Watching Harry's departing back, Dumbledore retracted his gaze and turned his head to look at the grandfather clock on the wall. He walked to the fireplace, grabbed a handful of Floo powder from the box and sprinkled it into the burning fire. After the blazing flames rose, he said, "Severus, I have something to tell you."
After a while, Snape emerged from the rising green flames.
"What's up?"
Snape had actually guessed what Dumbledore wanted to talk to him about.
"You did a good job with Miss Bell." Dumbledore looked at Snape deeply and said straight to the point, "But I don't want something like this to happen again. We were lucky this time, but we can't expect to be so lucky every time. I hope you can control the situation, provide help and guidance to Mr. Malfoy, and don't let him continue to try such dangerous things."
"I will. Draco won't give up easily before he experiences failure. This time I will completely convince him to follow my actions." Snape was quite helpless about this.
To be honest, he was relieved that Katie Bell was not dead, otherwise he didn't know what would have happened in the end.
If Katie Bell really died in the assassination plot, he didn't think Dumbledore would easily forgive Malfoy, forgiving a murderer.
He knew Dumbledore.
"Very good. I hope everything goes according to plan. You know this matter is very important to everyone." Dumbledore said softly, "There is one more thing. I must remind you that if a similar incident happens again, the Ministry of Magic will definitely intervene. At that time, all suspicious students may need to be screened with truth serum. I think you are very clear about Scrimgeour's style of work."
"You think the Ministry of Magic will intervene." Snape was surprised.
"The Malfoy family has offended many people." Dumbledore reminded meaningfully.
"I know what to do." Snape grabbed a handful of Floo powder and sprinkled it into the fireplace. Soon after, he disappeared in the rising green flames.
"I hope there won't be any accidents." Dumbledore murmured. He knew very well that after Harry began to suspect Malfoy, it would not be difficult to verify some things. Whether it was Albert's divination or the use of truth serum, Draco Malfoy could not hide the crimes he had committed.
Especially since Lucius Malfoy once tried to kill Albert at his wedding. Such hatred cannot be easily resolved.
Perhaps, Albert could avoid involving Lucius' family after completing his revenge, but after the last bounty incident, Dumbledore would not be naive enough to think that Albert had let it go. He believed that Albert would not mind destroying the Malfoy family and kicking them into hell.
Albert could do such a thing. Forgiving others is never easy.
Just look at the Strange family and you will know that the Strange brothers were killed not long ago.
As for Bellatrix, her fate was probably not much better.
Snape returned to the office with a heavy heart. From what Dumbledore said, he realized one thing.
If Draco continues to jump around, even Dumbledore may not be able to protect him.
Yes, Dumbledore generously forgave the person who wanted to kill him, but others would not. From the sentence "The Malfoy family has offended a lot of people", he has already guessed who it might be.
Albert Anderson.
The Malfoy family has offended the most ruthless person in recent years.
Thinking about the Strange brothers who were brutally killed by Aurors, and Bellatrix's recent miserable appearance, Snape found it hard to imagine what would happen to Draco if he was targeted.
He knew he had to stop Draco from committing suicide.
Snape sent a Slytherin ghost to find Draco Malfoy and ask him to come to his office immediately.
Draco Malfoy, who had just received the notification from the ghost, suddenly looked downcast and walked towards Snape's office with a gloomy face.
Seeing the Slytherin Dean's office right in front of him, Malfoy clenched his fists and knocked on the door stiffly.
"Come in and sit down." After Malfoy entered the room, Snape motioned him to sit in the armchair next to the desk.
"What do you want from me, Professor?" Malfoy asked knowingly.
"You failed and almost killed Katie Bell." Snape reminded expressionlessly: "You should be thankful that Katie Bell is not dead, otherwise you would be in big trouble."
"I didn't do it. I didn't go to Hogsmeade at all. Professor McGonagall testified for me." Malfoy trembled his lips and defended himself softly.
He knew very well that he had to distance himself from the situation, and staying at Hogwarts, under the watchful eye of a certain professor, was undoubtedly the best way to do this.
"Don't treat others as fools." Snape looked at Malfoy coldly, "Do you really think Dumbledore doesn't know about this? He already suspects you and asked me to monitor you."
"Isn't this great?" Malfoy gave a strange expression, "You can keep him in the dark forever."
"Don't think you're such a fool," Snape said angrily. "If Katie Bell died because of that damn opal necklace, do you really think you can still stand here and talk to me?"
"What do you mean?" Malfoy asked, putting away his expression.
"Dumbledore is already suspicious of you. Even if you can prove that it wasn't you who did it, will it be of any use? He has already determined that someone has controlled Rosmerta," Snape said expressionlessly. "He only needs a little bit of truth serum to make you tell him everything. By then, you won't even have the chance to go to Azkaban. You will be executed directly like the other Death Eaters."
"You can give him fake Veritaserum, or give me some antidote to Veritaserum," Malfoy said without hesitation.
"Did Bellatrix infect you with her stupidity and arrogance?" Snape looked at Malfoy indifferently. He was thinking about how to solve this problem. "I can tell you directly that if that day really comes, I dare say Dumbledore will definitely pay attention to your condition and easily determine whether the truth serum is real or fake. I don't think you can take the antidote of the truth serum under the eyes of Dumbledore or a bunch of Aurors."
"It's time to stop your foolish plans," Snape warned.
"Are you going to expose me if I don't follow your plan?" Malfoy sneered.
"No, even if I don't expose you, you will definitely be exposed. When Dumbledore suspects you, no matter what you do, it will be suspicious. And..." Snape paused for a moment and continued: "I think he probably wants to observe you and find out what the Dark Lord wants to do. That's why you can stand here and talk to me now!"
"You think it's best for me to do nothing now?" Malfoy said coldly.
"That's right. It's better to get rid of Dumbledore at once rather than foolishly remind him that someone wants to assassinate him." Snape warned coldly, "I promised your mother to protect you, and I made an unbreakable oath. If I break it, I will die, but the Dark Lord's plan to kill Dumbledore will also fail. Do you think he will forgive your mother Narcissa for waiting so long?"
"No, he won't. He will only direct his anger towards the entire Malfoy family." Snape said calmly, making people feel cold all over. "Of course, the Dark Lord will definitely not let you go, so you are definitely dead. As for your family, perhaps the Malfoy family will disappear completely."
Malfoy felt cold all over, because Snape's words obviously did not seem to be lies, and he would never underestimate the possibility that the Dark Lord would kill his entire family.
"What are you going to do?" Malfoy asked, clenching his fists and his lips trembling slightly. "Tell me your complete plan!"
Malfoy finally decided to listen to Snape's so-called plan. After all, Snape had signed a contract with his mother, so he didn't have to worry about the other party cheating him.
Moreover, if they found out that Rosmerta was under the Imperius Curse, his subsequent poisoning plan would probably be ruined.
"Use the Vanishing Cabinet. There is a Vanishing Cabinet in Hogwarts School that can be connected to another Vanishing Cabinet." Snape was very satisfied that his threat had successfully intimidated Draco. At least he didn't have to take extraordinary measures.
"The Vanishing Cabinet, what is that?"
"It can help you connect to the outside of the school without any obstruction." Snape explained, "But it is broken, and I need you to fix it."
"Why not use the Floo?"
"The school's Floo network has been closed again. No one else can use it unless the Ministry of Magic arranges a one-time Floo network connection, but this is obviously difficult to do." Snape shook his head, "So if you want someone to appear in the school quietly, using the Vanishing Cabinet is undoubtedly the best choice."
"But I can't fix that thing, and what if I can't fix it?" Malfoy was silent for a moment, then shook his head. "I think they should choose other ways to invade Hogwarts."
"It may not be reliable to quietly invade Hogwarts through the secret passage. It is very likely that they will be discovered by other professors after invading Hogwarts, and they may miss the best opportunity." Snape was not optimistic about taking the secret passage. It would take too long and it would be easy to be discovered that something was wrong.
If it is not secretive enough, the plan is basically a failure.
"Can you fix the Vanishing Cabinet?" Malfoy asked suddenly. "If you can't..."
"I don't know, but I think the chances of it being repaired are very high," Snape interrupted.
"If that's the case, why don't you fix it?" Malfoy asked puzzled.
"If I fix it and you do nothing, do you really think the Dark Lord will recognize you?" Snape sneered, "You need enough merit to save the lives of your entire family. The reason is very simple. You saw a similar vanishing cabinet in Borgin and Burke's Dark Magic Shop, and successfully completed the task with it."