England, Nottinghamshire, the capital city of Nottingham. In an old, dilapidated house on the outskirts.

The fireplace, which had not been cleaned for who knows how long, suddenly erupted with a burst of green flames. Then, Arthur, Harry, and Severus walked out of the flames one after another.

The choking dust, stirred up by the green flames, sent all three into a fit of coughing.

"Why doesn't the Ministry send someone to clean Floo Network nodes like this regularly?"

"It can't be helped. Nottingham isn't a major wizarding hub, so the Ministry always cuts corners on funding for places like this."

Arthur explained with a grimace, simultaneously brushing the dust off his robes, clearly distressed about his clothes getting dirty.

Meanwhile, Severus and Harry had already made their way to the door of the long-abandoned house. With a light tap of his wand, Severus made the battered door creak open with an ear-piercing screech, finally letting fresh air in from outside.

"Where are you headed next?" He turned to Arthur.

Arthur walked over to them.

"26 Sherwood Road. Someone reported that an elderly wizard with a few screws loose modified the streetlamp outside his house, making it move around like a person at night. It's already scared off quite a few Muggles. I need to deal with that lamp and issue a fine to the culprit while I'm at it."

As he spoke, he glanced at Severus.

"Will we have a chance to stick together?"

Clearly, he wasn't overly curious about what Severus and Harry were up to.

Having worked at the Ministry for years, Arthur knew the rules… if the other party didn't volunteer information, it was best not to pry.

Severus didn't feel particularly guarded around Arthur.

Besides, this was an arrangement made by Dumbledore. Though he doubted the sweet-toothed old man had foresight to such an absurd degree, it was possible that Arthur's task might provide them with a lead.

"What we're doing doesn't have a clear direction yet. Nottingham is a big place, and searching blindly would be like fishing for a needle in the ocean."

Severus took the initiative to explain.

"There aren't many wizards living here. Why don't we go with you to check out that streetlamp first?"

Arthur was naturally more than happy to agree.

"Then let's go. Hmm, let me think… we could take Muggle public transport... what do they call it again? The subway, maybe?"

Arthur was obviously very excited when he heard this. He was eager to try it out and had even started rummaging through his suitcase for the Muggle costumes he kept on hand for disguise purposes.

Severus and Harry exchanged a glance, both seeing the same thought in each other's eyes: 'Arthur's enthusiasm for engaging with Muggle society was... unreliable.'

"Let's just take a taxi. I'll hail one. That'll probably be more convenient." Severus offered.

"Oh! Well, that works too." Arthur closed the suitcase again and said with some regret.

They waited by the roadside in the outskirts for over half an hour before they finally got a taxi. Then, they went to Arthur's destination, 26 Sherwood Road.

This area was also on the outskirts of Nottingham, near a forest called 'Sherwood'. The picturesque red-roofed houses along the road looked like vacation rentals.

As they approached the front of No. 26, they immediately spotted the peculiar streetlamp!

The lamp post looked filthy, as if someone had dragged it out of the forest. It's covered in mud and leaves, with a bird's nest even perched on top!

Fortunately, during the day, the lamp stayed in place, showing no signs of wandering around. This was a small mercy for Arthur, sparing him the trouble of having to chase it down.

"How are you planning to deal with it?" Harry asked curiously.

Arthur had already excitedly taken out a tool from his enchanted suitcase, one that would never normally appear in the hands of a proper wizard: a wrench!

"Clearly, someone modified its circuitry and secretly cast an Animation Charm on it, making it come alive like those enchanted teapots in old witches' homes from back in the day! First, we need to cut its circuit, then find a way to undo the charm!"

Severus gave Arthur a thumbs-up.

"Truly a professional!"

"You must bring Dudley to visit the Burrow sometime!" Arthur whispered conspiratorially, "I've got quite a few things at home..."

"Who let you lot come here?!"

A rough, angry shout cut off the three, who had been engrossed in discussing the peculiar streetlamp.

This sudden interruption startled Arthur, who had been whispering quietly. Severus and Harry also turned around to see a grumpy-looking old man in pajamas, with thinning hair and a fierce expression.

"Who said you could touch that? Get away from my house! Go on, leave!"

Upon seeing the man, Arthur's expression hardened. He pulled out his identification from the pocket of his robes, proof of his position in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office under the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

"Mr. Foster, my name is Arthur Weasley. I'm the head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office, under the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at the Ministry of Magic."

The old man named Foster's originally ferocious expression changed and he smiled awkwardly.

"Ah, apologies, apologies... Good afternoon, Mr. Weasley... I was just about to deal with this lamp myself if you hadn't shown up... It really wasn't my fault..."

"If you disagree with the penalty, you should have filed an appeal with the Ministry yourself!" Arthur said sternly, shoving a fine into Foster's hand.

With the fine in his grasp, Foster dropped his pretense of politeness. He began cursing the Ministry, retreating into his house before leaning out the window to hurl insults at Arthur for issuing the fine.

But Arthur paid him no mind, turning back to Severus and Harry.

"If he'd actually taken care of this lamp earlier, or if the matter hadn't become so widely known, he might have avoided the fine. But the office has already sent him three warnings, and he ignored every one of them."

Just as the disturbance was finally settled and Arthur, with his wand in one hand and a wrench in the other, was ready to focus on repairing the streetlamp-

A crisp, slightly imperious voice suddenly spoke up nearby.

"Are you here to fix that strange streetlamp?"

Arthur, who had been about to cast a spell, was startled again, his wand jerking in his hand and emitting a small burst of sparks. He quickly tucked it back into his robes.

Meanwhile, Harry and Severus both turned toward the source of the voice.

It was a girl with thick, bushy brown hair, looking about Harry's age.

When all three of them stared at her, she lifted her chin with a confident smile, revealing her big rabbit-like front teeth.

"Good afternoon. My name is Hermione Granger. My parents and I are staying next door… we're here on holiday."