Chapter 258: Return to School
Chapter 258: Return to School
It was the annual start of the school year.
However, the weather was absolutely terrible—Liam woke up to see a torrential downpour pounding against the windows.
After breakfast, Mr. Weasley decided to drive everyone to King's Cross Station in London. Bill and Charlie also decided to accompany them to the station. Percy was originally going to come, but a serious incident in Plymouth forced him to leave hurriedly after a quick bite and a coat.
"Percy's job is great in every way, but there are just too many emergencies", Mrs. Weasley said with a hint of concern as she watched Percy Apparate away into the rain.
"Everyone who wants to make a career faces this. When I first started at the Ministry of Magic, I was working overtime every other day", Mr. Weasley put his arm around Molly to comfort her.
"Yes, you were so capable back then", Molly reminisced, but quickly snapped back to reality. "The children are here, and I need to tidy up the house."
Everyone in the room felt a bit like they had been fed a mouthful of dog food. After finishing their meal, they all piled into the old car and headed to London. Unfortunately, the weather in London was just as bad. When they arrived at King's Cross Station, the rain was even heavier, making it impossible to see through the car windows. As soon as they opened the doors, the rain poured over them. By the time they carried their trunks through the busy streets and into the station, they were drenched to the bone.
The weather was terrible today, and once they entered Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, they could see many Hogwarts students and their parents like dark shadows in the thick smoke billowing from the train's engine.
After finding a place to stow their luggage, Liam ran to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters to say goodbye to Mrs. Weasley, Bill, and Charlie. While Charlie was hugging Ginny goodbye, he mentioned that he might see everyone at school soon. Later, when the Weasley Twins asked, he revealed that Hogwarts might be hosting a significant event this year. Unfortunately, the whistle blew before he could finish, and everyone had to board the train quickly.
"Thank you for having us, Mrs. Weasley", Hermione said, leaning out the window to speak to Mrs. Weasley as they boarded and closed the doors.
"This summer vacation has been a wonderful memory for me as a student, Mrs. Weasley", Liam added.
After thanking her and using magic to dry their clothes, Liam sat down and began to reflect: "Mad-Eye Moody wasn't attacked this morning, which means things have changed. But Peter Pettigrew's disappearance confirms that Voldemort's return is real. What method will Voldemort use this time to resurrect himself?" Without the advantage of his Seer abilities, Liam felt that the future was shrouded in a dense fog.
Harry soon joined them in the compartment and recounted the nightmare he had about Voldemort during the summer. Ron and Hermione thought Harry was just too anxious, but Liam knew it meant Voldemort's return was imminent. However, he didn't share this with them because the story had already changed. Speaking about it now, without knowing where the enemy was hiding, would only make him seem crazy.
The journey was uneventful, except for a brief confrontation with Malfoy, which furthered Liam's doubts about the upbringing of Pureblood families. Malfoy's words were particularly hurtful, and even as the train pulled into Hogsmeade Station, Ron's face remained dark.
The weather outside matched Ron's mood: despite the long train ride from the south of Britain to the north, the weather had not improved—it had, in fact, worsened. The rain was pouring down in heavy, icy sheets, as if buckets of cold water were being dumped on their heads.
Liam took the owl cage from Hermione and cast a waterproof spell on their group. They then waded through the puddles to the carriages.
"Good heavens, crossing the lake in this weather. It would be dangerous without magic, wouldn't it?" Hermione remarked as she watched Hagrid leading the first-year freshmen to the lake through the carriage window.
"Even with magic, it's dangerous. I remember a boat capsizing in this kind of weather once. Fortunately, the giant squid in the lake saved everyone", Ron's mood had improved slightly, and he explained to the three non-wizarding world-born friends in the carriage.
By the time they reached the castle and walked into the entrance hall, Peeves had already started throwing water balloons. Fortunately, Liam was well-prepared and managed to shield himself and Hermione from all the water. However, Harry wasn't so lucky and was hit directly on the head by a water balloon, causing his hair to drip water as they entered the Great Hall.
As everyone knew, Peeves represented the suppressed emotions of all the children in the school, much like a Dementor. Unlike other ghosts, he could pick up and throw objects, but he could also be attacked by them.
However, because Peeves had been around for so long—Dumbledore was a student when Peeves was already here—the teachers could only manage him to a certain extent, ensuring he didn't cause too much trouble. This was partly because Peeves was directly bound to Hogwarts Castle, and as long as the castle existed, Peeves would continue to exist.
According to Liam, the most important piece of information about Peeves was the unsuccessful attempt to expel him in 1876. At that time, the caretaker used a scimitar, a crossbow, a short gun, and even a cannon to try to remove Peeves from Hogwarts. Despite the effort, he failed, and Peeves even fired at the windows after escaping the trap, putting everyone's lives in danger, leading to the castle's evacuation. It wasn't until Headmistress Upendra Moore made a concession that the situation was resolved.
Liam knew that by 1876, guns had already evolved to use metallic cartridges. After reading this account, Liam confirmed two points: first, the reason why electronic devices couldn't function in Hogwarts was due to the strong magical radiation, similar to the effect of an electromagnetic pulse bomb, which severely interferes with all electronic devices. This was different from the anti-Muggle or anti-technology spells that some fan theories suggested.
Second, the description in the book of Peeves firing a gun and putting everyone's lives in danger indicated that Muggle weapons could indeed pose a significant threat to wizards, at least to young wizards. This conclusion led Liam to use the Fat Man nuclear bomb in the Pyramid to blast that group of Dark Wizards. However, the Dark Wizards who survived the explosion in the Pyramid proved that Muggle weapons posed almost no threat to powerful wizards, which discouraged Liam from using the Fat Man nuclear bomb against Voldemort.
As everyone entered the Great Hall, the upper years helped the first years dry their clothes and tidy up. After all, it was the start-of-term ceremony, and looking disheveled wouldn't be appropriate.
Once everyone was presentable, they began chatting. Colin Creevey told Liam that his younger brother was also starting at Hogwarts this year. Liam strongly suspected that their parents were likely Squibs rather than Muggles, as the probability of both brothers being wizards was extremely low for Muggle-borns.
At the head table, the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor's seat was occupied by a man with a fake scar. Many people noticed this. Ron whispered, "Blimey, Mad-Eye Moody. He's the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher this year?"
"Mad-Eye Moody? Who's that?" Harry asked curiously.
"He's a retired top Auror", Ron explained to the group that had gathered around. "My dad really admires him. No wonder, considering half the cells in Azkaban were filled by him. But because of that, he had a lot of enemies, which made him gradually become a bit paranoid. After he misinterpreted someone trying to shake his hand as an attack and injured the person, he retired. I never thought Dumbledore would hire him as the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor this year."
"Ptsd patient", Liam summarized.
"P—What's that?" Ron was puzzled.
"Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. It often affects people who have experienced war. Their past experiences make them irritable, overly alert, forgetful, and easily startled. My parents had an Iraqi patient like that", Hermione explained.
"Exactly, Mad-Eye Moody fits that description perfectly", Ron agreed after hearing Hermione's explanation.
Just as they finished their discussion, the doors to the Great Hall opened, signaling the start of the start-of-term ceremony.
(End of Chapter)
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