Hogwarts: Don't call me the Staff Maker

Chapter 529 News of Mr. Weasley

Chapter 529 News of Mr. Weasley

In this humble abode, time seemed to slow down countless times, with every second passing exceptionally slowly.

Mrs. Weasley had prepared dinner: a plate of fried eggs and bacon sandwiches. Although the bread was of varying sizes and the eggs were a little burnt, it still looked quite good.

No one seemed to have much of an appetite, but to comfort Mrs. Weasley, they all forced themselves to eat a few pieces.

It grew darker outside, the sky taking on a grayish-indigo hue. Just before the sun had completely set, someone finally returned.

They suddenly heard the sound of a whip cracking in the air outside. Xiren knew that someone had apparated back, but because the Burrow was protected by the Fidelity Charm, the apparition could not appear directly inside the house.

Then came the sound of hurried footsteps.

Hermione, who was sitting by the door, got up and went to open it before Mrs. Weasley could.

The moment the door opened, Bill staggered in, and Celeste had no doubt that he would have smashed the door open without Hermione's help.

"Good news!" Bill said immediately.

He clearly knew what to say first, which immediately put everyone's minds at ease.

At this moment, he was finally able to catch his breath and picked up the half-glass of water that Ron had left on the table and drank it all in one gulp.

Since everyone knew the result in advance, no one rushed them.

"Well, that should be considered good news," Bill said, putting down his empty water glass. "We found Dad in an alley near Wimbledon. Alastor found a lot of traces of dark magic nearby, so it's certain Dad was attacked by a dark wizard, and the attacker was very likely a Death Eater."

Mrs. Weasley, who had just begun to relax, immediately became anxious again and hurriedly asked, "How is he?"

"That's what I was saying," Bill said with a relieved look. "Dad was lucky. Moody examined him, and although his injuries were serious, they weren't life-threatening. Kingsley and Alastor have taken him to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Injuries. I felt it was necessary to tell you this, so I parted ways with them."

"Thank God, that's wonderful, that's really good news." Mrs. Weasley hugged Bill tightly.

As a former member of the Order of the Phoenix, Mrs. Weasley was well aware of the risks they would face, and this was already a good outcome.

"Quiet down, Mom, I can't breathe!" Bill said in an exaggerated voice, trying to lighten the mood.

Although he was far inferior to Fred and George in this respect, he had achieved his goal—Mrs. Weasley finally smiled.

She wanted to go to St. Mungo's immediately to take care of Mr. Weasley, but Bill stopped her.

"Don't worry, Mom. They should be back soon, and then we can go together." Bill glanced at Ron and Ginny. "You two certainly don't want to wait at home, right?"

"I want to go to St. Mungo's too!" Ron and Ginny shouted at the same time, afraid that Bill would leave them at home.

If it were just the two of them, it wouldn't be so bad; Bill and Mrs. Weasley could easily Apparate with them, but Harry and the others couldn't.

Moreover, before returning, Alastor Moody had specifically instructed that Harry must not leave the Burrow alone. He had a feeling that the attack on Mr. Weasley was a bit strange, as if it were intentional, using the injured Mr. Weasley to create chaos within the Order of the Phoenix.

But Dumbledore hadn't returned yet, and regardless of that, Moody didn't want to take any risks. Harry needed to have enough people around him. Mrs. Weasley quickly understood Bill's meaning and gradually calmed down.

She knew Moody was right; this was likely a trap set by the Death Eaters specifically to target Harry, and she had to remain calm.

Just then, I heard a very soft clicking sound.

It was the clock on the wall; at this moment, the hands of the clock representing Mr. Weasley had jumped from "Deadly Danger" to "Hospital".

Of course, what's important here isn't the change of location, but that the pointer has moved away from "deadly danger," a change that completely puts Mrs. Weasley at ease.

While waiting, they talked about the details of the attack.

"I have a question," Ginny couldn't help but ask. "Doesn't Dad work at the Ministry of Magic? Why is he at Wimbledon?"

"It's because of work," Bill said. "We went to the Ministry of Magic, and Perkins told us that around noon today they received news that the mailboxes at Wimbledon were spewing garbage, and that's what he went to fix."

"Is the mailbox spitting out trash?"

"It was the work of anti-Muggle wizards who turned the trash can into a mailbox," Bill said. "Think about it, those Muggles thought they were mailing letters, but they actually threw them in the trash. But this time it's probably the Death Eaters' doing, trying to get Dad out of the Ministry of Magic."

At that moment, several more sounds of apparitions came from outside.

Kingsley, Tonks, Sirius, and two other Aurors whom Sirius had never seen before rushed in.

"We just received the news."

"Molly, Bill, leave this to us," Tonks said.

"Thank you, Tonks," Mrs. Weasley said, taking Ginny's arm and leading her outside.

"Wait a minute." Harry seemed to have noticed something and quickly asked, "May I also go to St. Mungo's to visit Mr. Weasley?"

"Hmm—Mad-Eye means you should stay in the Burrow," Tonks said. "We're not sure what the Death Eaters' purpose was in attacking Arthur, or if it was to get you. But the Burrow has the 'Loyalty Charm,' which is the best protection; those Death Eaters definitely won't be able to break in."

Harry couldn't help but frown.

Was Mr. Weasley attacked not because of a Ministry of Magic mission, nor because of his status as a member of the Order of the Phoenix, but because of him?

Harry's face turned somewhat grim; the thought churned within him like a dagger.

Just then, a large hand landed on his shoulder.

"Don't overthink it, Harry," Sirius said with a smile. "Arthur and we both know what we're doing and what we'll face in the future. It's none of your business. Besides, those words were spoken by Alastor, who was your Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. I'm sure you know what kind of person he is."

7

"Professor Moody, he, he's very cautious—"

"Cautious? Oh, Harry, you're too kind." Tonks said with a laugh, "We all know that even Mad-Eye would suspect an ant is a dark wizard in disguise to kill him."

"That's it," Sirius continued. "So when you're working with Alastor, don't delve too deeply into his decisions, or you'll only create more trouble for yourself."