days at Hogwarts

Chapter 725 The taste of home
"When do we leave for Ilvermorny?"

"Tomorrow."

"So urgent?"

"Severus and Egilbert have urged us several times. We should not keep them waiting for too long."

"Are you sure?"

"Not yet."

"I see……"

Loren kicked the branch away and watched it fall into the grass and disappear. "Then be careful when you go to Ilvermorny... Here, I'll give you a copper Knut. If you encounter Voldemort and can't defeat him, remember to contact me. Although the distance is far, with my current ability, I should be able to get there quickly."

"Well...I will."

Dumbledore smiled gently, took the modified copper coin, and looked at it over and over again in his hand. As an old wizard who was also proficient in alchemy, he could easily understand the function of the communicator, especially the part of the design that was mixed with Muggle concepts. He seemed very interested.

Loren explained how to use it and listened to the principal's soft questions. The crickets chirped from time to time, and this summer night seemed particularly quiet.

Headmaster Dumbledore is a good man. His life should not be confined to the high tower of Hogwarts. The first hundred years can no longer be recovered. I hope he can embark on his journey peacefully after retirement instead of thinking about where the Horcruxes might be hidden.

I walked around the path in the courtyard, but I didn't find the crickets. Instead, I spotted a few frogs hiding in the shallow pool with half of their heads exposed. They were croaking loudly, but when people approached, they closed their mouths and were not afraid of people. They stared at me with their dark eyes.

Loren yawned, "Did you know that Harry has to stay in school?"

"He told me so."

"You agree?"

"Sirius' daughter is born, he should go and see her, but he is worried that he will bring danger to the Burrow... In fact, I would rather see him return to the Dursleys, just to be with them, rather than for the power of shelter."

"Oh, that family affection again..."

Before Loren could finish his words, he caught a glimpse of a familiar figure out of the corner of his eye.

The wizard robe he wore specially for the year-end dinner was slightly loose, and the pure white shirt and golden red tie showed his unique temperament. His slightly messy hair was spread out, and Qingmei had a smile on his face. He swung his sleeves and ran over quickly, stopping beside Loren, and said in a crisp voice:
"Good evening, Professor Dumbledore."

"good evening."

"..."

After a simple greeting, both parties said goodbye. They walked forward side by side, occasionally whispering to each other, simple and natural movements that seemed to have become a habit.

Dumbledore watched them go away, a gentle smile on his kind face.

……

It was already very late, so Loren didn't take Hermione outside for too long. They just wandered around for a while and then went back to the dormitory.

Many people who didn't want to sleep gathered in the common room, sitting together and chatting, the voices were not too noisy, the Quidditch team members also sat together, the captain Ron maintained order, Harry sat at the side, his eyes slightly red. Sitting in the main seat was the chaser Katie Bell, who was only one year older than Harry and joined the team in the same year as Harry, and was about to leave.

At this point, all the Quidditch players from the previous year have graduated.

The atmosphere is inevitably a bit sad.

Loren and Hermione said goodnight to each other at the bottom of the stairs without interrupting, and then went upstairs quietly.

Loren came out of the bathroom after taking a shower and found that the team had already disbanded and returned to the dormitory. Ron and Seamus were about to leave when they remembered that they still had luggage to pack, so they asked Neville to help. Harry sat in a chair in silence, his expression still a little dazed, staring at the burning candle, lost in thought.

Loren came and sat down next to him, looking at Harry who was in a daze: "Your godfather's daughter is born, are you really not going to go back and see her?"

Harry refocused his eyes and shook his head: "Dumbledore has already advised me, I insist on my choice. Sirius and the others need a stable environment right now. If I go back, Mad-Eye Moody will only disturb their peace with a team of guards."

"Okay, I won't persuade you, but have you figured out how to convince Mrs. Weasley?" Loren spread his hands and said, "She was waiting for the car at King's Cross Station, and she found out that her most precious child was staying at school. Do you think it's possible for her to come to school and take you away?"

"..."

Ron, who was packing his clothes, turned around and looked at the two of them. He scratched his head, feeling that something was wrong.

Forget it, it’s more important to pack my clothes.

I have to take these spare clothes back for my mother to wash. Two of the robes have torn under the armpits, so I have to ask my mother to mend them.

Harry thought for a moment, thinking of the scene when Mrs. Weasley chased him to the school. His brows gradually frowned, and his expression was serious: "I said I had a legitimate reason to stay in school. I stayed in Hogwarts not only for safety, but also to practice Legilimency wholeheartedly, in order to find the last Horcrux hidden by Voldemort as soon as possible."

"I can't practice after leaving school?"

“I can pay more attention in school.”

"How do you practice when you're alone in school?"

"Who says I'm alone? Dobby, Winky, Grawp, and Hagrid will be with me. The house-elves can take me to visit the Burrow and Grimmauld Place. With two giants helping me practice Legilimency, I'm sure I'll make rapid progress."

"It sounds like you're saying they're simple-minded and easy to see through."

"..."

Harry picked up the teacup and took a sip, his expression subtle, neither admitting nor denying.

The year-end party ended late, and after taking a walk to digest the food, washing up and chatting, the other roommates had already gone to bed. Only then did Ron pack all his luggage, blow out the candles, and be the last one to lift the quilt and go to bed.

The clock struck midnight.

The roommates were lying in bed, none of them had fallen asleep yet.

Harry tossed and turned, unable to sleep. He turned over to face Loren and whispered, "Loren, do you remember that night when I tried to use Legilimency on you and saw my own memories?"

"so?"

"I've been practicing Legilimency for some time, but I still don't know how to find the channel between my head and Voldemort's. I don't even know how to search my brain, except that night."

Harry became more and more energetic as he spoke. He simply sat up and leaned his back against the cushion at the head of the bed. "So I was thinking, if I could enter my own head like I did that night, maybe I could find that passage."

"so?"

"Loren, tell me, what should I do?"

"It's just a magic mirror." Loren explained with a yawn, "I thought you had discovered that Legilimency uses the gaze as a carrier. When you look into the mirror, you receive the gaze you send out, which is to use Legilimency on yourself."

"Mirror……"

Harry muttered quietly, his eyes falling on the wall of the room, where there was a huge magic mirror called Eris, with a black curtain covering the gorgeous carvings.

……

The next morning.

Loren and Hermione had a simple breakfast and sat quietly in the hall waiting.

At 10:30 in the morning, the Hogwarts Express arrived at the station, and the young wizards who were leaving school began to board the train, dragging their suitcases and owl cages. Harry didn't know what he was thinking, he followed them with empty hands, saying that he wanted to see them off, but he ended up flirting with Ginny all the way, which made Ron roll his eyes.

Loren dragged his and Hermione's empty boxes and talked to the students next to him: "What are your plans for the summer vacation?"

"In the first week, I'm my mom's good darling, in the second week, I'm a stranger in the house, and in the third week, I'm my mom's enemy. That's about it." Ron shrugged, with a very clear self-awareness.

"Ottery St. Catchpole, right? Maybe Luna and I can come and visit you. I'm going to stay at Luna's for a while. It won't be too long, maybe about a month." Rolf pressed the pocket on his left chest, and his little mantis-like head shrank back, revealing only two eyes. "I hope Mr. Lovegood won't hate me."

"Why?" Hermione looked at Rolf and Luna in surprise with wide eyes.

"Dumbledore invited my grandfather to Ilvermorny for an inspection. It seems to be the same project as last time. This time, the school took the initiative to propose some more radical tests, just in case, for..." Rolf paused, "You know that thing."

Loren glanced at the Bowtruckle, which seemed to have grown a little. "Are you sure?"

"I am not sure as well."

"Remember to write to us if you have any news."

Loren knew that Mr. Scamander was very knowledgeable about magical animals. Considering that the remaining Horcrux was a living Horcrux, it was normal for Dumbledore to invite Scamander. To some extent, the snake tree could barely be classified as a magical animal, or perhaps a magical plant...

Even if they couldn't find the living Horcrux during this trip to Ilvermorny, at least they found a legitimate reason for Rolf to stay at the Lovegood family, so the Scamander family would not lose out in any way.

Looking at Luna humming softly beside him, who seemed happy for the little friend who was about to stay in his house, Loren shook his head. Young couples in love loved these childish behaviors the most.

"Tsk tsk..."

Loren looked at Neville who was silent at the side and asked, "What about you, Neville? Did your parents accidentally reveal any news? What will the Ministry of Magic do during the summer vacation? What will the Aurors do?"

"No, at least not in the letter. I'll ask when I get back."

"Remember to notify us."

"understood."

They arrived at Hogsmeade Station smoothly. The group dragged their suitcases onto the train and walked to the back of the carriage until they found an empty compartment. Loren put his luggage away, opened the window, and said goodbye to Harry, who was staring at him on the platform: "Let's go, stay in school and study hard. Remember to come and see us when you have a chance to go out."

Hermione warned earnestly: "Don't break the school rules. Listen to Hagrid."

Ginny and Ron waved at him, "We'll miss you!"

"hiss……"

Harry frowned, feeling a little strange.

The whistle sounded, and the Hogwarts Express slowly started off, winding along the tracks and gradually disappearing among the undulating hills. It set off in the bright morning light and arrived in London in the afternoon when the sun was about to set. King's Cross Station was as crowded as in previous years.

At five o'clock in the evening, Loren and Hermione walked out of Platform 9.

At five-fifth they reached the suburb of Hampstead.

Today happens to be the weekend, and Monica bought plenty of ingredients early to prepare a big meal for her two children.

I don't know which TV cooking show or cooking magazine she saw this from, but Monica firmly believes that every type of meat has its best partner: lamb with mint sauce, pork with apple sauce, beef with hot sauce, chicken with cranberry sauce...

The kitchen looked very lively. In order to cater to the different tastes of several people, she specially prepared several kinds of meat, made the corresponding sauces by hand, and paired them with croissants, Yorkshire puddings and the like as side dishes.

It sounds good, but from Loren's point of view, it always seems a bit monotonous.

After sitting on the sofa for a while, listening to Grandpa Bates and Wendell chatting, he finally couldn't sit still anymore, so he slipped into the kitchen and planned to make some side dishes with other ingredients.

"You don't need to help. You've been on the train all day and you must be very tired."

"It's because I've been sitting for a whole day, so I don't want to sit any longer."

"Oh my dear Loren, you are so sweet."

"..."

The concept of cooking shows may need to be corrected. The ingredients they recommend are quite good. They are all high-quality meats and there is almost nothing wrong with them except that they are expensive.

It is just a bit troublesome to process. The meat needs to be soaked in water to remove the blood, washed to remove the blood foam and floating oil, then cut and marinated... it's a mess. Fortunately, the wizard's wand is the best automated machine.

After dealing with the remaining beef, I vaguely heard Hermione coming down the stairs.

"Dad, Grandpa Bates."

After taking a shower, Hermione changed into a more comfortable silk home clothes. Her curly hair was still steaming. When she didn't see Loren at first, she knew he went to the kitchen. She didn't care and sat down on the sofa with her slippers dangling.

Oil and protein induce the Maillard reaction, and the aroma gradually wafts out.

The three of them sat on the sofa and suddenly didn't want to talk anymore. They looked at each other in silence. They could vaguely hear the sounds of cutting meat and talking coming from the kitchen.

"Loren, why did you pick out this piece of meat?"

"This piece of beef is too lean and has little fat. It will easily become tough when grilled and won't taste good."

"What should we do?"

"Cut it into strips and fry it with onions. You'll like it."

"Oh, dear, I wish you were my child."

"..."

"I don't want to say anything bad about Hermione, but you should already know that nerdy girl. I may have to trouble you in the future..."

Hermione's cheeks flushed, she slowed down the process of combing her hair, pursed her lips, and glanced towards the kitchen unconsciously.

Grandpa Bates and Wendell looked at each other, their eyebrows raised, their eyes moving, and their eye contact was seamless, as if they were real father and son.

"Should I remind Monica?"

"No."

"Would you like to comfort little Hermione?"

"No."

"What should we do?"

"Pretend you didn't hear."

"good idea."

After reaching a consensus, they looked away tacitly, as if they hadn't heard anything, and focused on watching the TV, which was playing a shopping program about good helpers for housewives, all kinds of strange knives, multi-functional toilet brushes, etc...

Who wouldn't love these household helpers?
The two watched with great interest.

(End of this chapter)