Chapter 265

"Then it's settled—we'll continue investigating Horcruxes and try to steal them," Doge concluded.

"But don't stop preparing for war either—it's to deter the Death Eaters and show them we're ready," Moody added.

"But we have no intention of starting the war ourselves," Albus Dumbledore's brother added again.

Finally, under the appearance of harmony, the Order of the Phoenix meeting ended.

Harry chatted with Hagrid for a long while; he now needed to maintain contact with the giants, and also kept close ties with Newt Scamander, researching magical creature habitats worldwide to prevent them from being secretly exploited by malicious parties.

"So I may not be able to teach at Hogwarts for now," he said with some regret, "though I wasn't very good at it anyway, you know."

"No, you taught the best," Harry said sincerely—he'd never taken another Magical Creatures class.

"I'm glad I could set the tone before you return to school," Moody limped over after everyone else had left. "Harry, you've done well. I'm deeply grateful."

"I…" Harry didn't know how to respond—he wasn't close to Moody.

"Here," he handed Harry a photograph. "This is the original Order of the Phoenix."

Harry took the photo and instantly recognized his parents and the Marauders. He despised Wormtail the moment he saw him and quickly looked away.

"That's me, that's Dumbledore—you can tell, right?" Moody pointed at the photo. "That's Marlene McKinnon. Less than two weeks after this was taken, her entire family was murdered."

Harry began to feel uneasy—he didn't know what Moody was getting at.

"That's the Longbottoms—driven mad, still in St. Mungo's, poor souls, dead would've been better… That's Benjy Fenwick—we only found part of his body… Edgar Bones—the Bones family were all taken… Caradoc Dearborn—missing, or rather, vanished without a trace… Gideon Prewett—he and his brother killed five Death Eaters before they died, incredibly brave… Dorcas Meadowes—late bloomer, she almost escaped Voldemort, just barely missed it."

Harry looked at the small figures crammed together, laughing and smiling in the photo, and realized that everyone he didn't already know in this room—more than half of them—were dead. His chest tightened, especially seeing his parents, emotions churning inside him.

"Under Dumbledore's leadership we began the first war—yes, everyone in this photo had been saved by him at least once. But now?" Moody shook his head. "We can't start a war—they've already paid too heavy a price."

"But we also can't let fear paralyze us—we must eradicate the Death Eaters, so their sacrifices aren't in vain," Moody growled. "If Voldemort is terrifying, these Death Eaters—who followed him in evil, then pretended to repent—are even more despicable."

"True villains and hypocrites," Harry understood that feeling perfectly.

"Excellent analogy," Moody praised, then slapped the photo into Harry's arms. "You've grown fast, Harry. If you're destined to become the next leader of the Order, I hope you remember these fallen predecessors—they were all good people, eh."

"I won't let anyone else die," Harry said firmly. "The Dark Lord who loved killing is gone—if anyone still dies now, it's my fault."

"Don't carry such heavy burdens, child," Sirius stood in front of Harry, displeased. "You can just go back to school—the Order doesn't rest on your shoulders yet."

Even though Sirius stood in front of him, Harry slept uneasily that night. The faces in the photos kept swirling in his mind; he understood now why those people wanted war—they were desperate for revenge.

As he drifted into sleep, he saw Sirius and his parents standing silently on a cliff's edge, while the Minister of Magic recited a dull, sleep-inducing speech. In a blink, the Minister's face blurred, grew a beard, then burst into wild laughter.

When Harry woke, he was gloomy for a while—but good news came: the housekeeper told him the Weasleys were downstairs, lifting his spirits slightly.

"Come stay with us for the last two weeks, children," Mrs. Weasley said with a touch of sympathy. "Look at you—all three of you in this empty house. So lonely."

Harry was certain the Burrow's layout was because Mrs. Weasley loved the chaotic warmth of a family crammed into a small home—not because of poverty or lack of magical skill.

"We can also visit Diagon Alley—Fred and George are looking for a shop," Ron whispered. "Mum's furious—she insists they must—"

A sharp crack—Fred suddenly appeared and clamped his arms around Ron's neck. "What are you saying behind our backs?"

"Oh, you're slandering us in front of Harry?" George roughly ruffled Ron's hair.

"You're looking for a shop?" Harry asked, surprised. "But you haven't graduated yet."

"So what? We've already hired our first employee," Fred released Ron, who was about to retaliate, and Apparated swiftly to Harry's other side.

"Penelope—you know her," George said. "The Ministry just introduced a policy: blood purity gives bonus points in the entrance exam. That's why she lost to her rival."

"That's unfair," Harry frowned.

"But their new policy also says: any magical shop that employs Muggles or Muggle-borns gets a ten percent tax reduction," Fred explained. "Put the two together, and we easily convinced her to be our first manager."

"It's hard to say whether this is good or bad for Muggle-borns," Harry's frown eased slightly. "But it's definitely good for you—so the Weasley Wizard Wheezes are opening this year?"

"No, we haven't picked a location yet—we still need to look around," George said, then vanished with a pop.

"We'll save those fireworks for you," Fred whispered, then disappeared too.

Ron waved his hand irritably. "That's exactly what Mum's worried about—they need to graduate first."

"Yeah, don't you think your mum's right?" Harry put his arm around Ron's neck. "If you want to do something great, you need to graduate first."

"Of course, of course," Ron pulled his arm away. "This year I'm running for Keeper."

Rarely did Ron show such ambition, and Harry was genuinely happy for him. During the two weeks at the Burrow, whenever they had free time, they helped Ron train. Thanks to his knightly training—his muscles and reflexes—everyone agreed he was outstanding on the pitch.

The night before they left for school, while packing, Ron picked up the battered copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard and carefully placed it in the lining of his trunk.

"By the way, Harry, that Snitch Dumbledore left you," Ron said. "What's inside it?"

"It's empty," Harry always told the truth to Ron. "I think he meant to put something in it, but never got the chance."

"Alright, but what do you think he planned to put in there?" Ron asked idly, folding his sweater.

"Maybe the Resurrection Stone," Harry said. "Based on what he said, how he viewed me, and Zhang Qiu's divination—I think it's that."

"So the Resurrection Stone now—" Ron froze mid-fold. "Oh right—it's with the Order, because it's also a Horcrux."

"Yeah, we can't let the Death Eaters know it's been destroyed," Harry continued packing calmly. "The Snitch has a message: 'I open at the end.' Maybe he meant I can only use the Stone as a Deathly Hallow after all Horcruxes are destroyed."

Talking of Dumbledore's death, both fell quiet. They exchanged a few more idle words before going to bed.

The next morning, while Harry and Ron were still half-asleep, Ivy and Ginny came pounding on their door.

"Come see! Dad borrowed a car from the Ministry! It's gorgeous!" Ginny shouted.

"It's a Rolls-Royce!" Ivy added. "Looks like a Gustav."

They hurriedly dressed and rushed downstairs, where Johnny English sat at the Weasleys' table, elegantly sipping pumpkin juice.

"When Arthur suggested borrowing a car from the Ministry to take Harry Potter to the station," he said, "the Minister thought no one but me deserved such an honor."

"You got a new car," Mr. Weasley said. "I almost didn't recognize it."

"Yes, one of the Ministry's rules," Johnny patted Percy, who was grabbing his briefcase to leave. "Sometimes you have to pretend not to know something—because others expect you to ask."

"The JEI model, exclusive to the Head of the Auror Office—only one in the world," he said as he stepped out. "Standard V16 turbo engine, interior seamless expansion, chameleon circuitry, and a flight module. Maneuverability rivals the TARDIS, with Jizhi industrial aesthetics…"

"I just hope it doesn't explode," Harry muttered to Ron as they loaded luggage.