[HP] Similar but different

Whether Sirius and Lupine knew the answer or not, they had clearly not told Harry of their intentions.Harry could only let it go for the time being, and turn his mind back to the question of the soul.For the next two days, he still ran to the library every day.

Ron was surprised when he found out. "Did you finish all your homework??!?" His emotion was so strong that it could almost be seen from the parchment, "But I haven't moved a single word!!!"

Harry was too ashamed to reply.What he did had nothing to do with his homework, and he completely forgot Chengshan's homework.In order to prevent Hermione from asking him what he did during the holidays after school started, he planned to start solving them the next day.

As if Merlin was blessing him, the locket remained silent throughout Friday.

... Did Voldemort mean to start after class?thought Harry suspiciously.Is it preparing for the recovery of the soul, or something else?

Of course, Voldemort had a bunch of things to do.While he genuinely cared more about his unresolved issues, he had no intention of giving up on his duties as the Dark Lord.As Crouch Jr. mentioned, showing up in person is essential.

Lucius Malfoy had no problem with the Dark Lord having a meeting at his estate.In fact, when Voldemort unexpectedly showed up in the Malfoys' living room with the request, he was so flattered that he was almost speechless. "Of course, master, of course...it is my honor to serve you..."

Voldemort had expected this. "Before that, the Dark Lord has time to listen to what you want to report." He sat down on the most luxurious chair, raised his eyes, and seemed to notice that there were other people present.

"I've been ready, master." Malfoy replied respectfully.He followed the Dark Lord's gaze, and hurriedly said, "Draco, you can go."

Draco Malfoy's already pale complexion seemed a little paler.Not daring to look directly at Voldemort at all, he bowed slightly trembling, and walked away quickly.

Voldemort cast a casual glance at the figure's back. "I heard Batty say that you have finally done what I asked you to do, Lucius?"

Hearing that name, Malfoy's face contorted slightly, but he immediately covered it up. "Yes, my lord. In fact, Sissy contacted the house-elf not long after you left. You were very accurate in judging Sirius Black; he was not careful enough, and we summoned Kreacher several times , he found nothing..."

"Okay, let's get to the point." Voldemort interrupted impatiently, "What does that house-elf know?"

Malfoy carefully watched the face of the black-robed wizard. "Although there is a Fidelity Charm in that place, we still have some information..." He began to recount the facts leaked by Kreacher in detail, mixed with the part that secretly pushed the Ministry of Magic to implement the decree.

After a moment.

"It is conceivable," Voldemort propped one hand on the table, and held his chin with two long fingers, "Since we have not moved, the Order of the Phoenix will not be able to respond effectively. Not to mention, there is the Ministry of Magic holding them back." . . . " He let out a sneer, "Cornel Fudge is a fool indeed, but it's useful to be stupid."

"The Minister almost obeys me." Malfoy said immediately, "He doesn't trust Dumbledore at all, not even a penny."

In Malfoy's expectation, this should have been praised by Voldemort; but the Dark Lord was still thinking, not even looking at him.

The blond man hesitated to speak several times, but finally couldn't hold back. "...can you... be generous enough to tell me, is this true?" he asked, almost eagerly, "we really haven't done anything for the past six months?"

Voldemort gave him a sharp look - and the blond immediately dropped his head. "You want to find out why Voldemort left, don't you?"

"No matter what you did, you must have succeeded." Malfoy didn't dare to breathe, and pulled up the sleeve of his left arm suddenly, until the crimson pattern of the snake spitting out of the skull was exposed. "It usually only gets darker when you summon it; but about a week ago, it changed from bright red to what it is now..."

This response, I have to say, is quite clever.Voldemort's face softened a little. "Lucius," he said softly, "Voldemort would much rather have you use this subtly flattering wit on Voldemort's behalf."

Malfoy was startled and immediately knelt down. "Master, I have deeply realized my mistake, and I am working hard to make up for it. In fact, earlier today, I just got a piece of news - I thought you might be interested to know about Harry Potter..."

"Huh?" Voldemort was indeed intrigued.But I haven't seen you for a few days, what did the boy do again?

"Kreacher said Harry Potter was in touch with Sirius Black by the fire the night before," Malfoy said quickly—he could see he was doing the right thing, "they talked about some Order business— —You know, master, that house-elves are forbidden to tell the secrets of the Order of the Phoenix—and then about Occlumency."

Voldemort was not at all surprised.Dumbledore pressed the truth that Harry was his Horcrux, but that didn't stop Dumbledore from telling the Order of the Phoenix that the connection was harmful.But, the fire... the Savior is quite able to take advantage of the loopholes. "continue."

"The werewolf asked Potter if he had been dreaming lately, and Potter denied it—he said you never forgot Occlumency," Malfoy continued, paying careful attention to Voldemort's expression, "and then Potter had to admit, Occlumency is hard to learn. Lupine told him that Snape was a great master of Occlumency and told him to work hard...Sounds like both Black and Lupine care about that."

"Potter was right," Voldemort pointed out sharply. "The boy is not at all good at hiding himself—in fact, he has no talent at it." It was too easy to see through that straightforward brain, There was no sense of victory for him at all. "anything else?"

Malfoy shook his head hard. "No more."

But to Malfoy's surprise, Voldemort didn't press on.He turned the armchair so that he faced the roaring fire in the fireplace.It is very normal for Harry to inquire about the affairs of the Order of the Phoenix, and the only thing that can make the boy curious recently is the Department of Mysteries; however, the prophecy is also one of the many truths suppressed by Dumbledore. learned from the population.

Anyway, without mentioning the interruption of the Occlumency class, Harry must have considered the consequences... more or less, finally...then he could probably start too...

Seeing Voldemort lost in thought, Malfoy stood up quietly.To be honest, he was terribly puzzled as to why Voldemort and Harry were using Occlumency on each other.Sounds like, if not, the Saviors would dream about the Dark Lord?He shivered involuntarily, thinking that it would be best not to ask too deeply about it.

A while passed. "Who else knows about this?" Voldemort asked suddenly.

"No one," Malfoy snapped back to his senses, and immediately assured, "Even Sissy doesn't know."

"Then don't tell anyone." Voldemort was satisfied. "Now, prepare the place."

"Yes." Malfoy backed out.When he came back again, he had already rolled up his left sleeve, and consciously stretched his arm out within reach of his master——

Voldemort nodded at this understanding.He stretched out his hand and pressed it on the hideous and terrifying sign, and the scar instantly turned black thicker than ink.

When the two entered the living room temporarily converted into a meeting room one after the other, others were already waiting inside.Seeing the Dark Lord who hadn't shown up for a long time, they all backed away from each other, lowered their brows pleasingly, and said something like "Master, it's an honor to receive your call".

Voldemort didn't care, and strode to the side of the main seat. "Barty," he was the first to name, "you sit on my right."

That position seemed to be equivalent to the second in command of the Death Eaters, and Barty Crouch Jr. immediately became the focus of attention of all Death Eaters.The pale man with straw-colored hair came out quickly, and did as he was told, with no particular emotion on his face.

Voldemort was satisfied.His eyes circled the others, and finally landed on a man whose face was framed by a curtain of long, greasy hair. "Severus?" He whispered, "I read that right, you're here today?"

All eyes turned to Snape again.Snape was not there when the Dark Lord summoned the Death Eaters for the first time since his return.Although he later claimed that he was working as a double agent for Voldemort in the Order of the Phoenix and that leaving without permission would reveal his identity, it was still a big point of attack.

The man named was not in a hurry: "Master, Dumbledore is not at school. I thought I would leave without being noticed, so I came here."

Voldemort narrowed his eyes slightly.

He already knew that Dumbledore wasn't at school - to be honest, Dumbledore was too conspicuous to need special attention, because no one would ignore it, including the Ministry of Magic.He also thought Snape's reasoning was plausible, after all he had never seen Snape lying... No one could lie to the Dark Lord without being caught, he had that confidence, even if that empty look looked like Using Occlumency...

Voldemort's mouth tightened imperceptibly.When he asked Malfoy not to mention it to others, he had already recalled the speculation that he had snuffed out when he first appeared-the reason why Dumbledore chose Snape to teach Harry Occlumency may be because Dumbledore Think that Snape's Occlumency is particularly good, good enough to offset the disadvantages brought by those festivals, and even good enough to resist his Legilimency...

Is this really possible?

Voldemort thought about it, and looked at little Crouch again.The loyal Death Eater was watching him, his pale eyes as unguarded as ever - in fact, he could sense that, unlike most, Crouch Jr. almost welcomed his Legilimency. "You sit next to Barty, Severus." He said softly, his expression and tone didn't change, but he had already labeled Snape as "suspicious to check".

Soon, everyone took their places.Not all places were occupied, and Voldemort deliberately made some empty, including the three closest to his left. "That's for the Lestranges," he declared bluntly. "They are loyal, and Voldemort will never treat a loyal man badly."

There was a slight commotion at the long table. "...but they're still in Azkaban?" Yaxley, who was opposite Malfoy, asked hesitantly.

Voldemort waved his hand indifferently. "Azkaban is in our pocket, and I hereby assure you in the name of the Dark Lord."

There was another rustle, mixed with echoes of "of course" and "yes".Even so, they found that only little Crouch didn't react with any surprise, and they couldn't help casting jealous eyes.

Malfoy sat on the chair two seats away from Snape, almost unbearably anxious. "Master, we know that you have become stronger," he said, leaning forward slightly, happy to hear a murmur of approval, "Do we...have the honor to hear?"

Voldemort glanced over, the half-smile in his eyes made Malfoy shrink his neck subconsciously. "Of course there are indestructible reasons for me to leave," he said softly, "I got Slytherin's own wand." As he said that, he raised his hand, and the snake wand appeared in his palm.

Everyone on the long table gasped, their eyes widened, including Snape.Slytherin's wand?

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