A ruined Hogwarts

The relaxed and joyful daily life passed by in a blink of an eye, and the semester came to an end. The students had no choice but to gather their thoughts and devote themselves to the intense final review.

With only three days left before the final exam, Professor McGonagall announced good news while everyone was having breakfast: "Professor Sprout told me that the mandrake can finally be harvested. Tonight we can He brought the petrified man back to life.”

The auditorium erupted in cheers.

Blaise stuffed an omelette in his mouth and said in a slurred voice: "In my opinion, this is not entirely a good thing for them... You know, the final exam is coming soon. If it were me, , I wish I could sleep together these days."

"Ah... I think the school won't let them fail the exam because of this. At least Hermione will be fine." Harry was sincerely happy because Hermione finally woke up.

"Miss Granger will probably go crazy after learning that she slept until the end of term." Owen joked.

A big brown owl flew in through the window of the auditorium, dropped a package in front of him, and after asking Owen for some water, he flapped his wings and flew away.

Owen examined the contents of the package and placed it aside with satisfaction. These are some rare herbal seeds that he asked Uncle Mike, who runs the magic shop for the Shafiq family, to collect them. There are many types, some of which are very rare. It is rare that Uncle Mike has the means to find them.

After a herbal medicine get out of class in the morning, he gave the packet of seeds to Professor Sprout. Owen still felt a little embarrassed about this kind and kind herbal medicine professor.

Last year, in order to decorate the magic house in the box, he got a lot of plants from the greenhouse, and this year he set fire to the first greenhouse... Although no one knew that he did it, in his heart, Owen didn't want to let some of his Behavior becomes taken for granted.

"Oh! These seeds...are these the seeds of the Moon Orchid? And the Dancing Vine!" Professor Sprout couldn't put it down, stroking the seeds with his eyes shining, and exclaiming from time to time. She looked away from them with some reluctance, looked at Owen and said, "Is this for me?"

"Yes, Professor. I found them in the corner of my suitcase. I think they can only have real value in the hands of you, Professor." Owen had a sincere smile on his face.

"But, they are very precious." Professor Sprout shook his head reluctantly. As an expert in herbal medicine, she could not resist the temptation of these rare seeds, but as a professor with high moral standards, she could not accept such a gift.

"But they are of no use to me!" Owen's clear and innocent eyes widened, "If you don't need them, Professor, I can only let them stay in the corner of the box to mold."

"How can this work!" Professor Sprout suddenly raised his eyebrows. She hesitated and then said: "Okay, give them to me. If I can cultivate them successfully, you must take the mature herbs." For her, the process of cultivating these herbs is the most important thing. important.

If you refuse, the professor will definitely not accept it. After seeing this, Owen nodded and said, "I will."

Professor Sprout immediately beamed. It happened that the first greenhouse had been rebuilt, and she had to think carefully about how to plan the planting area.

When Owen walked out of the greenhouse, he could hear the faintly cheerful voice of the herbology professor humming softly in his ears.

That night, the petrified people woke up one after another. A banquet was specially held in the school to welcome their awakening and return.

Gilderoy Lockhart was causing some trouble. When he just woke up, he still looked like Peter Pettigrew. He was so frightened that he ran out of the school hospital in a panic, scaring the few wizards who saw him and running around.

"I want to sue Peter Pettigrew! He must know that there is a price to pay for attacking a third-level Merlin Order winner!" Lockhart shouted confidently after finally understanding the situation.

"Gilderoy, I think there is something more important before you." Dumbledore's sharp blue eyes stared deeply at him, with a meaningful smile on his face, "About your works, I found I’ve learned some very interesting things. I think you’d be willing to take some time to talk to me, right?”

Lockhart was dumbfounded, the expression on his face was unprecedentedly flustered and frightened, and in the end he had no choice but to follow the other person uneasily.

The ghosts who had recovered from petrification were flying lightly in the air, with unfinished expressions of relief on their translucent faces. For them, the experience is like finally getting a good night's sleep after a long day, and it feels great.

"Ah, if only I could do it again." A fat female ghost sighed.

"No! It's the finals now?" Hermione grabbed her hair manically, as if she couldn't accept the reality, "I actually missed half a year of classes?"

"Anyway, you have already completed all the second-grade courses early." Harry, who rushed to visit her, comforted her.

"But I wasted most of the year!" Hermione's expression was serious and heavy. "I originally planned to complete the fifth grade courses this year, but so far I have only memorized all the fourth grade textbooks. I am already behind. Too much!"

"..." Harry was speechless.

"Miss Granger, since you have missed too much course content, we have decided to cancel your final exam." Professor McGonagall came over and informed.

"Oh no!" Hermione whined.

After a feast, the students had to move on to more pressing practical issues, such as how to turn a slipper into a rabbit.

Amidst the intense and busy review process, exam week has quietly arrived. Even though it was a hellish few days for most students, Owen was obviously not included, and he could easily handle the exam with his current knowledge.

It is worth mentioning that Gilderoy Lockhart appeared in the Defense Against the Dark Arts examination room unharmed. After supervising the students to finish their exams, he announced with a stiff smile that he would resign from all positions at Hogwarts next semester.

Only Owen knows that Lockhart's ending is pretty good now. Although he fell into the hands of Grindelwald, at least he didn't become an idiot, which is really gratifying.

Draco had to rush through his birthday during the stressful exam week. Owen asked the enthusiastic and hard-working house elves in the kitchen to make a big birthday cake, and a group of people gathered around Draco and sang a happy birthday song.

Pansy Parkinson blushed and gave Draco a pink hat, making his expression slightly distorted. Blaise Zabini got a big firecracker with a dozen colorful flower spirits inside. They sang happy birthday with a loud voice around Draco's head for two hours. Draco chased Blaise for a long time with a blue face.

After exam week, the study group had its last gathering of the semester.

Owen fished as usual. He was sitting alone in the corner by the window, seemingly closing his eyes to meditate, but in fact he was studying the soul spell in the space facing the wall.

During this time, his energy was mainly focused on two aspects. One is the advancement of the soul direction of the coma spell, and the other is the copy of the Marauder's Map.

Owen had returned the Marauder's Map to the Weasley twins a few days ago. He had already figured out the principle of the Marauder's Map. As long as he spent more time, he was sure to copy one. The core part of the Marauder's Map is undoubtedly a special tracking spell. As long as this tracking spell is mastered, the rest of the technology is actually not advanced.

In terms of soul magic, after a long period of research and improvement, as well as continuous attempts to die in the wall-facing space, he has found the root cause of previous failures and seen the dawn of victory.

In the misty white space, Owen copied a little nightmare and pointed his wand at it floating aimlessly in the air.

"Collapse!"

The curse sound in his mouth was a little ethereal and confusing, like a distant echo echoing in the valley. The red light emitted from the tip of the wand actually hit the intangible body of the nightmare. The nightmare's red eyes dimmed, falling from the air like a white plastic bag, and fell to the ground unconscious.

"Successful!" Owen smiled brightly, his eyes filled with black mist, containing malice that had not yet dissipated.

"Sure enough, only the most extreme emotions can touch the soul." He whispered to himself softly.

The previous failures were nothing more than a lack of emotional motivation. If you want to involve the realm of the soul, you must use white magic or black magic, whether it is extreme love or extreme malice, just like the protective spell on Harry and the three unforgivable curses.

"Finally done." Owen twirled his wand happily, feeling filled with a sense of accomplishment. Even if he found the direction early, it was still difficult to complete the curse, because after introducing extreme emotions, the effect of the curse became more elusive and the destructiveness was greatly enhanced. He spent too much effort on this.

He left the wall-facing space with a relaxed expression. As soon as he returned to reality, he felt a not-so-splendid atmosphere, and a burst of cheers came to his ears.

"I succeeded!" Harry shouted happily.

A silver-white stag galloped happily around him, its big silver eyes were smart and gentle, its pair of towering antlers were like branches of trees, and its dazzling body was as bright as the moon in the sky.

"My God, this is a very, very advanced magic." Hermione muttered, looking at Harry in disbelief, "I thought it would take us a few years to master it..."

"Awesome!" Blaise gave a thumbs up.

"How's it going, Owen? You see I succeeded!" Harry happily came to Owen's side, with a childish show off in his tone.

Owen squinted at the light that was a bit dazzling for him, and said softly with a half-smile: "Great. The prongs..."

"Hehe..." Harry chuckled and scratched his head.

"So, what happy thing did you think of?" Draco waved his wand unyieldingly and shot out an extremely thin white mist. "Does dating a girl really work?"

Harry's face turned red instantly, and he said with embarrassment and annoyance: "I'm not dating anyone! I just thought of Sirius... Don't let me know who started the rumor!"

Owen chuckled, closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Before the party was about to end, Daphne also successfully summoned a white swan patronus. Except for her and Harry, everyone else could only summon a thin silvery mist at most.

At night, Owen came to the principal's office on time as usual, but was surprised to find that his dear principal was not there.

The knick-knacks on the table still made all kinds of strange noises. The white-washed Sorting Hat was slumped on the shelf. Portraits of past principals hurriedly closed their eyes and snored. There were two items on the desk. Deathly Hallows.

Owen looked around, then sat on the chair opposite the desk, swaying his feet and waiting patiently. He glanced at the Deathly Hallows in front of him. There was a black gemstone ring with scorch marks placed on the silver invisibility cloak. The Elder Wand was not there.

Out of curiosity, he reached out and touched the ugly ring. Suddenly, he felt a shaking in front of his eyes, and a real and hazy figure appeared on the high-backed chair opposite him. The old man with white hair and white beard sat there as usual, wearing a purple robe embroidered with golden stars, with his slender fingers crossed and a kind smile on his face.

"Ah, good evening, Owen," he said.

"Good evening, Mr. Dumbledore..." Owen looked at him and then at the ring on his finger, "Are you dead?"

"I think not yet." Dumbledore shook his head, "I don't know what Gellert did to me after that day, but I am sure that I am not completely dead yet...can't be said to be alive, nor can I be said to be dead. "He sighed.

"In that case, are you in front of me real or a false illusion?" Owen raised his eyebrows.

"Oh, that depends on your own thoughts." Dumbledore winked mischievously, "What we have to admit is that the boundary between truth and falsehood is not as clear as we think."

"So, sir, it was you who released Mr. Grindelwald?" Owen's eyes flashed with curiosity.

"No, I just want to make an insurance before leaving..." Dumbledore showed a distressed expression in front of him for the first time, "I approached Gellert and asked him to promise that he would never call his own again. Followers, we made an unbreakable vow. Just when I relaxed...well, I thought he had let it all go."

"Gellert's ideas are too dangerous." He stared deeply into Owen's eyes with a pleading look, "Owen, I hope you..."

"Sir, there's nothing I can do." Owen said immediately, "I can't influence his will."

"Really?" Dumbledore sighed again, looking very tired, "Then at least, please don't become his pawn. You should have a brighter future."

"What can I do?" Owen smiled inexplicably, and after hearing the sound of the door opening behind him, he gently removed his finger.

The Dumbledore in front of him disappeared like a phantom, and another identical figure came over and sat on the high-backed chair, but his expression was indifferent and his clothes were even more meticulous.

"Long wait." He said, "Today's Q\u0026A begins."

…

On the last day of the semester, the test results came out. Every member of the study group passed the exam with good marks, although Hermione was probably the only one who felt resentful about not being able to take the final exam.

Just as everyone got their report cards, Draco suddenly approached Harry and said, "My dad is here. He wants to see you, Harry. He is waiting for you at the door."

"Uh...oh!" Harry suddenly remembered the scene of his "match of wits" with Mr. Malfoy last semester. He instinctively looked at Owen, only to find that Owen ignored him. He scratched his head and walked to the main entrance of the castle alone.

Mr. Malfoy was waiting for him, dressed in stern black robes and holding a snake-shaped cane. Dobby, the house elf wearing an old pillowcase, stood hunched beside him, timidly staring at the seams on the back of his master's robe, and looking at the approaching Harry with strange and expectant eyes.

The moment he saw Mr. Malfoy, Harry entered the state of acting and his expression became calm and unhurried. He was surprised that he could find this state so smoothly.

Mr. Malfoy looked at him with solemn and cautious eyes for a moment, then nodded slightly and said in a low tone: "I heard that you defeated the heir... Congratulations."

Harry smiled and nodded, and said in a tone that seemed to have deep meaning: "I have solved the diary. I wonder if you still need it, Mr. Malfoy?"

"No need." Mr. Malfoy's expression changed slightly, and he changed the subject first, "I came to you this time to deal with Dobby's problem."

Harry's heart skipped a beat and he was worried about Dobby's fate, but he casually glanced at the house elf next to him.

"A house elf who is not loyal enough must be dealt with according to the practice of the wizarding world." Mr. Malfoy gave Dobby a condescending look, and then looked at Harry with a gentle expression: "However, since you are doing it for Dobby, If you plead for mercy and he is more willing to go through fire and water for you, it’s not that you can’t give him a chance.”

"Dobby, from now on, Harry Potter is your master." He snapped at the house elf, "I hope you still know what loyalty is."

"Yes!" Dobby screamed.

"But..." Harry's eyes widened slightly in shock. He didn't expect that things would develop like this.

Before he could say no, Mr. Malfoy said bluntly: "Harry, Dobby is yours, you can do with him as you wish. I think you need a house elf to take care of your daily life, as well as my plan for this year." Apologize for the mistakes you made.”

He didn't need a disloyal house-elf, and had already preemptively cleared Dobby's mind of any memory that might reveal the secrets of the Malfoy family. Giving him to Harry Potter was Dobby's final value to the Malfoy family.

"But I still have to give you a piece of advice, he is not that trustworthy." Mr. Malfoy added diplomatically.

"This..." Harry instinctively wanted to refuse, but when he saw Dobby's big eyes full of sincerity and pleading, he could only bite the bullet and agreed. He knew that if he was unwilling to accept it, Dobby might die.

When Mr. Malfoy's back disappeared behind the door, Harry looked at Dobby standing next to him, and for a moment he didn't know what to do. Dobby's big bat-like ears swayed slightly, and his tennis ball-sized eyes were filled with excitement, admiration and anticipation.

"Uh, Dobby, I don't know... do you want to be free?" Harry asked tentatively. He remembered Owen and Draco saying that giving them a piece of clothing was the greatest punishment for a house elf.

"Oh, Harry Potter!" Dobby's bulging eyes widened, "Freedom! How wonderful! Dobby never dared to dream! Being able to follow Harry Potter and serve Harry Potter Service, this is already the greatest gift to Dobby!"

Harry noticed Dobby's desire for freedom. He touched his head and found that he was not wearing a hat, so he took off one of his shoes, pulled off a pair of socks and handed it to Dobby: "I think you have gained The right to be free, Dobby."

Dobby took the smelly sock in surprise, as if he was holding a priceless treasure. His glass-bead-like eyes were instantly filled with tears, and tears flowed down his ugly brown-red cheeks.

He suddenly let out a loud sob and said in a choked voice: "Harry Potter gave Dobby a sock. He gave Dobby freedom! The great and kind Harry Potter gave Dobby the freedom to choose. rights, but Dobby wants to serve Harry Potter for the rest of his life!"

"That's not necessary, Dobby. You can do what you want!" Harry said, bending down.

"What Dobby wants most is to serve Harry Potter!" the house elf said stubbornly.

"Then...Okay." Harry covered his forehead with a headache, and was extremely helpless by Dobby, "Then, I'll hire you. The monthly salary is..." He thought about himself in Gringotts assets, and thinking about what kind of treatment should be given.

"Oh my god, salary! Harry Potter gave Dobby his freedom! Dobby actually wants to take salary from him?" Dobby made a sharp and harsh voice in shock, raised his hands and knocked hard on his big head. Head, "Dobby can't believe there are such despicable and vicious elves in the world! Dobby should never become such a bad elf!"

"Stop it, that's enough! Dobby!" Seeing that Dobby was about to hit the wall in shame, Harry took back his words.

"Then, Dobby is waiting for Harry Potter's call at any time!" Dobby sniffled and put the smelly socks on his feet. "Please remember to call Dobby!"

He made another loud choking sound from his throat, and then disappeared with a "pop".

Harry returned to the Great Hall tiredly. Draco looked up at him curiously and asked, "What did my father say to you?"

"Nothing." Harry sighed, always feeling that Mr. Malfoy had brought him trouble.

After breakfast, the group walked along the green lawn to the lake. Halfway there, they met Hagrid, who was leading several live cattle towards the Forbidden Forest.

"Hey! I have to feed the Basilisk. That guy has a big appetite." Hagrid said, rubbing his messy hair.

"Hagrid, how do the schools plan to deal with the basilisk?" Owen asked curiously.

Hagrid bent down and lowered his voice to Owen and Harry: "We sent him back to the Chamber of Secrets. You know, that guy always wants to escape back to the Chamber of Secrets, and I can't keep an eye on him all the time. Those thrill-seeking ghosts are still looking for him everywhere... Dumbledore sealed the entrance to the bathroom on the second floor of the secret room, leaving only a feeding channel for me... Oh, don't even think about knowing where the entrance to the channel is. where!"

"Don't worry, I don't want to know either." Owen said with a smile.

In the afternoon, Owen came to Ravenclaw Tower alone, walked up the spiral escalator aimlessly, and found Ms. Gray at the top of the tower. Her translucent silver-white figure was almost invisible in the sunlight.

"Helena, do you like to bask in the sun?" Owen walked over with a smile and stood side by side with her.

"I'm looking at the scenery." Ms. Gray said calmly, her beautiful face melted into the light and she couldn't see clearly at all.

"I have something I need to return to you." Owen handed her the Ravenclaw diadem. After being burned by the fierce fire, this crown has completely lost its magic power and has no effect.

Lady Gray looked at the crown in his hand and fell into a daze.

"Voldemort found it and made it into a terrible dark magic item." Owen shook his head and said softly, "I had to destroy it. But I think it should be returned to its original owner."

"..." Ms. Gray was silent for a long time, and then said in an erratic voice: "Thank you."

Owen didn't speak, he just smiled and stepped onto the stone steps at the edge of the tower, looking down at the abyss beneath his feet. In this place where his soul was floating excitedly, he walked a few steps along the edge of the narrow stone steps with open arms. Suddenly he turned around and extended his right hand to the ghost lady, winking his left eye mischievously: "Then , beautiful lady, do you want a dance?”

"You'd better pray that you don't fall." Ms. Gray frowned slightly with concern and said in a cold voice.

"This is the third time you have rejected my invitation, Helena." Owen looked disappointed.

Ms. Gray turned her head and looked to the other side haughtily.

…

On the morning of the next day, the Hogwarts Express took the students away from Hogwarts and stopped at King's Cross Station.

Amidst the loud whistle, Owen said goodbye to his friends, carried the suitcase and came to his parents, with Melete and Nyx following him.

"Ha, I thought you would bring us some surprises this year." Mr. Shafik looked at him and patted him on the shoulder with a smile.

"Or scared." Mrs. Shafiq joked with a smile.

"Not this year." Owen smiled and shook his head, "We can consider it next year."

The family walked out of the station talking and laughing. (End of chapter)