Don't Be Such a Stark

The day after the press conference, Newt, the elderly gentleman, waved goodbye and, with only a suitcase in his hand, prepared to leave Paris.

Since Nicolas's 665th birthday, he has been constantly out and about, having a lot of fun.

It's been almost two years since I last went home. If I don't go back soon, my grandson won't even recognize me!

Newt was very experienced in this kind of thing. After getting married, he went away alone for two years. When he came back, he found that his son could run around and didn't recognize him at all.

Even so, it couldn't stop him from running around everywhere. It seems that all badgers have a wandering heart!

William and Hermione took Newt to the airport so he could fly back to the United Kingdom.

Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport

William explained the boarding process to Newt in detail and wrote it down on a piece of paper to prevent him from forgetting.

Hermione carefully checked the plane ticket and all other documents, put them in a bag, and handed them to Newt.

After putting everything away, the old man smiled easily and said, "I need to rest at home for a while; I've been too tired lately."

"And what about the affairs in United States? To whom did Professor Dumbledore entrust them?" William asked.

Newt isn't going to United States for the time being, someone else will definitely be keeping an eye on Tom.

"Babbling, she's been in the United States all this time," Newt said.

"Professor Babbling..." William murmured, momentarily lost in thought.

Babbling was Hogwarts's professor of Ancient Runes, and during the time loop, William learned many strange things from her.

Unexpectedly, this woman with such a terrible temper would actually obey Dumbledore's orders to go to United States to spy on Tom.

William thought she was simply wasting her time at Hogwarts.

Sure enough, the professors at Hogwarts were all Dumbledore's tools; there wasn't a single person he couldn't command.

If so... it means that person is not far from death!

For example, the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor in recent years.

Therefore, being liked or disliked by Dumbledore is not a particularly pleasant experience.

Dumbledore likes someone, he'll send them on constant adventures; if he dislikes someone, he'll bring them to Hogwarts to become the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor.

Both methods are life-threatening; simple, brutal, and efficient!

"Goodbye, little one." William patted the Occamy's head. "I'll miss you."

Having spent so much time together, William quite liked this Occamy.

But jokes aside, when it came to using Occamy Egg to make Felix Felicis and improve shampoo, William didn't hesitate at all!

The Niffler also crawled out of Newt's box, grabbed his collar, and waved goodbye.

On its paws, it clutched an IOU that would never be honored.

After the Leprechaun's gold disappeared, the Niffler started acting up again, and William, unable to bear it any longer, gave it a blank check.

It has his and Hermione's signatures on it, as well as the Niffler's paw prints.

Two copies, one for William and Hermione, and one for Niffler.

"What about Nagini?" Hermione asked worriedly.

"If she wants, she can live in my trunk; if not, I'll find a forest in the United Kingdom and release her," Newt said.

William and Hermione nodded.

Dumbledore couldn't save Nagini, and neither could they.

"Well then, goodbye." The old man picked up his suitcase, turned, and walked into the airport.

Hermione leaned on William's shoulder, and the two stood there, watching Newt's figure gradually disappear.

A few minutes later, Hermione took William's arm and they left, strolling aimlessly along the airport road.

Just then, a beetle secretly flew over.

It hovered in mid-air for a while, trying to stick to William's clothes.

The sharp-eyed Hermione immediately pulled out an electric mosquito swatter that she had prepared beforehand from inside the Safety Watch.

She swung her racket, mimicking the motion of hitting a tennis ball, the racket emitting a crackling electrical sound.

--The official mosquito swatter from Hogwarts, even the knock-off version is awesome!

The beetle hurriedly fled from the evil Hermione, fell back to the ground, and transformed into Rita.

"This must be a Muggle weapon of mass destruction?!" Rita patted her chest dramatically, still shaken.

"Oh no, no wonder they could destroy Paris, it's really dangerous."

"..."

"What are you doing here?" Hermione raised an eyebrow and said bluntly. "Following us?!"

"Miss Perfection's words really hurt me. I thought we were good friends."

Rita calmed herself down, took a mirror out of her crocodile skin bag, and leisurely touched up her heavy makeup.

"Speak, what do you want with us?" William asked.

"Long time no see. Now that I'm in Paris, and you're here too, of course I should say hello."

Rita put away the mirror, flashing a professional, fake smile. "After all, I didn't have a chance to speak with either of you at yesterday's press conference."

"Let's find a more secluded spot?" Rita glanced around.

"Right now, wizard journalists from all over the world are searching for you all over Paris."

"Only I guessed that you were going to send Scamander away, so I came here."

"Let's go then." William Apparition Hermione with him.

Rita followed closely behind.

On the Seine,

A café on the Left Bank.

The waiter brought several cups of coffee and then left.

Rita held up her cup, blew on it to cool it down, and got straight to the point:

"William, I know you're upset about yesterday. So many reporters took photos, which immediately confirmed that you were toying with someone's feelings..."

"He didn't!" Hermione argued loudly.

"Of course I know no." Rita glanced at Hermione, then said meaningfully, "That's just one of Cregan's tactics; I'm all too familiar with it."

"What do you mean?" Hermione immediately pressed.

"Cregan did it on purpose. He had that girl named Costa deliver flowers to you; his intentions were far from pure."

"Even that slap on William might have been at his behest," Rita said confidently.

"How is that possible?" Hermione squinted.

"Why not?" Rita chuckled. "Young and naive lady, you're still too immature."

Think about it, with so much happening in Paris, the French Ministry of Magic would love for other news to break to divert everyone's attention.

"To put it bluntly, wizards from other countries don't care whether Paris was almost destroyed or whether the France flag is a white flag with two colored stripes."

My United Kingdom readers are more interested in whether the youngest recipient of the Order of Merlin and the youngest recipient of the Medal of Valor are... a couple.

Rita drawled out her words, glancing at the two people in front of her.

"They were more concerned with whether Mr. Stark was a scumbag, and whether he had played with the feelings of one or more France girls in Paris."

They will also stand up for the lady who received the Medal of Valor!

"We live in an age of entertainment to the death."

Rita scoffed, "That's exactly what the French Ministry of Magic is trying to do—stir up a controversy, throw out a hot topic, and then shift the focus... I was already using this tactic ten years ago!"

"What exactly are you trying to say?" William asked, frowning.

"William, grant me this interview. I'll help you win a media war, tell the readers the truth, and prove your innocence," Rita said excitedly.

That's why she came today. William and Hermione saved Paris, and their fame is growing; they're an inexhaustible treasure!

"Forget it, I don't trust you even more," William said decisively.

"But..." Rita persisted.

"My relationship with William is not a tool for you to make money!" Hermione said angrily.

"Of course," Rita put down her cup, giving Hermione a fierce glare. "Let's change the subject then. Tell me about your dealings with the French Ministry of Magic?"

Or, in this Paris incident, the foolish role they played.

"Didn't you say that people aren't interested in these news stories?" Hermione questioned.

"That's relatively speaking. United Kingdom has always been the stronghold of anti-French sentiment, with readers as wide as the English Channel."

"I'm sorry, I can't say." William shook his head.

They were paid hush money, so they need to have professional ethics and not act like traitors.

William will still have to deal with the French Ministry of Magic in the future, so he can't afford to completely offend them.

"Then you have to provide me with some interesting information, right?" Rita said irritably.

I've given you so much; you can't take advantage of me and then not give anything back, can you?

Don't be too much Stark!

"..."

"Most importantly..." Rita smiled slightly and continued, "You two don't want all the United Kingdom newspapers to be reporting on your story all summer, do you?"

Since you want to keep a low profile, you should learn from the French Ministry of Magic and shift the focus of attention.

That's true.

William thought for a moment, "I do have some information here, but only a few people know about it right now."

"What?" Rita clutched her crocodile bag tightly.

Sirius Black has escaped from prison.

"Who?" Rita hesitated for a moment. "Impossible, I haven't received any news!"

"Intelligence is intelligence precisely because few people know it; otherwise, it wouldn't be intelligence, but outdated news."

William calmly took a sip of his coffee.

"I happen to be one of the few who know this."

(Thanks to Fengling Shiwu for the generous donation.)