Dinner Appetizer

"They remain tight-lipped and refuse to say anything. I still can't figure out if they believe he's back. They probably don't want to support either side or get involved in this."

Bill, the eldest son of the Weasley family, still had his long ponytail, and he was holding a roll of parchment, tilting his head to whisper to Arthur about the situation. Despite his flamboyant attire, he had gained a more composed and reliable air about him.

"Oh, that's possible," Arthur said thoughtfully, adjusting his horny-framed glasses, his head reflecting a slight glare.

"I believe they would never side with the Dark Lord; their losses have been heavy too. Remember the family of goblins he killed last time, near Nottingham?"

"That's not necessarily true, Bill. It depends on what they offer. I'm not talking about gold. If someone offers them the freedom we haven't given them for centuries, they won't be able to resist the temptation... Speaking of which, is there still no progress on Gagnon's side?"

"He's still quite emotionally averse to wizards, and he's furious about the Bagman affair. He thinks the Ministry of Magic covered up the truth. You know, those goblins never managed to get their gold from him."

"..."

Loren and the others listened intently, their eyes sparkling with thoughtful expressions.

Ludo Bagman doesn't seem to have paid off his gambling debts yet...

What Bill and Arthur were discussing seemed to be the progress of the Order of the Order of the Phoenix in winning over the fairies. It sounded like the fairies were still observing, perhaps waiting for the right price.

The goblins have probably lived in peacetime for too long, forgetting Voldemort and the Death Eater' Pure-blood Supremacy. In their eyes, goblins and non-human beings are even lower than Muggle. If they were to actually side with Voldemort for short-term gains...

"Cough cough..."

Seeing the father and son chatting animatedly, Molly cleared her throat forcefully, "Harry's here, along with Loren and Hermione!"

The Weasley seemed to snap out of their daze. Bill hurriedly gathered the parchment from the table, while Arthur turned to look at them and awkwardly smiled, "Oh, Harry, long time no see. So, Mad-Eye didn't make you go all the way to Greenland and then come back?"

"Yes, that's what he wanted to do..."

"How was your meeting? What was Snape saying just now?"

"Oh, Daddy, when is dinner? My stomach can't wait..."

A group of impatient young wizards widened their eyes, not wanting to miss this opportunity to gather information. They rushed to the long table, exchanging warm greetings, but their eyes were fixed on the parchment. Finding the parchment full of characters too tiring to look at, they all turned to the parchment with drawings on it.

Loren also examined the parchment with great interest, hoping to find some useful information.

Most of it was just report-style content; I only had time to catch a few scattered sentences at a glance.

"Walden McNair has been loitering outside the Department of Mysteries' rooms for an extended period, suspected of spying..."

"Lucius Malfoy has close ties with several wizarding families..."

"An unknown sorcerer is lurking in the waters off Azkaban..."

Poor Bill only had two hands, but there were twelve rolls of parchment on the table. He couldn't cover them all. He only had time to put away a few sheets of paper in front of him that were either speeches or intelligence. The rest of the paper, which looked like building plans, were taken in by them.

Hermione, upon seeing a report about giants, couldn't hide her excitement. She unconsciously tightened her grip on Loren's hand, muttering, "Hagrid and Madame Maxime have arrived, successfully delivered their gifts, and are currently negotiating with the giant Gurg..."

Bill turned pale with fright upon hearing her mutterings. He hurriedly pulled out his wand and said "Disappear" to all the parchments. The young wizards then disappointedly withdrew their longing gazes and slowly sat down one by one.

"I heard someone say they were starving..." Molly clenched her fist, her maternal instincts stirring, and forced a smile through her teeth. "Sit down for a bit, kids, dinner will be ready soon."

"I'll help you..." Arthur said with a cautious smile, and followed after him.

Soon, a set of heavy knives began to automatically cut meat and chop vegetables under Arthur's supervision. Plates, goblets, and cutlery floated out of the old cabinet. Molly stirred a large pot floating on the fire, and the aroma of food began to spread.

The two Twins who had been shouting the loudest remained silent, heads down tidying the messy table, seemingly oblivious to everything, as if they weren't the ones who had been yelling about being hungry while holding Arthur down.

George and Fred were always experienced and knew very well that they couldn't upset their mother at this time. They would let the matter drop after dinner.

Ron and Ginny followed suit, obediently taking out plates, wine glasses, and food from the pantry.

At the end of the long table sat Loren and Hermione, the children of another family. Both of them were pursing their lips, one with a slight upturn at the corner of her mouth and the other with a crescent-shaped eyebrow, trying their best to suppress their smiles.

"My dear friends, welcome to the Order of the Phoenix headquarters..."

Bill shook his head. "I know it's hard for you to control your curiosity, because I've been through the same thing. During the First Wizarding War, I was even younger than you, and my parents made me stay home all day looking after my younger brothers who were still wetting the bed..."

Fred retorted indignantly, "Hey, make it clear which brother you mean?"

"We were able to take care of ourselves back then!" George nodded emphatically.

"I can't remember, maybe it was Percy." Bill shrugged, casually shifting the blame onto his absent brother. "It's not that we intentionally wanted to hide the truth from you, but Dumbledore specifically instructed us to keep it a secret, especially from you, Harry ..."

Harry's face was a little pale.

"So, we were implicated by Harry?" Ron added, seemingly oblivious.

Harry's face grew even paler.

Bill clenched his right fist and put it to his mouth to hide his barely suppressed laughter, and said softly, "By the way, you've already met Mundungus, haven't you?"

Who is calling my name?

Mundungus mumbled groggily, rummaging through the pile of rags for a moment, then suddenly stretched out a dirty hand, as if to vote. His double eyelids drooped weakly, and his barely open eyes were bloodshot. "I agree with Bill..."

"The meeting is over, Dunger, Harry is here."

"Hmm? Oh, yes, Harry's here..."

Mundungus's gaze pierced through his messy ginger-yellow hair as he made out the people around him. Perhaps his mind wasn't fully clear yet, and he rummaged through his pockets with a slightly uneasy hand, pulling out a grimy black pipe. He lit it with his wand, took a deep drag, and slowly exhaled large plumes of greenish smoke.

It smelled awful, like someone's stinky socks had been burned.

"I'm reminding you one last time, Mundungus, could you please stop smoking that thing in the Kitchen, especially since we're about to eat!" Molly's shout came from the stove.

"Oh, okay, I'm sorry, Molly!"

Mundungus quickly stubbed out his pipe, stuffed it into his pocket, and slumped down, head bowed. "Harry, are you alright?"

"Fine."

Mundungus became even more uneasy, pulling out his pipe again but not lighting it, instead gently rubbing it with his fingers. "I must apologize, I should have stayed there, but those crucibles won't fetch a good price if they're not sold soon..."

The short, stout wizard with a stubble beard muttered nonsensical business ideas, and a strong stench of smoke and alcohol emanated from him.

This wasn't the first time Loren had met this elder of the Order of the Phoenix. Back in the inn near the Albanian Forest, he had seen Dumbledore speaking to him from afar.

A low-level secondhand dealer, who also helps a wizard of dubious origin deal with items of dubious origin, or more accurately, sells stolen goods. Most of what he sells are not valuable items: smuggled Flying Carpet that have been confiscated, rusty crucibles found in some pharmacy warehouse, defective products made by Alchemy apprentice...

Having spent years mingling at the very bottom of the Wizarding World, he had become acquainted with many Wizarding World and petty thieves, and had access to information that ordinary people couldn't hear. For this reason, Dumbledore recruited him into the Order of the Phoenix, a relatively steadfast stance, but that was his only advantage; the other members looked down on this peddler to varying degrees.

He wasn't a good person in the conventional sense, but he possessed the wisdom of an ordinary person to protect himself. He spent a long time mingling in the chaotic Knockturn Alley, yet he never got involved in any cases. His own Magic Power wasn't powerful, but he survived the First Wizarding War unscathed.

By calculation, he hadn't yet resold the Slytherin's Locket...

"Children, this isn't an unforgivable mistake, is it? I'm not the bad person you think I am. I'm just a small-time merchant, and I didn't steal those things... By the way, if you have any trinkets you'd like to sell, I might be able to offer some small assistance..."

George and Fred's eyes lit up.

As they were talking, the other guests at dinner calmed down the trouble upstairs and came down to the banquet. Sirius Black walked in front, with Lupin Tonks following behind.

The three men looked somber and remained silent, seemingly displeased by the old Witch's portrait they had just seen.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all, Loren, Hermione, and... Harry."

Sirius Black sat down at the table, looking haggard. His thin lips were bloodless, almost as pale as his cheeks. When he read the last name, a smile finally appeared on his face, and he seemed to come back to life.

"I've heard about the Dementor and the Trace. Thanks to you, Loren, things would have been much more complicated."

Loren nodded slightly, without saying anything.

Sirius Black didn't seem to care about his coldness. He turned to his godson, his smile softening, "You've grown taller, Harry, and you look a lot like your father James when he was young..."

"Really...?" Harry hesitated, seemingly unsure of what to say. "How was your summer? Are you really planning to postpone the wedding?"

Sirius Black's eyes dimmed, and he pursed his lips. "You know what, I'm really surprised by you. I thought the first thing you'd do when you got here was ask about Voldemort."

The atmosphere in the room suddenly changed, as if Dementor had swept past, bringing a chilling shiver.

Mundungus's boastful words caught in his throat, his eyes darting back and forth, his neck remaining still. Tonks, who was teasing Ginny with his Metamorphmagus, also stopped and cautiously looked this way. The flames on the stove went out, the bubbling of the stew stopped, and only the clanging of chopping meat remained on the cutting board.

Harry paused for a moment. "I asked Ron and the others, but they said we weren't approved to join the Order of the Phoenix, so..."

"They're right, you're all too young." Molly ran out of the stove wearing an apron, her fists clenched tightly as she stared warily at Sirius Black.

Sirius Black raised an eyelid. "Since when do we have to join the Order of the Phoenix to ask questions? Harry was stuck in that Muggle house for a whole month, he has the right to know what happened..."

Understanding the implication of his words, George's eyes widened, and he immediately complained loudly, "Wait, why did Harry get an answer to his question?"

"For a month we've been trying to get something out of you, but you won't tell us anything!" Fred asked angrily.

Sirius Black calmly replied, "Nobody told you what the Order of the Phoenix was doing. Don't blame me, it was your parents' decision. Harry's different..."

Molly snapped, "It's none of your business to decide what's best for Harry! I suppose you haven't forgotten what Dumbledore said, have you?"

Which part?

"That means not telling Harry what he doesn't need to know."

"I only intend to tell Harry what he needs to know, Molly!"

"He's not even a member of the Order of the Phoenix yet! He's only fifteen!"

"..."

The Weasley family brothers' heads darted back and forth between Sirius Black and Molly, as if watching a tennis rally. Ginny, clutching Butterbeer cork, stared blankly at their conversation, her mouth slightly agape. Lupin's eyes were glued to Sirius Black, Tonks looked at Molly.

Hermione paused, watching their lips move incessantly and listening to their heated argument. A sense of absurdity, detached from reality, crept over her. They had flown for hours from London to get here, and the appetizer for dinner was a hysterical argument.

"Looks like there's still some time before dinner starts..."

Loren's gentle and calm voice came through the window, as if the howling wind had been shut out, instantly clearing Hermione's mind, which had been inexplicably hazy. "We can take care of something else first."

Hermione blinked, suddenly recalling the news she had heard when she accepted Sirius Black's wedding invitation last semester. She glanced at the argument and nodded slightly.

While everyone's attention was focused on the two arguing in front, Loren and Hermione quietly slipped away from the end of the long table and, under the cover of the dim light, headed towards the stairs leading to the Entrance Hall.