Chapter 471: May
Chapter 471: May
After the Easter break, the weather became increasingly sunny. Standing high on the castle, the Forbidden Forest stretched out in a vast, comfortable green. The Black Lake also came back to life, and on weekends, students gathered on the grass and under the willows by the lake, enjoying the warm sunlight.
Of course, this leisure time was only for those who had completed their assignments.
"I've had enough! We're only in fourth year, why do we have so much homework?" Seamus complained loudly. "Has Professor Mcgonagall made a mistake?"
"No", Dean said pessimistically, "She mentioned in the last class that the fifth-year career counseling should be moved to fourth year to give us more motivation to study."
"Oh..." Seamus let out a strange sound, "Spare me." He grumbled, "We still have three whole years until graduation."
"Well, actually, the professor is doing this for our benefit", Neville swallowed and said, "Don't forget that next year, the school plans to implement year-end assessments for fifth and seventh years. Fifth years must master the summoning charm, and seventh years must master apparition—"
"What if we don't pass?" Seamus asked anxiously.
"Then you'll have to give up your Christmas holidays, Easter breaks, and the last few weeks after each exam", Dean counted on his fingers, and Seamus's expression immediately changed. But Dean continued, "Also, the professors are considering moving the Disarming Charm and Shield Charm to other years, but it's not confirmed yet."
Seamus breathed a sigh of relief. He had already mastered those spells. He thought for a moment and asked, "How long has it been since Harry last organized the duel study group?"
"Quite a while", Dean said, "They have to prepare for the third task. Honestly, they've already pulled ahead of us. Even Ron has mastered apparition."
...
The sunlight was bright and the waves shimmered on the Black Lake, but the scene in Classroom Seven was different.
The sound of blades slicing through shrubs echoed through the deep Forbidden Forest. Ron cautiously moved forward, occasionally tripped by the twisted roots on the ground. The sensation of leaves under his feet was so real that he had long forgotten it was all an illusion. His nerves were stretched to the limit.
A rustling sound came from behind—Ron turned sharply, "Impedimenta!" he shouted, and the spell froze an Acromantula that had suddenly appeared. Ron turned and ran.
"You should have used the banishing charm", Felix's memory projection floated in the air. At that moment, Ron was hiding behind a large tree, carefully observing his surroundings, but he was startled.
"I know", Ron muttered, "Why don't you tell me where Harry and Hermione are?"
"Oh, you mean them? They're in the other direction", Felix's memory projection pointed.
Ron looked skeptical, "You're not trying to trick me, are you?"
"I am a professor", the memory projection said, folding its arms with a cold laugh.
"Just a memory projection", Ron mumbled, "Alright, I'll trust you one more time."
Ten minutes later.
"Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah!"
Ron stumbled out of the mist, with a group of car-sized Acromantulas following him. He continuously cast the spider banishing charm behind him, shouting angrily as he ran, "You tricked me again!"
"I didn't, look ahead", the memory projection smiled.
Ron glanced up in the midst of his panic and saw a faint light ahead. Hope rose in his heart, and the "clicking" sound from behind wasn't as terrifying anymore. A surge of strength flowed through him, pushing him to run the final stretch. He finally saw Harry—
Harry was leaning against a large tree, standing on a raised black stone, continuously casting spells around him. The white fire—Light Inferno—formed a circular ring of fire around Harry, helping him fend off the approaching giant spiders.
"Right", Ron slapped his head. The next second, Light Runic Script and the Light Inferno combined in his hand, forming a long stream of fire. He ran behind the fire, shouting, "Harry, I'm here—"
Harry looked up and raised his wand in Ron's direction. The spider banishing charm sent the Acromantulas flying away from Ron.
Ron scrambled up the black stone.
"You found a good spot", Ron said, calming down and starting to use the banishing charm to help Harry cover any gaps.
"The best spot is up there", Harry said gloomily.
"Hi, Ron", Hermione's voice came from above. Ron looked up and saw Hermione sitting sideways on a branch of the tree they were leaning against, grinning slyly. He suddenly understood—Hermione was controlling the white fire.
"How did you end up in the tree? That’s not going to help you escape", Ron said.
"Oh, my banishing charm is getting pretty good, so I tried a new spell—" Hermione said. She stood high up, shading her eyes to look into the distance. "I think I saw Collins and the others dealing with a big creature. We need to hurry!"
She canceled the fire magic, and her wand tip skillfully released streaks of red light. Harry and Ron followed with Stunning Spells, and soon the giant spiders were piled on the ground.
Hermione used a Cushioning Charm to land smoothly. They then headed in the direction Hermione had pointed out, encountering various magical creatures along the way. "Wow!" Ron exclaimed as he froze a group of Cornish pixies with a freezing charm. "I’m starting to really like this place."
Harry grinned. He had to admit, if it were just dull spell practice, he wouldn’t have the patience. He had made the most progress during Professor Hup’s intense training, the dueling games with Sirius, and in Classroom Seven.
As they continued, they saw a Niffler strolling leisurely. This large, rhinoceros-like beast had a thick gray hide that could resist most spells, and its horns, sharp and capable of injecting an explosive liquid, made it even more dangerous. The three of them immediately hid behind a rock.
"Oh, go away", Ron whispered, keeping an eye on the large Niffler and a smaller one beside it—likely a baby, much more active than the adult, kicking and bumping into a vending machine.
After a few minutes, the Niffler mother finally led the baby away. They emerged from behind the rock and picked up some energy drinks from the unattended vending machine.
"I love this design", Ron said, grabbing two more bottles of Butterbeer to stash in his pocket.
"It’s fake", Hermione reminded him. "Just a memory. It disappears when we leave. And it’s meant for the ghosts in the school, so the kitchen doesn’t have to stock decayed food."
"I know", Ron shrugged. "But you can’t ask for more in Classroom Seven. I mean, while Professor Flitwick’s memory provides uniquely flavored jelly beans after a duel, you always feel like a fool when you come out."
"Like a baboon waving a stick", Hermione said with a smile.
They used a directional spell to confirm their position and, after a bit of time, successfully found Cedric’s team.
"Need any help?" Harry called out from a distance.
"That would be great", a voice said from their feet, startling them. Harry stared at the gray-green thing on the ground—it was Roger Davies. "What happened to you?"
"Obviously, I was poisoned by a manticore’s tail spike", Roger Davies said, lying on the ground, surrounded by a gray-green mist.
Harry and the others exchanged looks, then rushed over to help. Cedric and Collins were in a sorry state; the manticore’s skin almost repelled all known spells. Cedric kept transfiguring chains to try to bind its legs while dodging the tail spikes that whizzed through the air.
Collins threw black clouds and used the eye curse and Glisseo to try to restrict the extremely dangerous beast.
Harry cast a powerful Disarming Charm, and a blinding red light hit the manticore. He wasn’t sure if it worked, but he liked the spell and was trying to incorporate Runic Script into it, though he hadn’t succeeded yet. The manticore took a couple of steps back and then lashed out with its tail spike. Harry’s spell was reflected back, grazing past Cedric’s hair.
"Nice greeting", Cedric said. Harry grinned and used a Runic Script water spell, sending streams of water like cannonballs at the manticore. "This isn’t working—" Cedric began, but Hermione had already followed up with a freezing charm, and the manticore’s body quickly froze.
"Are you okay?" Ron asked, running over and supporting the wobbly Collins. Collins shook her head, about to say something when she suddenly widened her eyes.
"Watch out!"
A shimmering tail spike pierced Ron’s chest. Ron blinked in disbelief, not feeling any pain, but the spike had indeed penetrated his chest. Harry and Hermione shouted as they watched Ron slowly fall to the ground...
Two minutes later, Ron was sitting on the ground, a gray-green mist emanating from his chest—similar to Roger’s earlier state. He joked to Collins, who had also been hit, "Thanks for keeping me company."
Collins rolled her eyes but didn’t refuse the Butterbeer Ron offered. They watched as Cedric, Harry, and Hermione continued to battle in the distance.
Hermione used Ancient Magic, and the golden fire transformed into a phoenix that swooped down, pecking at the blast-ended skrewt with its sharp beak. The skrewt's abdomen emitted a chilling groan as it struggled to break free from the chains, its tail hook flailing wildly. However, with the three of them working together—Harry cast an excellent swamp jinx, significantly reducing the skrewt's movement.
The tide of the battle began to turn in their favor. In the distance, Roger Davies crawled over to watch the action up close, ready to cheer at the moment of victory. But then another manticore emerged from the depths of the Forbidden Forest, accompanied by a baby skrewt.
The scene that followed was too gruesome to bear. First, Harry was trampled to death by the rampaging skrewt. Then Hermione met the same fate. Within a minute, six of them sat on the ground, enveloped in a grayish-green mist, watching the triumphant skrewt family strut away with their heads held high.
"It's not our fault", Ron consoled them. "Those creatures are beyond what we can handle. They're classified as 5x by the Ministry of Magic, and far more dangerous than Acromantulas. One manticore can take on a whole group of those spiders."
"I hope the judges from the Ministry of Magic see it that way", Roger Davies said. "But, uh, I heard these things are in the Forbidden Forest, deep in the forest..."
"That's right", Hermione said. "Hagrid used manticores to breed blast-ended skrewts."
Cedric and Roger Davies looked uneasy.
"Don't worry, I'm sure the Ministry of Magic won't let us face an uncontrollable manticore", Hermione said confidently. "It's too dangerous. According to the books, a single sting can kill you instantly, without any time to react. The Ministry of Magic will have learned from past mistakes, like the incident in 1792..."
"Is she always like this?" Collins whispered to Ron.
"Oh, uh." Ron shrugged, stubbornly saying, "It sounds pretty reasonable, doesn't it?"
No one else felt the same way, although what Hermione said was historically accurate. They rested for a while until the mist cleared, then they went their separate ways. Cedric planned to seek advice on Transfiguration from Professor Mcgonagall's memory, while Collins preferred to discuss spell coordination with Professor Flitwick's memory.
Harry and the others stayed in Classroom Seven until evening, when a group of ghosts passed by.
"Hello, Nearly Headless Nick", Harry greeted the Gryffindor ghost, Nearly Headless Nick. "Is it time for dinner?"
The ghosts stopped. "Yes, you'd better hurry, or the food will be gone", he muttered to himself, looking at the tail of the ghostly procession. "I need to hurry too."
"Let's get out of here", Ron said immediately, taking the lead. Just then, Nearly Headless Nick suddenly grabbed him—more accurately, passed through his arms—and Ron's body stiffened.
"Oh, sorry, we'd better hide until she passes..." Nearly Headless Nick said.
"Who—?" Ron tried to ask, but Harry and Hermione each took an arm and pulled him into the mist. Two seconds later, a short, plump ghost passed by, wearing thick, pearl-colored glasses. Harry guessed the glasses were to cover up the acne on her face—when she was alive.
"It's Moaning Myrtle!"
"Shh—" Nearly Headless Nick said nervously, placing a transparent finger to his lips. From Harry's perspective, both the nearby Nearly Headless Nick and the distant Moaning Myrtle looked suspicious.
Moaning Myrtle was a pitiful ghost. Despite their brief and unpleasant interactions, Harry felt sorry for her.
Another atrocity by Voldemort... Harry glared at Moaning Myrtle's retreating back, thinking. This was Voldemort's first murder, committed through the eyes of the Basilisk.
Harry's expression grew heavy. Throughout May, he tried not to think about whether Voldemort was alive or dead, focusing instead on preparing for the third task. But when he was alone, he couldn't help but dwell on the information about Voldemort. He had accidentally seen Hermione's notes, which mentioned Voldemort's childhood—though he didn't know where Hermione had gotten the information and didn't want to ask. It might have been from Professor Hup.
If Hermione knew he was interested in these things, she would certainly advise him not to overthink it.
But Harry couldn't forget the notes: showing exceptional magical talent before even entering school; being feared by peers; being aloof and cold; and... one day in 1937, he met a young Dumbledore and was allowed to attend Hogwarts.
Why didn't Dumbledore see through Voldemort's disguise back then? Harry thought angrily. If he had been left in the orphanage, maybe none of this would have happened. Wools Orphanage, that's what it was called, right? Harry tried hard to remember. Thanks to Uncle Vernon's frequent threats to send him to an orphanage, he was familiar with the names of the orphanages in Surrey.
But then he thought, Voldemort probably didn't live in Surrey, and he couldn't help feeling a bit disheartened.
Suddenly, he felt as if he had fallen into an ice hole—Nearly Headless Nick had reached out to pull him in a panic. Harry quickly stepped back, avoiding the ghost's outstretched arms. "What's wrong?"
"You almost got caught", Nearly Headless Nick said apologetically. They were hiding in the thick fog as he explained, "Listen, the appearance of Classroom Seven is a blessing for all ghosts. We can taste food again, even if it's not as good as when we were alive. The flavors are limited, but it's still wonderful..."
"What does this have to do with Moaning Myrtle?" Ron asked, puzzled, as he peeked out of the fog. "She's gone."
"You know, as a ghost, she doesn't often participate in group activities... She's too introverted and fixated on her death", Nearly Headless Nick said. "We had a meeting, and the Fat Friar suggested we avoid her when we come to Classroom Seven to prevent her from feeling too depressed and not coming."
"You're quite considerate", Ron said with a hint of sarcasm.
"Thank you", Nearly Headless Nick said happily, waving goodbye to them.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked out, still discussing the matter.
"They did the right thing. I mean, Classroom Seven is part of Hogwarts, and all ghosts have the right to use it, don't they?" Hermione asked.
"We just have some differences about Moaning Myrtle's personality", Ron said. "Introverted? She can be quite bold in certain ways..." He looked at Harry, who immediately understood what he meant.
It was said that one of Moaning Myrtle's hobbies was sneaking into the prefects' bathroom to spy on male prefects while they bathed. Ron had enthusiastically asked Cedric and Roger Davies about this, and it turned out to be true.
They left Classroom Seven and headed to the Great Hall, arriving just in time for the last bit of the meal. Roger Davies waved to them from the Hufflepuff table, and Ron suddenly chuckled, "Oh—thinking about Moaning Myrtle spying—makes me laugh." Harry also smiled, feeling much better.
Hermione, standing nearby, looked at them in confusion. At that moment, a group of owls flew in, and a brown owl carrying the Sunday Prophet landed in front of Hermione. She opened the newspaper and quickly scanned it.
"Any news?" Harry asked.
"Oh, let me see..." Hermione said, her head down. "Actually, I was hoping for news about the Future World, but given the previous bad news, no news is the best. Ah! Rita Skeeter's new book is out, a biography of Regulus", she said, looking up at Harry. "I should get a copy to see what it says."
"When did you start paying attention to her?" Ron asked, puzzled.
"Well, how to put it", Hermione said with a bright smile, "I've found that she does some research, maybe about one-tenth of the truth?" she said uncertainly. "The trick is to pick out the useful information."
Harry had to admit she had a point. After all, the Future World company had suddenly been investigated by the Ministry of Magic for "abusing Muggle items" and "illegally modifying Muggle items", as well as "risking exposure of the magical world."
They were all very worried and sent urgent letters to Ron's father, Percy, Remus, and Sirius. But a few days later, the matter disappeared, and instead, Fudge was exposed for accepting large bribes, involving several Pureblood Families.
During that time, it was common to see Fudge denying "false reports" and new evidence being revealed in the same newspaper. Gradually, news about the Future World company became scarce.
All of this was thanks to one name: Rita Skeeter.
(End of Chapter)
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