool to change history. Everything I went through, you have to go through as well."
"Then why tell me where Raichel is? Aren't you worried something could go wrong?" Leonard asked.
"It wouldn't help even if you knew. You can't race across the country and take his head, and I'm not even sure where his main body is right now." Plant Leonard spread his hands. "All I can say is that his main body will appear in the end."
"Then what's the point of the Time-Turner?" Leonard rubbed his chin. "You haven't actually told me anything."
"The third book's plot explains it pretty clearly. I think with my brain, I should be able to figure it out with a little thought." Plant Leonard shrugged. "That's what the other me told me, anyway."
The "other Leonard" he meant was the Plant Leonard he had met when that version was at the same point in time Leonard was at now.
"So the Time-Turner can only fill in history, not change it?" Leonard said.
"Exactly."
Plant Leonard stood up, put on his shoes and socks, and wrapped bandages around the intertwined roots on his arms.
"Don't dig into the process. Just focus on the result. That leaves enough room for us to work with. So all you need to do is watch. Once everything is settled, you can go back to the past and turn things around."
"So future me is the one who has to do all the hard work, huh?" Leonard said with a smile.
"What are you laughing at? In the end, it's still you doing it." Plant Leonard looked thoroughly annoyed, like an overworked office drone forced into overtime. "From here on out, I'm Leonard. I'll do what I'm supposed to do, and all you need to do is ask the dog clearly about everything he went through on the way here when he finds you, so you'll know what to do after you return to the past."
"Why am I going through all this trouble anyway? Whether Sirius lives or dies has nothing to do with me." Leonard sounded puzzled.
Plant Leonard gave him a mysterious smile.
"You'll find out when the time comes."
"Tch."
There he went again, being cryptic. Leonard rolled his eyes and turned to leave, but suddenly stopped and looked back at his other self.
"Wait. From the sound of it, you're not planning to help me cover classes anymore, are you?"
"Of course not. My time is very precious," Plant Leonard said as if it were only natural.
"Then what am I supposed to do? If I skip those classes, the Time-Turner will definitely be confiscated." Leonard frowned.
"I obviously have a way. Otherwise, why would I be here?" Plant Leonard pulled up his hood. A Rune lit up between his brows, and a raven emerged from it and landed on his shoulder.
"As for exactly how it's done, there's no way I'm telling you. I don't know how troublesome a time loop might get, but there's no point taking risks when the trouble can be avoided."
Before his words had even fully fallen, black feathers scattered, and Plant Leonard vanished from in front of Leonard.
The raven's teleportation magic was absurdly useful. It looked like his future self had already gotten used to carrying that little accessory around.
Leonard stood there frowning for a while, deep in thought, then turned and headed back toward the castle.
He had a few ideas he needed to test.
...
Whenever Plant Leonard appeared, his hands were always wrapped in bandages. Aside from his face, no one knew what lay beneath his clothes.
So even though Leonard still had not obtained a Living Wood Vine the size of a person, he could try piecing together a temporary substitute to attend classes in his place.
Leonard had not forgotten that he possessed a mutated ability that could enlarge plants, but that ability could only enlarge them proportionally. A Living Wood Vine like that had no way of taking on a humanoid shape.
What normal person had arms as thick as washbasins?
The only option Leonard had was to use a juvenile Whomping Willow humanoid as the framework, then use the Living Wood Vine he normally used to disguise his own face as the face, creating a temporary "double" to attend class for him.
That kind of double could only function as a body to answer roll call. Forget about taking notes or anything like that in class.
And the thing had a very limited lifespan. The Whomping Willow would grow rapidly, then develop violent tendencies and attack nearby living creatures at irregular intervals.
So a double like that could only last for a short time. It was nothing more than a temporary measure. If he used a Time-Turner again in the future, he could not keep relying on this method. He had to find that mutated humanoid Living Wood Vine as soon as possible.
Not long after finishing the classroom double, Leonard, just as Plant Leonard had said, stopped interfering in matters outside Hogwarts and focused on continuing his studies and research.
Things like modifying firearms, or researching magical runes. All of them might come in handy later.
While this Leonard was immersing himself so deeply in study that he could hardly pull himself away, Plant Leonard had already settled down on the outskirts of Hogsmeade Village.
As a plant, he did not need food or drink. He only needed to root himself in the soil and carry out photosynthesis.
And under those circumstances, the Raichels began appearing one after another on the outskirts of Hogsmeade Village.