Outside Hogwarts Castle, many people wandered aimlessly around the stone steps path, occasionally glancing at the school gates in the distance.
They are curious about the ancient rune international exchange happening in Hogsmeade, but unfortunately, the school won’t let them out at all. “This is obviously pre-planned.” One student pointed out angrily, “They even postponed the first Hogsmeade weekend for this!”
Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat on the steps near the entrance hall, they had come over here for the third time, but still, there were no familiar figures in sight. Harry looked at the dark clouds overhead, expecting a rain shower that would fall at some point.
“What’s in the clouds?” Ron suddenly asked.
Harry stared at the dark clouds looming high in the sky, and just as Ron had said, something is glowing in the clouds. More and more students noticed the difference overhead as countless tiny pillars of light pierced out of the thick clouds, then turned into a gentle light that illuminated the entire castle.
“Is this … illumination?” Harry’s mouth opened wide.
It is at this point that he suddenly felt a stinging pain in his scar and covered his forehead, suspecting that his head is about to split open as a blurred image appeared out of thin air in his mind.
“Harry? What’s wrong with you?” Hermione was the first to notice that something is wrong.
“It’s, it’s Voldemort …” Harry said, fighting through the excruciating pain, “he’s somewhere, and he’s happy!” Harry gasped and stumbled a few steps out, almost falling down from the steps.
Ron rushed to pull Harry to his feet, Harry’s hand gripping his arm like a clamp and leaning most of his weight on him, causing Ron to suck his breath in pain.
“Hiss~ You saw him again?”
Their strange behaviour drew the attention of the others and a couple of members of the Frontline Lookout approached them hurriedly, “What’s going on?” Seamus asked in shock as he shouted into the distance, “Call the Professor over, whoever it is! Harry’s ill, his scar-”
“Don’t!” Harry whimpered, covering his head, his face contorted with pain, Seamus freaked out as Neville squeezed over forcefully, “Harry, do you want me to go get Professor McGonagall? Or Professor Black or … Professor Snape?” There was a glum look on his face as he said the last name, as he would usually try to avoid Snape.
Hermione gave him a deep look, knowing that the people Neville mentioned are all members of the Order of the Phoenix, so she said decisively, “All three of them, hurry up!”
Just as Neville spoke, Harry’s scar felt like it is on fire, and he felt his skin melt as a picture appeared before his eyes: a looming complex of buildings standing on top of a hill, surrounded by a somewhat similar environment to Hogwarts, covered in a cold, wet mist and dense forest. Two tall humanoid stone statues stood at the two sides of the main entrance, but they appeared in the corner of his view, making it impossible for Harry to see them clearly. A strange and unfamiliar feeling became clear: he sensed its presence, connected to him by blood …
The legends are true …
Harry stumbled and sat on the steps, the gentle white light shattered the dark clouds overhead and spilled onto his face, making him a little more comfortable. He closed his eyes when a sudden cold touch met his lips, “Harry, drink it.” He heard Hermione nervously say.
Harry barely opened his eyes to see a small vial with a potion floating in front of him, “No, I don’t want it.” He grunted in a small voice, “It’s too loud.” The noises around him are chaotic, with students shouting everywhere, making it hard for him to get back into Voldemort’s head.
“Quiet! Everybody be quiet!” Ron’s voice exclaimed, and Harry caught a glimpse of him waving his arms in the corner to disperse the ever-approaching crowd.
Harry tried his best to resist the self-operating Occlumency, I need to see more, I don’t need you for now … Two images overlapped, on one side there is the sound of footsteps, “A professor is coming!” On the other side is a sight of huge, lush trees that suddenly come into view, the leaves swaying and rustling without wind, and he felt two overlapping emotions of joy.
One from Voldemort and the other from the tall Snakewood tree.
“What’s happening … Potter?” Snape appeared with an expressionless face, followed by Draco Malfoy and a pale Neville.
‘He was the first one I saw.’ Neville’s eyes helplessly intoned.
“Harry’s scar has begun to hurt again!” Hermione anxiously said.
“Fragile people are like that, easily overwhelmed by a tiny dose of reality, and if he’s still not doing as well as he should in Potions class, all I can say is-”
“You know what I’m talking about!” Hermione yelled at him as hard as she could.
“Gryffindor ten points off for talking back to the professor.” Snape said subconsciously, then he saw the twisted snake shadow on Harry’s face, he maintained the mocking expression on his face, and slowly said after a few seconds of hesitation, “I can’t help you, better take him to the hospital wing.”
“Old bat…*”
Ron’s voice mingled with the footsteps and loud enquiries of Sirius and Professor McGonagall, who had arrived upon hearing the news, which allowed Snape to hear only the first sentence, and he looked menacingly at Ron, but Sirius had already squeezed him aside, so he simply said nothing and stood coldly in place.
“What’s happening, Harry? Harry! Is your scar is starting to hurt again?” Sirius shouted anxiously.
Harry didn’t reply, his voice became low and hoarse, and a creepy ‘hiss’ sounded from his mouth. Sirius’ eyes widened, and he reached out his hand-
“Don’t touch him.” Hermione grabbed him, her expression is one of fear, but then the firmness returned, as she said with a shudder, “It’s Parseltongue, Harry’s connected to that man.”
Sirius’ outstretched hand froze, his heart tormented, debating whether or not to stop this dangerous act.
Luckily the Parseltongue soon subsided and Harry slumped down on the cold steps breathing heavily. At that moment a stone in front of them turned into a stretcher, “I’ll take you to the hospital wing first, Harry.” Professor McGonagall said, with some composure, “And then I will notify Headmaster Dumbledore.”
Harry didn’t say a word, an incredible image surfaced in his mind, the huge snakewood tree is withering rapidly, its bright leaves becoming dull, grey and yellow and crumbled, its trunk shaking as if it had gone through thousands of years in just a few seconds.
” CRACK!”
The trunk cracked down from the middle, revealing a large hole.
A wand floated out of the pitch-black deep hole.
A few tender buds remained on top of the wand, but they lost their lustre and fell off in an instant, and the surface of the wand became lustrous as if the wand had absorbed the entire life force of the giant snakewood tree. The tidal wave of joy came in waves, making it impossible for Harry to distinguish reality from illusion, and the last image he had in his mind was of a pair of thin, pale hands holding it.
Harry sobered up instantly as if he had plunged into ice water.
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