days at Hogwarts

"Hello, Minister Scrimgeour..."

The Prime Minister looked at his face and seemed to understand why the wizarding people were willing to trust the new Minister instead of the fat Fudge.

"Did Fudge tell you everything?"

Scrimgeour asked as he looked around the office. He then pulled out his wand from his robe and pointed at the door lock and window. With a few light clicks, the office was completely isolated from the outside world.

"Not yet. I mean, we just met a few minutes ago." The Prime Minister watched his movements. He felt very insecure being alone with two wizards in a closed space. He opened his mouth and whispered, "If you don't mind, Mr. Scrimgeour, I hope the door is not locked..."

Scrimgeour seemed not to have heard the second half of the sentence. He glanced reproachfully at Fudge, who was twirling his bowler hat beside him, and said, "Well, Mr. Prime Minister, let me tell you the story. It all started a year ago..."

The three of them sat down at the desk. The Prime Minister felt a little weird when he saw Fudge taking out tea out of thin air in his office to entertain him. However, his attention was soon attracted by the major events Scrimgeour told. Listening to the heavy tone of the narration, the conversation with Fudge emerged in his mind, and he gradually recalled the mysterious wizard who was described as the wizard whose name must not be mentioned.

Fifteen years ago, a wizard committed an evil crime, organized a terrorist attack, and set off a brutal killing...

He is back.

"After we defeated Voldemort's plan to occupy the Ministry of Magic, he lay dormant for a while, secretly recruited werewolves, and absorbed some dark wizards from other countries. Recently, he suddenly recalled the Dementors from Azkaban and quickly expanded his power..."

Scrimgeour looked at the Muggle Prime Minister with a serious expression and said solemnly, "We are in the middle of a war, Prime Minister. Something must be done."

"War..." the Prime Minister repeated uneasily, the nature of the word making him uneasy.

"Yes, war," said Scrimgeour in a grim voice. "They have caused a lot of damage since they appeared in public. Brockdale Bridge, multiple murders, unusually thick fog in the west, and the last action involved nearby residents, causing a large number of Muggle casualties."

"Wait!" The Prime Minister suddenly remembered the disaster that happened not long ago. "Are you saying that the hurricane in Aberdeenshire last week was caused by you?!"

"Mr. Prime Minister, I must tell you that there is no hurricane at all..." Scrimgeour said apologetically, "Big trees were uprooted, roofs were blown off, and road signs were squeezed and twisted. These are all the magic of the dark wizards. Not long ago, we organized a manpower to launch an attack. The situation was very bad. The Dementors gathered to form a cold fog that covered the entire area. The light of the Patronus Charm could only temporarily illuminate the way forward. Our Aurors' actions were greatly restricted. The werewolves cooperated with the dark wizards to hide in the dark and launch attacks. We didn't even see his shadow."

"How dare they!" The Prime Minister stood up excitedly, strode around the room, and said angrily, "You must find a way to catch the person who threatens the safety of the people as soon as possible and prevent him from continuing to commit such brutal crimes. This is your responsibility!"

"We have no intention of shirking our responsibilities, sir. Every employee of the Ministry of Magic is trying every means to find him, and every Auror is rounding up his followers. Even now, the people in the Office of Misinformation are still working overtime. We have also sent out several groups of memory cancellation officers to modify the memories of all the Muggles who witnessed what happened."

Scrimgeour reached out to stop Fudge, who was about to make a brilliant rebuttal, and looked at the anxious Muggle Prime Minister. "The most important thing now is that we need to discuss your safety."

"What do you mean?" The Prime Minister was stunned for a moment. He was quite satisfied with his existing security measures.

"Voldemort is more hysterical than before. It is possible that he will massacre Muggles in large numbers and force people to accept his rule. More importantly, if the ruler of a country is controlled by the Imperius Curse, we will all be in great trouble."

Scrimgeour's explanation was clear and concise, but the Prime Minister's heart sank gradually. Unimaginable consequences played out in his mind, and his cheeks quickly lost color, turning frighteningly pale.

"The new secretary outside your office, Kingsley Shacklebolt, is actually a wizard. As a well-trained Auror, he will protect your safety together with your assistant minister Herbert Jorley. If anything happens, you can notify them immediately..."

The Prime Minister sat dejectedly in the chair. He no longer cared about the fact that these people had placed wizards around him without his consent. Compared with those insignificant intelligence leaks, the horrific consequences of being controlled by terrorist organizations made him feel cold in his heart.

He opened his mouth, wanting to tell Mr. Scrimgeour about the horrors that certain weapons were capable of causing, but didn't know where to begin.

"I...so...can you control the situation?" the Prime Minister asked worriedly.

Scrimgeour paused for a few seconds and promised solemnly: "I will."

……

Gryffindor common room.

The members of the Quidditch team gathered together to say goodbye to Angelina, George, Fred and other seventh-year students. Compared with the noisy shouting in the past, the noise this time was very low, but everyone's eyes were a little red.

Loren and the others did not disturb them. They said good night to each other and went upstairs.

The dormitory seemed a little deserted with two people missing. Neville and Seamus chatted casually while checking their luggage. The Hogwarts Express would depart tomorrow morning.

Neville put the memory ball into the suitcase, glanced at his two roommates, hesitated for a moment, and said softly: "Loren, Seamus, it's best to stay at home during the summer vacation. When buying school supplies, don't take your family to wander around Diagon Alley."

Seamus' eyes suddenly lit up: "It's because You-Know-Who has risen again, right? Do you have any exclusive Auror information?"

Neville nodded. "Not long ago, the Ministry of Magic Aurors fought head-on with the gathered Death Eaters. The results were not optimistic."

"What exactly is the situation?"

"I don't know the details, but my grandmother mentioned a few words in the letter asking me to focus on the exam. At that time, all the Aurors in the Ministry of Magic were dispatched..."

The information Neville relayed was not very detailed.

Just from a few words one can judge that the situation is somewhat serious. The Dementors gathered together and launched fog, disturbing the Aurors' attention at all times. Fighting away from home in an unfamiliar environment, with lurking werewolves and dark wizards ready to attack at any time, this group of Aurors are lucky to be able to retreat smoothly.

For some unknown reason, Dumbledore did not seem to be involved in the Ministry's last offensive.

"Loren, what do you think?"

"Hide at home and watch."

Loren packed his luggage for tomorrow, changed into his pajamas and lay on the soft four-poster bed. He sighed quietly, "Minor wizards should be aware of their status as minor wizards. They should not take the initiative to participate in these things. The most important thing is to protect the safety of themselves and their families."

Neville agreed wholeheartedly.

Seamus also agreed, but he still had to satisfy his curiosity. He pestered Neville to ask for the latest information in a low voice, claiming that he could better avoid danger if he knew where it was.

Loren stared at the curtains hanging on the bed frame for a while, and various information gradually emerged in his mind, like being sorted out bit by bit, and the situation that he heard from others gradually became clear.

Ministry of Magic, Death Eaters...

Voldemort, Harry...

Dumbledore, Snape...

The intertwined and twisted lines continued to extend, finally pointing to Voldemort and the last Horcrux.

When he came to his senses, Seamus and Neville had stopped talking. When Loren turned over and was about to go to sleep, he suddenly noticed some noise in the pendant.

He took out a Knut that had been gathering dust in the corner. The copper coin vibrated slightly, and new information was transmitted.

Draco: "It was you that day, right?"

Draco: "No reply again!!"

Draco: Asleep?

Draco: "Reply to me as soon as you see the message."

Loren chuckled softly. It seemed that Draco had figured out the correct use of this communicator. The messages were no longer long paragraphs like letters, but concise and repeated oral exchanges.

He suddenly became interested and fumbled behind the copper Nat to type out a reply.

Loren: “I don’t understand.”

Loren: What are you talking about?

Loren: What is me?

Loren: “What day was it?”

Copper Nat immediately began to tremble continuously, and the continuous messages revealed the other party's emotions from another angle.

Draco: "You despicable liar, you still want to deceive me!"

Draco: "Professor Snape already told me!"

Draco: "And do you think you disguised yourself well? I already had my suspicions about you at the Ministry of Magic, but I didn't expose you right away!"

"Professor Snape..."

Loren murmured quietly, this was another new thing, he was distracted thinking about what might happen, but the one on his hand was a completely unrelated reply.

Loren: "Really? I don't believe it."

Several floors below the castle, on a luxurious four-poster bed in the Slytherin dormitory, Draco curled up in his quilt, holding the copper Knut in both hands, staring at the message that had just been sent, his blood boiling.

It was clearly just a short sentence made up of a few simple words, but it seemed to have some magical power, containing incredible sarcasm. He could almost imagine the contemptuous tone and expression of the person opposite him.

Draco turned over and sat up, pressing the copper coin with gritted teeth.

Draco: "First of all, your sudden appearance next to me is the first flaw. This proves that you at least know me, and during the conversation, it shows that you have a certain understanding of me."

Loren: “Oh.”

Draco: "Secondly, your language habits are not much different from those in school, so it's easy to connect the two."

Loren: “Oh.”

Draco: "And you revealed a lot of flaws when you visited me in prison, from the beginning..."

Loren: “Oh.”

Looking at the glaring letters, Draco's breathing accelerated with anger. He punched the quilt hard and pressed the coin quickly.

Draco: "I can point out at least five loopholes, whether it's your appearance, behavior or language habits..."

Loren: "Really? I don't believe it."

Is this the only sentence you can say?

Draco's breathing, which had been adjusted by pressing the copper coin, became rapid again, even more excited than before, his face flushed, and he wanted to get out of bed immediately, go upstairs, rush into Gryffindor Tower, and find him to verify one by one.

Just when he was about to press the coin again, new news came.

Loren: "How are your parents now?"

Draco: "So you admit that it was you that day, right?"

Loren: "Hey, didn't Professor Snape tell you?"

Draco sat cross-legged on the bed, gritted his teeth, took a few deep breaths, and exhaled slowly to calm his excited heart.

Draco: "My mother has been released on bail. My father also had a chance to be released from prison, but he said that the other Death Eaters were in prison and that he would be in danger if he left the prison now, so he was not released on bail."

Loren: "Oh, so how did you get in touch with Professor Snape?"

Draco: "The mysterious person took the initiative to find my mother and temporarily placed Professor Snape in my family's manor."

Loren: What about him?

Draco: "He assigned the mission and left with tens of thousands of Galleons, saying that he would rescue those who were loyal to him soon."

Loren: "The situation is relatively stable. Please pay attention to your safety during the holidays, stay calm and keep silent."

Draco: "I know."

Loren: "If there is any emergency, please contact me immediately."

Draco: "I know."

Loren: “Oh, there’s one more thing.”

Draco: "What?"

Draco held the copper coin in his hand and waited. After a few minutes, he still didn't receive a reply. He couldn't help but write back to urge.

Draco: "Go ahead."

Draco: Asleep?

Draco: Where are they?

The sound of beds turning over could be heard constantly in the dormitory.

Draco vaguely sensed something was wrong and guessed that it might be a prank, but there was always a curiosity in his heart, and his mind was uncontrollably thinking about what he was going to say.

That night, some people tossed and turned and couldn't sleep all night.

……

The next morning.

Loren got up early and washed up. He was very happy when he saw the dozens of messages accumulated by Tongnatri.

After packing up, I went downstairs to meet Hermione. After breakfast, we read books and chatted in the hall. When the sun rose completely, a victim showed up. He had dark circles under his eyes and his resentful gaze almost solidified. However, there were too many people in the hall and I could not find a chance to condemn him in person.

At ten o'clock in the morning, the express train arrived at the station. The young wizards dragged large and small boxes of luggage, waded through the flat road to Hogsmeade, and boarded the train under Hagrid's command.

There were several acquaintances in the same compartment with Harry. Harry complained that he would have to spend his summer vacation at the Dursleys' house again, and asked Ron to find out the news at Black's house or the Burrow and communicate with him in time.

After Hermione calmed Crookshanks and Hanhan down, she turned her head and looked at Loren, her clear eyes showing a scrutinizing look.

"Why is Malfoy staring at you?"

"Who knows."

"You guys wanna go to the back of the car and talk?"

"Probably not."

"..."