When it came to being cheeky, Dumbledore realized he could not quite outwit Garfield, the orange cat.
The two entered the room, first arriving at the common room. It was not large.
It contained a table, four large chairs, and a fireplace with a roaring fire. The fire made the room very warm, giving Garfield a feeling of being in Gryffindor's common room.
Further in was a bedroom with a window sill, likely part of the tower. Next to it sat a large velvet bed with red curtains.
The furnishings were old and looked quite dated. There was a fireplace, its flames burning, making the room warm.
Beside the fireplace in the bedroom sat a model of a ferocious dragon. Next to that was the washroom and bathtub.
This bathtub was over four meters long and wide. It looked somewhat like a shrunk version of the prefects' bathroom from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, essentially a swimming pool for a cat.
The bathtub was already filled with water, and it was warm. Garfield noticed rings of runes around the edge of the tub, presumably to prevent leaks and maintain the temperature.
Magic could be quite convenient sometimes. Next was a study, connected to the bathroom and bedroom by a secure door that required a password to enter.
"Dumbledore, this room is rather luxurious. Is it some kind of secret base of one of your teachers?"
Dumbledore explained, "This room was developed by a great wizard from the same era as the four founders. As for its name, it has been lost to history. If you have the chance, Garfield, you can explore it."
That would require traversing a thousand years of time. Garfield thought it best to avoid that.
He might not be able to return if things went wrong. "Forget it. I do not care how it was done. He is gone now. It is my pleasure."
"Get some rest. I am going back now."
"Goodnight, old bee."
"Goodnight, Garfield."
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After Dumbledore left, Garfield went straight to the bathroom and leaped into the tub.
Without a splash, he cast a spell to plug his ears, preventing water from getting in.
He then used underwater vision and breathing to dive into the water. He let the warm water envelop him.
Cats are liquid by nature, and now, enveloped in warm water, it felt so good.
The temperature of thirty eight degrees Celsius felt wonderful, like being wrapped in warm water.
Garfield floated back and forth in the bathroom for an hour before finally deciding to come out.
He used a spell to clean himself off and returned to the bedroom.
Lying on the soft mattress, Garfield bounced around a few times, enjoying the perfect spring.
Then he pulled back the covers and buried himself in them.
A steady, even purring sound filled the air. After Garfield fell asleep, the dragon model by the fireplace shook its head and body.
It glanced at Garfield in the covers, a hint of disappointment and disdain on its lips, and then silently left.
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The next morning, Garfield woke up with the sun. As soon as he opened his eyes, he rubbed his belly.
It seemed it was time for breakfast.
"Hogwarts has house elves," Garfield said softly, raising a paw towards the air. "But there aren't any house elves here either."
A house elf dressed in Hogwarts's insignia appeared beside Garfield, bowing respectfully. "Your Majesty Pendragon, I am Shrek, a house elf of Hogwarts. What are your orders?"
House elves were a pitiful magical race.
They had lost a battle with humans and were tamed as servants in magical families, remaining loyal for generations.
This was the tragedy of defeat. In fact, if humans had lost a battle with them, the consequences might have been even worse.
Garfield also thought about the greedy Gringotts goblins and wondered if they were two separate branches.
"Breakfast, please. A large portion, enough for three adults."
Shrek asked, "Would you like to eat breakfast in the common room or in bed?"
Europeans had a habit of eating breakfast in bed.
How lazy was that? Garfield thought it was a completely outdated custom, and he decided not to follow suit.
"Eat in the lounge. My appetite is a bit large. The students might be surprised when I eat this much. From now on, eat in the lounge, and just bring it at this time."
Shrek replied, "As you command, Your Majesty Pendragon."
Garfield said, "From now on, call me Professor Garfield, or Professor Pendragon."
Shrek said, "Yes." Shrek went to prepare breakfast.
Garfield got up and brushed his teeth. Cats need to brush their teeth, of course. A quick lick was enough.
He still needed to wash his face.
He had a cleaning spell for that. After quickly tidying himself up, Garfield went to the lounge and ate all his breakfast in one go.
Then he asked Shrek, "Do you know when I have classes?" Shrek shook his head.
"I am sorry. We house elves cannot participate in teaching. Should I ask the headmaster?"
"No need. I will go myself. Shrek, you go and rest. I will summon you if needed."
"It is our pleasure to serve you."
✦••┈┈••✦••┈┈••✦
After Shrek left, Garfield did not want to be too conspicuous.
He abandoned the idea of opening a portal to go to the first floor dining room to find Armando and Dumbledore.
However, he did not want to run there either. It would take a long time for a cat to run downstairs.
To save time, Garfield thought it would be better to fly out. He pushed open the window, opened the door, flew out, and closed the window.
Garfield went straight to the dining room. It was not unusual for a cat to fly around in the dining room.
After all, this was a magical world. Garfield arrived at Armando's table.
"Headmaster Dippet, what is my teaching schedule?" Armando Dippet replied, "Well, I discussed it with Dumbledore yesterday."
"We felt that your time is limited, and you need to teach seven years and four houses. Therefore, you need a large classroom. We decided to hold the classes in the Great Hall."
The Great Hall was what they called it. Garfield called it the dining room.
It could accommodate all the students of Hogwarts to eat together, so teaching was also possible.
Garfield nodded. "That is fine. So, what about the schedule?"
Armando Dippet said, "We need three days to rearrange the courses."
Garfield replied, "You guys are a bit slow, but it does not matter. Three days, right? I can take a stroll through the Forbidden Forest while I am at it."
Armando Dippet cautioned Garfield about the Forbidden Forest. "The Forbidden Forest is dangerous."
"It is inhabited by magical creatures and centaur tribes, among others."
Garfield said, "That is for you guys. Alright, Headmaster Dippet, you can continue eating. I am going to check out the Forbidden Forest first."a
Before Armando Dippet could say anything more, Garfield aimed for the window and the owl that was delivering a package. He flew out amidst the students' gasps.
Tom Riddle, sitting at the table, watched Garfield fly away and secretly clenched his fist.