Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Azeroth

Chapter 103 102. Meeting with Rita and the unusual house-elf

Jaina cooed twice and raised her neck proudly.

"Good girl, then I'll leave it to you." Putting the letter in the owl's claws, Harry touched Jaina's wings, opened the car window and let her out - amid Uncle Vernon's screams.

"You let an owl out of my car! Boy!!!" Uncle Vernon's face turned red, he looked angry, "We will be regarded as freaks! Oh my God!! You must be crazy! I am crazy too!!"

"No, uncle," Harry turned around and said with a smile, "This is still far from Privet Drive, and no one knows who is in the car."

The blush on Uncle Vernon's face disappeared in an instant.

"It seems right."

Shrugging his shoulders, Uncle Vernon honked the horn twice, and the car accelerated towards Privet Drive, as if trying to escape from there.

Harry's summer vacation has begun.

....................................

On a sunny afternoon, in a cafe that was also on Privet Drive but far away from number 4, Harry sat alone in a corner by the window.

He is waiting.

Suddenly, he saw a figure suddenly appear in the shadow of the street corner not far from the cafe. It was obviously an apparition because there was no one there before.

A witch in a burgundy robe quickly walked towards the cafe. She had good eyesight and recognized Harry through the glass. She even waved. It didn't take long for her to walk in front of Harry and sit down.

"Harry Potter?" the woman asked.

Her hair looked very delicate, as if every strand had been fixed in place and would not be cheap. She wore a pair of jeweled glasses, and her fat fingers were clutching an alligator handbag - Harry noticed that her nails were so long that they almost dug into the coffee cup in front of her.

"Ms Skeeter?" Harry gave a coy smile, not one that meant no offense, but one that he had inspired from Neville. "It's nice to meet you. I, I mean - I don't know what to do anymore."

If Hermione and the others saw Harry's appearance at this moment, they would be so shocked that their mouths would be unable to close. Well, maybe their eyeballs would even pop out of their heads in surprise.

Because at this moment Harry looked so... too innocent, simple, shy, pure, and harmless, just like a child who had not experienced much of the world. Both his movements and expressions were full of an innocent beauty.

This was not unfamiliar to Harry. During his time as an adventurer, it was not uncommon for him to act and deceive his enemies in order to survive, or live well...either to rob his fellow thieves, or to get more compensation from his employer. Harry's acting skills also improved rapidly during that period, but he basically had no chance to use them later.

Harry always insisted that deceiving the enemy was not cheating, so he was not lying...but he didn't know why Jaina kept saying that he was a paranoid psychopath, and even called him a deranged cow for a while.

"Of course! Of course you can come to me!" Rita Skeeter pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill from her crocodile leather handbag. "So what secret do you have that no one knows about - and you want to tell it now?"

As Skeeter spoke, Harry clearly saw her quill jump up from the table, and then, without holding it, she began to write on the parchment very naturally and quickly.

[When I saw him for the first time, I felt like I saw a - sorry, I shouldn't say this, but I really couldn't control my thoughts, because the hero of the magical world, our savior, the boy who survived was like a stray dog abandoned on the roadside]

[Small, timid, with hair sticking to his head in a mess, as if...]

The rest has not been written yet, and this is all Harry has seen so far - he couldn't help but touch his arm, and was very sure that what existed there was muscle and not cotton.

[…Obviously, Dumbledore didn’t take good care of him. He deceived us, deceived everyone…]

Still in Dumbledore, still in Dumbledore!!
Harry sighed silently in his heart. Since the end of his first year, the content published by Skeeter in the newspaper has been attacking Dumbledore intentionally or unintentionally. However, when the summer vacation officially began and until today, the hints that were originally hidden have become an open doubt.

Skeeter didn't attack Harry in the article - well, if the description of Harry as a congenitally disabled and stupid person who was manipulated by Dumbledore was not considered an attack.

In general, Harry even received a lot of sympathetic letters and various candies during that time. No one even attacked him for joining the Kenmare Red Kestrels Club. The letters were full of encouragement and praise for him, and everyone became his loyal fan.

Those kind yet superstitious wizards who believed in newspapers... Harry couldn't help but sigh every time he thought of this.

I don't know why, but Harry hasn't received any letters from strangers in the past few days. Although Uncle Vernon always complains about owls coming in and out of the house, Harry thinks he and Dudley are quite happy eating the food sent by their supporters.

Well, Uncle Vernon even specifically asked today why no food had been delivered in the past two days.

Retracting his temporarily distracted thoughts, Harry continued with his performance.

"Secret?" Harry put on a confused expression - this was also inspired by Neville, "I, I just want to ask you for help with something, ma'am... I'm sorry, I don't know who else can help me."

"My friend told me that if there is anyone in the entire wizarding world who dares to speak the truth, who dares to say what those cowardly people dare not say, it must be you, ma'am." Harry had a yearning expression, "I think, I'm afraid only you, Ma'am Skeeter, can seek justice for me, let me, I..."

[Harry Potter admitted his cowardice, as well as his weakness and timidity...]

Just a glance in the direction of the quill made Harry almost lose control and his fists stiffen.

Sorry, it's just a reflex - in a tribe, if someone questions your power, you'd better react immediately and fight back hard, otherwise you will lose all your authority.

"Yes, that's right." Rita Skeeter nodded without any embarrassment. "Rita, the one who dares to speak the truth - everyone calls me that, and I never let them down."

Skeeter's look of interest intensified.

"Don't worry, Harry." Pushing his glasses, Skeeter leaned forward a little and lowered his voice: "What kind of darkness have you suffered? Is that person controlling you from behind, and you want to escape but can't? Come on, shout out his name! Don't be afraid, because Rita is here!"

As Skeeter moved, Harry smelled a strong odor of perfume, which was a bit nauseating.

The reporter didn't take Harry seriously at all, but that's true, what could an eleven-year-old wizard do?

At least Skeeter didn't believe the news she had heard from Hogwarts and Hogsmeade. In her opinion, Harry, who grew up in his Muggle uncle's house, was just a poor guy pushed to the forefront by Dumbledore.

And now, this poor guy will become a sharp knife to expose Dumbledore's dark side.

"I would like you to help me get back the deed to the Potter family."

"what?"

When Harry finished speaking, Skeeter's glasses almost fell off and she straightened up in surprise.

"Not Dumbledore?" "Why is it Headmaster Dumbledore?" Harry said in surprise: "After my parents were killed by Voldemort eleven years ago, the house was destroyed and the title deed was sent to the Ministry of Magic."

"I don't want to live at my aunt and uncle's house anymore," Harry sighed deeply, "I want to live in my own home, where I don't have to get up early to work, and no one will scold me."

"...Okay," Rita sighed, "Although it's not...it seems pretty good? So, you've been to the Ministry of Magic?"

"Yes, but I was rejected." Harry shook his head slightly. "The man said that I was still young and I had to wait until I was an adult to get the title deed back. But ma'am, how can this be true in this world?"

"Just because I'm still young, can't I inherit my parents' inheritance? Just because I'm still young, can't I return to my home? Can't there be children at home?"

"It makes sense. It makes so much sense." Rita Skeeter nodded repeatedly, no longer feeling the disappointment she had just felt when she heard something that was not related to Dumbledore. She even grabbed the quill beside her and started writing by herself. However, due to the angle, Harry could not see what she was writing this time.

His eyes were shining, a light Harry had seen countless times in the eyes of wolves that had spotted their prey.

What he said was not to deceive Rita Skeeter, but the fact that he encountered after he went to the Ministry of Magic in person.

Harry never expected that he would be blocked by the Ministry of Magic when he wanted to move back to his own home, so after thinking about it, he chose to start with Rita Skeeter, the restless reporter.

——He had originally wanted to meet this reporter during the holidays because of the strange things Filch had mentioned before, and now he was just doing one more thing.

"There is no other good way. I can only put my hope on you, Ms. Skeeter," Harry said with a frustrated look on his face. "If even you are unwilling to help me, I can only try to find other newspapers...sing a different tune or something."

stab.

Skeeter's quill scratched a deep mark on the parchment, and her eyebrows suddenly stood up as if she had heard some unspeakable monster.

"Singing the opposite tune? What rubbish!" Rita Skeeter said with great confidence: "Don't worry, Harry, I will let everyone know about this."

Skeeter was obviously inspired at this moment. While she was making a solemn promise to Harry, the quill in her hand did not stop for even a second, and she kept muttering to herself.

He couldn't hear it clearly, but Harry vaguely heard some fragmented words, such as 'big news', 'Ministry of Magic embezzlement of property', 'The Boy Who Lived is homeless'... etc. In short, it was a series of words that did not sound very peaceful.

In the end, Rita Skeeter even said goodbye to Harry in a hurry and left, and even paid the bill at the front desk before leaving. She seemed to be eager to go back and polish her article and publish it in the Daily Prophet tomorrow morning.

A completely pleasant meeting.

Rita Skeeter was really falling in love with this boy-who-survived. He was like an inexhaustible treasure. Not only could he provide her with a steady stream of big news, but he could also make her reputation as a journalist who dared to tell the truth more popular.

Think about how much news this boy has been in since last year, even before he entered school.

As long as Harry Potter is around, I will have endless articles to write and more attention to myself, which means more gold Galleons, and I will never be forgotten by wizards. The Daily Prophet, no, the number one reporter in the British wizarding world will always be me - Rita Skeeter praises the existence of Harry Potter!!

Harry just watched Rita Skeeter leave the cafe joyfully. Since Dumbledore, the target of Skeeter's constant attacks, didn't seem to care, Harry didn't plan to do more until Skeeter had played his role and diverted the attack.

To be honest, Harry doubted that if he really let Skeeter learn what to say and what not to say, Dumbledore would be unhappy - the paranoid old man might even ride a phoenix to him at night and teach him to control his power or something.

That would affect the relationship between himself and Dumbledore.

But this does not mean that Harry did nothing, because Filch almost died in front of him at the end of last semester to prove his loyalty to Harry. It was definitely not him who leaked Harry's secret to Rita Skeeter.

Harry has already recorded the characteristics of Skeeter's spirit through the astral perspective. That is the essence of her soul and cannot be easily changed. If Skeeter approaches Hogwarts again with any special means, Harry will be able to distinguish it clearly.

Everything was going according to Harry's plan. If nothing unexpected happened, the front-page headline of the Daily Prophet tomorrow would be what he wanted to see, and it would take some time for the Ministry of Magic to respond.

Before that, Harry thought that he might have to eliminate the...abnormalities around him first.

He hadn't heard from Hermione in three days.

Since the holidays began, Hermione would send a letter from time to time. The content of the letter would either be about what delicious food she had eaten, or complaints about the Ministry of Magic not allowing young wizards to cast spells during the holidays. She would also ask how Harry spent such boring time.

Very stable.

But since about three days ago, Harry hasn't received any letters from Hermione. Not only Hermione, but also no letters from other friends. Apart from the owl that regularly delivers the Daily Prophet every day, Harry hasn't received even a single letter from his supporters all over the wizarding world.

It's not that he enjoyed the feeling of being sought after, but Harry was sure that he was still a frequent guest on the front page of the Daily Prophet, so when the popularity had not subsided, the interruption of letters from various strangers was a very unusual thing.

When meeting Rita Skeeter today, Harry was thinking of luring the snake out of its hole. Suddenly, his mind moved, and Harry felt that he seemed to have caught the thief who stole the letter.

Deliberately walking to an empty alley on the back street, Harry turned around abruptly, and a dark blue electric current shot out from his hand out of thin air - a lightning magnetic lock! !

Snapped! !

There was a loud noise similar to that of Apparition, and the lightning chain that Harry swung out hit nothing.

"House elf?" Harry couldn't help but raise his eyebrows. He had already seen what that thing hiding in the dark and spying on him was. "Who sent you?"

It was short, only about as tall as Harry's waist, with rough brown skin, a big head, huge and strangely bulging eyes, a small and pointed nose, and big ears, like a bat's ears.

With thin limbs and long fingers and toes, he was frightened by Harry's sudden attack and was squatting in the corner, breathing quickly.

House-elves are a race domesticated by wizards. They serve the wizarding family for generations and are proud of it. They can be said to be a slave race that is not controlled by their own thoughts or lives. They cannot disobey the orders of their masters, and even casting spells requires the permission of their masters. If they are not allowed to serve, they will punish themselves in turn or even kill themselves.

Based on Harry's understanding of the current situation in the wizarding world and the house-elf race, if a house-elf hijacked all his letters, then there was undoubtedly someone behind it.

"Harry Potter found Dobby!!" The house-elf's eyes widened and he shouted in a shrill voice, "He even used magic outside of school! Oh my God! It's Harry Potter after all! He's a genius! So daring!"

"No wonder, no wonder he was able to defeat the You-Know-Who eleven years ago! Harry Potter! Harry Potter!!"

Harry: "..."

Something doesn't seem right.

When he was in school before, Harry had communicated with the house-elves in the Hogwarts kitchens, but none of them were as... neurotic as this house-elf in front of him.

(End of this chapter)