Chapter 693: Incentives Drive Action
Chapter 693: Incentives Drive Action
The rain pattered against the window panes, a dreary backdrop to Fred's glum mood. Ever since the pressure of O.W.Ls loomed over them, life had become a grind. Well, except for that lucky sod, Albert, who always seemed to be living the good life, exams or no exams.
Unlike them, he didn't have piles of endless homework and the added burden of practicing magic day in and day out.
Sigh!
The gap between people was even wider than that between humans and dogs.
Fred couldn't help but feel that Albert always made a lot of sense.
Damn it! He forced himself to focus on the homework spread out on the table, determined to finish it before bedtime.
Ugh, I really don't feel like doing this! "What's this?" Fred asked, dragging his gaze from the window to the parchment on the table.
"A safe house," Albert replied, keeping his voice low.
"A safe house? What's that?" George joined Fred, peering at the parchment that displayed a house's floor plan and marked-up spells, though their purpose wasn't immediately clear.
"Think of it as a secure hiding place," Albert explained. "I'm exploring ways to better conceal a building, like the one on the eighth floor, making it impossible to locate or enter. But it's not easy. Once the specific location is known, there are many ways for a wizard to find it."
"A truth-detecting device or a Dark Magic detector?" George suggested without hesitation.
"Exactly. So, for a place like this, concealment is key. Then, with the use of charms, it can be made untraceable and unable to be marked on maps. Any tracking spells or owls won't be able to pinpoint its location. Additionally, it needs to be surrounded by powerful magic protections to ensure that any wizard attempting to enter must use a special method. As long as you hide inside, you won't have to worry about enemies finding you."
"Yeah, a secret base, right!" The twins' limited brainstorming led them to this conclusion.
In fact, the Gryffindor common room they had visited before was one such place.
"I think with your methods and a location in the middle of nowhere, there's no need to worry about anyone finding it," Fred commented, feeling that Albert was overthinking things.
Yeah! As long as it's not exposed, who would bother to go to such a remote place to look for a secret base?
"You'll realize that's still not enough to ensure safety," Albert said, his thoughts already turning to the upcoming Second Wizarding War.
He had never expected to be able to crush Voldemort in his cradle.
The Dark Lord would definitely find a way to resurrect himself.
When that happened, he'd find a safe place to lie low and wait for the rewards of victory to come to him.
As for the Triwizard Tournament next year, Albert was definitely going to participate. He was certain that the task rewards would be generous, and there was no way he'd pass up such an opportunity, especially with minimal risk involved.
As for Mad-Eye Moody, aka Barty Crouch Jr.? Albert wasn't concerned in the slightest. He had plenty of ways to deal with that imposter.
And regarding Voldemort's resurrection, Albert was equally unworried. As the final boss, even without the help of Wormtail and Crouch Jr., he was confident that Voldemort would still manage to slither out of that boiling cauldron as a noseless freak.
Such was his faith in the narrative structure of a villain's resilience.
"What are you thinking about?" George asked, interrupting his train of thought.
"I was wondering if the golden cauldron for the Magical Schools Potions Championship is actually made of gold or just gilded," Albert mused softly. "I wonder if there's a cash prize for winning, too."
"I think... it's probably gilded," George said uncertainly. "These kinds of awards are usually stingy, only offering a title."
"Was the International Wizarding Chess Championship trophy you won gilded?" Fred asked curiously.
"I'm sure it was," George replied, rolling his eyes. "Otherwise, Albert wouldn't be questioning whether the golden cauldron is real gold or not. If there's a cash prize, you can bet the trophy will be gilded."
Albert's eyes twitched. He had merely made a passing comment, and now these two were going on and on about it. Were they just trying to find an excuse to avoid doing their homework?
As Fred and George continued to banter about the likelihood of gilded prizes in the trophy room, Lee Jordan finally made his way down from the dormitory.
"What are you doing in the dorm? Did it take you this long just to find a book?"
"No, you'd better head back to the dorms and take a look. Didn't Albert mention this morning that he hadn't received any birthday gifts? I wonder who sent those presents to his room." Lee Jordan suggested that the trio return to their dormitory.
The three boys exchanged glances, gathered their homework, and hurried back to their dorm.
"Wow, that's quite a haul! Someone might mistake you for celebrating Christmas early if they didn't know better," Fred exclaimed as soon as he opened the door, taking in the pile of gifts on the floor.
"Don't be silly, it's still months away from the Christmas holidays," Albert chimed in, equally surprised by the unexpected abundance of birthday presents.
He casually picked up one of the parcels and glanced at the sender's information, recognizing it as a gift from an old friend.
Ever since acquiring a house-elf, Albert made it a yearly tradition to send woolen socks, gloves, or hats as Christmas gifts to his older friends. He knew that while they might not need much, the sentiment behind these woolen gifts was sure to be appreciated.
Of course, there were also plenty of gifts from his friends at school among the parcels.
"You sure have a lot of friends," Fred remarked.
Fred and George exchanged a glance, their eyes sparkling with anticipation. "Do you want us to help you open these packages?" they asked eagerly.
"You can help me test them with the truth-detecting device first," Albert said, pointing to his drawer. "Let's inspect them before we open them."
"You're really cautious," Fred mumbled as he opened the drawer and pulled out the metal rod.
"I bet half of these are books," George said with a grin as he took the truth-detecting device and began checking the packages for any traces of magic or magical items.
Indeed, George's prediction was correct. Most people liked to gift Albert books, knowing his love for reading. It seemed like an obvious choice—inexpensive yet classy.
Soon enough, the table was stacked with books.
"I think you'll be able to open your own library in a few years with all these books," Lee Jordan remarked dryly, eyeing the growing pile.
"I was just thinking the same," Albert said. "With these new additions, I already have enough books to fill a bookshelf." He pulled out a small box from his trunk and opened it to reveal a miniature bookshelf filled with tiny books.
In fact, George, knowing of Albert's intention to participate in the Magical Schools Potions Championship, had also sent him a copy of 'Witch's Potions'.
Fred's gift was a small box of magical candies, some of which they had made themselves and marked as untested.
True to form, Lee Jordan's gift was a large box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans.
Without hesitation, he tore into the box and shared the beans with the others.
Hermione's gift was a beautiful quill pen, while Isabelle's was a plain gray scarf, finely knitted but a bit short—clearly a handmade gift.
Catrina sent a book titled 'Alchemy, Ancient Arts and Sciences', along with a note mentioning that it was a return gift for the hat. Quite the proud and aloof young lady.
The most surprising gift, however, came from America. Katherine, seemingly aware of his plans to join the Magical Schools Potions Championship, had sent him a copy of 'Potions'—a comprehensive book on the subject.
As for Daisy and Herbert, their gift was a thick dictionary of a foreign language they were currently studying. It seemed they had gone to great lengths to acquire it.
In her letter, Daisy also mentioned that Herbert intended to travel to the colonies for an inspection tour.
Not many relatives were willing to join the venture. Most lacked confidence in investing across nations, especially considering the impending loss of colonial control by the nation in the coming years. Who knew if they would face retaliation from rebellious colonists? Only Uncle Charlie, after hearing from Daisy that it was Albert's suggestion, thought it made sense and decided to invest some pounds, showing his support for Daisy's endeavor.
After all, Charlie's current success was also due in no small part to Albert's advice. He believed in Albert's potential and sharp eye for opportunities, confident that he wouldn't lose money on this venture. Otherwise, how could he have convinced Herbert to fly halfway across the world to inspect the colonies unless he was mad?
"This is the power of money, isn't it?" Albert couldn't help but marvel at the influence of financial incentives.
With this, he was confident that temporarily relocating his family to the colonies for a while would be a smooth process.
(End of Chapter)
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