Chapter 556: New Projects
Chapter 556: New Projects
"Never seen such a spectacular scene!" Fred said, leaning in close, a strange sense of satisfaction on his face.
Harry looked at the notice board and understood what Fred meant. Over a hundred student club names were posted, most of which had been formed within a week. The students below were chattering excitedly, and Harry heard Justin confidently claiming he had "seen a hundred snuff bottles." Harry scanned the parchment and, sure enough, found a similar club, though he wasn't sure if it was for "Muggle crafts" or "Goblin magic artifacts."
Two people away, a Hufflepuff boy was enthusiastically introducing magical paintings, "If you just want to make the things in the picture move, that's the simplest part, just the basics. There are much more complex methods, and you can even interact with the people inside!"
"Isn't that just magical portraits? There are many hanging in the castle", his companion said.
"Of course not!" The boy's face turned red, and he raised his voice, "Imagine a little person trapped in a maze, trying to avoid being eaten by a hundred Acromantulas. They can only rely on you to escape. You have to use your brain to help the little person, and if they make it out, they'll cling to the canvas to thank you..."
Harry listened for a while, finding it quite interesting, but soon realized the boy was inviting listeners to join his "Magical Painting Club." Harry's mouth dropped open in surprise.
At that moment, Hermione emerged from the crowd, beaming.
"Success!" she said with a broad smile, "Three people are interested in joining S.P.E.W., all first-years. I didn't expect this year's new students to be so compassionate."
"Hermione, don't abuse your prefect powers. That's what you told me", Ron said.
Hermione raised an eyebrow.
Ron pursed his lips and fell silent. When Hermione turned to rejoin the crowd, he leaned in and whispered to Harry, "If it weren't for her prefect powers, it would only mean that the new young wizards lack proper education before they enter. They can't even spell 'vomit' correctly..."
In a corner, Felix and Snape stood together.
"I thought you wouldn't bother with these trivial matters", Snape said, his lips moving slightly, keeping his voice low so only they could hear.
"Just a small effort", Felix replied, watching the bustling students.
He felt he had developed a peculiar habit after studying Dementors—enjoying being in positive, joyful atmospheres. Unfortunately, halfway through his research, he ran out of Dementors. The last one had been so hungry that it couldn't resist eating part of the Quidditch pitch emotions he had gathered. So Felix conducted a few destructive experiments on that Dementor...
While considering how to replenish his supply, he asked softly, "Have you been under a lot of pressure with your part-time job lately?"
Snape took a deep breath and said in a flat tone, "Easier than teaching a group of trolls."
"Oh", Felix nodded, counting the Gryffindor students in the crowd. "One, two, three, four..."
Snape turned his head to look at him expressionlessly. Felix smacked his lips, "At least I don't have that problem. Both Slytherin and Gryffindor students are performing well..." He paused and added, "Someone told me that the person whose name cannot be mentioned has been quite dejected lately. The Ministry of Magic's Aurors are a bit disappointed. You know, meaningless overtime is the most frustrating."
Snape remained silent.
His memory went back to a little over two weeks ago. After the battle in Hogsmeade, it didn't take long for him to feel his Dark Mark burning hot, signaling that Voldemort was summoning him. He didn't leave immediately, as Voldemort had granted him the privilege of not having to respond right away due to his role as a spy.
So he acted as if nothing had happened, waiting calmly for Dumbledore to return. Dumbledore showed him a withered hand, muttering about how much time he had left. Snape had wanted to punch Dumbledore's twisted nose.
Dumbledore wasn't injured, at least not in Snape's view. The real concern wasn't the hand but his suddenly youthful face. But after asking a few questions, the conversation was diverted.
Snape knew what Dumbledore was doing. He stared at the withered, charred, lifeless hand, imprinting the image deeply in his mind, ready to manipulate it into the memory he needed when the time came.
The Dark Mark changed twice that day, each time more urgent, until it caused him unbearable pain.
So Snape had to meet Voldemort a bit earlier than planned. Before leaving, he had an excuse ready—Dumbledore had ordered him to stay at the school, so he couldn't leave. But when they met, Voldemort didn't ask about it at all. Snape had never seen Voldemort so out of control, his red eyes seeming to want to devour someone.
Bellatrix—the key woman, the one Dumbledore had instructed him to watch—was currently with Voldemort, trembling in fear.
Voldemort had told him to immediately return to the castle and go to a chamber on the eighth floor to retrieve a broken diadem. "A cabinet filled with junk, splashed with strong acid, a wizard's statue with a head covering, and a broken Vanishing Cabinet..." He described it in meticulous detail, fearing that Snape might not find it.
Snape agreed, though he suspected Voldemort would be disappointed.
Voldemort then asked detailed questions about Harry Potter's scar, and Snape recounted everything. After that, Voldemort inquired about Parseltongue, a secret that had been exposed during Harry's second year. Snape did not hide anything. The conversation was followed by a long, suffocating silence. Bellatrix remained motionless, like a quail, maintaining a ridiculous posture throughout.
Finally, Voldemort asked about Dumbledore's injury. Snape, following Dumbledore's instructions, detailed every encounter he had with the Headmaster from the start of the term, noting that Dumbledore always wore gloves.
Upon hearing this, Voldemort's face showed a complex mix of frustration and satisfaction.
Snape was then ordered to return to the school immediately to confirm the diadem's status and report back before dawn.
Snape thought Voldemort was mad, seemingly unconcerned about whether his spy would be exposed, but he still agreed. Snape returned to the school, appearing like a ghost on the eighth floor, then turned into the Headmaster's Office—such was the life of a double agent, where even reporting took twice as long.
Estimating that enough time had passed, he met Voldemort again.
This time, the meeting place was at Augustus Rookwood's old house. The "loyal" Death Eater was currently imprisoned in Azkaban, so Voldemort had taken over the house without hesitation. Bellatrix was still by Voldemort's side, as if he intended to keep her around.
Snape reported the gathered information without showing any emotion, confirming that the diadem was missing. Voldemort flew into a rage, and even the term "flew into a rage" seemed to understate the intensity. He paced the dimly lit room, his yew wand hissing. Voldemort cursed Dumbledore loudly, using every vile word he could think of.
Contradictory orders spewed from his mouth.
First, he instructed Snape to poison Dumbledore under the guise of treating his injuries, "Let Dumbledore die, die!" Voldemort roared madly, but soon he dismissed the idea. "Investigate the diadem's whereabouts", he ground out through clenched teeth, "We must find out if it has been destroyed or hidden... if necessary, break into the Headmaster's Office, no, wait for my message..."
"I will arrange for a Ministry of Magic spy to assist you."
But for the next half a month, Voldemort was completely silent, and Snape had no idea who this spy was. Had the person decided not to come?
In the following days, a restless atmosphere enveloped Hogwarts.
Although the last weekend of November was still a few days away, the students were already eager to start their activities. They often used the opportunity of shared classes between different houses to recruit members for their clubs.
According to Felix's observations, Gryffindor and Slytherin had minimal interaction, but both had independently targeted Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff students.
Even during casual strolls, one could see students from different houses huddled together, whispering.
But Felix never expected that a student would approach him.
"Hey, Felix." Luna peeked out from behind a suit of armor, looking around nervously, and then excitedly jumped out when she saw him.
Felix walked over, "Luna?" He looked at her with surprise. Not far away, a group of girls hid behind a column, watching them.
"It's like this", Luna said seriously, "I want to invite you to join my club."
"Your club is—"
"The 'Horned Snorkack Must Exist' Club."
"Uh—" Felix paused, then cautiously asked, "Is it because you can't find enough members and need me to fill a spot? I'm not opposed to it, but I am a professor. I recommend Valen instead..."
"Oh, no, I already have three people", Luna said happily. "But if we can gather students from all four houses plus a professor, we can engrave the club's name on the candles in the Great Hall. It's first-come, first-served, so I need to act quickly."
Felix was a bit lost in thought. "How did you find out about this?"
"It's a hidden clue", Luna said.
More like a rumor, Felix thought to himself. He should have expected it. With the nature of Hogwarts students, all sorts of reliable and unreliable rumors would spread. He hadn't anticipated that Luna would be the one to fall for it. He glanced at the students in the corner, guessing they were the ones who had encouraged her.
Felix thought for a moment and lowered his voice. "Since you've found out, alright, I'll agree. But don't tell anyone else."
After he left, Luna was immediately surrounded by a group of chattering girls.
"How did it go? Did you succeed?"
Luna nodded.
"Is the information true?" one girl asked.
"The professor doesn't want me to say", Luna replied blankly.
"Oh..." The girls exchanged meaningful glances, concluding it was true. They then dispersed, probably to find another professor.
Felix returned to his office and pondered creating a portable Dementor capture cage. He could sell it to the Ministry of Magic and use Dementors to pay off his debts. He sat on the sofa, lost in thought, but couldn't come up with any ideas. He looked up and saw Valen flipping through the latest issue of Runic Script New Interpretation.
This academic journal was published by Luna's father, Xenophilius Lovegood, who sent Felix a sample issue every month along with the entire month's collection of The Quibbler.
The Quibbler was a typical wizarding tabloid. Though its circulation wasn't high, it had a dedicated readership. According to Felix's understanding—though Luna denied it—the newspaper was similar to an entertainment magazine, filled with hilarious conspiracy theories and discussions about mythical creatures.
Occasionally, it would seriously discuss serious topics, but the conclusions were often outlandish. Felix had anonymously published a few short essays on the future of wizarding society in it. One of them was about Mars exploration:
"A wizard planned to travel to Mars in a Muggle spacecraft to grow vegetables. He was stopped because he used the Undetectable Extension Charm to smuggle three hundred Muggles. The Ministry of Magic and the Muggle government claimed they would amend the law to prohibit carrying any opaque containers, resulting in hot water kettles becoming rare resources on Mars..."
The response was lukewarm.
Luna's father, inspired by a similar format, wrote a short story: a diviner traveled to Mars but couldn't make predictions due to the planet's strong 'aura,' leading to the diviner being hit by a meteorite while riding a broom.
This story had become a popular joke and, given the wizarding world's isolation, would likely remain relevant for centuries...
Valen wasn't interested in the obscure theories in Runic Script New Interpretation but enjoyed finding familiar names. As he flipped through the pages, he used his wand to write in the air, filling the office with crooked letters. Felix felt dizzy and reached out to gather the words into a glowing, sparkling ball.
Valen complained loudly.
Felix tossed the ball to Valen, who angrily threw it back. Soon, the two were happily playing this interesting (boring) game.
Before going to bed, Felix remembered to write a letter to his new pen pal at Nurmengard:
"...
This isn't a matter of courage or laziness, but of common sense. Even if I were born in your time, I wouldn't choose to oppose sixty thousand wizards and two billion Muggles—enslavement is the most time-consuming and labor-intensive method, let alone now that the population has tripled.
Speaking of tripling, it reminds me of a question about the Engorgement Charm. I have a colleague who grows a special kind of pumpkin—very large, indeed. Do you think eating these enchanted pumpkins long-term could lead to malnutrition or harm the soil?
I believe this topic is valuable and could fall under Muggle studies. Or perhaps it needs a new name?
...
Enclosed are two political books and the excellent newspaper I highly recommend—The Quibbler, with a daily circulation of over five hundred, definitely worth a read."
After finishing the letter, Felix straightened up and stretched. Valen, who had been lying on the desk opposite him, immediately closed the diary and watched him warily.
Felix frowned, wondering which unfortunate student had been defeated by Valen this time. He caught only two names: Astoria and Mafalda...
(End of Chapter)
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