The Return to Hogwarts

"How are you feeling, Draco?"

Amosta walked past Lucius, stepped up the stairs to Draco's bedside, nodded to Draco's mother, and then looked at Draco with a smile.

In terms of destructive power, the Imperius Curse may be the most devastating of the three unforgivable curses, but its effects are actually the mildest. During the years when Voldemort was rampaging, many wizards who refused to associate with him were controlled by this curse, but after treatment, they did not suffer any serious aftereffects. This is why Amosta was willing to take a gamble and not immediately rescue Draco.

Draco looked much better, no longer appearing pale and dazed, though a hint of confusion still lingered in the depths of his eyes.

"I didn't expect you to come see me. I feel quite good, Professor Blaine—"

Draco grinned.

"St. Mungo's best team of healers is obviously much more professional than our shabby school hospital. My parents paid a little money to have them work with me the whole time, and I'm basically healed—well, not entirely, I was... well, I was..."

Draco trembled with fear at the mention of Peter.

"Relax, darling—"

Draco's mother immediately wrapped her arms around Draco's head nervously, gently patting his back and speaking softly.

"Don't be afraid, you are safe now. As for that despicable scoundrel who dared to hurt you, your father and I can assure you that he will pay with his life!"

Lucius stood on the edge of Draco's bed, clenched his fist, and nodded.

"I'm fine, Mom!"

Draco felt embarrassed by his mother's treatment in front of Professor Blaine, as if it made him appear weak. He took a few deep breaths to suppress his discomfort, pushed his mother away, and forced a smile as he spoke.

"There's a part of my memory that's very vague. Professor Blaine, the therapist at St. Mungo's, said it's best not to intervene, that those memories will slowly come back on their own!"

That's certainly true—

Amosta nodded slightly.

"This phenomenon is not caused by the Imperius Curse. I guess Peter probably wanted to erase your memories of him from your brain, but his memory magic was very clumsy and not very successful. As your physical condition gradually stabilizes, those memories hidden by magic will slowly recover."

Upon receiving Professor Blaine's confirmation, not only Draco but also his parents secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Although the hospital room was luxurious enough, his parents wouldn't let him leave, so it was no different from a prison for Draco. The only way he could pass the time was by reading the latest magazines and newspapers, and the news of the past few days had inexplicably excited him.

"I heard you took down Greyback and nearly a hundred of his men, Professor. I bet if you were to become the headmaster of Hogwarts, you would be far more capable than Dumbledore. Is it possible? I mean, my father almost succeeded in ousting Dumbledore last year."

"Draco!"

Before Amosta could reply, Lucius's face darkened.

"This is not something you need to worry about."

Draco immediately stopped smiling and looked a little sullen, but then he started asking Amosta about the events that happened at school when he was under control, since most of his memories of that time were hazy.

Amosta drew his wand and waved it, and a high-backed armchair by the fireplace hopped over on its four legs and landed behind Amosta.

"Actually, it's nothing much --"

Amosta sat down casually, crossed her legs, and smiled as she described the scene to Draco.

"--Oh, a bunch of cowardly, incompetent fools, I'll teach them a lesson!"

Ten minutes later, after Amostella finished recounting Draco's treatment of him in Slytherin, Draco angrily cursed...

"Who gave Daphne, Theodore, Millison, and those other guys the audacity to keep ostracizing me!"

Now that Draco had returned to normal, Amosta had no intention of interfering in the conflict between the students. He turned his gaze and smiled at the Malfoys, who were maintaining extreme restraint.

"So, gentlemen, regarding the hidden details behind Draco's attack, I believe Cornelius has already sent someone to explain them to you, right?"

Chapter 337 Confession

2023-06-19

The Ministry of Magic was tight-lipped this time. Amelia and Cornelius gave a strict gag order to every Auror who was present that night. The general public in the wizarding world and the news media reporters did not receive any news. However, the Malfoy family obviously knew about it. Draco had been controlled by Peter with the Imperius Curse for several months. If Cornelius had not personally intervened, the Malfoys would have stormed Hogwarts long ago.

In fact, Lucius and Narcissa had known for a long time that Sirius was not the murderer of the Potters, and not only them, but many others knew this as well.

These people were all Death Eaters highly valued by Voldemort. When Voldemort and Dumbledore were playing their game, they all knew who their master had planted as a spy in Dumbledore's camp. After Voldemort's downfall, the one accused was Sirius Black.

This seemed absurd to them, but Voldemort had already fallen, and they were all wizards who openly declared to the public that they had no connection with Voldemort whatsoever. Therefore, for their own safety, no one pointed out Barty Crouch's mistake.

Last July, after Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban, the Malfoys discussed it privately. They concluded that Sirius couldn't have gone to kill Harry Potter, but they couldn't deduce the specific reason for his escape, because they also didn't know that their former 'comrade-in-arms,' Peter Pettigrew, was still alive.

Things are unpredictable; who could have imagined that Draco would be dragged into the feud between Sirius Black and Peter Parker?

Silence spoke volumes. Amostella paused for a moment, gazing at Lucius, whose eye was twitching. An unsettling aura of authority emanated from him.

"Regardless, Draco is a junior wizard at Hogwarts. He is under Peter's control, and the school bears an undeniable responsibility. As an apology, all medical expenses for Draco, Goyle, and Crabbe in the opposite ward will be covered by Hogwarts. Before coming here, I had already discussed this matter with Headmaster Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall, and they will ensure that the Board of Governors approves this resolution."

The Malfoys exchanged a glance but offered no comment.

Amostella didn't expect his words to make the Malfoys smile, which was to be expected. Although hiring the best team of healers at St. Mungo's and the current luxurious ward would cost thousands of Galleons every day, that amount of gold was nothing to the Malfoy family.

According to Lucius's own wishes, only Dumbledore's resignation could quell his anger.

But Lucius knew that the actual situation was much more complicated. If Dumbledore or Amostra Brane had to pay the price for their carelessness, then what about the Ministry of Magic, which bore greater responsibility for this series of events?

Should Cornell Fudge and Buddy Crouch also step down?

Don't be ridiculous. Lucius knew he didn't have that kind of power. Even Arthur Weasley, a senior employee in the ministry who was only considered to have a wide network of connections, could make him lose face when he got angry. Let alone the two top officials in the Ministry of Magic. Even for his own sake, those two wouldn't let him do that.

Whether Lucius and Narcissa don't care about Hogwarts' compensation is their business, one thing at a time, but Amostella, representing Hogwarts, still needs to make the school's stance clear.

"It seems this does not satisfy you—"

Amosta had his fingers interlaced on his lower abdomen, while the Malfoys stood before him with livid faces. To the uninitiated, they would have looked like they were apologizing to Amosta.

Amosta said calmly.

"If you two have any requests, please feel free to mention them, as long as they are reasonable."

The Malfoys looked at each other again, and this time, their gazes finally stirred with emotion.

"if you can--"

The last time Narcissa saw Amosta Blaine was last summer at the Leaky Cauldron. At the time, she was puzzled by her husband’s hidden fear in front of Amosta Blaine and his strange behavior afterwards, but in the last few days she finally understood why her husband was behaving that way.

Aside from the great Dark Lord and the aged Dumbledore, whose strength was still unknown, the young wizard before them, whose eyes shone with an intimidating light, was in fact a rare powerhouse in the entire European magical world.

Narcissa, Lucius Malfoy's wife and also of noble birth, looks back on the past. Among her former Death Eater companions and the Order of the Phoenix members who were mortal enemies of the Death Eaters, Narcissa cannot find a wizard whose magical power can rival Amostrath Blaine's. His ruthless killing of Greyback and his tribe also shows that Amostrath Blaine is a wizard who despises the law and is cruel.

Therefore, when they met again, she was noticeably more reserved and awkward in front of Amosta.

"We hope to get your support, I mean in the matter of Peter Pettigrew."

With her back to Draco, the beautiful Lady Malfoy spoke with a ferocious expression.

Amosta nodded knowingly, then fell silent.

Draco's mother previously stated that she wanted Peter to pay with his life for harming Draco, but normally this would not be easy to achieve.

The circumstances under which the death penalty is applicable in the wizarding law are basically for those 'outcasts'. It would be very difficult to push Wizengamo to execute Peter in peacetime. Although Narcissa kept saying she wanted to kill Peter, she knew in her heart that Peter would only be sentenced to life imprisonment.

Amos Tower is already a Wizengamot Inquisition and is now gaining a reputation in the wizarding world. If he were to openly support the death sentence for Peter, coupled with the power of the Malfoy family, it wouldn't be impossible for him to succeed. However, Amos Tower doesn't want to do that because it would damage his 'good reputation'.

Regarding this matter—

After a brief silence, to the Malfoys' surprise, Amosta nodded.

"I will do it, but it will be in my own way, understand?"

Lucius shuddered at the look Amosta gave him. He immediately understood that Amosta probably wouldn't push for Peter's execution, but he would let Peter die.

"As long as that lowly bastard is punished—"

Lucius gritted his teeth and said in a low voice.

Draco blinked in confusion, not understanding what Professor Blaine and his parents were talking about. Could it be that Peter might still be released?

Before Draco could figure it out, he saw Professor Blaine stand up from his chair and blurt out a sentence without thinking.

"May I make a request, Professor?"

Several surprised glances fell upon him, and Draco belatedly realized what was happening. He stammered,

"If it's possible—I—um, I'd like to learn magic from you—"

Professor Blaine didn't immediately refuse, and his gentle gaze gave him courage, finally making Draco's tone more fluent.

"That Peter Pettigrew, he took me, Crabbe, and Goyle under his thumb in the Owl's Hut all at once. I thought, if I had the ability to deal with him..."

"Draco!"

Narcissa said sternly,

"You can't possibly handle Peter Pettigrew, you have no idea what kind of guy he is!"

Seeing Draco, who dared not speak under his mother's imposing presence, Amosta pondered for a moment before smiling and saying,

“Hmm, I think I understand what you mean, Draco. Well—I need to think about it. I’ll give you an answer when you get back to Hogwarts.”

"No matter what --"

Lucius saw Amostella out of the ward. Standing at the door, Lucius, who rarely spoke so humbly in years, lowered his head and whispered...

“I want to thank you, Mr. Blaine. I only hoped that you could help find the Golden Viper, but I never expected that you would solve the Malfoy crisis at its root. I mean, you put those filthy beasts of the Greyback to justice.”

"Ho-"

After a cryptic chuckle, Amosta turned and left.