[HP] Similar but different

Regardless of Voldemort's plans, Harry was indeed pissed off.He managed to find a clue, but after only one night, the Dark Lord personally covered his head and face with cold water.

So I did find the right direction, right?

Harry tried to reassure himself that he didn't believe that Voldemort had been lurking in the crowd on purpose just to taunt him.If he made a mistake, the Dark Lord would probably be more than happy to see it happen.

Well, Hermione's guess about Dumbledore's behavior is probably also correct, since Voldemort apparently did know what he was doing.Harry thought again, sullenly.He dreaded that connection, yet cherished it; he wanted so badly to know what Voldemort was thinking and feeling, but if Voldemort had completely manipulated the link to the point where he was being used, then maybe he should really learn Occlumency... …

Stuck in anger and unhappiness, Harry didn't want to talk to anyone.There were a lot of students who believed what the Daily Prophet said, walking around him and whispering behind his back made him even more irritable.Qiu Zhang came to look for him in the carriage, but was also choked back by his obviously impatient attitude.

Later, Ron and Hermione came back from the prefects' carriage, but Harry looked out the window, not wanting to tell them about the fake locket.Hermione, of course, was one reason, and she would insist that Harry tell Dumbledore this time; another reason was that the news of the Dark Lord's presence at King's Cross Station was enough to scare anyone.

Whether it was sarcasm or something, since Voldemort was clearly targeting only him, he should be the one to do it, Harry thought stubbornly.

As usual, it was dinnertime when the children arrived at Hogwarts.Harry had been thinking about the diary and the locket until Ron bumped him on the shoulder: "…huh? What's up?"

Ron winked hard at Harry, and Harry looked in that direction.They had just sat down at the long Gryffindor table, across from Ravenclaw, the Slytherin table.Draco Malfoy was sitting there alone, with his head half down, pale... wait, alone?

Harry reacted quickly.He looked around and found that Crabbe and Goyle, who had always followed Malfoy, were sitting at the end of the table, far away. "What's going on?" he asked in a low voice.

Ron was glad Harry didn't look so angry now. "I don't know," he said, rather gloatingly. "I found out as soon as I got out of the carriage. Didn't you notice? He didn't bother us on the train."

Harry thought hard and realized that this was true.Draco Malfoy never gave up any chance to provoke him, especially after he had just become a Slytherin prefect, it was simply too abnormal not to show his might.

"The diary," Hermione reminded them in a low voice, her lips barely moving, "do you think anyone would be safe from that kind of anger?"

The reference was vague, but it dawned on Harry and Ron together.The destruction of the diary can basically be regarded as a bad custody of Lucius Malfoy; if Voldemort didn't teach Malfoy a vicious lesson, he wouldn't be the Dark Lord.

"Right," Harry agreed.Malfoy's status with the Dark Lord has declined, and grassroots such as Crabbe and Goyle have fallen.

Hermione clearly cared more about other things than Malfoy. "Look at the teacher's seat...beside the principal." Her voice was still very low.

Harry looked over as he said.His first reaction was where did Hagrid go, and his second reaction was: "...Why is she here?"

"'Why is she here'?" Ron repeated, eyes fixed on the fat woman in the long robes and a pink cardigan, bewildered. "Have you seen her, Harry?"

"At the trial," said Harry dryly, "she was right behind Fudge, from the Ministry of Magic."

Hermione's original frown deepened. "From the Ministry of Magic?"

Ron frowned too. "What's the Ministry of Magic doing at school?" he asked. "And where's Hagrid? Ah...the woman named Graplan is in his seat."

Hermione didn't have time to point out his address right now. "Professor Graplan is likely to take over Hagrid's position," she guessed. "There is only one vacancy left, and there are no other new faces..."

The three looked at each other.Could it be that the toad-like woman with the bulging eyes was their Defense Against the Dark Arts professor this year?

Dolores Jane Umbridge is a senior official of the Ministry of Magic, and indeed Harry's new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.At this time, she was talking to Dumbledore, with a warm and hypocritical smirk on her slack fat face, and her eyes blinked exaggeratedly a few times. "...don't deal with dementors? I don't understand you, Professor Dumbledore."

Dumbledore's expression was calm, but his eyes behind the half-moon glasses were sharp. "I heard there was a riot in Azkaban last night."

"Allow me to correct you, there was no commotion, Professor." The smirk on Umbridge's face widened.

Dumbledore obviously didn't believe it at all. "No riot?" he asked softly.

"The dementors are the guards of the wizard's prison, and they are completely under the control of the Ministry of Magic." Umbridge emphasized, the smirk on his face seemed to freeze, "Last night, Azkaban just played a game. Heavy rain—and a tornado at most. The Ministry has sent someone to check, and the prison is undamaged, and the prisoners are all right where they should be. I don't know what you're still insisting on, Professor Dumbledore."

Dumbledore was silent for a while, and then spoke again: "I still have the same suggestion-the Ministry of Magic is best to keep a distance from dark creatures like dementors."

Umbridge's smirk faltered, and she began to lose control of her anger. "Are you questioning the Ministry of Magic or the Minister when you say that, Professor?"

"I never meant that." Dumbledore replied calmly.He saw that he could not persuade Umbridge, and decided to preside over the opening ceremony.

Despite some resentment towards the Headmaster, Harry was happy to see Dumbledore in front of everyone.After the Sorting Ceremony, everyone had a hearty meal, and then Dumbledore picked up the conversation, until Umbridge interrupted him with a fake cough.

Harry didn't catch a word of the long, smelly speech that followed.Only Hermione listened carefully, and then told him and Ron to conclude that the Ministry of Magic was interfering in Hogwarts.

From Sirius, Harry already knew that the Minister of Magic had been working on discrediting Dumbledore all summer.Now that the Ministry of Magic is interfering in school affairs, it is in line with Fudge's attitude.Hermione obviously had a lot to say about this, but as a prefect, she had to guide the first year to the tower with Ron, so she had to give up temporarily.

Harry was alone, and he didn't want to go with a group of people pointing at him, so he took a shortcut.When he turned a corner in the corridor on the third floor, a greasy tune suddenly sounded: "Come with me to the office, Potter."

Harry turned his head sharply, only to find that the Potions Professor had come behind him at some point. "What's the matter?" He saw a malicious gleam in Snape's dark eyes - which he did every time the other party tried to deduct points from him - and added hastily, "Professor?"

"Given your miserable performance in my class," said Snape, his thin lips twisting, "I think you'll need a make-up lesson." He paused, satisfied to see the horror on Harry's face. "Or would you rather say this where someone might pass by at any moment?"

"No," Harry denied quickly, feeling his guts melt.He staggered a little to follow the billowing black robe of the Potions professor, with only one thought on his mind - Snape to make up for him?What did he do wrong to be punished like this when he just started school?

Turns out, it wasn't Potions remedial, but it was probably worse than Potions remedial.

"...Professor Dumbledore asked me to learn Occlumency with you?" Harry repeated incredulously.Leaving aside the need for Occlumency, why did Snape teach him?

"What, you don't believe it?" Snape raised an eyebrow dangerously.

Harry shook his head quickly.He couldn't rush to provoke Snape, it wouldn't do him any good. "But..." He tried hard to find words that were not so targeted, "Is there no other candidate in the Order of the Phoenix?"

"Don't mention this anywhere else, Potter!" snapped Snape. "Is your brain as stupid as a troll?"

Harry snapped his mouth shut immediately, but glared at Snape.

Snape glared at him too.After a while, he suddenly sneered. "Everyone else has their own work to do," he said contemptuously. "Do you think I'd ask for such an errand?"

No way, neither of them wanted to look at each other more than once... Harry knew that, but he didn't want to throw in the towel in front of Snape.

"You can ask Dumbledore." Snape seemed to see what he was thinking, and said tactfully, without losing his insidiousness, "but I think the headmaster has the right to delegate unpleasant matters."

It hit a thorn in Harry's heart.Ask Dumbledore?If Dumbledore was willing to see him, I'm afraid Dumbledore would teach him now. "I see," he said dryly, his voice tense. "When does it start?" He saw Snape start to stare at him again, and added reluctantly, "Sir?"

Snape stared at him. "Tomorrow at six o'clock, it's still here. If anyone asks, they say it's a potions lesson. Don't talk about it, especially in front of Umbridge."

Harry didn't want to listen anymore, nodded curtly, and left.

Nothing good had happened since morning, and Harry couldn't have been in a worse mood.When he got back to the dormitory, he found Seamus and Dean discussing him--specifically, the Daily Prophet's dirty story about him making up facts and grandstanding--and broke out.

For a moment, Harry felt like throwing the locket in Seamus' face and telling him loudly that it was just given to him by Voldemort today, and that everyone on the train and platform might have gotten away with it; but at the same time , He also clearly realized that he could not tell anyone about this.

In the end, Ron's arrival saved the tense situation.He took on the role of Prefect, and Neville made a firm statement of his support for Harry.Dean, who was born in a Muggle family, didn't care much about rumors. Seamus could only forcefully put down the bed curtain and express his attitude with the insulating curtain.

The storm had barely subsided, and Harry lay down on his bed too, staring up at the velvet ceiling.He was very grateful to Ron and Neville on his side, but Seamus was far from alone in believing the Daily Prophet.How long will this doubtful day last...

He turned over irritably, but something hard stuck in his thigh made him very uncomfortable.He suddenly remembered that the locket was still in his pocket, and hurriedly got under the covers and took it out.

Using the light of his wand, Harry looked at it carefully again.The previous handwriting has long since disappeared, and the locket looks ordinary.But when he tried to break it open, it didn't budge.

Kreacher didn't say that Regulus' locket couldn't be opened!Harry squinted thoughtfully.What was Voldemort playing with him?

The author has something to say:

The agreed date is the next day~

Wish everyone an early New Year, because it is said that only weasels give New Year greetings to chickens→_→