Chapter 1078: The Owl's Warning
Chapter 1078: The Owl's Warning
Dear Garrick, I have made some new breakthroughs in my wand-making endeavors, but unfortunately, the wands I've crafted still fall short of the one I purchased from you.
I had intended to further discuss wandlore with you, but something has come up that prompts me to write this letter. You may be facing some trouble. Do you recall our conversation during your last visit to Hogwarts?
It seems my premonition is coming to pass.
If you wish to avoid a mysterious disappearance or an innocent demise, I suggest you find a place to lie low, perhaps under the guise of a vacation or some other excuse.
Consider this a friendly warning from a seer.
If you dismiss this as nonsense, heed the signs at the end of June.
Regardless of the outcome, I can only offer my blessings through this letter.
P.S. Keep this discreet to avoid unnecessary trouble.
Your old friend, Albert Anderson
As the message on the parchment finished conveying itself, the parchment ignited, surprising Garrick as he let go of it. The burning parchment fell onto the table, turning into a pile of ashes. Garrick stared at the ashes, lost in thought for a moment.
The letter had stirred up distant memories from the depths of the old man's mind.
He recalled Mr. Anderson's words of caution during his visit to Hogwarts to inspect the champions' wands for the Triwizard Tournament.
Nonsense?
Garrick didn't think so. The other party had no reason to deceive him, and it would be too undignified, especially considering Mr. Anderson's reputation.
He was a genius wizard renowned in the wizarding world, having won numerous world-class titles. This letter seemed more like a well-intentioned warning.
Garrick remembered a line from the letter: "Heed the signs at the end of June."
The end of June was approaching. What would happen then?
Indeed, the situation this year was dire. The Ministry of Magic's questionable actions and the relentless suppression of Dumbledore indicated one thing—the return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.
In fact, any wizard with a sound mind could sense the subtle shifts in the wizarding world, especially with the recent breakout from Azkaban, which seemed like a foreboding omen.
Yet, many chose to wait and see.
Yes, they were biding their time.
The arrival of this letter also left Garrick feeling uneasy. However, he hesitated, thinking about the incoming Hogwarts students who would need to purchase new wands.
The letter had warned him about the end of June... Perhaps he should...
After much deliberation, Garrick decided to wait until the end of June to see the so-called omen that Albert had mentioned. If the situation truly turned sour, he could still leave then.
In the meantime, Garrick intended to write back to Anderson to express his gratitude for the warning.
Florian Fortescue, another recipient of Albert's warning, was more decisive. As Albert's old friend, he was well aware of the young genius's character and academic prowess, and he knew that Albert was a master diviner. He wouldn't dismiss the letter as a hoax.
Upon reading the letter, Florian Fortescue realized that he might be in grave danger.
Thus, he promptly started packing, intending to lie low for a while. Even if the prophecy turned out to be false, it wouldn't matter. Making ice cream was more of a hobby for him anyway.
Florian wrote letters to a few old friends, mentioning his plans to travel.
He didn't disclose his destination.
His ice cream shop was temporarily closed.
In fact, not only had Garrick and Florian received letters from Albert, but so had other friends who shared a close relationship with him. They were all warned about the impending danger.
Any wizard familiar with Albert's divination abilities wouldn't take the contents of the letter lightly. A small portion of them, like Florian Fortescue, reacted swiftly upon receiving the letter. Hectork Dagworth was one such individual. After reading Albert's letter, the renowned Potion Master had decided to travel abroad to visit old friends and collaborate on the improved potion formulas that Albert had shared.
However, most chose to wait and watch, curious about the omen that Albert had mentioned. They couldn't simply abandon their lives because of a letter.
At that moment, in a secluded manor somewhere in Britain, members of the Wildsmith family were gathered for an emergency meeting. As one of Albert's closest associates, they were among the first to know of this matter. They, too, were aware of the reason for Albert's warning—the resurrection of Voldemort! "It seems the specific timing will be at the end of June," Bard said, his fingers intertwined on the table as he glanced at the others. "According to Albert's letter, the secret of the Dark Lord's resurrection will be fully revealed before July, and the entire wizarding world will fall into panic and chaos."
"I thought you'd be more concerned about his wedding," Morg said, looking at Bard and then at the others. "You haven't announced the specific date and location yet, have you?"
"Not yet," Bard replied, looking at his two old friends.
"I won't be involved in this matter," Gerber said abruptly. After all, his presence would only add to the awkwardness and potentially bring unnecessary trouble to the Smith family.
If Albert were truly being targeted by the Dark Lord, it would be unwise to maintain an overtly close relationship. Moreover, someone needed to stay in Britain to observe the situation. Otherwise, who would handle the affairs here if everyone left?
Gerber was the most suitable candidate. As the elder of the Smith family, the Death Eaters wouldn't dare to act against him easily, as long as he didn't provoke the Dark Lord. The Dark Lord needed the support of pure-blooded wizards.
"If he is indeed being targeted by the Dark Lord, we must be cautious," Tiberius Ogden frowned and said, "Albert mentioned that he would invite Dumbledore to the wedding. With Dumbledore present, the Dark Lord probably won't act recklessly, but I'm still concerned about the safety of the wedding. After all, it might be Albert's biggest vulnerability."
To them, the wedding was clearly less important than Albert's life. If necessary, they could scale down the event to just a few attendees, forfeiting the opportunity to expand their connections.
They had considered postponing the wedding, but that didn't seem feasible. Who knew when this war would end! As veterans of two Dark Lords and the previous Wizarding War, they were all too aware that it would take a long time for the wizarding world to regain peace.
Waiting until the mysterious figure emerges and gains control of the Ministry of Magic would only make the situation worse. It would be better to resolve the issues with the wedding beforehand.
There was another reason why Albert wanted to hold the wedding right after his graduation, and that was because the Lehmys could no longer hold on. The resurrection potion they had prepared was almost depleted, and their presence as witnesses at the wedding would hold a special significance.
"We need to discuss this matter with Albert and find a safer and more reliable way to hold the wedding." Tiberius Ogden tapped his fingers lightly on the table and said, "If necessary, we can invalidate the invitations that have been sent out. I remember that the specific time will be notified one day in advance."
"This is the worst-case scenario." Morg spoke softly, "I bet Albert already has a plan. Don't underestimate him."
In fact, the reason for their emergency gathering was to discuss remedial measures.
This was the consensus of everyone present. It was rare to have such a talented junior, and they would not allow any accidents to happen to Albert.
Whether it was Tiberius, Gerber, or Bard, they were all already very old. Who knew when their time would come? They needed fresh blood to replenish their ranks.
If the next successor were to meet with an accident, it would cause serious problems for the entire Wildsmith family.
What's worse, Isabelle, who was also a candidate for succession, was one of the protagonists of the wedding. If something happened to her, the elderly people present would likely have a heart attack.
"At that time, I will go find Dumbledore, and even if I have to drag him, he will attend this wedding." Tiberius Ogden said softly.
They needed the presence of the greatest wizard in history to make the mysterious figure and Death Eaters fearful and deter them from targeting the wedding.
"Or, what about inviting the next Minister of Magic?" Gerber suddenly proposed.
According to Albert's judgment, the next Minister was likely to be Sturgis, as Amelia Bones might be murdered.
If she didn't die, she would probably become the Minister.
"I think Sturgis won't have the time to attend the wedding at that time, and I suspect the Ministry of Magic has already been infiltrated. Doing so might end up revealing the location of the wedding."
"If the situation is truly dire, we can use the Fidelius Charm." Bard suddenly spoke up, although he didn't seem too concerned about the manor.
Each of them owned several manors; after all, they were all extremely wealthy, and some of these properties had been passed down from previous generations.
It was several days later when Albert found out about all of this.
In fact, Albert had already made reasonable arrangements, and after some discussion, they decided to use the Fidelius Charm on the manor to ensure that no problems would arise during that time.
This once again made Albert feel the weight of their financial prowess.
Soon after returning to Hogwarts, Fred and George sought him out to talk about their Easter surprise eggs and their plan for a grand finale.
"The surprise eggs idea is good, but it won't be a surprise if they're just prank props." Albert offered his suggestion, "Perhaps you should create different styles of eggs, so that when people open them, they'll find various surprises inside."
"Different styles of eggs?"
"For example, some eggs could be normal with candy inside, some could have small toys, and some could have prank props. That way, when people open them, they'll be delighted by all sorts of surprises, just like eating Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans."
"You're right." George nodded in agreement, "We were initially more focused on pranking, but while it might be surprising at first, it could get boring after a while."
"What about the grand finale?" Fred asked.
"It's a good idea, but you need to time it right and position yourself as a hero who defies Umbridge." Albert reminded them.
Not long after the twins left, Albert saw Hermione hurrying towards him, pulling him towards a secluded area to talk about Harry's bold plan, hoping to get some useful suggestions from Albert.
"There's nothing majorly wrong with Potter's plan. He's a relatively lucky person, and as long as he's prepared, there's no need to worry about his safety." Albert reassured her, "Also, Potter is the savior, and some things are inevitable. Even if he avoids this now, it won't solve the problem. Eventually, he'll still have to face it, and it might even be worse."
"Do you think so, too?"
"Harry now has a bunch of helpers to get him through the most difficult early stages, and that's a very lucky thing." Albert reminded her, "If he had to face it all alone without any experience, the situation would be much worse."
Hermione suddenly didn't know what to say. She also realized that trying to convince Harry to give up was impossible. Perhaps, as Albert said, being prepared and bravely facing it was the best choice.
After Hermione left, Albert had just returned to the common room when he saw Lee Jordan, accompanied by an owl, waving at him.
"A letter for you."
As Albert approached, Lee Jordan immediately pointed to the owl beside him.
"Where's the letter?" Albert noticed that Lee Jordan wasn't holding a letter, so he turned his gaze to the owl.
"I don't know. This guy won't let me touch it, and he even scratched me." Lee Jordan pointed to the scratch on his hand and complained to Albert.
"Go get it treated by Madam Pomfrey. I'm sure she can heal it in the blink of an eye." Albert untied the small metal tube on the owl's right leg and took out a small roll of parchment, on which was written a date and time in French: April 22nd, 8 p.m.
"What does this mean?" Lee Jordan asked in confusion.
"It's an appointment."
To be precise, it was the specific time for both parties to use the two-way mirror to communicate, which happened to be the day after the Easter holiday ended.
"I really don't understand."
Lee Jordan took the owl to fly it off and went to the hospital wing at the same time.
This was actually a letter from Nicole Lemy, although there was no sender's name. However, it wasn't difficult to guess who it was from, as there was an alchemical symbol left by Nicole Lemy on the metal tube.
That was their secret code.
If it weren't for the fact that the communication bookmark gradually lost its effectiveness when the distance was too far, it would have been more convenient to use that for brief contact.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
