Homecoming from Hogwarts

In the end, Mrs. Weasley brought Harry and his party to Diagon Alley.

Because Remus thought it was necessary to understand the real reaction of the people after the Ministry of Magic announced the resurrection of Voldemort.

Diagon Alley, as the commercial center of wizards, can undoubtedly give people intuitive changes.

"No one is allowed to run around. You must follow me closely."

At Harry's request, after sending the letter to Amosta, Remus looked at the children sternly.

"I guess Diagon Alley won't be so peaceful now."

"Don't worry, Remus--"

Fred, one of the twins, didn't care and said with a smile,

"We promise to obey management!"

"Just like the workers in your workshop!"

George followed suit.

Remus shook his head helplessly, then looked at Harry and the other two.

Having witnessed Voldemort's rage in his dream, Harry would no longer be optimistic about the current situation. Seeing Remus' concerned look, he shook his head heavily.

"let's go--"

Mrs. Weasley gently pushed Ginny's shoulder.

"Let's meet up at the Leaky Cauldron first."

There was a flash of green fire, and Ginny disappeared into the kitchen.

Fred and George followed closely behind, and Ron also walked into the fireplace at Mrs. Weasley's urging.

"Come on, Harry—"

Hermione held the back of Harry's shoulders and looked at him worriedly.

Harry knew that Hermione might have guessed that he had seen Voldemort in his 'dream' again. He forced a smile at her, then disappeared into the surging green flames.

The warm flames licked Harry's back and gently pushed him out of the fireplace. He stumbled two steps and bumped into several Weasleys who stood there like a wall.

"Why are you standing here like an idiot?"

Looking back at Hermione and Remus who walked out of the flames one after another, Harry raised his eyebrows, walked around Ginny and looked forward.

With just one glance, Harry's expression froze.

The dirty, noisy bar he remembered was gone, and what appeared before him was an empty hall:
All the tables and chairs in the bar were stacked up in the southeast corner of the hall until they reached the ceiling.

On the wine rack behind the bar, all the wine bottles that were covered with a layer of grease were taken away, and not even a glass was left.

The owner of this bar, who was familiar to each of them, the busy old hunchbacked Tom who always served the guests attentively with a humble smile, was also out of their sight.

The back door of the bar, leading to Diagon Alley, was nailed shut with boards, and the windows were sealed too. Only the faint white sunlight shone through the gaps between the boards onto the floor, which seemed to have been swept.

Squeak, squeak, squeak—
Harry stepped on the rotten floor, his eyes darting back and forth in astonishment.

“The Leaky Cauldron.”

"Hey, look at this!"

George had quickly reached the bar and picked up a piece of wood from the bar to show everyone.

Harry looked over immediately and saw George holding up a worm-eaten and pitted piece of wood with these words scribbled on it:
'Suspended business'

"closed?"

Mrs. Weasley showed a distressed expression.

"The Leaky Cauldron. But even last time, it was still open!"

"I bet it won't take more than ten minutes."

Hermione pursed her lips and said something that surprised Ron.
"The paint on it hasn't dried yet!"

Remus frowned and was about to say something, but suddenly, there was a creaking sound coming from the stairs leading to the second floor behind the bar. His expression changed and he looked solemnly at the dark staircase.

"Get out your wands!"

"We are not yet of age, Harry, no magic allowed!"

Hermione said sharply as Harry pulled out his wand without hesitation.

"The law states that you can if you are attacked, Hermione -"

Remus said solemnly,

"Minister Bones is much more clear about right and wrong!"

The people on the stairs seemed to have heard the conversation downstairs, and the footsteps stopped suddenly. The two sides confronted each other across a fragile wooden wall.

Gollum—
Harry crouched down and glanced around.

It was not wise for all of them to stand together. If the enemy suddenly attacked, a range spell would affect everyone.

"Who's the one down there?"

Suddenly, the man on the platform in the middle of the stairs spoke, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief after hearing his voice.

The vigilance on Remus' face disappeared, and he breathed a sigh of relief, but did not retract his wand.
"Remus Lupin, the Weasleys and Hermione Granger and Harry Potter -" "Ah, Mr. Potter?"

Old Tom no longer had any reservations after hearing this. He walked down the stairs with a thump, and the big bag behind him also floated down.

Old Tom jumped down the stairs and looked at Harry first, smiling respectfully.

"Long time no see, Mr. Potter, and Mr. Lupin!"

"haven't seen you for a long time--"

Harry hooked his fingers and his wand slid into his sleeve.

"Tom--"

Remus nodded at Old Tom.
"We were planning on going to Diagon Alley, so--"

Remus raised a finger and pointed at the sign in George's hand.

"But found"

"Oh, yes, that's right, Mr. Lupin, I'm afraid the Leaky Cauldron will be closed for a while -"

Old Tom looked sad.
"I'm sure you're all aware of the press conference this morning by Minister Bones and Mr. Blaine?"

"But what does this have to do with you?"

Ron asked in surprise.

"Oh, what's the matter?"

Old Tom's face became more bitter.
"Mr. Weasley, you should know that this pub is no more than a mile away from Gringotts, right?"

"so--"

Ron still looked confused.

"Come and see, everybody--"

Old Tom waved to them and led them to the closed wooden door.

The wooden door was opened and they came to the backyard of the Leaky Cauldron. Then, they passed through the red brick wall.

Wow!

The noise and light of the whole world suddenly flooded into Harry's ears and eyes, making him feel uncomfortable.

"Oh my God--"

Ginny's uncanny moaning sounded in his ears, causing Harry to quickly open his eyes and look around.

Clang!

Two wagons loaded with large boxes collided as they jostled for space on the cobblestones.

A box on one of the carriages fell sideways and crashed down in front of them.

The box popped open, and several shiny, exquisite flying brooms rolled out.

"hiss"

Ron gasped.

"Firebolt!"

Another carriage that had taken the lead drove away without even an apology, while the owner of the Quidditch boutique jumped off the carriage cursing and busily packed up the scattered boxes with his two assistants.

Similar scenes can be seen everywhere on the streets.

Harry stared blankly as a salesperson from Flourish and Blotts, not far away, waved his wand and made the books on the shelves fly into the boxes on the carriage parked at the door.

Turning my eyes, I saw that the clerk of the Owl Shop had already cleared out the store and was hanging a "Temporarily Closed" sign on the door.

A small number of shops in Diagon Alley were already closed, while the others were being packed up in full swing.

"Remus, and you guys?"

Amid the noise, Harry suddenly heard a familiar voice.

"Oh, Percy!"

Mrs. Weasley hurriedly left Ginny, rushed to the thin wizard who was escorting a car not far away, and hugged him tightly.

"Hello, Mom—"

Percy gave Mrs. Weasley a quick hug before leaving him and going over to Remus.
"The situation is urgent. We have also decided to evacuate the store in Diagon Alley. We haven't had time to report yet."

Percy said.

"It was a wise decision to retreat, Percy."

Remus had come to his senses and waved his hand to indicate his approval of Percy's decision.

"What the hell are you doing?"

This apocalyptic scene completely confused Ron.

"Does this need to be said?"

Percy was a little surprised at Ron's dullness.
"Since Professor Brain has decided to fight the You-Know-Who in Diagon Alley, they must flee! (End of this chapter)