Chapter 503: The Baiting Operation Begins
Chapter 503: The Baiting Operation Begins
After dinner, the parents each had a talk with their children.
"They want us to behave, you know, stay at school—dealing with boring textbooks—" Ron described Mr. Weasley's mindset, "as if the war will suddenly end, and it would be best if we didn't even notice."
Back in the third-floor bedroom, they exchanged information.
Harry felt gloomy and said, puzzled, "Don't they understand? Of course, I won't sneak out of school, but necessary preparations must be made, right? For when Voldemort comes for me next time."
He touched the scar on his forehead. Despite his reluctance, he felt a mysterious connection to Voldemort—more than just the scar, it was emotional... They hated each other, wishing the other would disappear in the next second.
"It's not just you—He won't let Hermione and me off the hook", Hermione said, sitting on another bed. "That's the problem. Clearly, the adults want to keep us out of the war, away from Voldemort." She stumbled over the name.
"He's always the one who comes for me!" Harry couldn't help but shout in anger.
Crack, crack! Two sharp pops echoed in the old room. Ron's two older brothers, Fred and George Weasley, suddenly appeared on the bed where Harry was sitting, tumbling together with him.
"Ouch—"
Harry clutched his forehead and sat up, his scar hurting badly, but he was certain it wasn't because of Voldemort. "How did you get here?" he said through gritted teeth.
"Just came to see you, poor souls—suffering in misery", George said in a dramatic tone.
Fred did the same as Harry—clutching his forehead and groaning in pain, having unfortunately collided with Harry.
Fred muttered, "George and I had a bet, guessing which lucky one we'd land on... I should have taken some precautions, Harry. Help me check, is there any weird mark on my head?"
"If you mean a lightning-shaped scar, no", Harry replied without hesitation. "All I see is a swelling bump."
"Looks like I'll need Tonks again", Fred sighed.
"Why?" Ron, who had just recovered, asked.
"She's cheerful—"
"Clumsy—"
"Gets along with everyone—"
"Most importantly, she has the special potion, Auror-exclusive", Fred and George Weasley said in unison.
Harry stared at them blankly, momentarily forgetting the serious topic. However, Fred and George Weasley became serious.
"Don't blame Ginny, Harry", Fred said. "You've been training too hard, even we were a bit shocked. We spent most of the day in Diagon Alley, but Ginny saw it every day. She's worried about you."
"I'm not blaming her", Harry shook his head.
"Good", Fred and George Weasley breathed a sigh of relief, exchanged a glance, and Fred handed Harry, Ron, and Hermione each a long, flesh-colored string from his pocket.
"What's this?" Harry asked, fiddling with the string.
"Wow, I've wanted one for ages", Ron said, eagerly taking it. "This is an Extendable Ear, it helps you eavesdrop on conversations without drawing much attention... I especially want to know what Snape is up to, he's always so secretive, coming and going."
Harry was very interested.
Hermione hesitated to take it, but then Ron demonstrated its effect. He stuck one end of the Extendable Ear into his ear, and the other end wriggled like a worm, sliding under the door.
"Hmm, I hear some noise... It's the hallway, nothing much is happening unless we get lucky..."
Suddenly, he screamed. Harry heard a distinctive cat's meow from both Ron's ear and outside the door.
Hermione jumped up, opened the door, and let Crookshanks in. The cat had the other end of the Extendable Ear in its mouth. "Let go, Crookshanks, that's not food", she said, taking the Extendable Ear from George. "I think it will be useful at the right time", she smiled.
...
"I'm worried that the experience from a month ago is still affecting them", Sirius said, frowning.
"Indeed, we can't pretend nothing happened", Felix said calmly. "They were attacked by dozens of Death Eaters, and that's not something everyone can handle, especially after witnessing their friends being tortured... The feeling of helplessness is something they don't want to experience again."
"I don't even dare to ask what it feels like to be hit by the Cruciatus Curse, I can only pretend nothing happened", Mrs. Weasley covered her mouth, tears shining in her eyes. "I had nightmares for days... always dreaming of Gideon and Fabian, their faces turning into Ron's and Harry's..."
Mr. Weasley hugged his wife, patting her shoulder comfortingly.
Sirius and Felix exchanged a glance and tacitly avoided discussing the baiting plan at this moment.
Before they knew it, it was the last day of July.
"Happy birthday."
When Harry pushed the door open, he saw Neville standing there with a gift box.
"Thanks, Neville", Harry yawned, pulling Neville into the room. Ron was drowsily trying to put a sleeve on his leg.
"Why did they schedule the award ceremony for today?" Neville regretfully said.
"Actually, it's not so bad", Harry said. Seeing everyone busy with his birthday, he felt strange and didn't know how to react.
They got dressed and started opening their gifts.
"A wand holster, great, Neville", Harry said happily.
"I'm glad you like it", Neville replied. "I also really like the gift you gave me", he added somewhat nervously. "It's not just to make me feel better, is it?"
"Of course not", Harry reassured him.
Yesterday was Neville's birthday. Neville had been worried that the new term would cancel the Duel Club, so Harry made a Duel Club invitation in the style of a Hogwarts acceptance letter. Hermione was very interested and even enchanted it—
When someone opened it, they would hear a very authoritative voice speaking.
"You are the chosen one. Are you ready for the challenge?"
Neville thought it was incredibly cool.
Sirius sent a pop-up book about Quidditch. Each page, when opened, formed a Quidditch pitch, and a dozen tiny figures would fly around, recreating some classic match scenes.
"From this angle, Lynch stands no chance against Krum", Ron said, staring at one of the scenes. It was from last year's Quidditch World Cup final, where Krum used the Wronski Feint twice to deceive his opponents.
Lupin didn't show up, but Harry guessed he was staying in a new werewolf community. However, he still asked Tonks to deliver Neville's birthday gift, a handcrafted bone bracelet. Harry hoped the bracelet wasn't made from local materials, like werewolf teeth.
Hermione's gift was an enchanted parchment, which flashed with the names of various spells—ones Harry had already mastered. Looking at the full list, a sense of accomplishment welled up in him.
At that moment, the door opened, and Bill Weasley poked his head in.
"Breakfast is ready. We need to hurry; the award ceremony starts at ten, and it's best to arrive at the Ministry of Magic early..."
They followed Bill Weasley downstairs. Harry saw two strangers at the table: one was a witch with black hair and rosy cheeks, and the other was a short man wearing a tall violet hat—the same color as Tonks' hair today.
"Heath Jones and Dedalus Diggle", Mr. Weasley introduced them at the table.
The two looked curiously at Harry. Dedalus Diggle performed an exaggerated, albeit not very standard, hat tip. "Hello, nice to see you again."
Harry looked at him, puzzled, with no memory of ever meeting him.
"At the Leaky Cauldron, before you started school. You were with Hagrid", Dedalus added, "and we shook hands."
Ah, that's right, Harry thought. He remembered a wizard who was as excitable as Quirinus Quirrell.
"Hello, Harry", the witch named Heath said. "We're your guards for today."
"Guards?" Harry repeated, spitting out a piece of bread.
"Don't worry, it's standard procedure", the witch smiled.
Hermione was talking to Tonks. "No, I don't plan to tell them. Maybe later", she said.
Breakfast included smoked meat, roasted potatoes, toast, and vegetable soup. After eating, they left 12 Grimmauld Place in batches through the front door. "We can't use the Floo Network; it's too obvious", Felix explained. "You stay with me, Harry."
Harry felt the atmosphere becoming increasingly strange.
"Professor?"
"We'll talk after the ceremony", Felix shook his head.
As they entered the Ministry of Magic through the red phone booth, many staff members silently watched them. Soon, a group of Aurors approached, escorting them to a large conference room.
Harry felt like a closely guarded prisoner being transferred from one place to another. From the uneasy expressions on Ron and Hermione's faces, they seemed to share the same feeling.
The room was packed, the atmosphere solemn and serious, reminding Harry of the scenes he had seen in the Pensieve, like when Crouch Jr. was on trial. His heart pounded.
He heard Ron and Hermione's sharp intakes of breath.
"We need to sit up front", Felix said, placing a hand on Harry's shoulder and leading them to the front row of seats on the dais.
Flashes of cameras lit up the corners, and Harry squinted, spotting the oddly dressed Rita Skeeter below. She held a conspicuous quill in her mouth and stared at them intently.
"Quick, take photos! This is front-page news", she said.
The room buzzed with chatter, and Harry felt like a monkey in a zoo, surrounded by a crowd of strangers.
"They are members of the Wizengamot", Felix explained quietly.
"Alright, let's begin", Madam Bones announced. "Ladies and gentlemen, today we will witness a special award ceremony. In the current situation, unity and belief are more important than ever..."
Madam Bones had become quite talkative since becoming Minister, Felix thought, watching her speak at length. He had to admit it was necessary, at least for maintaining morale.
"Building confidence and courage... We have a role model... Demonstrating resilience... No need for fear or dread... The seeds of victory..."
The flashes from below seemed to blur together, making it hard to see. The ceremony finally ended around noon.
"Did I really get an Order of Merlin?" Ron said in disbelief, examining the medal in his hand over and over again.
Felix also looked at his gold medal, which was similar to the previous one, except the purple ribbon had been replaced with green, indicating that this was a first-class medal.
Then, Madam Bones led them to the Minister of Magic's office and drew the curtains.
Dumbledore also came in, and Harry was eager to ask questions, but Madam Bones stopped him. "Wait until everyone is here." They waited anxiously, each minute seeming to stretch tenfold. Harry even wondered if he was back in Professor Dumbledore's Mind Chamber. Finally, Kingsley Shacklebolt and Sirius entered cautiously from a side door.
Sirius made a gesture indicating that everything was going smoothly. "No one noticed."
At this point, Madam Bones spoke, explaining the entire plan—
"Bait?" the three of them exclaimed in unison.
"Exactly. The Death Eaters have been quiet, and I believe it's necessary to test them. This award ceremony is a great opportunity for them. Normally, they can't catch anyone, and it will be even harder once you start school", Madam Bones said.
"What do we need to do?" Harry asked.
Sirius moved aside, and on the table, three cups of bubbling Polyjuice Potion had appeared.
"It's simple. We'll take your faces and go for a walk around."
"What about us?" Harry pressed. Ron and Hermione were also staring intently at the adults.
"Stay here until it's over", Sirius said expressionlessly.
It took some time to convince Harry, but they succeeded. Kingsley, Sirius, and Madam Bones took the Polyjuice Potion mixed with the three of their hairs and retreated to a small room. Shortly after, muffled groans of pain came from inside. When the sounds subsided, they staggered out.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione watched in amazement as their doppelgangers moved their limbs and adjusted to their new bodies. The sense of strangeness was indescribable—far more bizarre than when they had disguised themselves as Crabbe and Goyle in their second year.
'Harry' kept taking off and putting on glasses, muttering, "So strange, this must be how James felt."
"Stop playing around, Sirius", 'Hermione' said, turning to the real Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "Your families have also been replaced by Aurors and Order of the Phoenix members."
Sirius, disguised as Harry, said, "We'll pretend to go to The Burrow for the birthday celebration. Mr. Weasley wants to try Muggle transportation, so we rented two cars..."
'Ron,' with a face full of freckles, remained silent. He was Kingsley in disguise.
"And Headmaster Dumbledore and Professor Hup..." Harry blinked, slowly asking.
"Oh, I'll make a brief appearance in Diagon Alley, pretending to use the Floo Network to return to school... but I'll actually come back quietly and hide", Dumbledore said with interest. "I haven't experienced such a thing in a long time."
The real Harry, Ron, and Hermione looked at Felix.
Felix shrugged. "I'll stay here, not going anywhere. Someone needs to watch over you." He pointed to the blazing fireplace. "If there's a fight, I'll leave through the fireplace and head to the battlefield."
"Alright, we've delayed long enough. If we stay any longer, the Death Eaters might get suspicious", 'Hermione' said authoritatively. "Let's go. The most dangerous part of this plan is that we have to hold off the Dark Lord's first wave of attacks, but we've prepared for it."
The real Hermione couldn't help but stare as her doppelgänger gave orders. Soon, they each left the room, and Harry heard Dumbledore standing at the office door, speaking gently. "Madam Bones, I'll return to the school now. There's a lot to handle."
He paused for a few seconds, nodded slightly, and pretended there was someone inside before closing the door from the outside.
"Sit down", Felix said to the three of them. He sat on the sofa, fiddling with a coin.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione looked at each other hesitantly before sitting down across from Felix.
"Professor", Hermione asked softly, "will the plan succeed?"
"It depends on how you define success. Like a game of chess, we make a move and wait for the opponent's response. The outcome might not be as you initially expected", Felix said. "But it is an opportunity. With such a large-scale operation, the Death Eaters will surely get the message, and you—" He glanced at Harry. "Or rather, you all—" His gaze swept over Ron and Hermione. "Have embarrassed Voldemort, disrupting the ceremony. He will be eager to get rid of you."
"On the contrary, if the Death Eaters don't show up, that will be troublesome."
"Why is that?" Hermione asked.
"It means Voldemort has his own secret plan, and none of us, including the Death Eaters, know about it", Felix said softly.
(End of Chapter)
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