"He's summoning me!"
Snape pulled up his sleeve, revealing the black snake coiling around the skeleton, appearing to slither into the skull's eye socket as if it were alive.
"What do you mean?" Ron hadn't grasped it yet, but Hermione covered her mouth, her eyes wide with shock.
"That's the Dark Mark, something only Death Eaters have!"
She looked at Snape in disbelief.
Even though no one liked him, not even Harry had thought Snape was a Death Eater, someone who had always been loyal to the Dark Lord!
"To correct you, it's something only Death Eaters who are trusted by the Dark Lord have the privilege of receiving!" Sirius said sarcastically.
It was the truth—Voldemort wouldn't give the Dark Mark to just anyone. For example, some werewolves and some wizards who were not deemed worthy. In his eyes, they weren't even considered servants, just expendable resources.
But right now, no one was concerned about that.
Snape was unfazed by his sarcasm; he merely looked at Cyrus, waiting for his decision. Should he return to the Dark Lord's side, or stay? Should he reveal everything or continue to hide?
Cyrus quickly made arrangements for Snape. He didn't speak, merely gazing into Snape's eyes.
||"You'll go with us and then attack me. Of course, I don't think he'll let you make a move."|| This message rang directly in Snape's mind, unheard by anyone else.
What Snape needed now was to demonstrate his loyalty to Voldemort. With Dumbledore still alive, Voldemort required a mole close to Dumbledore.
Not many people could perform this task effectively, and it wasn't yet time for Snape to be exposed.
At least for now, Cyrus wasn't planning on disrupting Dumbledore's arrangement.
"Come On! Harry is with them! We have to hurry! The problem is, how are we going to find them!" Sirius stomped his foot forcefully. At that moment, a tall figure hurriedly and frantically pushed open the doors of the Astronomy Tower.
It was Hagrid!
"The Thestrals found Harry's blood in the Forbidden Forest!" He burst in, almost tumbling over, shouting even before he had his footing.
Simultaneously, several black shadows swooped across the sky. They resembled skeletal horses with dragon-like heads and enormous bat wings, like the mounts of the Grim Reaper!
"What?" Hermione looked out in confusion but saw nothing. In contrast, Ginny and Ron were startled by the Thestrals' terrifying appearance.
This unique breed of winged horse could only be seen by those who had witnessed death.
No one had time to explain to Hermione. Sirius was the first to mount a Thestral, looking like a prince heading off to war. "The Thestrals will follow the scent of the blood to find Harry!"
So, under the astonished gaze of Hermione and the terrified gaze Ron, and Ginny, they mounted the invisible Thestrals. The winged horses spread their vast membranous wings, and the gust of wind caused the planetary models in the Astronomy Tower to spin.
"Wait, we're coming too!"
Ginny gripped her wand tightly and stepped forward. She had been watching Cyrus intently, showing no sign of backing down.
"I can fight Death Eaters! You taught me how to fight, didn't you?"
After a long time, Cyrus noticed that Ginny had indeed grown taller, her features slowly becoming more defined, with her fair skin resembling snow. But in his eyes, she was still just a second-year student.
"We can too!" Hermione and Ron had no intention of backing down.
"You must stay at the school!" Professor McGonagall said sternly.
Even Sirius didn't support them risking themselves. "We're up against the Dark Lord and the Death Eaters. They're ruthless killers. Kids, this is no joke!"
But neither Hermione, Ginny, nor even Ron paid any attention to what they said. They just looked straight at Cyrus until he shook his head.
"No."
Once Voldemort is resurrected, even Cyrus himself would not be confident of defeating him. He couldn't possibly take a few kids on such a risky venture as a hindrence.
"It's late now. Go back to your dormitories. Tomorrow morning, you will see Harry," he commanded almost sternly.
The three children felt somewhat indignant, especially Ginny. She had previously taken down Peter Pettigrew—perhaps Cyrus was underestimating her?
However, when she looked into Cyrus's eyes, she suddenly felt no urge to resist. It was as if the words coming out of Cyrus's mouth were commands that couldn't be refused, truths that couldn't be altered!
So, she could only lower her head, pouting as she walked toward the Astronomy Tower door. Before leaving, she glanced back, her face full of grievance. "Only cares about Harry?"
"What about me."
Bang! The door closed.
.....
Bang!
The air was torn open, and Barty Crouch Jr. emerged from a small black hole with the injured Harry, throwing him onto the muddy ground.
Harry was completely bound, unable to move, and could only try his best to look up.
He saw a large cauldron set up, and the pale, thin wizard who had appeared in his dreams, his face full of fear, was holding a small bundle in his arms and pointing his wand at the bottom of the cauldron, making small movements.
A three-headed snake slithered into the darkness.
"You're back, Barty."
The bundle in Karkaroff's arms moved and emitted a piercing sound, like sharp claws scraping across glass, which made Harry extremely uncomfortable.
Then, he saw the thing inside the bundle stick its head out, fully revealing itself in front of him — a slimy, eyeless, ugly creature. It looked like a baby but had no hair, with snake-like scales all over its dark, red skin, as if it were raw, wounded flesh — and it had a snake's face.
Harry instantly realized that this was Voldemort.
Harry had seen many forms of Voldemort, but none appeared as pathetic as this one, as if he could be easily squashed to death.
However, he knew that this current form of Voldemort was even more dangerous than before. His frailty was merely a facade; perhaps in the next moment, Voldemort would fully resurrect, and then, like a venomous snake spewing poison, spread terror across the magical community in Britain!
"Everything went smoothly, my Lord!" Barty Jr. said excitedly.
"You never disappoint me," Voldemort said, his tone both excited and cold. His eyes were like two slits, and when they opened wider, they revealed vertical pupils.
Under his gaze, Harry felt intense pain in his scar, as if his blood had frozen!
"It seems my appearance has scared the 'Boy Who Lived,'" Voldemort said with pauses between his words, his tone dripping with disdain. To him, Harry Potter was nothing more than a joke. "Well, Harry, we will catch up later."
The liquid in the cauldron seemed to heat up quickly. Its surface not only began to boil but also sparked, glittering as if encrusted with diamonds.
"It's ready, Master," Karkaroff said, his voice hoarse and weak, as though he had just been crying.
His face was full of fear, and his hands trembled. Unlike with Barty Jr., Voldemort was not gentle with him.
"Now, put me in!"
Karkaroff carried Voldemort to the edge of the cauldron.
The sparks from the potion lit up his sinister, flat face. Karkaroff lowered him into the cauldron, and the potion instantly covered Voldemort.
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