novelcrest Chapter 285 Strange Sounds in the Room
Chapter 285 Strange Sounds in the Room
Chapter 285 Strange Sounds in the Room
The door to room 12 was ajar, and Percy was speaking loudly.
"It was already here, on the bedside table. I just took it down and wiped it—" Ron shouted back, not to be outdone. "I didn't touch it at all, you know?"
"What happened?" Harry asked as he walked in.
"My student council president badge is missing," Percy said to Harry, exasperated.
"Banban's stimulant is gone too," Ron said, rummaging through the box. "I probably forgot it on the bar counter—"
"If you don't find my badge, you're not going anywhere!" Percy shouted angrily.
"I'll go get Scabbers' medicine; I've already packed it up," Harry said to Ron before hurrying downstairs.
As Harry walked toward the now-dark bar, he was halfway there when he suddenly heard angry arguing coming from one of the private booths.
Upon closer listening, he realized it was the voices of Mr. and Mrs. Weasley.
Harry hesitated, not wanting them to know he had heard, but just as he was about to leave, he suddenly heard his own name.
This made him stop in his tracks, and he couldn't help but move closer to the door of the private room, trying to hear what they were saying.
"—It's wrong not to tell him," Arthur said excitedly. "Harry has the right to know. I tried to persuade Fudge, but he insisted on treating Harry like a little boy. Harry is thirteen years old, he—"
"Arthur, the truth will terrify him!" Molly shrieked. "That dangerous moment is still here! Do you really want Harry to go back to school carrying this fear? For God's sake, keeping it from him will only put his mind at ease."
"I don't want to scare him, I just want him to be more vigilant!" Arthur retorted sharply. "You know what Harry and Ron are like, they're always running around—they even went to the Forbidden Forest! Harry absolutely cannot do that again this semester! I can't even imagine how dangerous it was when he ran away from home that night! If the Knight Bus hadn't happened to take him away, I'm sure Black would have done something to him before the Ministry of Magic found him."
"But the fact is he's fine, everything went smoothly, and that needs to be explained in detail."
"Molly, Black may be insane, but the fact that he managed to escape from Azkaban proves he's no ordinary man. Everyone thought it was impossible, and it's been a month now, with no sign of him. I don't care what Fudge says to the Daily Prophet every day; we're making absolutely no progress in capturing Black. It's like trying to invent a magic wand that spells automatically. The only thing we're sure of is: Black is looking for—"
+
silence.
Harry pressed himself closer to the door, trying to hear as much as possible.
"Dumbledore didn't like the guards of Azkaban," Arthur said gravely. "To be honest, I didn't either, but when you're dealing with wizards like Black, sometimes you have to team up with people you normally avoid."
"If they saved Harry One"
"Then I'll never say a bad word about them again," Arthur said wearily. "It's too late, Molly, let's go upstairs—"
Hearing the chair being moved, Harry quickly and quietly ran down the aisle to hide behind the bar.
The door to the private room opened, and a few seconds later he heard footsteps; he knew the Weasleys had come upstairs.
The bottle of rat stimulant was under the table where they had just been sitting.
Harry waited until he heard the Weasleys' bedroom door close before taking the bottle back upstairs.
However, as he passed by room number nine, he heard some strange noises coming from inside.
"Put more force into it."
"Push harder..."
Harry paused for a moment, then couldn't help but stop again.
The sounds in the room were muffled, but it seemed like someone was doing something in there.
Harry looked up at the house number, his mind racing.
He clearly remembered that Room Nine was either Professor Phillips's or his eccentric friend Witt's room.
Professor Phillips is clearly not the source of these strange sounds.
So there can only be one truth.
That's Mr. Witt!
"Push harder. Yes, yes, right there, don't stop—"
Upon hearing these ambiguous words, Harry couldn't help but think of the topics that upperclassmen often secretly discussed in the bathrooms.
Although he didn't fully understand the details of the conversation, he vaguely understood that it was something mysterious and taboo.
Now, he couldn't help but wonder if Mr. Witt was doing those things the senior students had mentioned in the room.
Harry's face flushed red instantly, and his heart raced.
He unconsciously took another step toward the door, even though he knew rationally that he shouldn't eavesdrop, but the muffled sounds were particularly noticeable in the quiet corridor.
This thought made Harry's face burn and his heart race.
His mind raced with all sorts of inappropriate images, his imagination running wild as he envisioned some kind of "mysterious" adult activity that Mr. Witt might be engaged in.
Harry felt extremely embarrassed, and even wanted to run away, but his curiosity and embarrassment were intertwined, leaving him frozen in place.
Just then, Fred and George came out of room number twelve, which was not far away. Seeing him standing in a daze at the door of room number nine, they immediately waved to him.
"Come here, Harry."
Harry hesitated for a moment, then walked toward room number twelve.
Meanwhile, the intense activity continued inside room number nine.
Harry probably never imagined that the two people lying in Room Nine were his Professor Phillips and his good friend Hermione.
Let's rewind to half an hour ago.
At that time, Sean had just packed some food from downstairs and quietly delivered it to Sirius's room.
Sirius has remained silent since waking up in the afternoon, clearly very unhappy with Sean's decision to force him into a deep sleep at noon.
Although he had complained a few times, the current situation forced him to back down.
After all, these sacrifices were necessary in order to continue to conceal her identity, remain quietly in the Leaky Cauldron, and even maintain contact with her godson Harry.
"I don't like being controlled, Sean, especially being cursed without warning," Sirius complained, frowning, a hint of displeasure in his eyes.
Although Sean's actions were well-intentioned—to help him get some rest in a short time—it didn't mean Sirius could accept it calmly.
Sean sighed as he placed the plate on the table. "I know you don't like it, but we have to do this for our plan to go smoothly. You can never seem to control your temper, so I'm forced to help you."
For some reason, Sirius felt that this sentence sounded familiar.
"I asked you before dinner if you wanted to go downstairs for dinner together," Sean continued, setting out food from his plate. "But you declined, and I understand why you didn't want to go."
Sirius smiled wryly and shook his head. "Talking to Harry is unsettling enough, let alone sitting and eating in front of the Weasleys."
"But it's alright, this is enough for me." Sirius took the plate and forced a smile.
"I'll do everything I can to keep Harry safe," Sean said, standing up to leave. "I mean, I'll keep that guy named Black away from Harry...yes, you."
"Phillips, that joke isn't funny at all," Sirius said, looking up with a displeased expression and frowning.
However, Sean just smiled slightly, and as soon as he finished speaking, he gently closed the door, not giving Sirius a chance to refute him.
A moment of silence fell over the room. Sirius sighed helplessly, staring at the closed door, feeling both helpless and powerless at Sean's joke.
Because he knew Sean was right.
Lies don't hurt, truth is the knife.
Meanwhile, Sean had already returned to his room.
He lay in bed, feeling his belly round and full, enveloped by the satisfaction of dinner and the warm atmosphere, and felt a little drowsy.
The Weasleys' lively laughter and the warm atmosphere of dinner had allowed him to relax for a while.
He closed his eyes and recalled the scene at dinner.
Mrs. Weasley's warm concern, Fred and George's jokes, Ron's complaints, Hermione's shyness, and even Harry's contemplation—all of these made him feel that this impromptu dinner was full of life.
In contrast, Sirius's loneliness seemed particularly heavy, and Sean couldn't help but sigh that although Sirius longed to fit in, reality kept him at bay.
"Tomorrow is a new day," Sean said to himself, trying to calm his mind.
Just as Sean was getting ready for bed, there was a soft knock on the door. Sean frowned, wondering who it could be so late.
He sat up, put on his coat, walked to the door, and opened it.
Hermione stood in the doorway, her face flushed, her expression a mixture of unease and hesitation. She kept her head down, as if considering whether she was disturbing Sean. The dim light from the room made her face appear even redder.
"Hermione? What's wrong so late?" Sean was a little surprised, but still maintained a gentle tone.
Hermione bit her lower lip, seemingly organizing her thoughts. She looked up at Sean, appearing somewhat nervous, and said, "I'm sorry, Professor, I know it's not appropriate to disturb you at this time, but I have some things on my mind that I really can't sleep—" She paused, sounding a little hesitant.
Sean noticed Hermione's nervousness and unease, smiled slightly, stepped aside, and said gently, "Come in."
Hermione. Since you can't sleep, why don't you come in and talk?