[HP Doujin] 1943

The summer of 1955 went very fast. At the end of September, leaden gray clouds swept across the wasteland of the Scottish Highlands with gusts of wind and rain. With a layer of silent sorrow.

Melinda Stuart stood in front of the living room window, and the rain gathered in torrents and cascaded down the glass like a waterfall.She wore a black gown, her long dark hair was tied back in a thick ponytail with a black ribbon, and her gray-blue eyes had the melancholy that shouldn't belong to a 13-year-old. .

The door opened softly, and Eleanor, who was also wearing a black robe, led Charles in.Her face was pale, and her curly blond hair was tied back with a black ribbon.

"Uncle Tony is coming soon," said Eleanor.She made Charles sit on the couch, then went to the window and stood beside Melinda, looking out of the rain-blurred window at the drive of the manor gate.

Compared with the quiet and introverted Eleanor, Melinda has always been a lively and active girl with an extremely strong personality, always trying to be the first in everything, but recently she has become particularly silent.Hearing Eleanor's words, she turned and walked away without saying a word, picked up a book on the mantelpiece, and sat silently on the sofa opposite Charles.

Eleanor sighed and turned back to the window.The car of Uncle Tony and Aunt Claudia was coming soon, because she saw Mr. Claude, the housekeeper, standing outside the porch with the footman holding a black umbrella.The Stuart Manor had tightened security measures last month, and no one could apparate directly into the manor anymore, they could only enter by car from the concierge.But even if she can apparate, Aunt Claudia can only come here by car, because Becca told her that witches in wheelchairs cannot apparate.

The black car drove downstairs, Eleanor wiped the fog from the windows, and saw Tony in black get out of the car, the manservant and an accompanying therapist carried the wheelchair out of the car, Uncle Tony Holding Aunt Claudia in her arms, she walked into the house.

Eleanor felt a pang of pain in her heart.She hadn't felt this bad since her mother died.I still remember that when I attended Uncle Tony's wedding two years ago, Claudia was so radiant. She was wearing a white dress and waltzing with Tony on the golden dance floor. She was the envy of hundreds of witches and wizards.

The maid's footsteps sounded from outside the door, and Becca walked in. She was also wearing black clothes, her face was pale and her eyes were swollen like peaches.Uncle Tony came in pushing Aunt Claudia's wheelchair, and Gillian, St. Mungo's therapist, followed them, her cloak dripping with rain.Aunt Claudia was wearing a thick fur coat, her blond hair was pulled back tightly, and she was wearing a black hat with black veil hanging down to cover half of her face.

"Say hello to Uncle Tony and Aunt Claudia," Francis said to the children as he entered.Eleanor stepped forward, both Tony and Claudia kissed her, and Charles also walked over.But Melinda didn't move, her pale little face was tensed.

"Mel?" Francis said, his voice hoarse.

Melinda still didn't move.After a few seconds, she smashed the book in her hand to the ground as if losing her temper, stood up, pushed Eleanor away, and ran upstairs.Charles hesitated, and ran after his sister.

Listening to her fading sobs, Francis added an unspeakable sadness and misery on his vicissitudes of face.He turned to look at Becca, and said darkly, "Go and see them."

The atmosphere in the living room was extremely solemn, except for the continuous sound of rain outside the window, no one said a word.Mr. Crowder brought refreshments, and poured each a cup of strong hot tea.Francis stood in front of the fireplace, with his back to Tony and Claudia, his hands resting on the mantelpiece, his head bowed, and he said nothing.

"Mr. Stuart, let's have a cup of hot tea," Mr. Claude said cautiously while holding a fine white porcelain gilt teacup, "You haven't eaten for several days."

"Bring me a brandy," Francis said without looking back. "No ice."

Mr. Claude showed a helpless and painful expression, shook his head, waved his wand, and there was an extra bottle of wine and a glass on the table.

Francis took the glass, raised his head and drank the white spirit in one gulp.He put down the glass, turned his head, walked to the window, put one hand in his trouser pocket, and said, "I plan to take the children out next week."

Tony sat on the sofa and looked at him, not very surprised.

"What do you do with the estate?" Tony asked him.

"I don't want to come back myself, and I don't want to see other people live here," Francis said. "Let it fall here and gradually become an empty house full of cobwebs. Maybe one day, she will come back." Come back and have a look."

Claudia's shoulders trembled, and Tony looked down, running his fingers through the hair on his forehead.After a few seconds he got up, went to the table and poured out a large glass of brandy.

When she was about to go out, Melinda locked herself in the room and refused to come out no matter who tried to persuade her.When Mr. Crowder and Gillian went up to tell her to come down, Melinda directly smashed the teapot and mirror in the room on the door.

"Let me go see her," Claudia said.

Tony hesitated, but carried her upstairs anyway.He stood at the door of Melinda's room with Claudia in his arms, and knocked on the door.

"Mel?" Claudia said softly, "Can I come in and have a word with you?"

There was silence at the door for a while, then there was a slight click, and Melinda's head appeared in the doorway.

"Thank you," Claudia said, then turned to Tony and said, "Put me in the chair, please? I'll have a few minutes alone with Mel."

Tony had been waiting at the door, and about a quarter of an hour later, Charles opened the door, looked at him with a pair of dark eyes exactly like hers, and said, "Uncle Tony, Mel is getting ready to go to Mom's funeral."

The cemetery is on the hillside behind the Stuart Manor, where all generations of the Stuart family are buried.Francis took Melinda, and Eleanor was at the head of the line.Lady Madeleine Randall leads Charles by the hand and follows Francis.And then there's Tony, Claudia, Gillian, and the nanny holding Estella.Clarissa walked behind with her sons William and Edward, and Victoria, with her head wrapped in a hood, walked alone behind Clarissa's children.Then came Abraxas Malfoy and his wife Georgiana, and their son Lucius.In addition to these people, there were more than a dozen of her former classmates at Hogwarts who attended the funeral. Many of them Tony couldn't remember who they were, but he recognized Carl and Chris, who used to be with her. She also has the Ravenclaw boys with Ada.The retired Minister of Magic followed, as did Francis' assistant, Jonathan.Other than that, there were no other Ministry of Magic officials.

The butler, Mr. Claude, and the housekeeper, Jennings, followed behind with more than [-] servants in the family, and many of the maids were sobbing and crying.Becca was wearing a black robe, walking pale and silent at the back, no one dared to speak to her, because she looked so fragile that it would break if touched.

As for the buckwheat field outside the cemetery, hundreds of people from the "Daily Prophet", "Witch Weekly", "Transfiguration Today", as well as the French newspapers "French Evening News", " The reporters of the Marseilles Witches, the Paris Mirror, etc. were crowded.In addition to these people, there were thousands of people who spontaneously organized to see Mrs. Stuart off.They had long read the story of the Stuart couple in the newspaper, and they were deeply saddened by the great misfortune suffered by the Stuart family. Mrs. Stuart exchanged her life for the death of the leader of the black wizard. To them it is an extremely noble act.Others came to see the real face of the former Ministry of Magic official whose two wives and a mistress died tragically out of purely a spectatorship mentality.

The ceremony was very brief, the heavy rain was getting heavier, and Mr. Crowder had cast a spell on everyone, so that no rain would hit the people, and everyone looked as if they were covered in a thin layer of mist.The strong wind from the Scottish Highlands blew from the valley, making people's black robes flutter. When the coffin slowly descended into the grave, Eleanor finally couldn't help sobbing.

Melinda was huddled close to Francis, her face frighteningly white, her dark ponytail fluttering in the wind.She didn't cry, but she was shaking all over.Tony stood by Claudia's wheelchair, holding her hand tightly.He looked at Melinda and asked Claudia in a low voice, "What did you say to Mel so she agreed to come to the funeral?"

Claudia looked up at him and smiled faintly: "It's nothing, I just told her the truth. I told her that Lizzie was happy before she died."

After the presiding old wizard finished speaking, Francis walked to the marble tombstone, silently watching the endless rain ahead.

At five in the morning on August 1955, 8, when everyone was asleep, all the camellias around the Stuart Manor suddenly withered.These camellias were never planted naturally, but copied from the original flower she conjured.

The magician was gone, and the camellia was silent forever.

Francis looked forward, and the classical forehead and deep-set eye sockets that looked like ancient Greek statues seemed to be frozen in the air.

"Elizabeth Madeleine Bradley Stuart, beloved daughter, wife, and mother." His deep voice sounded on the moors of Scotland, "Beyond the darkness is the light of love."

As if there was an invisible hand, this short epitaph was deeply engraved on the stone tablet letter by letter.

Melinda held Charles, tears finally streaming down her cheeks.It took Francis a few seconds to calm down before he resumed speaking with a slightly trembling voice: "We all know that my beloved wife Elizabeth followed Tom Riddle, the leader of the black wizard, in the tunnel car crash in Paris on August 8. At nine o'clock in the morning on September 31st, Mr. Benjamin Rivers, the former Minister of Magic, delivered his resignation speech. At the same time, George Hart, the head of the Auror Office, and I also announced our resignation."

At this point, he paused, and his mournful voice gradually became powerful and steady: "All of us have Elizabeth's blood on our hands. The Battle of Bernard's Valley was the most stupid decision ever made by the Ministry of Magic. Not only did not a single dark wizard be captured, but more than 100 villas were destroyed, and the private property of countless families suffered huge losses. For this, Mr. George Hart has issued a public apology on behalf of the Auror Office. Tom Lee After Del escaped from the valley, for unknown reasons, he hijacked my wife and had a car accident in the early morning of the next day. The Ministry of Magic has not found out the truth about the cause of the car accident."

"Finally, if Elizabeth can hear, I want to tell her: Darling, not only have you made me the happiest man I've been for the past eight years, the memories you've given me will light up every day that remains of my life." 1 minute." He took a deep breath, raised his head, closed his eyes, and exerted all his willpower to control the surging sadness.He looked forward again and said, "I want to send a poem to my most beautiful wife."

He paused, and in a low voice began to recite a poem he knew by heart from childhood.

Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone.

Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone.

Silencethepianosandwithhamuffleddrum,

Bring out the coffin, let them mourners come.

Stop all clocks and cut every telephone line.

Throw a bone and stop the watchdog from barking.

Stop the music, stop the drums,

Lift out the coffin to meet the mourners.

She was my North, my South, my East and West,

My working week and Sunday rest,

Mynoon, mymidnight, mytalk, mysong,

I thought that love would last forever,

Iwaswrong.

She is the north, south and east and west of my life,

My working days and nights and my resting minutes;

She is my noon and midnight,

the meaning of every word on my lips, the melody of every note in my heart,

I thought our love would last forever,

But I was wrong.

The stars are not wanted now, put out everyone.

Packupthemoonanddismantlethesun.

Pourawaytheoceanandsweepupthewood,

For nothing now can ever come to any good.

No one wants to see the stars shine, put them all out.

Gather the light of the moon and disperse the light of the sun,

Drain every drop of water from the ocean, cut down every tree in the forest,

Just because there is nothing else in this world that deserves my heart to stop. "【35】

Francis said nothing else.He walked up to Melinda, Charles and Eleanor, silently watching the gravedigger in black robe raise his wand, and the dirt fell on the coffin wrapped in dark blue velvet.The sound of the soil falling was not loud, but it struck everyone's heart like thunder.Melinda buried her head in Francis' arms, trembling all over.Eleanor hugged Charles, tears streaming down her pale face.

Many years later, when Eleanor graduated from Gryffindor College, she could still recall what Elizabeth said to her a long time ago: "Both Beauxbatons and Hogwarts are the greatest wizarding schools in Europe. No matter Which school or college you go to, I believe you will become an outstanding witch. Everyone's life is their own choice, and my father and I will respect your decision."

The rain was still pouring down, and Malfoy was the first to notice that something was wrong.

There was a strange swishing sound in the air, not the sound of wind.He subconsciously pulled Georgiana and Lucius to his side, looked up, and saw dozens of black smoke appear in the leaden gray sky covered with dark clouds, flying towards them at a fast speed.

The reporters and the crowd gathered outside the cemetery gradually became restless. They stretched their necks and looked at the sky, not understanding what happened.Francis took the children into his arms, a look of terror crossing his face.

Streams of black smoke landed at the end of the cemetery one after another, turning into a wizard in all black robes with a hood covering his face.As they got closer and closer, several maids saw the leader clearly, covered their mouths suddenly, and let out a shrill and terrifying scream.

Both Tony and Francis saw it clearly.Tony's face turned pale, and he staggered back. Francis pushed the three children behind him, showing fear and shock on his usually calm face.

The wizard who walks in the front is not wearing a hood.His face seemed to have been burnt, and the features blurred and twisted oddly like wax.Still, one can spot Tom Riddle.His eyes turned red, and his pupils were like slender snake eyes, cruel and cold.He wore a black cloak, and his face was as white as the marble of a tomb.

Nott, Rozier, Mulciber, Dolokhov and others followed behind him. Besides these people, there was also a witch with a slightly slender figure and black hair hanging from her hood.

The crowd and reporters gathered outside the cemetery began to flee one after another, and the scene was chaotic. All the daring reporters even pressed the shutter—the mysterious resurrection of Tom Riddle will definitely be the front page news of the next month.

"Good morning, Stuart." Tom seemed oblivious to the confusion caused by his presence, and gave an evil, scary smile.His voice also changed, becoming more high-pitched and colder, and everyone shuddered fiercely the moment they heard it.

Francis turned pale, and after a while, he said, "Who are you?"

"I thought you'd welcome me more warmly as an old friend," said Tom, sneering in a grimly unhuman voice.He turned around abruptly to look at the crowd attending the funeral, his black robe fluttering up and down in the wind and rain, like a god of death.

He waved his wand, and a few shiny words appeared in the air——

Tom Marvolo Riddle

He flicked his wand again, and the letters switched places and became—

i am voldemort

Many people began to cry in fear, but no one dared to make a sound.Voldemort glanced around coldly, and raised his voice: "Do you think I also died in that car accident? You are wrong. That car accident killed only Tom Riddle. Today, I will let you Everyone knows that the Dark Lord cannot be killed or destroyed! Any attempt to confront me will be punished several times over!"

He swung his wand, and a woman let out a piercing scream, as if caught in the air by an invisible hook, and flew towards him.Clarissa looked up at Victoria who was hanging upside down in the air with her mouth open, her face turned pale with fright, while desperately holding her two sons into her arms, she backed away.

Voldemort watched with admiring expression as Victoria screamed and struggled in the air in vain.Playing with his yew wand with his long, pale fingers, he said slowly, "Revenge is the sweetest taste in the world, don't you think? Oh, I remember, you probably don't know what this woman does What? She was responsible for the car accident that burned Tom Riddle and Mrs. Stuart two weeks ago!"

Everyone was dumbfounded, Francis raised his head, the expression on his face was beyond shock.Voldemort looked at the woman screaming in despair in mid-air, and said calmly, "Beg me for mercy."

Victoria angrily cursed a series of swear words, Voldemort gave her a disgusted look, and pulled out his wand: "Crucio!"

A shrill scream pierced the sky, Dolokhov and Rozier laughed rough, and Rozier drew out his wand: "Do you need my help, my lord?"

Voldemort didn't answer, so Rozier took it as acquiescence, and excitedly drew out his wand. Victoria fell to the ground convulsively, and then rose into the air again.Under the severe pain and insult, Victoria finally let out a hoarse and trembling voice: "Please... Please, the car accident has nothing to do with me, volley—ah!"

A curse was lashed at her, and Dolokhov roared: "That's not a name you can call casually!"

"That's enough," Voldemort said flatly, stroking his wand with his fingertips, and aiming it steadily at her, a grim voice resounded throughout the cemetery, "Avada Kedavra!"

With several screams and a flash of blinding green light, Victoria Stuart rolled over in the air and fell on her back, eyes wide open as the torrential rain fell on her corpse , black hair scattered around the head like a fishing net.

The yew wand pointed to the gray sky: "The bones reappear!"

A huge, shiny green thing gushed out of the tip of the stick and flew into the sky. It was a gigantic skeleton, composed of countless green star-like things, and a python emerged from the skull's mouth like a tongue. .The skeleton rose higher and higher, shining brightly in a cloud of green mist.

It was the first Dark Mark in history to be launched into the air.This is the mark of death and the pinnacle of totalitarianism.

There has been a stampede outside the cemetery, everyone is scrambling to get away, some are screaming, some are crying.But Voldemort seemed to have no more thoughts of killing. He turned around and looked at Elizabeth's tombstone, with no expression on his cold and distorted face.

He stood motionless, and none of the people present dared to move or make a sound.

Many years later, when Melinda Stuart recalled that nightmare funeral, she could still remember Voldemort's tall, motionless back facing Elizabeth's tombstone.She remembered the heavy gray rain falling like a waterfall, the trembling arms of her father holding her and Eleanor, and the muddy and slippery grass beneath her leather shoes.The air was filled with the chill of late autumn, as if the cemetery was haunted not by Death Eaters but by Dementors.

Voldemort's black robes were billowing in the wind, and a dozen or so hooded Death Eaters stood behind him in two rows, warily eyeing everyone at the funeral with wands in their hands.The heavy rain continued, and it seemed that it would never stop for a lifetime.

A few minutes later, a black shadow rose into the sky, and Voldemort disappeared into the gray rain.The Death Eaters followed him and left.

According to historical records, Voldemort's power arose from the mid-60s, but as early as 1955, he had already appeared in front of the world under the name "Voldemort".

Maybe, Melinda thought later, Tom Riddle had really died in a tunnel in Paris.

From then on, there was no more Tom and Lizzie in the world.

Francis Stuart died in 1974.After Elizabeth's death, he never married again.He is buried with Elizabeth at Stuart Manor.While sorting through her father's belongings, Melinda found a letter dated August 1955, 8.

What does this particular date remind her of.

"To my dearest Francis:

If you are reading this letter, I am no longer alive, although that is unlikely.But just in case, I still gave this letter to Claudia.I said to Claudia, when I got home, she had better throw this letter away, because I could tell you these words myself.

Do you remember when I told you once that I had a dream about me as a child?I lied to you, it wasn't a dream, it was a memory.I remembered it all.I remembered it when we went to Paris together for Estella's birthday party in July.

I met Professor Dumbledore at the banquet, and I talked to him about my confusion: 'Why didn't I go through treatment, and I also remembered these memories that were forcibly blocked by Victoria a long time ago? '

He told me: 'Lizzie, this is an ancient and mysterious magic that has the power to overcome some evil curse - that is love.It is a magic rooted in the mysterious rhythms of nature and the universe, without formulas, without rules.It happens when it should happen.All who need love and desire love will be helped. '

You see, in fact, Victoria is not invincible. The moment I fell in love with you, I broke her curse and remembered everything about you.Although the curse can be broken, I can no longer love you like I love Tom.

I met Sylvia the morning you left Villa Randall.I know what I would do, but the thought of hurting you and the children just makes me so sad.Sometimes I think, I might as well be dead. I am alive, not only tormenting myself, but also tormenting you, Tom, and many others.

When I find Tom, I'll write you a letter, and I'll risk my life that you let Tom go.It really hurts to push you so hard, but I still have to.Because I can never love you more than I love Tom.I love you like I love my family, and Tom like I'd rather die with him.

How to go in the future, we have to discuss it carefully.I'm in a mess right now, I'll talk about it when I get home.

good luck,

Lizzie.

Ps, tell Mel, Eleanor and Charles that I will always, always love them.

1955.8.24 "

[35] Selected from Funeral Blues (funeral elegy) by British poet WHAuden (W.H. Auden), translated into Chinese by Yueming Heqi.