Hogwarts: Dumbledore reigned over the wizarding world

Chapter 137 Bad News and Good News

Hermione was even more envious.

He quickly shook hands, and then, unable to contain his curiosity, stared at Tonks' hair while asking her how she controlled this innate ability.

Tonks, an outgoing and typical socialite, wasn't at all averse to Hermione's thirst for knowledge, and the two chatted enthusiastically.

Kingsley glanced back and noticed two girls who seemed to be getting along quite well. He chuckled at Vaughn, "This girl, she's the most rebellious intern I've had in all these years, a real headache."

“That’s called individuality, Shakel… Please, my lab is still in the attic.”

"Alright... Sir and Madam, please wait a moment. It's just a formality. Please go about your business."

Most people who see Kingsley Shackleton would first think he is a serious wizard.

But Vaughn knew that this pureblood, who was suspected of having African wizard blood (the Shackle family is one of the 28 sacred clans), was actually a very shrewd person.

Or rather, politicians!

In Vaughn's memory of the future, this Auror seemed to have a low profile, yet he could be seen in almost any scene.

When the Order of the Phoenix was reorganized, he was included in the reorganization list by Moody and officially became a member of the Order of the Phoenix (he was not a member of the original Order of the Phoenix).

When Fudge refused to acknowledge Voldemort's return and manipulated public opinion to smear Dumbledore and Harry, he lurked around Fudge, passing on intelligence while cleaning up Harry's messes.

He also participated in later events such as the "Battle of the Department of Mysteries" and the "Seven Porters Transfer".

The most outrageous thing is that, after experiencing so many events, and with everyone else, including Moody, dying in battle, this guy was completely unharmed.

Even in the dire situation of Rufus Scrimgeour's murder, he was able to use the Patronus Charm to send information to Harry and the Weasleys...

Not to mention, after the war, this guy rose to the position of Minister of Magic!
Once you analyze it this way, you'll know he's no ordinary person.

Of course, Vaughn didn't care whether Kingsley was a schemer or an opportunist; in fact, he preferred to associate with such people.

Because whether it's conspiracy or speculation, it's all driven by desire. When a person has desires, they become "weak" and will know how to compromise and cooperate.

Correspondingly, Kingsley Shackle also "enjoyed" contacting Vaughn, a fact that Vaughn keenly noticed—normally, a minor matter like detecting magical fluctuations wouldn't bother a seasoned Auror like Kingsley all the time.

Their abilities should be channeled into more important cases, such as investigating and cracking down on persistent smuggling, which is both profitable and lucrative.

Unless, of course, the veteran Auror himself is willing to personally oversee such a trivial matter.

Kingsley had casually hinted that he was under pressure from the Minister of Magic, a hint that seemed plausible at first glance.

After all, as time went by, the news spread throughout the Ministry of Magic that on the 15th, the dear Minister was expelled by magic by Mr. Vaughn Weasley, a member of the Wizengamot, for disrupting the order of the Wizengamot!
A 50-year-old wizard, who is also the Minister of Magic.

Banished by a 12-year-old wizard...

The Ministry of Magic staff were laughing hysterically at the joke, so you can imagine that Mr. Fudge must be absolutely furious with Vaughn right now.

Given this background, Kingsley's frequent appearances seem quite reasonable—Fudge was settling a personal score!

Kingsley, who was used as a tool to settle personal scores, also had the image of a victim. Although he was "forced" by the minister and had to obey the minister's orders due to his duties, he also expressed goodwill to Vaughn and even blatantly said that it was "just a routine matter".

If Vaughn hadn't been aware of his impressive future resume, anyone else would likely have developed a favorable impression of him.

He is considered a responsible, kind, righteous, and flexible person.

But what is the real truth?

As Vaughn led Kingsley Shackleton to the attic for the "routine" ceremony, he casually pondered the situation while chatting with the cunning old fox:
“…I personally really admire you, Mr. Weasley…”

“Call me Vaughn,” Vaughn said kindly.

“Alright, you can also call me Kingsley. I like it when my friends call me by my name; it's very friendly… I haven't had a chance to ask yet, but are the potion experiments you've been doing an improved version of the wolfsbane potion that was mentioned in the newspaper?”

“Yes, Kingsley.” Vaughn sighed, making up a story, “but it’s not going well, as you know, I’ve failed several times in a row.”

Kingsley's expression was sincere: "Don't sigh, Vaughn. It's normal for such a great potion to be difficult. You have accomplished what many people cannot achieve in their entire lives. Like I said, I admire you because you gave away the formula for free and founded WAC!"

As they spoke, the two had already arrived at the attic.

Just as Kingsley had said, he merely went through the motions, glancing briefly at the lab bench in the attic and the few medicinal herbs scattered on it before paying no further attention.

Instead, as he had done in the past few days, he stayed in the attic and chatted with Vaughn about trivial matters.

But today, he suddenly started complaining about how hard it is for Aurors:

"...The wizarding world has been at peace for too long. Nowadays, apart from catching smugglers, Aurors are basically just dealing with trivial matters. Oh, I'm not saying peace is bad, but the Aurors' efforts are not commensurate with their professional expectations."

“Take Nymphadora Tonks downstairs, for example. When you enrolled last year, she had just left Hogwarts. She took the Auror exams immediately after graduation and passed with excellent results.”

"But even such outstanding children have to spend their most youthful years in endless boredom. According to regulations, Aurors need to undergo three years of training before they can officially start working... Alas, how many three-year periods are there in the most brilliant time of one's life?"

Kingsley Shackler looked on with a sigh.

Vaughn smiled slightly and chimed in considerately, "Yes, especially for girls. They have to spend their most vibrant and youthful years with loneliness... Ah, I suddenly have an idea. What do you think about WAC cooperating with the Auror Command to borrow a group of Auror interns to intern at WAC?"

Kingsley looked delighted: "How come I didn't think of that? This is a great idea! And WAC is mainly focused on international business now. These young people can broaden their horizons by going there. It's much better than staying cooped up in the British Isles. It's a brilliant idea, Vaughn!"

When it comes to acting skills, who's afraid of who?

Vaughn then feigned difficulty: "But, I'm afraid Mr. Scrimgeour..."

“Oh, I can handle that,” Kingsley said. “They’re just interns; I’m sure Rufus will agree.”

Ah--

Vaughn chuckled inwardly. He had realized that Kingsley Shackler bringing Nymphadora Tonks today was not an accident, but a deliberate act.

Their plan is to put Tonks into WAC!

He didn't know the relationship between Kingsley and Tonks, but he figured it was something like the complicated, intertwined entanglements of pure-blood families.

Even Vaughn couldn't escape this.

Yes, that Tonks downstairs, if we're talking about pure-blood relationships, is also a "relative" of Vaughn.

Before her mother got married, her name was Andromeda Black. Andromeda had an aunt and a great-aunt, who were named Lucrecia Prewitt and Cedrica Weasley respectively after they got married...

Kingsley's request seemed incredibly ironic to Vaughn.

This is certainly not meant to be a sarcastic jab at Kingsley.

It refers to wizards from ordinary families in the magical world!
Although he had been busy entertaining the Granger family for some time, Vaughn had not lost his job, so he had already learned from Lupin that the recruitment process at Hogwarts was not going well.

Those wizards from ordinary families are always blinded by prejudice; they fear the threat of wolfification.

Even when Vaughn and WAC presented them with opportunities, they didn't know how to seize them.

On the contrary, pure-blood families, once they realize that something is "promising," immediately ignore the so-called dangers and quickly bet on it to curry favor with powerful families.

Travers, after witnessing Vaughn's achievements and his influence on Dumbledore, immediately sent his grandson.

Then there was Shakel, who, perhaps because of his more obvious family characteristics, did not dare to come openly. However, after realizing Fudge's weakness again, he quickly sent over a direct descendant to befriend him and also sent in a disguised Magus descendant.

In comparison, it's no wonder that the influence of pure-blood families in the magical world has never waned.

Vaughn's quick acceptance of Tonks pleased Kingsley Shackler, and naturally, as he prepared to leave, he "accidentally" revealed some of the Ministry of Magic's plans.

"...Minister Fudge is very concerned about your actions. Since he learned two days ago that your potion development failed and triggered the trail, he tried to ask Wizengamo to investigate you for violating the Secrets Act, but Ms. Burns refused. Ms. Burns believes that your research is beneficial to the magical world and is a special case."

"But Minister Fudge did not give up... I heard that when you were developing the first version of the wolfsbane medicine, you bought werewolves on the black market for research?"

“Yes.” Vaughn frankly admitted that this kind of thing couldn’t be hidden. As long as he needed to investigate, and as long as someone was determined to find out, they would eventually find out.

However, he wasn't worried because the moral values ​​of the wizarding world were different from those of Muggles, or rather, in the eyes of most wizards, werewolves weren't even considered human.

Sure enough, Kingsley showed no sign of surprise upon hearing Vaughn's admission, simply nodding and reminding him, "Then you need to be careful lately. Minister Fudge consulted some apothecaries yesterday, and then he ordered the Aurors to prepare for a crackdown on the black market."

"According to the plan, the operation will begin the day after tomorrow. He is very determined this time and wants to wipe out the black market in one fell swoop. He also specifically requested that it be done regularly... When that happens, the black market trade will be severely damaged, and you probably won't have any research materials for a long time!"

This is indeed terrible news.

After seeing Kingsley off, Vaughn wrote a letter and gave it to Juliet—because he needed to frequently send invitations and other things to the Purple Robes to maintain relationships, Vaughn had specially brought his owl with him.

The letter was addressed to William White, in which Vaughn instructed him to suspend contact with black market merchants and dark wizard groups, and to sever ties to avoid being caught by the Aurors during their major sweep the day after tomorrow.

That gave Fudge an excuse.

Fortunately, Vaughn had been on guard against this, which is why he had entrusted the purchase of werewolf test subjects to the werewolves and had not appeared himself.

Otherwise, given the integrity of those black market merchants and black wizards, they would definitely betray him without hesitation if they were caught, in order to escape.

After finishing all that, Vaughn found it somewhat amusing.

It seems that his last outburst of temper has really put Fudge in a tough spot with him.

This development is completely different from his past life memories. In his memories, Fudge at this time should have been in a phase of overflowing self-confidence after breaking free from Dumbledore's "control".

He began to confidently try to flaunt his power to the entire magical world.

So during the summer vacation, he spearheaded a campaign to censor dark magic items, and the entire story of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets revolves around this major censorship.

It was because of the major censorship that Lucius Malfoy wanted to get rid of the diary given to him by the Dark Lord.

Of course, Lucius was still quite dedicated to being a villain. Even when he lost the diary, he didn't forget to plot his schemes—to frame Harry and hopefully kill a few more students so he would have an excuse to exercise his power as the school board member and expel the annoying Dumbledore!

That's why Dobby made an appearance.

His thoughts drifted into the archives of his memories, reliving his past life once more. Vaughn rubbed his chin and sighed, "I've changed the plot quite a bit..."

Now, Fudge has clashed with Vaughn several times, and each time he has been thoroughly humiliated.

Naturally, it's impossible for confidence to swell further.

It's even less likely that they'd go so far as to investigate dark magic items. In the magical world, everyone knows that pure-blood families have the most dark magic items.

Fudge is only barely holding onto his position thanks to the support of pure-blood families who oppose Vaughn, Dumbledore, and the WAC.

He must be insane to target pure-blood families.

"Without his grand investigation, there would have been no Lucius Malfoy plot against Harry, and Dobby wouldn't have prevented Harry from going to school... It would have been completely unrecognizable!"

However, Vaughn wasn't too concerned about the changes in the "plot".

What he was more curious about was, if the "plot" he knew in his previous life was a sign from fate, how would fate turn everything back on track?

Or, to put it another way, what is the theme of destiny for second graders?
The opening of the secret room is definitely not the case, because the secret room has almost nothing to do with Voldemort's resurrection, return, or other ultimate outcomes.

Therefore, the answer is obvious.

"The theme of the second year's destiny is that diary, the exposure of Voldemort's Horcruxes!"

Vaughn thought, "Should I take some time to go to Malfoy Manor and steal that diary?"

But he was just thinking about it.

This is too much trouble! He's not even named Harry Potter, so why is he so eager to do this? Anyway, the remnants who could help Voldemort resurrect are all in his hands now (Peter and Barty Crouch Jr.).

Voldemort is just a remnant soul, he can't even bask in the sun, let's show some mercy to the old man!
Convincing himself with his remaining kindness not to meddle, Vaughn then refocused his attention on developing the wolfsbane remedy.

Without werewolves conducting research, progress will indeed be slower.

However... it's almost the end of July, and his focus lately has been on waiting for the conference to begin so he can be elected as the first president of WAC. That's all.

Anyway, idle is idle.

Then, two days later, he received a message that shocked him: a text message from Phoenix Fox.
[Vaughn, I've found clues to the Horcruxes. Return to Hogwarts immediately, you loyal Albus Dumbledore!]

After receiving Dumbledore's letter, Vaughn returned to Hogwarts via the communal fireplace in Diagon Alley.

During the summer holidays, at the entrance to Hogwarts, only Professor McGonagall's office remained open.

She is in charge of managing the castle's Floo network system and has the highest, and only, authority.

When Vaughn emerged from the fireplace, he saw that the conscientious and responsible vice-principal was still dressed impeccably, just as she had been before the holiday.

"Professor, how have you been lately?" Vaughn greeted her.

Professor McGonagall pursed her lips and said dryly, "Not bad... If you and Albus don't cause trouble, I'll be happy all year round!"

“Professor, whether or not I cause trouble is not up to me. You should keep an eye on Albus. Look, he won’t even let me off the hook during his vacation.”

"...That's what he said about you too!"

The castle fell into a rare silence during the summer vacation.

Even the professors have all gone on vacation and gone home, with only a few who have nowhere else to go, or who consider the school their home, remaining in the castle.

Professor McGonagall was one of them.

In fact, no one knew where Professor McGonagall lived; all they knew was that she was Scottish, which was deduced from her accent.

Apart from that, she had no marriage, no children, and her life seemed to consist only of Hogwarts and her students, which she never left for a second.

Compared to her conscientious and responsible attitude.

Professor Trelawney, who also stayed at the school, had no marriage or children and treated the school as her home, but for a completely different reason.

When Vaughn and Professor McGonagall went to Dumbledore's office, they met her on the fourth floor.

In broad daylight, she was completely drunk, hugging and stroking a suit of armor. The sight of her was so unbearable that Professor McGonagall was speechless.

To prevent Trelawney from doing anything more indecent.

Professor McGonagall dismissed her, then defended Vaughn, saying, "Sybil is rather unconventional. You haven't taken her classes yet, so you might find her behavior a bit strange, but I still have to say, Dumbledore trusts her!"

"And what about you, Professor?"

“…I’m not one to gossip about my colleagues behind their backs.” Professor McGonagall pursed her lips, emphasizing before speaking with a serious expression, “But I think hiring Sybil as the Professor of Prophecy might have been the most serious mistake of Dumbledore’s life!”

Her prejudice against Trelawney was palpable.

Vaughn knew that Sybil Trelawney wasn't as bad as she usually appeared; in fact, she was probably the only remaining prophet in the English wizarding world.

It's just that for some unknown reason, her prophetic abilities are very unstable, which is why she acts like a lazy, good-for-nothing con artist.

Vaughn chuckled, offering no comment on Professor McGonagall's bias, but simply chimed in with a sarcastic remark: "Albus's judgment has never been very good... You must have heard about the Gilderoy Lockhart case, right?"

"Yes, son, the newspapers are still discussing that case today. I want to say that no matter how unreasonable Fudge is, anyone with eyes can see that you exposed a big liar and restored the reputation of many people."

When Vaughn talked about Lockhart, it wasn't to hear Professor McGonagall praise him, of course.

He shrugged at Professor McGonagall: "But as far as I know, our dear headmaster once wanted to invite Gilderoy Lockhart to be the professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts!"

"..."

Upon hearing this, Professor McGonagall's face visibly flushed red.

That's because of anger!

She was shocked and stammered, "Is he...is he senile?"

“Very likely,” Vaughn said with ill intent. “Professor, I suggest you keep a close eye on Albus’s appointments in the future, and don’t let him continue to act so willfully. Look at him, he invited Quirrell in his first year, and in his second year he wanted to invite Lockhart… To be honest, his intentions may not be wrong, he may just have been unlucky, but to have bad luck twice in a row…”

Vaughn didn't continue, but that was enough for Professor McGonagall to make her own assumptions.

The vice-principal understood, of course, that Vaughn might have been motivated by revenge, but what he said was also true.

Dumbledore certainly seems to have had bad luck when it comes to inviting professors. Quirrell alone could lead to the claim of Voldemort's possession, and then there's the big liar Lockhart... Professor McGonagall simply can't imagine what chaos Hogwarts would have been like next school year if Vaughn hadn't stepped in to expose that fraudster!

Therefore, Professor McGonagall kept a somber expression on her face as she drove Vaughn to the principal's office.

Even when she arrived at the headmaster's office and Dumbledore smiled and invited her to eat honey candy, she glared at him sternly and left without saying a word.

When he finally understood the reason, Dumbledore said helplessly, "I only mentioned it to you once. He asked me for it on his own initiative, and I didn't agree to it at the time."

Seeing Old Deng's aggrieved expression, Vaughn remained noncommittal.

Old Deng did not agree at the time.

But even if he doesn't step in, when Old Dumbledore can't find a new unlucky guy this year... no, Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, he'll still accept Lockhart's application.

Thinking it over, Vaughn asked, "Have you not found the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor for the new school year yet?"

Hear the question.

Dumbledore couldn't help but feel a headache coming on. He pinched the bridge of his nose and said, "It's very difficult... For so many years, the entire wizarding world has known that the Defense Against the Dark Arts class has been cursed by Tom. No professor has ever survived a year. Now everyone avoids this position like the plague. Nobody wants to take it."

"Have you considered canceling this course and changing its name?"

Old Deng shook his head: "It's not that simple. First of all, I don't know whether the target of Tom's curse is the specific position of 'Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor' or the teaching concept of 'Defense Against the Dark Arts'. If it's the latter, then it's basically impossible to avoid."

"On the other hand, the course titles at Hogwarts cannot be changed casually. Any changes must be reviewed by the Board of Governors and approved by the Ministry of Magic, since they are related to students' graduation exams and their job choices after graduation. This is a major reform."

"And I think you know better than I do what our relationship with the Ministry of Magic is like right now."

"..." Vaughn pursed his lips and suggested, "There's another way. Since others can't resist the curse, I think you could consider teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts part-time, and then hire a teaching assistant. You can design the curriculum, and the teaching assistant can teach the classes. Maybe that can avoid the curse."

"Well, even if it can't be avoided, you'll bear the curse. This will greatly increase the teaching assistant's safety, which should dispel many people's concerns!"

Dumbledore's beard twitched, and he looked at Vaughn in disbelief, as if he couldn't believe that he could be so ruthless!
"Why are you looking at me? Trying it won't hurt you. If the Defense Against the Dark Arts course continues like this, it's going to be completely rotten."

"...Why don't you try?"

"I'm not the principal!"

Upon hearing this, Dumbledore paused, then replied with a cryptic expression, "Do you want to be the headmaster?"

"..."

Vaughn remained silent for a moment, then turned to look at the portraits sleeping on the wall under the influence of magic: "Let's get down to business. Where did you find the Horcrux clues?"

Ugh--

Dumbledore sighed inwardly, not dwelling on it any longer, and changed the subject, saying, "Albania!"

“You should remember that last year, I was tracking down Quirinas and eventually found out that he met Tom in Albania… Speaking of which, I have to thank you for that, Vaughn, thank you for reminding me back then.”

In the evening, Hogwarts Castle was bathed in the twilight.

Without the students running and playing, time seemed to slow down throughout the castle, everything was as if encased in amber, still and quiet.

The golden light of the setting sun shone through the windows of the covered bridge, and Dumbledore and Vaughn walked slowly between the seemingly frozen light and shadow.

Vaughn did not respond to Dumbledore's "thank you".

He understood that the old man had brought it up on purpose.

Since learning that Vaughn had a Death Eater who "knew many secrets," Dumbledore felt enlightened, and many of his previous doubts seemed to have been answered.

For example, as mentioned above, Vaughn directed him to Albania—of course, Vaughn's scope was broader at the time, encompassing the entire Balkan Peninsula.

Dumbledore didn't understand why Vaughn was so certain that Voldemort's hiding place was in the Balkans.

Vaughn's claim that the Balkans are a haven for dark wizards is rather far-fetched.

The Balkans are indeed chaotic, with black magicians from all over Europe active there, but that's precisely what makes it so perplexing.

After Voldemort became a remnant soul, he didn't even dare to stay in England, and he didn't even trust his former subordinates. Why would he dare to go to the lair of the dark wizards?
Isn't he afraid of being imprisoned by some evil dark wizard?
The remnant soul is indeed impossible to kill, but no one can guarantee that this is an accurate conclusion. Based on Dumbledore's understanding of Voldemort, he probably wouldn't have the courage to test the law himself!
Seeing that Vaughn was ignoring him, Dumbledore didn't mind and said frankly, "In fact, before you inadvertently gave me the information, the first place I ruled out was the Balkans, because that place doesn't fit my understanding of Tom's character."

"But the truth is, I did eventually find traces of Tom parasitizing various small animals in Albania, which frustrated me greatly... I realized that I had never really understood him!"

"That frustration prevented me from thinking carefully about why Tom went to Albania for a long time, until recently when I went back to the forest where Tom had lived and once again found the corpses of the small animals he had parasitized."

"It's hard to understand why he went back. That's when I really realized something was wrong—what was it about that forest that Tom was so fond of?"

"It's like a wounded animal instinctively returning to its most familiar place, as if that makes it feel safe... But how could the Albanian forest evoke such a feeling in Tom? He's spent his entire life in England, never living or active in any other country..."

Tap tap, tap tap...

The unhurried footsteps of the two echoed in the dimly lit corridor.

Vaughn listened quietly to Dumbledore's story, and could sense the confusion and doubt in the other man's heart at that moment.

“At first I still thought I didn’t know him well enough, so I started to trace his life trajectory, but I didn’t find anything. Tom didn’t like places outside the British Isles, or rather, he was a perfectionist. He wouldn’t waste his energy on another country until he conquered England, seized great power, and realized his ‘ideal’.”

“I realized that I was investigating in the wrong direction. Perhaps Tom’s fondness for the Albanian forests was not because he had done anything spectacular there. Perhaps it was just a small, unrecorded incident that had a significant impact on him… such as something related to Horcruxes!”

As he spoke, Dumbledore gradually stopped walking.

Vaughn looked up and noticed that the two had reached the Ravenclaw Tower, which contained a quiet courtyard that, according to legend, was Rowena Ravenclaw's favorite place.

She loved the sunlight slanting into the courtyard, and she loved sitting amidst the swaying shadows of the trees and the gentle breeze, pondering questions about magic.

Like right now.

The light of the setting sun, filtering through the glass dome at the top of the tower and refracting several times, bathed the entire atrium in a warm, yellowish glow.

In the distance, a ghost stands atop the tower, staring blankly down at the courtyard below, which glows with an amber light.

She is Lady Grey, the Ravenclaw ghost, a lonely soul who never wanted to communicate with anyone.

Vaughn looked at Lady Grey, then said to Dumbledore, who was merely gazing at her from afar and seemed unwilling to disturb her, "It seems you really have found a clue."

"So, you knew all along?"

Dumbledore lowered his head, his deep blue eyes behind his crescent-shaped glasses fixed on Vaughn: "You know that Lady Grey is Helena Ravenclaw, that she stole her own mother Rowena Ravenclaw's crown for the sake of wisdom, and that she was eventually hunted down by the Bloody Barrow and accidentally killed in the Albanian forest?"

“Darling, no wonder you always like coming to Ravenclaw. Everyone was fooled by you, thinking you liked the little witches of Ravenclaw…”

(End of this chapter)