Hogwarts: Don't call me Wandmaker

Chapter 389 Goodbye Rita Skeeter

Harry's heart suddenly started pounding as he carefully pulled out the second parchment from the envelope.

It was a very familiar form, with a line of crooked little writing at the bottom... It was clear that Sirius was very excited when he wrote this sentence, and he tore the parchment in several places because he used too much force.

But nobody cares about that.

Harry stared intently at the sentence.

“I, Sirius Black, Harry Potter’s godfather, have given his permission to visit Hogsmeade Village for the weekend.”

“Great!” Ron exclaimed. “You can finally come with us to Hogsmeade.”

Harry didn't speak, and it took him a few minutes to finally look away from the parchment.

"Yes, you're right." He let out a long sigh of relief, then feigned a worried expression.

"I just don't know if the Godfather's signature will work."

“You can rest assured about that,” Sirius said. “Remember? This application form was given to you by Dumbledore, which means he has already tacitly agreed that Sirius can sign it as your parent.”

“Ah, yes, that’s right… I’ll go find Professor McGonagall now.”

Harry skipped breakfast and ran upstairs to the Transfiguration office.

It's no wonder Harry was so excited; this application form didn't just mean he could go to Hogsmeade. If it were that simple, Harry might not have been so happy.

Ever since he learned that there was a secret passage in the castle that led directly to Hogsmeade, he had gone there quite a few times wearing the Invisibility Cloak. He had explored almost all the places that were worth visiting. Apart from being a little inconvenient, he was no different from anyone else.

The most important thing on this parchment is actually the identity it contains, namely, the phrase 'Harry Potter's godfather'.

If this form is approved, it means the professors have also acknowledged this identity, which is why Harry is so excited.

Having lived with the Dursleys, who hated magic, for years, Harry desperately longed to have normal family.

However, this is something that would be difficult for anyone other than himself to understand.

……

Harry finally returned when class was about to start.

"It's done!" he exclaimed excitedly. "Professor McGonagall said I can go to Hogsmeade with everyone next week."

“That’s great.” Ron also seemed very happy.

Since receiving Sirius's letter, Harry's smile hasn't stopped all day, and even his least favorite Potions class couldn't dampen his good mood.

There's just one thing: he's never felt that Friday could be so long.

……

The next morning, Harry got up unusually early, arriving at the field as soon as the faint silvery-white sun began to shine on it.

However, after waiting for another ten minutes or so, the team finally set off.

The two agreed to meet at the Screaming Shack, which was a kind of revisit to a familiar place.

Siren did not go with them; in fact, he had also made an appointment with someone during his trip to Hogsmeade.

The Three Brooms were as lively as ever, filled with wizards from all over and Hogwarts students.

On the leftmost table near the bar, Rita Skeeter had her head down, and a brightly colored mechanical quill pen was writing something rapidly.

"How's the news I gave you?" Xilun walked over and sat down opposite her.

"Which one are you referring to?" Rita Skeeter looked up and asked. She was clearly in a good mood; she had even gone so far as to order a butterbeer for Siron in advance, something she rarely does.

You should know that in the previous times we met, everyone paid their own way, and no one intended to treat us.

“It’s about Mr. Barty Crouch, of course,” Celen said.

“I thought you'd be more interested in the referees helping the Warriors cheat,” Rita Skeeter raised an eyebrow. “Don’t you really want to know? I’ve got some inside information about Ludo Bagman and Durmstrang that will absolutely blow your mind.”

“It doesn’t matter anymore, since even if they cheated, they only got last place,” Xiren said.

“That’s not necessarily true,” Rita Skeeter said mysteriously. “I can tell you for sure that they’ve staked everything on the third project.”

"Want to know what kind of help Ludo Bagman is going to provide to Krum? I can tell you everything, just as Krum knows."

“No need, I don’t need to cheat to win.” Celen shook his head. “Let’s talk about Mr. Barty Crouch first, whether he was really attacked.”

“Yes, that’s right,” Rita Skeeter said. “Honestly, the Ministry of Magic’s secrecy this time was amazing. If you hadn’t written to me and told me that Karkaroff was trying to find someone to impersonate Barty Crouch and take his place as judge, I wouldn’t have known that this had happened.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I just said it’s possible.” Celen took a sip of butterbeer and continued, “So, how did Mr. Barty Crouch do? Did he prevent Karkaroff from succeeding?”

"This one……"

Rita Skeeter suddenly hesitated.

"I am not sure."

"What does it mean?"

“Because Barty Crouch has been staying at home ever since the last attack, and nobody has seen him,” Rita Skeeter said. “I tried to go look for him, but his house is protected by magic, and I couldn’t get in at all.”

“But it’s been a long time since the last attack,” Xiren said, frowning.

“That’s the most suspicious part,” Rita Skeeter said. “How could Barty Crouch, that workaholic, take such a long leave of absence?”

“At first I thought he was injured in the attack, so I went to St. Mungo. I searched St. Mungo for several days and checked the visitor records before I was sure he had never been there.”

Rita Skeeter became more and more excited as she spoke, and even the automatic quill pen began to tremble slightly.

Xilun glanced at what it had written.

Has Barty Crouch found someone new?

[The Secret Love Story of the Director of the International Department of Magical Cooperation]

Twelve years ago, he missed out on the ministerial position by a single misstep; twelve years later, he plans afresh, ready to reclaim everything that is rightfully his.

……

“Never mind it,” Rita Skeeter said, grabbing the stenographer’s quill, folding the parchment a few times, and stuffing it into her alligator bag.

"What a pity," Xilun sighed deliberately.

"What's the regret?"

“You could have become famous.” Siren took another sip of butterbeer. “Just think about it, the headmaster of Durmstrang, in order to make his champion win, actually attacked a high-ranking official of the Ministry of Magic in an attempt to take his place as referee.”

"If you can expose this shady dealings, the entire magical world will be in an uproar, and your name will be known all over the world!"

“What a pity…” Xilun sighed again, “You didn’t seize such a good opportunity. I should have told someone else about it.”

……

(End of this chapter)