The Pacifist Necromancer of Hogwarts

Chapter 371 Departure, Towards Voldemort, or Hogsmeade

“The Ministry of Magic? It’s in London, isn’t it?” Harry asked.

“You can’t just go to the Ministry of Magic like this!” Hermione said. “You know, even if Voldemort is really at the Ministry, Sirius might not be there. When you—uh, when you saw—Sirius was in danger, was he in that meeting room too? Anyway, we should tell the professor first!”

“Yes, let’s go find Professor McGonagall!” Ron said.

Harry was very reluctant, but Ron and Hermione both looked unusually determined.

“Alright, then I’ll go find Professor McGonagall,” Harry said, glancing at Lockhart beside him. “But we’d better hide him first.”

They walked up to Lockhart and looked down at him. Lockhart lay on his back, stiff and—thankfully—unable to speak, though his deep blue eyes remained fixed on them.

"Why?" Ron asked. "Let's tell Professor McGonagall about this too."

Lockhart's eyes darted back and forth, glancing at the three people.

“No!” Harry and Hermione said in unison.

"What's wrong? Anyway, Professor McGonagall seems quite impatient with him too."

“She’ll think I’m crazy,” Harry said succinctly. “If I tell her Voldemort is back and Sirius is in danger, she might just be skeptical; but if you add Lockhart to the mix, she’ll be convinced I’m insane. She won’t believe me.”

“Okay. That makes sense,” Ron said. “So what do we do?”

Harry felt he couldn't afford to waste a second: "I'm going to find Professor McGonagall. Ron, go to the Owlshaw and have Hedwig deliver a message to Dumbledore. Hermione, find a way to hide Lockhart, preferably tie him up with a rope first, in case he knows any undoing methods we don't know. We'll meet here again in a bit, okay?"

Ron and Hermione both nodded.

“That’s what we’ll do,” Harry said. He turned and ran.

Professor McGonagall seemed a little surprised when she opened her office door and saw him, but after listening to his explanation, her expression returned to normal. She said, "Well, Potter, I'll handle it."

"Will you go to the Ministry of Magic, Professor?" Harry asked impulsively. "Sirius might be there, along with Professor Anthony; they're together."

Professor McGonagall gave him a sharp look.

“Potter, I understand you’re worried about your godfather,” she said. “Whatever you got the idea from, that your godfather and Professor Anthony are together—it’s a secret—there’s one thing you should know. Professor Anthony can’t possibly be at the Ministry right now. If Sirius is with him, then they’re not at the Ministry.”

"But--"

“I told you, I’ll handle it,” she said impatiently, practically kicking Harry out of the office.

Harry stood outside her office door for a few seconds, then hurried back into the hallway. Ron and Hermione were already there.

"How is it?" Ron asked as soon as they met.

“I think she believed it at least partly, just not sure exactly how much,” Harry said. “She said she would handle it, but I don’t know her plans. What about you guys?”

Ron said, "Hedwig initially refused to deliver the letter and even tried to peck me while I was tying it up, but I told her it was very important to you, so she finally agreed. I saw her fly away through the window." Harry felt a little relieved and looked at Hermione.

“Oh, me?” Hermione said. “I’ve hidden him. He’s safe.”

Where did you hide?

“His own office,” Hermione said smugly. “In fact, his office is basically unlocked. It just takes a simple Alohomora to open. After all, even if someone found him in his office, it wouldn’t be a problem.”

Ron said, "Wait, you mean you broke into a professor's office? Doesn't that violate hundreds of school rules?"

Hermione said lightly, “Of course it’s against the rules. But I think since we’ve already attacked the professor—which is enough to get us fired—then trespassing won’t make a difference.”

Harry was about to say something when a sharp pain shot through his forehead. The next moment, he heard himself ask, "It's here?"

“No, Master, it’s not Nicolas Flamel’s Philosopher’s Stone,” a wizard replied. “The Department of Mysteries has obtained some valuable ancient materials and has been trying to create a Philosopher’s Stone, but they have never succeeded. Before Karkaroff betrayed us, their best work occasionally resembled Flamel’s Philosopher’s Stone, but they were never able to turn stones into gold.”

Bellatrix leaned forward and asked sharply, "Are you suggesting the Dark Lord try a defective product, August?"

The wizard who had spoken earlier replied coldly, "My loyalty to the Dark Lord is no less than yours, Bella. I've probably been in Azkaban longer than you have."

Bellatrix scoffed: "Because you were too weak. On the fourth day after being betrayed, you were caught by those useless people at the Ministry of Magic—or I should call them your colleagues."

“Enough, Bella,” Harry said. “The Ministry of Magic can’t make a real Philosopher’s Stone, but the Dark Lord is omnipotent. Bring me their latest findings, including the ancient documents you mentioned, August… I hope you remember the way to the Department of Mysteries. Don’t keep me waiting too long.”

August stood up and bowed to him: "I will bring them to you in an hour."

He nodded, watching the other person open the conference room door and leave silently. In his immense joy, he almost found the irony of the situation laughable: a year ago, before the Philosopher's Stone, Dumbledore had tried every means to stop him, Anthony had rejected him without hesitation, and his servant had been cowardly and incompetent… But now, he was back, and would easily obtain the Philosopher's Stone—or forge it—and after that, he would truly be immortal.

……

Harry opened his eyes and asked, "What is the Philosopher's Stone? Is it related to someone like Nicolas Flamel?"

Ron's worry turned into confusion: "What stone?"

“The Philosopher’s Stone!” Hermione exclaimed. “Don’t you guys ever go to the library for entertainment? The Philosopher’s Stone is the most famous alchemical creation of the ancients. It can turn lead into gold and can also be used to make a potion that will prevent anyone who drinks it from dying! Why are you asking about this, Harry?”

“Voldemort wanted it,” Harry replied absentmindedly, still rubbing the scar on his forehead. “His men said the Ministry of Magic had a replica, and Voldemort was delighted.” He was so delighted that his scar ached. He felt it was starting to swell.

Philosopher's Stone...I can't die...Voldemort...

He looked up and met the gazes of Ron and Hermione. Their expressions were a mixture of sudden realization and horror.

“The mysterious man has been resurrected, and he won’t die this time!” Ron said, gasping for breath.

Harry said, "I'm going to the Ministry of Magic." Ron and Hermione looked at him in surprise: "What?"

"But Professor McGonagall said—"

“It’s not too late! He hasn’t gotten the Philosopher’s Stone yet, and besides, Sirius might still be alive—” Harry’s heart pounded, a surge of hope rising within him. “In fact, I think Sirius is still alive! If he were dead, I couldn’t possibly be indifferent, right? There’s still something I can do—”

“There’s no need to go to the Ministry of Magic!” Hermione objected. “At least try contacting Sirius first, maybe with the Two-Way Mirror—oh.”

“Snape took it,” Ron said indignantly.

“Then let’s go to Snape’s office and steal it,” Hermione suggested, which surprised both Harry and Ron and almost dampened Harry’s eagerness.

Harry shook his head and said, "No, I'm going to the Ministry of Magic even if Sirius isn't there. Not just because of Sirius, but because Voldemort is there."

"But Harry, a second-year student can't possibly fight against Voldemort—"

"We don't need to fight Voldemort, we just need to stop him from getting the Philosopher's Stone!"

"No, Harry—"

“Ron wrote to Dumbledore, and I warned Professor McGonagall. If they trust me, people are already on their way to the Ministry of Magic. I won’t be left alone,” Harry said. “If they don’t believe Voldemort is back, at least someone has to set out to stop him from becoming completely indestructible.”

"But--"

“Someone has to stop him, don’t you understand? What will happen if he gets the Philosopher’s Stone? Is this just a matter for the professors? If he rules the wizarding world, Hogwarts will become the domain of Snape and Malfoy, even more rampant than when Umbridge was there, and none of us will be any better off! If I go to stop him, the worst that can happen is that he will kill me, but if no one stops him, won’t he kill me? He’s already tried to do that once! At that point, he won’t just kill me, he’ll kill Sirius, and maybe many more, just like he killed my parents and so many of our classmates’ families! I’m going to stop him—or hinder him—whether I go on a broomstick, a motorcycle, or a FlooNet, I’m going to the Ministry of Magic, not sit in the common room praying that someone will heed my warning.”

Harry finished speaking in one breath, glaring at Ron and Hermione.

After a long silence, Hermione said, "You're right, Harry."

“We’d better get going now,” Ron said. “Let’s hurry.”

"We? No, I don't mean—"

Now it was Hermione's turn to glare at him: "You didn't actually think we'd let you go alone, did you? And then sit in the lounge praying someone listened to your warnings?"

“Stop talking nonsense,” Ron said. “My dad’s still in the Ministry of Magic. Think about it, what if Vader gets the Philosopher’s Stone and suddenly decides to start killing people from the Ministry?” His voice trembled slightly, and Harry realized that ever since Ron began to believe Voldemort was really in the Ministry, he had been worried about his father, just as Harry had worried about Sirius. Harry couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.

"What's the fastest way to get to the Ministry of Magic?" Harry asked. "Does Hogwarts have any fireplaces connected to the Floo Network?"

“The faculty lounge, we’ve been to the school from there, remember?” Ron said. “But there should be professors in there.”

Hermione suggested, “Then let’s go to the professor’s office! We can go to Professor Lockhart’s office, or Professor Anthony’s office across the hall. The whole corridor is quiet, no one will bother us! Oh, and I brought your Invisibility Cloak, Harry.”

“You’ve really taken to breaking into professors’ offices now,” Ron said. “It’s a little scary.”

Hermione said, "Practice makes perfect."

……

They quickly reached the corridor leading to Lockhart's office. Hermione decisively drew her wand, whispered a spell, and tapped the door lightly. The distinctive Lockhart door opened. The three of them slipped into the office. Harry saw Lockhart lying stiffly in the corner. Hermione thoughtfully moved several large portraits beside him, shielding him from possible prying eyes from the window. As soon as they entered, the portraits began to accuse them all.

“I’m so sorry, Professor Lockhart,” Hermione said guiltily. “Do you have Floo powder in your office?”

They found a small jar of Floo Powder on the bottom shelf next to the fireplace. However, to their surprise, Lockhart's office Floo Network wasn't connected to the Ministry of Magic. A portrait proudly informed them that because so many fans wanted to visit Lockhart from various places, his fireplace wasn't interconnected with any public fireplaces; one could only visit him through specific fireplaces… Furthermore, without prior permission, none of the fireplaces in Hogwarts or the Ministry of Magic could be connected.

“If only I could Apparate!” Ron kicked the fireplace. “Bill always uses Apparate to get to and from work.”

Lockhart's portrait says, "Tsk, tsk, you really need to buy a copy of 'The Happy Hogwarts.' If you've read it, you'll know that Apparition is forbidden at Hogwarts."

“But… oh, I know!” Hermione suddenly jumped up, “Goblin, Pimmy, Simmy, Coco, Dodo…” she uttered a long string of strange syllables.

“Have you finally gone mad?” Ron said. “I’ve always thought you were acting strange today.”

Hermione shushed him impatiently and continued reciting. A little while later, with a crackling sound of air popping, Lockhart's office was filled with house-elves. As soon as they appeared, they began to tidy the fireplace, organize the cabinets, straighten the decorations, and wipe the tables and chairs. Each of them was silent, occasionally glancing at Hermione distrustfully while wringing out a rag.

“I’m so sorry to interrupt your work,” Hermione said sweetly, in a pleading tone. “But could someone please take us to the British Ministry of Magic? I can pay fifteen silver siekos—I know that’s not much—”

No one answered her. Hermione seemed used to it.

“You try it, Harry,” she said softly. “They haven’t spoken to me in ages.”

"Can someone take us to the British Ministry of Magic?" Harry repeated, feeling a little silly.

“Hogwarts house-elves will not take students to dangerous places,” an older house-elf said. “Neither will the house-elves take Silverswick, Miss.” She snapped her fingers, and Lockhart floated into the air. Then, she pointed her long finger downwards, and the ground became clean and tidy, with a fluffy set of bedding appearing abruptly on the ground. With a swift wave of her hand, Lockhart landed on the bedding, a pale yellow pillow appearing under his head, and a soft, clean, matching blanket covering his upright body.

Harry probed, "What if I give you orders?"

Another, younger house-elf bowed to him: “The headmaster’s order is that, in order not to take students to dangerous places, Hogwarts house-elves may refuse such orders, Mr. Potter.”

“Fine,” Harry said, annoyed.

“Kreacher!” Ron suddenly said.

“Kreacher isn’t here.” Hermione looked around. “Remember, Professor Dumbledore wouldn’t let him into Hogwarts.”

“I mean, we can get Kreacher to take us to the Ministry of Magic. Sirius Black makes him take your orders, right, Harry?”

Hermione frowned. "But he's forbidden from entering Hogwarts—so we'd better go to Hogsmeade first. Let's go. We need to hurry."

(End of this chapter)