Chapter 264

Harry found it hard to say whether his birthday had been good or bad. Compared to last year, it was certainly livelier and more relaxed without Voldemort's threat. But across the entire dance floor, a significant portion of the guests struck him as odd. And Ron was listless; he'd thought giving up Hermione might open the door to Ivy or Alina, but now neither of them danced with him—and they'd even snatched away several Muggle girls who'd been about to invite Ron.

"You're sure you don't have any grand plans?" Ron grumbled at Harry. "Searching for the Hallows? Destroying Horcruxes? Organizing student protests, starting a color revolution? Anything—just no more parties."

"Regrettably, Ron," Harry said, sitting beside him on the bench and shrugging. "For a long time to come, we can only do what students are allowed to do."

"Like opening a joke shop?" In the blink of an eye, someone appeared beside Harry, startling him.

"Oh, Fred and George," Ron protested. "You can't start using Apparition right after learning it!"

"This isn't misuse," one twin said. "We're not just blinking around aimlessly—we're using it for transportation."

"Exactly. Every step," the other twin immediately added.

"Alright, but since you mentioned the joke shop—have you already prepared to open?" Harry chose not to press the issue, instead growing curious about the brothers' venture. "What products are you offering?"

"Ah, you'll love it," George said. "All kinds of Skip-Class Candies—feigning fainting, feigning fever, feigning nosebleeds. Guaranteed to get you out of class without interference, and all effects vanish quickly, so you'll have plenty of free time!"

"Unless someone skips class but still has nowhere to go," Fred raised an eyebrow. "There aren't people like that, are there?"

"Of course. Considering Harry Potter might soon become the greatest wizard ever, he probably won't care for such trinkets," George nudged him with his shoulder.

"We specially crafted upgraded Weasley Fireworks," Fred explained. "Extremely powerful—they deal multiple damage over a wide area and inflict burning effects. Pair them with Binding or Freezing Charms, and the results are outstanding."

"Thanks," Harry's lips twitched. "But I haven't thought of any place where I'd need these fireworks yet."

"You really don't need them?" George whispered. "I keep hearing Percy say a war might be coming."

"Harry, you'll definitely need this kind of mass destruction weapon," the twins said, unusually serious.

"No, no—if you think I'll join in, let me be clear: I'm doing everything I can to prevent war," Harry explained. "So put away these magical gunpowder. I'd rather you gave me some laundry detergent."

"Come on, George," Fred chuckled. "If our leader Harry says so."

"Then it probably won't come to war," George withdrew his hand from Harry's shoulder, and with a loud *pop*, both vanished.

Harry and Ron exchanged glances. After a long silence, Ron stammered, "Percy—he's been acting weird lately."

"He keeps saying things like 'The Big One's coming, don't sleep too soundly at night' and 'Lots of people in the Ministry are talking about leaving America—the Big One's really coming.' The other day Ginny asked him what 'the Big One' was, and he replied, 'I can't say.'"

"That's too abstract," Harry laughed quietly. "But then again, it's not his fault—I feel like the whole Ministry is abstract."

"Yeah, lately the newspapers are just spouting meaningless drivel," Ron suddenly fell silent, then waved his hand. "Hey, Neville."

"Thanks for inviting me—the party's been fun," Neville greeted them, then lowered his voice. "I have a question—I heard Dumbledore got a Death Warrant. Is that true?"

Harry instinctively wanted to pull Neville aside, but then realized this topic no longer mattered—who heard it was irrelevant.

"That means Dumbledore can't be killed by ordinary spells now," Neville said, stroking his chin. "If we destroy the painting, will he reappear?"

"So now Dumbledore can't be killed by ordinary spells," Neville mused, stroking his chin. "If we destroy the portrait, will he reappear?"

"You're saying…" Harry stared, frozen in place. After a long moment, he said, "That's incredibly bold. I'm not sure I'd dare risk it."

"Why not? If it works, we get an immortal Headmaster. If it fails, we just let him die as originally planned," Neville said calmly. "I was sad for a while, but then I realized this might be a viable solution."

"Yes, because the Yanwangtie keeps Dumbledore immortal until his fated death in 1997; once time is frozen, 1997 will never come," Harry added, following Neville's logic. "And anyone who killed Dumbledore before 1997 would be cursed by fate—but now fate no longer exists."

"Yes—because the Death Warrant keeps Dumbledore alive until his destined death in 1997. Once time is frozen, 1997 never arrives," Harry added, following Neville's logic. "And anyone who killed Dumbledore before 1997 would be cursed by fate—but now fate no longer exists."

"That's an excellent idea, Neville," Harry paused, then shifted tone. "But more importantly, the portrait exists to lock down Voldemort's chance of resurrection. I agree we should try destroying it to save Dumbledore—but first, we must destroy all the Horcruxes."

"Do you have a plan?" Neville asked. "How will you deal with the Horcruxes?"

"The Order is already handling it," Harry said, sensing Neville's eagerness. "For now, we should keep running Hogwarts student clubs and build our strength."

"Alright, then that's settled," Neville said, sounding disappointed but not arguing. "Just promise me—if you come up with any new plans, let me know."

"I feel this is wrong," Harry told Ron after Neville left. "Everyone's being too optimistic."

"I understand," Ron agreed. "War's bad. I hope the Order comes up with a better idea."

"I hope so," Harry didn't say that even within the Order, half the members were itching to start a war.

In mid-August, Sirius brought Harry to another Order meeting.

"The Death Eaters held a meeting a few days ago, but I told them Holf is still tracking Horcrux clues," Sirius whispered. "I pretended you're only in direct contact with me—it raises Regulus's status and reduces your risk of exposure."

"Perfect," Harry said. "I wouldn't have anything to say anyway—Lucius is still trying to hide the diary's existence, right?"

"Correct. But I challenged him once, and at least learned one thing: Lucius's Horcrux is a snake," Sirius said. "Strange—Voldemort turned a living animal into a Horcrux."

"Not strange," Harry tapped his scar.

At that moment, they saw Dobby approaching, so they dropped the subject and waved warmly.

Dobby led them to headquarters. As soon as they entered, Harry's attention was drawn to a massive figure, and he broke into a wide smile.

"Hagrid!" Harry called out. "Are you part of the Order too?"

"Of course," Hagrid said proudly. "Dumbledore gave me a great task—I'm working hard on it."

Harry noticed Hagrid's leather coat now looked smooth and glossy, as if meticulously polished. His hair and beard, though still wild, were neatly shaped.

"Yes, Hagrid's been assigned to contact the giant clans and gather information on magical creatures," Sirius said. "We're worried the Malfoys might unleash their dragons onto the battlefield."

"Don't think I'm dumb," Hagrid patted his belly. "Among giants, I'm the smartest one."

"With giant support, our chances improve," a man Harry didn't recognize exclaimed.

"I think getting Hagrid to convince giants not to join is enough," Ablufus grumbled. "No need to drag them into death."

From that point on, those in the Order eager for war and violence clashed again with those who held firm principles and refused unnecessary casualties. Dobby tried to mediate and steer the conversation back to Horcruxes, but every time, someone easily redirected it back to war.

Suddenly, someone asked, "What does Harry think?" Everyone fell silent, fixing their gaze on Harry.

"Actually, I have a plan to rescue Dumbledore," Harry took a deep breath, recalling Neville's idea. "But it requires destroying the portrait—which means lifting our blockade on Voldemort."

"So we should first collect and destroy all Horcruxes, completely eliminating Voldemort's chance of resurrection," Harry said. Someone seemed ready to interrupt, but Lupin held him back.

"And if you believe war is necessary to purge the Death Eaters, we'll still need Dumbledore's help, won't we?" Harry said. "If we rescue Dumbledore and destroy Voldemort entirely, the Death Eaters might rush to surrender."

The Order members buzzed with excitement, praising Harry's brilliant strategy, exchanging every detail about the Horcruxes, imagining Dumbledore's return. But for Harry, sitting among them, slowly becoming more visible, a terrible truth gnawed at his heart every moment: Dumbledore would never come back.