HP Midnight Light

- 1976 July 7 - Blackfriars Bridge, London

A thin young man in a dark suit walked quickly across the bridge. He was carrying a bulging shoulder bag, and his pale sunken face showed typical British depression.

Like everyone else who works in the financial district, he is struggling to make ends meet. The depressed economy has brought not only inflation and unemployment growth, but also increasingly breathless pressure.Now—six o'clock in the afternoon—he finally had time to leave the office, but that didn't mean relaxation, because he had to finish dinner, go home to take a shower and change clothes, and then return to the company to continue working overtime meetings within an hour and a half.

The weight had reduced the youth's sharpness and vigilance: so he paid no particular attention to the girl sitting on the ground, dangling with her legs out over the railing; , a motorcycle sped by in front of him, almost splashing muddy water on his suit; similarly, when he shouted angrily at the back of the motorcyclist, he missed a slight "snap".

The youth will never know that he has had a chance brush with another world.

Hyacinth put her face on the cold railing and looked at the rushing Thames below her feet. It was getting late, and the nearby bars would be lively in a little later.London was not safe at night, but she didn't want to go back to the orphanage.Anyway, Mrs. Barmer just asked her to go to the library to confirm the list of the next batch of books that the orphanage needs to borrow. She could have reasoned that there was a traffic jam on the road or that there were too many people in the library and there was a queue.

There was restlessness on the bridge.Hyacinth turned her head away.A gang of punk youths jams a skinny young boy in a private school uniform.

"Hey, Benjamin, didn't your father send a driver to pick you up today?"

Britain in the 70s was struggling to recover, and the contradictory social environment bred anger and loss. The Muggle youths living at the bottom tried their best to vent their dissatisfaction with life.They do bad graffiti art on the walls, get drunk and swear at the bloodsuckers in the financial district, and try to bully these "weak" and "upper class" little princes.

"I remember yesterday was the day you received your pocket money?" The young people laughed and pushed and shoved the boy. They grabbed his schoolbag recklessly and began to rummage through it, putting their hands into his pockets.Tears soon filled the boy's eyes, but he let them have their way without saying a word. Obviously, this little boy had already been taught the power of this group of people, and in a sense no one in London could cure them. These idlers.Unfortunately……

"No." The bag searcher announced, he raised his leg and kicked the boy, "trash."

"Not a dime, this kid ate the banknotes for lunch." Another person said cursingly.

The boy took a step back, pursing his lips, and someone rudely shoved him back.

"Of course, if you don't have any money—" the boss in charge touched the boy's fair face with a wretched smile, "Other payment methods are also acceptable." The face is different for rich people, with thin skin and tender flesh.The rest of the youths laughed in agreement, the boy's face flushed, and he struggled to shake off their hands, but was easily subdued.

"Don't tell us you're not a chick anymore." The man who twisted him laughed loudly.

Another person exhaled a puff of smoke ring: "Stop messing around, idiot. These little boys don't look like they have tasted women before."

"Maybe I've tasted a man."

A burst of obscene laughter.

"If you behave well, then we can all be more comfortable." The boss picked up the boy and pressed him against the railing like an eagle catching a chick, and the other hand eagerly reached for his belt, "Let me have a good time, From now on, you can walk sideways on this street." He laughed profligately.

"You can still get it? The hot girls in the bar say you can't get hard until the three of them are on drugs together." Hyacinth stands up slowly, she throws her hair back , wandering across the road to the sidewalk on the other side, "I personally suggest that you need to go to the pharmacy to buy another medicine." She put her hands in the pockets of her waterproof jacket and stared straight at the boss.The youth hissed, and several threateningly snapped their knuckles.

"Oh—I know you." The boss looked at Hyacinth with a dangerous look, "You are quite famous, they say you go to this kind of place too," he pointed to the boy's uniform, "Your parents left you a lot of money, right?"

"I'm afraid it's a little more than you, after all, I haven't reached the point where I have to pay on credit for prostitution." Hyacinth had a pitiful look, "I didn't expect that you can't even afford credit now. , and children were bullied by the side of the road. Seriously, in my memory, this bridge has changed four bridge tyrants, and you are the worst one, so you should let him go as soon as possible. I can live better than you when I come here. "

The boss chuckled, narrowed his eyes, and twitched the corners of his mouth: "You are really eloquent, little girl, but your small mouth can be used for better purposes." He swept it from head to toe maliciously. Hyacinth, "Although you are not upright at all, it's okay to change your taste once in a while, anyway, it's almost the same when you turn off the lights." He waved his hand, "My group of brothers will take care of you comfortably, you can choose whatever you want. "

"I am a person who has high requirements on the quality of life, and I don't want to get sick." Hyacinth took out a few banknotes with a considerable denomination from her pocket and handed them over, "Can you let him go?"

"Yo, such a generous shot?" A person behind the boss snatched it up without thinking, and screamed strangely, "Do you want to keep me?"

"I don't keep blind people." Hyacinth glanced at him pityingly, "but this just proves that the colored pencils I bought are of very good quality."

Even if he couldn't understand the sarcasm in her words, the little gangster realized by touch that the money in his hand was not real at all.

"Damn it!" A few photos forged by Hyacinth were thrown into the sky lightly, and then fluttered down.

"Whoever wants it." The boss lost his patience completely. He took out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it. "I caught two in one night. It's worth the ticket." Pulling off his belt roughly, "I'll do this first."

At this time, a motorcycle playing rock music roared over arrogantly, and Hyacinth immediately raised her hand and pointed: "Didn't you just say that I can pick whatever I want? Can I pick this one?"

In the next second, the clinker stopped firmly between Hyacinth and the group of young people: "I said——are you all bored?" The motorcyclist took off his helmet and tossed his long black hair inadvertently. There was obvious arrogance in his demeanor.This immediately declared the difference between him and everyone else. Under Hyacinth's dumbfounded gaze, the motorcyclist turned around and said, "Hello, little girl."

"Sirius?" Hyacons exclaimed in surprise.

"That's right, it's me." Sirius looked at her with great interest, "What did you just say?"

Hyacinth's expression remained unchanged: "I said you are my big brother."

"Brother? It sounds okay." Sirius didn't care about this any more, he looked down at the frightened little boy, Sirius's expression naturally carried a distinctive nobleness, in short he saw It looked very coquettish, unruly, noble, and imposing, which seemed to calm down the group of young people in an instant, "Hurry up and go home, young man, don't wander around if you have nothing to do."

The little boy hesitated for less than a second, and ran away as fast as a nimble rabbit.

"Who are you?" The boss looked warily at the pattern on Sirius' T-shirt, as if wondering if this was a new gang emerging nearby.

"Predator." Hyacinth seemed confident again, "Have you heard of it?"

"Okay, don't cause trouble, come up." Sirius nodded to Hyacinth, then squinted at the boss, "I'm a friendly passer-by."

"Stop—" the boss shouted, and the young people surrounded him.Hyacinth hopped on the back of the motorcycle.

"Nice to meet you, but I never stand still." Sirius unceremoniously increased his horsepower and rushed, and the young man in the middle of the road jumped away in a hurry, "Goodbye!" Sirius said loudly, while waved.Hyacinth couldn't help laughing out loud.

None of them noticed a figure at the corner of the street.

"Why are you here?" When the motorcycle mingled with the traffic, Hyacinth straightened her wind-blown hair.

"Experience life." Sirius nimbly scurried around in the group of cars, obviously he has mastered Muggle transportation proficiently, "What do you think of my motorcycle?" He looked at the sea from the rearview mirror Ossings, "In my opinion, this has to be a trendy one."

"It's really good." Hyacinth knew that it was a new model, and occasionally fashionable young people would ride it by on the street.

"The only flaw is that the speed is too slow, but James said that he can help me modify it."

"Potter? He's in London too?"

"No, he was in his bedroom and at his desk, and fell into endless unrequited love for Evans." Sirius mocked unceremoniously, and then changed the subject, "You were very high-spirited just now."

Hyacinth looked away in embarrassment: "Are you really just passing by?"

"I was just going for a drive, and then I accidentally saw an acquaintance. I think it would be too unethical to stand by," Sirius said loudly, "Actually, it seems okay if I don't show up, you seem to have a million ways It can piss that guy off. But out of consideration for your safety, I think it is necessary to help." Hyacinth suddenly wondered if Sirius had heard something, and then he continued: "I thought you Quiet and shy."

"I usually behave differently in the Muggle world than I did in Hogwarts." Hyacinth felt more and more that Sirius had heard something she shouldn't have heard, so she added, "Actually, I'm a very reserved person." people."

"You shouldn't mess with that kind of person." Sirius pointed out the problem.

"But they're bullying other people."

Sirius looked back at her: "Are you really not a Gryffindor? It doesn't sound like a Slytherin said that."

"In that case, you should be a Slytherin." Hyacinth snorted, "The Sorting Hat's choice is always reasonable. By the way, where are you going?"

"Go to Diagon Alley, isn't your wand broken?" Sirius turned his head again, and Hyacinth shouted:

"Please pay attention to the road. The road conditions in London are complicated and accidents happen frequently."

"Please, can you have some confidence in me." Sirius turned his head for the third time, "Besides, you won't lose at all if you die with me."

Hyacinth had nothing to say.

Half an hour later, Hyacinth was sitting on the side of the road, and Sirius leaned on the motorcycle and looked at her: "I didn't drive fast, did I?" He asked with a guilty conscience.

"That's why I never play with broomsticks." Hyacinth weakly took out the newly bought wand and looked at it. Sure enough, a wizard still needs a wand to be at ease.

"I'm hungry," Sirius protested. "There are a lot of great restaurants in London, aren't there?"

"I haven't been there, I can't afford to go." Hyacinth said succinctly.

"You haven't even had fish and chips?"

Hyacinth raised her head in disbelief: "Have you ever eaten fish and chips?"

"Do you think it's possible for that kind of thing to appear on the dining table of Black's family?" Sirius looked at her with even more unbelievable eyes. "It would be even better if there were hamburgers. You know what a hamburger is, right?"

Hyacinth got up from the ground resignedly: "If you drive fast again, I will push you into the river."

However, when Hyacinth actually sat in a fast food restaurant and watched Sirius couldn't take his eyes off Muggle junk food, she deeply realized that being rich may not be a good thing.

"Have you heard of the recent cases in London?"

Sirius suddenly became serious. He temporarily put down the fish and chips, and looked at Hyacinth keenly: "You realize it too?"

"Obviously it was the Death Eaters who did it... But, I have Muggle friends, and it's a bad feeling. I mean, I don't want to put them in danger because of me," Hayes said. Ossings sighed, "Of course, you may not understand what I mean..."

"We feel that the Death Eaters are just killing Muggles randomly for fun." Sirius said, "But no one can predict what they will do next. They have already used the Cruciatus Curse for intelligence and blackmailed others with family members. I don't know if they will continue to use Muggles to threaten those mumps or half-blood wizards... But you don't have to worry about this, you are pure-blood after all."

Hyacinth shook her head: "But you also said that no one knows how crazy the Death Eaters will do." She originally wanted to tell Sirius what the three Slytherin girls did, but she Ended up changing my mind.

"No matter how crazy they are, we will find a way to control them. It's like the Slytherin group—" He stopped suddenly, and Hyacinth waved her hand:

"If you mean the group of people who are passing the forbidden book..."

"You should know that they are no longer satisfied with staying on the surface," Sirius whispered, and the noisy background of the fast food restaurant suddenly became the setting, "If you know what I mean, some of them have already started some... …a deeper level of activity.”

"If you mean secretly practicing black magic," Hyacinth moved uncomfortably, "then I'm afraid there have been such cases many years ago."

"It's not just about practicing black magic." Sirius coughed lightly, "You'll keep it a secret, right?" Hyacinth nodded, and he continued, "They want to set up a formal black magic group."

Hyacinth's eyes widened, and Sirius continued to pick up the fish and chips: "Maybe I shouldn't tell you this. You can ignore what I just said, but maybe one day, one of them will invite you to-" —”

"Cornelia."

"What?" Sirius stopped.Hyacins's few fights with Cornelia before it dawned on her were not without cause:

"She and I had quarreled a few times over Muggle issues, and of course we broke up...but she quickly came to me to reconcile." Hyacinth shook her head, and now everything said It made sense, Cornelia was just testing her attitude, so Cornelia must have been dissatisfied with her intentions.

"If you're talking about Cornelia Rosier, then you'd better be careful. I don't discriminate, but her father was one of the first Death Eaters to follow the Dark Lord," Sirius told her , "You must also know that there are not a few people in Slytherin who have been exposed to black magic, but sometimes, these things have the characteristics of 'family tradition'."

"The time we met in the library," Hyacinth said suddenly, "I was actually looking for a forbidden book for Regulus."

Sirius looked at him indifferently: "I know. Dear Regulus has always been my mother's good baby, and he will be infected with the dark magic under their influence—and Bellatrix, I'm not surprised by that at all."

Hyacinth hesitated for a moment: "Later, Lucius and...Signus also provided him with..."

"They all do this, using one to influence the other, intimidating and luring, and acting both soft and hard." Sirius shrugged, "Regulus is no longer my brother, I may not have told you, I ran away from home .”

"I know." Hyacinth pulled out the small bottle that Margaret gave her, "Margaret came to see me a few days ago, and she asked me to give this to you if I have a chance."

Sirius took the bottle of Felix Felicia and looked at the golden liquid in it: "Actually, I'm sorry for Margaret, I hope she won't suffer any harm."

"She looked happy."

"But you also know that Snape doesn't like her at all, right?" Sirius reminded sharply, "You see, in the four-cornered relationship between Margaret, Snape, Lily and James, there is always someone to be hurt Hurt."

"I thought you'd be firmly behind James."

"Of course I hope that James can get his wish. But everyone can see that Lily doesn't like him very much. Although the friendship between Lily and Snape has come to an end, it doesn't mean that James will win in the end." Sirius Analyzing objectively, "Snape will definitely not talk to Margaret when he is in resentment, but it will be difficult to say after a long time."

"I really don't understand why James and Margaret can pester Lily and Snape so persistently, no, Margaret seems to have almost given up—"

"Yes, you could see it the last time you went to rescue the soldiers," Sirius said. "People will always do a lot of illogical things when they are in love."

"You know a lot." Hyacinth looked at him with her chin lifted, and Sirius patted the crumbs on her hand:

"Oh, Miao Zan, Miao Zan. You also looked very knowledgeable when you were arguing with those punks."

Hyacinth immediately became vigilant: "What?"

"Isn't it?" Sirius looked at her even more surprised, "I just guessed from their annoyed expressions that you said something that they couldn't refute. Don't look at me like that, it's getting late, let's go. "

There were very few vehicles on the road leading to the orphanage at night, but Sirius was driving at an unfathomably slow speed.

"What's wrong with you?" Hyacinth yawned a little, "I'm about to fall asleep."

"You can sleep comfortably, and you can sleep on my shoulder," Sirius replied softly, but the next sentence turned around, "Then I will throw you in a deserted park."

Hyacinth came to her senses immediately: "I thought you were a kind person."

The journey back took twice as long as normal.When they arrived at the orphanage, Hyacins was horrified to find that the lights were out.But Sirius stopped her and said very seriously:

"Listen, Hyacinth, no matter what the Death Eaters do in the Muggle world, they have no reason to target an orphanage, and whatever the future holds, your Muggle friends are safe right now. Leitlin, you just have to be careful not to arouse suspicion from Rozier or anyone else. Whether you agree with what they say, at least for a while, you can't refute it publicly. Otherwise they can easily make your campus life go Very painful - even to your Muggle friends."

"You mean, as long as I'm in Slytherin and they don't find out that I think differently?"

"This cannot completely guarantee that everything will be safe, but at least it will make the situation much better." Sirius comforted, "Good night, Hyacinth."

"Thank you for taking me back, good night." Hyacinth emphasized, "Stop speeding!"

Sirius smiled, and the next second, the sound of the engine boomed, and he disappeared into the night almost in the blink of an eye.

Hyacinth shook her head helplessly and walked up the stairs, but when she opened the door, she saw Mrs. Barmer's angry face: "I'm almost going to call the police, Miss White!"

"Mrs. Balmer!" Hyacinth was taken aback, and instinctively wanted to explain, "I—"

"You don't go out for the next month, Miss White," pronounced Mrs. Barmer. "There is no excuse!"

The author has something to say:

Note:

Regarding the British economy: In the 20s, the British economy was struggling for recovery, but it still couldn't stand the rise of inflation and unemployment, so the Muggle world was also panicked during that time.

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