Chapter 140: Chapter 140 Dead and Alive
"It's not peaceful over there in France."
Dumbledore didn't shy away from talking to Jon about this kind of thing, after what happened this semester, he stopped treating Jon like an average second-year student.
"They just recently went through a change of Minister at the beginning of last year, and this new Minister of Magic is more inclined to fight for the interests of purebloods, and fond of using vile political tactics like putting all his political enemies in jail. This is how Gabrielle's family, and Madame Maxime, the Headmistress of Beauxbatons, whom we met earlier, were all ousted from their positions and even fled France to save their lives."
He reached out and tapped the envelope on his desk.
"But even as Minister, he could not possibly control the entire French magical community with one hand. This Lady Roland, the current Chief Wizard Chancellor of France, is now his greatest political enemy, and the leader of the pro-Muggle camp. After returning from my last trip to France, I've been in contact with this lady, and she's working hard to hold parliamentary voting to oust the current Minister of Magic and stop him from taking the French magical community down a wrong path."
Jon's face was filled with contemplation, his vision of the current international situation in the wizarding world is certainly not as accurate as Dumbledore's, but he remembered what had happened when they had first returned to the wagon not long ago.
"Professor, is there something wrong with the security enchantment of the wagon?"
Hearing him ask about it, Dumbledore narrowed his eyes slightly as he looked out the bright white moonglow at the window and said softly.
"We just returned from France, and the defence of the wagon seems to have a slight issue, whether this issue is big or small, we still have to wait for something to happen to find out. The dark lord, will not swallow his anger readily, he will find a way to get his reputation and honour back from somewhere else."
Jon knows perfectly well that this is the main concern, even if the situation in France is more complicated, it will not affect the wagon, only the threat of Voldemort is close at hand.
"Have you found something, Professor?"
"In your first year, everyone thought that someone had infiltrated the Hogwarts wagon and secretly leaked its location and intelligence out, causing us to be pursued all the time."
Dumbledore suddenly brought up the events of more than a year ago, his eyes reflecting the white glow of the moonlight along with some inexplicable meaning.
"Now, it is quite possible that he did send someone to us or bought someone inside."
Jon felt a little creeped out at his sudden remark.
More than a month had passed since their return from France, and if what Dumbledore said is true, it means that an unknown person has boarded the wagon since that day.
But it had been too quiet for a month.
Jon even felt that this was the most relaxed period since he entered Hogwarts, the students in the castle were all rescued, a kind and knowledgeable professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts came to the school, there was no hunting, no danger, everything was so peaceful ...
Dumbledore certainly would not joke with him about such things.
It was because he did not feel anything, instead of feeling mentally relieved, it made Jon feel alarmed.
"The Dark Lord sent someone to infiltrate the wagon? But why after all this time, he hasn't done anything?" His voice was a little anxious.
Dumbledore shook his head.
"I have no answer for your questions, but according to what I know about him, and a slightly more credible feeling that tells me what he would do. As I've told you before, for him, destroying this ever-moving school would take only some serious effort, but it wouldn't be difficult if he wanted to. It is not difficult to find an opportunity in my absence to slip someone in unnoticed, but what he is planning, other than to kill me, I can't think of anything else at the moment."
The office fell into a brief silence, except for the sound of Fawkes pretending to sleep on the golden branch, the portraits of successive Headmasters on the wall who were issuing a subtle hum also seems to be asleep.
A few moments later, Dumbledore's voice sounded again, his voice had remained flat as if he did not care much about Voldemort's counterattack.
"Soon it will be summer holiday when there will be fewer students on the wagon, this may be an opportunity to screen the whole school once again."
Jon did not stay any longer than necessary in the Headmaster's office and returned to his dormitory before curfew began.
Even though the wagon, moving with minimal bumps, it was unusually calm in the darkness, and Jon tossed and turned in his bed a little sleepless.
After the final exams and before the holidays begin, a special event takes place at Hogwarts at this time of year.
This year is no exception.
That afternoon the wagon drove to the seaside cliffs that appeared familiar to students from the second year onwards, and after they got off, they could see tombstones all over the place.
The tombstones, which were polished smooth by the sea breeze every day, had long since become rough under the wind and sun, but every name carved on them was exceptionally clear, as if they would never be erased by the long river of time.
Many of the students who remembered the cemetery well found out that close to thirty tombstones had been added at some point, expanding the cemetery to a large extent.
The students were silent as they stepped off the wagon and lined themselves up. Even the students who had just arrived at the wagon this year were infected by the atmosphere, and no one made a sound or asked a question, they just followed their fellow students and stood at the end of the line.
Before the wagon pulled up here, there were already dozens of adult wizards standing in front of the newly erected tombstones.
They were all wearing black robes, each of them silently looking at those names on the tombstones, and after the wagon arrived, Dumbledore also brought the school professors to their side and stood with them in front of those new tombstones, looking at the name of those who would never return.
Dedalus Diggle, Hestia Jones, Fabian Prewett, Marlene McKinnon, Beatrice, Danya
The waves slapped the reef, like mourning for the names of those who would never return to this world, and all the adult wizards put a white gardenia in front of those tombstones respectively, and all the hundred tombstones on this cliff were dotted with a faint white.
Gabrielle floated beside Jon, she was also infected by the atmosphere, looking mournful and grasping Jon's cuff with transparent hands.
And Jon's gaze was fixed on a tombstone that was older than those new ones and newer than the old one, on which the name of his teacher, who is still alive, was carved.
What was on his mind were the words that Dumbledore said to him the night before.
For the departed, the soul has returned to the dead, but for the living, the danger is never far away.
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