A Certain Magical Hogwarts

Chapter 989 You should think this through: Whom does the Malfoy family serve?! (Two chapters combined, 4000 words!)

If you were to ask Malfoy about the most fearful moments of his life, there would probably be three.

The first time was six years ago, in that summer, before he entered Hogwarts; he was still an innocent child.

In Diagon Alley, I met a harmless-looking boy with a smile.

The boy summoned a wild bull using magic.

The bull, riding on Malfoy's back, not only ate his ice cream but also stuck out its tongue to wash his face, giving him a French-style ox tongue kiss.

Before this, who wasn't a little princess? After this, Malfoy felt the world's full of malice.

He's covered in hair!

The second time was that night, when he saw the Dark Lord for the first time.

The mother, who always spoke highly of purebloods and was always proud, knelt humbly beside the Dark Lord and kissed his feet.

She begged him to forgive her father, who was already in prison.

Their relationship was like that of a house-elf seeing its master... no, even more humble.

At that moment, all of Malfoy's pride vanished, as if crushed by that barefoot, noseless demon king.

He longed to rush over, raise his wand, shout "Avada Kedavra," and kill the man who had insulted his mother and trampled on Malfoy's glory.

But no matter what he thought in his heart, his body obediently dared not move, remaining in place in fear.

Then, the Dark Lord walked up to him and planted the Dark Mark on him.

He also became the youngest Death Eater, and a mission to his death.

That same night, Malfoy finally realized that he was no longer the spoiled little dragon, but just a... coward.

The third fear is right now, and that fear is even more intense than the previous two.

Malfoy didn't need to turn around; he knew who it was just by hearing the voice.

—William Stark.

But why didn't he watch the game and instead showed up here?

Has the plan been exposed?

Malfoy instantly imagined himself being arrested and imprisoned, sharing a cell with his father.

They even suffered torture and died a tragic death.

His face turned deathly pale, his body trembled violently uncontrollably, and cold sweat soaked his back.

Malfoy feigned illness to avoid participating in Quidditch matches, intending to enter the Room of Requirement and check for any dangerous dark magical items.

The school's security checks are too strict now; he can't bring anything in at all.

They could only rely on the contraband hidden in the "Always Available" room over the years... to commit murder.

Before I even went inside, Stark appeared beside me.

He instructed Goyle and Crabbe to keep him informed at all times.

What about the two of them?

The next second, Malfoy saw his two little henchmen.

Goyle hung upside down like a sheet of paper, his body pressed tightly against the wall, his mouth opening and closing as if trying to remind Malfoy.

But he was more like a fish out of water, only able to make "aba aba" sounds.

Crabbe had already fainted and lay limp on the ground like a lump of mud.

Malfoy cried out and tried to rush over, but felt the pressure on his shoulder increase.

He immediately fell silent, refusing to speak, afraid that even a single breath might offend William.

Malfoy noticed that his opponent seemed somewhat distracted and absent-minded, as if he were watching the game.

William was indeed watching the game.

He stared at the field as Annie darted through the air like a butterfly, effortlessly slotting the ball into the net.

From this angle, the movement is really beautiful.

Don't ask, just know that I, Annie, am as beautiful as a painting.

However, Gryffindor's play was not smooth, especially McCragan's, who seemed to have taken on the role of captain.

He kept directing the game, and Harry, the captain, angrily told him to shut up or he'd shove a hard broom into his mouth.

William was actually distracted by watching the game... Malfoy wasn't angry at being looked down upon like this; instead, he was secretly pleased.

He glanced at the wand in his right hand out of the corner of his eye; with just one Oblivion Charm, William could erase his memory and forget what happened today.

If he were bolder, he might have used an Imperius Curse, or something even more powerful...

Malfoy tried to lift his wand, but his arm wouldn't obey him; it was as if he were facing the Dark Lord.

That coward from that day is back.

Malfoy desperately wanted to stand tall at this critical moment, even if he didn't dare to take action, he could at least say a few tough words.

But when he opened his mouth, his teeth were chattering.

William suddenly spoke, seemingly casually asking:

"Draco, were you just trying to use the Oblivion Charm on me?"

Or is it a soul-stealing curse controlling me?

Malfoy's heart skipped a beat as he met those dark green eyes. He felt as if he were being seen through, his body naked, with no secrets whatsoever.

He remembered the brain-blocking technique his mother had taught him, and hurriedly lowered his head to avoid the other person's gaze.

William smiled and continued:

"Is this how you secretly controlled Mrs. Rosmerta, the proprietress of the Three Brooms, by using the Imperishable Curse?"

You let her slip that bracelet to Katie in the bathroom?

"What are you saying... I don't understand!"

The more calmly William reminisced, the more Malfoy felt his heart pounding with rage.

"That incident... I didn't do it. That girl named Katie must have some enemy that no one knows about..."

Malfoy's voice began to tremble with sobs, and he choked out:

"It really wasn't me. I was in solitary confinement that day. You can ask...Professor McGonagall...William...Stark..."

William reached into Malfoy's pocket. He wanted to stop him, but looking at the other man's face, he dared not move.

A moment later, William took out a coin, flicked it with his index finger, and it fell back into his palm.

"Guess whether this Galon is heads or tails. If you guess right, I'll let you go."

Malfoy didn't try to guess; instead, he closed his eyes in despair.

After he controlled Rosmerta with the Imperius Curse, he used these magical coins to communicate remotely.

I learned this from an Akali tutoring class.

Last year, to avoid Umbridge, Hermione made a lot of these coins and gave them to the students at the tutoring center.

This clearly gave Malfoy a lot of inspiration.

"Draco, do you think you can kill me and Dumbledore this way?" William asked, looking at Malfoy.

"Forgive me for saying this, but your approach was clumsy... Honestly, it was so clumsy that I seriously doubt whether you even put your heart into it..."

"Of course I tried my best!" Malfoy exclaimed excitedly, mustering his courage, "Just kill me..."

William did not answer, but instead smiled and said:

"Would you like to meet your father?"

Malfoy stared at him blankly, as if he had misheard: "What?"

"Lucius misses you, misses your mother, misses that warm home."

He's mentioned to me several times that he wants to meet you all.

Malfoy remained silent for a long time, then finally, with red eyes and a trembling voice, he said:

"My dad...how is he?"

"That's good. He's currently undergoing labor reform and is very proactive in trying to get a reduced sentence," William grinned.

"My main job is to help me raise those magical creatures, such as basilisks, like the Neanderthal, which are not particularly dangerous."

He also had to breed the Pegasus and clean up their droppings... To be honest, I was quite surprised; I didn't expect Lucius to be so good at that.

Malfoy was in tears. His father was even more of a playboy than him. How could he possibly do this?

He slightly raised his head to look at William, and said in a hoarse voice:

"I want to see my father, please."

"And what will you give me in return, Draco?" William's smile faded, and his tone grew increasingly indifferent.

"As—repayment?" Draco stared blankly at William, his lips moving for a long time.

William patted him on the shoulder and said softly:

"Don't rush to answer, Draco."

Your father is with me now, and his safety depends on what you say next.

You are also the only remaining man in the Malfoy family, so it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call you the head of the family.

Voldemort is doomed, just like he was sixteen years ago.

You need to think this through now... to whom the Malfoy family should pledge allegiance!

……

……

Malfoy left in a daze.

After walking a few steps, he remembered the unconscious Gore and Crabbe, and turned around to drag them away with great effort.

His mind was in complete turmoil; all he wanted was to get away from Stark, go back to his room, hide under the covers, and get a good night's sleep.

But just as he was about to walk out of the corridor, he inexplicably turned his head and looked at the man.

He clearly knew he was a Death Eater and was tasked with killing him, so why did he let him go?

He doesn't understand at all!

But that doesn't matter. His father is in his hands, and that's enough.

The footsteps faded into the distance. William didn't move; instead, he rested his chin on his hands, leaned against the window, and watched the game.

A figure appeared beside him—it was Hermione, who had been hiding nearby using the Disillusionment Charm.

While the two were talking, Hermione was using a memory charm to alter Goyle and Crabbe's memories.

"William, is it really okay to approach Malfoy like this now?" Hermione asked with some concern.

"Could Voldemort use Legilimency on him?"

The girl's concerns were not unfounded.

Voldemort can be considered the most powerful Dark Lord in history, and he also reached the pinnacle of Legilimency.

Almost no one can be kept in the dark from him... but since it's almost, there are bound to be exceptions.

For example, the old undercover agent Snape.

"Don't worry," William calmly explained. "I now believe Professor Snape's judgment. Malfoy has an amazing talent for Occlumency."

This was the information Professor Snape gave William, and it's also the reason he's willing to make contact today.

Before summer vacation, Malfoy had no prior knowledge of Occlumency.

After Voldemort assigned him the task, Malfoy began to study. In just two or three months, although his grasp of the material was still very rough, his progress was incredibly fast.

In contrast, Harry had the guidance of Occlumency master Snape.

No progress whatsoever in a year... The gap isn't just a few floors, it's an entire building!!

So, if Malfoy is smart enough, he definitely won't go back this Christmas.

Instead, he continued to find an excuse to stay in school and learn Occlumency until he had mastered it completely.

William wasn't worried at all that Voldemort would find out about his conversation with Malfoy.

If Voldemort knew that Malfoy would die regardless of whether he was tempted or not, for his own safety, he would have been killed.

Malfoy isn't that stupid.

So, the whole thing turned out to be surprisingly simple.

It's a test of how much the elder Malfoy holds in the younger Malfoy's heart.

"Ah, good shot!" William looked at the field and suddenly clapped.

Annie delivered an imaginative no-look pass, which, combined with Ginny's, resulted in another assist.

Since William said so, Hermione, who had always trusted him, felt relieved and focused her attention on the game.

As the sunlight streamed in, she stretched her arms and yawned comfortably before leaning against him.

William reached out and gently ruffled Hermione's hair; the girl began to doze off.

Looking at the sleepy-eyed Hermione, he said softly, "Come on, let's go back to my office and sleep!"

……

……

The first Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Slytherin has finally come to an end.

However, it ended in a farce.

Something felt off about this match, both from the commentators and the players.

Slytherin goes without saying.

They didn't even understand what Quidditch was, and they made the match look like a boxing match.

Mrs. Hodge had no choice but to keep calling fouls, disrupting the game.

Gryffindor is even more outrageous.

It was like a competition to catch the mole.

Captain Harry was completely distracted, his eyes constantly wandering among the Slytherin crowd.

It seemed to be looking for something.

Who could he turn to? Of course, it was Malfoy, whom he cared about most.

His attention was not on the Golden Snitch at all.

This ultimately led to the Slytherin Seeker stealing the Golden Snitch right under his nose.

Harry is arguably the biggest mole.

The second mole was Gryffindor's goalkeeper, McClargen.

It's not that his goalkeeping skills are bad, it's that his skills are too good.

I always felt that just guarding the goal wouldn't allow him to fully utilize his overflowing talent.

McClargen put himself in the role of captain, constantly directing all team members to move around.

The basic layout looks like this:

Harry, you son of a bitch, move 0.5 meters from the center of the field towards the seven o'clock position!

Dean, where are you standing? Move six meters to a 65-degree angle right now.

Report to Michael Lagan, that's the flagpole. Are you going to let me plant it there?!

I never expected McClargan to be such a damn micro-management master.

With two people directing at the same time, and Harry constantly getting distracted, Gryffindor was in complete chaos.

It was thanks to the sister duo of Annie and Ginny that they reached their peak right from their debut.

Their attacks were incredibly fierce and fluid; the Quaffles went in with only a series of swishing sounds.

Therefore, they are also known as the "Splash Sisters".

The two fought like they were playing against a third party, which is why Gryffindor was still able to win in the end, even though Harry lost the Golden Snitch.

The host, Smith, is also outrageous. He's not a fan of anyone, so there's nothing he can't criticize.

When the game finally ended, Ginny deliberately crashed into the commentator's platform on her broomstick.

Amidst the screams and laughter of the audience, Smith struggled weakly beneath the wooden plank.

Professor McGonagall has decided:

As long as Luna Lovegood isn't so outrageous and acts like a normal person, she's a commentator!

……

……

(The update is late. I thought I wouldn't make it in time. Sorry, here's 4,000 words.)

I have to stay up all night tonight to help undergraduates work on their papers. Ugh.

PS by the way

Malfoy was very talented in Occlumency; he only studied it for half a year and was able to withstand Snape's Legilimency. This is something that exists in the original books, not something I made up.

In fact, magic in Harry Potter is very subjective; those with talent learn it quickly, while those without talent can never learn it.

See Harry.

Rowling also explained this in an interview, and here are her original words:

"I think Draco is extremely talented at Occlumency, unlike Harry."

Harry's problem is that his emotions are always too superficial, and to some extent he is overwhelmed by hurt.

But at the same time, he can also feel very clearly the feelings about his own experience.

He couldn't suppress his emotions, nor could he control them; he couldn't suppress those memories.

Draco is the kind of person who is very talented at separating life from emotions, and he has always done so.

He can shut down his own compassion, thus effectively bullying others. He can also lock away his empathy—otherwise, how could he be a Death Eater?

(End of this chapter)