Chapter 783: Voldemort's Obsession
Chapter 783: Voldemort's Obsession
It was a rare occasion at Number 12, Grimmauld Place, as everyone gathered to celebrate a memorable day, and some of the old-timers took the opportunity to indulge in a little drink.
Usually, they dared not drink, always on alert for any unexpected situations. But with Dumbledore present, they could afford to let loose a little.
When Sirius returned with a bottle of Firewhisky from the Black family, a vintage of unknown age, he found that everyone around the table had already started toasting.
"Hey, why couldn't you wait for me?" Sirius placed the bottle on the table with a hint of dissatisfaction. "You have no idea what a great thing you missed. A Firewhisky of this vintage, even I couldn't find a second bottle."
"It's fine. You can save it for Remus's wedding," Mr. Weasley said nonchalantly. "But for now, put down that broken bottle and taste this instead."
"Broken bottle?" Sirius wondered if he hadn't made himself clear, and subconsciously turned the bottle, revealing the date 1859 on it.
"Look closely. This is Ogden's finest Dragon Crystal Firewhisky, a true vintage. How can you call it a broken bottle?"
"Hmph, it's not even a hundred and fifty years old," Mr. Weasley scoffed, feigning indifference.
Sirius was even more confused. When did a hundred and fifty-year-old Firewhisky become so unappealing?
"Arthur was right. You should have put that broken bottle away," Lupin finally intervened, unable to bear it any longer. He picked up an ordinary glass bottle from the side and poured the amber-colored honey wine into Sirius's cup.
"This is the real treasure... a thousand-year-old mead."
"Mead? Wait, did you say a thousand years?" Sirius almost jumped out of his chair, his eyes wide as he looked at Lupin. "I've never heard of a thousand-year-old mead before."
"The process is a bit complicated," Dumbledore smiled. "But if we're just talking about time, then yes, it's true. Why don't you give it a taste?"
Dumbledore's assurance seemed more credible than Lupin's, and Sirius, half-believing, took a sip of the mead. Then, he set the Firewhisky aside.
This wasn't surprising. After all, it was a product of Helga Hufflepuff, and even without considering the aging process, the taste was undoubtedly exceptional. This was the basic requirement for a foodie.
After a few sips of mead, the atmosphere of the banquet became even livelier.
After Sirius arrived, it was time for the birthday gift-giving.
Most of the gifts were for Harry, as he was currently staying there and couldn't receive gifts in advance like Kyle. Moreover, this year marked his seventeenth birthday, a significant milestone for a wizard.
Indeed, it was a birthday worth celebrating, and if it weren't for Dumbledore's impromptu meeting, more people might have stayed for dinner.
Even Mundungus Fletcher politely left a mailbox as a gift, a real mailbox, possibly taken from a Muggle household.
Later, with Harry's permission, Mrs. Weasley threw it away.
Actually, Harry had intended to pass it on to Mr. Weasley, as he seemed genuinely interested, but unfortunately, Mrs. Weasley disagreed, and her attitude was firm.
So, Harry gave up on the idea.
At the table, the adults presented their prepared gifts, including Dumbledore.
His gift for Harry was similar to Kyle's, both woolen products, but Harry received a pair of shorts... or perhaps they were shorts.
Although Kyle didn't understand what state of mind Dumbledore was in when he came up with these gifts, he had to admit that after seeing Kyle's gift, his woolen short-sleeved shirt suddenly seemed more acceptable... no, it was acceptable. At least when wearing it out, he would only attract stares, and that was already a good thing.
There was also a gift from Fred and George, 'The Twelve Winning Ways to Charm Witches,' which they believed Harry needed.
Kyle also curiously flipped through it. How to describe it? It was quite ordinary, with its reputation exceeding its actual content.
Moreover, the methods were outdated. Single Muggle gentlemen hadn't used these pick-up lines on girls for a decade.
But Ron highly praised this book and treated it as a treasure. Bill and Charlie also kept telling Harry about the book's benefits, indicating that wizards lacked knowledge in this area.
The banquet proceeded smoothly, and an hour later, Dumbledore was the first to stand up and leave the table. He had many other matters to attend to and couldn't stay there indefinitely.
Sirius had wanted to see Dumbledore off, but Dumbledore shook his head. He turned to Kyle, smiling, "If you're done eating, I have a few words for you..."
"Oh, of course."
Kyle understood Dumbledore's intention and helped him to the door.
The moonlight outside was bright, but after passing through London's thick sky, it only cast a hazy glow on the ground.
Dumbledore stood at the door, struggling to put on his robe with one hand, while Kyle stood by, arms crossed, unconcerned and showing no intention of helping.
"I thought you'd help me," Dumbledore joked, "I'm not quite used to it yet."
"Oh, I thought this was your new pastime, after all... Wandless magic is pretty simple," Kyle shrugged, taking off his robe and tossing it aside. With a flick of his fingers, the robe flew back onto his body.
"Not everything needs to be solved with magic," Dumbledore said.
Kyle felt that Dumbledore had something else on his mind, but Dumbledore didn't elaborate further.
He adjusted his robe and lifted his immobile arm, sliding it into the sleeve.
"I still have some things to do," he said to Kyle. "I want you to promise me that before I return, you won't put any of your wild ideas into practice."
"What wild ideas?" Kyle blinked, not understanding what he meant.
A few seconds later, he realized Dumbledore was referring to the plan to attack Voldemort by using noise.
"Don't worry, Professor," Kyle said without hesitation. "I'm not stupid enough to provoke..." He paused for a moment before continuing, "...the mysterious Dark Lord with the Elder Wand."
Dumbledore's eyes flickered slightly, feeling that Kyle was hinting at something, but he had no proof, and even if he did, he couldn't say anything.
After all, it was Kyle who had lost the Elder Wand.
But Dumbledore didn't mind. After getting the answer he wanted, he nodded and disappeared into the hazy night.
On the street not far away, a drunkard stared blankly at them, his hand outstretched and mouth agape, as if he would scream in the next second.
"Obliviate."
Before the drunkard could utter a sound, Kyle waved his hand lightly, and the man's expression immediately became dazed. He rubbed his eyes, seemingly puzzled as to why he had suddenly stopped. Then, shaking his head, he continued to stagger forward.
Meanwhile, Kyle had already returned to the house.
The birthday celebration had concluded, and the guests were now discussing the wedding scheduled for the following day.
After a brief and somewhat hasty discussion, Lupin and Tonks decided to set the wedding date for the next day.
This decision might have been influenced by Dumbledore's injury as well.
Upon learning that Dumbledore had lost the use of one arm and had his wand stolen, the guests felt a sense of urgency to address important matters promptly.
However, these were concerns for the Weasleys and others, not for Kyle, Harry, and their friends. After finishing their dessert, they were sent back to their rooms.
Back in his room, Kyle finally had time to reflect on the recent events.
First was Harry's relocation, which undoubtedly presented Voldemort with the best opportunity to kill him. Everyone believed that Voldemort would seize this chance, no matter the cost, to eliminate the one who had defeated him.
But to everyone's surprise, Voldemort ignored Harry and unexpectedly attacked the Ministry of the Phoenix, focusing their attention on Privet Drive while launching an unforeseen assault on another critical target... the Ministry of Magic."
They succeeded in killing Minister Fudge, dealing a severe blow to the morale of the Ministry.
Additionally, the Floo Network was deliberately disrupted, and several crucial letters were stolen. The Aurors' operational plans were exposed, leaving them vulnerable.
This attack was a significant victory for the Death Eaters, granting them a substantial advantage without much effort.
Moreover, in Austria, Voldemort took advantage of Ollivander's involvement to disable Dumbledore's arm and seize the powerful Elder Wand.
Kyle was uncertain if Dumbledore was aware of this, but the theft of the Elder Wand was undeniable. Even without complete mastery, the acquisition of the wand acknowledged as the most potent would undoubtedly enhance Voldemort's power significantly.
It might be said that Dumbledore may no longer be a match for Voldemort.
Kyle leaned back in his chair, gazing out the window in a daze.
He couldn't comprehend why Voldemort had suddenly abandoned his obsession with killing Harry. Kyle had always believed that Voldemort's soul, fragmented into numerous pieces, fostered a near-insane fixation on Harry, the one who had defeated him once.
He wanted revenge, and by killing Harry himself, he would prove to everyone that the "Savior" was nothing but a self-deceiving joke, a false hope, and that he was always the unbeatable Dark Lord.
In fact, he had been doing this all along. The Death Eaters had several opportunities to kill Harry.
For instance, during the Triwizard Tournament, when Barty Crouch Jr. disguised as Filch kidnapped Harry, it was because Voldemort wanted to kill Harry himself, which is why he kept him alive until the end of the ceremony and also waited for Kyle's rescue.
And when they were trying to retrieve the prophecy orb in the Department of Mysteries, everyone else faced two or more Death Eaters, but there wasn't a single one around Harry, and he was as relaxed as if he were window shopping.
Even the Death Eaters' spells were cast while avoiding him as much as possible, fearing that they might accidentally kill him.
This was obviously Voldemort's requirement; he needed Harry alive, and the Death Eaters would never dare to kill him.
All of this proves how deep Voldemort's obsession with Harry was... But how could he give up such a good opportunity to relocate?
It's as if Harry had suddenly gone from being his nemesis to an insignificant passerby.
But it was indeed correct to let go of this obsession, as the Death Eaters immediately gained an unprecedented advantage.
However, this wasn't so friendly for them.
"Bang, bang..."
Kyle's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a knock on the door.
He opened it, and it was Chris.
"What are you thinking about?" Chris asked.
"Nothing, Dad," Kyle shook his head. "Have you finished discussing the wedding details?"
"Almost, and there's not much to discuss," Chris said as he walked in. "Given the current situation, everyone wants to keep the guest list small and avoid making it too complicated.
Remus and Nymphadora just want to go through the formalities and have everyone witness it together."
"Is that so?" Kyle nodded. "But you'd better not say that in front of her. It would be a bit of a scene if the bride starts fighting with the guests at the wedding."
"Oh, I almost forgot. Tonks doesn't like others calling her by her name," Chris said with a smile. "Good thing you reminded me. I was wondering why she was giving me such a strange look, and her hair turned red for some reason."
Kyle smiled.
Tonks' mood was often reflected in her hair color. For example, when she announced her marriage to Lupin, her hair was a pinkish bubblegum color.
Deep red or brown usually indicated that she was a bit upset, but it was surprising that she didn't remind Chris, something Kyle hadn't expected.
The two chatted for a while about wedding-related topics. Kyle had originally planned to provide the wine by simply pouring a couple of bottles from the goblet, also giving Lupin and Tonks some face.
But Chris told him that Sirius had taken on this task, including wine, dresses, and other wedding-related matters; he had taken care of everything.
Kyle thought about it and didn't say anything more. After all, the two of them were like brothers who would die for each other, and it wouldn't be appropriate for him to interfere.
"By the way, are you staying here tonight?" Kyle changed the subject. "I remember there are still many empty rooms upstairs, and they're all cleaned. Just a quick tidy up should be enough."
"No, I need to make a quick trip to the Ministry. There's a lot to do these days, and I might have to stay at the Ministry," Chris said.
"That busy?" Kyle furrowed his brows.
"It's busy, and we also need to closely observe some people's situations," Chris said vaguely. "Also, I came here today for another reason."
"What is it?"
"It's about Minister Bones. She asked me to remind you that it's time to get back to work; you can't keep drawing a salary for nothing."
Kyle felt a bit embarrassed; he had been deliberately ignoring this matter.
"But you don't need to go tomorrow. Starting the day after tomorrow is fine, just remember not to be late," Chris said.
Kyle nodded.
After saying this, Chris stood up and was about to leave. Kyle accompanied him downstairs to the living room.
When they got downstairs, Mr. Weasley was already waiting there, as he also needed to rush to the Ministry, and it was on the way. When Chris arrived, the two of them opened the door and walked out.
Kyle turned around and saw a few people crouching by the dining room door, eavesdropping on the conversation inside.
The most noticeable ones were naturally Fred and George, who had a device shaped like an ear stuck to the door, and the voices from inside could be heard from the other end.
Behind them, Harry, Ron, and Ginny formed a circle, listening intently to the voices coming from the ear-shaped device.
Seeing Harry, Kyle couldn't help but think about Voldemort's change.
Really... How come Harry suddenly lost his charm? Is Voldemort's pace of getting bored so fast?
(End of Chapter)
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