Harry Potter and the Fatal Powers buy. JK Rowling "Harry Potter and the Fatal Powers"

« Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows"(English) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows listen)) is the seventh book in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series of novels.

Release of the novel

On the day of the start of sales in the US, 8.3 million copies were sold (more than 96 per second), in the UK - a record 2.65 million. The novel was ranked number one on the 2007 Publishers Weekly bestseller list.

The first is everywhere available version books in Russian appeared on the Internet on the website of a group of amateur translators calling themselves Potter’s Army. The translation was completed on July 25, 2007 at about 23:00 Moscow time. Even in the original version, the book was translated in detail, in compliance with the author’s literary style, but with significant shortcomings (for example, it was missing a piece of the thirty-third chapter, also in translation a large number of spelling and grammatical errors). In parallel, several other groups of translators were working on translating the book.

The Russian printed version of the novel went on sale on October 13, 2007 with a circulation of 1,800,000 copies. On August 16, the book arrived at 3 printing houses in the Central Federal District. It took about a month to print [ ]

Book title

The author announced the title of the book on December 21, 2006 on her official website, but in order to find out it, she had to complete a mini-quest. On the same day, the title was published on the website of the publishing house Bloomsbury.

Since the word "hallows" in English language has several meanings, controversy arose among Russian-speaking fans of Rowling over how to correctly translate the title of the novel. There were three main versions: Harry Potter and the Dooms (that's almost literal translation, although it is not entirely clear what the author had in mind in this case), “Harry Potter and the Relics of Death” (it was believed that “relics” meant horcruxes, but with the appearance of the first spoilers it became clear that this was not a fact), “Harry Potter and the Deadly Tombs." Rowling herself refused to give any comments about the title of the book before its appearance. It was also of interest that a few days before the book was released in English, Rowling published an alternative title for the book for translators - “Harry Potter and the Relics of Death.” This title is intended for correct translation into those languages ​​that cannot convey the meaning of the phrase “Deathly Hallows” equivalent to English.

The idea for the name “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” came to the mind of Potter’s Army translation coordinator TeeN’e on Saturday, July 21 - the day official release The book is in English and was presented on the internal website of the team of translators. With the spread of the translation network from Potter's Army, this name became widespread because it most accurately reflects the essence and role of the Gifts in the book.

Screen adaptation

Plot of the book

Announced details

Start of action

Harry meets the author of Dumbledore's obituary and Ron's aunt, Muriel, a fan of Rita Skeeter. The Aunt reveals further details from Skeeter's book, including claiming that Ariana Dumbledore never attended Hogwarts. The Dumbledores declared her ill, but Muriel's cousin, who worked at St. Mungo's, told her that Ariana had never been treated at the clinic, so she was apparently hidden from outsiders. At Ariana's funeral, Aberforth blamed Albus for her death and broke his nose. Muriel explains it this way: Ariana was a squib. Instead of helping her settle into Muggle society, as is customary, she was hidden and kept locked up. Harry Potter doesn't know what to believe. In addition, it turns out that the Dumbledores lived in Godric's Hollow, in the same place as the Potters and Bathilda Bagshot, who served as a source of information for Rita Skeeter. This news further strengthens Harry's belief that Dumbledore was hiding too much from him.

At the end of the wedding, a message arrives: Scrimgeour has been killed, Voldemort has gained control of the ministry. The Death Eaters appear. Hermione grabs Harry and Ron and transports them to Tottenham Court Road, but they also encounter Death Eaters there. As a result, Harry, Ron and Hermione go to Sirius's house, which is now the safest place for them.

Harry explores the house. In Sirius's room, he finds Lily's letter to Sirius. In it, he learns that his mother learned something from Bathilda Bagshod about Dumbledore's past. But Harry doesn't find the end of the letter. He also finds a piece of a photograph.

After exploring the house, they realize that R.A.B. is Regulus Arcturus Black, Sirius' brother and former Death Eater. They manage to get Kreacher from the house elf detailed story about the fate of the stolen Horcrux.

It turned out that Kreacher was helping Voldemort check the protection of the medallion. Voldemort ordered Kreacher to drink the potion from the cup and left him to die. But Kreacher transgressed to the owner (elves can transgress even when people cannot). When Regulus decided to destroy the horcrux, he went with Kreacher to the cave, drank the potion from the chalice and died, but before that he replaced the medallion and ordered Kreacher to destroy the real one. Kreacher was never able to destroy it, and the medallion was eventually taken by Mundungus Fletcher. Harry gives the fake medallion to Kreacher, for which he recognizes Potter as the real owner.

On Harry's orders, Kreacher finds Fletcher and takes him to Sirius's house. Mundungus reveals that he gave the medallion as a bribe to Ministry employee Dolores Umbridge.

Harry, Ron and Hermione continue to live in Sirius's house. Death Eaters cannot enter it, but stand guard at the entrance. It's September 1st. Things are bad at Hogwarts: Severus Snape is appointed director, Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher (which has actually turned into the study of the dark arts themselves) is Death Eater Amycus Carrow, and his sister, Alecto, is appointed teacher of Muggle studies. Muggle-borns are expelled from school and their wands are taken away. Harry, Ron and Hermione decide to infiltrate the Ministry of Magic to take possession of the Horcrux. After preparation, they take polyjuice potion and under view of three Ministry employees get inside. They take the medallion and rescue the Muggleborns who were in the Ministry of Magic, but accidentally reveal the location of Sirius's house to the Death Eaters. Now they are forced to hide, live in a tent, transgressing to a new place every day and relying on protective spells. At the same time, having transgressed from Sirius's house, Ron is seriously injured.

After a few months of living this way, Ron, influenced by the Horcrux, becomes moody and irritable. Harry, Ron and Hermione overhear a conversation between goblins and people hiding from Voldemort in the same forest. Among these people is Harry, Ron and Hermione's classmate Dean Thomas. The friends learn that Godric Gryffindor's sword, kept in the Gringotts bank, is a fake. In addition, they find a way to communicate with the portrait of Phineas Black at Hogwarts, learning from him some news about the life of the school, in particular that Ginny, Neville and Luna tried to steal a fake sword from Snape's office, but were caught, and also that the real With the sword of Gryffindor, Dumbledore destroyed the ring of Marvolo Gloom. Harry and Hermione rejoice: now they know how to destroy Horcruxes. Ron makes a scandal, declares that their wanderings are practically fruitless, and Harry led his friends along without having any plan of action. They argue and Ron leaves.

Harry and Hermione decide to visit Godric's Hollow, hoping to find the sword or information about the Horcruxes. They go to the cemetery where Harry's parents and Dumbledore's relatives are buried. In the cemetery, at the grave of a certain Ignotus Peverell, they meet the already familiar mark of Grindelwald. Then they meet Bathilda Bagshot, follow her, but fall into a trap: Bagshot’s body turns out to be just a shell left over from the deceased Bathilda and now only serving as a container for Voldemort’s snake. The snake tries to forcefully detain Harry until Voldemort arrives, but Harry and Hermione manage to escape, and in the fight with the snake, Harry's wand breaks.

One night, while guarding the tent, Harry sees a patronus in the shape of a doe. The patronus leads Harry to a frozen lake, at the bottom of which lies the sword of Gryffindor. Harry dives after him, but the Horcrux medallion begins to choke him. Suddenly Ron appears, saves Harry and pulls the sword out of the pond. Ron breaks the Horcrux with a sword, and the Horcrux's magic tries to prevent this by suppressing Ron's will with illusions. After this, Ron reveals that he went to Bill and Fleur's house, but then felt remorse for leaving and soon after discovered that the deluminator was able to show him the location of Harry and Hermione.

Hermione notices the mark of Grindelwald in the book of fairy tales left by Dumbledore. She decides to talk to Xenophilius Lovegood about the mark.

Parallel to their journey, Voldemort is looking for the Elder Wand. For this purpose, he visits the house of Gregorovich, the master of magic wands, and also comes to Nurmengard to see Grindelwald, after which he realizes that Dumbledore owned the wand.

Deathly Hallows

At the Lovegood house, Xenophilius gives information to Harry, Ron and Hermione about the Deathly Hallows, the symbol of which is displayed on his pendant. After this, Hermione tells a story about three brothers, who met with Death and received three powerful objects as a gift - an invincible magic wand (Elder Wand), a stone that resurrects the dead, and an ideal invisibility cloak. The description of the Invisibility Cloak matches Harry's cloak. The sign from the book symbolizes the Deathly Hallows: the triangle is the mantle, the circle inscribed in it is the stone, and the vertical line is the Elder Wand. Most magicians do not believe in the tale of the three brothers. After the story, Harry realized that Luna had not been home for a long time. Xenophilius admits that Luna was arrested for his statements in support of Harry Potter. Xenophilius decided that if he handed Harry over, his daughter would be released. But the friends managed to escape before the Death Eaters arrived.

Ron talks about a special radio station, the only one that tells the truth about what is happening. He manages to tune in to her, and he, along with Harry and Hermione, receive news about their former acquaintances. After which the friends are captured by the Death Eaters: as it turns out, the name Voldemort, accidentally uttered by Harry, is cursed, allowing anyone who pronounces it to be detected. They are brought to the Malfoy mansion, where Draco is asked to identify the prisoners. Upon learning of the Gryffindor sword, Bellatrix Lestrange is horrified and brutally tortures Hermione with the Cruciatus Curse to find out where they got the sword from - in her opinion, allegedly stolen from her safe at Gringotts Bank. Harry and Ron are in the basement with Dean Thomas, the goblin Griphook, Ollivander and Luna Lovegood. Harry hears Bellatrix asking Hermione what they took from her safe - but Hermione, even under torture, manages to lie to Bellatrix that the sword is a fake. Bellatrix orders Draco to bring Griphook from the basement to confirm Hermione's words, and she tortures the girl into unconsciousness. Dobby suddenly appears and transgresses, along with Dean, Luna and Ollivander, into Bill and Fleur's house. Peter Pettigrew enters the basement in response to the noise. Harry reminds Pettigrew of his duty to save his life, and Pettigrew's silver hand begins to strangle him (for showing weakness). Pettigrew dies. Harry, Ron and Dobby save Hermione, Bellatrix manages to mortally wound Dobby with a dagger. Harry snatches Draco's wand.

At Bill and Fleur's, Harry asks Ollivander about the Elder Wand. It turns out that Grindelwald stole it from Gregorovich, and Dumbledore defeated Grindelwald, that is, the Elder Wand is Dumbledore's wand, and he is buried with it. Harry enters Voldemort's mind and sees him take the wand from Dumbledore's tomb. Harry decides not to try to collect the Deathly Hallows, but to focus on the Horcruxes, as Dumbledore told him.

Based on Bellatrix's behavior during Hermione's torture, Harry understands that Bellatrix's safe may contain a Horcrux. Together with the goblin Griphook, they plan to rob a bank. The goblin demands the sword of Gryffindor for this. With the help of a polyjuice potion, an invisibility cloak and the Imperius spell, they penetrate Bellatrix's safe and steal Penelope Hufflepuff's cup, Griphook escapes with the sword, and Harry, Ron and Hermione escape from the guards by flying away on the dragon that was guarding the bank treasures. Voldemort realizes that his Horcruxes are in danger and immediately goes to check if the others are intact. From his consciousness, Harry learns that one of the Horcruxes is in Hogwarts.

Battle of Hogwarts

Friends get to Hogwarts with the help of Aberforth Dumbledore, who was the owner of the Boar's Head bar in Hogsmeade. It turns out that a passage has been made from the Room of Help to the bar. From Aberforth, Harry learns details of Dumbledore's biography: a year before he entered Hogwarts, his six-year-old sister Ariana was attacked by Muggle boys who saw her perform magic. They “taught” her a lesson, after which she lost her mind: she refused to learn to cast magic, but the magic periodically escaped from her. Sometimes she had uncontrollable attacks of aggression. Kendra and Aberforth cared for her while hiding her illness. Percival attacked these boys, for which he ended up in Azkaban. He chose not to reveal the reason for the attack. With the next release of aggressive magic, Ariana killed Kendra. After graduation, Albus became friends with Grindelwald, and together they made plans to subjugate the Muggles and create a new order "for the common good." They were about to go in search of the Deathly Hallows. Aberforth tried to dissuade Albus and Grindelwald from their plans to conquer the world, convincing them that Albus would not be able to take his sick sister with him. At some point, Grindelwald became angry with Aberforth and cast the Cruciatus Curse on him. Albus, Aberforth and Grindelwald began to fight, his sister came running at the noise, and one of the fighters accidentally killed her. Grindelwald has disappeared from Godric's Hollow.

Harry also learns that Hogwarts has gone into a state of siege. Severus Snape and the Death Eaters completely control the school, and any manifestation of dissent was punished to the fullest extent. Meanwhile, at school there is a fight against Snape's regime, in which mainly members of Dumbledore's Squad take part, they are hiding in the Room of Requirement.

Harry realizes that he needs to look for something that belonged to Candida Ravenclaw, probably a tiara. The students invite him to go to the Ravenclaw living room. Harry meets with Alecto Carrow, but Luna paralyzes her. Alecto managed to call Voldemort. Amycus and Minerva McGonagall enter. They argue, Amycus spits in McGonagall's face. Harry loses his temper, tortures Amycus, paralyzes him and binds him to Alecto. He explains to McGonagall that, on Dumbledore's instructions, he must find a certain object in Hogwarts that Voldemort is hunting for. McGonagall promises to detain Voldemort for several hours. She and several other teachers (Stalk, Flitwick, Slughorn) fight Snape, who flees the school.

Death Eaters are flocking to Hogwarts, led by Voldemort. They demand that Harry Potter be given to them, promising that in this case no one will get hurt.

Teachers organize the evacuation of schoolchildren. Adults may remain if they wish to participate in the defense of Hogwarts. Members of the Order of the Phoenix arrive. The Battle of Hogwarts begins. On the side of the Eaters are spiders from the Forbidden Forest, giants and dementors. The school is defended by students, teachers, the Order of the Phoenix, enchanted school statues, several other wizards and the giant Grawp. Harry approaches the Gray Lady, Ravenclaw's ghost, asking about the tiara. The Gray Lady says that Tom Marvolo Riddle, while a student at Hogwarts, found and stole the diadem. Harry remembers seeing the tiara in the rescue room.

Ron and Hermione penetrate Secret room, they find a basilisk fang, with the help of its poison, Hermione destroys Penelope Hufflepuff's cup. They run to the Room of Requirement, but are met by Draco, Crabbe and Goyle. Crabbe casts the Hellfire spell. Crabbe himself burns to death, but Harry and Ron manage to save Malfoy and Goyle. Magic fire destroys the diadem.

After another vision, Harry leads Ron and Hermione to the Shrieking Shack. There they see Voldemort ordering Nagini to kill Snape, because he believes that this will make Voldemort the true owner of the Elder Wand (Dumbledore was killed by Snape, which means the wand belongs to Snape). Voldemort leaves before Snape dies. Before his death, Snape manages to give Harry several of his memories. Voldemort announces a stop in the battle for an hour and again demands that Potter come to him. Harry watches Snape's memories in the Pensieve. It turns out that Severus was completely faithful to Dumbledore because he loved Harry's mother, Lily Evans, from childhood. Voldemort killed her, and Severus went over to Dumbledore's side. The stone from Marvolo's ring is one of the three Deathly Hallows. Having found it, Dumbledore put on the ring. The Horcrux struck Dumbledore with an incurable spell, so that he was doomed to die within a year. At Dumbledore's request, Snape kills him to save him from torment and also to save Draco's soul. It was Severus Snape who placed the sword of Gryffindor in the pond and pointed it at Harry with his Patronus. In addition, Harry learns that he himself is the seventh Horcrux, created by accident, and as long as Harry is alive, Voldemort cannot be killed. In one flashback, Dumbledore tells Snape that Harry must sacrifice himself.

Remus Lupine, Nymphadora Tonks, Fred Weasley and Colin Creevey die in battle. Harry is ready to sacrifice himself in order to destroy the part of Voldemort's soul within him. He asks Neville to destroy Voldemort's snake, Nagini, if Neville is given the opportunity. Harry doesn't tell him that the snake is a Horcrux. Then Harry goes to the Forbidden Forest, where Voldemort is located. Harry opens the Snitch that Dumbledore bequeathed to him, it contains the Resurrection Stone, which Harry uses to talk to deceased loved ones before his own death. Harry allows Voldemort to cast the killing curse in front of all the Death Eaters.

He finds himself in a strange place reminiscent of King's Cross Station. Dumbledore appears. He explains that Harry did not die because Voldemort used Harry's blood to recreate his body. And the part of Voldemort's soul imprisoned in Harry was just destroyed by the Dark Lord himself.

Harry wakes up in the forest, but pretends to be dead. Voldemort tells Narcissa Malfoy to check if Harry is dead. Narcissa sees that he is alive and asks him in a whisper about Draco. When Harry replies that Draco is alive, Narcissa lies to Voldemort that Harry is dead. Voldemort and the Death Eaters go to Hogwarts, Hagrid carries Harry. Neville attacks Voldemort. Voldemort places the Sorting Hat on Neville's head and sets it on fire. At this moment, reinforcements arrive in the form of centaurs and Hogwarts house elves, and the battle continues. Neville snatches the Gryffindor sword from the hat and kills Nagini. Now all of Voldemort's Horcruxes have been destroyed.

Gradually the Death Eaters are losing the battle. Molly Weasley engages Bellatrix in one-on-one combat and kills her. Harry and Voldemort come face to face. Harry explains that the true owner of the Elder Wand was not Snape (who did not defeat Dumbledore, since he killed him at his own request), but Draco Malfoy, since he disarmed Dumbledore. Since Harry later took possession of Draco's wand, he is the true owner of the Elder Wand. Voldemort tries to kill Harry. The Elder Wand refuses to kill its master, the spell is reflected and kills Voldemort.

Harry decides to leave the Elder Wand (at the same time, he first repaired his wand, which broke in the battle with Nagini at Bathilda Bagshot's house) in Dumbledore's tomb and not look for the resurrection stone that he threw in the Forbidden Forest. He renounces the Deathly Hallows, leaving only his invisibility cloak (which belonged to his ancestors). Everyone rejoices, Voldemort is killed, the Death Eaters have lost the Second War. Kingsley Brustwer becomes the new Minister of Magic.

Epilogue

Nineteen years later, parents accompany their children to Hogwarts. Ginny and Harry have three children - James Sirius (after Harry's father and godfather), Albus Severus (after two Hogwarts headmasters) and Lily Luna (after Harry's mother and friend). Ron and Hermione have two children, Rose and Hugo. Two families meet at King's Cross station. Lily is not yet eleven years old to go to Hogwarts, Albus is going there for the first time, and James is already a student in the Gryffindor house. James sees Teddy Lupin, the son of the dead Lupine and Tonks, kissing a girl named Victoire, cousin James (daughter of Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour). Albus is afraid of being sorted into Slytherin, and Harry tells him that Severus Snape, after whom the boy received his middle name, was perhaps the most a brave man, whom Harry ever knew, despite the fact that Snape was in Slytherin. Neville became a professor of herbology (in the first editions, Neville was mistakenly called a professor of potions. Then the error was corrected) at Hogwarts. On platform nine and three quarters they notice Draco Malfoy with his wife Astoria and son Scorpius. Draco notices Harry, nods and turns away.

The last sentence in the book

The scar had not pained Harry for nineteen years. All was well.

The scar hasn't hurt for nineteen years. All was good.

Phrase All was well is probably an allusion to Henry Scott Holland's poem "Death is nothing at all"

There is also a possible allusion to famous proverb“All is well that ends well” - “All is well that ends well.”

Chapter 1. News.
Summer ended as quickly as it began. The leaves began to fall and it got dark early.
A celebration was taking place in the house at 12 Grimmauld Place. Albus Severus's fifteenth birthday. A luxurious table for eleven people was set. For Harry, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, George, Albus, James, Lily, Rose, Hugo and Teddy.
Hermione and Ginny spent the entire day in the kitchen, with the girls helping them. So the table is truly magnificent.
- Wingardium Leviosa!
Spoons, forks and knives flew and smoothly landed on the table.
“Well,” asked Harry, “is everyone here?”
“No,” Hermione answered, “Ted is delayed.”
Teddy had to wait half an hour. But when he walked in, and after what he said, the atmosphere changed:
“The bad news,” he began sadly, “there are problems at the Ministry.”
- Which? - asked Ginny.
- Remember Rookwood?
- Yes.
- So his daughter, Jessica, decided to blow something up.
- What? - asked Ron.
Ted didn't answer. He only looked away so as not to meet Ron's eyes.
- Well... well... she destroyed the elevator... it fell to the first floor and... there was panic in the ministry. Half the building is destroyed.
- WHAT?! - Ron turned pale, - but his father said... that he was on duty and...
- He is OK.
Ron sighed with relief.
- Kingsley Brustwer is surprised himself. She was forgiven when she told us about the Lasenkorff family.
“Sorry,” Albus just came up, “but are we going to celebrate?”
“Of course,” said Harry gloomily, “go.” Ted! Let's step back for a minute.
When Harry approached the table, everyone was already eating their hot food.
- Join Harry.
But Harry didn't listen. He thought about it. Why did Jessica cause the explosion? Where did she go after that? And who instructed her to do this?!

Chapter 2. “Hogwarts Express.”
A few days later, the two families traveled in cars to King's Cross station.
After seeing off the children, Harry, Ginny and the others went home. At a meeting of the Order for the Protection of Wizards. After the death of Voldemort, the Order of the Phoenix became unnecessary. It fell apart. But! What if something happens? The children are still small, and besides the three friends, who will help the magicians? OZV created Harry immediately after he learned about Jessica's release. How could Igor Karkarov's second cousin behave?
Albus, James, Rose, Lily and Hugo sat in the same compartment.
- Oh! - James howled, looking at the OWL results again.
- I liked it in my first year! - said Lily.
- And me! - Hugo responded.
- What about difficult OWLs? - Albus asked James excitedly.
- Don't worry! Write it sometime! - he answered.
“If you want,” Rose began, “I can help you!” I've been preparing all summer!
- Still, it’s good that we’re all in Gryffindor. - Hugo couldn’t forget his father’s joke about inheritance.
- I hope Lesla gets replaced! - James began, - otherwise...
He didn't finish. The train started moving.
- Yes, I’ve already been tired of him for one year! - Lily exclaimed.
The guys chatted for an hour, then they heard a familiar voice:
- Trolley with sweets! Sweets cart!
After a hearty lunch, James, Albus and Hugo began to change into their robes. The girls were already sitting in them.
- Wait, Ziggy! - they suddenly heard.
Peter, the son of Neville Longbottom, like his father, could not find his toad.
- Oh, Peter! Come in,” Lily invited him.
- Hi guys.
Peter was a Hufflepuff student. He had dark, short hair; brown eyes and a nose just like my father's. He was a second-year student.
“Mom gave me this,” he pointed to a bottle with lilac liquid, “I can’t stand it!” “That’s strawberry,” he said dreamily, “yes!”
“Luna takes after her father,” James noted, remembering Harry’s stories about Xenophilius Lovegood, “they love this juice.”
- Potter!
A blond man entered the compartment. Behind him is one brunette. Both were wearing green robes.
- I hope you won’t drink this stuff? - Scorpius, son of Draco Malfoy, sarcastically.
- Draco did not become friends with Harry, but he accepted the situation. So you shouldn't
arrange such cases! - said Rose, - Or do you want to get it from your father?
Malfoy muttered something and left the carriage.
Then the guys heard a voice.
- Hogsmeade.

Chapter 3. Death Eaters.
When the guys got out of the carriage, they were almost hit by a spell.
- What the...
Hagrid flew out of the corner.
- Everyone quickly get into the carriages! Run!
The children ran to the carriages, the others also did not lag behind. Ten people crammed into the carriages.
- To school. FAST!
Death Eaters in black cloaks sprinkled the carriages with spells.
Finally, when they arrived at school, Neville met them.
- What's happening? - James asked puzzled.
- The Death Eaters decided to start a mess. Jessica escaped, and now she's hatching some kind of plan.
- But...
- No time! - then he shouted loudly, - everyone to school!
When the guys found themselves inside the warm Great Hall, they immediately forgot about the attack.
The new director, Torben Gallison, began without any preamble:
- We have a very bad situation! Jessica is free. She can break into the school, as she did twenty-three years ago with the Dark Lord. Therefore, Professor Rilt,” he pointed to the professor who was assigning students, “I, Farlet and Longbottom are going to create a new faculty. Invidium Antento! Translated, this means Fatal Powers. Whoever agrees to learn new spells, let him join. But! The hat itself will choose the strongest from the applicants!
Shouts were heard from the hall.
“Don’t worry,” Torben continued, “you will remain in your faculties.” Well, who's in favor?
More than fifty people raised their hands.
- Great! Professor Rilt!
The hat did not distribute everyone.
James, Albus, Marlyse, Vincy, Scorpius and Werten.
Marlisa was in her fifth year at Ravenclaw.
Vincey is second in Hufflepuff.
Werthen is seventh in Gryffindor.
- Amazing! - the director proclaimed, - and now the freshmen!
After the distribution he exclaimed:
- And now, FIRE!

Chapter last. Invidium Antento.
Five months later.
All members of the new faculty, every day, instead of homework, studied the strong magic of Fatal Power. Each teacher invested all the knowledge into the student to create a powerful spell.
- It's time! - Torben proclaimed as the gates swung open and Jessica and the Death Eaters entered the school.
This time only professors and students from the fifth year fought. The Dark Lord died, and Jessica did not cause such danger as he did.
And then the battle began. The Death Eaters sent a rain of fire, and then quickly ran to fight.
Albus fought alongside Torben, while James took on Jessica. He studied the Fatal Powers better than anyone. The professors were wounded, they lay on the ground, some wounded and some under the influence of Petrificus Totalus.
- Guys here! - James called everyone who was in the faculty, Invidium Antento.
Jessica also called the rest of her troops. But James beat her to it.
- Fifth, sixth and seventh years, attack against the eaters.
Everyone except James, even the students of the new faculty, went to fight.
James got distracted, but in vain:
- Crucio! - said Jessica.
James fell and groaned in pain.
- Toronto El Folsaro! - he said.
Nothing happened.
- Spell Fatal Powers? - she asked, - to cast such a spell, you need a lot of strength, and most importantly, you need to want to! Crucio!
The pain subsided.
James thought about his best memory and summoned a Patronus.
- Expecto patronum!
A deer flew out of the stick, jumped and knocked Jessica off her feet.
James stood up, wanted it very, very badly, pulled himself together and shouted:
- Toronto El Folsaro!
Suddenly the sky was eclipsed by a giant cloud. A blue ball burst out of their land and pushed Jessica up. Ball lightning struck her, then she fell, then the fire rose, raised her again, then dropped her, and flared up. Ash fell on her face.
Suddenly she said:
- Levicorpus!
A large piece of iron flew at James, and Jessica last bit of strength ran out of school to trance.
The spell looked impressive, but in fact, Jessica was simply hit by a strong discharge, the fire burned a little, and she fell. That's not fatal.
The piece of iron flew, and James shouted:
- Relashio!
The iron bent and fell.
James ran after Jessica.
- Crucio!
Jessica did not die, but after each spell she almost fell, and apparently she was in a lot of pain.
She had already reached the Black Lake and almost ran up to the gate, when someone transgressed behind the gate.
A man in a cloak entered the gate and said:
- Avada Kedavra!
A flash of green flame hit Jessica. She stood up and was thrown into the lake. The Tritons rose, captured her, and carried her to the bottom of the lake.
The man took off his cloak and shouted to James:
- Well done, son.
It was Harry.

Famous Scottish writer JK Rowling on Friday announced the title of her seventh Harry Potter book. It will be called *Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows*.

The British press calls *Harry Potter and the Fatal Powers* the last novel about the young wizard and reports that one of the main characters of the book dies. However, there is no confirmation yet that this is Harry Potter, and it may not come until the novel is published, ITAR-TASS reports.

Rowling decided to complete the Potter series with this novel. At the same time, representatives of the world literary community, including the largest American writers John Irving and Stephen King previously persuaded the writer not to stop at the seventh book and continue her literary series.

Rowling announced this week that she is finishing the final Harry book and admitted that she is already having strange dreams that she herself is Harry Potter. Not surprising, since this is already the seventh Potter book, which may be the last.

The British writer, in an address to readers on her website, wrote: “Readers often ask me if I imagine myself in the place of my hero. Previously, I answered “no,” but recently I had a dream in which I was both Harry and the narrator "In the dream, I was looking for a magical object. As an author, I knew perfectly well where it was, but in the image of Harry Potter, I naturally searched for it."

In addition, JK Rowling notes that the ending last book She writes about the young wizard in the same way as she wrote the beginning of the first - in a cafe. She began writing about Harry Potter 13 years ago in a cafe in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and has since earned 540 million pounds sterling ($1 billion) from her works, the BBC recalls.

"I'm looking for Horcruxes in a giant, crowded hall that looks nothing like the Great Hall I imagine. Meanwhile, the waiters and waitresses who work in the real cafe where I wrote large parts of the seventh book walk around me like on stilts, and each one is 5 meters tall. Should I go back to caffeine?" – the writer reflects.

Previously, on this website, the writer talked about exactly how she created in a cafe. "As soon as Jessica (Rowling's first child, now 13) fell asleep in her stroller, I would rush into the nearest cafe and work like crazy. I wrote almost every evening," she recalls.

Rowling, 41, hints that she is very worried because she is writing the final chapters of the seventh and final Potter book, in which her beloved hero may die. "I'm currently describing scenes that have been planned for a long time," Rowling said. "I both want and don't want to finish the book. But don't worry - I will finish it," she added.

The seventh and final Harry Potter book is scheduled to be released early next year. JK Rowling was included in the Guinness Book of Records as the record holder for earnings in the field of children's literature. The first six books in the Potter series have sold more than 300 million copies worldwide and have been translated into 63 languages, making Rowling Britain's highest-paid writer. The 41-year-old writer's total income over thirteen years of writing is £540 million, which is more than $1 billion.

In parallel with the release of new parts of the book, which happen approximately every two years, viewers can also enjoy new episodes of film adaptations of Rowling’s novels. The release of the fifth part of the epic - "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" - is scheduled for July 13, 2007.

Almost all characters familiar to viewers will appear on screen again: Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, Rupert Greene as Ron Weasley, Emma Watson as Hermione Granger, Ralph Fiennes will play the villain Voldemort. At the same time, such famous British actresses as Helena Bonham Carter and Imelda Staunton will also join the Potter cast for the first time, RIA Novosti reports.

The previous four parts of the epic grossed over £200 million in the UK alone, making Daniel Radcliffe one of the richest British teenagers.

The organizers of the film project plan to make two more films about the young wizard and end the series there. Thus, the literary "Potteryad" and its cinematic version must coincide in total number books and their film adaptations.

Chapter 1. Rise of the Dark Lord.

On a narrow path, illuminated moonlight, two men appeared. They froze for a moment, pointing their wands at each other's chests; then, recognizing each other, they hid their wands under their robes and quickly headed in the same direction.

News? - asked the taller one.

“The best,” answered Severus Snape.

On the left side the path was bordered by low wild blackberries, on the right by a tall, neatly trimmed hedge. As they walked, the men's long robes fluttered around their legs.

Although, perhaps I’m too late,” Yaxley said. The branches that broke the moonlight either hid his face or made his rough features visible. - It was more difficult than I expected. But I hope he will be pleased. Are you sure everything will be fine?

Snape nodded blankly. The fellow travelers turned right into a wide passage leading away from the path. A hedge snaked around them, ending in the distance at an imposing wrought-iron gate that blocked the men's path. They came close to the gate and made no attempt to stop. As they walked, both raised their left hands as if making a gesture of greeting, and walked through the iron bars as if it were smoke and not metal.

The yew hedge slightly muffled the sound of their footsteps. Suddenly, a rustling sound was heard from the right. Yaxley again took out his wand and raised it directly above the head of his companion, but his alarm was in vain: the source of the noise turned out to be a snow-white peacock sitting on a hedge.

You can’t stop Lucius from living beautifully. Peacocks... - Yaxley grinned and put his wand back under his robe.

A beautiful mansion rose out of the darkness at the end of the straight drive, light streaming through the lower diamond-patterned stained glass windows. Somewhere in the depths of the dark garden, behind the fence, a fountain splashed. Gravel crunched underfoot as Snape and Yaxley walked towards the door, which swung open as they approached it, although apparently no one had opened it.

The hallway was large, dim and ornate, with a stunning carpet that covered most stone floor. From the paintings, pale faces watched Snape and Yaxley as they passed by, watching them with glances. The men stopped at the bulky wooden door leading to the next room, paused for a moment, and then Snape turned the bronze knob.

There were many silent people in the room, sitting at a long, richly decorated table. Furniture that usually stood in its place was carelessly pushed towards the walls. The light came from the flames escaping from under the marble slab of the fireplace, above which hung a mirror in a gilded frame.

Snape and Yaxley paused on the threshold for a moment. As their eyes adjusted to the lack of light, they saw the strangest detail of the whole scene: an unconscious man was hanging upside down over the table, slowly rotating as if suspended by an invisible rope, he was reflected in the mirror and the polished surface of the table. None of those present looked at the inverted man, with the exception of the pale young man sitting almost underneath him. It seemed that the young man could not bring himself not to look up every minute.

Yaxley, Snape,” came a clear, high-pitched voice from the end of the table. - You're almost late.

There was a fireplace behind the speaker, so those who arrived at first could not see anything except his silhouette. As they approached, a hairless face appeared in front of them, resembling a snake, with slits instead of nostrils and glowing red eyes with vertical pupils. He was so pale that he seemed to radiate a pearly glow.

Severus, this way,” Voldemort said, pointing to a place to his right. - Yaxley... next to Dolokhov.

The two men took their seats. Many looked at Snape, Voldemort turned to him first.

The Order of the Phoenix plans to transport Harry Potter from safety next Saturday night.

The interest of those sitting at the table suddenly increased. Some tensed, others became worried, everyone looked at Snape and Voldemort.

“Saturday… night,” Voldemort repeated. He glared so hard at Snape with his red eyes that some turned away, as if afraid of being burned by the fury of his gaze. But Snape looked at the Dark Lord very calmly, and after a few seconds Voldemort's face, which had no lips, twisted into something resembling a smile.

Fine. Very good. And this information is from...

“…the source we discussed,” Snape said.

Yaxley leaned forward to look across the table at Voldemort and Snape. Everyone turned to him.

My lord. I heard something different.

Yaxley waited, but Voldemort remained silent, so he continued.

Auror Dawlish said that Potter would not be taken anywhere until the thirtieth, until the boy turned seventeen.

Snape smiled.

My source told me that the plan would be to spread false rumors; this is probably what they are. No doubt Dawlish had been cast with a Confusion Spell. And not the first time, he’s so impressionable.

I assure you, my lord, that Dawlish has made himself clear,” Yaxley said.

If he was Confused, then, of course, he expressed himself clearly,” said Snape. “I assure you, Yaxley, that the Department of Aurors no longer plays any role in Harry Potter's security. The Order is confident that we have taken over the Ministry.

At least the Order guessed one thing, huh? - said a man sitting not far from Yaxley. He let out a throaty laugh that echoed across the table. Voldemort didn't laugh. His gaze went to the slowly spinning body, and he seemed to be lost in thought.

My lord,” Yaxley continued. - Dawlish is sure that the entire Auror Department will be assembled to transport the boy...

Voldemort raised a large white hand and Yaxley instantly fell silent, watching closely as Voldemort turned to Snape.

Where will they hide the boy?

“In the house of one of the Order members,” Snape said. “According to my source, all the protection that the Order and the Ministry are capable of has been put on the site.” I don't think it will be possible to take him there, unless the Ministry surrenders by next Saturday, which would allow us to identify and neutralize some of the spells.

Well, Yaxley? - Voldemort said to the other end of the table. - Will the Ministry surrender by next Saturday?

Everyone turned around again. Yaxley straightened up.

My Lord, I have good news on this matter. I, although not without difficulty, successfully cast the Imperius Curse on Pius Thicknesse.

Many of those sitting around Yaxley looked impressed, and his neighbor Dolokhov, a man with a long, twisted face, patted him on the back.

"Good start," said Voldemort. - But Thicknesse is one person. Scrimgeour must be surrounded by our men before I can act. One unsuccessful attempt on the minister's life - and all our efforts will be in vain.

Yes... my Lord, that is true... but you know that as the Head of the Department of Enacting Magical Laws, Thicknesse has contact not only with the Minister himself, but also with the Heads of all other departments of the Ministry. I think now that we have so much under our control important official, it will be easy to make others subservient, and together they will be able to overthrow Scrimgeour.

Our friend Thicknesse will not be discovered until he has converted everyone else to our side,” said Voldemort. - In any case, it is unlikely that the Ministry will be mine until next Saturday. If we cannot touch the boy at his new location, then we must do this during his journey.

Here we have an advantage, my Lord,” said Yaxley, who clearly intended to gain approval. “Now we have several people from the Department of Magical Transport on our side.” If Potter apparates or uses the Floo Network, we'll know immediately.

"He will do neither," Snape said. - The Order avoids any form of transport that is controlled by the Ministry, they do not trust anything associated with this place.

Once again Voldemort looked at the spinning body.

I'll take care of the boy myself. There were too many mistakes with Harry Potter, and I made some of them. This Potter lives more by my failures than by his successes.

Those present looked at Voldemort in awe, each of them fearing that it was his or her fault that Harry Potter had survived. But Voldemort was talking more to himself than to any of them as he continued to watch the unconscious body above him.

I was careless, so all my grand plans turned to dust. But now I have become wiser, I have understood a lot that I did not understand before. I am the one who must kill Harry Potter, and I will definitely do it.

As if in response to his words, a long, heart-rending cry suddenly rang out, filled with pain and suffering. Many of those sitting at the table flinched and lowered their eyes in fear as the sound came from somewhere below.

Wormtail,” Voldemort said without raising his voice, still lost in his own thoughts, not taking his eyes off the spinning body, “didn’t I ask you to calm our prisoner?”

Yes, m-my Master,” he sobbed. little man, sitting so low in the middle of the table that at first glance his chair seemed unoccupied. Then he climbed out of the chair and left the room, leaving a mysterious silver glow behind him.

As I said,” Voldemort continued, looking at the tense faces of his followers, “I now understand a lot.” For example, I now know that before I go kill Potter, I will need Magic wand one of you.

The faces of the people around him showed shock, as if he had announced that he was going to take the hand of one of them.

No takers? - asked Voldemort. - Let's see... Lucius, I don't see any reason for you to carry a wand anymore.

Lucius Malfoy looked up. He turned very pale, in the light from the fireplace his face was yellow and seemed sculpted from wax, his eyes were sunken and darkened.

Plays in the speakers - Nothing
The mood now is serious

Hurray!! The book was published in England and Moscow!!! But unfortunately there is no official translation... but there are unofficial ones!!! And I have one at my disposal. I will exhibit it.
Take material from _malfoi_'s diary
HERE IS THE FIRST CHAPTER (for those interested)

Chapter 1. Rise of the Dark Lord

Two men appeared out of nowhere, not far from each other, on a narrow path illuminated by moonlight. They froze for a second, pointing their chopsticks at each other's chests; then, recognizing each other, they hid their wands in their robes and quickly headed in the same direction.
- News? – asked the one who was taller.
“The best,” replied Severus Snape.
On the left side of the path there were low wild blackberries, on the right there was a high, neatly trimmed fence. The men's long robes fluttered around their legs as they walked.
“Though I may be too late,” Yaxley said. His rugged features appeared and disappeared through the branches that broke the moonlight. – It was a little more difficult than I expected. But I hope he will be pleased. Are you sure everything will be fine?
Snape nodded, but did not go into detail. They turned right from the path onto a wide street. A wrought iron gate appeared in front of them. Neither one moved. In silence, both raised their left hands, as if making a gesture of greeting, and walked through the gate, as if it were smoke and not metal.
The yew fences muffled their steps, and a rustling sound was heard to their right. Yaxley took out his wand again, pointing it directly above his companion's head, but the source of the noise turned out to be a snow-white peacock sitting on the fence.
- Lucius has always done well. Peacocks... - Yaxley put his wand back into his robe with a grin.
A beautiful mansion rose out of the darkness at the end of the direct entrance, its diamond-decorated windows sparkling. Somewhere in the dark garden, behind the fence, a fountain sang. The gravel crunched underfoot and Snape and Yaxley hurried to the door, which swung open as they approached it, although apparently no one had opened it.
The hallway was large, dim and ornate, with a stunning carpet that covered most of the stone floor. The eyes of the pale-eyed portraits on the walls watched Snape and Yaxley as they passed by. The two men stopped at the heavy wooden door leading into the next room, paused for a heartbeat, and then Snape turned the bronze knob.
The room was full of silent people sitting at a long table. Permanent furniture was carelessly pushed back against the walls. The light came from a roaring fire beneath a beautiful marble slab, above which hung a gilded mirror.
Snape and Yaxley paused on the threshold for a moment. While their eyes were adjusting to the lack of light, they came across the strangest detail of the whole scene: an unconscious man was hanging upside down over the table, slowly spinning, as if hanging on an invisible rope, he was reflected in the mirror and the polished surface of the table. None of those present looked at the inverted man, with the exception of the pale young man sitting almost under him. He couldn't seem to bring himself not to look up every minute.
“Yaxley, Snape,” said a clear, high voice from the end of the table. -You're almost late.
The speaker was sitting directly in front of the fireplace, so the newcomers could not see anything but a silhouette. But as they approached, a hairless face appeared in front of them, resembling a snake, with slits instead of nostrils and glowing red eyes with vertical pupils. He was so pale that he seemed to radiate a pearly glow.
“Severus, this way,” Voldemort said, pointing to a place to his right. – Yaxley... next to Dolokhov.
The two men took their seats. Most eyes looked at Snape, and Vodemort was the first to speak to him.
- AND?
- The Order of the Phoenix plans to transport Harry Potter from his safe location next Saturday night.
The interest of those sitting at the table suddenly increased. Some tensed, others became worried, everyone looked at Snape and Voldemort.
“On Saturday... night,” Voldemort repeated. His red eyes darted towards Snape's black eyes so quickly that some turned away, afraid that his gaze would be directed towards them. But Snape looked at Voldemort very calmly, and after a few seconds Voldemort's face, which had no lips, twisted into something resembling a smile.
- Fine. Very good. And this information...
"...from the source we discussed," Snape said.
- My Lord.
Yaxley leaned forward to look across the table at Voldemort and Snape. Everyone turned to him.
- My Lord. I heard something different.
Yaxley waited, but Voldemort didn't speak, so he continued.
- Auror Dawlish said that Potter would not be taken until the thirtieth, until the boy turns seventeen.
Snape smiled.
- My source told me that false rumors would be spread according to the plan; this is probably what they are. No doubt a Confusion Spell had been cast on Dawlish. And not the first time, he is all impressionable.
“I assure you, my Lord, that Dawlish made himself clear,” Yaxley said.
“If he was Confused, then of course he expressed himself clearly,” Snape said. “I assure you, Yaxley, that the Office of the Aurors no longer plays any role in Harry Potter's security. The Order is confident that we have taken over the Ministry.
- At least the Order guessed one thing, huh? - said a man sitting not far from Yaxley. He let out a throaty laugh that echoed across the table.
Voldemort didn't laugh. His gaze went to the slowly spinning body, and he seemed to be lost in thought.
“My Lord,” Yaxley continued. - Dawlish is sure that the entire Auror department will be assembled to transport the boy...
Voldemort raised a large white hand and Yaxley instantly fell silent, watching closely as Voldemort turned to Snape.
-Where will they hide the boy?
“In the house of one of the Order members,” Snape said. “According to my source, the site has had all the protection the Order and Ministry can muster.” I don't think it will be possible to take him there, unless the Ministry surrenders by next Saturday, which would allow us to identify and neutralize some of the spells.
- Well, Yaxley? - Voldemort said to the other end of the table. – Will the Ministry surrender by next Saturday?
Once again all heads turned. Yaxley straightened up.
- My Lord, I have good news on this matter. I, although with difficulty, successfully cast the Imperius Curse on Pius Thicknesse.
Many of those sitting around Yaxley looked impressed, and his neighbor Dolokhov, a man with a long crooked face, patted him on the back.
"Good start," Voldemort said. – But Thicknesse is one person. Scrimgeour must be surrounded by our men before I can act. One unsuccessful attempt on the minister's life will ruin all our efforts.
- Yes... my Lord, that is true... but you know that as the head of the Department of Enactment of Magical Laws, Thicknesse has not only contact with the minister himself, but also with the Heads of all other departments of the Ministry. I think it will be easy, now that we have such an important official under our control, to make others subject to our control, and together they will be able to overthrow Scrimgeour.
“Until our friend Thicknesse is discovered before he turns everyone else to our side,” Voldemort said. “In any case, it is unlikely that the Ministry will be mine until next Saturday.” If we cannot touch the boy at his new location, then we must do this during his journey.
“We have an advantage here, my Lord,” said Yaxley, who clearly intended to gain approval. “We now have several people from the Department of Magical Transport on our side.” If Potter Apparates or uses the Floo Network, we will know immediately.
“He will do neither,” Snape said. “The Order avoids any form of transport that is run by the Ministry, they do not trust anything associated with this place.
Once again Voldemort looked at the spinning body.
- I'll take care of the boy myself. There were too many mistakes with Harry Potter, and I made some of them. This Potter lives more by my failures than by his successes.
Those present looked at Voldemort with admiration, each of them fearing that it was his or her mistake that Harry Potter was still alive. But Voldemort was talking more to himself than to either of them as he continued to watch the unconscious body above him.
- I was careless, so my most skillful plans were destroyed. But now I understand everything. I understood things that I didn't understand before. I must be the one to kill Harry Potter. And I will be.
With these words, as if in response to them, an unexpected terrible scream was heard, a disgusting groan of pain and despair. Many of those sitting at the table flinched and looked down, as if the sound was coming from under their feet.
“Wormtail,” Voldemort said, without changing his quiet voice, full of thoughts, and without taking his eyes off the spinning body, “didn’t I tell you to calm our prisoner?”
“Yes, m-my Master,” sobbed the little man sitting in the middle of the table, who sat so low that his chair at first glance seemed unoccupied. Now he was getting out of the chair and leaving the room, leaving behind a curious silver glow.
“As I said,” Voldemort continued, looking at the tense faces of his followers. “I understand much better that I, for example, need to take one of your wands before I get around to killing Potter.”
There was shock on the faces around him, as if he had announced that he was going to take the hand of one of them.
- No takers? - said Voldemort. - Let's see... Lucius, I don't see any point in you carrying a wand anymore.
Lucius Malfoy looked up. His skin looked waxy yellow in the firelight, and his eyes were sunken and dark. When he spoke, his voice was hoarse.
- Mister?
- Wand, Lucius. I demand a wand.
- I…
Malfoy looked away at his wife. She looked straight ahead, as pale as he was. Her long blonde hair flowed down her back and her hand under the table grabbed his wrist. At her touch, Malfoy reached into his robes and pulled out his wand, passing it to Voldemort, who looked at her with his red eyes, studying her.
- What is this?
“Elm, Master,” Malfoy whispered.
- Core?
- Dragon... dragon heart muscle.
“Wonderful,” said Voldemort. He took out his wand and compared the length. Lucius took a rash action, it seems he thought that Voldemort would give him his wand in return. Voldemort noticed this attempt, causing his eyes to turn into saucers.
- Should I give you my wand, Lucius? My wand?
Some chuckled.
- I gave you freedom, Lucius, haven't you had enough? I noticed that you and your family are not very happy about this... Is there something that doesn’t suit you about me being in your house, Lucius?
- Nothing... nothing, my Master!
- Shameless lie, Lucius...
The soft voice seemed to hiss even after the mouth stopped moving. One or two wizards nearly trembled as the hissing grew louder; something heavy was sliding under the table. A huge snake crawled onto Voldemort's chair and lay on his shoulders. She seemed endless, her neck was as thick as a human leg, her eyes with vertical slits for the eyes did not blink. Voldemort stroked the creature long fingers, continuing to look at Malfoy.
- Why do the Malfoys look so unhappy next to their comrades? Isn't my return, my rise to power, what they so badly wanted?
“Of course, my Lord,” said Lucius Malfoy. His hand shook as he wiped the sweat from his upper lip. – We really want this... very much.
To Malfoy's left, his wife nodded strangely reservedly, carefully averting her eyes from Voldemort and his snake. On the right, his son Draco, who was looking at the hanging body, quickly glanced at Voldemort and looked away, afraid to make eye contact.
“Master,” said the dark-haired woman. “It is an honor to welcome you to our family home.” There is no greater pleasure for us.
She sat next to her sister, but as different as she looked with her dark hair and heavy eyelids, she acted differently. Narcissa sat motionless. Bellatrix leaned towards Voldemort as words could not express her desire to get closer to him.
"There is no greater pleasure," Voldemort repeated, his head tilted slightly to the side as he regarded Bellatrix. “It’s nice to hear that from you, Bellatrix.”
Her face lit up, her eyes filled with tears of joy.
- Master knows, I only speak the truth!
- There is no greater pleasure... even considering the joyful event that I heard took place in your family this week?
She stared at him with her mouth open, obviously not understanding what was being said.
- I don't know what you're talking about, Master.
- About your niece, Bellatrix. And yours, Lucius and Narcissa. She just married the werewolf Remus Lupin. You must be proud.
There was deafening laughter at the table. Many leaned forward to exchange meaningful glances, and some slammed their fists on the table. The snake, not liking being disturbed, opened its mouth and hissed angrily, but the Death Eaters did not hear this because of their glee at the embarrassment of Bellatrix and the Malfoys. Bellatrix's face, which had recently been flushed with joy, was now colored an unsightly red.
“She is not our niece, Master,” she shouted. “We, me and Narcissa, have never seen our sister since she married the Mudblood.” This impudent woman has nothing to do with us, just like the monsters she associates with.
-What do you say, Draco? – asked Voldemort. Although his voice was quiet, he made his way through the inhuman cackle. – Will you babysit the wolf cubs?
The noise intensified. Draco Malfoy looked in horror at his father, who was looking down, then caught his mother's gaze. She shook her head, then continued to stare at the wall opposite with a dead gaze.
“Enough,” said Voldemort, stroking evil snake. - Enough.
The laughter stopped instantly.
- Many of our oldest families have deteriorated a little over time,” he said, while Bellatrix looked at him breathlessly. You need to cleanse yourself to stay in good health, don't you? Cut off the unnecessary things that interfere with the health of others.
“Yes, Master,” Bellatrix whispered, and her eyes filled with tears of joy again. - At the first opportunity!
“You will have it,” said Voldemort. - And in your family, as in the whole world... we will remove what poisons the existence of truly purebreds...
Voldemort raised Malfoy's wand, pointed it directly at the spinning figure above the table and waved it slightly. The body came to life and began to fight against invisible bonds.
- Do you recognize our guest, Severus? - asked Voldemort.
Snape looked up at the upturned face. All the Death Eaters were now looking at the captive, as if someone was giving them permission to be curious. As soon as she turned to face the fireplace, the woman said in a frightened voice, "Severus! Help me!"
“Oh, yes,” said Snape, and meanwhile the captive turned away from him again.
- And you, Draco? Voldemort asked, stroking the snake's head with his wand-free hand. Draco shook his head nervously. Now that the woman had awakened, it seemed that he could no longer look at her.
“You didn’t attend her classes,” Voldemort said. - For those of you who don't know, our guest today is Charity Burbage, who until recently taught at the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Several sounds came from different ends of the table. A broad woman with sharp teeth grunted with laughter. Hogwarts
- Yes... Professor Burbage taught children of witches and wizards about Muggles... that they are not at all different from us...
Charity Burbage faced Snape again.
- Severus... please... I beg you...
“Quiet,” Voldemort said, moving Malfoy’s wand once more, after which Charity fell silent as if gagged. “And as if it wasn’t enough to fill the heads of wizarding children, last week Professor Burbage wrote a piece about her ardent defense of the Mudbloods in the Daily Prophet. Wizards, she said, must accept these thieves of knowledge and magic. The degeneration of purebloods, according to the Professor, is what everyone wants... she wants us to make friends with Muggles... or, no doubt, with werewolves...
This time no one laughed. Voldemort's words expressed fear and contempt. For the third time, Charity Burbage turned to Snape. Tears flowed from her eyes and dripped into her hair. Snape looked at her indifferently, and she turned away from him again.
- Avada Kedavra.
A flash of green light illuminated every corner of the room. Charity fell onto the table beneath her, which shook and creaked. Several Death Eaters moved back. Draco slid out of his chair onto the floor.
“Dinner, Nagini,” Voldemort said tenderly. A large snake slid from his shoulders onto the polished surface of the table.

Chapter 2. In Memory of...

Harry was bleeding. Clutching his right hand with his left hand and swearing quietly, he opened his bedroom door with his shoulder. The crunch of broken porcelain was heard. He stepped on a cup of iced tea that was standing outside the door of his room.
- What the?..
He looked around. There was no one on the stairs of number four Privet Drive. Perhaps the cup of tea was the best thing the Dudleys could come up with as a cruel joke? Holding his bleeding hand suspended, Harry collected the pieces of the cup with his free hand and tossed them into the already overflowing basket in his room. He then headed to the bathroom, where he stuck his finger under the faucet.
How stupid it was, how annoying it was that he had to endure four more days until he could cast magic... but he had to admit that he still could not escape from this cut on his finger. He never knew how to treat wounds, and when he thought about it - especially in the light of making plans - he found other gaps in his education. Making a mental note to remember to ask Hermione how it was done, he wiped away as much of the tea as he could with a large piece of newspaper before returning to the bedroom and closing the door behind him.
Harry spent the morning completely emptying his school trunk, something he hadn't done since he first went to school six years ago. Usually he pulled out about three quarters, leaving a fairly decent layer of things at the bottom: old feathers, beetle eyes, socks without a pair that no longer fit. A few minutes ago, Harry put his hand into the chest, after which ring finger Something pricked his right hand, and Harry pulled it out, already bloody.
Now he moved more carefully. Kneeling in front of the open chest, he examined the very bottom, from where he pulled out a badge flashing with the words "Support Cedric Diggory" and "Potter is a stinker", a cracked and worn Hitroscope and a gold medallion with a note signed by R.A.B., and then he had finally discovered the source of his laceration. It was a five-centimeter shard of an enchanted mirror that was given to him by his late godfather Sirius. Harry put the shard aside and probed the bottom again, trying to find other shards, but there was nothing left of his godfather's last gift except powdered glass, which crumbled all over the surface and bottom and shone like sand in the sun.
Harry returned to the jagged shard he had cut himself on, seeing nothing but his own bright green eye staring back at himself. He placed the shard on top of the morning edition of the Daily Prophet, which lay unread on the bed, and tried to get rid of the flooding memories, the stings of regret and the desire to comprehend the mystery of the broken mirror, attacking the remaining debris in the chest.
It took him another hour to finally clean everything out, throw out useless things and sort the rest into those that would be useful to him and those that would not be useful. The school and Quidditch robes, cauldron, parchment, quills and most of the books went into a pile in the corner, which he intended to leave behind. He wondered what his aunt and uncle would do with them; burned under the cover of darkness, as if they were evidence of some terrible crime. His regular clothes, an invisibility cloak, a potion kit, some books, a photo album that Hagrid had once given him, a stack of letters and his wand went into an old backpack. In the front pocket were the Marauder's Map and a medallion with a note from R.A.B.a. The medallion was given such pride of place not because it was valuable - in fact, it was worth nothing at all - but because of what it cost to obtain it.
There was a pile of newspapers left on the table next to his snowy owl, Hedwig: one for each day Harry stayed with the Dursleys this summer.
He got up from the floor, stretched and walked over to the table. Hedwig didn't move as he began tossing the newspapers one by one into the trash pile. The owl was either really asleep or pretending to be; she was very angry with Harry for not allowing her to leave the cage often.
As the pile neared the end, Harry paused to search for the edition that he knew would arrive a little later after he returned to the house on Privet Drive for the summer. He remembered that the front page had mentioned a piece by Charity Burbage, the Muggle Studies teacher at Hogwarts. Finally, he found the right newspaper. Turning to page ten, he sat down on a chair and re-read the article he was looking for.

I met Albus Dumbledore at age eleven on our first day at Hogwarts. Our mutual sympathy undoubtedly arose from the fact that we were both outcasts. I caught dragon chickenpox shortly before arriving at school, and my green, pimply face, even after I recovered, did not attract many people to me. Albus didn't arrive at the school with the best reputation. A year earlier, his father Percival was accused of cruelty and attacking three young Muggles. Albus didn't even try to deny that his father (who was sent to Azkaban) had committed this crime, on the contrary, when I pulled myself together and asked him, he assured me that he knew about his father's guilt. Otherwise, Dumbledore refused to talk about sad things, although many tried to force him to. Some actually believed that he, like his father, was a Muggle-hater. How wrong they were. Anyone who knew Albus could say with certainty that he never showed anything against Muggles. His support for Muggle rights even gained him more enemies over the years.

In just a few months, Albus's father's fame had been eclipsed by his own. By the end of his first year, he was known not as the son of a Muggle-hater, but as one of the most brilliant students the school had ever had. Those of us who were lucky enough to be his friends were very lucky to learn a lot from him, and to receive support that he did not skimp on. He later admitted to me that even then he knew that what he liked most was teaching.

Not only did he win every prize there was to win at school, but he was constantly in touch with famous personalities, including Nicholas Flamel, the great alchemist, Bathilda Bagshot, the remarkable historian, and Adalbert Wolfling, the theorist of magic. Several of his works have been published: Transfiguration Today, Spell Trials, and Potions in Practice. Dumbledore's subsequent career seemed to fly at the speed of light, and the only question that remained was whether he would become Minister of Magic. Although this was often predicted in last years, he never had the makings and ambitions of a minister.

Three years after our arrival, Albus Aberforth's younger brother went to Hogwarts. They were not alike: Aberforth never liked books and preferred to resolve disputes with a duel rather than with reasonable conversation. Many would say that the brothers were not friends. Yes, living in Albus's shadow was not the best option.
When Albus and I graduated from Hogwarts, we decided, as was then tradition, to travel around the world, communicating with foreign wizards, before our career paths diverged. But a misfortune happened. Albus's mother Kendra died, leaving her son as the eldest in the family. I delayed my departure to say goodbye to Kendra at the funeral, and then went on my trip alone. Now that Albus had a younger brother and sister in his arms, there was no question of him coming with me.
This was the time when we communicated the least. I wrote to Albus, describing all the wonders from chimeras in Greece to the experiments of Egyptian alchemists. His letters told me about his Everyday life, which must have been very boring for such a gifted wizard. Later, I learned with horror that another misfortune befell the family - the death of sister Ariana.
Although she was already in poor health, the death of her mother finally finished her off. Everyone close to Albus, myself among them, believes that Ariana’s death and Albus’s responsibility for her (although he, of course, was not to blame) left a huge imprint.
I returned home and in front of me was a young man who had experienced much more than many older people. Albus was no longer so cheerful. And unfortunately, the loss of Ariana did not lead to a rapprochement between the brothers, but to their greater distance. (Over time, this passed, and over time, if not friendly, then trusting relationships returned.) But he rarely talked about his parents or Ariana, and his friends did not mention them.
About merits in subsequent years. Dumbledore made enormous contributions to wizarding knowledge, including his discovery of the twelve uses of dragon blood. He left much to subsequent generations, his extraordinary wisdom being evident when he was Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot. But I will say that there was no equal to the duel that took place between Dumbledore and Grindelwald in 1945. Those who saw her described in horror and admiration the feelings they experienced while watching the battle of two amazing wizards. Dumbledore's triumph and its consequences for magical world equated to a turning point, such as the International Secrecy Act or the fall of You-Know-Who.
Albus Dumbledore never prided himself or boasted that he found in people what was to be appreciated that was hidden from view. But his losses gave him great humanity and sympathy. I will miss his friendship more than I can explain, but my loss is nothing compared to the loss of the wizarding world. Without a doubt, he was the most inspiring and beloved Headmaster of Hogwarts. He died the way he lived: working in the service of good until his last breath, the way he once extended his hand little boy with dragon chicken pox, that's what he was when we met.

Harry finished reading but continued to look at the photo next to the note. Dumbledore still had that kind, familiar smile, but he also looked over his half-moon glasses, and it seemed to Harry that even from the photograph he could see right through everything, which made Harry feel bitter and embarrassed at the same time.
He thought he knew Dumbledore, but when he read this note, he realized that he knew almost nothing. He never imagined Dumbledore as a child or teenager, as if he had always been a white-haired old man. The teenage Dumbledore had the same difficulty introducing himself as the stupid Hermione or the friendly Blast-Ended Screwt.
He had never thought about asking Dumbledore about his past. It would be strange, incredible, but it was known that Dumbledore took part in that legendary duel against Grindelwald, and Harry did not even ask how it was, nor did he ask about other famous achievements. No, they always discussed Harry, Harry's past, Harry's future, Harry's plans... and it seems that now Harry understood that the opportunity had passed, he would no longer ask Dumbledore to talk about himself, although he still managed to ask one personal question. But Dumbledore was clearly lying.
- What do you see when you look in the mirror?
- I see a pair of thick woolen socks in my hand.
After a few minutes of thought, Harry tore the article from the Prophet, carefully folded it and placed it in the first volume of Practical Defensive Magic and Its Use Against the Dark Arts. He then threw the remaining newspaper into the trash heap and turned to face the room. It was much cleaner. Only today's Daily Prophet was lying on the bed, and on top of it was a fragment of a mirror.
Harry walked across the room, moved the shard away and opened the newspaper. He only glanced at the headline when the delivery owl brought him a folded newspaper that morning, and he put it down when he saw that there was no mention of Voldemort. Harry was sure that the Ministry was putting pressure on the Prophet to contain the news of Voldemort. And only now did he notice what he had missed.
In the bottom half of the editorial, above a photo of an alarmed Dumbledore, was the headline:

Dumbledore - Finally, Really?

On next week will reveal a shocking story about an undisputed genius, considered by many to be the greatest wizard of his time. Casting aside the well-known mask of a sage with a silver beard, Rita Skeeter reveals the veil of a difficult childhood, rebellious youth, eternal quarrels and all the secrets that Dumbledore took with him to the grave. WHY did he refuse to be a minister and remained just a school director? WHAT does the secret organization known as the Order of the Phoenix really want to achieve? HOW did Dumbledore really die?

These and many other questions will be answered in Rita Skeeter's disconcerting new biography, The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore. Exclusive interview with Betty Bratware on page 13.

Harry jerked the newspaper open to page 13. Above the article flashed another Familiar face: woman with glasses in beautiful frames with curly hair blond hair, her teeth bared in a triumphant smile with which she made a pen from a photograph. Trying to ignore the photograph, Harry continued reading.

In real life, Rita Skeeter is much nicer than the impression her notes leave. Having met me in the hallway of her cozy home, she led me into the kitchen for a cup of hot tea, a piece of cake and a whole steaming cauldron of the freshest rumors.

Of course, Dumbledore is a biographer's dream, says Skeeter. - So long rich life. I'm sure my book will be the first of many, many.

Skeeter is faster than ever. Her nine-hundred-page work was completed just four weeks after Dumbledore's mysterious death. I wondered how she managed to cope so quickly.

Ah, when you have so much journalism experience under your belt, writing to deadlines is second nature. I knew that the wizarding world wanted to know everything, and I wanted to be the first to provide such an opportunity.

I briefly mention the comment of Elphias Dodge, Special Advisor to the Wizengamot and longtime friend of Dumbledore, that "Skeeter's book doesn't tell you more than the card inside the Chocolate Frog."

Skeeter throws back his head in a fit of laughter.

Cutie Doji! I remember an interview with him a few years ago about mermaids' rights. He completely lost his mind, thought we were sitting at the bottom of Lake Windermere and asked us to keep an eye on the trout.

Yet Elphias Dodge's accusations are not the only case of such claims. Does Skeeter really think that in four weeks she was able to compile full picture about the long and amazing life Dumbledore?

Oh, my dear,” she beams, “you know as well as I do how much information a bag of Galleons, a refusal to hear “no” and a sharp Prytko can extract Writing Pen! Yes, people stood in line to dump their buckets of dirt on Dumbledore. Not everyone thought he was so great... he crossed more than one path. But good old Dodge Dodge may not be prancing around, because I've contacted a source that many journalists would give their wands for. He had never performed in public before, but was very close to Dumbledore during the most difficult period of his youth.

Excessive interest in the book already suggests that we are in for a shock from what we read, and Dumbledore did not live like that ideal life. So what surprises should we expect?

Come on, Betty, I won't give away the details before anyone buys the book! – Skeeter laughs. “But I promise that those who still think that Dumbledore lived the life of a saint will be greatly disappointed.” Let's say his desire to defeat You-Know-Who was provoked by his early successes in Dark Arts. And in his youth he was not so broad-minded. Yes, Albus Dumbledore has a very dark past, not to mention his crazy family, which he tried not to talk about.

I ask if Skeeter is referring to Dumbledore's brother Aberforth, who caused a scandal in the Wizengamot for his improper use of magic fifteen years ago.

“Oh, Aberforth is just the top of the dung heap,” Skeeter laughs. No, I'm talking about something worse than a brother having affairs with goats, even worse than a Muggle-hating father, both under investigation by the Wizengamot. No, I'm talking about my mother and sister, they really interested me, but you'll have to wait for chapters nine to twelve. All I can say is it's no wonder why Dumbledore never told how he broke his nose.

Will Skeeter deny Dumbledore's merits by pulling skeletons out of the family closet?

Of course, he had brains, she says, although many now wonder if he got all the credit. In Chapter Seven, for example, Ivor Dillonsby reveals how he had already discovered eight uses of dragon's blood when Dumbledore "borrowed" his papers.

What about the importance of events such as the victory over Grindelwald?

“Ah, I’m glad you mentioned Grindelwald,” Skeeter says with a charming smile. “I'm afraid those who believe in Dumbledore's amazing victory should prepare for a real bomb... perhaps even with dung.” There's so much dirt there. All I can say is, don't be sure that this legendary battle actually took place. After reading my book, many will most likely come to the conclusion that Grindelwald just created a white handkerchief with his wand and quietly left.

Skeeter refuses to talk about any topics, so we started talking about relationships.

Yes,” Skeeter replies with a nod. “I devote an entire chapter to the relationship between Potter and Dumbledore. So disgusting. Readers will have to buy my book, but I can say that Dumbledore took an unhealthy interest in the boy. Was it for the good...we'll see. It's no secret that Potter had a rough adolescence.

I ask if Skeeter is still in contact with Potter, with whom she was interviewed on You-Know-Who, to this day.

“Oh, of course, we are on very close terms,” says Skeeter. “Poor Potter has so few real friends, and we met at one of the most difficult moments of his life - at the Triwizard Tournament. I'm probably the only one alive who can say that I know the real Harry Potter.

Which brings us to the many rumors about last hours Dumbledore. Does Skeeter believe that Potter was with Dumbledore at the time of his death?

Well, I don't want to give too much away - it'll all be in the book - but witnesses at Hogwarts Castle saw Potter running from the scene immediately after Dumbledore fell, jumped, or was pushed. He later blamed Severus Snape, a man whom he harbored great dislike for. Is everything as it seems? It's up to the public to decide... once they read my book.

On this intriguing note, I leave our guest. There is no doubt that Skeeter has written a bestseller. Crowds of Dumbledore fans, meanwhile, fear what they might find out about their hero.

After reading the article to the end, Harry continued to look at the page. Angrily, he crumpled up the newspaper and threw it into the pile of other trash.
He began to frantically run around the room, opening drawers and taking out books, not realizing what he was doing, while individual pieces of Rita’s article were spinning in his head: Whole chapter focuses on the relationship between Potter and Dumbledore... so disgusting... early successes in the Dark Arts... contacted a source that many journalists would give their wands for...
- Lies! – Harry shouted, seeing through the window how the neighbor stopped starting the lawnmower and nervously looked up.
Harry sat down heavily on the bed. The fragment jumped away from him. He picked it up and turned it over, thinking about Dumbledore and Rita Skeeter's slander.
A bright blue light flashed. Harry froze, his finger touching the jagged edge of the mirror again. He made it up. He looked behind him, but the wall was the sickening peach color that Aunt Petunia had chosen. There was nothing blue that could be reflected in the mirror. He looked at the shard again, but his own green eye was looking at him again.
He made it up, there could be no other explanation because he was thinking about the dead headmaster. What was certain was that he would never again see the piercing gaze of Albus Dumbledore's light eyes.

Chapter 3. The Dursleys Leave

This part is very unclear, but it is about Vernon and Petunia wanting to leave and then talk to Harry *
- Yes? - asked Harry.
- Sit down! - said Uncle Vernon. Harry raised his eyebrows.
- Please! - added Uncle Vernon, wincing slightly at the word spoken.
Harry sat down. It seemed to him that he knew what was coming to him. His uncle began to pace around the room, while Aunt Petunia and Dudley watched him anxiously. Finally, Uncle Vernon's big lilac face was burdened with some thought and he stopped opposite Harry.
“I changed my mind,” he said.
“What a surprise,” said Harry.
*this part is no less clear, I’ll deal with it later*
Uncle Vernon stood in front of Harry again.
“I stayed up half the night thinking about all this, and came to the conclusion that this was a plan to take over the house.
- House? - Harry repeated. - Which house?
This house! - Uncle Vernon screamed, the vein in his forehead began to throb. - Our house! Housing prices here are very high! You want us to leave, and then you will do your tricks and everything will turn out to be copied to you and...
-Are you crazy? - asked Harry. - Plan to get this house? Are you really stupid or just seeming stupid?
“Don’t you dare!” Aunt Petunia squeaked, but Vernon calmed her down again.
“I’d like to remind you, in case you’ve forgotten,” said Harry, “that I actually have a house that my godfather left me.” Why do I need this one? In memory of good days?
There was silence. Harry thought he had made the right impression.
“And you say so,” said Uncle Vernon, again rushing around the room. - What is this some kind of Lord...
“...Voldemort,” said Harry. - And I told you a hundred times that this is not a guess, but a fact! Dumbledore told you last year, and Kingsley and Mr. Weasley...
Vernon Dursley winced, and Harry guessed that his uncle was trying to get rid of the memory of the visit of two adult wizards. Although, considering that Mr. Weasley once destroyed half of the Dursleys' living room, his wilting might, to put it mildly, not please Uncle Vernon.
“...Kingsley and Mr. Weasley explained it,” Harry said again. “I turn seventeen, the spell wears off, and you and I find ourselves under the threat of Voldemort’s attack.” The Order suspects that Voldemort may capture you and torture you to find out where I am or in hopes that I will come to save you.
Harry and Uncle Vernon's eyes met. Harry was sure they were thinking the same thing at the same time. Uncle Vernon then continued to wander around the room and Harry spoke again.
- You need to hide, and the Order wants to help. They offer you the best protection possible.
Uncle Vernon said nothing, but continued to walk around the room. The sun bent over the privet fences. The neighbor's lawnmower stalled again.
“I thought there was a Maggi Ministry,” Uncle Vernon said.
“Yes,” Harry answered in surprise.
- Well, why don’t they protect us then? It seems to me that victims like us, innocent of anything other than harboring a target, have the right to the protection of the government.
Harry couldn't help but laugh. It was in the spirit of Uncle Vernon to rely on guidance, even when it came to a world he denied and despised.
“You heard what Kingsley and Mr. Weasley told you,” Harry replied. - We think there is sabotage at the ministry.
Uncle Vernon rushed to the fireplace and back, breathing so heavily that his black mustache stood up, and his thoughts illuminated his face with a lilac glow.
"Okay," he said, stopping in front of Harry again. - Okay, let's say we agree to defend ourselves. And I don't understand why this Kingsley can't protect me.
Harry nearly rolled his eyes. This question has also been answered more than once.
“As I already said,” he said through gritted teeth. - Kingsley is guarding the Muggle Minister... that is, your Prime Minister.
- Exactly!.. he is the best! - Uncle Vernon said, pointing to the blank TV screen. The other day the Dursleys saw Kingsley on the news when he accompanied the Prime Minister on a hospital visit. This and the fact that Kingsley managed to dress like a Muggle, not to mention the confidence that came from his slow bass voice, was the reason why the Dursleys perceived Kingsley differently from other wizards, although they had never seen him with a gold ring in his ear .
“Well, he’s busy,” said Harry. - But Hestia Jones and Dedalus Diggle are more than ready to work...
“I’d like to look at their documents...” Uncle Vernon began, but Harry’s patience ran out. Getting up, he walked over to his uncle, now poking at the TV himself.
- These cases are not just accidents... accidents, explosions, everything that is happening now. People are disappearing and dying, and he is behind it, Voldemort. I tell you again: he kills Muggles for fun. Even the fog - dementors cause it, and if you don't remember who it is, ask your son!
Dudley abruptly covered his mouth with his hands. All eyes stared at him. He slowly lowered his hands and asked, "Is there... more?"
- More? - Harry laughed. - Besides the two that attacked us? Naturally! There are hundreds of them, now perhaps thousands, judging by general horror and despair...
“Okay, okay,” said Uncle Vernon. - We understand you...
“I hope,” said Harry, “because as soon as I turn seventeen, everyone: Death Eaters, Dementors, possibly Inferi, that is, dead bodies controlled by dark magic, will be able to find and attack you.” And if you remember the time you tried to evade the wizards, you will probably understand that you need help.
There was silence for a short time, in which, rushing through the years, the sound of Hagrid breaking the door was heard. Aunt Petunia looked at Uncle Vernon, Dudley looked at Harry. Finally Uncle Vernon blurted out: "What about my job? What about Dudley's school? I don't think these things are important to a bunch of wizards..."
- Don’t you understand? - Harry shouted. - They will torture you and kill you just like my parents!
“Dad,” Dudley said loudly. - I'm going with these people from the Order.
“Dudley,” said Harry, “for the first time in your life you’re saying something sensible.”
He knew that he had won the battle. If Dudley was scared enough to accept help from the Order, his parents would obviously agree with him. No one would ditch Diddikins. Harry glanced at his watch.
“They'll be here in about five minutes,” he said, and when no one from the Dursleys answered, he left the room. He thought that all the problems would be solved by themselves, but what should you say when parting to a person after sixteen years of hatred?
In his room, Harry walked around aimlessly with his backpack and threw food into Hedwig's cage, which she ignored.
“We'll be leaving soon,” Harry told her. - And you will be able to fly freely again.
The doorbell rang. Harry paused, but then left his room and headed downstairs. He didn't think the Dursleys could bear the presence of Hestia and Dedalus alone.
- Harry Potter! - a joyful voice squealed when Harry opened the door; the man in the purple hat bowed low. - Honor, as always!
“Thank you, Dedalus,” Harry said, smiling shyly at the dark-haired Hestia. - I’m very glad that you are doing this... They are here, my aunt, uncle and cousin...
- Good day, relatives of Harry Potter! - Dedalus said joyfully, walking into the living room. The Dursleys didn't look nearly as happy; Harry was already expecting their decision to change again. Dudley clung to his mother at the sight of the wizards.
- I see you have already gathered! Wonderful! The plan, as Harry has already told you, is simple,” said Dedalus, taking out a pocket watch and examining it carefully. - We'll leave the house before Harry does. You are not allowed to use magic in your home; this could provoke the Ministry to arrest Harry because he is still a minor. We must drive fifteen kilometers before Disapparating to the safe place we have chosen for you. Hope you know how to drive? - he asked Uncle Vernon politely.
- Do I know how... Of course I know perfectly well, damn you, how to drive! - Uncle Vernon got angry.
- So you are very smart, sir, very. Personally, I would be dumbfounded at the sight of all these buttons and pimples,” said Dedalus. He really enjoyed admiring Uncle Vernon, who seemed to be losing more and more confidence in the plan every second.
“He can’t even drive,” he muttered while his mustache twitched hysterically, but fortunately neither Dedalus nor Hestia heard him.
“You, Harry,” continued Dedalus, “will wait here for your guards.” Our plans have changed a little...
- In what sense? - said Harry. “I thought Psycho-Eye was supposed to pick me up for Parallel Apparation.”
“You can’t,” Hestia said. - Psycho-Eye will explain.
The Dursleys, who had been listening to this conversation without any joy, jumped at the loud “Hurry up!” Harry looked around the room before realizing that the sound was coming from Daedalus' pocket watch.
“Well, time is running out,” said Dedalus, nodding at his watch and putting it back into his jacket. “We will compare the time of your departure with the Disapparation of your family, Harry,” he turned to the Dursleys. - Well, are we ready to go?
No one answered. Uncle Vernon looked at the lump in Dedalus' jacket pocket.
“Perhaps we should wait in the corridor, Dedalus,” Hestia said. She considered it indecent to remain in the room when Harry and his family had to say warm and tender words of parting to each other.
“No need,” Harry muttered, but Uncle Vernon spared him the trouble of explaining with a loud “Well, bye then, lad.”
He raised his right hand to shake Harry's, but thought better of it and clenched his hand into a fist, swinging it back and forth like a pendulum.
-Are you ready, Daddy? - Aunt Petunia asked, checking the clasp on her bag, trying to avoid Harry's gaze.
Dudley didn't answer, but stood there with his mouth open, reminding Harry a little of the giant Group.
“Come on,” said Uncle Vernon.
He was almost opening the door when suddenly Dudley stammered: “I don’t understand.”
- What don’t you understand, honey? - Aunt Petunia asked, looking at her son.
Dudley raised his fat pig hand, pointing at Harry.
- Why doesn't he come with us?
Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia froze, staring at Dudley as if he had just expressed a desire to become a ballerina.
- What? - Uncle Vernon asked loudly.
- Why doesn't he come with us? - said Dudley.
“Well, he... doesn’t want to,” Uncle Vernon said, turning to Harry and adding. - You don’t want to, do you?
“Not one bit,” said Harry.
“You see,” said Uncle Vernon. - Now let's go.
He left the room. They heard the door open, but Dudley didn't move, and after a few steps, Aunt Petunia stopped too.
- What else? - Uncle Vernon barked, appearing at the door.
Dudley couldn't seem to put what he wanted to say into words. After several moments of obvious internal struggle, he finally said: “Where is he going?”
Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon looked at each other. Dudley clearly scared them. Hestia Jones broke the silence.
- But... you know where your nephew will go, right? - she asked, puzzled.
“Of course we do,” said Vernon Dursley. - He will go somewhere with your company, right? So. That's it, Dali, let's go, we're in a hurry, you heard what the uncle said.
Once again, Vernon Dursley walked out the door, but Dudley did not follow him.
- Will you go somewhere with our company?
Hestia was shocked. Harry knew this expression when the wizards did not understand how the relatives living nearby were not at all interested in the famous Harry Potter.
“It’s okay,” Harry assured her. - It doesn't matter, really.
- Doesn't matter? - Hestia repeated, raising her voice. - People don't understand what you had to go through? What danger are you in? That unique place, which position you occupy in the hearts of the people who rebelled against Voldemort?
“Er... no, they don’t understand,” said Harry. - They think that I’m taking up space, to be honest, I’m already used to it...
- I don't think you're taking up space.
If Harry hadn't seen Dudley's lips move, he wouldn't have believed his ears. He looked at Dudley for a long time, little by little realizing that the phrase had really been uttered by his brother-in-law. Dudley blushed. Harry himself was surprised and felt awkward.
- Well... uh... thanks, Dudley.
And again Dudley was lost in thought, finally saying: “You saved my life.”
“Not really,” said Dudley. - The Dementor would only take your soul...
He looked at his cousin curiously. They did not communicate in the summer, just like last year, when Harry returned to Privet Drive and did not leave the room. But only now did Harry realize that the cup of iced tea was not at all bad joke. He was relieved that Dudley was suddenly capable of feeling. Opening his mouth a couple more times, Dudley now lapsed into red-faced silence.
Aunt Petunia burst into tears. Hestia Jones looked at her approvingly, then looked stunned again when Aunt Petunia hugged Dudley instead of hugging Harry.
“S-so cute, Dudders...” she roared against his massive chest. S-such a cute boy... s-said thank you...
- He didn’t say thank you! - Hestia was indignant. - He just said that Harry doesn't take up space!
“Yes, but coming from him it’s like, ‘I love you,’” Harry said, both tired of the drawn-out scene and wanting to laugh at his aunt, who hugged Dudley as if he had just saved Harry from a burning building.
- Are we even going to go? - Uncle Vernon shouted loudly, reappearing at the living room door. - It seemed to me that time was running out!
“Yes, yes, let’s go,” said Dedalus Diggle, who was a little stunned watching the metamorphoses taking place, but made an effort and collected his thoughts. - It's really time, Harry...
He leaned over and shook Harry's hand with both of his own.
-...good luck, I hope we meet again. The hopes of the wizarding world rest on you.
“Oh,” said Harry, “exactly.” Thank you.
“Goodbye, Harry,” Hestia said, also shaking his hand. - Our thoughts are with you.
“I hope everything is okay,” Harry said, glancing at Aunt Petunia and Dudley.
"Oh, I'm sure we'll all be fine," Diggle said, waving his hat goodbye as he left the room. Hestia followed him.
Dudley slowly freed himself from his mother's embrace and approached Harry, who wanted to teach his cousin a lesson about magic. Suddenly Dudley raised his big pink hand.
“God, Dudley,” Harry said over Petunia's renewed wails. - Did the Dementors blow other people's brains into you?
“I don’t know,” Dudley muttered. - See you, Harry.
“Yes...” said Harry, shaking Dudley’s hand. - May be. Take care, Big D.
Dali almost smiled, then left the room. Harry heard his heavy footsteps in the yard, then the car door slammed shut.
Aunt Petunia, whose face was covered by a handkerchief, turned at the sound. She didn't seem to expect to be alone with Harry. Hastily putting the handkerchief in her pocket, she said: “Well... goodbye,” and headed towards the door, without looking at him.
“Goodbye,” said Harry.
She stopped and turned around. For a second, Harry had a strange feeling that she wanted to tell him something. She looked at him strangely and seemed about to speak, but with a jerk of her head, she left the room and headed towards her husband and son