The Hogwarts Emerald

Chapter 645 The calm before the storm

On the way back to the Burrow, Ada told Harry and the others about Regulus Black's past, and the three of them sighed. Hermione, who had more sympathy for house-elves, even cried out loud.

The three of them immediately said that they would give the fake locket to Kreacher so that the elf could keep it as a souvenir. Although Kreacher had cheated them once, fortunately no one was injured, so Harry and the other two did not hate him much.

Back in St. Catchpole Village, the four of them saw the crooked shabby house again, with the smoke rising from the chimneys, making them happy from the bottom of their hearts.

Ada, who had been controlling her walking speed, asked, "I heard from Mrs. Weasley that you three are planning to drop out of school?"

Harry, Ron and Hermione are in their seventh year when school starts. They still have one year before graduation, but the three of them are not planning to return to Hogwarts on September 1st. In their opinion, that no longer makes any sense.

Harry was the first one to propose dropping out of school. Ron and Hermione were worried about him, so they wanted to stay with him and go through thick and thin together. The friendship between the three of them is truly enviable.

"Well," Harry muttered in response, "I have to complete Professor Dumbledore's instructions, find all the Horcruxes, and defeat him."

Ada was not surprised by Harry's choice, or she would have done the same if she were in his place. Ada continued to ask, "What are your plans? Where do you want to go first after leaving the Burrow?"

"Godric's Hollow, I want to visit the place where my parents lived." Harry said. He had thought about this issue a long time ago. Godric's Hollow was only his first stop, and his journey would also include Albania.

Hermione disagreed. Although Godric's Hollow was important to Harry, it was definitely full of dangers. The graves of the Potters were there, and Dumbledore's home had also been there. The Death Eaters would have surely thought of this, and Harry would be trapped if he went there.

"Although the Ministry of Magic is indeed not very useful, can you at least have some confidence in Mr. Weasley and me?" Ada tilted her head and said dissatisfiedly, "Godric's Hollow has too much symbolic meaning. The Ministry will not let it fall into the hands of the Death Eaters."

Just as Hermione said, the Potters' graves are there, and the monuments and ruins are there. If these symbolic things were destroyed by the Death Eaters, it would be like a heavy hammer hitting everyone's psychological defenses.

Even the so-called "insurmountable" Maginot Line could not withstand these attacks, not to mention the weak human heart, which had already been riddled with holes by the terror brought by Voldemort.

The Minister of Magic and Dumbledore were killed one after another, and many wizards lost their faith and courage to continue to resist. This also made Ada attach great importance to the symbolic monument, and even wanted to organize everyone in the ministry to visit it collectively to receive a good education.

Ada didn't have the idea of ​​"If you lose people, you lose both the land and the people". The magic world was a small place, and there was no strategic depth at all. If you didn't care about the gains and losses of a city or a place today, you wouldn't even have a chance to fight guerrilla warfare tomorrow.

Therefore, the Ministry of Magic office, which represents the center of political power; Godric's Hollow, which symbolizes resistance to Voldemort's atrocities; and Hogwarts, where students gather and represent the future, these three places must not allow any mistakes. They are the top priorities of the Ministry of Magic's defense. As long as the people are there, the tower will be there!
Overall, Godric's Hollow is safe at this stage, and Harry's journey to find his roots will not be attacked by Death Eaters.

Ada had no reason to object, nor did she want to. If it were her, Ada would have run over long ago, and there would be no need to wait until today.

"It's good to go back and take a look, but there's no need to go to Albania." Ada continued, "I've already been to that damn place and found the clues I was looking for."

Harry and the other two looked at Ada in surprise. Apparently, they didn't know that Ada had been to the Kingdom of Eagles. Dumbledore didn't tell Harry. It was probably because he didn't have time to tell her that the Death Eaters' raid came a few days earlier than the headmaster expected.

As they talked, the four of them unknowingly walked to the door of the Burrow. Mrs. Weasley had already set up a large dining table in the garden. "The diary from fifty years ago, Slytherin's ring and locket, and Hufflepuff's gold cup, these four Horcruxes have all been destroyed." Ada stopped at the door of the Burrow. "Ravenclaw's diadem should be hidden in the school. As for the other Horcrux... I already have a clue."

The implication was that Harry didn't need to leave school, as Ada had already done almost everything he needed to do. Rather than wandering around outside and risking being discovered by the Death Eaters, it would be better for him to stay in school and look for the crown in peace.

This is also the difference between Ada and Dumbledore. She will not arrange everything for Harry, but will explain everything clearly to Harry and let Harry choose whether to stay or leave.

But Harry didn't need to rush to answer. There was still a month before Hogwarts started. Harry could give his answer after visiting Godric's Hollow.

As night falls, lanterns are lit in the garden of the humble dwelling, giving the courtyard a fairy-tale look.

The birthday dinner was not big, and all of them were Harry's good friends. Sirius was dressed very formally, and those who didn't know would think he was getting married today. Ada suspected that if it was peacetime now, the unruly Sirius would probably take Harry to see the world.

Hagrid, in order to show his respect, put on his best furry brown suit, which was awful, even worse than his rock pancakes. Charlie was also back from Romania, with his funny short hair that looked like it had been gnawed by a dog.

Lupin and Tonks came together. Even though they were married and the wedding rings on their ring fingers were sparkling, everyone was still more accustomed to calling Nymphadora Tonks rather than Mrs. Lupin.

Tonks, who was promoted to Mrs. Lupin, was radiant and radiant, having changed from the decadent and depressed look of last year. Lupin beside her, on the other hand, looked a little unhappy, perhaps because he was newly married and overworked.

Sure enough, it is not easy for an old cow to eat young grass...

A group of people were chatting and laughing around the dining table. Harry told the funny story of how Hagrid made Dudley grow a pig's tail when he first came to pick him up. Mr. Weasley and Sirius were talking together, apparently about how to fix a broken motorcycle.

After becoming the Minister of Magic, Mr. Weasley not only did not relax, but became even busier. Every day, he would go to the Ministry to work before dawn and would not return home until midnight. It had been a long time since he had gone into the small wooden shed to study his beloved Muggle items.

It wasn't until Mrs. Weasley brought out the Golden Snitch-shaped cake that everyone stopped laughing and raised their glasses (Percy also put down his work). Except for the youngest Ginny, everyone present was an adult.

"Happy Birthday, Harry Potter!"

The song "Happy Birthday to You" was sung in a disjointed manner. No one seemed to have any musical talent. Fred and George even sang with long notes, which made people want to beat them up.

Halfway through the dinner, Ada and the twins sneaked out of the Burrow with bottles of wine and went to the creek where they used to go fishing.

The night was gentle. Ada lazily leaned on the river bank, chatting with Fred and George.

Today is Harry's birthday, and tomorrow is Bill's wedding. In these dangerous times, Ida hopes there will be more days like this. She knows how unrealistic her idea is, but she can't help herself.

(End of this chapter)