The Return to Hogwarts

At the mention of the powerful witch and the shadowy figure, Harry immediately wanted to say something, but Amosta raised her hand to stop him. Her gaze swept around the room, and Amosta calmly said,

"This isn't a good place to chat, let's find somewhere else."

“Let’s go to our tent, it’s just outside the woods—” Sirius nodded.

"I need to find someone in the department, Sirius—"

Although he was incredibly curious about what was about to be discussed, Mr. Weasley hesitated for a moment before suggesting that he leave. For the Ministry of Magic, tonight's disaster had only just begun—rescue, investigation, compensation, and mitigation of the impact would keep the Ministry busy until Christmas.

"Let's go, I bet it won't be long before the Ministry of Magic comes after me—"

Amosta strode forward, and as he passed, the crowd parted automatically, people stepping aside to look at him with awe, but no one dared to approach him and speak to him.

"Thank you for earlier, Krum!"

Hermione nodded gratefully to Krum, then hurried off to catch up with the group, leaving Krum standing there for a long time, staring at the departing figures with a sense of loss.

The spectators' camp looked like a post-apocalyptic wasteland.

Although the commotion at the arena had subsided, it did not mean that it was safe. Everywhere, people were frantically packing their belongings and fleeing. Some Ministry of Magic staff scattered around were trying to maintain order, but it was of little use.

One unfortunate fellow panicked and his Apparition spell failed, splitting his body in two. One leg landed dozens of feet away from his torso, and he was unable to move either side. He lay on the ground groaning pitifully until a Ministry of Magic employee rushed over and restored his body.

Seeing this, Sirius and his group looked grave. No one knew how many people had been injured or lost their lives in tonight's riots.

A group of people filed into the tent, and Sirius led them to the back garden. Only after Amosta sat down did they take their seats in turn. The atmosphere was somber; although they had just witnessed a duel that would go down in history, no one was elated.

Boom--

Amosta placed the grapevine wand on the table in front of him. The uniquely shaped wand immediately drew awe-inspiring glances from the crowd. Although the mysterious witch had been defeated by Amosta that night, the oppressive aura she exuded was still unparalleled.

"Where's Remus? Isn't he with you?"

Amosta rubbed his temples wearily. In the head-on confrontation, where he had suppressed Vitia Kriona, Amosta had also given it his all.

"Before Arthur arrived to help us, he saw Remus kill a cloaked wizard. Remus was seriously injured, and Arthur had his colleagues take him to St. Mungo's."

The thought that Remus, who had just been discharged from St. Mungo's, had been admitted to the hospital again casts a shadow of gloom in Sirius's eyes.

Amosta nodded, removing his hand from his brow. Noticing Harry's eager gaze, he nodded and smiled at him.

"Is there anything you want to tell me, Harry?"

"Professor Blaine!"

As Professor Blaine began to speak, the stagnant air finally lifted, and Harry slammed his chair to his feet, slamming his hands on the table as he eagerly began to speak.

"Who is that witch who tried to take me away? Do you know her?"

Needless to say, this is the most intriguing question right now. Judging from the conversation between Professor Blaine and the witch during their previous confrontation, they definitely know each other, without a doubt.

“This is a rather complicated issue—” Amosta chuckled self-deprecatingly.

"Knowing the witch's identity is meaningless to you. All I can tell you is that I have a grudge against her and have been tracking her whereabouts. I never expected that she would show up here today."

"I saw her in my dream, Professor, that witch, she was with Voldemort!"

Harry's words immediately caused a collective gasp in the garden. Apart from Sirius, Hermione, and Ron, the Weasley children were all incredibly surprised to hear Harry mention the name of the mysterious man.

"Dream?"

Amosta frowned slightly.

"Remember the letter Harry wrote to me before, Amosta? Back then, we had just returned from our adventure—"

Sirius Black, with a solemn expression, explained the situation to Amosta in as simple a language as possible, then stared intently into Harry's eyes.

"Are you sure you haven't mistaken me for someone else, Harry?"

"I swear!"

Harry said urgently, "That witch and Voldemort are in an old house, they're discussing something... oh no, they want to capture me—"

It wasn't until tonight that Harry remembered some of the things in his dream.

Hermione covered her mouth, her eyes filled with worry, while Ron and his siblings all looked bewildered.

Professor Blaine's calm expression eased some of his anxiety. After swallowing, he said, panting,

"There's an old man in the old house, he looks like a Muggle. He was probably killed by Voldemort. Oh, Bertha Jorkins, Voldemort seems to have killed her too!"

Chapter 479 Sleepless Night

2023-09-14

"Bertha Jorkins?!"

Sirius, Hermione, Ron, and the others all gasped in surprise. This morning, when they were climbing Weasley's Mountain, Mr. Weasley had mentioned that she used to work for Barty Crouch and was now working for Ludo Bagman. A month ago, she went on vacation to Albania and hadn't been heard from since.

Harry's affirmative look dispelled Sirius's doubts. He turned to Amos Tower, hoping for an explanation, but then thought that Amos Tower couldn't possibly know everything. How could he know how Bertha Jorkins met Voldemort and how Voldemort killed her?

But in fact, Amosta was aware of this.

"You saw Voldemort and Cleopatra's conversation in your dream."

Amosta lowered his head and gently rubbed his temples again. After a brief moment of thought, he had a guess in his mind.

Harry was an accidentally created Horcrux by Voldemort, and a fragment of Voldemort's soul resides within him. Moreover, Harry may be the only living person among all of Voldemort's Horcruxes. This mysterious magical connection allows Harry to potentially glimpse Voldemort's thoughts.

Having thought this through, Amosta stopped what he was doing. He glanced at Harry's eyes without making a sound, and only looked away after confirming that the light in Harry's green eyes was still pure.

Since Amosta was unwilling to reveal how he met the mysterious witch or what grudge they had, and no one could force him to speak, Sirius hesitated for a moment before asking another question on behalf of the others.

"The last dark figure to appear, Amosta—" Sirius said gravely, "was he Voldemort?"

People did not see Voldemort's true form tonight; all they saw was a dark shadow and an ugly freak. Apart from Sirius Black and Harry, who knew some details, no wizards outside would associate that thing with the infamous Voldemort.

"Why do you think so?"

Amosta's eyebrows twitched, and she smiled as she looked at Sirius.

"Isn't this obvious?"

Sirius said calmly,

"Harry dreamt that this witch was in league with Voldemort, and that she was here tonight to kidnap him. If it weren't for Voldemort's orders, I can't understand how Harry could have provoked such a powerful witch."

Sirius's voice was filled with worry, as if he had been thinking about something.

"That dark tyrant has always been adept at manipulating people. More than a decade ago, he used this skill to gather a large group of followers. Now, he has found himself a powerful accomplice—"

Amosta smiled noncommittally.

"Even if it's Voldemort, it's no big deal. We have Dumbledore, he'll find a way."

“Yes, Dumbledore is indeed the wizard Voldemort fears most, but you are equally important, Amosta. Without you, I'm afraid Dumbledore wouldn't have been able to deal with two powerful dark wizards at the same time.”

Sirius's sincere words made the young wizards nod wildly in unison.

“Heh, thank you for your trust, Sirius—” Amostella smiled gently, “but dealing with a dark lord like Voldemort isn’t something one or two people can do; it requires a large group working together—”

“A wise view, Amosta--”

An aged voice suddenly descended upon the private room. Amostah looked up at the sky and saw a silver phoenix guardian with azure eyes passing through the illusory sky and suddenly landing on the dining table in front of everyone.

"Professor Dumbledore!"

Harry's incredulous exclamation was filled with surprise.

“Good evening, Harry—” the silver phoenix nodded to Harry. “I’m so glad to see everyone here safe and sound.”

"So you already know what happened here, Headmaster Dumbledore?"

When the silver phoenix's azure eyes were fixed on him, Amostella gazed at Dumbledore's shadow within the Patronus and asked.

"Yes--"

Dumbledore's voice was extremely solemn.

"I was enjoying some new Honeydew Candy in my office when Cornelius sent someone to Hogwarts to find me, hoping I would come to the Ministry of Magic immediately. In his office, Cornelius explained everything to me, and of course, I also received the news from other sources."

"If you don't mind, Amosta, I'd like you to come to the Ministry of Magic immediately. Oh, and this is also Cornelius's invitation. As I see it, after you've fully demonstrated your abilities in resolving tonight's terrible crisis, he probably won't dare see you alone—"

Amostella nodded, stood up from the stool, put away Vitia's cane, and then looked at Sirius.

“It’s getting late. You can stay here at the camp tonight and rest. Tomorrow morning, you can take these children back to Saint Kachipol Village.”

Sirius nodded slightly. He watched Amostella stride away to deal with the troubles of the night, and for some reason, a hint of disappointment and envy flickered in his eyes.

"Wait, Amosta—"

Sirius suddenly cried out, and Amosta stopped and turned to look back.

"Once you've resolved your problem, if you have time, I'd like to talk to you privately."

Amosta raised an eyebrow, and Harry also cast a surprised glance at his godfather.

“I understand—” Amosta nodded and turned to leave again.

Goodnight, everyone.

The silver phoenix winked at Harry and his friends. Although it was just a bird, Harry felt as if he saw Professor Dumbledore giving them a kind smile.

See you when school starts!

After saying this, Dumbledore's phoenix guardian spirits suddenly dispersed, transforming into a sky full of dreamlike stars, enveloping a group of lost and bewildered people.