Bab 692: Chapter 692 The grand fireworks (2 in 1)
The appointed day arrived in full view of all.
The anti-wizard group chose this day to demonstrate, and people came from all the counties neighbouring London, as well as a number of protesters who had travelled thousands of miles from the north to join the march, taking banners and leaflets out of their suitcases without even taking a bite to eat.
But there were simply too many people. There simply weren't enough printed leaflets to go around, and many people laughed and squeezed over to ask for them. Even the pamphlets in the organisers' hands were given out, and the crowd slowly moved on, occasionally lifting their necks to shout a couple of slogans.
"Who are all these people?" The organiser couldn't figure it out.
His assistant went out for a quick walk and came back to report.
"There are quite a few foreigners, as well as people from several nearby counties, who have come to witness this major historical event." Seeing the organiser glaring at him, the assistant hurriedly said, "Of course, we have a lot of companions too, and I saw half a dozen familiar names of organisations, which all recently formed."
He was telling the truth. At the present point in time, the internet had emerged, but its influence still couldn't catch up with the paper media, which led to the fact that no national-level anti-wizard organisations had emerged yet - all the organisations are county-based, and very few can span multiple territories. To promote their ideas, a number of organisations have put their messages in the newspapers, with addresses and telephone numbers for enquiries.
What they didn't know was that there were a handful of wizards mixed in with the crowd.
The march is never short of people in strange costumes, which provides a safe environment for the wizards to hide their identity, and some of them walked with the group for some distance and immediately couldn't stomach the thought of leaving.
"I can't believe so many people are against wizards." Ernest Macmillan said with a pale face, his two legs shaking without listening to him and a cold sweat breaking out on his forehead, being intimidated by the huge crowd of marchers.
"More people showed up even than the New Year's Day parade." Justin Finch-Fletchley said, with trepidation.
The sky was dark and overcast, with dark clouds. It had just rained lightly in the morning, and instead of clearing, the clouds grew heavier in the afternoon. The sky above them looked like ink poured out of a bottle, dark and threatening to rain down at any moment. The distant, bitter grey light of the sky was unsettling.
More wizards chose to stand on the roofs of buildings, they had received news from magical radio stations and newspapers, and they had rushed here to see the outcome. From high above, they could see the curving, colourful groups filling the streets, shouting loud slogans at intervals like the angry waves rolling in from the sea. The closer you get to the Thames, the more you can see the focal point where these crowds are converging - the Houses of Parliament.
The area in front of the Houses of Parliament was already packed with a variety of press vans. The country's - and the world's - leading news media are here, desperate to get first-hand information, both from the wizarding community and from the general population, so they can quickly reach the conclusion on a few things.
What is about to happen today is of great significance, representing the first official contact between wizards and ordinary people, and the implications are incalculable.
"There are police on the premises to maintain order, and we can see that the Sun has sent a number of well-known journalists, including Skeeter - who has made a name for herself in the gun ban news series - and who previously won a national journalism award - two weeks ago during the unrest, she had a brief conversation with a wizard, and we all want to see if she would be lucky today... "
A reporter shouted into the camera, his voice reaching thousands of homes in the next second.
Downtown London - Mr. and Mrs. Granger sat on the sofa, their hands clasped together; Mr. Finch-Fletchley's cup held in his hand, with coffee gone cold inside; in Surrey's 4 Privet Drive, Uncle Vernon cursed and turned on the TV uttering a couple of familiar foul words.
In Cornwall, Essex, Devon, the Isle of Wight, Kent, and all counties, the view of the Houses of Parliament pulled everyone's heart as they waited with anticipation...
On the opposite side of the Thames, on a tall building, two figures suddenly appeared. The sky was grey and windy, so no one noticed them. The two men seemed to be carved out of the same mould.
"So it's you, George." Fred said with a straight face.
"Yeah, what a coincidence, how did you show up here?" George said tacitly.
"I think it's because we both Apparated together." Fred grinned.
"Well, you two!" Mrs. Weasley yelled absently in annoyance, with Ginny and Penelope standing beside her. "I'm warning you, stay out of trouble today, and if you dare to spill candy down there -"
Fred and George exchanged a look with each other.
"That's brilliant, Mum, why didn't we think of that? We only brought the latest model of Weasley fireworks-"
"-The trick shop should have invited you as a consultant."
"Shut up, you two!" Mrs. Weasley said furiously, waving the wand in her hand like a burning stick. Fred and George cowered in fear.
"Where's Bill and Fleur?" Fred looked left and right.
"-and Charlie." George said.
"Yeah, I can't believe I didn't think of him, he's obviously quite big." Fred said.
Mrs. Weasley's eyes blazed with anger, but she forced herself to calm down; there are Muggles below. She lowered her voice and reprimanded, "Stop it, both of you! Your dad and Percy are coordinating an operation in the Ministry of Magic, Bill and Fleur mingled with the crowd to keep the wizards in line, and as for Charlie ..." she froze, "his job is confidential."
"More important than Harry, Ron, and the group?" Fred and George asked curiously.
"That's not the same thing." Mrs. Weasley said with a scowl. "Both of the boy's mission doesn't need to be kept a secret, it's been in the newspapers for a long time, there are fourteen of them ... they're so young to be shouldering the future of the wizarding community ..." she wiped her eyes.
"Don't make mum angry!" Ginny raised her eyebrows, "She's been crying secretly several times."
"Don't worry, Professor Hap will protect them." Penelope chimed in, "And there are hidden wizards around."
"Yeah, I think at least a tenth of the wizards are here, Diagon Alley is half empty." Fred said as he looked around, pointing in one direction, "I see someone I know, that's the Diggory's over there, see? Cedric's waving at us!"
"Want to go over and say hello?" George asked with a tilted head.
"You've hit the nail on the head." Fred said with a grin, the two of them held hands and Apparated as Mrs. Weasley huffed and puffed out her chest like a bullfrog, "Still so out of control!"
Ginny's eyes twinkled, she wanted to follow them out for a stroll but was a step too late.
Not long after, Fred and George returned, bringing back news from the neighbourhood in the process.
"Cedric said that he couldn't get in touch with Cho, and I told him that in just half an hour his girlfriend would be falling out of the sky - it's a shame we've graduated, otherwise maybe we could have blended in too - "
"Fred!"
"Well, they're all fine and emotionally stable at the moment - except the Perkins family who picked a place that bumped up against a muggle enforcer, and they had to change somewhere else!"
"Is old Perkins' back still hunched?" Mrs. Weasley asked with concern.
"Mum, I didn't think you'd ask this question, he's been giving his camping gear away everywhere for the last two years - oh don't interrupt, Mum, we also saw the Lovegoods, they are dressed like two orioles. By the way, did we cast the Muggle-Repelling Charm?"
"It has been cast."
If the parade on the ground was like a raging and rolling sea, the rooftops of the surrounding buildings were reefs on the sea, and they seemed to be occupied by wizards, who had cast a Muggle-Repelling Charm on them as they all waited anxiously.
The march finally converged in front of the Parliament building, with flags and banners of various colours (wearing mackintoshes), a group of people shouting slogans at intervals, something like "banish the witches" and "punish the lawbreakers", but of course, there was also a mix of a small group of young people with their faces painted with occult symbols, there were even some young people with wizard hats and banners saying "Welcoming wizards to rule the world", but they were small in number, and their faces were swollen by the angry passers-by, and they looked drained at the moment.
Many more sat in front of their televisions, waiting to see the wizards in the flesh.
Formerly known as the Palace of Westminster, the Houses of Parliament is the largest Gothic complex in the world, covering more than eight acres including the main building, the wings, and the tall tower, with over a thousand rooms, and it is where the British Parliament is held. As a famous national landmark, it of course also serves other purposes, such as today's occasion.
A group of soldiers in bearskin hats, red flannel uniforms, and black trousers stood in front of the gates, having followed the Queen's carriage here an hour earlier when she was escorted in by the Prime Minister and several Ministers of State, and never came out again.
At 3 pm, Big Ben in the northeast corner of the palace chimed the hour, the loud chime silencing the restless crowd and ringing out across the country on the radio. Everyone's spirits were lifted; it was time.
The Queen and the Prime Minister walked out of the building, followed by a group of cabinet ministers and MPs, and of course, they were accompanied by their fully dressed wives and families - although everyone knew what would happen, at least nominally, the Queen had only meant to invite the wizards to her afternoon tea party, and if the talk proceeded well there might be a bonfire in the evening.
"How's the science department preparing?" A councillor asked his assistant.
"Still debugging the equipment. They're all very positive about seeing magic up close for the first time, and I'm sure they'll be able to measure some useful data."
"I'm not as confident as you are."
The gates slowly opened, the Queen's guards stood more upright, and everyone (including the people who were in front of the TV) waited with bated breath, speculating on the manner in which the wizard would appear.
"Are the tomatoes and rotten eggs ready?" Someone in the crowd asked in a low voice as a group of people hid beneath a huge banner.
"Ready, make sure they can't avoid them no matter which way they come." The man next to him stated without ambiguity.
"Don't forget, those monsters can fly."
"We've got water guns filled with chilli oil, and I heard someone brought in a taser!"
"Let's give them hell! Give me a rotten egg - forget it, replace it with a tomato."
"Look at the sky!" A sharp-eyed man shouted.
Black and dark grey clouds swirled, and then an area turned orange and red as a fiery shower of fire burnt through the thick clouds, forming a brilliant hand-fan-shaped pattern. There was a flurry of commotion and shouts from the ground - "It's a dragon!" More people looked up as a hideous black creature loomed out of the clouds, covered in black scales, with a head covered in sharp bronze horns and its yellow eyes looking down, with a number of people standing on top of it.
The appearance of the mythical creature silenced those below, and the microphones raised by the reporters fell to the ground at some point.
"Let's go down." Felix said calmly, "Remember not to overreact, and I will remove all danger in advance. Charlie, when we get down you can take the Dragon and leave."
"Professor, can we cancel the school song session?" Ron asked expectantly, "I can't quite find the tune." Draco Malfoy stiffened and turned his head to stare at him, for the first time finding the comment he made constructive.
"Nice joke, Weasley," Felix said calmly, "but the answer is no."
He said and jumped.
Followed closely by Harry, then Ron, Hermione, Neville, Cho Chang, Susan Bones, Draco Malfoy, and Daphne Greengrass ... fourteen students in all. They had spent a lot of time over the last few days practicing how to act while under levitation magic to make themselves more ethereal.
"One, two, three, four ... fifteen wizards in total!"
Fifteen wizards descended from the sky, without a trace of dust, and the people below were amazed as a startling roar came from the clouds they had come from, followed by a long tail covered in sharp bronze spines breaking through the clouds and flinging itself hard, before disappearing.
The soft sunlight cast a pillar of light across the clearing in front of the House of Parliament and shone on Felix's face. Everyone stared at them in awe. The dark clouds gathered again, and the sun was cut off once more. But the sight of this appearance lingered in the minds of the people for a long time.
The Prime Minister was the first to come back to his senses.
He knew part of the wizard's plan. But even without knowing, he and his staff could analyse the possibility that the wizards wanted to take this opportunity to demonstrate their power - which is exactly what they wanted, and they had arranged for scientists and military men to be close by to observe them in advance.
The absence of war did not mean that there would be no need to play the game. On the contrary, this struggle will be more insidious and more comprehensive. Today is just the beginning, it will only heat up when the real negotiations take place, and even if the outcome of the negotiations comes out, it will not stop, they intend to trap the wizards in a cage made of rules and laws.
The Prime Minister strides over and enthusiastically shook Felix's hand as he stood in front of the group.
Felix slowed for a beat, the other him staying high up in the thinking room, gathering, summarising, and processing information from a dozen miles around, and he used faint emotion magic to amplify the emotions of some people, who right now had their heads filled with fear that the hideous beast overhead would drop a ball of flame from above, or they would be clawed away if they jumped out and interrupted the flow of the event.
"Welcome." The Prime Minister said warmly, shaking hands for a long time, giving the journalists plenty of time to take pictures. They then walked slowly towards the gates, where the Queen stood quietly with a welcoming smile.
The reporters, who possessed the keenest sense of smell and a higher-than-average mental capacity, eagerly pushed their way to the front, with countless microphones poking out from the sides of the path. A barrage of questions was thrown out.
"May I ask for what purpose you have come here for?"
"The newspapers say you are a teacher of wizards, but you look young; is the average age of a wizard lower than the ordinary person?"
"If negotiations fail, will wizards wage war with the government?"
"Do you really know magic? Wouldn't you be liars? Will you agree to undergo rigorous testing?"
"Is the overcast, cloudy weather all over England today a sign that the negotiations will not go well?"
Felix glanced at Rita Skeeter, I only asked you to mention London, what are you doing bringing up the whole country for? He ignored her and continued on his way. The students held their heads up and followed behind as per their pre-rehearsed etiquette, they held their heads high.
"These are stupid questions-"
"Shut up." Harry squeezed a word out of his teeth as he pretended to cough and led the way through the flashing shutters.
Felix stood in front of the Queen, whose smile grew more and more gentle and pleasant as she wore white gloves and at the moment when she was about to extend a hand. Felix yawned slightly, then quickly stood up straight and turned to face the crowd. His booming voice carried over a dozen blocks.
"We thank the Queen for her gracious invitation, for which we have prepared an exquisite selection of gifts, but right now there is one gift that would be more appropriate." He raised his wand as he spoke, and those around him took a step back in unison. The Prime Minister stared in confusion, and the councillors behind them had varying expressions.
"Hogwarts students-"
Fourteen students raised their wands in unison with solemnity and respect.
A pillar of milky white light rose into the sky, a holy light, in which people seemed to see a figure with elegantly stretched wings, its head held high as it shot straight up into the clouds high above.
Fourteen slender pillars of light similarly flew over the heads of the crowd, and as they converged high above, a sun seemed to appear out of nowhere in the sky, emitting a soft glow that illuminated the earth perfectly.
A curtain of light seemed to envelop their heads, and it was rapidly expanding.
The secret rooms in the House of Parliament -
"Has anything been detected?"
"... Not yet, the instruments are suddenly all out of order!"
"Damn it, what kind of magic is this? Why is it so widespread, it's enveloped at least a dozen blocks, for God's sake, it's not going to spread all over the city, is it?"
"General, the magic doesn't appear to be lethal for now."
"Call me Sir - do I need you to tell me? Of course, they won't kill anyone in front of public view, but what if one day they intend to do so? Hurry up, measure the scope of this magic - forget about all these crappy instruments, use your eyes!" The Councillor said agitatedly as he rushed to the window and peered into the sky with his telescope, where black clouds were pierced and dispersed by the unknown magic, and the sky seemed to break open with a large hole, revealing a curtain of azure blue.
The sunlight took the opportunity to pour down, and the watery mist in the dark clouds reflected the magical white light in seven colours, and the raindrops coalesced and fell, each drop seeming to become a rain of light, reflecting a thousand hues of light as the sight became breathtaking.
Fred and George watched in awe.
Fred gulped quietly, "Our fireworks are completely out of the match." George didn't say anything, just nodded. Ginny stared intently at the dark-haired young male wizard in the clearing, the pillar of light flying from the tip of his wand was the brightest of all the students, rivalling Professor Hap's about 50%. Her heart nearly spilled with pride.
Meanwhile, on the roof of another building, Luna's eyes suddenly widened.
"It's now."
"What?" Mr. Lovegood looked at his daughter in wonder.
"A great firework. The scene I saw in the fire divination is happening right now." Luna said earnestly, dressed to the nines in her bright dress, with small pebbles and coloured sequins tied to her body and hair, she was probably the most confident of all.
Now she cupped her hands together and the ancient runes converged quickly, forming a crystal-clear ball of light in the blink of an eye.
"Luna-" Mr. Lovegood said nervously.
"There's no mistaking it." Luna said, "I've been waiting for this moment." She raised her hands up in reverence.
The ball of light floated into the air, morphing with precise control of magic to form a beam of light that was no different from the one below, which merged into the curtain of light in the sky.
The curtain of light expanded slightly faster than it should have. A number of people turned their attention there, and Mrs. Weasley drew a backward breath as if she was about to faint.
"Guess what we saw?" Fred said happily, "This is much more spectacular than fireworks." He and George raised their wands, the same white light converging on its tips.
Not far away, Cedric flashed a smile and raised his wand high.
More people joined in, wizards hidden all over London, and students on holiday lit their wands ... as if they had received an invitation to an event and even seemed eager to participate. A beam of light instantly illuminated the entire city.
A fine drizzle wove its way through the city as fireworks enveloped the place.
The holy beams of light pierced through the dark clouds, and crossed the city boundaries, covering most of the London suburbs.
The wizarding public in front of the radios stood staring at each other in disbelief as the magical radio stations eerily paused for ten seconds or so. They couldn't understand why there was suddenly no sound, hadn't the young man been quite talkative before? Suddenly, from the radio came the voice of Lee Jordan, who was excited to the core.
"It's incredible! All wizards - I don't know if I can say this - if you know illumination too, then get out of your house and join in this great relay! For the sake of all!"
Many of the wizards walked out of their houses, clutching their radios with suspicion.
The wizards who lived in the suburbs of London were the first to witness the spectacle before them. Their eyes widened as the vast white light swept up like an ocean, completely churning up the overcast clouds overhead, followed by a fine, soft seven-coloured light that spilled over the ground and splashed on their faces - and they raised their wands in unison, magic pouring from their wands like a tidal wave.
Thanks to the restraining effect of this magic on creatures of darkness, thanks to the relentless propaganda of Future World Company, the Ministry of Magic, and the Dark Force Defence League during last year's war, thanks to the fact that illumination is the simplest of ancient magics, thanks to the fact that illumination can be fused ...
It is probably the most widespread magic ever cast.
With urban London at its centre, it continued to radiate outwards across the suburbs and soon reached neighbouring Surrey, Kent, Hertford, and Essex, where it was joined by new wizards, so the range expanded again. In a matter of minutes, even the Scottish Highlands were illuminated.
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Professor McGonagall looked up as the bright light shone through the window and entered the Headmaster's office. A frown stretched across her face as she looked over at the portrait of Dumbledore on the wall, a look of delight and amazement spreading across his face in equal measure.
"He's doing well, isn't he?" Professor McGonagall said gently.
Dumbledore nodded his head in delight.
Felix, far away in London, was of course unaware of all this; his thinking room couldn't project that far.
His initial plan had been to 'light up' the whole City of London, and he had planned to have the Thunderbirds gather cloud masses ahead of time, but the weather forecast had said it would be overcast for the next two days, so he had skipped off on that.
It didn't quite go the way he wanted it to, with a bizarre change midway through, but it seemed to be a good change.
Felix put away his wand, and in front of the dumbfounded mass of people, he said with clarity and precision.
"This is the wizard's gift to the Queen, and to the entire non-magical community. I believe that if both sides work together in good faith, we can dispel not only the black clouds overhead but also the gloom in our hearts."
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Crazy_DarkSide_Cat Thanks for all your love and support.
Read 50 days or 100 chapters in advance on P@treon. If you have some extra pocket money, Support me at P@treon: www.p@treon.com/Crazy_Cat.
Happy Reading!!!
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