Chapter 652: Treasures
Chapter 652: Treasures
On the last weekend of February, in the Ancient Runes office, an owl delivered the day's Daily Prophet.
Felix spread out the newspaper and read the headline on page six of the international news section: "American Ministry of Magic Announces No Plans to Introduce Exclusive Wands; Squib Groups Storm Woolworth Building." After carefully reading the article, he found the reporter hadn't uncovered as much as he already knew.
The living conditions for wizards in the Americas were vastly different from those in Europe and Africa.
For example, the British Ministry of Magic would maintain a single line of communication with the Muggle Prime Minister during significant events, a practice that other European ministries followed. In Africa, the situation was different: due to the prevalence of mystical cultures and slow information dissemination, many wizards there operated semi-publicly under the guise of shamans, priests, and seers—though this was far from acceptable in Britain.
Public casting often led to outcomes like the second Carlotta Pincrust incident. Therefore, Felix and Mrs. Bones believed that if the wizarding world were forced to go public, the Americas and Africa were far more likely to face significant issues than Europe.
Thus, Mrs. Bones had already entrusted the British representative to the International Confederation of Wizards to submit a warning proposal.
During this time, Felix faced considerable criticism, primarily because "the invention of exclusive wands would exacerbate the already strained secrecy efforts." It wasn't surprising that the American Ministry of Magic, with the least stable magical environment, was the first to make such a decision.
At least more countries' ministries of magic chose to cautiously accept exclusive wands, which was enough for him.
The chaos in the American Ministry of Magic had been foreseeable for some time.
Recently, Minerva had received many American wizard families, whose parents hoped their children could attend Hogwarts, and they themselves were planning to move to Britain.
"The Noels are just the most sensitive, or perhaps the most timid", Felix thought, based on the information Minerva had shared. Such occurrences were not uncommon. During the First Wizarding War, many British wizards fled abroad, and the smuggling activities were rampant.
Wizards found it much easier to travel from one end of the Earth to the other compared to Muggles.
In Felix's view, many wizards didn't have a strong sense of distance. Traveling from Britain to France or the Americas took roughly the same amount of time—just a Portkey away. The only reminder of the difference was the number of Galleons they paid.
After the war, these wizard families returned to Britain, though some chose to remain abroad.
Now, with the American Ministry of Magic and the Reform Society stirring up debates and arguments that even reached the International Confederation of Wizards, the new Confederation president was quite distressed.
Felix never expected to be the catalyst for these events.
Valen lay in front of a specially made Pensieve, curiously examining the silvery substance inside. Holding his exclusive wand, he glanced at Felix, who showed no reaction. Valen then used the tip of his wand to stir the thoughts within.
A young voice, tinged with an echo, emerged:
"I don't mean to disrespect Hagrid, Professor Dumbledore. I just think... keeping Acromantulas in the castle is too dangerous. I am a prefect."
Valen was surprised and quickly withdrew his exclusive wand. The silvery substance in the Pensieve swirled slightly, and another voice, clearly that of the Dark Lord, echoed through the Pensieve. Valen's bright black eyes widened.
"… I hear you're looking for the legendary Chamber of Secrets? It's a mess, and I plan to turn it into an amusement park. Don't you agree that Hogwarts students lack entertainment? What do you like…"
Felix looked out the window, then glanced at the calendar and marked a tick on March 10th. He stood up and stretched his neck.
"Come on, Valen. Let's go to the Great Hall and see the students' progress over the past half-month. We might even catch some splinching if we're lucky!" he said lazily. "I have a student who managed to barely master apparition in just a few days. Scary, isn't it?"
...
Harry was discharged from the hospital earlier that day. He firmly shook off Madam Pomfrey's persistent attention and returned to the common room, only to find few familiar faces.
"Harry, you're out of the hospital?" Gut, a member of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, said happily. He announced loudly, "Hey everyone, welcome back our Ghost Captain!" The people in the common room politely clapped, and Beater Perks whistled loudly.
"Where are the others?" Harry asked.
"They're in the Great Hall for apparition lessons", Gut replied.
Harry thanked him and waved to Perks and Demelza Robbins in the distance. He went to the dormitory, which was empty. He was somewhat puzzled to find an apparition certificate and a small bag of Galleons on his bed. He counted them—exactly twelve. He knew this was the refund for the fee he had paid to enroll in the apparition class.
Harry was surprised. Had the Ministry of Magic only just remembered to bring them their certificates after a whole year? Why couldn't they have sent them by mail? He thought that if he had received his, Ron and Hermione must have theirs as well.
He entered the Great Hall, which was bustling with students chatting in small groups. The floor was littered with hundreds of wooden hoops used for apparition practice.
Harry looked around but couldn't see a single professor. What was going on? Fortunately, he spotted a familiar face and walked over just in time to hear Ron sharing his apparition practice experiences with someone.
Hermione and Neville were there, along with Ginny, who looked visibly uncomfortable.
"… The more you fear it, the worse it gets, really! When I was learning apparition, I had several serious splinching incidents… Yeah, Professor Hup helped a couple of times, but after that, we had to deal with it ourselves, like losing an eyebrow or getting a small cut…"
"It's definitely tough", Ron said. "I always struggle with direction… Harry is the one who's really good at it."
To maintain their newly repaired friendship, Ron didn't hesitate to praise Harry. Normally, the conversation would have turned to "The Weasleys' One Hundred Thrilling Apparitions."
"Harry!" Ginny exclaimed, jumping up to hug him. "We were just discussing coming to see you later."
"I don't want to stick around until Easter", Harry muttered.
He then noticed that the people around him were looking at him with keen interest.
"I remember, Harry used consecutive apparitions to retrieve the golden egg from a fire dragon's protection", Parvati Patil said.
"I thought it was just luck", another student said.
"Of course not, Harry is particularly skilled at it!" Ron, emboldened by Harry's presence, said even more enthusiastically. "Remember when I used 'apparition plus Stunning Spell' to defeat Nona Lebber in the third task of the Triwizard Tournament? Apparition while casting is extremely difficult and is considered an advanced technique even among Aurors."
Ginny rolled her eyes.
She had obtained some Auror training materials from Tonks a long time ago and knew a bit about it. While combining apparition with rapid casting was indeed an advanced dueling technique, many considered it flashy and impractical due to the high risk of error, especially splinching, which could be fatal and a laughing stock for enemies.
Moreover, most people couldn't overcome the disorientation caused by rapid movement. After learning Professor Hup's classification of magic, Tonks' opinion was that "apparition below level four is not suitable for combat."
On the other side, Ron's tales grew more and more fantastical, stirring the students' curiosity.
"Harry, we've never seen you demonstrate in the club. Now that the professor isn't here—" Dean said. The crowd joined in, urging Harry to show them. Harry glared at Ron but found himself feeling a bit eager as well. "I need a target."
"Happy to oblige", Ron said with a grin.
They walked to a clear spot in the corner. As Ron passed Hermione and Neville, he whispered, "If I can't hold up, remember to come and save me."
A dozen or so Gryffindor students stood up and formed a loose half-circle.
Ron stood by the wall, raising his wand to cast an Enhanced Perception Spell on himself.
"Ready?" Dean, acting as the referee, asked. Both Ron and Harry took their roles seriously. "Three—two—one—go!"
A Disarming Charm flew toward Ron, who ducked to avoid it. At that moment, Harry vanished from his spot—eliciting cheers from the crowd—and reappeared on Ron's right side, his wand tip glowing red and ready to fire. Ron quickly formed a small Shield Charm on his chest to block the spell.
Students resting nearby noticed the commotion and gathered around.
For the next few seconds, the two of them exchanged non-lethal spells: Disarming Charm, Binding Charm, Stunning Spell, Petrification Charm, and even the students' favorite prank jinxes. Harry was particularly eager to try the toe-growing jinx on Ron.
"They're amazing", a younger student said, amazed.
"I'm not surprised by Harry's performance, but Ron—his Silent Spells are that good too?"
"Ah, he's not doing well in Transfiguration Class; he still can't hide his freckles smoothly. His first batch of Silent Spells were mostly dueling spells…"
"What kind of magic is that?" another seventh-year student asked, shocked.
The two in the center exchanged spells, their movements quick and fluid. They dodged the spells flying at them, and when they couldn't, they formed small shields in front of them to block the spells before immediately countering. The pace was so fast it was dizzying.
"Like the human shield charm, it's one of the advanced techniques of the Shield Charm", Neville explained.
Harry would occasionally disappear, reappearing unexpectedly from a corner to fire a spell at Ron. When this happened, Ron would quickly retreat, positioning himself with his back to the castle wall and focusing on Harry's movements. Or he would cast a full Shield Charm in the opposite direction, concentrating on the other side, and with the enhanced senses from the Enhanced Perception Spell, he managed to keep up.
The students watched with wide eyes, but they didn't see the consecutive apparitions.
"Harry, come on!" Dean shouted.
Harry held his breath and locked eyes with Ron. They exchanged a knowing glance. "They're all waiting", Ron said with a grin. In the next second, Harry vanished, his wand jabbing straight out as a Disarming Charm shot out with a sharp whistle. Then he disappeared from his spot, reappearing in mid-air near the ceiling of the Great Hall, blending seamlessly with the clear, azure sky above.
Suspended in mid-air, Harry lightly waved his wand, and a dozen candles came crashing down. The onlookers were still searching for Harry, but a group of students who had just arrived and the professors emerging from the staff room witnessed the scene.
Draco Malfoy, juggling a white peacock that had once been a goblet, turned his head and stared at Harry, a flash of frustration in his eyes.
"Oh, my!" Professor Mcgonagall clutched her chest. The other professors were dumbfounded, except for Felix, who had a faint smile on his lips.
Harry's attack was far from over.
As he fell, he apparated again, this time appearing to the right of Ron. Normally, he would have appeared behind the enemy, but this was just a demonstration. He flicked his wrist, and a red and gold spell followed the previous one, forming a continuous assault like a tidal wave surging toward Ron.
The crowd erupted in surprised cheers.
Ron, who had been warned in advance, cast his spell with a dramatic flair, waiting until the last second to conjure a spherical magic barrier to protect himself. Bang, bang, bang, bang—Harry's spells collided with the barrier, creating ripples, and the candles shattered on the ground, breaking into pieces.
The students' gazes followed the falling candles, and the Great Hall fell silent. A series of hurried footsteps approached, and the crowd turned to see Professor Mcgonagall striding over. She pushed through the students and demanded, "What's going on here?"
"We're demonstrating apparition", Harry said honestly.
"Yes, Professor Mcgonagall", Dean chimed in. "Professor Tencross mentioned Harry earlier, and since he was here today, we thought it would be a good idea for him to show everyone." Harry and Ron nodded vigorously.
Professor Mcgonagall raised an eyebrow.
"Minerva", a pale wizard appeared, trying to reassure her. He was the apparition instructor from the Ministry of Magic, Professor Tencross. "I did mention it earlier. It's clear that Potter and the others were very restrained and didn't use any unauthorized spells. I believe this impressive demonstration will encourage the other students to take apparition more seriously."
The surrounding students murmured their agreement.
"Very well, if that's the case—" Professor Mcgonagall's lips pressed into a thin line. "No points will be deducted, but since you have so much free time, you might as well stay and assist Professor Tencross in maintaining order. It will save you from..."
Harry opened his mouth but didn't dare object. Ron, however, readily agreed.
"Alright", Tencross clapped his hands. "Back to your positions. This time, I hope someone manages to apparate into the hoop..."
The students dispersed, and Grindelwald, who had appeared at some point, stood in a corner, his eyes following Harry as he trailed behind Tencross. He observed closely, his lips trembling slightly, as if he were studying a rare treasure.
The apparition class continued until noon. The professors moved the long tables back to their original positions, and the exhausted sixth-year and some seventh-year students stayed to wait for lunch. Harry took the opportunity to ask about the apparition license.
"Professor Tencross didn't say the reason directly, but I think it's a matter of influence", Hermione whispered to Harry. "After all, if the Ministry of Magic had issued us the license last year, it would have been a clear violation of the rules. But this year is different..."
Harry took a while to understand the logic. They didn't need apparition at school, and by the end of the school year, it would be early July, just a month before he turned seventeen. For the Ministry of Magic, it would have little impact.
At eight o'clock in the evening, Harry stood before the stone gargoyle guarding the headmaster's office and spoke the password, "Bubblegum Super." The gargoyle leaped aside, and the wall behind it split open. Harry stepped onto the spiral stone staircase, which began to rise. As it ascended, he couldn't help but speculate about what Dumbledore would teach him tonight.
The staircase stopped, and a gleaming oak door with a brass griffin door knocker appeared.
Harry took a deep breath and gripped the door knocker.
Knock, knock, knock! The door opened silently.
(End of Chapter)
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