Chapter 101: Vaughn: Albus, You Really Are A Devil!
“Professor Quirrell and Snape?”
“Yes!” Vaughn said earnestly, “Of all the professors, only those two are the most abnormal. Quirrell, because of his quirks. Honestly, with this weather, he still wears a turban every day, which is very suspicious.”
“Snape is suspected because he’s too hostile towards Harry, practically wishing Harry dead. But as I said, Dumbledore trusts him.”
So, in reality, there was no progress at all.
Hermione absentmindedly ran a hand through her hair, “What did Dumbledore say?”
Vaughn unhesitatingly threw mud, “Our dear Headmaster said nothing. He’s lost in sweets and knitting every day. Hunting dark wizards isn’t as important to him as devising new knitting patterns.”
“Good heavens, how can he be like this!”
Hermione looked incredulous, “He’s the Headmaster, how can he be so irresponsible?”
“My dear, you should have known he was unreliable the first day of school when he directed us in singing the school song!”
Hermione wanted to salvage some dignity for the Headmaster, but after carefully considering what she had witnessed over these past few months, she truly couldn’t lie and say Dumbledore was a responsible Headmaster.
At least regarding the handling of the Philosopher’s Stone, Hermione had strong opinions.
She irritably kicked a pebble away, “Why did he have to hide the Philosopher’s Stone at school? Why shield Snape? Why hire someone like Professor Quirrell… Sorry, I shouldn’t lose my temper.”
Vaughn faked comforting her, “It’s not your fault, it’s all Dumbledore’s fault!”
…
“Why is it all my fault?”
In the Headmaster’s Office, Dumbledore’s pale beard quivered as he questioned Vaughn, who was across the desk, rummaging through his satchel to check today’s haul.
In the corner, Snape, standing in the shadows, let out a loud snort.
It was a blatant mockery.
Dumbledore put on a stern face, watching Vaughn take out a Fairy glass jar and admire it slowly under the lamp. He couldn’t help but accuse, “You’re the one who deceived them. How heartless must you be to so easily shift all the blame onto a… “
“A hundred-year-old man, right?”
Vaughn interrupted him, “I’m tired of that excuse, please come up with a new one next time! Also, if you hadn’t insisted on testing Harry, I wouldn’t have to lie to my girlfriend… You don’t have to widen your eyes like that. If, as Headmaster, you can’t handle such an intimate term, please revise the school rules to prohibit relationships, thank you.”
“Perfect—brilliant!”
From the shadows, Snape exclaimed in a drawn-out tone.
“Thank you for the compliment, Professor,” Vaughn nodded elegantly and continued, “If you hadn’t insisted on testing Harry, Quirrell would have been dealt with long ago, and Voldemort would have long since turned into a wisp of smoke and rolled back to Albania. Albus, all of this stems from your willfulness. At least Professor Snape and I have always been against it.”
“Absolutely correct!”
Snape’s face lit up. Vaughn’s words had struck a chord with him. He had always thought testing Harry was a tedious affair—don’t misunderstand, it wasn’t out of concern for Harry, he simply felt that with Harry Potter’s intellect, the so-called test was akin to casting pearls before swine.
“Ahem!” Dumbledore coughed loudly and glared at Snape.
The Potions Professor huffed, his expression returning to its usual grimness, and he stopped provoking.
Dumbledore scratched his cheek. He couldn’t really refute Vaughn’s words and could only awkwardly change the subject, “Have all the materials been collected?”
Vaughn tutted but didn’t argue further, “They’ve all been collected. They are basically Magical Creatures classified from XX to XXX, with temperaments and magical abilities carefully selected. While retaining their fierce nature, their lethality is not too fatal. They are all excellent materials.”
As he spoke, he placed the “materials” taken from his satchel, including the Fairy glass jar, onto the table in front of Dumbledore, one by one.
Except for the fairies, which were posing as decorations and resting comfortably without moving, the other magical creatures seemed very lively.
Several Hinkypunks were kept in cages, desperately slamming against the bars, occasionally baring their teeth at Vaughn and Dumbledore.
A group of luminous bubbles, like large glowing orbs, floated up and down in the air. Inside each bubble, a Grindylow was trapped. They chirped and squeaked, stretching their long, sharp claws in an attempt to pierce the glowing bugs and escape.
A few Swooping Evils flickered and zipped onto Dumbledore’s desk, pecking at the Cockroach Clusters in the candy dish.
All sorts of magical creatures, some moving freely, others restrained, made Dumbledore quite happy:
“Excellent, Vaughn, all excellent materials. They will greatly enrich the surprise adventure we’ve prepared for Harry. I’m planning to call this section ‘Miniature Forbidden Forest,’ simple and direct, fitting the theme. What do you think?”
Vaughn said dryly, “It’s very ordinary.”
“What? Very good? Oh, thank you for your approval, my dear.” Dumbledore tremblingly wiped his eyes and looked at Snape with a smile.
Snape: “…Boring!”
“Thank you too, Severus. But I wasn’t asking for your opinion. I wanted to ask if your potion ingredients are ready?”
Snape’s reply was curt and malicious, “Complete, and in excess. Potter will have an unforgettable experience. He might even be poisoned to death!”
“Alright Severus, excellent.”
Dumbledore nodded with satisfaction, clapping his hands, “Alright gentlemen, everything is ready. Now, we just need to complete the final construction of the mechanisms, and our Harry trial plan can be put on the agenda…”
“What a disgusting name.”
“Don’t be like that, Severus. You’re really petty and mean right now. You should learn from me and be more open-minded.”
“Shut up!”
“This is really troublesome, Vaughn. You must never become like him in the future!”
“Yes, Vaughn—Weasley, you must be vigilant and not become a foolish and neurotic old man like Dumbledore. It’s too pathetic!”
Vaughn couldn’t be bothered to engage with these two, whose combined age was almost 150 years, [Dumbledore born July 1881, currently 110 years old, Snape born January 1960, 32 years old] engaging in childish bickering.
He asked, “When exactly will the plan start?”
“Early May, Vaughn.”
Dumbledore smiled and said, “This way, there will be a month left before the end-of-term exams in June, allowing Harry to prepare for his exams with peace of mind.”
Vaughn: “…Albus, you truly are a devil… but I like it!”
By the time they left the Headmaster’s office, it was completely dark.
Vaughn stretched, and the door behind him opened and closed. He turned back and saw Snape also walking out, carrying a suitcase.
The suitcase belonged to Snape and contained some potion ingredients that Vaughn had found today.
Vaughn greeted him, “Professor, how is the quality of the shriveled figs? I specifically picked them from a pile of fruit, ensuring the medicinal effect is potent enough.”
Hearing “medicinal effect is potent enough,” Snape’s drawn-out face finally managed a slight smile:
“Your taste is good. Potter is fortunate.”
Vaughn was speechless.
He felt that if it were possible, Snape would undoubtedly wish for every ingredient in this potion brewing session to have ten to a hundred times its efficacy.
Vaughn didn’t want to listen to Snape’s malicious fantasies about Harry, so he changed the subject, “Professor, have you had dinner yet? I’m heading to the Dining Hall, shall we go together?”
“No, I’m not hungry. I need to go back and brew the potion. It will take at least 12 hours, so it needs careful attention.”
“Do you need any help?”
“No!” Snape refused, his cold expression slightly breaking, tinged with a hint of excitement, “This is a gift I’ve prepared for Potter, how could I let you help?”
Vaughn: “…”
He had just mocked Dumbledore earlier, yet now he was more proactive than anyone.
Fine!
Whatever makes you happy!
Bidding farewell to Professor Snape, who was as energetic as if he had been injected with a stimulant, Vaughn slowly walked towards the Dining Hall.
Passing by the courtyard, he saw that the Quidditch Pitch was still lit in the distance.
Against the night sky, people could still be seen flying back and forth at high speed over the pitch.
Vaughn stopped a passing little Gryffindor and asked who was still on the pitch.
The little Gryffindor replied with admiration, “It’s Harry. He’s working so hard, training until now.”
Another little Gryffindor beside him sighed, “It’s a shame we lost our first match last year. We’re currently in second place. Unless we win by a large margin in the final match against Slytherin, we won’t be able to shake Slytherin’s first place position.”
Hogwarts’ Quidditch Cup has no tie-breakers for wins; after all, there’s limited time in the term, and by the end of the year, everything must give way to exams. Thus, its rules calculate total points in addition to wins in a round-robin format.
Slytherin is currently undefeated, having caught the Golden Snitch in every match, and leads by a considerable margin in total points.
This disappointed little Gryffindor looked at Vaughn with a complex expression. It was this very person who had dashed Gryffindor’s hopes for the year once again.
It was a pity that he had witnessed Vaughn’s spellcasting level and also heard the rumors about Slytherin Academy, so he didn’t dare to say anything harsh. He left with his companion after the latter had finished speaking.
Vaughn looked towards the Quidditch Pitch again and tutted:
“Harry is working so hard, is he trying to beat me this time? Sigh, after I finish things, I was planning to slack off for a while…”
Vaughn was determined to win the House Cup. Even if others didn’t believe Gryffindor could perform miracles, Vaughn wouldn’t celebrate prematurely.
That evening, he found Flint and, under the other’s apprehensive yet astute gaze, instructed him:
“I’m participating in team training. Develop a strategy for me.”
“Ah?”
“The situation is different this time. Harry can now participate in Gryffindor’s offensive system. I require you to devise a better way to contain him.”
“Ah…”
“Furthermore, I do not wish for a third person to know about today’s conversation. All tactical considerations are your own decisions, understand?”
Marcus “Scapegoat” Flint’s lips twitched, but in the end, he dared not refuse.
…
As mentioned before, no students liked the Easter holiday.
This cursed holiday break was less of a vacation and more of a carnival for professors to pile on homework. To fully utilize every minute of the young wizards’ time and squeeze out every ounce of their energy, almost every professor devised ways to do so.
Especially this year, to improve the quality of homework and prevent plagiarism, professors even mandated that young wizards use specially made parchment.
These were enchanted, so they not only refused to work with self-answering quills but also prevented anyone other than their owner from prying into them.
Thus, this holiday felt like a nightmare to Ron!
On the last day of the holiday, Ron was sweating profusely, hunched over his desk, writing frantically. Occasionally, due to “wand divination” errors, the parchment would judge his answers as incorrect, leading him to rage and yell in frustration.
Hermione, annoyed by his noise, finally said exasperatedly when he jumped up and cursed again, “Can you be quiet for even one minute? Instead of complaining about your wand, why don’t you calm down and think carefully about the questions and answer them yourself instead of using… divination?”
Ron retorted righteously, “But I can’t answer them! I don’t know any of them!”
“Good heavens, then why have you been going to watch Harry’s training every day? Two weeks, all that time, enough for you to review your entire first-year curriculum!”
“Nonsense!” Ron didn’t believe it and defended his actions of watching Harry’s training with righteous indignation, “I wasn’t watching Harry for fun. It was to encourage him. For the final match of this semester, a battle of life and death, Harry is under immense pressure. Someone must cheer him on!”
As he was speaking, the door to the Common Room opened, and Harry stumbled in, dragging his exhausted body. He looked as if he were about to die, his face ashen and his lips chapped.
The two quickly stopped arguing. Ron rushed to help Harry to the sofa, and Hermione went to pour him a cup of tea.
“Harry, how are you? You look absolutely terrible,” Hermione asked with concern. “Was training not going well?”
Harry nodded and tried to speak, but no sound came out when he opened his mouth.
He wasn’t panicked; he had experienced this situation many times recently and was used to it. It was the result of flying around all day, talking loudly, and gulping too much wind.
Taking a sip of tea, his dry throat felt a bit better. He then said hoarsely, “Slytherin has developed a new tactic. Angelina secretly saw it yesterday, and Wood and I have been thinking and practicing ways to counter it all day today.”
Upon hearing about a new tactic, Ron immediately became excited and eagerly wanted to inquire about the details.
Hermione stopped him, “Don’t you see how bad his condition is? Can he rest for a bit?”
Harry, looking on the verge of death, nodded gratefully at Hermione and then asked his two friends, “How about you? How was your day?”
Ron said sullenly, “Not great. She wouldn’t let me go see you. All I have besides homework is homework.”
Mentioning homework, Harry suddenly felt that it would have been better to die on the pitch.
No matter how tiring training was, homework was unavoidable.
He didn’t want to think about that dreadful subject and turned to Hermione, “How about you? Are you still investigating the professors?”
Ever since Hermione and Vaughn went to the Forbidden Forest over a week ago, she had resumed her investigation into dark wizards.
Harry was still very concerned about this matter, as he still had a “curse” from a dark wizard on him!
“Yes, Harry, I’ve recently followed and investigated all the professors again…”
Hermione said.
Before she could finish, Ron’s eyes widened in shock, “Followed? When? Weren’t you supervising me and Harry with homework every day?”
“Of course, it was every day when Harry was training and you were tagging along, Ronald Weasley! Also, don’t be too surprised about how I have so much time. If you weren’t writing homework for ten minutes and daydreaming for an hour, you’d find you have more than enough time!”
An angry Hermione was like a fierce little lioness, leaving Ron speechless.
Harry also scratched his face uncomfortably.
When it came to getting distracted during homework, he and Ron were almost identical. At this moment, he naturally dared not provoke trouble and draw Hermione’s attention.
Fortunately, Hermione didn’t dwell on this issue.
She continued, “Based on our previous investigations and the feedback from my recent surveillance, other professors can basically be ruled out as suspects. Between Snape and Quirrell, I am more inclined to believe that Professor Quirrell is the dark wizard!”
This answer did not satisfy Harry and Ron.
“Why?”
“Yes, Snape, that old… I mean, Snape’s attitude towards Harry, you’ve seen it. He practically wishes him dead. In contrast, Professor Quirrell is so good to Harry! He’s even Harry’s admirer!”
Harry scratched his face again, feeling a little embarrassed.
“That’s precisely the point,” Hermione’s eyes gleamed. She looked at Harry, “Harry, do you remember what you told us about the first day you entered Diagon Alley?”
“Uh, of course I remember. I’ll never forget that day.”
Harry replied, his expression a bit blank, “Why do you ask?”
Hermione didn’t answer directly. Instead, she said, “We’ve been stuck in a misconception. We’ve always tried to find out who the dark wizard is by observing the professors’ suspicious behavior, but the truth is, we don’t have the ability or insight for that.”
“So I tried to think from a different angle. Since we can’t make a judgment based on the professors’ current behavior, can we analyze their past movements by investigating their whereabouts?”
“The day you went to Diagon Alley, Harry, was also the day Hagrid retrieved the Philosopher’s Stone from Gringotts and the Gringotts theft occurred. How many Hogwarts professors did you encounter that day?”
“I…” Harry paused, then suddenly a jolt went through him as he understood Hermione’s implication. His eyes widened, “…Only one. At the Leaky Cauldron, Quirrell!”
Hagrid retrieved the Philosopher’s Stone, Gringotts was robbed, and Quirrell was at the Leaky Cauldron.
What seemed like coincidences suddenly connected into a thread at this moment.
Seeing Harry’s dawning expression, Hermione nodded with satisfaction, “Precisely. I investigated. During that period, apart from Quirrell and Professor McGonagall, all other professors were at Hogwarts and did not leave. Excluding Professor McGonagall, only Quirrell’s time and location extremely match the Gringotts theft.”
Neither Ron nor Harry questioned why Professor McGonagall was excluded.
Her strictness and fairness were already deeply ingrained in their hearts. Even though both Harry and Ron had been scolded and lectured by her, they had never resented her.
The two looked at each other.
Harry was still unwilling to give up, “Was Snape also at Hogwarts at that time? Maybe he sneaked out?”
“Yes, he was!” Hermione opened her satchel, took out several newspapers and records, and spread them out for the two to see, “These are the issues of the *Daily Prophet* from those days, as well as the school’s owl usage records. Snape was arguing with someone in the newspaper those days. The reason was that Vaughn was about to enroll, and some potioneers who opposed Vaughn’s Magic Power Extraction Method were agitating for Hogwarts to cancel his enrollment.”
“Look here, on the day of the Gringotts theft, Snape used the owl 46 times, covering almost all hours of the day—unless he could write letters and invade Gringotts simultaneously, it absolutely couldn’t have been him!”
Harry and Ron carefully examined the records.
It was indeed as Hermione said. Snape used his owl with extreme frequency in those days, and the heated “argument” in the newspaper also matched this frequency.
The Hogwarts owlery was enchanted. All owls residing there had contract certifications, and their arrivals and departures were automatically recorded.
Harry felt a dryness in his mouth. After a long moment of stunned silence, he finally looked up with a complicated expression.
Although he was still reluctant to admit it, after Hermione’s explanation and the accompanying evidence, no matter how impossible it seemed, Quirrell was currently the most suspicious suspect.
This made him feel extremely absurd and unreal.
Because all along, perhaps due to similar circumstances, he himself had once been as weak as Quirrell, bullied and looked down upon, so he had always sympathized with Quirrell.
Quirrell was also the professor at the school who valued and was friendliest to him.
The dusty memories surged back, and he seemed to see again that terrifying figure from Halloween night last year, wandering in the Fourth Floor Corridor, whose magic was immense and evil, distorting the light around him.
His forehead ached faintly because of this.
Harry touched the scar on his forehead and slumped onto the sofa, asking Hermione, “So, what should we do?”
The unexpected truth left him very confused, and he couldn’t even make up his mind.
Hermione sighed, “We don’t do anything, we can’t do anything.”
“What?”
“These are all deductions and speculations, Harry. We have no evidence. Since Halloween, the dark wizard hasn’t appeared again. We can’t use such a reason to question a professor. Not only will it not expose him, but it will also alert him!”
Harry’s veins bulged on his forehead, and he became somewhat agitated, “Are we just going to watch?”
To his surprise, Ron, who was usually impulsive, agreed with Hermione this time, “Harry, Hermione is right. We have no evidence, and we can’t accuse a professor based on speculation. It’s like in Muggle society; even if you know someone is bad, you can’t do anything without proof.”
Harry panted heavily. He didn’t want to hear this. All he knew was that he felt terrible, a mix of anger and disappointment.
Although not extremely intense, it hurt him that someone who had always been good to him secretly wanted to harm him.
He sat down for a moment, then stood up and paced, thinking hard, unable to bear it any longer. “If you won’t, I will. I’ll go to Professor McGonagall, to Dumbledore!”
With that, he hurried out of Gryffindor Tower.
Ron quickly called out, “Harry, don’t be rash, wait for me!”
He followed.
Hermione sighed and followed behind. In fact, when she deduced the “truth,” she told Vaughn about it immediately.
Vaughn didn’t say whether her deduction was correct or not, but instead asked her, “How will you prove it to Dumbledore, to the professors?”
She couldn’t prove it, nor did she think Professor McGonagall would listen to a student.
Sure enough, as Hermione followed and arrived at Professor McGonagall’s office, she heard the Deputy Headmistress’s stern voice inside:
“Mr. Potter, what evidence do you have to prove that Professor Quirrell is that dark… dark wizard from Halloween night?”
“I…”
“Mr. Potter, is this another trick to avoid your homework? Honestly, you’re surprisingly bold. No student has dared to use slandering a professor as an excuse!”
“I am not, I did not—”
“Oh, so Mr. Potter, have you finished your homework?”
Harry: “…”
Outside the door, Ron’s hand, which was about to knock, froze, and Hermione covered her face.
The question, “Have you finished your homework?” extinguished Harry’s burning anger.
He should be grateful that Professor McGonagall, still expecting him to do well in the Quidditch match after Easter, had uncharacteristically bent the rules and kept this matter quiet.
Normally, a punishment of double homework would have been unavoidable.
Along with his anger, Harry’s reliance on adults was also extinguished.
On the way back, he resentfully said to his two companions, “I shouldn’t have expected anything from those adults. They’ve been looking for that dangerous dark wizard for half a year and haven’t found him. Since they don’t believe us, we’ll do it ourselves!”
Ron looked astonished, “Do it ourselves?”
“Of course, we’ll keep an eye on Quirrell!” Harry said with a firm and solemn expression, “Ron, Hermione, from today on, we need to monitor Quirrell’s every move. He definitely won’t give up on the Philosopher’s Stone, and sooner or later, he’ll be unable to resist and reveal his true colors.”
“If we can’t count on the adults, then we’ll protect the Philosopher’s Stone ourselves!”
Ron swallowed. He had never directly confronted that dark wizard, but Harry had mentioned him more than once. Unlike Harry’s ignorance of magic, Ron knew very well how powerful and insane a dark wizard who dared to cast the Killing Curse at Hogwarts was.
However, he was, after all, a Gryffindor.
If he were to back down and show fear of “just” a dark wizard, that would be impossible.
So he quickly thought of a way to reduce the danger:
“Harry, I think we should tell Vaughn about this. We can’t count on the professors, and only Vaughn can help us now, at least he stopped that dark wizard before!”
Hermione, standing beside him, couldn’t help but roll her eyes, “Don’t you always hate asking your brother for favors?”
“That’s different,” Ron said righteously. “I don’t ask him for favors normally to maintain my dignity. Now, I want to ask for his help for the sake of your and my safety. If it means protecting you two, what is sacrificing my dignity compared to that?”
Hermione: “…”
Harry was moved to tears.
……
At noon the next day, Ron furtively appeared outside Vaughn’s dormitory.
Guo Guo Cha greeted him with its paws.
Perhaps because he needed a favor, Ron didn’t scold it this time.
He even brought Guo Guo Cha a bag of dried fish, although Guo Guo Cha, without even sniffing it, disdainfully swept it away with its tail.
Ron told Vaughn the whole story and their plan, then looked at him expectantly, “You’ll help us, right?”
In the spacious dormitory, which could originally accommodate four or five people but now only had Vaughn, the shimmering light reflecting from the Black Lake made everything appear tranquil and mysterious.
Vaughn sat behind his desk, half his face obscured by darkness, so Ron couldn’t see his expression. He could only see Vaughn resting one hand on his chin, his gaze looking over with what seemed like amusement:
“What if I say no?”
“Merlin!” Ron’s mouth gaped open. “Harry is your friend, Hermione is your girlfriend, and I’m your brother…”
“Ha—Ronald Weasley, we’ve grown up together. How many times have you admitted you’re my younger brother now?”
Ron’s face turned red. “Why so much nonsense? Are you going to agree or not?”
“Hmm? Is this how one asks for a favor?” Vaughn played with a quill, smiling, “I don’t quite approve. I’ll give you another chance.”
Ron clenched his jaw, gritting his teeth.
But in the end, he didn’t hold out completely and squeezed out a mosquito-like sound from between his teeth, “B-brother! Please help us!”
Seeing him squirm, Vaughn burst into laughter. As Ron’s expression was about to collapse, he finally nodded, “No problem, my dear brother. Although you are clumsy and bad-tempered, like a stone in a toilet, as a brother, I will never despise or abandon you.”
Ron: “…I’ve never met a brother like you!”
“Then you’ve met one now, Ronald. Speaking of which, since you’re so reluctant, why didn’t you let Hermione tell me?”
Ron snorted, “The suggestion was mine, so I naturally can’t hide behind others!”
Tsk!
It seemed he had indeed underestimated the guy’s courage and responsibility. Brave recklessness and thoughtless impulsiveness were two different concepts. In the past, Vaughn had always thought Ron was a bit like the latter.
After sending Ron away, Vaughn went straight to the Headmaster’s office.
He informed Dumbledore, who had just finished lunch and was enjoying dessert, about Harry and the other two’s decision to monitor Quirrell.
Dumbledore was not surprised, “As expected, Vaughn. Harry is not a child who gives up easily. He often appears reckless, and it is precisely because of this flaw that he needs to be tested more.”
“But in my opinion, your and the professors’ ‘inaction’ has severely damaged Harry’s trust in you, and may even lead him to consider you less in his future actions.”
“I am happy to see such a change,” Dumbledore smiled. “In the past, I liked to show off my wisdom, trying to bring everyone into my plans and rhythm. Until I experienced setbacks, I tried to compromise and let a free soul develop according to its subjective will. It showed me more possibilities.”
Sitting opposite him, Vaughn narrowed his eyes slightly, “This so-called free soul, wouldn’t it be me?”
“Correct answer, dear!”
“Tsk—”
“I have indeed learned a lot from you, child. In the past, I always thought I was correct. I looked down on others with pride, manipulated them, and became accustomed to their dependence on me, making them accustomed to depending on me…”
He shook his head, “Actually, I know you never approved of me testing Harry. Unlike Severus, who simply found it boring, your opposition stems from a difference in philosophy. You believe that no one can control everything, especially trying to control one, or many, living beings.”
“‘Life cannot always operate within a set framework; it will find its own way out…’ This is something you once said, very philosophical, even surpassing many adults.”
“Therefore, I am happy that Harry can break free from dependence and try to act and think independently, even if he is a bit reckless.”
Vaughn listened silently and, after a moment, said mockingly, “But it seems they have now shifted their reliance to me!”
Dumbledore smiled, “It’s alright. In time, you will be like me, leaving the school due to sudden affairs, allowing Harry and the others to embark on a happy adventure of independent self-reliance.”
Sly old fox!
Vaughn pouted and maliciously quipped, “Honestly, your transformation makes me feel like I’m being handed over the reins of responsibility.”
This was originally just a quip.
But the next moment, Vaughn was stunned to see Dumbledore spread his hands, “You could say that. Considerations in this regard are also one of the reasons that prompted my change of mind.”
The office fell silent because of his words.
After a long pause, Vaughn frowned and asked, “Destiny?”
“Yes… destiny. A premonition, a premonition that I will embark on another journey in the future…”
“When will you die?”
“I don’t know.”
“From what cause?”
“I don’t know.”
Vaughn looked speechlessly at Dumbledore, “You don’t know anything. What kind of prophecy is this? I also know I will die one day. Everyone will eventually wither away!”
Dumbledore smiled and stroked his beard, “It’s different, dear. You don’t have a talent for divination, so it’s hard for me to describe the feeling. It’s like… like you’re struggling with a difficult problem, lost in thought, and then, without warning, you suddenly get the answer, and your mind is clearer than ever before.”
“A strong, almost instinctive feeling tells me that on a certain day, years from now, because of a certain event, my life will come to an end.”
Vaughn tried very hard to imagine it, but still couldn’t comprehend such a state. Merely hearing Dumbledore’s analogy made him think it was more like the old man’s mind was playing tricks on him.
And this guy even took the opportunity to mock his divination talent! The nerve!
Normally, Vaughn would have retorted, but today, for some reason, he held back and asked Dumbledore, “Is there any way to avoid it?”
To Vaughn’s surprise, Dumbledore appeared indifferent, “Why avoid it?”
Vaughn’s brow furrowed, and he looked at Dumbledore in surprise, “The Albus Dumbledore I know is not someone who yields to fate!”
Dumbledore laughed heartily, “Child, human nature is complex and contradictory. No single label can accurately summarize a person’s character and thought tendencies.”
“Yes, I do dislike obeying fate’s arrangements. Whether it was facing… Grindelwald decades ago, or Tom, I always liked to rebel and fight back, making fate develop according to my expected outcome.”
“But that was because the fate vortex stirred up by Grindelwald and Tom was too significant. If no one interfered, countless innocent lives would have been harmed, so I had to resist. But if it’s just about the life and death of Albus Dumbledore alone, a fate so insignificant, why resist it?”
He smiled and picked up a cockroach, popping it into his mouth, “As you said, as long as one is human, one will eventually wither away. The difference is that some die in a warm bed, while others die on the battlefield.”
“Remember my words? Death is merely another great adventure.”
Vaughn was silent, unsure how to evaluate such a mindset. Was it open-mindedness? Or evasion?
Compared to the contradictions Dumbledore displayed, Vaughn felt he was more pure. He never placed his own life or future on a vague, intangible concept.
He revered destiny, but he revered the knowledge and power it contained, not destiny itself!
After a moment of silence, Vaughn finally asked, “Then whose fate vortex is causing you this premonition of death?”
Dumbledore had once said that destiny was like a malicious deity, with a Son of Destiny born in each era, stirring up tempests and vortices within the web of fate, leading to mutual combat and the involvement of innocents.
If the “original” plot were to be followed, Dumbledore’s death would certainly be due to Harry and Tom.
But now, that might not be the case.
Hearing his question, Dumbledore paused, a smile on his aged face, “I’m sorry, dear, I don’t know.”
Vaughn stopped speaking, his eyes cast down.
Did Dumbledore truly not know?
He recalled the magic Dumbledore used to observe the web of fate. Perhaps Dumbledore couldn’t make a prophecy, but through observing the web of fate, he could trace the origin.
His “I don’t know” might just be an unwillingness to say.
Perhaps the person who caused his premonition of death was by his side…
……
At night, the Black Lake outside the Slytherin Common Room was deep and abyssal, and even the faint blue light of the magical flames could not dispel the darkness.
Vaughn lay in bed, gazing up at the tassels of the canopy above, his mind still contemplating Dumbledore’s premonition of death.
In fact, he had always remembered one thing.
Dumbledore had once told him that the fate vortexes of Harry and Tom began to be disturbed when he established the Werewolf Affairs Committee.
Vaughn’s understanding of destiny was limited, but the interaction of any two things in the world shared a similar logic: what can influence one vortex must be another, larger vortex forming.
It wasn’t the Werewolf Affairs Committee that interfered with Harry and Tom’s destinies.
It was Vaughn Weasley himself, who had personally pushed for its establishment!
Vaughn had always been clear about what he needed and what he was pursuing.
Vaughn actually disliked the current wizarding world.
In his opinion, the wizarding world’s potential for development had far from been unleashed. This system of power and knowledge, so different from Muggle natural science, had always been passively managed by lazy wizards.
Magic and Alchemy had existed for thousands of years, yet by modern times, they had not compiled a rigorous and precise system. The wizards’ lifestyles also seemed to be stuck in the Middle Ages.
Especially the so-called 《International Secrecy Law》, this law that completely separated the wizarding world from Muggle society, was simply a regression of the times!
