Chapter 811: A Dinner Gathering
Chapter 811: A Dinner Gathering
After Luna's departure, perhaps due to her exposed identity, Kyle lost interest in further exploration.
He walked a little further, just a few steps away from the Great Hall, and then turned back to climb the stairs.
Although Professor McGonagall intended for him to take a stroll in the Great Hall, upon careful consideration, Kyle realized that in recent years, Dumbledore had not visited the Hall outside of banquets. By not going, Kyle maintained his character's consistency.
Moreover, several students had already spotted him on his way there, which was enough. Being too deliberate might backfire.
Upon returning to the eighth floor, Kyle changed out of his robe and put on his own clothes. He also took out the items he had hastily stuffed into the drawer earlier and returned them to their original places... in that corner storage room.
On the portrait, the headmasters were still happily engaging in their favorite pastime, a fair one-on-one duel with Phineas.
Indeed, it was very fair.
They generously allowed Phineas to use a wand, while they themselves only needed the Celtic-made 'Iron Spike Aubergine' as a weapon.
For a wizard, a wand is the most powerful weapon. In this regard, Phineas was still at an advantage.
However, there was one issue: the portrait was not a wizard and couldn't use magic.
So, the wand in Phineas's hand was no different from a wooden stick.
Holding a wooden stick against a meter-long weapon covered with sharp spikes, the outcome of the duel was already predetermined when it began.
Phineas was chased around the room, his shoes almost sparking from the friction.
After watching for a while, Kyle's gloominess after Luna's identity revelation gradually lifted.
"Damn it, it's all your fault!"
Phineas, looking disheveled, ran to the portrait closest to Kyle, pulled out an iron spike from his butt, and roared at him, "I don't care, you have to paint me a weapon too!"
"I'm out of paint," Kyle spread his hands, "I could only find so much in the storage room, and I've used it all."
As he spoke, he glanced at the discarded iron spike... Was what he painted that fragile?
No, this section should have been outlined, as the color was slightly lighter at the connection, causing it to fall off.
He would have to improve it next time.
"You're lying!" Phineas roared, "I saw it, there's still a lot left in that plate, enough to paint two more!"
"Oh, then I must have remembered wrong." Kyle continued, "But I have other things to do right now, and I really don't want to paint. Let's talk about it tomorrow."
"No!"
"Stop, don't even think about running!"
Before Phineas could finish his sentence, the witch he was dueling with chased after him, her weapon aimed at his butt, showing no mercy.
"Enough, damn it..."
Phineas shouted as he continued to flee in disarray, glancing at Kyle again.
"I don't care, you're living in my ancestral home and using it as the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. You must pay me rent!"
"Is the Black family short of money?" Kyle smirked.
"Who do you think you are?" Phineas, like a cat with a stepped-on tail, retorted, "The Black family is wealthy, but you must also pay me rent.")
"Fine, name your price. When the headmaster returns, I'll ask him to pay you." Kyle said, "He's rich, he won't mind a few Galleons."
"I don't want Galleons, I want a weapon." Phineas said as he ran, "I want a weapon even bigger than the one you gave to Dippet!"
"You little rascal, you hold grudges!"
Armando Dippet, who was watching the show, couldn't sit still any longer and joined the duel, which was supposed to be a one-on-one battle.
To be honest, his behavior was a bit unsportsmanlike, but who could blame Phineas for his recklessness? Everyone else just pretended not to notice.
"Alright, fine."
Kyle checked the time; there was still some time before the Polyjuice Potion's effect wore off. He decided to pass the time with this.
He took out the palette again.
"What style do you want? A battle axe, a double-handed sword, or a spear?"
"With your painting skills, you're asking me to choose?" Phineas's voice echoed from a distance. "Just paint one like the last one, and I'll make do with it."
Kyle's mouth twitched.
Dare to mock him?
He knew his paintings weren't great, but Headmaster Dippet was so happy when he received it. Why didn't he find it unsatisfactory?
Kyle maintained his composure and continued to smile as he pointed his wand at the knight's portrait.
As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. The knight, being a native, had become completely accustomed to Kyle's actions and even offered advice from the sidelines.
"I think you should paint it longer."
"How so?"
"The headmasters haven't used this weapon before. A longer one will have a greater attack range, and they'll probably like it."
"Makes sense..."
Kyle thought for a moment and extended the handle, making the entire painting look even more... mismatched.
Twenty minutes later...
"Headmaster Phineas, I'm done!" Kyle reminded him loudly on purpose.
"Dippet, you're finished!" Phineas's scream mixed with excited shouts as he rushed over without any regard for his own safety.
But someone was faster than him.
"Good job."
Another curly-haired headmaster was already waiting there, and as soon as Kyle finished speaking, he casually took the weapon... or what could be considered a weapon.
"Sprout, put that down..." From a distance, Phineas' voice carried over, "That's mine!"
"Yes, Headmaster." Kyle said with a show of politeness, "That's the rent I owe to Headmaster Phineas. Please return it to him."
"First come, first served. It's mine now." The headmaster called Sprout said, "Thanks for the reminder, kid. I was so engrossed that I almost forgot my duties."
He winked at Kyle.
"I didn't mean to remind you, it's not my concern." Kyle shook his head repeatedly, firmly denying the claim, "The only person I wanted to remind from the start was Headmaster Phineas."
"I understand."
"Well, you two..." Phineas, who had just arrived, glared at Kyle.
"I didn't get this, you must draw another one for me."
"I can't." Kyle shook his head, holding up an empty palette, "This time, there really is no more paint."
He must have used the leftover paint from Headmaster Dippet, which was already limited. It was already a stretch to paint two items, and the second one was an elongated version.
"And even if I draw more, Headmaster Black, you can't compete with them. Why bother?"
"You..." Phineas mumbled some words that Kyle didn't understand.
But at this moment, Kyle realized that the wrinkles on his hand had disappeared at some point, and his robe had become much more fitted.
He had transformed back into his original form.
"Finally done." Kyle took another glance at the headmasters playing the game and waved to Fox.
The phoenix immediately flew over, grabbed Kyle's finger, and with a flash of fire, they disappeared into the Headmaster's office.
Synchronously, the portraits all became quiet.
"What do you think of him?" a witch asked.
Dumbledore, also a Hogwarts headmaster and a renowned healer at St. Mungo's, had left a portrait there.
"What do you mean? Albus never mentioned raising him to be a headmaster." Another wizard spoke.
"But he has never pretended to be anyone else either."
"Those are two different things."
"I trust my instincts."
"You're just a portrait. Do you have instincts?"
"Alright, stop arguing." Dippet interrupted their dispute, "These are matters Albus should consider. We're just mascots. Do you think we can think for ourselves and give advice to others?"
As he spoke, he handed the wand in his hand to Umbridge, "If you're not happy, join in too. It's quite interesting. Now, the only thing we can do is find our own entertainment."
...
Meanwhile, at Number 12 Grimmauld Place, the phoenix directly brought Kyle to the dining room.
Their sudden appearance startled Mrs. Weasley.
"Oh, Merlin, you should have told me in advance." She snapped at Kyle, "How does it feel to be back at school?"
"Meh." Kyle shook his head, "I feel like I've been had."
"Don't talk nonsense. Dumbledore wouldn't do that."
"That's not certain." Kyle said.
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It was because the other party was Dumbledore that Kyle had this feeling.
"Let's not talk about that." Kyle looked around, "Why is it so empty here? Where are the meals?"
"They're packed away." Mrs. Weasley said, "It's just that we're moving today. We'll need those things after we return."
"Moving? Moving where?"
"Of course, to Little Hangleton." Mrs. Weasley said.
"But isn't this the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix?" Kyle asked.
"There's no conflict." Mrs. Weasley explained, "If there's an important meeting, we will still come. But there's no need to live here all the time. In any case, it's more comfortable to be at home."
"Then before we..."
"Mainly to protect Harry and the kids." Mrs. Weasley continued, "Including last year, we would return home when you went to school. When there's something important, or when Hogwarts is on holiday, we will gather again."
Mrs. Weasley stuffed a large package into a box,
"In fact, after you went to school, the members of the Order of the Phoenix no longer gathered frequently. I don't want to stay alone in such a big house every day, keeping company with that crazy witch."
The crazy witch she referred to was Mrs. Black, a witch who would start cursing at the slightest sound.
"I see." Kyle nodded, indicating his understanding.
"Since you're here, help me with this." Mrs. Weasley handed Kyle a huge suitcase.
"I can't finish all this by myself. I thought I'd need to make two trips."
"This is easy." Kyle opened his own suitcase, put the suitcase inside, and then stuffed the items Mrs. Weasley was holding into it as well.
"How convenient." Mrs. Weasley said with a smile, "This will make things much easier."
"Why don't you make a Trace-Free Extension Charm box?" Kyle asked, puzzled, as they walked outside together.
Although the charm was complex, it shouldn't be a problem for the Weasleys.
Mr. Weasley could even tinker with flying, invisible cars. How could he not make a Trace-Free Extension Charm box?
"Why not, the one I gave you before is like that," Mrs. Weasley said. She turned back to make sure she didn't forget anything before locking the door.
"I mean, make a bigger one."
"It can't be done," Mrs. Weasley said, glancing at Kyle.
"There's something you may not know... or you've never noticed before."
"The Trace-Free Extension Charm isn't a spell that can be infinitely stacked. Its stability is actually quite poor, and once it exceeds a certain size, the extended space will collapse."
"Mine can."
"Of course, think about who gave it to you."
"Newt Scamander."
"Yes, Mr. Scamander," Mrs. Weasley said, "The most famous thing about him is that magical suitcase. If you can make one with a Trace-Free Extension Charm, do you still think it's magical?"
"For some reason, but as far as I know, his suitcase is one-of-a-kind in the wizarding world... Oh, no, it should be the third one now."
"I guess he must have put in a lot of effort to keep the Trace-Free Extension Charm stable. It's not easy to find such a thing."
Kyle was a little stunned. He seemed to have never considered this question. He had always just put things in the box, and even if he occasionally made a Trace-Free Extension Charm object, it wasn't that big of a deal.
The two then arrived in front of an old, peeling telephone booth.
"You go first," Mrs. Weasley said.
This was built by the Order of the Phoenix, specifically for Apparition, with Muggle-Repelling Charms around it to prevent accidental intrusions.
Kyle nodded and stepped inside, Apparating back to Little Hangleton, in front of the garden of the dilapidated cottage.
A few minutes later, Mrs. Weasley returned as well.
After arriving, she relaxed, even finding the gnomes in the garden more tolerable.
"We'll clean them up later. I need to tidy up the house first." She asked, "Kyle, do you still need to go home first?"
"No, I'll help with the tidying. It'll be faster this way."
"No problem, you can have dinner with Chris tonight. It's been a while since you last ate here, right?"
"It's been about two years," Kyle said.
Since Voldemort's return in his sixth year, he had been staying at Grimmauld Place, a safer location. Even when he occasionally returned, he would leave soon after, rarely spending the night.
The two entered the dilapidated cottage.
Mrs. Weasley put away the items they brought back, while Kyle cleaned the dust off the furniture and shooed away pests, including the gnomes.
Wherever wizards lived, there would be fairies and gnomes, attracted by the traces of magic.
It wasn't just the cottage; the Weasley house had the same issue. However, the fairies that went to their house wouldn't last more than ten minutes before becoming snacks for their Kneazle, Tom.
Ginny also had a Kneazle, a gift from Fred and George, but it wasn't as smart as Tom.
By the way, Tom was a common name in the wizarding world, not referring to a specific person.
...
By nine o'clock in the evening, everyone who worked at the Ministry of Magic had returned, probably aware of the upcoming move.
Kyle helped Mrs. Weasley prepare a large, sumptuous dinner.
"Mom, tonight... Oh, Kyle, when did you get back!" Fred exclaimed as he rushed over.
"Noon," Kyle said.
"Where have you been these past few days?"
"Don't ask, just pack up and get ready for dinner." Mrs. Weasley said, then looked at another, "Arthur, Bill, and Charlie, where are they? Why aren't they back yet?"
"They should be back soon," Mr. Weasley said, "Remus and Nymphadora have gone to take over their shifts."
"Then we won't wait for them."
The group, as before, set up the table in the garden and sat around it.
They hadn't had dinner together like this in a long time. Due to the Death Eaters, everyone had been busy with endless tasks over the past two years.
At Mr. Weasley's suggestion, they raised their glasses in a toast.
"Kyle, you probably haven't had much going on lately, right?" Fred took a sip of butterbeer and asked.
"Not really," Kyle thought for a moment and replied.
"Then why don't you come work at the Ministry of Magic?" Fred's eyes lit up, "Let me tell you, the work there is quite interesting lately."
"Forget about the Ministry of Magic." Kyle shook his head, "Actually, I plan to go to France."
(End of Chapter)
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