Homecoming from Hogwarts

Sitting in front of the fireplace, staring blankly at the dancing flames in the hearth, motionless.

Jasna had maintained this posture for several hours.

Frustration and regret did torment her for a while, but after that, emptiness and numbness swallowed up all her emotions.

This was not the same as serving time in Azkaban.

While in that prison, she would need to muster up all her willpower to fight off the Dementors that would eat away at her soul every day.

The feeling of being deprived of happiness made her despair, but at the same time, it also aroused her hatred and fighting spirit.

And in this isolated village, no one would torture her, and she could lie peacefully in her warm bed all day long.

She didn't have to work so hard to complete the task her father assigned to her; she didn't have to pretend to be friendly with the Death Eaters who were in name only but not with her; she didn't have to fight to the death with the Aurors.

And this is what makes it even more tormenting.

It seemed that the only thing she could do was think.

But what did she need to think about? It seemed that she had nothing to think about.

And this is the root cause of her pain.

Jasna considers herself to be an intelligent wizard.

There is no need to say more about this. For so many years, she has been immersed in the dark side of the magic world, carefully avoiding the sunlight, completing dangerous tasks one after another. Before Brian, she had never been caught, which is enough to prove her wisdom. It seems so.

But suddenly, she found that when she had lost contact with her father, or worse, her father had died and she could no longer receive instructions from him, she would fall into such a state of confusion.

The arms around the knees were slightly clenched, and the beautiful face with a hint of charm showed helplessness.

If her father really died, what should she do in the rest of her life?

Working for Voldemort?

No, that was ridiculous. She was not the same kind of dark wizard who advocated pure violence and killing.

Like his father, he continued to hold high the banner of making wizards no longer humble, quietly accumulating strength in secret, and one day in the future, he would blow the horn of war again?
The corners of Jasna's pale mouth twitched.

She couldn't do it, not while Amos Tower Blaine lived.

She saw with her own eyes how Brian destroyed their underground base, and also witnessed the duel between Brian and the Dark Lord up close.

The wisdom and power possessed by a wizard of that level were beyond her reach in her entire life.

And she doesn't have her father's will and lofty dreams.

Let wizards be proud and make Muggles bow down before them.

This was the goal she had been striving for in the past ten years. But when she thought about it carefully, it didn't seem that interesting.

So how should she live her life?
Her hands are stained with the blood of Muggles and wizards. There is no soil for her to live in many countries in Europe and even America. Unless she hides her identity and lives in darkness for the rest of her life.

Jasna turned her head and looked outside the house.

The biting cold wind became stronger, and a white tornado occasionally swept across the frozen river in front of the door.

Only half of the afternoon had passed and the sky was already as dark as early night.

Or, spend your whole life here?
The thought that suddenly popped into her mind made Jasna move the corners of her pale mouth and shake her head in her heart.

She rejected the offer she made to herself, but she didn't know why.

Wow, wow, wow
Amid the seemingly eternal and dull whistling of the wind, a strange sound gradually grew stronger.

As if she had received an electric shock, Jasna, who was curled up in front of the fireplace, stood up suddenly, hopped on one foot to the door, held onto the door frame, and stared into the dark world with wide eyes.

When the skinny figure appeared in her sight from behind the snow slope, dragging the sled with difficulty, Jasna's heart skipped a beat!
It’s really Lao Ma Lao Enma!
"Where have you been, old Enma!"

The excitement was not reflected on Jasna's face. She still had a cold expression, but she didn't notice the slight tension and anger mixed in her questioning.

However, before old Enma could answer this question, Jasna had her own answer.

On the sled that Old Enma dragged back with great difficulty was a reindeer, which, judging from its huge size, weighed no less than 400 pounds! Moreover, it had been gutted and even its skin had been peeled off!
"You are going"

Jasna's lips moved a few times.

After spending a few days together, Jasna knew very well that old Enma had no appetite. She had seen old Enma's cellar, where there were enough potatoes for him to eat until the beginning of next spring, so.
Old Enma was not at all interested in how Jasna figured out his name. He just nodded at her indifferently, then dragged the reindeer off the sled and pulled it into the house with great effort.

This is too difficult for an elderly person with a thin body.

No matter what, old Enma couldn't pull such a heavy reindeer into the house. It was hard to imagine how he hunted it. When he went out this morning, old Enma did not take his old hunting rifle with him.

"let me help you!"

After being in a trance for a while, Jasna came back to her senses and spoke quickly.

A young woman who had lost a leg certainly didn't have much power, but it would be a different story if this woman was a wizard.

Although she had lost her wand, her magic power was still there, so a small weight-reducing levitation spell was not particularly difficult.

As for the fact that using magic in front of Muggles is against the law, it is not worth worrying about at all.

Old Enma, who had been tired all day, had no intention of resting. After Jasna put the fat reindeer on the square table, he took out a knife and prepared to cut the reindeer into pieces immediately.

"I'll come--"

Jasna seemed to have picked up old Enma's habits and spoke concisely.

Cutting spell.

It's not easy to control, but I finally used it.

It took a lot of effort for Jasna to remove the reindeer's four legs.

"What kind of wizards have you seen before?"

Panting, she turned around and saw Old Enma watching her perform magic intently, and asked casually.

no answer.

Jasna was already used to this kind of silence, and she didn't feel annoyed.
"You met wizards during the Muggle Second World War, right? Then have you heard of Gellert Grindelwald? The wizards who formed an alliance with you fought for him."

“They fight for themselves.”

Old Enma said calmly.

Jasna glanced at Old Enma with a hint of surprise, and thought for a moment.

"You are right. They fought for wizard freedom, and you could say for themselves, but Grindelwald led them and gave them direction. It's a pity that if he had won, the world would not be the terrible place it is today."

Old Enma used a dagger to separate a few pieces of venison from the removed deer leg, washed it briefly, and then threw it carelessly on the mantelpiece.

Stab it!

As the blood evaporated, an unpleasant burnt smell rushed into the nostrils.

Jasna didn't want the first proper dinner in a few days to be ruined, so she quickly stopped them and cooked venison for old Enma.

"The world is a terrible place all the time, whether he wins or not."

Jasna thought the conversation was over, but unexpectedly, old Enma, who was watching her grilling meat, suddenly said.

"For you guys it's like this--"

After a few seconds of silence, Jasna's surprised expression faded.
"But not for wizards. If Grindelwald had defeated Dumbledore, wizards would have been free and would not have to hide in front of low-class Muggles."

"Wizards have always had freedom, and they don't need anyone to fight for it for them.

Muggles are not inferior either, their wisdom is not inferior to that of wizards, and they have created a civilization as great as magic—"

Old Enma stared at the sizzling venison in silence. Under Jasna's displeased gaze, he spoke the longest conversation they had ever had.

"Grindelwald is not fighting for the freedom of wizards. He is just pursuing his own ambitions." (End of this chapter)