"Sirius?"
As Hermione walked into the hospital wing, she saw a familiar figure talking to Harry.
"Good afternoon Hermione, and Ron."
Sirius smiled and greeted the two people who came to visit Harry.
"Why are you here?" Hermione asked in surprise.
"I came to see Dumbledore and Albert by the way." Sirius peeled the apple carelessly, "However, Albert doesn't seem to be in Hogwarts, and I don't know where he went. However, I asked the Weasley twins, and they said that Albert probably went out on a date."
"Is it because of Peter Pettigrew?" Hermione immediately thought of the reason.
"I guess so."
Sirius didn't want to discuss this in front of the children, so he turned to look at Harry and asked, "Has the secret of the golden egg been solved? How are the preparations for the second task of the Triwizard Tournament going?"
"The secret of the golden egg has been revealed. It seems that we have to open it underwater to know the secret inside." Harry said dryly. He had just received the news not long ago and had no time to verify it because he fell ill and was hospitalized.
"Albert said that the scream of the golden egg is actually the voice of the merman. The voice of the merman is very beautiful underwater, but it becomes very bad after coming ashore." Hermione explained to Sirius, "The second project has to be carried out in the water, but it is not easy to breathe underwater."
"If the second task requires going underwater, then there aren't many options." Sirius cut the apples into pieces and put them on a plate before handing them to Harry, Hermione and Ron. He said calmly, "We can use the Bubblehead Charm, which allows us to breathe underwater, but there are certain risks in using this method."
"What risks?"
"Once you come to the surface before the Bubblehead Charm loses its effect, you're really doomed. It won't take long under the water before you drown, even wizards are no exception. Although Dumbledore should have taken various safety measures, but... to be honest, it's still very dangerous. And Harry, can you swim?" Sirius suddenly asked.
"No!" Harry was a little embarrassed. He had never learned to swim before. The Dursleys never taught him and would not spend time teaching him.
"First, look at the clues in the golden egg. If you want to learn the Bubble Head Curse, I remember that it should be taught in the sixth grade spells textbook." Sirius thought for a moment and continued, "However, I think Anderson should have a simpler method. When he comes back, I will ask him for you."
"Forget it, that guy is a money-grubber." Harry muttered, "I'll find time to practice the Bubble Head Charm when the time comes. There's still more than a month left, and I think it shouldn't be difficult to master the Bubble Head Charm."
"It's always a good idea to be prepared," said Sirius.
"By the way, do you know what happened to Barty Crouch?" Harry asked in a low voice. "I read in the newspaper that he seemed to have been... killed by Peter Pettigrew."
"Crouch was under the Imperius Curse." Sirius said in a low voice, "It must be Voldemort's doing. When Dumbledore and Bagman went to discuss the safety of the second project with Barty, they noticed something was wrong. Originally, Barty had been rescued and taken away by Bagman, but Peter took advantage of Dumbledore and Voldemort's battle to sneak attack Bagman and kill Barty. I think it was to silence him."
"Is Voldemort back?"
The three of them opened their mouths wide, almost speechless in surprise.
"No, according to Dumbledore, Voldemort has a very fragile body, but Dumbledore finally succeeded in destroying Voldemort's body. Maybe that's when the scar on your forehead became hot. Didn't you say you could feel Voldemort's anger?" Sirius frowned and continued, "Now they all suspect that it was Crouch who threw your name into the Goblet of Fire. It may be because of some conspiracy of Voldemort. The Aurors of the Ministry of Magic found a large amount of medicinal herbs in Crouch's home. At present, the Ministry of Magic still hasn't figured out what Voldemort's conspiracy is, but this matter should be related to you."
Sirius then comforted him, "But you don't need to worry. Voldemort has been defeated by Dumbledore and will not cause any trouble for the time being."
"I remember Percy seemed to be Crouch's assistant?" Harry nodded, as if he remembered something and suddenly said, "I remember Albert told Percy at the Christmas party that he would soon become the Minister of Magic's assistant. Percy was entangled in this for a long time and even suspected that Crouch would become the Minister of Magic."
"The Minister of Magic's assistant? Are you sure? But I heard from Fred and George that Percy got into trouble over this matter. I heard that he is now under investigation by the Ministry of Magic." When Ron talked about this, he somehow felt a bit gloating.
"Under investigation?" Hermione asked puzzled.
"They think that as Crouch's assistant, Percy should be aware of Crouch's abnormality and report it to his superiors in time." Ron shrugged.
"This is a typical case of shirking responsibility. This kind of thing is very common in the Ministry of Magic. Percy Weasley was just unlucky and was thrown out to take the blame." Sirius was disdainful of this.
No one noticed Crouch's abnormality, so how could an assistant discover it
"I heard that Anderson recommended Percy for the position." Ron suddenly remembered something and his face twitched.
"Do you think Dumbledore decided to take time out to visit Mr. Crouch after listening to the conversation between Albert and Percy?" Hermione said suddenly.
"I always thought fortune tellers were liars," muttered Ron.
"It's true that most fortune tellers are liars, because there are actually very few people who can see the future." Sirius felt that Harry and Ron were not in the right mindset, "Those who can predict the future are respected by people. In fact, the predictions Albert made for me about Peter Pettigrew have almost all come true."
"Well, it's almost time. I have an appointment with Dumbledore." Sirius reminded before leaving: "Take care of yourself, Harry, and Anderson, write me a letter when you come back."
"I get the feeling Sirius cares about Anderson," Ron whispered.
"I think it's because he can see the future,"
"To be honest, I always thought Anderson was a liar. At least some of his behaviors are very similar to Sybill Trelawney."
"Always likes to play tricks."
The two men agreed on this matter.
Hermione looked at Ron and Harry and shook her head. Is it really that difficult to admit that others are better
While Ron and Harry were complaining about Albert's formality, Sirius had already knocked on the wooden door of the headmaster's office.
"Come in!"
Dumbledore's voice came from the office. When Sirius pushed the door open and went in, he found Arthur Weasley and Kingsley Shacklebolt were there, but he didn't see Moody.
"Come sit down, Sirius, you've arrived just in time." Dumbledore pulled an armchair for Sirius.
"You didn't look for Mad-Eye, is there something wrong with him?" Sirius asked with a frown.
"He is not suitable now, and will not be suitable until the end of next summer," said Dumbledore calmly.
"Inappropriate?" Kingsley asked, his mind working quickly. "Do you suspect Moody has a problem? Or is there another reason?"
"I suspect Barty Crouch Jr. has infiltrated Hogwarts."
"Barty Crouch Jr., isn't he dead?" Kingsley said in confusion.
"No, Barty Crouch Jr. should not be dead, after all, Peter is not dead either." Sirius gritted his teeth when talking about Peter Pettigrew.
"Do you suspect Mad-Eye because of the incident at the beginning of the school term?" Arthur reacted quickly. He believed that Dumbledore would not casually suspect his old friend.
"There are always some problems with the Defense Against the Dark Arts professors at Hogwarts," Sirius shrugged and complained, "and they are usually in danger of their lives. Don't forget, the previous Defense Against the Dark Arts professors all ended up in a miserable way, so it's best not to let Mad-Eye get involved in this matter, no matter if he is reliable or not."
The three of them looked at Sirius and finally agreed with this point of view.
Judging from what happened to the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor in recent years, this position is indeed a high-risk profession. It is not difficult to understand why Dumbledore did not want his old friend to get involved.
"Okay, now that everyone is here, I'll go first."
Dumbledore waved his wand and summoned the Pensieve, showing the three what happened that night. When Voldemort appeared in front of everyone as an ugly baby, the other three were stunned.
It's not even a baby, it's no exaggeration to say it's a monster.
It has no hair, and its body seems to be covered with scales. Its skin is dark and red, like injured tender flesh. Its arms and legs are thin and soft, and it even has a flat snake face.
"Although it is ugly, it is undeniable that Voldemort temporarily possesses a very fragile body and has some ability to cast spells. I suspect he intends to create a healthy body and take back his own power.
"Is this kind of thing really possible?" Sirius couldn't help but ask.
"Voldemort knows a lot of dark magic that I don't know. At least I don't know how he got this body. But believe me, dark magic is varied and varied. I wouldn't be surprised if he recovered his body." Dumbledore clasped his hands together and pondered. "There is also evidence. The Aurors of the Ministry of Magic found a lot of medicinal herbs in Crouch's house."
"I'm afraid this is true," Kingsley said, "According to the list I got from the Ministry of Magic, I asked the potion master Mr. Damocles, and he told us that some of the potions in it can be used to make compound potions, because some of the powdered bicorn horns and African tree snake skin fragments were found in those herbs, which just happened to be the ingredients for brewing compound potions. But the Aurors did not find the compound potion in Crouch's house, so Dumbledore's guess may be correct. Someone sneaked into the school disguised as a compound potion."
"Perhaps this is the man who put Harry's name into the Goblet of Fire?" Sirius said through gritted teeth.
Dumbledore ignored Sirius' words, looked up at Arthur and asked, "What news do you have?"
"I asked Percy, and he said that Mr. Crouch's physical condition was not as good as before after the World Cup. He thought that Mr. Crouch spent too much energy in the World Cup. It is said that it was after the World Cup that Mr. Crouch began to let Percy take charge."
"You believe Mr. Crouch was controlled by Voldemort with the Imperius Curse after the World Cup." Kingsley responded quickly, which was related to his career as an Auror.
"At least not before then. I've asked his house-elf." Dumbledore nodded.
"House-elves?" Arthur had an unpleasant memory.
"She works at Hogwarts. I judged from the reaction of the house elf that Barty Crouch Jr. is still alive." Dumbledore continued, "I suspect that the Dark Mark in the World Cup was made by Barty Crouch Jr. Later, because of this incident, Voldemort was attracted, so Voldemort used the Imperius Curse to control Barty. But you also know what kind of person Barty is. The Imperius Curse cannot control him well. I think there were signs before the start of the Triwizard Tournament. At that time, Barty's physical condition was not very good."
"It's unlikely that Peter Pettigrew did it. His magic power is not that strong." Sirius continued, "Is there any news about him now?"
"No, Fudge sent all the Aurors out to look for Peter Pettigrew, but they found nothing." Kingsley shook his head. "He issued a kill order for Peter, apparently intending to cover up Voldemort's affair."
"That's like something he would do," Sirius snorted. "So now the graveyard is the final clue."
"A cemetery, what is that?" Kingsley and Arthur both looked at Sirius Black with puzzled eyes.
"Anderson's prophecy. During the World Cup, I asked Anderson to predict the whereabouts of Peter Pettigrew." Sirius drew out his memories and put them into the meditation basin. A crystal ball soon appeared on it, reflecting a very hidden room. After the picture disappeared, it was replaced by a forest, and then a double eagle flag.
Soon it turned into a large desolate house, and behind it there was a person. It was Barty Crouch Jr., whom they all recognized.
Finally, it turned into a desolate cemetery, and the picture finally froze in front of a tombstone.
"All those scenes before have actually come true. I think the only thing left in the end is the location of this cemetery, but I still haven't found where it is." Sirius hoped to find some clues with the help of everyone's wisdom.
"It's incredible. As far as I know, there hasn't been a master prophet who can predict the future so accurately for a long time." Kingsley was very shocked. "Perhaps, we can invite him to join the Order of the Phoenix."
"If he is asked to provide some help, Anderson should not refuse, but I think it will be difficult to invite him to join." Sirius felt that the chances were slim.
"I see. I see."
Dumbledore, who had been staring at the Pensieve, suddenly stood up and said, "So that's what you mean."
"Dumbledore, what do you know?"
Everyone looked at Dumbledore, curious about what secret Dumbledore had discovered.
"I have a rough idea of where Voldemort is hiding." Dumbledore called to the group, "Come with me, and we'll talk about this as we walk."
Everyone hurriedly followed.
"A number of events have occurred during the period of Voldemort's growing power," Dumbledore said quickly. "Bertha Jorkins disappeared without a trace from Voldemort's last hideout. I believe she is dead. And Mr. Crouch, who was under the Imperius Curse, died a few days ago. Another incident of note is the disappearance of a Muggle named Frank Bryce in the village where Voldemort's father was born. He has been missing since August last year, and the Muggle newspapers have reported him there."
"Muggle newspapers?"
"That's one thing that makes me different from most of my friends in the ministry."
"Do you think Voldemort might be hiding in that village?" Sirius asked.
"Yes, isn't there a big, desolate house in the crystal ball? I think Voldemort might be hiding there."