days at Hogwarts

Chapter 747 Death Eater Father and Son

A tall, bear-like middle-aged man walked through the mountain road covered with lush vegetation. He looked at the increasingly thick mountain fog ahead with a dazed expression.

A few years ago, I escorted Vincent to transfer to another school. We once climbed the mountain to Ilvermorny under the guidance of a servant. After arriving here, I bought a carriage at the wizard market, which cost several hundred Galleons. I can't remember what magical animal pulled the carriage, maybe a Thestral or a Rune Horse. At that time, Ilvermorny was considered remote, and Vincent transferred to another school midway, so it was troublesome to go up and down the mountain, so I left the carriage frame and the magical animal pulling the carriage to him.

After receiving the news that Vincent was missing, he hired someone to search the mountain roads and also walked through one of the areas himself.

It was summer, the vegetation was dense, the old trees were flourishing, and occasionally you could see pit vipers disguised as leaves coiled on the ground, and there were ruts left by wheels on the roadside.

There was no road ahead. Old Crabbe could not tell the direction, but he knew he should go up. He simply waded through the dense weeds and trampled a path with his body. The top of the mountain was Ilvermorny's castle, but unfortunately the mountain was covered with thick fog and dense forests. The bushes and weeds beside it all looked the same. He was clearly going up, but after turning around a few times, he returned to the same place.

Unfortunately, Ilvermorny has set up protective magic here, so I can't Apparate and appear directly at the school gate.

After going around in circles for a few times, old Crabbe's breathing became heavy and he began to feel annoyed.

Just when he was about to set something on fire and make some big noise, the clear cry of a phoenix sounded above his head.

Old Crabbe looked up, but did not see the phoenix. Only a ray of brilliant flame fell on his shoulder. He had no time to react as the flame spread throughout his body in an instant. The trees and weeds in front of him immediately became blurred.

……

There was thick fog on the top of the mountain in the early morning, and the light inside the castle was dim. The lights in the side hall of the auditorium were not on, but candles were lit, which was rare. The candles burned quietly, and the melted wax flowed down the lamps. The dining table was filled with food, and the milk and bread were steaming and had a rich aroma.

The dark circles under Professor Snape's eyes have become more serious. It seems that he didn't sleep much last night. He probably stayed up all night studying the snake tree and living Horcruxes. There's something wrong with the two headmasters, but we can't tell what's wrong. We need to observe them for a while.

Around the table, Loren and Hermione lowered their heads to eat, glancing at them from time to time. Two wizards who had graduated from Ilvermorny and returned to school gathered together and whispered about the fire they had just seen and the gorgeous phoenix in the fire.

"Is that Fawkes the Phoenix?"

"I heard that only wizards from the Dumbledore family can encounter a phoenix."

"Has our headmaster ever kept any magical animals?"

"Does Pukki count?"

Hermione listened to the two people's discussion, shook her head, leaned close to Loren's ear, and whispered, "What kind of job is the headmaster talking about?"

"Greeting a guest."

"guest?"

"The victim's family members are also accomplices of the suspect."

"what……"

Hermione bit the bread and blinked, with a vague guess in her mind.

Ilvermorny's Apparition blockade is slightly different from Hogwarts' protective magic, with a wider coverage area, almost covering half of Mount Greylock. However, both have the same flaw, which is that they only target Apparition and cannot prevent the spatial displacement of magical creatures and elves.

Half a minute later, flames rose again at the door of the side hall, and a figure slowly appeared.

The man was tall and strong, with a broad back and strong arms. His sleeves and trouser legs were bulging with muscles. He looked middle-aged, with a slightly bald head and his face showed some signs of aging.

"Mr. Crabbe."

"Dumbledore..."

Old Crabbe looked around the room, his expression still a little dazed.

"Long time no see, Mr. Crabbe, you look very tired, would you like to have some breakfast and rest for a while?" Dumbledore's voice was generous and gentle, and immediately bread, bacon, fried eggs and milk fell in front of the Death Eater. It seemed that the visitor was not a vicious wanted criminal, but just an ordinary student parent.

Old Crabbe was sitting across a table from Dumbledore. He stared at Dumbledore's face and remained silent. The people next to him looked familiar, but he didn't care anymore, no matter that the Death Eater spy was Severus Snape, or that the two young wizards were Harry Potter's friends. He was indeed very tired, his head was dizzy, and his limbs and muscles became unusually heavy.

Because he couldn't remember the location of Ilvermorny and couldn't Apparate to the foot of the mountain, he had to use the stupid method to escape from the Death Eater station, Apparate all the way according to the direction assessed by the map, and it took him a whole night to get from the suburbs of New York to Mount Greylock in Massachusetts.

"Lucius told me that you found Vincent."

Old Crabbe paused, a glimmer of hope flashed across his wooden face. He had been irritable and angry for decades, always speaking in a roar, but now his voice was very soft. "I know what you want from me. As long as he is safe, I can tell you important information about the Dark Lord."

Dumbledore sighed and said, "Please don't misunderstand me. I have passed this message to you through many channels. Although it is indeed for Voldemort and the Death Eaters, it is more of a professor's job to inform the parents of students. That's all."

"Where is he now?"

"plz follow me."

Dumbledore put down the silver metal cutlery, stood up and led old Crabbe towards the woods behind the castle. The others present also stood up and followed behind in silence.

The group walked into the woods, passed through the vine barrier, and came to the snake tree.

The mountain was covered with thick fog and the forest was dense. A hole was cut in the thickest and most luxuriant tree.

Old Crabbe arrived in front of the snake tree and saw the hole at a glance. He walked into the hole and saw the pink umbilical cord squirming constantly. He also saw the almost monstrous body inside. The figure seemed vaguely familiar, but he didn't dare to think about it too much.

Dumbledore glanced at the body covered in snake scales. "This body now relies on the sustenance of the snake tree to sustain life. It is connected by an umbilical cord of flesh and blood. Voldemort split his soul and attached the soul fragments to the body of Vincent Crabbe, devouring the original soul. He then used dark magic to transform the snake tree and the body, intending to create a wand with powerful magic."

Old Crabbe opened his mouth and said in a difficult voice: "Can you save him?"

"His soul has been destroyed." Dumbledore shook his head and said softly, "If the status quo is maintained, this body will become the core of the wand. If it is separated directly, the body will shrink and wither."

"He's dead, isn't he?"

The old principal did not answer directly, but everyone knew the answer.

Old Crabbe reached his hand into the tree hole and gently touched the body connected by blood. At this moment, he only felt cold and hard scales. He exhaled a heavy breath and said calmly: "Principal Dumbledore, can you leave us alone for a while?"

"of course."

Dumbledore turned and left, taking the bystanders with him.

After the others left, Old Crabbe did not look closely at the body in the tree hole, but just leaned against the tree trunk.

They had not been very close when they were young. Old Crabbe, who had been grumpy all his life, had no patience and didn't know how to get along with children. He would beat and scold them at will, and even punch and kick them. Now he didn't know how to say goodbye, and just stood by quietly.

The mountain fog gathered and dispersed, the sun broke through the clouds and gradually moved westward, and the sky brightened and darkened.

Until the sun set, old Crabbe's legs were numb and he almost lost consciousness. After not eating or drinking for a day and a night, his whole body was a little stiff. He had to hold on to the edge of the tree hole to stand steadily. He held on with some difficulty and supported his body. His vision was a little blurred.

He didn't know if it was an illusion, but he vaguely saw the snake scales disappear and the face returned to its original appearance.

He opened his mouth and uttered a faint, guttural sound: "Vincent?"

For some reason, the empty body that had lost its soul began to move, stretched out its right hand, and lightly touched the back of the middle-aged man's hand, as if in response.

Strength surged back into old Crabbe's tired and thirsty body. He looked at the orange sky, took out his wand, and placed it against the body in the tree hole, reciting with difficulty:

"Li Huo."

(End of this chapter)