Harry Potter and the Obscurus

Chapter 96 An Untimely Return

Harry lay stiffly on the bed, panting heavily as he stared at the ceiling.

Unlike in the original story, he didn't become like this because he dreamed of Voldemort.

Over the past few months, Harry's lightning bolt-shaped scar had twice suddenly throbbed with pain. However, due to his Occlumency training, he hadn't witnessed Voldemort murdering the Muggle guards and the witch Bertha Jorkins. (Bertha Jorkins died in the summer of 1994, the period Voldemort used to turn Nagini into his final Horcrux.)

The calendar showed August 20th, just two days away from the Quidditch World Cup final.

(The 1994 Quidditch World Cup was exceptionally grand. The stadium chosen as the venue for the final was magically transformed to accommodate 100,000 spectators, and 500 staff members from the Ministry of Magic and other places worked on it for more than half a year.)

British teams have not performed well this year.

England suffered a humiliating 10-390 defeat to Transylvania; Scotland narrowly lost to Luxembourg; and Wales suffered a shock defeat to a Quidditch team from Uganda, a region with very few wizards.

Currently, Ireland is considered the most likely team to win the championship. After defeating Peru in the semi-finals, they only need to face their final opponent – ​​Bulgaria.

Harry doesn't intend to support the Irish team. Although their defense is incredibly strong, as a Seeker, how can he not hope for a scene of individual heroism?

Krum.

Viktor Krumm.

The best, and undisputed, Seeker in the world.

Without exaggeration, this guy was the biggest contributor to Harry's victory over Slytherin last semester and helped Wood achieve his dream of winning the championship.

Using a firebolt, mastering a firebolt, and making the most of a firebolt are three completely different things. Harry wouldn't have been able to adapt to a completely new broom in such a short time if he hadn't observed Krum's techniques in the game.

"Hoo! Hoo!"

The heavy breathing did not stop.

If Ron or any other classmates were there, Harry would definitely explain that what made him so excited was the upcoming Quidditch World Cup final.

However, it is not.

Between August 20th and August 22nd, on the day everyone is supposed to gather at the Burrow, Harry will be heading to his first date.

Hermione.

Hermione Granger.

This girl was the reason Harry's breathing became labored.

In the dream just now, Harry did what you would do on a date with his classmate and best friend for the first time.

And the result was obvious. Harry experienced something even more magical than magic itself, a strange and indescribable feeling.

It's beautiful, yet it makes you feel like you're doing something wrong.

The night was quiet, and in the multi-story London mansion, no one would disturb Harry's rest. Kreacher, under orders from his master, would not voluntarily clean Harry's room.

Sirius Black is very respectful of Harry's privacy.

Even if he could find endless topics to talk about, he would immediately find an excuse to leave as soon as he sensed that his godson wanted to do something else.

In this way, Harry and Hermione were able to express their feelings for each other using owls without any interference.

While it was said to be an expression of mutual affection, in reality, back in 1994, Harry and Hermione's correspondence only contained:

"I feel happiest when I practice magic with you."

“I also really miss the days when we used the Pensieve together last semester. It’s strange, it’s only been a few months.”

"I'd love to know if you'd like to join me for a stroll in Diagon Alley before we go to watch the Quidditch World Cup? I hear there are a lot of new books on the shelves at Flourish and Blotts."

“I’d love to, but we agreed to meet at Ron’s house on the evening of the 21st, and we need to leave no later than 5 p.m. I’ll head over to the Leaky Cauldron a little earlier.”

"Okay, I'll be there early too. See you tomorrow!"

See you tomorrow, Harry.

......

The two young people used paper letters like smartphones in the information age. They weren't pure-blooded wizards who didn't know how to use a telephone, but by writing letters, they could express many things that were difficult to say aloud.

For example, prefixes and suffixes like "Dear Harry," "My dearest Hermione," and "Love, Hermione Granger" might seem a bit inappropriate when spoken aloud, but they can be used freely when written down.

Romance, a little romance, a unique little romance that Harry and Hermione left behind in this era.

Of course, romance comes at a price.

The letters needed to be delivered by owls, and Hedwig had to constantly flap her wings, which were enchanted with speed, working more than ten hours a day without sleep, in order to maintain this romance between the two.

Harry prepared plenty of fresh frog meat, rat meat, fruit, and small fish for Hedwig. This reward was somewhat effective at first, but as time went on, after being tormented for more than a week, Hedwig began to oppose the "996 blessing," just like the working class in Mo Ran's world.

"Hedwig, Hedwig."

Harry called softly:

"Could you deliver another letter for me? I want to tell her about the dream I had about Hermione."

Hedwig, who was sleeping on the scaffolding, was furious upon hearing this. In the end, she simply closed even her open eye. (Owls usually sleep with one eye open and one eye closed. By alternating between resting both eyes, owls can stay alert in the dark and protect themselves from harm.)

Harry was slightly disappointed by Hedwig's strike, but then he thought that it wouldn't be wise to tell a girl he dreamed about her at this time.

"Let's rest first."

Harry said this to himself as he lay back down on the bed.

The night remained quiet.

Harry cast a calming spell on himself and quickly regained his lost sleepiness. However, just as he was about to drift off to sleep, a familiar voice suddenly rang out from the depths of his consciousness.

"Oh my, it's been a long time!"

It's Mo Ran!

Harry jumped out of bed in a flash, which startled Hedwig so much she nearly flew away.

"You're back? When did you get back? Just now? What have you been doing all this time? Professor Dumbledore said it was related to the Thunderbirds."

A series of questions left Mo Ran at a loss for words. Fortunately, the two, being of the same body, could communicate directly through their thoughts. Thus, a memory that had been sped up hundreds or thousands of times was transmitted into Harry's mind.

The sun and moon alternate, spring goes and autumn comes.

The tender shoots that sprouted from the soil grew rapidly to over a meter tall, and the process of caring for the newborn, unable-to-suffice ptarmigan for a year was compressed into a montage.

As Dumbledore had said, Mo Ran did indeed enter the banished time rift. However, besides looking after the Thunderbird, he also took the opportunity to refine the dark magic he had stolen from the Dementors.

"this......"

Harry, who had synchronized his memories with Moran, became somewhat hesitant.

Compared to his old friend who had been working tirelessly to fight Voldemort, he had been having a rather easy time lately. Just as he was racking his brains trying to figure out how to confess to Mo Ran that he had been slacking off, Mo Ran took the initiative to ask:

"What's wrong? Is there any new information about Voldemort lately?"

"Huh? No, since the commotion in Azkaban last year, many of the big news stories have come to an end. Fudge announced that Sirius Black died at sea after a failed prison break, thus ending the search for him. Professor Dumbledore and the others also found and destroyed the Horcruxes."

"I see..."

Mo Ran pondered for a moment, then asked again:

"And what about you? Have you had any strange dreams lately? People or things you've never seen before? Or, have your scars been hurting?"

“Dreamed about it? I haven’t dreamed about anything strange. But now that you mention it, my scar seems to have hurt twice during the summer. But I asked Professor Dumbledore about it both times, and he said he couldn’t find any trace of dark magic on me.”

The plot, which was completely different from the original story, made Mo Ran realize that something was wrong, and he quickly asked:

"What about Little Pettigrew? What did you guys do with Peter?"

Harry replied:

"He's been taken care of. Apparently, that guy ended up caught in the middle, with even the Death Eaters believing that Peter was actually a spy planted by Dumbledore. After Fudge stopped contacting Dumbledore, I sent him to deliberately visit the place where the Ministry of Magic's Auror spies were planted, which effectively debunked the old man's lies."

"Huh? What lie? How was it dealt with?"

When Mo Ran asked him this, Harry realized that he hadn't told everyone what happened after that. So, he had no choice but to recount all the details from his memory.

In fact, if Harry himself agreed, Moran could directly search through his memories for the information he needed. However, as Harry gradually entered adolescence, he could no longer make such a request as he did when he was a child.

So much could have happened in a year, and Harry talked on and on, from late at night until dawn. It wasn't until the old magical clock in the Black family chimed that Harry realized it was time to meet Hermione.

"Aren't you going to get some rest? You haven't slept all night."

Seeing Harry suddenly packing his bags, Mo Ran asked in confusion.

“I have an appointment today, and tomorrow is the Quidditch World Cup. I also have to rush to Ron’s house tonight. As a Ministry of Magic employee, Mr. Arthur Weasley has access to a key that leads directly to the final match venue.”

Harry showed a slight unease as he spoke, which, of course, did not escape Mo Ran's notice. After thinking for a moment, he spoke again:

"I see. So, besides going with the Weasleys, you didn't make any other plans with your classmates?"

"Yes, I have."

After packing his luggage, Harry looked in the mirror, smoothed his tousled hair, and said in as calm a tone as possible:

“Cedric Diggory from Hufflepuff is coming with us too. His father happens to work at the Ministry of Magic and is a good friend of Mr. Weasley. Then there’s Hermione.”

Upon hearing this, Mo Ran, who had lived more than ten years longer than Harry, immediately understood.

Given Harry and Hermione's relationship, if they were just friends, he would most likely have subconsciously mentioned her name first. But this time, Harry chose to mention her casually only after introducing Cedric Diggory.

This is very abnormal.

"so good."

Mo Ran sighed.

There was a time when he had someone who made his heart flutter. But that flutter, besides giving his immature self a disgusting experience, left him with no other feelings.