Chapter 811: Dinner Gathering
Chapter 811: Dinner Gathering
Perhaps it was because his identity had been exposed, but after Luna left, Kyle lost interest in continuing to wander aimlessly.
He walked a little further, and when he was just a few steps away from the Great Hall, he turned back and climbed the stairs once more.
Professor McGonagall had suggested that he take a stroll through the Great Hall, but upon further thought, Dumbledore hadn't visited the Hall outside of feasts in recent years, so Kyle decided to maintain that aspect of his character.
Moreover, several students had already spotted him on his way there, and that was enough. Being too deliberate might backfire.
Upon returning to the eighth floor, Kyle changed out of his robe and into his regular clothes. He also took the opportunity to retrieve the items he had hastily stuffed into the drawer earlier, placing them back in their original locations... in the small storage room within the corner.
On the portrait, the headmasters were still happily engaged in their latest entertainment—a fair duel against Phineas, one on one.
It was indeed quite fair.
They generously allowed Phineas to use a wand, while they would make do with the 'iron cone gourd' of Celtic origin.
For a wizard, a wand is their most powerful weapon, so in that regard, Phineas was at an advantage.
However, there was one problem: portraits weren't considered wizards, and thus, they couldn't use magic either.
So, the wand in Phineas' hand was no different from a regular stick.
Holding a stick against an iron gourd studded with sharp spikes that was over a meter long... the outcome of this duel was decided from the start.
Phineas was chased relentlessly, the soles of his shoes almost sparking from the friction.
After watching for a while, Kyle's gloominess from being seen through by Luna finally lifted.
"Damn it, it's all your fault!"
Phineas, in a disheveled state, rushed to the portrait closest to Kyle, plucked out one of the iron cones lodged in his backside, and bellowed at him, "I don't care what you say, you must draw me a weapon too!"
"I'm out of paint," Kyle spread his hands helplessly, "That's all I could find in the storage room, and I've used it all up."
As he spoke, he glanced at the discarded iron cone... Was his drawing that flimsy?
No, that section should have been retraced, as the paint at the connection was a bit lighter, which was why it had come loose.
He'd have to improve that next time.
"You're lying!" Phineas shouted, "I saw it! There's still plenty left on that palette, more than enough to paint a couple more!"
"Oh, then I must have remembered wrong." Kyle continued, "But I have other matters to attend to, and I really don't feel like painting right now. Maybe we can do it tomorrow."
"No!"
"Stay put, don't you dare run!"
Before Phineas could finish his sentence, the witch he had been dueling with caught up to him, her weapon aimed squarely at his backside, showing no signs of going easy on him.
"Enough, damn it..."
Phineas yelled in frustration as he continued his undignified escape, glancing at Kyle once more.
"I don't care what you say, you're living in my ancestral home, using it as the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. You have to pay me rent!"
"Does the Black family need the money?" Kyle curled his lips.
"Who are you looking down on?" Phineas retorted like a cat with its tail stepped on, "Of course the Black family has money, but you still have to pay me rent."
"Alright, name your price, and I'll ask the headmaster to pay you when he returns." Kyle said, "He's rich, he definitely won't skimp on a few extra coins for you."
"I don't want galleons, I want a weapon." As Phineas ran, he said, "I want one that's even bigger than the one you gave Dipet!"
"You little grudge-holder!"
Armando Dippet, who had been enjoying the show, suddenly couldn't sit still anymore and stood up, joining what was supposed to be a one-on-one duel.
To be honest, his behavior was a bit unsportsmanlike, but who could blame him when Phineas was asking for it? The others chose to turn a blind eye.
"Hmm... alright."
Kyle checked the time and saw that there was still some time before the Polyjuice Potion's effects wore off, so he figured he might as well pass the time.
He retrieved the paint palette once more.
"What style do you want? An axe, a two-handed sword, or a spear?"
"With your level of painting, you're asking me to choose?" Phineas' voice carried from a distance, "Just draw the same as the last one, it'll have to do."
Kyle's lips twitched.
He dared to mock him?
He knew his drawings weren't that great, but so what? Headmaster Dippet had been delighted with his weapon, so why complain now?
Kyle remained calm and continued smiling, pointing his wand at the knight's portrait.
As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. As one of the original inhabitants of the castle, the knight had become completely indifferent to Kyle's actions and even offered suggestions.
"I think you should make it longer."
"How so?"
"The headmasters have never used this type of weapon before, and a longer one would have a larger attack range. They might like it."
"Makes sense..."
Kyle thought about it and directly lengthened the handle, making the entire piece look even more... bizarre.
Twenty minutes later...
"Headmaster Phineas, I'm done." Kyle deliberately spoke in a loud voice to get his attention.
"Haha, Dipet, you're finished..." Phineas' scream of despair was mixed with excited shouts as he rushed over without a care for his safety.
Another headmaster with curly hair had already been waiting there for a while. As Kyle's words fell, he took away the weapon... or what could be considered a weapon.
"Spur, give it back to me..." From a distance, Phineas' voice rang out, "That's mine!"
"Yes, Headmaster." Kyle pretended to say sincerely, "That's the rent I prepared for Headmaster Phineas. Please return it to him."
"Finders keepers, it's mine now." The headmaster called Spur said, "By the way, thank you for reminding me, young man. I was so engrossed in the game that I almost forgot my duties."
He winked at Kyle.
"I didn't mean to remind you, it has nothing to do with me." Kyle shook his head firmly denying the suggestion, "The only person I wanted to remind was Headmaster Phineas."
"I understand."
"You two..." Phineas, who had finally rushed over after enduring two Bludgers, glared at Kyle angrily.
"Since I didn't get this, you must draw me another one."
"Impossible." Kyle shook his head and picked up the empty paint palette, "This time, I really don't have any more paint left."
He had probably used up Headmaster Dippet's remaining paint, and there wasn't much to begin with. It was already a stretch to make two items, not to mention the second one was an extended version.
"And Headmaster Black, even if I draw more, you won't be able to snatch them away from them, so why bother?"
"You..." Phineas muttered something that Kyle couldn't quite catch.
However, at that moment, Kyle realized that the wrinkles on his hand had somehow disappeared, and his robe now fit him much better.
He had returned to his original appearance.
"Finally." Kyle glanced at the headmasters who were still engrossed in their game and beckoned to Fawkes.
The phoenix immediately flew over, grasped Kyle's finger, and with a flash of fire, they vanished from the Headmaster's office.
Simultaneously, the portraits fell silent.
"What do you think of him?" A witch among them asked.
It was Dilys Derwent, also a Headmaster of Hogwarts and a renowned healer at St. Mungo's, where her portrait hung.
"What do you mean? Albus hasn't mentioned grooming him to be a Headmaster." Another wizard remarked.
"But he's never let anyone impersonate him before."
"Those are two different matters."
"I trust my instincts."
"And you, being just a portrait, have instincts?"
"Enough bickering." Armando Dippet interrupted their quarrel, "These are matters for Albus to consider. We are merely mascots, do you really think we can think and give advice to others?"
As he spoke, he handed his Bludger to Dilys, "If you're unhappy, why don't you join us? It's quite fun, and all we portraits can do now is find our own entertainment."
...
Meanwhile, at Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, the phoenix transported Kyle directly to the dining room.
Their sudden appearance startled Mrs. Weasley.
"Oh, Merlin, you should've given me a heads-up." She snapped her fingers at Kyle, having recovered from the surprise, "How does it feel to be back at school?"
"So-so." Kyle shook his head, "I feel like I've been duped."
"Nonsense, Dumbledore wouldn't do that."
"That's not certain." Kyle said.
It was precisely because it was Dumbledore that he felt this way.
"Never mind that now." Kyle glanced around, "Why is everything packed up? Where are the dishes?"
"We put them away." Mrs. Weasley explained, "We're moving today, and we'll need those things back at home."
"Moving? Where to?"
"To the village of Saint Ketchburgh, of course." Mrs. Weasley said.
"But isn't this the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix?" Kyle asked.
"Those two things aren't mutually exclusive." Mrs. Weasley elaborated, "If there's an important meeting, we'll still come here. But there's no need to live here permanently. After all, it's more comfortable to be at our own home."
"So, while we were at school..."
"It was mainly for the protection of Harry and the children." Mrs. Weasley continued, "Including last year, when you were at school, we would return to our respective homes, and only come back when there was something important or during the holidays at Hogwarts."
Mrs. Weasley stuffed a large parcel into a box,
"In fact, ever since you went to school, the members of the Order of the Phoenix rarely gathered here frequently. I didn't want to stay alone in such a big house every day, with only that crazy witch for company."
The crazy witch she referred to was none other than Mrs. Black, the portrait that would start ranting and raving at the slightest noise.
"I see." Kyle nodded in understanding.
"Since you're back, help me with this." Mrs. Weasley handed a huge suitcase to Kyle.
"I can't handle all these things by myself. I thought I'd have to make two trips."
"This is easy." Kyle opened his own trunk and stuffed the suitcase inside, along with the items Mrs. Weasley was holding.
Although the spell was quite complex, it shouldn't be a problem for the Weasley family, should it?
Mr. Weasley could even tinker with cars that could fly and turn invisible, so how hard could it be to make a box with an Undetectable Extension Charm?
"Why, the one I gave you before is exactly that." Mrs. Weasley said. She turned back to make sure she hadn't forgotten anything before locking the door.
"I mean, make a bigger one."
"Can't be done." Mrs. Weasley said, glancing at Kyle.
"There's something you might not know... or perhaps you've never paid attention to."
"The Undetectable Extension Charm isn't a spell that can be infinitely stacked. Its stability is actually quite poor, and beyond a certain size, the extended space will collapse."
"But mine can."
"Of course, think about who gave it to you."
"Newt Scamander."
"Yes, Mr. Scamander." Mrs. Weasley said, "The thing he's most famous for is that amazing briefcase of his. If it could be easily made with an Undetectable Extension Charm, don't you think it would be less remarkable?"
"I don't know the reason, but as far as I know, his briefcase is one of a kind in the entire wizarding world... oh, no, that's not right, it should be one of three now.
"I guess he must have put in a lot of effort to find a way to keep the Undetectable Extension Charm stable."
Kyle paused slightly, realizing he hadn't really thought about this issue before. All this time, he had just been tossing things into his trunk without a second thought, and even when he occasionally made objects with the Undetectable Extension Charm, they were never very large.
The two of them soon arrived at an old, dilapidated phone booth.
"You go first." Mrs. Weasley said.
This was a structure built by members of the Order of the Phoenix specifically for Apparating, and it was also warded with Muggle-Repelling Charms to prevent anyone from stumbling into it by accident.
Kyle nodded and stepped inside, Apparating back to Saint Ketchburgh Village and the front garden of the shack.
A few minutes later, Mrs. Weasley returned as well.
Upon arriving, she seemed to relax completely, and even the gnomes in the garden looked more pleasant to her.
"We'll deal with them later, I need to tidy up the house first." She asked, "Kyle, do you want to go home first?"
"No, that's alright." Kyle shook his head, "I'll help you tidy up, it'll be quicker that way."
"Sure, then you can join us for dinner later. It's been a while since you've had a meal here, hasn't it?"
"About two years." Kyle said.
Ever since Voldemort's return during his sixth year, he had been staying at the safer location of Grimmauld Place during the holidays, and even when he did come back, he wouldn't stay long and rarely spent the night.
The two of them entered the shack.
Mrs. Weasley set about putting away the things they had brought back, while Kyle dusted the furniture and chased away pests like gnomes.
Wherever a wizard lived, there were sure to be gnomes and hags, attracted by the traces of magic.
This was true not just of the shack, but also of Kyle's home, though any hags that wandered into his house would quickly become a snack for his cat, Tom.
By the way, the cat that lived with the Weasley family was also a hag-catcher, a gift from Fred and George, but it wasn't nearly as clever as Tom.
Speaking of which, the name of the cat that lived with Kyle was Tom, a common name in the wizarding world, and not a reference to any particular person.
...
Time passed, and by nine in the evening, everyone who worked at the Ministry and had known about the move in advance had returned.
Kyle helped Mrs. Weasley prepare a 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?"
"Never mind that, hurry up and get ready for dinner." Mrs. Weasley interrupted George, then looked towards the other side of the room, "Arthur, where are Bill and Charlie? Why aren't they back yet?"
"They should be here soon." Mr. Weasley said, "Lupin and Nymphadora have already gone to relieve them."
"Then let's not wait for them."
The group followed their usual practice and carried the table outside into the garden, sitting down together.
However, they hadn't eaten together like this in a long time, as each person had been busy with their own tasks due to the Death Eaters.
At Mr. Weasley's suggestion, everyone raised their glasses and clinked them together.
"Kyle, you probably don't have much to do these days, do you?" Fred asked after taking a sip of butterbeer.
"Not really." Kyle thought for a moment and replied.
"Then how about coming to work at the Ministry? It's been quite interesting there lately." George suggested, his eyes lighting up.
"I'll pass on working at the Ministry." Kyle shook his head, "Actually, I was thinking of making a trip to France."
(End of Chapter)
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