I, Hogwarts Second Time Around.

Chapter 553 Dumbledore's Plan

(This chapter has been revised)

Those who witnessed the final battle between these two extraordinary wizards described the fear and awe they felt. Dumbledore's victory, and its impact on the wizarding world, is considered a turning point in modern magical history, comparable to the enactment of the International Law of Secrecy and the downfall of Vulpert.

Albus Dumbledore was never arrogant or vain.

He always manages to find something valuable in others, no matter how down-and-out or insignificant they may appear on the surface.

I believe that his early experience of losing loved ones endowed him with great kindness and compassion.

I will miss his friendship dearly, but compared to the entire wizarding world, my personal loss is nothing.

Without a doubt, he was the most charismatic and beloved headmaster of Hogwarts.

Whether alive or dead, he always worked for a higher good, until his last breath, just like the day I first met him on the Hogwarts Express, when he kindly extended his hand to a little boy suffering from dragonpox…

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Harry finished reading, but continued to stare at the photograph next to the obituary.

Dumbledore wore that familiar, kind smile, but the gaze behind his half-moon spectacles no longer possessed the penetrating power he remembered.

He had thought he knew Dumbledore well, but after reading this obituary, he realized he knew nothing about the headmaster except for the relationship between Dumbledore and Grindelwald.

He had never imagined what Dumbledore's childhood and youth were like; it seemed that Dumbledore had suddenly become the person he knew.

Imagining Dumbledore as a child, especially during his school years, always feels strange, like imagining a Hogwarts without Owen, or him without Sirius—it's disorienting.

But apart from that, the obituary infuriated Harry because the entire article made no mention of the truth about Dumbledore's death, no mention of Voldemort, no mention of Voldemort, and not even mention of that despicable Snape.

He knew that the Ministry of Magic was now under the control of the Death Eaters and would not do anything that would backfire.

Furthermore, given the extremely terrifying rumors surrounding Voldemort, they wouldn't openly declare the Ministry of Magic's loyalty to Voldemort. They always have to wear a human skin.

But Harry just felt angry, felt it wasn't worth it; the person Dumbledore had gone to so much trouble to protect—in the end, didn't even have the courage to name the killer. It was even an implication.

"Never mind," Harry took a deep breath, his mood getting worse and worse.

He turned the page.

Then I saw something even more infuriating.

—Dumbledore—finally, the truth came out?

A shocking biography will be released next week, focusing on the flawed genius whom many consider the greatest wizard of his time. Rita Skeeter strips away the beloved image of the silver-bearded sage, revealing Dumbledore's turbulent childhood and chaotic adolescence, his lifelong enemies, and the sinful secrets he took to his grave.

Why was this man, who had a chance to become Minister of Magic, content to be just a headmaster? What was the true purpose of the secret organization known as the Order of the Phoenix? How did Dumbledore die? The answers to these and many other questions are explored in Rita Skeeter's latest explosive biography, *The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore*. Betty Braithwaite conducted an exclusive interview with the biographer, which can be found on page 13 of this newspaper.

The moment Harry saw the name Rita Skeeter, he knew she was up to something.

He patiently flipped to page thirteen. On the newspaper appeared a face that Harry recognized: a woman wearing jeweled glasses, with her blonde hair styled in elegant curls, teeth showing, flashing a smile that she clearly thought was very charming, her fingers outstretched and waving forward.

Rita Skeeter's writing is known for its sharpness, but she herself is much warmer and more approachable. In her warm and comfortable home, she greeted me in the foyer, led me directly into the kitchen, and we had tea, a slice of rich, sugary cake, and of course, a lively conversation about freshly baked bread.

"Needless to say, Dumbledore is a biographer's dream man," Skeeter said. "Such a long and rich life, and this is only the first volume. You know, Dumbledore's life was quite long and rich. The first volume will cover up to his graduation from Hogwarts, and of course, I will put together the rest as soon as possible."

"However, this is, after all, an interview—about the story that followed—a very interesting story, and I can reveal some details."

Skeeter was undoubtedly a prolific writer; she wrote a two-hundred-page biography in just one week, which was clearly a miracle.

I asked her how she managed to do it so quickly.

"Oh, if you've been a journalist for as many years as I have, rushing has become second nature. I know wizards are thirsting for a complete biography, and I wanted to be the first to satisfy that need. Of course, this is because I've been planning to write several biographies of legendary wizards in the wizarding world for a long time, and I spent several years organizing and exploring the past of my first protagonist, Dumbledore. Today's speed is just the result of my past hard work."

"I've read the obituary for Ephias Dorge; after all, it's been running in the newspapers for three days. Someone in my profession couldn't possibly have missed it. But I must say, the facts contained in his obituary are probably less than the alcohol in Butterbeer (as everyone knows, Butterbeer has practically no alcohol content). The errors are simply riddled with holes. I swear on my reputation, the truth is far more complex. I must say, Dumbledore has offended many people. Many of them were involved in his extremely turbulent youth, and it took me a great deal of effort to get them to tell the truth—these people had never spoken publicly before."

Skeeter's new biography, GG, explicitly states that those who believe Dumbledore's life was flawless will be met with intense shock. So, what is the most astonishing secret she discovered?

"Alright—stop it, Betty. I won't reveal the most exciting parts until everyone has their books!" Skeeter laughed. "But I can assure you, anyone who still thinks Dumbledore is as innocent as his beard will wake up from their dream! And those who hear his righteous indignation at the Mystic will never dream that he himself was involved in the Dark Arts in his youth! He called for tolerance in his later years, but was narrow-minded in his youth! Yes, Albus Dumbledore has a very dark past, not to mention his very questionable family, which he has tried every means to cover up."

And his relationship with Grindelwald. I believe all readers will enjoy that chapter. It contains the true truth!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Harry didn't finish reading the article because the smoke and anger in his heart were rising.

He crumpled the newspaper into a ball and threw it into the fireplace. Instantly, the flames engulfed all the lies.

"Dumbledore has only been dead for a week! And so many people are already slandering him. How could Rita Skeeter have written so much in a week? It's obviously made up."

The silence in the room was broken.

Irving looked up at him.

Then he turned to look at the newspaper that had turned to ashes in the fireplace.

"I thought you could hold your temper for a few more days," he said.

After returning that day, Harry was like a mad lion, determined to seek revenge on Voldemort no matter what.

His intense emotions forced him to use a petrification spell to "calm down" him for two days.

After that, he was like a different person, enduring the pain in his forehead every day and having no desire to speak anymore.

This is normal—because when a person is in pain, they can only feel pain. Pain constantly captures their full attention. Maintaining a rational and active mind is difficult; very few people can do it.

"Rita Skeeter couldn't possibly have written that much in a week. Even if it were just made up, it would take time. Besides, she would need to revise, typeset, publish, and so on—"

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, puzzled.

"What do you mean?" Owen shook his head. "It means she received help, she got wind of it months before the incident. Someone asked her to write a book, about Dumbledore."

"This..." Harry was momentarily speechless. "How could this be? Who would let her write these things—"

What do you think?

"I—" Harry stopped speaking, because he suddenly remembered someone. That was Dumbledore himself!

It's most likely that Dumbledore himself asked Rita Skittle to write those things; otherwise, how could she have dared to make fun of Dumbledore while he was still alive?

"You guessed it?"

"But—why?" Harry asked.

He noticed that the others didn't react much, which meant that they clearly already knew the truth.

"Why?" Owen rolled his eyes at Harry. "To buy time, you idiot, of course."

Grindelwald took the Elder Wand.

The newspapers began to expose the past events involving Dumbledore and Grindelwald again.

Voldemort would naturally be lured away by Grindelwald.

At least the Order of the Phoenix, and all of them, had more time to struggle.

"Doesn't Dumbledore care about his reputation?"

Do you think he'd care?

Harry thought for a moment, then thought, "Okay—I really don't care. I've risked my life for a plan, what do I care about fame?"

"Alright—someone will be keeping an eye on Rita Skeeter." Owen said, glancing at Hermione.

"Let's get down to business now."

The fire dried the damp floor, revealing a thick carpet of dragon skin. This was a luxury carpet made by sewing blankets and dragon skin together, known for its durability, fire resistance, and ability to ward off curses.

Everyone looked at Irving; he was now the leader here, and everyone had developed a habit of relying on him.

Irving looked away. "Moody wants us to find a new safe house. A safe house that can accommodate the Order of the Phoenix, the Federation's special operations team, and other resistance groups."

"It's fine here," Ron said, his back injury taking a full week to heal. As for Harry, his internal injuries hadn't fully healed yet, and he still coughed from time to time.

Hermione and Ginny were worried that Harry might suffer some permanent aftereffects, so they had kept him indoors for the past few days. Just now, Harry couldn't sit still any longer and wanted to go out for some fresh air.

"Thornfield Castle is indeed suitable. Although it's not as safe as other places, it's large enough. There's room for modification. I've already placed many protective spells around it and marked this place as indescribable—thanks to the Fidelity Charm, I'm now the Keeper of the Secrets," Owen said calmly, his eyes fixed on the fire in the fireplace.

The Order of the Phoenix owns many safe houses in the UK.

Owen and Hermione, and the house in Hogsmeade.

But as he explained, those safe houses were all too small—not in the sense that they couldn't accommodate a dozen or so people, but rather that they were too small for the future, for dozens or even hundreds of people.

Although the Infinite Stretch spell can solve this problem well, the spell can only stretch the space of the house, not make the building itself bigger. If there are enough people living there, it will still feel crowded.

“Yes!” Hermione nodded. “We have to make a decision. Hogwarts has fallen, and we don’t know what the professors will do, but—I think quite a few young wizards will choose to drop out next term. Including some half-blood and Muggle-born young wizards. They need to find a way out.”

"Hermione—you're not thinking of turning this place into a new Hogwarts, are you?!" Ginny looked at her incredulously.

Hermione simply nodded, directly admitting, "Yes, I do have that idea."

"We can't just walk away," she said. "The Death Eaters of today are not what they used to be. I even suspect they might launch a purge of the Muggle world—the royal family and the prime minister. Cabinet ministers would be among their targets."

"So?" Ron looked at her.

“I have a plan,” Hermione said solemnly. “We need to prepare for a long haul. I plan to visit a group of young wizards, such as Hannah, Justin, Colin, Neville, and Luna. Some of these young wizards are involved because of their bloodline, and some because they’ve been too close to us. Tom is a madman now, a monster. Even the Death Eaters have become monsters. We can’t gamble on these people having any humanity left. Think of Umbridge; she even killed a young wizard to frame someone.”

What if Tom wanted to completely control everyone?

What if he were to plant a "dead root" in every wizard, turning them into "imposters"?

Imagine such a future.

(End of this chapter)