Chapter 131: Farewell And Reunion
Two days ago, in the early morning, Ron was awakened by Scabbers’ scream. By the time he rushed out, Scabbers was already lying by the door, covered in blood, with a piece of skin pecked off.
After Madam Pomfrey’s examination, she concluded that the attacker of Scabbers was a ferocious bird, and not an owl.
For two days, an angry Ron searched in vain for the owner of the beast that had attacked his beloved pet.
Speaking of this, Ron became furious, “That bastard had better not let me catch him, otherwise, I’ll stuff his bird up his backside!”
Harry: “…”
Then, the two heard a familiar voice reply, “No one in the entire school keeps birds of prey other than owls, except for Dumbledore!”
“Hi, Hermione.”
Harry followed the sound and greeted Hermione, who was leaning against a corridor pillar, holding a thick book.
Ron looked at her suspiciously, “Are you implying that Dumbledore’s phoenix, Fawkes, hurt Scabbers?”
“I didn’t say that, I’m just telling you what I know.” Hermione shrugged, “So Ronald, do you want to verify it? The wounds caused by a phoenix should be quite obvious. Professor Kettleburn will surely give you an answer and testify for you, so you can go get revenge on Dumbledore!”
Ron didn’t quite believe it, but he still nervously looked around, wondering if anyone had overheard his harsh words.
Harry was speechless at his tendency to bully the weak and fear the strong. He ignored Ron and said to Hermione, “Want to go to the Great Hall together?”
“No thanks, Harry, I’m waiting for Vaughn.”
“Okay, see you later.”
After they parted ways and walked a considerable distance, Ron grumbled resentfully, “She’s completely changed, Harry. Ever since the trial in the Painted World, she’s been distancing herself from us. You heard her, she even tried to sow discord between Dumbledore and me!”
“I guess she’s jealous that I got so much attention, and Dumbledore personally took you and me to the Hospital Wing when we came out of the Painted World, but he didn’t care about her!”
Harry’s mouth twitched, “Is there a possibility that she was with Vaughn at the time?”
Ron seemed not to hear him, continuing his rant, “And she’s becoming more and more like Vaughn, always speaking evasively, acting mysterious, and having that annoying air of knowing everything…”
Ron said it without thinking, but upon hearing these words, a sudden flash of inspiration struck Harry.
He couldn’t help but turn his head and look back down the corridor, at the figure of the girl leaning against the pillar, her robe fluttering in the draft.
Would Vaughn tell her his secrets?
Harry thought about it and felt it was very possible!
…
In Scotland in the summer, it gets dark very late.
At around 8 PM, with a bustling crowd, the magically enchanted dome of the Great Hall still reflected the cloudy evening sky outside the castle.
Under the brilliant light scattered from the fiery clouds, the four house long tables were still lit with candles as per tradition. The banners and decorations hanging from the surrounding walls were redecorated in Slytherin’s silver and green.
This was to celebrate Slytherin’s achievement of winning the House Cup for seven consecutive years.
As Harry and Ron entered the Great Hall, the colors were a bit jarring to their eyes. Harry, in particular, couldn’t help but think of the opportunity he once had to have Gryffindor’s red hanging in this hall.
Seeing Harry appear, the little lions of Gryffindor cheered loudly. A seventh-year student standing near the Great Hall entrance, sensing Harry’s mood, came to greet him and clapped him on the shoulder.
“Don’t be too disappointed, Harry, you still have a chance.”
Is there really still a chance?
Harry looked at the senior student. Slytherin winning the House Cup for seven consecutive years meant that this senior had been crushed and trampled by his rivals for seven years…
For some reason, his mood suddenly improved a little.
Not long after Harry and Ron sat down at the Gryffindor table, Vaughn and Hermione arrived, and the Great Hall erupted in cheers even more enthusiastic than when Harry had arrived.
Vaughn smiled, as expected by his classmates, and greeted everyone.
Since this was the last feast of the academic year, he finally gave his Head of House, Snape, some face and didn’t wander around the Ravenclaw or Gryffindor tables, but returned to his loyal Slytherin.
A while later, Dumbledore arrived in a hurry.
The Headmaster, facing the students’ burning, expectant, and nervous gazes below, raised his goblet, “I know everyone is waiting for the exam results to be announced, but according to tradition, we must first have the House Cup award ceremony… Oh, you all already know, yes, Slytherin Academy has once again won the House Cup…”
He paused at this point.
Below, Vaughn couldn’t help but look up, fearing he would hear a “but,” but he saw the old man wink playfully at him on the stage.
This scoundrel!
Vaughn narrowed his eyes.
Having successfully amused Vaughn, Dumbledore laughed heartily, “I announce that the winner of the House Cup is… Slytherin!”
The next second, the hall was filled with thunderous applause!
On the last day at Hogwarts, everything felt like a dream.
After the award ceremony, the school officially announced the results. The prefects collected stacks of parchment from the professors and then called out names one by one. Those whose names were called went to the prefects to collect their report cards.
Harry almost immediately forgot his disappointment about the House Cup, his emerald green eyes fixed on the Gryffindor boy prefect, Percy!
“That was the first time I focused all my attention on Percy’s annoying face, the first time I believed he was a good person and would definitely give me a presentable report card.”
This was Ron’s later reflection.
Harry felt pretty much the same, although he didn’t find Percy annoying.
Fortunately, the last-minute cramming before the exams paid off. Both Harry and Ron successfully passed, with no subject scoring below passing, including Potions, which Harry thought he might be targeted in.
Everyone else Harry knew also passed.
Vaughn, of course, was a given. Everyone assumed he was the top student in the first year, with no suspense.
Below Vaughn was Hermione, in second place, only slightly behind Vaughn in Potions, where her practical score was a bit lower.
Ron, who had previously disliked Hermione, began to defend her again, believing she was being targeted by Snape, who intentionally suppressed other students to ensure Vaughn took first place.
Of course, Harry didn’t believe Ron’s nonsense.
While Snape was indeed biased, Harry believed this time he was very fair and possibly even went easy on them.
Because even Neville, who Harry thought might be in trouble, was successfully promoted – his Herbology received an O, and in Potions, which everyone expected to be a P or D, Neville actually got an A.
This made his promotion smooth and uneventful.
Neville was overjoyed. He cried and laughed, jumped and hopped in his seat, acting so wildly it was frightening.
But no one minded his outburst, as many were in a similar state.
The immense exam pressure had been building up in the young wizards’ hearts.
Now, it was finally time to let loose reasonably!
For a moment, the entire Great Hall was like a scene of demons dancing wildly. Even the Ravenclaws, known for their calmness and rationality, joined in the hysterical revelry.
In any other circumstance, such behavior would have been stopped.
But today, no one intervened. The professors knew that the students, who had been suppressed for nearly two months, needed to release their pent-up emotions.
Dumbledore had left at some point. Professor McGonagall, having had a few glasses of wine, chatted with Professor Flitwick, her cheeks flushed.
Professor Kettleburn and Professor Trelawney sat together, not because they had much to discuss, but due to the tacit understanding of two drunks. Most of the drinks on the professors’ table had gone into their bellies.
Snape still sat like a large bat on his seat, but everyone could tell he was in a good mood, as he actually accepted a rock cake handed to him by Hagrid, although he didn’t eat it…
Among all the students, the seventh-years were the wildest.
For other year groups, the end of one academic year was merely the beginning of the next. But for them, it signified their true departure from the castle they had spent seven years in.
And, they might never be able to return.
There was relief, but also sadness. That complex mix of emotions was something the younger students could not understand.
Towards the end of the feast, as the exhausted Harry and Ron finally left the Great Hall, they saw the seventh-year students, regardless of their houses, sitting together, singing the school song over and over.
This continued until a middle-aged wizard with a scarred face, accompanied by a slightly tipsy Professor McGonagall, arrived at the Great Hall.
Professor McGonagall gathered the seventh-year graduates and brought them to the middle-aged wizard.
“Everyone, this is a recruitment specialist from the WAC…”
As they walked out of the Great Hall, Professor McGonagall’s introduction was muffled by the heavy door.
“Merlin’s beard, that’s a werewolf! A werewolf has appeared at Hogwarts!”
Ron exclaimed excitedly as soon as they left the Great Hall.
Harry asked curiously, “How do you know?”
“WAC, the Werewolf Affairs Committee. If he’s not a werewolf, what is he?”
“Perhaps he was hired?” For some reason, Harry felt the middle-aged wizard’s gaze was very… kind and gentle. He instinctively defended the man, “Look, they’re even recruiting at Hogwarts.”
Ron scoffed at Harry’s stubbornness, “He’s definitely a werewolf. The graduates of this year, especially those Slytherin idiots, have been brainwashed by Vaughn to want to join the WAC. I bet you that normal wizards in society would absolutely not work with werewolves.”
“Why?”
“No reason why. Wizards are educated that way from childhood.”
Harry asked in surprise, “Including the Weasley family?”
“Yes, all families!” Ron stated emphatically.
Harry suddenly didn’t know what to say. The image of Vaughn involuntarily appeared in his mind.
The boy’s simple worldview couldn’t truly grasp the meaning of ideals and persistence, but it didn’t prevent him from admiring those who faced challenges head-on!
Later that evening, Harry learned the middle-aged man’s name from Hermione.
Remus Lupin!
“He is indeed a werewolf.” Hermione confirmed Ron’s guess, “And he’s one of Vaughn’s closest confidantes. If you had paid any attention to Vaughn, you would remember that when the werewolves paraded through Diagon Alley at the beginning of the year, the Daily Prophet interviewed him, and I even read the report to you.”
After saying this, she walked away in displeasure.
Ron’s eyes widened, “That’s just unreasonable. Who would remember an interview from a newspaper half a year ago?”
Harry chuckled, “Hermione remembers…”
The consequence of angering Hermione was that Harry’s questions would temporarily go unanswered.
He had wanted to ask her if Remus Lupin had any connection to him. After recalling carefully, Harry felt the way the man looked at him wasn’t like looking at a novelty called “Harry Potter.”
It was more like looking at… a relative?
That night, Harry kept thinking about it, and several times he impulsively wanted to run back to the Great Hall to ask the man directly.
But in the end, he didn’t.
Because he had to go to bed early. Tomorrow, everyone would take the Hogwarts Express together on their journey home.
This made Harry feel very bad.
Harry really didn’t want to go back to the Dursleys.
But there was no room for negotiation. When he last spoke with Vaughn, Vaughn had already told him the reason.
Harry hadn’t tried to argue.
After the trial in the Painted World, he was no longer afraid of Voldemort, but Vaughn convinced him with a single sentence:
“The magic within you is your mother’s last gift to you, Harry. Can you really bear to let it disappear?”
It was incredibly effective!
Harry had to admit that Vaughn had accurately pinpointed his inner weakness.
Therefore, despite his reluctance, early the next morning, Harry packed his luggage, filling his trunk with changes of clothes, summer homework, and reference textbooks.
The morning passed quickly in the chaos of packing. The entire scene could be summarized in one sentence: a complete mess!
First, Ron fussed over his pet rat, Scabbers, then Hedwig, for some reason, became very hostile towards Scabbers and kept trying to peck it.
Then Ron got angry and scared Neville’s Trevor away. They searched for forty minutes before finding him in a corner of the lavatory.
After everything was finally packed, they had to rush to the lakeside –
According to tradition, first-year students had to traverse the Black Lake by boat, just as the four founders had done, and they had to do the same on their way out.
From beginning to end!
Hagrid was still in charge of ferrying the boats, but after a year, the freshmen who were once as naive and foolish as primary school students had begun to become seasoned veterans.
Last year, these students were as obedient as quail. This time, they were disobedient, causing Hagrid a headache with their mischief.
It wasn’t until Vaughn arrived that they became a little more compliant – Malfoy was the main instigator. Upon seeing Vaughn, he obediently climbed onto a boat.
Hagrid wiped his sweat and thanked Vaughn, “Thank you, thanks to you, I don’t know what I would have done. These children are too much trouble.”
Vaughn shrugged, “You need to be tougher, Hagrid.”
Hagrid chuckled awkwardly and mumbled, “Yes, yes… Oh, look, the train has arrived.”
Vaughn looked in that direction.
In the distance, just like during the Christmas holidays, a train, trailing a long plume of white smoke, slowly emerged from the distant mountains.
Hagrid quickly called out, “Children, hurry up and get in the boats, or we’ll be late, and then you might have to stay at Hogwarts for the entire summer holiday!”
This threat was more effective than any other.
The long-delayed fleet of boats soon set off, gliding across the calm, still lake on the windless morning.
On the gallery by the lake, Lupin stared blankly into the distance at the receding fleet of boats.
Dumbledore approached him, “I thought you would talk to Harry, or at least say goodbye?”
Lupin didn’t turn around. After a moment of silence, he shook his head, “There’s nothing to say, and… I don’t know how to face him.”
“It wasn’t your fault back then, Remus. It was Black who betrayed James. You, James, and Peter never expected him to defect to Voldemort.”
“No, I also bear responsibility.” Lupin insisted, “If I had been able to stay with James instead of being in the Order of the Phoenix, at least…”
“Then you would have died too!” Dumbledore interrupted him.
Lupin gave a wry smile and looked down at himself, “What’s the difference between my life these past few years and being dead?”
Dumbledore was silent.
As a student he had strongly advocated for accepting, he would certainly have liked to help Lupin if possible, but Lupin was a person of great pride and consideration for others.
He detested and feared his werewolf identity, and he didn’t want this identity to cause trouble for those who helped him. Even though Dumbledore had offered him a job several times to improve his life, he had not accepted.
Until the WAC was established!
Thinking this, Dumbledore smiled, “Honestly, I didn’t expect you to accept Vaughn’s invitation. I was so surprised when I received your letter half a year ago.”
He then looked at Lupin, “However, you haven’t written to me in months.”
“…”
Under the gaze of his former Headmaster, Lupin remained silent. After a moment, he said with difficulty, “I won’t write to you anymore. I’m sorry, Dumbledore.”
Dumbledore was not angry; he was calm, with a hint of curiosity, “May I know why?”
“…For the werewolves…”
With that, Lupin turned and left.
Watching his retreating back, Dumbledore stood still for a long time, until the distant train whistle echoed, hollow and long.
Until the wind blew again…
…
Compared to the first time riding the Hogwarts Express, when the novelty and trepidation of entering the wizarding world and meeting new classmates were paramount, this return journey was undoubtedly dull.
No one was running around the carriages anymore. After a school year, friends who knew each other well would naturally gather in one carriage, chatting about topics of mutual interest, laughing and talking.
Vaughn and Hermione were in one carriage. Harry and Ron wanted to join them, but as soon as they saw Guo Guo Cha, Scabbers let out a loud yelp.
Naturally, they couldn’t sit together then.
Vaughn was also happy to have some peace. Without those two oblivious hangers-on, he could fully enjoy his time alone with his girlfriend.
The train swayed, moving from the mountains into the countryside, passing rivers, villages, and farmlands. Gradually, signs of towns became more frequent.
The prefects started to get busy again.
They reminded everyone that the train was about to arrive in London and that they should change into Muggle clothes as soon as possible, while distributing booklets:
“Attention, these are the Ministry’s regulations for underage wizards. You must comply!”
Hermione flipped through the booklet and found it was filled with restrictions and warnings, such as underage wizards being forbidden to use magic after leaving school, and it mentioned Trace, warning young wizards not to be lucky.
The girl blinked, “I remember you saying that Trace cannot truly lock onto underage wizards, but only judges whether underage wizards have cast magic based on our place of residence, right?”
“Yes, these regulations primarily restrict underage wizards living in Muggle communities.”
Hearing this, the girl giggled, excitedly saying, “Then you’ll have to come pick me up quickly. Oh my god, I can’t imagine how unbearable it will be to hold my wand and not be able to cast spells!”
Vaughn: “…”
As they chatted, the train soon arrived in London and stopped at King’s Cross Station. Vaughn and Hermione alighted.
The parting was not sad, as they would see each other again soon.
It was Ron and Harry who seemed reluctant to part.
“Ron, remember to come find me!”
“I will definitely come, Harry!”
The crowd grew larger, with both exiting students and parents arriving to pick them up. Soon, as Vaughn and Hermione hugged goodbye, a scream was heard:
“Vaughn—”
Turning around, a girl with fiery red hair rushed into Vaughn’s arms.
…
Habits are a terrible thing.
Upon waking up in the early morning, Vaughn instinctively reached for the light, just as he did at Hogwarts, forgetting that he was already home and no longer in the dungeon at the bottom of the lake, with the dark Black Lake outside his window.
If he wanted light, he just had to pull open the curtains.
He chuckled at himself and pried Ginny’s octopus-like grip from him – after a year apart, the little girl missed her brother terribly. She had been clinging to Vaughn since yesterday at the train station, and even Harry Potter, whom she admired the most, couldn’t divert her attention.
By evening, she didn’t even want to return to her own room.
Sensing movement, Ginny groggily opened her eyes, “Vaughn, where are you going?”
“Time to get up, you too, lazy pig!”
The little girl responded subconsciously.
Due to its latitude, Devon is a little warmer than Scotland, but its climate is more stable and mild, and the mornings are still cool.
Vaughn opened the window, letting in the daylight and a cool morning breeze.
Ginny immediately shrieked and woke up completely, “Close the window!”
“Get up quickly, or you’ll sleep in your own room!”
“I don’t want to—”
She grumbled and rolled herself into a blanket like a sleeping mat.
Vaughn ignored her and gazed out the window at Weasel Mountain for a moment. The mountain was as lush and green as when he had left last year. The mist from the forest, condensed by the morning temperature, formed large clouds that flowed down the mountain ridge.
On the other side was St. Catchpol Village.
Gazing quietly at the scenery he had been separated from for a year, Vaughn didn’t feel like moving. His thoughts, like the clouds flowing down the mountain, were quiet and leisurely.
Of course, leisure didn’t mean complete idleness. A cursor was blinking in his field of vision.
Vaughn willed it open, and the system panel popped up:
【 Host: Vaughn Weasley 】
【 Magic Power Scale: 541 (Normal Adult Wizard: 500) 】
【 Minor 】
【 Main Quest ②: By the end of this academic year, help Slytherin win the House Cup （ Completed ） 】
【 Reward: 1 Talent Point, 50 Magic Power Scale （ Claimed ） 】
Main Quest ② was already completed when Dumbledore announced Slytherin as the winner of the House Cup during the feast two nights ago.
The 50 Magic Power Scale from the quest reward propelled Vaughn’s magic level beyond the average for a normal adult wizard.
At 12 years old, having the magic comparable to an adult wizard was quite good.
But the most important thing was the 1 Talent Point.
For the past two days, Vaughn had been considering where to allocate this talent point.
There were a total of 7 talents. Herbology and Divination could be ignored.
Divination suffered from a poor innate foundation. Investing 1 or 2 points was useless. To make it effective, at least 4 points would be needed to raise it to 6.
Herbology talent corresponded to sensitivity and affinity with magical plants. Vaughn didn’t want to become a magical botanist in the future, so he naturally passed.
However, besides these two talents, and Potions, which was already at max level and no longer needed consideration, the others were all useful and of equal importance.
Charms, Transfiguration, Dark Arts, Alchemy.
Whether it was for further research in the magical path or to enhance his combat ability, these 4 talents were indispensable, and none was more important than the others.
The last time he allocated points, Vaughn chose Transfiguration. He knew he might face Voldemort, so he chose Transfiguration to counter the Killing Curse.
It was a choice made out of necessity for survival.
After a year at Hogwarts, his Transfiguration talent of 8 points had led to rapid progress. Normally, it seemed he could continue to deepen it.
But Vaughn understood better that in the magical world, being weak in one area was a serious issue.
“Charms… Dark Arts…”
His gaze passed through the system panel as he looked out at the distant, mist-shrouded Weasel Mountain. Vaughn murmured these two terms. Currently, he was wavering between these two subjects.
According to Vaughn’s plan, he hoped to use the two months of summer vacation to complete a system side quest to obtain the Spell Development Module. Then, using the Spell Development Module, he would develop “Tools” that could assist him in various research, essentially spells similar to the Scarping Apparition Curse.
Given this need, and with his 7 points in Charms, Vaughn felt it was still limited based on his practical experience over the past year.
Comparing it horizontally with his Transfiguration talent, Vaughn felt that raising his Charms talent to 8 would only be barely sufficient.
However, at the same time, after facing a battle-damaged Voldemort in the Painted World at the end of the school year, Vaughn clearly felt his weakness in Dark Arts.
Not to mention the world-class problem of the Killing Curse, even a curse bitten from Voldemort’s hastily transformed clothes into a snake troubled Vaughn for a whole week.
His hesitation here was not just a choice of talent, but also whether he should officially delve into Dark Arts during the summer vacation!
Since last year, Vaughn had developed Persona Embodiment to prepare for the negative effects of Dark Arts.
So far, Persona Embodiment had progressed to version 3.0, but there had been no breakthrough. Vaughn realized the problem – Dark Arts affect the soul, and the magic that studies the soul is basically Dark Arts…
Without contact with Dark Arts, he couldn’t access the soul.
Without observation and experimentation on the soul, he couldn’t further refine Persona Embodiment.
But if Persona Embodiment couldn’t completely prevent contamination, then rashly learning Dark Arts would inevitably contaminate the soul…
It was a Russian nesting doll situation!
Thinking of this vicious cycle, Vaughn felt annoyed, and even the beautiful scenery before him lost its appeal.
He sighed deeply, shook his head, closed the system panel, and stopped thinking about it. The summer vacation had just begun; there was no rush. He would relax for a few more days!
Going downstairs to brush his teeth and wash his face, he kicked the talking mirror that always nagged about being “sloppy” as he passed by.
After a year apart, the mirror still remembered the great demon of the Weasley family and dared not retort.
When he came out again, his mother was also awake.
“Darling, why aren’t you sleeping in?” Molly hugged Vaughn.
“I’m used to waking up early at school.”
Molly doted on him with more endearments, then said, “Mom will prepare breakfast right away. You haven’t eaten Mom’s cooking for a year; you must miss it. Alas, Hogwarts uses house-elves to cook; how could they understand your taste…”
No, their cooking is better than yours…
The thought that would drive Molly mad flashed through Vaughn’s mind. Of course, he wouldn’t say it out loud, and he even enjoyed hearing his mother’s nagging for the first time in a long while.
However, after just 10 minutes, that feeling of enjoyment vanished. Overwhelmed by his mother’s chatter about trivial matters, Vaughn had to find an excuse to run out.
“Don’t go too far, come back for breakfast!”
Vaughn mounted his broom, preparing to go out for a spin, when he heard his mother calling from inside the house.
“Got it!” he replied and soared into the sky.
The vast reed marsh swayed with the morning breeze.
Vaughn rode his broom, skimming over the swaying reeds, parting the green “waves” in the boundless wilderness, and then diving into the white mist flowing from Weasel Mountain.
The cool moisture washed over him, and combined with the sight of the wilderness fading into the horizon hidden in the mist and the mist-shrouded Weasel Mountain, it invigorated his spirits.
His troubles seemed to disappear.
Crossing Weasel Mountain, St. Catchpol Village lay nestled in the valley behind. This village was not purely a wizarding settlement; a small number of Muggles lived there as well, but most had some connection to wizards.
For example, Squibs, who were disdained by wizards.
Squibs were a painful reality for all wizarding families. Born into the magical world, they were destined to be without magic their entire lives due to their lack of talent. Some heartless families would abandon their Squib children in Muggle society to fend for themselves, but more would raise their children and then let them become independent, living like Muggles.
Villages where wizards and Muggles lived together in the magical world were generally formed this way.
Vaughn didn’t fly directly to the village but circled around the forest outside the village and arrived at a small hill on the other side.
Emerging from the mist, in the clear morning light and fog, a tower-like building, seemingly made of stone, appeared in Vaughn’s vision. Its crooked style was identical to The Burrow.
Outside the Black Tower’s main entrance, several oak trees were planted sporadically in the courtyard. Large patches of mistletoe grew wildly on them. July was the fruiting season, with dense, nascent white berries dotting the greenery like stars.
