94 hp Diagon Alley

unbearable.

"After I went to see Fudge, I came back to see you, Harry." Dumbledore said, "I hope you will stay here tomorrow, after I have finished speaking to the teachers and students in the school." After finishing speaking, he said gone.

Harry caught a glimpse of the real Moody still in front of Cedric's hospital bed, whispering something to Mr Diggory, seemingly interested in the Hufflepuff champions.

Ron, Hermione, Bill, and Mrs. Weasley came in from the curtain under the arrangement of Sirius, and sat on the chairs on both sides of him.The twins and Gwen stood at the end of the bed.Ron and Hermione looked at him almost cautiously, as if they were a little afraid of him.

"I'm fine," he told them, "just tired."

Mrs Weasley touched his sheets needlessly, tears welling in her eyes.

Madam Pomfrey had returned from a quick trip to her office with a small bottle and a goblet containing a purple potion.

"You need to drink it all, Harry," she said, "this drug will give you a good night's sleep."

Harry took the glass. "Before you drink it," he said to Gwen, who looked disheveled and disfigured, "thank you, Gwen. The Ollivanders' wand and your reminder saved my life."

Then Harry toasted and drank the potion in one gulp.He suddenly felt groggy.Everything around him was blurred; the ward lights seemed to wink at him friendly through the curtains; he felt as if his body was sinking deeper and deeper into the warmth of the feather mattress.Before he had finished his medicine, and before he could say another word, he was exhausted and fell into a dreamless sleep.

Harry's family and friends quietly received him in front of his hospital bed.Gwen thought of what Harry had said to her before he fell asleep, and seeing Digory, who was pale and unconscious not far away, couldn't help hiding behind George and crying.

"I can't figure it out," Gwen said tremulously, "we've all told the headmaster the truth about Crouch, why this is happening."

George noticed Sirius frowned in disapproval, but he didn't answer Gwen's question.

"What happened?" Ron couldn't help asking.

"We'll wait until Harry wakes up, okay?" Sirius tucked the corner of the quilt over the boy lying on the bed.

So Hermione and Ron, together with Bill and Fred, caught George and Gwen, and a group of them marched to the hospital bed farthest from Harry.

"Tell me, George." Fred asked his brother impatiently, "I'm already a little angry, but you guys are hiding it from me."

George and Gwen could only cheer up and tell the whole story of how they found the fake Moody.As they talked, the real Moody sat by Cedric's bed, eyeing him with interest.This time Gwen never felt that bad oppressive feeling again.

"He used Polyjuice Potion?"

"Little Crouch is still alive?"

Then Hermione covered her head and sorted it out from beginning to end, and came to a conclusion: "Little Crouch must have helped Harry in the first few levels, just to ensure that he won the final."

But what happened in the final, what caused Harry and Cedric to be seriously injured, the children have no idea.They continued to swarm around Harry like a clump of Weasley garden gnomes.

A few hours later, some unexpected guests came to the ward of the medical wing.

"If they don't shut up, they'll wake him up!" said Hermione.

"What are they shouting about? Couldn't something happen again?" Ron was a little anxious.

"It's Fudge's voice," whispered Mrs. Weasley. "It's Minerva McGonagall's voice, isn't it? But what are they arguing about?"

"It's a pity, but there's no way, Minerva—" cried Cornelius Fudge.

"You should never have brought it into the castle!" cried Professor McGonagall. "If Dumbledore finds out—"

The door of the ward was suddenly knocked open.Bill drew back the curtains, and everyone around them was staring at the door, not noticing that Harry sat up and put on his glasses.

Fudge strode into the sickroom.Professor McGonagall and Snape followed closely behind.

"Where's Dumbledore?" Fudge asked Mrs. Weasley.

"He's not here," said Mrs. Weasley angrily. "Minister, this is a ward, do you think you'd better—"

But at this moment, the door opened, and Dumbledore walked into the ward swiftly.

"What's the matter?" asked Dumbledore sternly, looking at Fudge and then at Professor McGonagall. "Why are you bothering these people here? You surprise me, Minerva—I called you Warden." Barty Crouch Jr.'s-"

"There's no need to watch him anymore, Dumbledore!" she screamed. "The Minister has made sure of that!"

No one had ever seen Professor McGonagall so impulsive.An angry flush came to her cheeks, and her hands were clenched into fists.She was shaking with anger.

"We told Mr. Fudge we found out that You-Know-Who and the Death Eaters were responsible for tonight's events," Snape whispered, "and he seemed to feel that his personal safety was also in question. He must call a Dementor." The monster accompanied him into the castle. He took the dementor into the office where Barty Crouch Jr. was—"

"I told him you wouldn't allow it, Dumbledore!" said Professor McGonagall angrily. "I told him you wouldn't allow dementors to set foot in the castle again, but - that fellow - the moment that fellow entered the office, ’ she pointed at Fudge, trembling all over, and screamed, ‘Just jump on Crouch, just-just-’

Professor McGonagall was desperately looking for words to describe what had just happened, and Gwen felt a chill in her stomach.Anyone can guess what the dementors did.The Dementor must have given Barty Crouch Jr. that fatal kiss.

"According to various accounts, he deserved it!" said Fudge aggressively. "He seems to have caused the deaths of several people!"

"But he can't testify now, Connelly," said Dumbledore.He stared sharply at Fudge, and seemed to see him clearly for the first time. "He can't provide evidence as to why he killed those people."

"Why did he kill them? Why, isn't it obvious!" said Fudge in a rage. "He's a wandering madman!"

"Voldemort did dictate to him before, Connelly," said Dumbledore. "Those deaths were a by-product of carrying out Voldemort's comeback plan. That plan worked. Voldemort returned to his body."

Fudge was shocked, as if someone had hit him head-on.Blinking dazedly, he stared blankly at Dumbledore, as if he couldn't quite believe what he had just heard.He stammered, his eyes still on Dumbledore.

"You-Know-Who... is back? Nonsense. Stop kidding, Dumbledore..."

"Severus has undoubtedly told you," said Dumbledore, "that you yourself have heard the confession of Barty Crouch Jr. Under the influence of Veritaserum, Crouch Jr. has made it clear —he helped Voldemort come back."

"Look here, Dumbledore," said Fudge, and Harry was surprised to see a smile appear on his face, "you—you can't really believe this. You-Know-Who—is back? Don't Just kidding, stop kidding... Needless to say, little Crouch may think he is following the orders of You-Know-Who - but how can you take such a madman seriously, Dumbledore..."

"Tonight, when Harry touched the Triwizard Cup, he was sent directly to Voldemort," said Dumbledore firmly. "He witnessed Voldemort's return from the dead. You may as well come to my office and I will explain everything to you."

The students who heard this covered their mouths and exclaimed, and they realized what Harry had gone through tonight—the boy faced Voldemort and the Death Eaters head-on.

Fudge still had the odd smile on his face.He looked at Harry, too, then turned his gaze back to Dumbledore, and said, "You - er - you're going to take Harry at his word, aren't you, Dumbledore?"

There was a moment's silence, and then Sirius' roar sounded.He stood up abruptly, baring his teeth at Fudge, as if one more word from him would bite the hypocrite's throat.

"Of course I believe Harry," said Dumbledore, his eyes glowing now, "I've heard Crouch's confession, and I've heard Harry's account of what happened after he touched the Triwizard Cup; Their words are reasonable and explain everything that has happened since the disappearance of Bertha Jorkins last summer."

Fudge still had that weird smile on his face.He glanced at Harry again before replying:

"You're ready to believe that Voldemort has returned, to a deranged murderer and a child who...he..."

Fudge shot Harry another quick glance, and Harry instantly understood what he meant.

"You must be reading Rita Skeeter, Mr. Fudge," he said softly.

Hermione, Gwen and the Weasleys were all taken aback.Neither of them noticed that Harry was awake.

Fudge blushed slightly, but then a recalcitrant and stubborn look appeared on his face.

"Also I see," he said, looking at Dumbledore, "that you've been keeping certain things about the kid under wraps? He's a Parseltongue, isn't he? There's something odd about his behavior— "

"I think you probably mean