The Hogwarts Emerald

Chapter 371 Troubled Times
In the spacious courtyard of the shabby dwelling, fourteen people sat around a dining table made of two tables, toasting and chatting, creating a lively atmosphere.

Ada sat next to Fred and George, but the twins were still upset about Ada's "betrayal" again.

The two of them would rather turn their heads and listen to Mr. Weasley and Percy discussing the thickness of the crucible than say a word to Ada, even though the three of them hadn't seen each other for a whole summer.

Seeing the twins throwing tantrums like little kids, Ada didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and could only let them be. After two days, their anger would subside and everything would be fine.

Percy was talking a lot, and two out of three sentences were about Barty Crouch. Percy started working at the Ministry of Magic in the summer, and Barty Crouch was his boss.

The remaining sentence among the three sentences is also Percy's imagination about his job. It is very impressive. If you don't know, you might think that Percy is the head of a department!

Before Percy graduated, Ada asked Percy if he needed her help. Ada could use Rosier's relationship to help Percy find a better job.

But Percy refused Ada's help. He was very grateful to Ada, but he wanted to make a name for himself instead of relying on the power of others.

The idea was good, but the reality was cruel. Mr. Weasley had worked conscientiously and responsibly in the Ministry of Magic for so many years, but in the end he was relegated to an irrelevant position.

Is it because Mr. Weasley is not capable enough? Of course not, it is just because Mr. Weasley has no money, no one to take care of him, and he himself is unwilling to go along with the bad people.

Although Percy graduated from Hogwarts with honors, he was not taken seriously by the Ministry of Magic. How thick is the crucible? How many people would care about this issue and read the report on the thickness of the crucible?
Henri Rosier also joined the French Ministry of Magic after graduation, but he would not be responsible for small issues such as "thickness of the crucible".

Sirius didn't make any comment about Percy always mentioning Barty Crouch, and didn't make any comments about the man who put himself in Azkaban. He seemed to like the elderflower wine brewed by Mrs. Weasley very much.

On the other side of the table, Mrs. Weasley was struggling with Bill's long hair and his unique earrings. She wanted to turn into Teacher Tony and give her eldest son a hair lift.

Charlie led Ron, Harry and Ginny to discuss this year's World Cup. After a while, Fred and George also came over and began to discuss the final winner.

Although Bulgaria has Viktor Krum, everyone is more optimistic about Ireland. Compared with the strong Irish team, Bulgaria is more like Viktor Krum's team.

"…Dad, you know, we have to organize a big event after the World Cup." Percy said proudly, showing off his work, "This is top secret."

Percy cleared his throat solemnly, turned his head to look at his brothers and sisters, and continued, "The World Cup plus this top-secret event is why our company is so busy this summer!"

Ron rolled his eyes and grumbled to us, "Ever since he started working, he's been trying to tease us into asking him what the event was. Probably a thick-bottomed crucible exhibition."

"If your company is so busy," Fred and George said in unison, "then why are you researching the thickness of the crucible, Percy?"

This made Percy blush, and he had to lower his head and drink to cover up his embarrassment. Sirius, across the table, made a "well done" gesture to the twins.

Of course Ada knew what this top secret Percy was talking about. It was just the Triwizard Tournament, a joint exam between three schools. There was no point in keeping it a secret.

But Ada didn't say it directly. Whenever Fred and George talked to her, she would tell them about the Triwizard Tournament.

In the afternoon, led by Bill and Charlie, a group of people marched to the paddock behind the mountain. Before the World Cup final, the Weasleys held a Quidditch match.

One side was led by Bill, and the team members were Fred, George, Harry and Hermione; the other side was led by Charlie, and the team members were Percy, Ada, Ron and Ginny. Originally, Bill and Charlie wanted to separate the twins for the sake of fairness, but the twins were having a quarrel and neither wanted to be on the same side with Ada, so they had no choice but to form this lineup.

Bill's team won the game, but their advantage was not that big. It was not because Hermione held Bill back, as her hold was partially offset by Percy, but mainly because of Ginny's performance.

Ginny is the youngest child in the Weasley family. Her brothers love them very much, but strangely, they never take her to play Quidditch.

But who is Ginny? She is the owner of the yew wand. How can she be a good person? Ginny has been sneaking into the broom shed and riding her brothers' flying brooms since she was six years old.

In today's match, Ginny was the only one who helped Charlie, helping her team keep the score close. After switching to Ada's broom, she was even more powerful, shocking her brothers.

Compared to Ginny's outstanding performance, Percy and Ron were simply left with nothing. As for Ada, she rode on an old meteor flying broom, slowly floating between the two trees that served as the goal, and cheered for Ginny crazily.

Charlie's team lost, but Ginny didn't lose!

Harry even suggested that Ginny join the Gryffindor Quidditch team this year, and the twins agreed. Unfortunately, there will be no Quidditch matches at Hogwarts this year, so Ginny will have to wait another year if she wants to join.

When it got dark, the children returned to the burrow happily. Some candles were floating in the yard, illuminating the darkening sky, and the warm air was filled with the fragrance of grass and honeysuckle.

The Burrow was never a luxurious place, but it was always full of laughter and joy, a homely feeling. Off-white Galleons and ginger Crookshanks were chasing gnomes in the garden, screaming wildly as they dashed through the rose bushes.

The dinner was still sumptuous, Mrs. Weasley was really good at housework. Ada also took out many bottles of wine brought back from France, which she had originally intended to give to Mr. Weasley.

After knowing the prices of the drinks, Ron carefully put down the bottle in his hand, fearing that he would break the bottle due to carelessness.

Charlie smiled and teased Ada, saying that he would find a way to keep Ada in the Burrow, so that even if no one went to work in the future, they could still eat delicious food and drink spicy drinks.

Bill, who had just gotten to know her today, was also teasing Ada, asking her if she was interested in opening an account at Gringotts, applying for a vault, etc. Although Bill was a curse breaker, he felt that he would definitely get a considerable commission for bringing such a big client to Gringotts.

Every child of the Weasley family is very interesting, except Percy. Bill even said with a smile that if Ada was not many months younger than Percy, he would have thought that Ada was the third child of the Weasley family!
The twins even sang: Poor Percy, boring Percy...

The lively dinner did not last long, and everyone was sent to bed by Mrs. Weasley because they had to get up early the next morning to watch the game.

Bill and Charlie went to Percy's room, and the three of them squeezed together. Their two original rooms were given to Sirius and Lupin; Harry lived in Ron's room, and Hermione lived in Ada and Ginny's room.

Before going to bed, Ada also learned from Hermione that Harry's scar was hurting again. The last time Harry felt pain in his scar was because he saw Voldemort.

This reminded Ada of what Dumbledore said, that Voldemort was getting stronger. It was at this time that Harry's scar began to hurt again, and he had a nightmare about Voldemort.

What an eventful time...

(End of this chapter)