The Return to Hogwarts

"I'm here to buy someone a competition instruction manual. Look, it's over there—"

Night had fallen, but dazzling fireworks continued to burst into the sky above the jungle. Harry felt a growing urgency; he needed to hurry back to the tent to call Sirius and Remus so they could go see the Quidditch match. Hermione was negotiating prices with a vendor, while Harry pressed his newly acquired panoramic binoculars to his eye socket and gazed intently toward the jungle.

Amidst the lively commotion around him, Harry, who was watching the fireworks, suddenly changed his expression. Just moments before, a chill had run down his spine, and a feeling of being spied on surged into his heart.

Harry instinctively lowered his binoculars and looked around blankly. With the talent of an excellent Seeker, he found the source of the spying sensation in the surging crowd in almost no time.

About two hundred feet to his right, there was a woman. Because of the distance, Harry couldn't see the woman's face, but the moment he saw the woman in the beige dress, a strange sense of familiarity suddenly welled up in his heart.

Who is it?

Harry blinked, trying to make out the woman's face, then realized he was holding a pair of binoculars. He quickly raised the binoculars again and looked in that direction, but in the second or two of his gaze shifting away, the woman was already gone.

"What's going on, Harry?"

Hermione returned with three copies of the competition instructions, and she glanced a few times in the direction Harry was looking.

Have you seen any of your classmates from Hogwarts?

"Do not--"

Harry's expression was a mix of confusion and seriousness. "Hmm, maybe." She seemed somewhat familiar, but I couldn't make out her face.

"Never mind that, Harry."

Ron tugged at Harry's sleeve and said excitedly,

"I saw Dad and the others come out of the tent. Let's hurry, they're probably about to go in!"

This book is finally a masterpiece! Thank you to all my readers for your continued support and companionship!

Now that the book is in its second half, writing it is becoming increasingly difficult. I will try my best to control the plot and ensure that the story is logically coherent. The whole book will probably be completed in about 200 million words.

(I'm still a few dozen monthly votes away from 1000, please give me some votes)

Chapter 466 Shining

2023-09-08

The woman who flashed through his field of vision remained in Harry's mind. On the way to the arena, Harry remained silent, but kept thinking about where he had seen that familiar woman before. He felt as if there was a thin barrier in his head, separating him from the truth.

Mr. Weasley led them through the woods for twenty minutes, and finally, they emerged from the other side of the woods. Only when they saw the magnificent building in front of them did Harry finally put aside his thoughts about the woman.

Looking up, Harry realized they were in the shadow of a massive stadium. The stadium was ridiculously large; even with his eyesight strained, Harry could only make out a portion of the magnificent golden walls surrounding the stadium, but he could still tell that the space inside could easily fit ten cathedrals.

Apart from Mr. Weasley, everyone unconsciously opened their mouths and looked at the magnificent building in front of them with great respect.

"It can accommodate 100,000 spectators." Mr. Weasley seemed quite pleased with the astonished expressions on their faces, and he said with a smile, "Hundreds of employees at the Ministry of Magic have been working on this for over half a year!"

"Amazing!" Sirius exclaimed sincerely. "The British Ministry of Magic is going to make a name for itself on the international stage this time, Arthur!"

Sirius's praise brought a smile to Mr. Weasley's face. Although he was not highly regarded in the Ministry, Mr. Weasley still had a deep affection for the Ministry of Magic, where he had worked for most of his life. He walked proudly ahead, greeting every Ministry official he knew, and led Harry and the others toward the ticket gate.

"First class tickets!" the Ministry of Magic witch at the entrance said, glancing at their tickets. "The penthouse! Keep going upstairs, Arthur, to the very top!"

Even Harry and Hermione, who had been working hard in PE class, were panting heavily when they finally reached the top. The location here was really as high as a mountain. Looking down, the waves of wizards entering the venue to take their seats looked as small as a swarm of migrating ants.

At that moment, even Sirius felt a little grateful to Ludo.

Their seats were in a small VIP box, with the stands facing the golden goalposts – the best viewing spot, one that money can't buy.

There were quite a few of them, so to avoid blocking the way, Mr. Weasley urged the children to hurry to their seats in the box. The box was already occupied by several people, who were undoubtedly dignitaries from the Ministry of Magic or the wizarding world. Mr. Weasley kept shaking hands with them and introducing them to Percy.

"Where's Remus? He was behind me just now?"

Harry walked behind Sirius Black, and as he was about to enter the box, he suddenly realized that Remus, who had been with them earlier, had disappeared. After looking around but not finding him, Harry grabbed Sirius Black's sleeve and raised his voice as loud as he could to drown out the roar of the crowd in the arena.

Oh, I forgot to tell you!

Sirius turned to look at Harry, his expression complex.

"Remus can't sit with us; there are too many wizards on these occasions. The Ministry of Magic is trying to ensure everything goes smoothly!"

Harry's mind raced for a moment before he understood what Sirius was talking about. He was indignant but didn't know how to protect Remus. Only now did he realize how difficult it was for his father's other friend to survive in the wizarding world and understand why Remus had invested in Fred and George.

With a gloomy mood, Harry entered the box. He glanced at Mr. Weasley, who was busy talking to someone, and gave up his plan to protest to him. His gaze swept over Hermione and Ron. Hermione was chatting with Ginny, while Ron, Fred, and George had their eyes on the scoreboard. So, Harry also gave up his plan to join Hermione and Ron in protesting against the Ministry of Magic.

Harry's gaze swept across the somewhat dimly lit box, and he suddenly noticed a strangely small creature sitting in the last row. Its legs were so short they stretched out onto the chair in front of it. It wore a loose robe, and its face was buried in its hands. But those long, bat-like ears looked so familiar to Harry—exactly like those of a house-elf he had known before!

"Dobby?" Harry exclaimed in disbelief.

Hearing the noise, the elf finally released its face from his hands, and Harry immediately realized he had mistaken the person for someone else.

"Oh, sorry--"

Harry nodded apologetically. "I mistook you for Dobby. Well, he's a house-elf too."

"But I know Dobby too, sir!"

The little elf shrieked, still not lowering its hand completely, as if the light in front of it was too bright and would hurt its eyes.

"My name is Shining, sir—sir—"

When the little elf named Sparkle's gaze fell on Harry's forehead, her eyes, so different from Dobby's, immediately widened.

"You must be Harry Potter!"

Harry had faced this situation countless times throughout the day, and he calmly nodded.

"Hi, Sparkle, do you know Dobby? Oh, have you worked together before?"

"Bright Flash is at Mr. Barty Crouch's service!"

Speaking of her master, the house-elf named Sparkle looked on with reverence, but then she added, "And Dobby... to be disrespectful to you, sir, it probably won't do Dobby any good by freeing him."

"Why?" Harry asked in surprise. "What's wrong with it?"

“Dobby’s head is always thinking about freedom, sir,” Sparkle said sadly. “It’s all unrealistic ideas, sir. He can’t find a job. Nobody will work for an elf who asks for pay and holidays, sir!”

Harry glanced instinctively at Hermione by the railing, then looked away, frowning as he spoke.

"What, do house-elves not get paid or get holidays for their jobs?"

“Of course not, sir!” Sparkle said earnestly. “All house-elves belong to their masters, and we must unconditionally obey their commands, just like Sparkle, Mr. Harry Potter—” Sparkle opened his hand covering his face a crack, glanced at the edge of the box, and then gasped. “I have a fear of heights, but my master sent me to the top-floor box, so I came, sir—”

Barty Crouch?

Harry then remembered that he was Percy's superior, and moreover, the same high-ranking Ministry of Magic official who had ordered Sirius Black to be thrown into Azkaban fourteen years ago.

"He knew you had a fear of heights, so why did he send you here?"

Although he had never met Barty Crouch, Harry was certain he wouldn't like the man, and he frowned as he questioned him.

“Master—Master wants me to save him a seat, Mr. Harry Potter, he’s too busy.”

Sparkle turned her head and glanced at the seats next to her. "Sparkle really wishes she could go back to her master's tent, Harry Potter, but Sparkle obeys orders. Sparkle is a very good house-elf."

She glanced fearfully at the edge of the private room and quickly covered her eyes completely.

Harry wanted to ask Dobby about his current situation, but then another group of people suddenly entered the box, led by Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge.

Fudge's arrival was like a large stone thrown into a rippled pond, instantly enlivening the box. One after another, the socialites who had been talking to Mr. Weasley rose and fawned over Fudge. With Mr. Weasley's help, Percy also came to Fudge, but he bent too low while bowing and accidentally smashed his eye on the floor.

Sparkle seemed quite intimidated by this important figure among the wizards. It turned to the side and lay on the armrest of the seat it had reserved for Mr. Barty Crouch, not daring to look at him.

"Hehehe, Harry, I didn't expect to see you here!"

Politicians always have a keen eye. Fudge's gaze pierced through the heads of the people in front of him and found Harry at the back of the box. He waved to Harry and greeted him warmly.

In this situation, it was inconvenient for Harry to talk to Gilgamesh. He walked from the back of the box to the front, where Fudge warmly took his hand and introduced him to the foreign wizard who came in with Fudge, who was wearing a magnificent black velvet robe with gold trim.

Harry hadn't expected that someone like the Bulgarian Minister of Magic would be as curious about his scar as the foreign wizards he'd met that morning. The minister immediately pointed at Harry's forehead, his expression excited, and rattled off a bunch of things that no one could understand.

He finally understood something—

Fudge said wearily to Harry, “We don’t speak the language, and I’ve been gesturing all night. This kind of thing should be left to Barty. Ah, I saw his house-elf stand up for him. How thoughtful! Those Bulgarians always want the best seats. Ah--”

Although Fudge was facing Harry, he accurately sensed someone approaching from behind. He immediately changed his demeanor and greeted the newcomer in a cheerful voice.

"Lucius, you've arrived!"

Chapter 467 Grand occasion

2023-09-08

Lucius Malfoy, along with Draco (whom Harry had met that morning) and their mother, appeared at the door of the box. Sirius's expression changed slightly. He jumped over a row of chairs, walked around to Harry's side, put a hand on Harry's shoulder, and stared at the family with a cold gaze.

"Ah, Fudge--"

Malfoy stepped into the box and walked up to the Minister of Magic. "Hello, I think you haven't met my wife Narcissa yet, and our son Draco."

Fudge greeted Narcissa and Draco with a smile, then turned to Malfoy and said...

"You're quite late, Lucius. Was something holding you up?"

"Oh, you're incredibly insightful, Minister. We did encounter a bit of an unexpected situation—"

Lucius smiled slickly, but there was no hint of a smile in his cold, grey eyes. He suddenly turned his gaze to Sirius and Harry, his eyes filled with disdain.

"What's wrong?" Fudge asked with concern.

“It wasn’t me, it was Narcissa and Draco. They were frightened by a werewolf when they arrived at camp early this morning. I was very worried about their mental state after I found out about it, so I took them to St. Mungo’s for a full psychological evaluation.”

lie!