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Chapter 784: Godric's Valley
Chapter 784: Godric's Valley
The following morning, the weather was pleasant, neither too hot nor too cold, with a gentle breeze carrying a hint of dew.
The wedding of Lupin and Tonks was not held at Grimmauld Place No. 12, as there would be guests from outside the Order of the Phoenix attending, and for security reasons, they couldn't allow them into the Order's headquarters.
This was purely a precautionary measure, not a matter of trust.
After a night of discussion, they decided on an abandoned house in Godric's Valley.
At 5 a.m., they arrived at the location using a key.
Looking at the seemingly ordinary house before him, Sirius's expression was complex.
"Moony, are you sure about this?" he asked.
"Of course, Padfoot," Lupin smiled, "This is the most suitable place, isn't it? And I think Harry would be happy to be back here too.
"What I'm most worried about now is you..."
"I'm fine, really," Sirius turned away, wiping his eyes with his sleeve.
He understood Lupin's concern, as this was the Potter family home, where James and Lily had lived, and also where Voldemort had killed them.
And all of this was because of Sirius's ill-advised decision to change the Secret Keeper.
After being declared innocent, Sirius had purchased the house, but he couldn't quite explain why. Perhaps it was simply to keep a memento.
Sirius had once thought he would never return here, but the night they discussed the wedding location, he inexplicably mentioned this place, and even after saying it, he didn't realize what he had just said.
And so, the option of Stagwood Village was ruled out.
Without hesitation, Lupin had chosen the place where James and Lily had once lived as the venue for his wedding, and it was only then that Sirius came to his senses.
But by the time he wanted to take back his words, it was too late.
"You've made all the necessary preparations, haven't you?" Lupin patted Sirius, bringing him out of his thoughts.
"Yes, I have," Sirius said instinctively, "The Fidelius Charm, and I'm the Secret Keeper."
"You won't change it this time, will you?" Lupin asked with a smile.
"Absolutely not!" Sirius said firmly, as if reassuring himself, or perhaps someone else who wasn't there.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Harry was also staring blankly at the beautiful house before him, and Ron had called out to him several times, but he didn't respond.
"I didn't agree with choosing this place for the wedding," Mrs. Weasley sighed, "They didn't consider Harry's feelings at all."
"I believe they did think of Harry, which is why they chose this place," Mr. Weasley said, "Harry is an adult now, and there are things he has to face, things he must face. He can't keep running away."
"Why not? He has friends, he has us, he's happy now, why bring up these terrible memories?"
"Maybe... um..." Mr. Weasley was momentarily lost for words, unsure how to convince his wife.
Fortunately, Harry spoke up at the right moment, helping him out.
"It's okay, Mrs. Weasley," Harry said, his eyes flashing with something, and his voice becoming choked.
"It's good, really good. I've dreamed of coming here... and I've had this dream for sixteen years."
"Oh, dear," Mrs. Weasley hugged him tightly.
"Alright, Molly," Kingsley walked over, "We're running out of time, the guests will be here soon, we need to get ready quickly."
"You're right, we only have two hours left," Mrs. Weasley released Harry, "This little time is not enough, we should have come a few hours earlier."
"We need to ensure the children get their rest, and we just got off work," Mr. Weasley said.
"Alright, let's get started," he called out.
Sirius immediately took out the key and opened the door.
Everyone entered one by one, with Harry bringing up the rear, feeling a bit nervous as he stepped onto the threshold.
"Come with me, you'll like it here," Sirius offered his hand.
Harry took a deep breath, his gaze becoming determined, and he strode into the room.
The room had a strong, musty smell, but Harry didn't mind.
Upon entering, he first saw a living room, larger than the shabby room but smaller than Grimmauld Place No. 12, yet equally cozy.
In front of a light blue sofa was an old-fashioned television, which, although outdated now, might have been the latest model a decade ago.
Next to the sofa was a cabinet, inside which was a broomstick.
"A Cleansweep 1500," Lupin walked over and caressed the cabinet, "An old broom model, but it was the best at the time. James rode it to win the Quidditch Cup for Gryffindor.
Harry's eyes lit up. He knew his father was also a Quidditch enthusiast, as evidenced by the medals bearing his name in the school's trophy room.
Harry had always wanted to place a medal of his own there, but he never succeeded.
Since his enrollment, the Quidditch championship had consistently been won by Hufflepuff, and even the year before his admission seemed to be the same, not counting the year when the Triwizard Tournament was canceled, as Hufflepuff had already achieved six consecutive championships.
Harry shook his head, not dwelling on these thoughts, and shifted his gaze elsewhere.
The carpet, table, chairs, lamps, fireplace... everything was unfamiliar to him, yet he felt a sense of familiarity, as if these items had been hidden in his memories, only to be rediscovered today.
Not just Harry, but everyone else who entered also seemed dazed for a moment. Fortunately, someone quickly remembered the task at hand.
"Hurry up!" Mr. Weasley clapped his hands, "Remember, the guests will arrive at seven o'clock."
His words served as a reminder to everyone.
This house had been uninhabited for over a decade, and with the added weight of memories, there was suddenly a lot to do.
First, the musty smell was unbearable, and the dust was everywhere, as if someone had emptied an entire bag of flour into the room.
One could say that the situation here was even worse than when they first visited Grimmauld Place No. 12.
"Sirius!" Mrs. Weasley frowned, "Did you never clean this place after buying it?"
Sirius remained silent.
It was certain that he didn't even dare approach Godric's Valley, let alone come here to clean.
"It's okay, as long as we hurry. Two hours should be enough," Mr. Weasley said, taking out his wand and waving it lightly at the table in front of him.
"Whirlwind Sweep."
The dust on the table was immediately swept up by a whirlwind and carried outside the room, and the wind also took away some of the room's odors.
The others followed suit, using the Whirlwind Charm to clean the room.
However, everyone tacitly avoided touching the portrait of the three people on the wall, leaving it for Harry to handle.
In the portrait was a couple, James and Lily, holding a newborn baby. At this moment, the baby's forehead did not yet bear the ugly scar.
"Cover your face," Mrs. Weasley said, instinctively walking around Harry and handing two bottles of black liquid to Ron and Hermione.
They knew what it was—Vanishing Powder. They hadn't expected her to bring this stuff here.
"This house has been empty for over a decade. These pests have probably been rampant for a long time," Mrs. Weasley said. "Hurry up, Fred, George. If you two keep lazing around, you'll be going home!"
"Yes, Mom, we're coming to help..."
"As long as you don't chase us away."
"But we still have to wait a bit longer, just three minutes..."
"We have something good to show Harry."
Fred and George, with mischievous grins, poked their heads down from the upper floor, "Come up quickly, Harry, there's something you'll definitely like."
Harry shifted his gaze from the portrait and walked upstairs, curious and skeptical.
As Harry approached, Fred and George simultaneously stepped aside, revealing a crib behind them.
"We think this belongs to you..."
"Unless you have a sister..."
"Or a brother..."
"Or an older sister..."
"But hopefully not a younger brother."
"Ron knows, he never makes things easy for us," Fred and George said with a laugh.
Harry, who would usually have chuckled, remained silent, his mind elsewhere.
The crib had already been cleaned, and inside was a blue velvet cushion matching the sofa. Above it hung a wind chime made of shells.
Harry stared, reaching out to touch it from time to time.
Meanwhile, Fred and George quietly slipped away, returning to the first floor to find Kyle rummaging through something in front of the curtains.
"What are you looking for?" Fred and George approached Kyle.
"Nifflers," Kyle replied, not looking up. "They love this stuff. I'm collecting some for them as a snack."
"So, if we have over a dozen Nifflers, we won't have to clean?" George asked with a smile.
"They can't eat that much," Kyle said without turning his head, as he put two Nifflers into a specially made box.
The house was significantly smaller than the old Black residence, but with everyone's efforts, it was cleaned up in just over an hour.
As they surveyed the refreshed room, Sirius and Lupin were once again lost in their memories.
"Sirius!"
At that moment, Harry rushed down from the upper floor.
"After graduation, can I stay here?" he asked eagerly, holding a shell wind chime.
Harry had assumed Sirius would agree, but to his surprise, Sirius shook his head firmly.
"No, Harry."
"Why!" Harry exclaimed, stunned for a moment. "This is my parents' house. Why can't I stay here?"
"It used to be, but it's mine now," Sirius said, "I got the magical contract here."
"I'm willing to buy it back," Harry said, "I have the money, you can take it from my vault."
"Sorry," Sirius said stiffly, "I can give you anything, whether it's my vault or Grimmauld Place No. 12, but not this."
"I..."
"Listen to me, Harry."
Harry wanted to say something, but Sirius placed his hand on his shoulder, interrupting whatever he was about to say next.
"You have your own life, a new life. This place holds our memories." Sirius took a deep breath, "I'm asking you, can you leave it to me?"
Harry fell silent.
This was the first time Sirius had used the word 'ask' with him.
For the past two years, Sirius had been helping him and had given him many things he had never had before. He also wanted to do something for Sirius, but he never found the opportunity.
Now the opportunity had finally come, but he couldn't bear to give it up because he was also willing to trade all he had for this house.
For a moment, the two looked at each other, neither speaking nor backing down.
The others didn't interrupt either, they just quietly left the room.
"Tsk!" Fred stretched his arm and looked back at the closed room, "Do you think Sirius will give this place back to Harry?"
"I think he will," George said, "Just as Harry said, this is where his parents lived, and he has the right to live here."
"I don't think so," Kyle thought for a moment, "And I don't agree with Sirius doing this."
"Why?" George asked curiously.
"Because Sirius made a mistake once. If Harry lives here, he will always remember what happened that night, and it will become a torment every moment."
"That's true," Fred nodded, "I hope he can convince Harry. But I think if Harry insists, he will compromise too."
"Okay, you three." Mrs. Weasley came over and interrupted their chat.
"Let them decide this matter, can you help me with the decorations? It's already half past six, and there's still a lot to do."
"Flowers, balloon decorations, wedding gowns... Oh, Merlin, where did Sirius put the gowns? I hope he didn't forget them."
"He brought them, Molly, they're with me," Lupin said, "Don't worry, it's just a witness."
"That won't do," Mrs. Weasley didn't listen to him and hurried off to another place.
Soon, under Mrs. Weasley's lead, they were busy again.
Kyle walked around the room with his wand, and with each tap of his wand, a cluster of flowers grew from the ground. In no time, he had created a huge garden.
Mr. Weasley looked at the orchid he had transfigured and then at the large garden Kyle had made.
"It seems I've overdone it, you really don't need my help."
"I told you so," Kyle laughed.
At 6:40, more people arrived.
Hagrid landed his motorcycle in the garden.
"I'm so sorry," he looked at the flowers he had crushed, "I thought this was an empty space."
"It used to be," Mrs. Weasley said, "Come on, move your motorcycle to the side quickly."
"Oh, okay." Hagrid picked up his motorcycle and jumped to the empty space next to him. Kyle took care of the aftermath, fixing the crushed areas.
Fred and George used magic to create many sparkling fairies that flew in the air.
Hermione's wand sprayed out red and yellow banners, which were held up by the fairies.
"What do these colors mean?" Ginny asked curiously, "I think gold looks better."
"Yellow is Hufflepuff's color," Hermione explained, "Tonks graduated from Hufflepuff, if we change it to gold, it will all become Gryffindor."
"You're really thoughtful," Ginny said sincerely.
"I don't think they'll fuss over this," Fred said softly, "I guess Tonks prefers that bubblegum pink, like her hair now."
"We can add more later," Kyle said, "Anyway, there's plenty of space, we can make as many as we want."
"Move aside, move aside..." Mrs. Weasley said loudly as she walked over, holding a huge three-layer cake.
It was decorated with various fruits, chocolate, cotton candy, and drizzled with a thick layer of marmalade sauce.
"Professor Dumbledore should have come to this wedding," Kyle muttered.
"What did you say?" George asked, he had been admiring the cake and didn't hear Kyle clearly.
"Nothing," Kyle shook his head, "I just think Dumbledore would have loved this cake."
(End of Chapter)
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