The Return to Hogwarts

Chapter 452 The Weasleys

2023-08-31

A second before Ron uttered the names of the two young men, Harry had already guessed who they were, because when they passed through the living room, the hands of the magical clock representing the two young men also pointed to the location of 'home'.

Ron's joke was clearly not the first time he'd made one at home, because Charlie and Bill both just pursed their lips, looking somewhat helpless, but their expressions quickly returned to normal.

"How are you, Harry?"

The one closer to Harry grinned, extending a large hand. Harry shook it, feeling calluses and blisters on his fingers. This must be Charlie, who was researching dragons in Romania.

Charlie was about the same size as the twins, a bit fatter and more robust than the bean sprouts Percy and Ron. He had a broad, good-natured face, weathered and covered with a dense freckle, making it almost brownish-black. His arms were muscular, with a large, shiny burn scar on one arm.

Bill shook hands with Harry. Bill's demeanor surprised Harry somewhat. Harry knew he worked at Gringotts and had been the school's student council president. Harry had always thought Bill was a carbon copy of Percy, only a few years older, and equally prone to making a fuss about breaking school rules and bossing everyone around him around.

Looking at him today, it's completely different. Bill looks... well, really cool. He's the tallest of the group, with long hair tied in a ponytail, and an earring with a small fan-like thing hanging from it. Bill's outfit wouldn't look out of place even at a rock concert.

To be honest, it's impossible not to be curious.

Harry had never interacted with Charlie or Bill, and his most vivid impression of them was undoubtedly the stories he heard from Hagrid when Professor Blaine was still an investigator.

He couldn't accept Bill and Charlie as wizards in the same year as Professor Blaine.

Although Charlie and Bill were Ron's two oldest brothers and were already adults and working, they still had the kind of youthful spirit that Harry could understand. Professor Blaine would simply place them next to Professor Dumbledore to compare their composure, and Harry never felt it was inappropriate.

“Okay, if you’re really curious, Harry—”

Bill could tell what Harry was thinking just by looking at his expression; he was tilting his head, looking a little troubled.

“After dinner, I can tell you what it was like when Amosta went to school.”

"It's truly unbelievable--"

Sirius had obviously already heard Bill's story. Thinking about Amosta Blaine's temper today, he frowned and said...

"He actually endured five years of humiliation in Slytherin before revealing his true abilities. If it were today, and those pure-blood wizarding families clinging to old traditions dared to cause him trouble, he would definitely burn down their houses, shops, and workshops overnight."

“That’s not necessarily true—” Remus chuckled, “If you have enough gold, he’s still willing to talk to you.”

"That's true!"

Sirius recalled the conversation he had at Black's old house the night he was caught by Amostall, and couldn't help but laugh.

Although he now has Sirius Black, Harry still harbors special feelings for Professor Blaine. These feelings are hard to describe, but they are more like a shared experience. Moreover, Professor Blaine, a powerful and unique wizard, is just like Professor Dumbledore, and he easily gains the admiration of others.

Harry was eager to hear from Bill and Charlie about what Professor Blaine was like when he was still at Hogwarts, but he was still carrying Hedwig's cage and his suitcase was still floating. After exchanging a few pleasantries with Bill and Charlie, who upheld the Weasley family's good nature, he went with Ron and Hermione to Ron's room to put the suitcase away.

They had just reached the first corner of the stairs when a loud bang came from a room upstairs, nearly causing Harry to fall down the stairs.

Harry looked at Ron and Hermione, who seemed perfectly normal, and blinked in confusion. Before he could ask why, a door on the second-floor platform suddenly opened, and a face with horn-rimmed eyes poked out, looking very impatient.

So Harry stopped asking questions and greeted the man.

"Hello, Percy--"

"Oh, hello, Harry!" Percy wasn't surprised or pleased by Harry's appearance; he was still glaring angrily at the ceiling.

"I don't understand who made such a loud noise. You know, I'm working here—I'm writing a report for the office—but there's always some kind of accident upstairs, and people are constantly running around on the stairs. It's making it hard for me to concentrate!"

"We didn't run around wildly!"

Ron said irritably, "We were just walking normally. If we disturbed the Ministry of Magic's top secrets, then I'm sorry!"

Another sudden loud noise rang out. Percy abandoned Harry and rushed upstairs, pounding on the door menacingly. Ron rolled his eyes, picked up his feet again, and led Harry upstairs.

Ron's room was much the same as Harry's last visit, still plastered with posters of Ron's favorite Quidditch team—the Chadwick Cannons. The fish tank on the windowsill, which used to hold frog eggs, now held frogs about the same size as Neville's Rafer. Ron's old, worn-out mouse, Scabbers, was gone, replaced by the little grey owl who had delivered Harry's letter to Privet Drive. Perhaps seeing Hedwig circling in the sky outside, the little pig seemed quite excited, clanging and rattling against its cage.

“Fred and George are sleeping with us tonight because Bill and Charlie have taken their rooms,” Ron said after he and Harry had shoved the alley under the bed.

Percy insisted on having a room all by himself because he needed to work.

"What's going on with Fred and George?" Harry sat on the edge of the bed, panting. "Was that the commotion they were making?"

"They haven't stopped all summer, and nobody knows what they're up to."

Harry told Ron and Hermione what had happened when he left the Dursleys. Ron and Hermione had completely different opinions about his actions in helping the Dursleys out of trouble.

"You're wasting your time, Harry—"

Ron pulled a packet of crackers from the bedside table, opened it, and gave some to Harry and Hermione. He munched on them, looking at Harry with some dissatisfaction. "You shouldn't have stopped Sirius, Harry. You should have let those Muggles experience what it's like to be locked in a cupboard. That way they'll really learn their lesson."

"And then let Sirius return to Azkaban for a while?"

Hermione said in a mocking tone,

"Don't forget, Ron, the Ministry of Magic will not let any wizard who tortures Muggles with magic get away with it."

“That’s hard to say—” Ron retorted, “Look at Malfoy’s father and Snape, they’re getting away with it!”

"If you insist on turning Sirius into a wizard like Lucius Malfoy, then I have nothing to say."

Harry was used to Hermione and Ron bickering, and he was quite adept at getting them to stop arguing. He was about to tell them about how his scar had started hurting during the summer holidays when Ginny suddenly pushed open the door.

"Hello, Harry, happy birthday--"

Ginny is Ron's younger sister, and she has been a huge fan of Harry ever since Harry first visited the Burrow.

"Oh, thank you--"

Harry got out of bed and smiled at Ginny.

Seeing his sister's flushed cheeks, Ron shrugged, crumpled the bag of crackers into a ball, threw it out the window, clapped his hands, and said...

"Let's go, maybe we can go down and help them. I just saw Sirius and the others setting up your birthday dinner in the yard!"

Chapter 453 The Trouble with Twins

2023-08-31

"There's no way around it. The World Cup final is just around the corner, and to ensure everything goes smoothly on match day, the department has sent a lot of people over, which means a lot of work is simply left unattended. Before coming back, I even had a huge argument with the goblins on behalf of Dirk, so—" With one minute to go before seven o'clock, Mr. Weasley finally arrived home, panting. He hurriedly loosened his tie, gave Harry a quick hug, and smiled.

"How was the journey, Harry? Did it go smoothly? Did any Muggles cause you any trouble?"

“No, Mr. Weasley, you know, Muggles are just waiting for me to leave,” Harry said.

“Don’t say that, Harry—” Although exhausted, Mr. Weasley still mustered his spirits. “I know there have been some misunderstandings between you, but you are family, aren’t you? I believe that deep down, you still love each other.”

Harry, not wanting to correct Mr. Weasley's absurd opinion, hastily joined the waiter's team.

Ron's house wasn't big enough for thirteen people to sit down for dinner, so the meal was held in the courtyard.

The night sky over Autry St. Catchpoll is quite different from that of Hogwarts and London. It is neither the dazzling, colorful sky of Hogwarts nor the murky black sky of London, but a clear, deep blue.

On the two tables that had been joined together, there was a mountain of meat, ham, pies, and salad, as well as a huge cake almost as tall as a house-elf. This was Sirius Black's masterpiece, which he had specially ordered from Diagon Alley. The cake was decorated with a miniature Harry riding a Firebolt and chasing the Golden Snitch, with the number '14' written in red icing on the back of his jersey. Of course, this was how the cake looked when it was first served; now it was completely unrecognizable.

Harry leaned back in his chair, enjoying the breeze and smiling lazily, feeling utterly content.

This was the second half of the dinner party, and everyone was now free to do as they pleased. Hermione and Ginny ran off to feed Crookshanks, Remus was chatting with Bill and Charlie about England's disastrous performance in the Quidditch World Cup this year, Percy was excitedly telling his parents about the importance he received in the department, Mr. Weasley smiled silently, while Mrs. Weasley looked on with pride.

"Well then, ladies and gentlemen—"

Fred and George exchanged a glance, then stood up simultaneously, took two steps back from the table, and stood on the grass, bowing pretentiously to everyone.

"Please allow us to take our leave now—"

"Our great cause awaits us!"

"What exactly are you doing in the room?"

Ron pulled his head back from Cake Harry's crotch, wiped the cream and jam off his face, and asked, puzzled,

"No peace and quiet all summer long?"

“None of your business, you silly boy,” Fred said.

"Focus on your food, little Ronnie!"

George added another sentence, and then the two left arm in arm.

"Oh, it's already so late?"

Percy glanced at his watch and exclaimed in surprise.

“I need to hurry back to my room to finish my report. Although Mr. Crouch has given me quite a bit of time, I certainly can’t wait until the last day to hand it in to him, can I?”

Harry watched Percy rush into the house, his gaze catching Sirius looking at him. He then looked over at Sirius.

What exactly is Percy writing in his report?

"It's supposedly related to the cauldron—" Sirius smiled, glanced at the Weasleys, and then waved to Harry.

Harry immediately understood that Sirius had something important to say. He followed Sirius to the Weasleys' broom shed, but before he could ask Sirius why his expression had become serious, he suddenly heard footsteps approaching. He turned around and saw Remus.

"What's wrong?" Harry blinked, puzzled.

“We’d like to talk to you about your scars, Harry,” Remus said, noticing a hint of surprise in Harry’s eyes. He nodded.

“Yes, Sirius told me everything, but what exactly happened, Harry? I know your scar is an unusual one; it doesn't react often, does it?”

"Uh, the scar, yes, it suddenly hurt for a moment--"

The sudden shift from a cheerful and harmonious birthday party to such a serious topic caught Harry off guard. He stammered, quickly gathering his thoughts.

Yes, it doesn't hurt often--

Harry touched the lightning bolt-shaped mark on his forehead with his fingertips, and his speech became much smoother. He glanced at his godfather and Remus, who was also his father's close friend, and said quickly,