After Voldemort and the Death Eaters left, the dementors floating in the sky of the castle also began to leave.
“Are they all gone, Scott.”
Dumbledore raised his head and asked Scott.
“Yes, Professor.”
Scott replied.
At the same time, he jumped off the shoulders of the giant knight statue and landed lightly with the help of the floating force on his cloak.
“It looks like he left.” He walked to Dumbledore many years ago, “But I don’t know if he really left.”
What he meant was clearly expressed, that he was worried that Voldemort would take advantage of them to relax and come back to kill them.
After all, Voldemort’s provocative words when he left just now, specifically mentioning Scott’s “bloody cruelty”, were also tempting them to open the door and check what was going on outside.
Dumbledore certainly understood what Scott meant.
He nodded at Scott, then turned to Professor McGonagall and said: “Please organize the students to return to the castle first, Minerva.”
“Okay, Albus.”
Professor McGonagall responded and began to speak loudly to the other students.
“Everyone! Now! Gather in the auditorium!”
The other three professors as deans also began to help organize the students to leave.
“Professor! Professor Dumbledore!”
Several figures suddenly broke away from the large army, shouting.
Scott turned his head and watched George, Eddie, Milton, and Luna run to him first.
“Obviously, Fu…the mysterious man is just provoking.”
George said to Dumbledore.
“He was denigrating Scott because Scott acted like he wasn’t afraid of him at all and that made him angry!”
Eddie followed up: “We won’t believe his words. Even if Scott did anything, it was just to protect Hogwarts.”
Milton nodded repeatedly.
“Blood… bloody and cruel, that… such words should not be used for Scott.”
He was very anxious and almost stuttered when he spoke.
Only Luna didn’t rush to defend Scott.
She looked up at the expression on Scott’s face and took his hand.
“Are you okay, Scott?”
She spoke softly.
“Don’t worry, I think you just did what you thought was right.”
Scott suddenly laughed.
“I’m fine, Luna.”
He answered Luna’s question first, then looked at the others.
“Thank you, George, Eddie, Milton.”
“I don’t think you need to explain anything to me, and Professor Dumbledore will not misunderstand me because of Voldemort’s words.”
Dumbledore also laughed happily.
“Oh, Scott is right, you should believe me.”
He said in a kind tone.
“Although I am already an old man over a hundred years old, I think I am not yet senile.”
“Of course, you are Dumbledore.”
George immediately began to praise the old principal.
“You are the most powerful, wisest and greatest wizard in the magical world!”
Dumbledore had a smile on his face and shook his head slightly.
“Do you know the biggest difference between Scott and Voldemort?”
George immediately responded, “Scott has a nose.”
“And hair,” Eddie said.
Dumbledore smiled and said, “Oh, of course, yes, but that’s just the appearance.”
Luna said seriously: “Scott does not have a demon living in his heart.”
Milton also said: “Scott loves life. He can easily capture those beautiful pictures and record them with a brush. His paintings can make people smile and feel warm.”
“You are right, especially Mr. Graves.”
Dumbledore nodded to Milton.
“I think you understand what I’m trying to say.”
Then, he continued to talk to several people.
“I once told Scott that Voldemort’s biggest flaw is that he doesn’t know how to love.”
“He has never felt true family affection and friendship, and of course, there is no love.”
“The Death Eaters were just his servants, he never considered them his friends.”
“Scott is different.”
Having said this, he looked at Scott.
“You have parents who love you, Scott, and I can see that you love them too.”
“Besides that, you have a group of such good friends.”
He pointed to a few around Scott.
“Oh, seeing you always reminds me of when I was studying at Hogwarts.”
“Do you also have many good friends?” Luna asked curiously and boldly.
Dumbledore shook his head.
“This is where I fall short of Scott.”
He said somewhat sadly.
“I encountered a family tragedy when I was young. At that time, I just wanted to prove my excellence.”
“So, unfortunately, I made few friends during my time at Hogwarts.”
Having said this, he put away his somewhat complicated expression and became cheerful again.
“But fortunately, I have always loved my family, although the way is a little wrong because I was young, but yes, I have never lost love.”
He stopped talking about his own affairs and turned to several people and said, “So, don’t worry, I won’t misunderstand Scott because of Voldemort’s words.”
As he spoke, he winked at them.
“But I need to talk to him alone, you know, some big stuff that’s not convenient for everyone to know.”
“Okay then, let’s go back first.”
George looked back at the crowd that had left.
“Hey, Scott, I hope you’re not in a hurry to go to France, we have some ‘big things’ we want to talk to you about.”
“certainly……”
Scott looked at Dumbledore, and after seeing him nod, he continued: “I will go to France tomorrow.”
“See you later,” Eddie said.
“see you later.”
After a few people walked away, Scott turned his head and asked Dumbledore, “Are you okay, Professor, Rimbaud told me…”
Dumbledore waved his hand.
“I’m okay, Scott.”
He motioned for Scott to grab Phoenix Fox’s tail feathers.
Scott reached out and grabbed the gorgeous feather, and in a blink of an eye, they were in the principal’s office.
Dumbledore immediately sat down in the big chair behind his desk.
He leaned back in the chair, heavy fatigue appearing on his face, closed his eyes, and took several breaths.
Phoenix Fox also flew to the golden bird stand nearby and closed his eyes.
Scott did not disturb them, his eyes were attracted by the picture presented on Dumbledore’s desk.
At this time, the dark wooden tabletop seemed to have turned into a huge TV screen, showing the real-time surveillance picture outside the castle gate.
Voldemort and the Death Eaters did not take the bodies with them when they left.
The scene does look a little bloody.
Especially Fenrir Greyback, who was cut in half by a water blade, and the giant who was cut into several pieces…
Scott looked at it for a few times and then looked away.
Although he caused this scene, he didn’t have the inclination to appreciate such disgusting scenes.
He took a few steps back and sat down on the sofa in front of his desk.
When he was leaning on the sofa, he looked up and looked at the portraits of the former principals on the wall.
It is rare that these portraits did not pretend to be asleep, but all looked at him with wide eyes.
“Well done, Ravenclaw boy, we saw what you were doing.”
Unexpectedly, it was Phineas Black who was the first to praise him.
Just when Scott was about to say “thank you” politely, the most unpopular principal in history came next –
“As a Muggle-born student, you are proud enough.”
Sirius’s ancestor showed the reasons for his unpopularity.
“Thanks.”
Scott adjusted his expression.
“Although I feel extremely proud to say this, the fact is that in Hogwarts now, there are no students from pure-blood families who are better than me.”
The unpleasant old face of Principal Black in the painting suddenly elongated.
“It’s really disappointing.” He said dissatisfiedly, “Pure bloods have also begun to degenerate…”
At this moment, a huge fist stretched out from the portrait next to him and hit him hard on the face, knocking him down and disappearing from the frame.
“Stop being so wordy, Blake!”
A certain red-bearded bald principal retracted his fist.
“There are only our students in Hogwarts, there are no purebloods or Muggles!”
He looked at Scott with special appreciation.
“Well done, kid. I appreciate your courage. You should have been admitted to Gryffindor. This must be the Sorting Hat’s mistake!”
“That’s enough, the Sorting Hat is never wrong!”
An old witch with long silver curly hair interrupted him.
She is Delise Derwent.
She loudly refuted Red Beard, “Ravenclaw only values wisdom more and pays more attention to methods of doing things, but Ravenclaw never lacks the courage to do things!”
Red Beard insisted on his opinion, “No, the courage in him is more prominent…”
The two principals started arguing, and then other members living in the picture frame began to join in, and soon they became a quarrel.
As their voices grew louder, Dumbledore, who had dozed off, opened his eyes.
“Oh, sorry.”
His face looked better, but still a little sluggish.
“Oh, I almost fell asleep.”
He moved his fingers and served himself and Scott a cup of hot tea respectively.
Of course, he added half a cup of sugar to his cup of tea.
“oh……”
After taking a sip of tea that was unimaginably sweet to Scott, he let out a long and comfortable sigh, and the fatigue on the old principal’s face was finally wiped away.
“I didn’t expect you would choose to rush back directly.” He said to Scott.
Scott smiled.
“If you ask me in advance, I can’t accurately predict and choose.”
He thought about it.
“But after I received the notice from Professor Flitwick, I came back directly without even thinking about it.”
At that time, he did not weigh or hesitate, and directly activated the door key.
“Although it didn’t play a decisive role.”
Looking back on the entire war, Scott’s thinking became clearer at this time.
“I think even if I didn’t come back, those guys wouldn’t be able to break through the defenses of Hogwarts.”
For a while, not even Voldemort himself broke through the magic barrier, let alone anyone else.
“But I can’t choose to wait with peace of mind knowing that Hogwarts is being attacked and I have the ability to come back.”
“Yes, who doesn’t love Hogwarts?” Dumbledore said with a smile.
He snapped his fingers.
A house-elf wrapped in a Hogwarts tea towel immediately appeared in the office.
“It’s a pleasure to serve you, Mr. Headmaster!”
It bowed deeply to Dumbledore, and its big head connected by a thin neck almost drooped to the ground.
Dumbledore whispered: “Excuse me, please help clean up the battlefield and restore everything around the school to its original state.”
“Trouble?”
The house-elf began to scream.
“Please?”
It cried in panic.
“Please don’t be so polite! We will definitely restore everything to the way it was in the past, even every blade of grass and every tree!”
“Oh…” Dumbledore seemed to be startled, “My requirements are not that strict…”
Before he finished speaking, the house-elf sobbed loudly and disappeared with full energy.
Scott asked curiously, “Professor, the covered bridge has been completely destroyed. Can they be restored?”
“Don’t underestimate them, Scott.” Dumbledore said, “The magic of house elves is not weaker than that of ordinary wizards, but the magic they use is different from ours.”
Then, the two talked about some details of the battle after Scott returned to Hogwarts alone, and then left the office together and came to the auditorium.
The auditorium was particularly lively at this time, and the professors sitting in the teacher’s seat did not prohibit the students from discussing.
When Scott followed Dumbledore into the auditorium from the side door, everyone suddenly stopped talking.
A few seconds later, deafening cheers and applause rang out.
As he walked to the Ravenclaw table, Scott was welcomed with great attention.
Of course, most students did not know how much role Scott played in the defense of Hogwarts. They welcomed him more because of his status as a warrior in the Triwizard Tournament.
Scott tried his best to nod and smile and say “thank you” to everyone who talked to him, walked to the Ravenclaw table, and sat next to Eddie and Milton.
“Oh! Our big star is back!”
Eddie joked loudly and clapped non-stop.
Scott ignored him and continued to say “thank you” to the students around him.
Ding, ding, ding.
Professor McGonagall knocked on the glass.
“Quiet!”
She said seriously.
“Professor Dumbledore has something to say to you.”
Dumbledore walked straight forward and began to speak.
“I am very happy, children, when Hogwarts was in crisis, I saw all of you stand up and bravely pick up the wand in your hand…”
“Not everyone.”
Eddie muttered unhappily, and deliberately glanced at the Slytherin table.
“Dumbledore should expel those bastards!”
Scott also glanced at Slytherin, but did not see Malfoy and his followers.
Eddie whispered to him, “Those bastards are still tied up and locked in the small room next to the hall. Filch is watching them.”
“Don’t worry, Hogwarts will always be the strongest safe fortress for you, underage wizards…”
Scott turned to look at Dumbledore who was speaking, and began to look forward to how he would deal with those guys.
At the critical moment, trying to let the Death Eaters enter the campus directly through the secret passage, such behavior is indeed enough to be expelled.
