The Return to Hogwarts

"Where are Potter and Weasley? Don't tell me they're still in the water!"

In the foyer, the young wizards, pulled from the water, obediently lowered their heads and endured the lecture. But when Professor McGonagall's sharp eyes swept across everyone's faces and she didn't see Harry and Ron, whom she believed were definitely involved in this dangerous game, her heart skipped a beat.

"Oh, we're here, Professor McGonagall!"

Harry and Ron, who were watching the commotion from the stairs leading to the second floor with their classmates, raised their hands, Ron said.

"Oh, you didn't go down?"

Professor McGonagall looked at Harry and Ron, whose clothes were dry, with great surprise, then nodded approvingly.

“Very wise, gentlemen. It seems you have finally realized that your behavior should be in accordance with your age. On the contrary, Mr. Longbottom!”

Professor McGonagall glared at Neville, who was smiling indifferently, with a look of utter anguish.

“Where is your humility and prudence, Mr. Longbottom? Oh, and about what happened today, I will write to your grandmother, your father and mother, and you, Fred and George, if you wish, your father and mother will come to Hogwarts in person to take you home!”

"That's pure prejudice--"

Ron, shrugging, said to Harry as he joined the crowd of onlookers who had been ushered upstairs by Professor McGonagall.

"She thought we must have gone into the water too!"

"Oh, in fact, you do have that plan, don't you, Ron?"

Hermione giggled a few times.

"You were able to escape punishment because you promised to accompany me to practice spells tonight."

With the third game of the championship series approaching, the Warriors have begun making preparations in advance.

Although there is no news about the competition so far, this competition is ultimately a test of the warriors' courage and skills, and their ability to solve problems with magic.

So, since late May, Harry and Ron have been helping Hermione with her practice whenever they have a spare moment.

It wasn't until 9 p.m. that they left the abandoned classroom and returned to the Gryffindor common room. Without using the Invisibility Cloak, Hermione used her newly acquired Disillusionment Charm to help them evade Mrs. Norris's pursuit.

After they passed through the doorway behind the Fat Lady and entered the common room, the celebratory dinner was still going on, celebrating the heroic feats of the Gryffindors who had bravely taken to the water earlier that evening. Neville was standing on a table, boasting to Dean that if Professor McGonagall hadn't called him up, he would have swum into the Black Lake to meet those ugly mermaids!

Ron was dragged away by Ravendra in the blink of an eye, and Harry knew he wouldn't be back anytime soon. When he did return, he might have a few more 'wounds' on his neck.

Turning his head, Harry found Hermione looking at him, her clear eyes shining brightly in the steady candlelight.

"Want to talk, Harry?"

Harry's eyelids twitched slightly. He immediately realized that Hermione had noticed the hidden worry that had been lurking in his heart ever since Percy visited Professor Blaine's office. She must have sensed that something was wrong with him, but it was hard to say exactly how much she had guessed.

Based on Harry's understanding of Hermione, she would only contact him if she had a pretty good idea of ​​what was going on.

"Oh, maybe next time, Hermione--"

This trouble was unusual; he harbored murderous intent towards Percy and Professor Blaine, an intense intent that nearly drove him to action. He never understood what had gotten into him, or perhaps he simply didn't want to face the answer that terrified him.

"I'm a little tired today."

After saying this, he bid farewell to Hermione and turned to walk towards the spiral staircase of the boys' dormitory.

After a quick wash, Harry jumped into his four-poster bed, and now he was all alone in the dimly lit dormitory.

The quiet dormitory did not make him feel lonely at all; on the contrary, it gave him a sense of security. He was afraid that he would suddenly lose control and attack his roommates with whom he spent every day.

After the rain, the height of summer suddenly arrived.

Harry, who was suddenly awakened from his sleep, could hear the noisy chirping of cicadas coming from the Forbidden Forest through the open window of his dormitory. He propped himself up in the dark, rubbed his hands on the headboard for a while, and then put on his glasses.

By the bright moonlight, Harry saw that everyone had returned to their dormitory. Neville and Ron were fast asleep in bed. He glanced at the gold watch that Professor Blaine had given him, which was placed on the headboard. The hour hand was pointing to '12'.

Harry himself didn't know why, but he started getting dressed—a sweater, pants, socks, shoes, and then quietly pulled his Invisibility Cloak out of his backpack.

When Harry went down to the common room, the moonlit room had been tidied up. Harry was certain he had seen a dark figure flash by the fireplace with wisps of smoke rising from it. The figure was definitely not that of a wizard; it could only be an elf.

"More than?"

Harry asked in a low voice, but the little guy hidden behind the curtains only trembled a few times and did not come out.

It doesn't seem to be Dobby—Harry thought to himself, putting on his Invisibility Cloak before leaving the common room.

The fat lady grumbled angrily behind him, but Harry ignored her and hurried down the spiral staircase of the tower, his rapid footsteps echoing through the empty castle.

call!

On the third-floor platform, Harry took a few breaths, then turned and walked towards the moonlit corridor on the ground.

The midnight wind made Harry's thoughts clearer, and as he got closer to the office, his heart started racing uncontrollably.

But besides Professor Blaine, who else at Hogwarts could answer his questions?

Oh, of course, Professor Dumbledore must also know that to this day, people still believe that the wizard Voldemort feared most was Professor Dumbledore.

Although Harry fully trusted Professor Dumbledore, knocking on the headmaster's office door in the middle of the night to question him about his scars and the strange things about him was a severe test of his courage.

But when Harry finally arrived at Professor Blaine's office, he let out a disappointed sigh.

No light shone through the crack in the door; it seemed Professor Blaine was asleep.

This is unusual. Harry knows Professor Blaine is a night owl; he usually doesn't go to sleep until the early hours of the morning.

He lingered in front of Professor Blaine's door for a while, hoping that Professor Blaine would get up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night and accidentally find him, but unfortunately, after waiting for half an hour, the office remained quiet and there was no sound.

A sigh faded into the ancient stone corridor, and Harry reluctantly admitted that his plans for the night had fallen through.

As Harry passed through the corridor again, a casual glance revealed that the light was still on in the small tower where Professor Dumbledore's office was located; he seemed to be awake. Just as he was hesitating whether to try his luck at Professor Dumbledore's place and see if he might find anything unexpected—

Click!

In a corner of the Forbidden Forest, a golden bolt of lightning suddenly struck down from the cloudless night sky. The immense pressure that came with the gale made Harry tremble with fear, and the space in his vision became hazy!

The next second, a towering golden sea of ​​fire surged from the dark horizon into the sky, like a canopy covering a large part of the Forbidden Forest. The blinding light even made Harry mistakenly think that the sun had risen.

I'll only say it once!

A high-pitched, icy voice then rang out, enveloping the Forbidden Forest, Hogwarts, and even Hogsmeade.

"Submit or be destroyed, you have only these two choices!"

boom!

In an instant, Hogwarts erupted in excitement.

Chapter 1012 Panic

2024-07-04

In the distance, Hogsmeade, and so close at hand, Hogwarts, after that cold, chilling voice, the lights in the rooms lit up one after another like stars.

Harry could feel the floor beneath his feet vibrating.

This was not caused by an explosion, but rather by hundreds or thousands of young wizards and faculty members rushing downstairs from their comfortable beds.

It's Professor Blaine!

There was no doubt about it. Whether it was the magnificent golden sea of ​​fire or the chilling voice that sent shivers down one's spine, it was enough for Harry to recognize who had made such a commotion in the Forbidden Forest!

But how could this be?!

Harry's heart pounded along with the raging sea of ​​fire floating in the sky.

He had never seen Professor Blaine so angry that he forgot to control his temper and even alarmed Hogwarts and Hogsmeade.

Whoops!

A fierce gust of wind howled, and the sea of ​​fire in Harry's sight vanished without warning. However, its surging heat evaporated all the rainwater that had accumulated in the Forbidden Forest, forming a sunset-colored fiery cloud above the lush primeval forest.

The scorching heat carried by the wind even made Harry, who was lying on the veranda, squint.

The roaring noises from upstairs grew louder and louder. Harry knew that his classmates had gotten dressed and rushed out of the common room to find out what was going on. He could even hear Filch's frantic shouts!

Harry knew it was time to get moving!

He ripped off his invisibility cloak—with so many students already out of bed, he had nothing left to hide.

Then, he ran to the end of the corridor at the fastest speed he had ever run, and with two big strides he jumped to the transfer platform between the third and second floors, sweeping across the second-floor platform like the wind.

The moment Harry stepped into the foyer, he was eager to rush out of the castle, but the three people standing in front of the majestic bronze doors made him stop in his tracks, his expression filled with horror!

"Ah, I knew you'd be the fastest, Harry!"

Hearing the commotion, Sirius turned to look at Harry, who was jumping down the steps, and gave him a mocking smile.

"Sirius, what's wrong with you—"

Before Harry could even express his joy, Professor Dumbledore's stealthy, calm gaze, clad in his purple nightgown, left Harry speechless.

"Oh, Professor Dumbledore. I, um... just got up to use the restroom, so... I was a little hasty."

"yes--"

Professor Dumbledore remained unmoved.

"The truth is obviously so--"

Then Dumbledore turned his head away, ignoring Harry. However, the sneer from an old man about the same height as Dumbledore, with the same white beard and blue eyes, left Harry, whose face was flushed, confused.

"That's Aberforth Dumbledore."

Sirius Black walked over with a smile and put his arm around Harry's shoulder.