Chapter 884: Dumbledore's Expensive Bill
Chapter 884: Dumbledore's Expensive Bill
"Hmm, this is good, and this one too..."
Upon his return to Hogwarts, Kyle couldn't possibly leave empty-handed; at the very least, he had to grab a quick lunch.
Kyle strolled into the Great Hall and nonchalantly took a seat between Harry and Hermione, calmly indulging in the abundant food before him.
As he ate, he turned to the person beside him.
"Why aren't you eating? Aren't you hungry?" Kyle stabbed his fork into the last piece of honey-glazed steak.
"If you're not hungry, I won't hold back."
And with that, he took a big bite.
Ron's heart skipped a beat.
He had been eyeing that steak for a while, and in a moment of distraction, it had ended up on Kyle's plate.
Kyle's movements were so swift.
And what were you, a graduate, doing here? Did you just come to steal their lunch?
"What brings you to the school..." At that moment, Hermione voiced the question on Ron's mind.
"Have the Death Eaters done something again?"
"When have the Death Eaters ever been well-behaved?" Kyle swallowed the steak in his mouth and took a gulp of pumpkin juice.
"As for why I'm here... Didn't I already tell you? I'm here to watch the show."
"Watch the show?" Hermione was even more perplexed. "But the Minister has already left."
Amelia Bones had exited the Headmaster's office twenty minutes ago and hastily departed from Hogwarts with Scrimgeour.
No one knew what they had discussed with the Headmaster, but from Bones' calm and serene expression, it seemed they had a pleasant conversation and perhaps even reached some agreements.
"Yeah, the Minister is gone. What's left to watch?" Ron muttered under his breath.
He was still lamenting the loss of that honey-glazed steak.
"Of course, there is." Kyle glanced up at the staff table.
Dumbledore was absent, and Professor McGonagall was nowhere to be seen.
In fact, right after Bones and Scrimgeour left, Professor McGonagall had promptly headed to the Headmaster's office.
Dumbledore had even intended to see them off, but he was forcibly pulled into the office.
Kyle was staying behind to see if he needed to escort Dumbledore to the hospital wing later.
After all, this matter was somewhat related to him.
When he had impersonated Dumbledore, he had promised Professor McGonagall that he wouldn't touch the Time Converter, leaving this dangerous task to the professor.
But he had broken his word.
Although there were reasons for his actions, Professor McGonagall was clearly not pleased.
The Transfiguration professor was of advanced age, and constantly bottling up her anger wasn't good for her health.
(But to give Professor McGonagall a suitable outlet for her frustration, Kyle decided to throw Dumbledore under the bus.
This wasn't a difficult task; all he needed to do was shift the topic and create a diversion.
Professor McGonagall had been working at Hogwarts for decades, and what she despised the most was irresponsible professors sending students on dangerous missions. In her eyes, if a task was risky, the professors should be at the forefront.
Even though Kyle had graduated months ago, in Professor McGonagall's eyes, he was still a student.
Compared to the unknown dangers of the Time Converter, Voldemort, the openly acknowledged Dark Lord, was undoubtedly more perilous.
When Kyle mentioned encountering Voldemort in the Hebrides, his impulsive use of the Time Converter became less significant.
Furthermore, with Dumbledore's sudden disappearance, it was easy to shift the blame, even easier than Kyle had anticipated.
As for what would happen to Dumbledore... It didn't matter; he couldn't die anyway. Professor McGonagall wouldn't kill him, right?
Being over a hundred years old was the perfect age to take the blame, and this wasn't the first time either. Taking on a few more wouldn't hurt and might even be good exercise.
This was a win-win-win situation; everyone was happy.
...
Kyle took another bite of the steak and casually took out a box, handing it to Harry.
"For me?" Harry asked, bewildered.
"Yeah, a gift." Kyle replied.
Huh?
Harry instinctively took the box, opening it without understanding.
It was filled with candies he had never seen before, each piece bearing the mark of Honeyduke's, yet unfamiliar to him.
"Thank you... but why are you suddenly giving me a gift?" Harry asked.
"There's no particular reason." Kyle, now full, wiped his mouth and looked around. "You can consider it... my advance congratulations for Gryffindor's consecutive seven years of being last in house points."
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone around them turned pale.
What a terrible thing to say! Why would being last in house points for seven consecutive years be something to celebrate?
But they couldn't refute it.
Due to the morning's collective tardiness, Gryffindor had lost three hundred points in one go, leaving the other houses far behind.
Hermione's expression grew even more grim.
Over the years, she had earned the most points for Gryffindor, but three hundred points... Plus the previous gap, how many questions would she have to answer to make up for it?
Even if she used the Rigidifying Charm to fix her arm to the classroom, it probably wouldn't be enough.
For a moment, an eerie silence enveloped the Gryffindor table.
"It's all Snape's fault." Ron grumbled. "He deducted fifty points for each seventh-year who was late... Fifty points each, that's why there were so many."
"Seventh-year..." Kyle looked at Ron thoughtfully. "So, even though you knew it was Snape's class next, you still went to watch the commotion?"
"Yes..." Harry said Harry, then quickly explained, "But we forgot the time."
"Then you don't deserve those three hundred points." Kyle said calmly. "Knowing that Snape doesn't like Gryffindor, why be so curious?"
Harry sighed.
There was something else he wanted to say. Before meeting Kyle, they had been about to return to class, but their conversation made them lose track of time.
It's not like Kyle was to blame, after all, he hadn't stopped them from leaving.
After lunch, Harry and the others returned to the Common Room to prepare for their afternoon classes.
Kyle, bored out of his mind, had initially wanted to follow them but was denied entry by the Fat Lady at the door, apparently due to being an alumnus.
To the point where even Harry's group couldn't enter the Common Room with Kyle standing nearby.
"How petty, no wonder your singing is so off-key," Kyle muttered under his breath.
"What did you say?!" The Fat Lady overheard, her face reddening as she pressed against the portrait frame, as if trying to squeeze out.
"Step in front of me, you tasteless fellow... Everyone says my singing is heavenly."
The Fat Lady flailed her arms.
"Ha, the loudest, most ear-piercing croak in the world – that's more like it," Kyle said nonchalantly, arms crossed.
"You, s-s-say, wh-what!"
The Fat Lady exploded, her face contorted in a snarl as she thrashed about, attempting to burst out of the portrait.
The grotesque sight sent nearby students trembling with fear.
"Kyle, we still need to grab our textbooks," Hermione rubbed her temples, having never seen the Fat Lady so enraged.
Although Kyle spoke the truth – the Fat Lady's singing was indeed torturous – she controlled access to the Gryffindor Common Room.
Like now, the Fat Lady, intent on pummeling Kyle, had forgotten her duties, leaving over a dozen students stranded in the corridor.
"What's going on here?"
Just as everyone was at a loss, Professor McGonagall arrived.
"Millerwa, your timing is perfect..." The Fat Lady took a deep breath, about to tattle, "He..."
"He won't let students into the Common Room," Kyle interjected, "Everyone's waiting to review their lessons, but the Fat Lady insists on keeping the door shut, demanding we listen to her sing."
"Not... " The Fat Lady was flabbergasted, "I... "
"Professor McGonagall, this behavior is unacceptable," Kyle chimed in again, "Every minute counts, especially for fifth and seventh years; each additional minute of study could mean a higher score on their end-of-term exams."
"I... "
"Valuable time, wasted on listening to someone sing."
"I didn't, it's... "
"She's hindering the young wizards' future!"
"Not true, it's not... "
"As an alumnus, I strongly condemn this abuse of power."
Thud!
The Fat Lady clearly wanted to burst out of the portrait, charging forward with a low, head-butting motion.
Predictably, she collided with an invisible barrier, fainting with a flip of her eyes.
The surrounding atmosphere was eerily silent.
Most onlookers knew the truth but were stunned by the turn of events.
Too bizarre – some younger wizards even questioned their own memories, wondering if they'd just experienced a brief blackout.
Professor McGonagall's eye twitched.
In reality, she'd suspected something was amiss since Kyle's second interruption, though it was clearly not what he claimed.
She, however, couldn't intervene, watching helplessly as the Fat Lady knocked herself out.
Sigh...
Professor McGonagall composed herself.
"The Headmaster wants to see you... If you're not busy, please head to the Headmaster's Office."
"Oh, okay." Kyle turned to leave.
"Wait," Professor McGonagall called out.
"Yes, Professor, is there something else?"
"Hogwarts is a school... You've graduated; if you're not here on business, it's best you don't come back."
Kyle stared at Professor McGonagall, perplexed.
What did she mean? When they needed him to impersonate Dumbledore, they practically begged him to stay on campus. Now that the real Dumbledore was back, they were kicking him out?
Talk about burning bridges...
"Just go," Professor McGonagall said, without looking at Kyle, waving her hand dismissively.
The portrait swung open, revealing the passageway behind.
"Move along, what are you still doing here?" She shouted at the crowd, "Every minute you waste might drop your grades from O (Outstanding) to P (Poor). Get going!"
Hermione blinked, tempted to point out that one minute wouldn't drastically impact their scores, but seeing Professor McGonagall's tightly pursed lips, she wisely refrained, following the crowd into the passageway.
Meanwhile...
As Professor McGonagall ignored him, Kyle sighed and headed to the Headmaster's Office.
Located on the eighth floor, near the Gryffindor Common Room, the office was just a short walk around the corner.
The Talking Portrait at the entrance stood by, likely left unopened by Professor McGonagall.
Kyle didn't mind, proceeding up the spiral staircase.
The oak door at the top was also open.
As Kyle entered, he spotted a pair of despondent blue eyes.
"Professor Dumbledore," Kyle exclaimed, "Whatever demands Minister Bones made must have been outrageous to leave you in such a state."
"Amelia, yes... She thinks Phoenix Society members should be integrated into the Auror Office, under unified command."
"That's truly excessive."
Kyle scoffed, "The Ministry of Magic is already riddled with Death Eaters; who knows how many moles are inside? Unified command... That's no different from handing the battle plan to The Dark Lord."
"I did."
"Huh?" Kyle was taken aback, "Did you agree to it?"
"Let's not get into that now." Dumbledore waved his hand dismissively, fixing his gaze on Kyle, "I just want to know, in my absence, how much did you do in my name?"
Kyle's eyes wandered, unsure of how to respond.
Truth be told, he couldn't quite remember either.
Anyway, when something happened, he'd pass the buck to Dumbledore, and now, even the pot was being handed to Dumbledore.
"Huh?" Kyle was genuinely surprised, "I swear I didn't know about that."
He had told Professor McGonagall that he had met Voldemort in the Archipelago while Dumbledore was away on some business.
This was the honest truth, nothing but the truth. How did it escalate to this?
He just wanted Dumbledore to divert the fire, not to get him killed.
Seeing Kyle's shocked and bewildered expression, Dumbledore sighed.
"It's not you, is it?"
"I swear!" Kyle said solemnly.
"Then what about this?" Dumbledore held up a piece of parchment, "Before coming to school, I went to the Leaky Cauldron, and why did I suddenly owe Aberforth five thousand Galleons?"
"How much?"
"Seven thousand five hundred and sixty-three Galleons." Dumbledore picked up the parchment.
Kyle took a glance, and it was a detailed list of expenses.
Twenty bottles of whiskey, each bottle costing one hundred and fifty Galleons, and Phoenix Society member Kyle agreed to have Dumbledore pay on his behalf.
One hundred and fifty Galleons per bottle?
Kyle swallowed, even if the price was multiplied by five, this number was still a bit outrageous. He wouldn't dare charge such a price... well, set such a price.
And this was only a part of it.
Assisting in cover-up... providing a hiding place... offering advice on infiltrating Hogwarts... fee for using secret passages... maintenance fee for secret passages... confidentiality fee.
All added up, it came to seven thousand five hundred and sixty-three Galleons, with both change and whole numbers.
Kyle was genuinely surprised; he didn't expect there to be such a master.
He had only calculated going to the Leaky Cauldron and twenty bottles of unknown origin's inferior whiskey, and it came to seven thousand five hundred and sixty-three Galleons.
Initially, building a dragon reserve only required three thousand Galleons, seven thousand...
"Professor, Scrimgeour hasn't left yet, let's have him come back and let the soul-sucking bugs have him for lunch!" Kyle declared.
"Aberforth said you agreed." Dumbledore narrowed his eyes, "Every figure is verifiable, and he cast a Verbatim Charm on me."
"A Verbatim Charm?"
"It's a spell that preserves the words spoken by a person." Dumbledore explained calmly.
Kyle was speechless for a moment, uncertainly asking, "I truly agreed?"
Dumbledore remained silent, but this was enough to answer the question.
Um...
Kyle felt a bit guilty.
It shouldn't be, right? He didn't think he had agreed to such a thing for Dumbledore. No, but he had no impression of the secret passage maintenance fee, and this outrageous thing, he didn't think he had agreed to it. But Dumbledore didn't seem to be tricking him either.
Could it be that he was used to having Dumbledore take the fall, and he had unconsciously agreed?
It seemed like that was the only explanation now.
"Well... this was also a necessary expense." Kyle said, "If you don't have that much money, I can lend you some."
"Lend me seven thousand Galleons?" Dumbledore blurted out.
"Um... not that much." Kyle thought for a moment, "How about seventy Galleons? You know, I just opened a shop in Diagon Alley, and I really don't have much money on hand."
Dumbledore remained silent, continuing to stare at Kyle.
"Fine." Kyle took a bite, "Seventy-five Galleons, consider it my treat, no need to pay it back."
"Never mind, you don't need to pay either." Dumbledore rubbed his forehead, "Ariana has already paid it."
"Ariana agreed to see Aberforth?" Kyle turned his attention back.
Dumbledore showed a faint smile, "After all these years, it's the first time I've seen Aberforth cry like that, the customers at the Leaky Cauldron were scared, thinking he was under some dark spell."
"So, did you take a photo of the scene?" Kyle asked immediately.
"Photo?" Dumbledore didn't understand, he was talking about family with Kyle, and taking a photo?
Kyle took out a camera and mimicked the action of pressing the shutter.
"No, I didn't." Dumbledore shook his head, "But now that you mention it, I kind of regret not recording that moment."
Kyle felt a twinge of regret, too. Such a moment, meeting after a hundred years, should have been recorded.
"What a pity." Kyle clicked his tongue, "Aberforth would definitely not mind paying seven thousand five hundred Galleons for such a photo filled with family."
...
(End of Chapter)
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