Chapter 522: Whose Scheme?
Chapter 522: Whose Scheme?
"Truly befitting of Albert."
George was so shocked after reading the headline of the Daily Prophet that he dropped the fork he was holding, causing the potatoes on it to tumble onto the table.
"But how did he manage to convince that woman, Rita Skeeter?"
The front page of the Daily Prophet featured an exclusive interview with the world's youngest Wizard's Chess champion, effectively sweeping away all the previous gossip about Albert.
"I bet he didn't just pay her off with Galleons." Fred, who had leaned in to get a better look, offered his speculation. "Knowing Albert, he probably got some dirt on Rita Skeeter and threatened her into correcting her mistakes."
"I agree," echoed George.
They were well aware that Albert had more than enough Galleons to bribe Rita Skeeter, but he wasn't one to simply swallow a loss. Anyone who had tried to cause him trouble, like those Slytherins, would know that he wouldn't likely pay her off.
The most probable scenario was that he had a firm grip on some dirty secret of Rita Skeeter's and forced her to fix the issue herself.
It had to be said that after living together for a few years, the twins had a good grasp of Albert's character.
"What kind of dirt?" Percy asked curiously, as he, too, was quite familiar with Rita Skeeter's character.
"How would we know? Go ask him yourself," George replied after a moment's thought.
"But I think if you ask Albert, he'll probably tell you that he paid Rita Skeeter off," Fred chimed in.
If Albert didn't want to reveal the truth, he could come up with countless truthful answers to the question.
"I'm home!"
Just then, Mr. Weasley walked in, looking exhausted. He had been working overtime for several consecutive days, and the night before, he had searched through no less than seven homes, uncovering a significant number of prohibited items.
"Dad, you're back," said Percy, getting up to take Mr. Weasley's briefcase and placing it in its usual spot.
"It's been tough. The Ministry of Magic is in an uproar," Mr. Weasley muttered.
"What happened?" Ron couldn't help but ask.
"It's all because of Rita Skeeter's exclusive interview, which is thought to possibly trigger an international dispute," Mr. Weasley explained as he sat down in his usual seat. He pointed to the newspaper George was holding. "You'll see in the later pages—there are interviews about Albert Anderson's journey to America."
The others flipped to the third page and soon understood why it was said to potentially cause an international dispute.
"I think Albert was telling the truth. In fact, he rarely lies to deceive others," George said, feeling a twinge of unease as he finished speaking.
Had Albert really not lied much?
He was just skilled at using truthful words to mislead others, so most of what was written in the newspaper was probably true.
He hadn't lied.
Well, that was true.
"Now, a lot of British wizards hold unfavorable views of the American Magical Congress, and some have even started discussing America's unique policies compared to other countries." Mr. Weasley took a bite of his sausage and grumbled, "If it weren't for the fact that the newspaper mentioned America's ban on using owls, I'd bet a bunch of people would have written to that Mr. Carter."
"They can use the international mail channel," George said without hesitation.
"Yes, yes," Mr. Weasley mumbled. "People from America are protesting about the large number of letters and packages containing Dark Magic or dangerous items being sent from Britain."
"Brilliant! I'm sure that Mr. Carter must be thrilled," Fred commented.
"This is no laughing matter. It could spark an international incident," Mr. Weasley sighed, looking at his gleeful sons.
"Dad, I think Albert is telling the truth," Fred said seriously. "America is probably exactly as he described it."
"Indeed," Fred nodded in agreement. "In his last letter, he also told us that he wouldn't be going back to America and warned us to stay away from that country as well. He said that wizards unfamiliar with their laws could easily commit a serious crime and end up in Azkaban."
"We've never seen Albert so bluntly express his dislike for something," Fred and George said in unison.
Mr. Weasley was momentarily at a loss for words. In reality, many wizards weren't very clear about the situation in America, but the Daily Prophet had prominently mentioned a name: "Rappaport's Law."
Mr. Weasley felt that Rita Skeeter was deliberately stirring up trouble.
For example, the newspaper described how the staff of the American Magic Congress deliberately made things difficult for others out of jealousy and maliciously smeared the international Wizard's Chess champion in the Ghostly Daily Prophet just because he had defeated America's most promising Wizard's Chess player. How could this be true? And the American reporter deliberately twisted the facts and fabricated scandals because Albert refused to be interviewed?
Rita Skeeter even wrote in the conclusion of this interview:
> "This young international Wizard's Chess champion, who is wise beyond his years, must have had a close call. If he hadn't been so cautious in nature, he might have inadvertently violated the laws of the American Magic Congress and ended up spending the second half of this year in an American prison."
> "The author sincerely hopes that the American Magic Congress will consider Mr. Anderson's suggestion to print an immigration guide to American magic society, thus reducing the number of incoming wizards who inadvertently violate the laws of the American Magic Congress."
> "How could anyone write such things? It's as if the American Magic Congress is deliberately enticing wizards coming to America to break their laws."
However, once this newspaper was published, it aroused the sympathy of many wizards for their young champion's ordeal in America.
Albert received numerous letters of comfort, and many even sent him candies and other small gifts.
Yet, Albert tucked all these away in a box.
As they were discussing the newspaper article, Ron's untimely voice piped up, "Dad, I think Harry might be in some trouble. I've sent him twelve letters, but he hasn't replied to any of them."
"If Harry still doesn't reply in the next few days, I'll go and get him myself," Mr. Weasley said. "As you know, I've been quite busy lately!"
Although he felt that this matter was a bit presumptuous, he thought that if he went to invite Harry personally, his guardian should not refuse.
However, events unfolded even faster than Mr. Weasley had anticipated! Before the end of the workday that very day, Mr. Weasley heard from a colleague that the famous Harry Potter had violated the Secrecy Act by using magic in front of Muggles and had received a warning from the Ministry of Magic.
But Mr. Weasley had been busy with house searches lately, and he also needed to get approval from the Ministry, which made the process slower. He regretted not asking a friend to help him with the Floo Network.
Mr. Weasley did not know that upon learning of this, Ron and his twin brothers were also discussing Harry's situation.
"I think Harry must be in some big trouble," Ron said anxiously after hearing the news. "Otherwise, he wouldn't have used magic in front of Muggles. He knows it's forbidden."
"Maybe we can go and get him ourselves and bring him here as a guest," Fred suddenly suggested, taking out the multi-tool knife that Albert had sent them, with a note attached: "Just in case."
"We can't use magic," Ron reminded him.
"We can use Dad's car," George said without hesitation. "I think Albert is hinting that Harry might be locked up, so he thought we might need the lockpicking tools on this knife."
"Lockpicking?"
Ron was perplexed.
"That's a Muggle trick," Fred explained. "A little trick we learned from Albert. There are many doors in Hogwarts that can't be opened with the Alohomora spell, but they can be unlocked with Muggle methods."
Given his understanding of Albert, Fred believed that Albert had sent them this multi-tool knife with such a message because he had foreseen through prophecy that they would be going to rescue Harry Potter.
Of course, to Ron's ears, this sounded like Fred and George were just making excuses for themselves, but he agreed to use the flying car.
That car had been modified by Mr. Weasley. It could turn invisible, and at night, no one would notice a car flying in the sky.
"But how can we quietly take the car out?" Ron muttered.
"Don't worry, I have a way!" Fred said with a smile. "You go and keep an eye on Mom. George and I will get the car keys."
Late at night, Fred used the Summoning Charm to retrieve the car keys, and the three of them sneaked downstairs to the garage, climbed into the modified Ford, activated the invisibility button, and drove the car out of the garage, soaring into the sky.
(End of Chapter)
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