Dumbledore's Arrangement, a Surefire Way to Kill a Conversation

"Look!" Snape's voice was hoarse. "The Dark Mark is not as noticeable as it was a little over an hour ago."

It was burned to a charred black color, but you could still see it.

"This is the mark Voldemort left on the Death Eater, the way the Death Eater recognize each other, and the secret signal Voldemort used to summon them back to his side."

When he touches a Death Eater's mark, we must immediately Apparition to his side.

Karkaroff and I both felt the burning heat of the marks tonight; we both knew he was back.

However, Karkaroff betrayed many of his Death Eater companions, and fearing Voldemort's retaliation, he had vanished long ago.

"Professor Karkaroff... ran away?" Krum asked, looking uneasy.

"Yes! He was incredibly fast," Snape scoffed. "He disappeared before we even had a chance to react; it must have been before Voldemort gave the signal."

Fudge stared wide-eyed, paused for a moment before looking at Dumbledore, and said firmly through gritted teeth, "I don't know what tricks you're playing, but I've had enough."

I don't want to say anything more. See you next time, Dumbledore. We need to discuss how Hogwarts operates.

Now, I have to go back to the Ministry of Magic.

Fudge turned to leave, but after taking only a few steps, he turned back.

He took a large bag of gold coins from his pocket and placed it in Aaron's hand. "The prize money for the Triwizard Tournament is one thousand Gold Galleons."

Although you both received the trophy together, I think everyone considers you the champion, and that's what you deserve.

Before Aaron could say anything more, Abei swiftly stuffed the gold coins into his pocket, his face beaming with satisfaction.

"I probably won't attend the awards ceremony, after all, I've had a bit of a falling out with Headmaster Dumbledore," Fudge said, then glanced at Dumbledore, put on his top hat, and walked out of the Headmaster's Office.

The oak door slammed shut.

Dumbledore shook his head hopelessly, then looked at Cedric and the others, "I think you should go to the School Hospital and have Madam Pomfrey take a look at you."

"It was quite tiring; tonight was exceptionally exciting."

I need to take some Calming Draught and then take a nap.

Abei pulled a dark glass bottle directly from his pocket and looked at his owner with a pleading expression.

Aaron looked at the ' Calming Draught ' label and couldn't help but twitch his lips. "You spendthrift! I prepared this step by step, how could you waste it like this!"

"Quickly take it back; the Potions at the School Hospital are free."

Abei gave an awkward laugh and stuffed the glass bottle back into his pocket.

"Let's go!"

"Don't rush, Gaius first," Dumbledore said. "You and Harry stay behind for a bit."

"Uh..." Aaron was a little reluctant, "Let's leave Harry here, he definitely knows more than I do."

"Don't worry, it won't take up much of your time."

Aaron's lips twitched slightly, and he nodded helplessly.

Cedric and the other two exchanged glances and silently left the room.

"To be honest, we anticipated Fudge's attitude, but it has changed the whole situation," Dumbledore said. "We have to speed things up."

"Minerva, I need to see Hagrid as soon as possible. If possible, please also inform Madam Maxime!"

"I'll take care of it right away." Professor McGonagall immediately left the Headmaster's Office.

"Sirius Black, you can turn back into your normal form now."

The big black dog didn't move, it just glanced at Adrian.

There's an outsider here; what if there's a misunderstanding?

"Miss Klein is smarter than you think, everything will be alright."

Adrian shrugged indifferently. "I'll just pretend I didn't see anything tonight."

The big black dog hesitated for a moment, then transformed back into Sirius Black. He glanced warily at Adrian, and when he saw that she wasn't surprised, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Sirius Black, Severus, and Lupin, I trust all three of you."

Now I hope you will put aside past grievances and cooperate sincerely.

"Dumbledore," Lupin looked at him with a troubled expression, "I'm fine with it, but those two..."

Snape and Black glared at each other with disgust and displeasure. If Dumbledore hadn't been there, they might have had a real fight.

"Shouldn't you manage to avoid showing hostility in important situations for a short period of time?"

"We're all on the same side; internal unity is essential, otherwise we're all hopeless," Dumbledore. "Give me some face now, let's shake hands and make peace for the time being."

The two reluctantly shook hands, but quickly separated.

Dumbledore nodded wearily and continued, "Lupin, you and Sirius Black go to the Weasley family."

Explain his innocence to them before he becomes human, or Arthur and Molly will probably just take him back to Azkaban.

I will write a letter to Arthur, tell him about the terrible situation, and tell him what to do.

Afterwards, you must inform Bellatrix Figg and Mundungus Fletcher; I will contact you as needed.

"Understood," Lupin said.

Sirius Black walked up to Harry and said, "You'll see me again soon, I promise."

Harry nodded worriedly, "I understand."

Sirius Black transformed back into a large black dog and was led away from the Headmaster's Office by Lupin.

"Severus."

"I know what you want me to do without you having to tell me, and I'm ready," Snape said in a deep voice, though his face was extremely pale.

A hint of worry flashed in Dumbledore's eyes. "I can only say good luck."

"Professor Snape," Adrian interjected, "My brother has been well taken care of by you these past few years."

Snape paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "As a teacher, that's what I should do."

"No, you misunderstand," Adrian explained. "What I mean is that if what you are doing is dangerous, or if you want to give up, you can seek refuge with the Gaius family for a while."

Voldemort hasn't bothered our families yet, so you'll be perfectly safe there.

Aaron nodded seriously. He could tell from Dumbledore's eyes that Professor Snape's mission was very important, but also very dangerous.

Honestly, he didn't want his division commander to be in danger.

"No, at least not for now," Snape reassured her, then strode away.

"It seems he's made up his mind," Adrian said. "Prepare some Felix Felicis for your teacher; he might need it."

Aaron nodded, then looked at Dumbledore. "Professor, is there anything you need us for?"

Dumbledore a moment before saying, "There are only a few of us left here. I guarantee that no one else will know about our next conversation."

Harry said you fought dozens of Death Eater alone in the graveyard of Riddle Death Eaters...

"That's pure fabrication." Aaron immediately interrupted, saying with absolute certainty, "That's definitely Harry's delusion. I'm confident I can beat one or two Death Eater, but dozens is simply impossible."

Harry:...

Without blushing or panting.

This blatant lie is truly astonishing.

"Alright!" Dumbledore knew he wouldn't admit it, and continued, "Your Butler seems to have come looking for you halfway through, you..."

"I didn't see anything," Aaron said without hesitation. "We were all unconscious and don't know anything."

"So what's your opinion of Voldemort? What if he were to resume his dark reign...?"

"It doesn't matter, I'm Pure-blood anyway."

Voldemort is about to unleash a bloody reform, but that fire won't reach us.

Dumbledore:...

Is this going to kill the conversation?

"Professor, is there anything else you need?" Aaron asked cautiously.

"No, that's all," Dumbledore forced smile.

I thought I could at least get some information out of him this time, or at the very least give Aaron a heads-up, but I didn't expect him to be so stubborn and unyielding.

Adrian smiled without saying a word, appearing completely indifferent, as if Voldemort's resurrection had no impact on them whatsoever.

"Then I'll head to the School Hospital first."

"Let's go, and bring Harry along too."

Aaron shrugged and helped Harry up from the chair.

"Goodbye, Professor Dumbledore, it's about time I headed back," Adrian said. "The Triwizard Tournament had a rather unexpected turn of events, but thankfully there were no casualties."

"Hogwarts can handle the final awards ceremony; I won't participate."

As the three walked, Harry looked conflicted. "Um... I'm sorry, I think I said something I shouldn't have."

"That's obviously your hallucination," Aaron reminded him. "But you shouldn't bring it up again, lest you embarrass yourself, understand?"

Harry blushed and nodded awkwardly, "We passed out after witnessing Voldemort's resurrection. I also had a nightmare, and when I woke up, I was inexplicably sent back by the Portkey."

"Hmm! You're a promising student!" Aaron said with satisfaction.

Adrian chuckled, then looked at Aaron, "You did a good job this time. You did all the things I asked you to do."

The champion and the last-place finisher passed the competition; no one else suffered any major injuries or fatalities.

"Two years. Don't forget what you promised me."

"This year and the Year of the Dragon."

"What?" Aaron's expression changed slightly. "This won't do. Half the year is already over."

"You promised two years, and you've cut it by a quarter!"

"To correct you, I meant this time of year, not the whole year," Adrian said matter-of-factly. "As for the reason, Uncle Jeans probably didn't tell you that you're going on a trip out of town this Summer Holiday."

I'll calculate it as a year for you, so you won't be at a disadvantage.

Aaron stared blankly for a moment, then said bitterly, "This is unfair. It's bad enough that I suffer during my vacation, but you've cut my two years in half."

"You know better than I what your Summer Holiday was like, but even if you count it as a year, I feel it's a bit short."

"Excuse me, just kidding," Harry interjected, "What are you two talking about?"

"His blind date schedule!" Adrian held up a finger meaningfully. "He should have met his partner after the holiday, but he met my requirements, so it can be postponed for a while."

Aaron shook his head, rubbing his forehead, and said, on the verge of tears, "Now you understand why I worked so hard in the Triwizard Tournament?"

Harry:...