war and peace

The next morning, Harry went downstairs to breakfast.The Dursleys were already at the dinner table, and not far away a brand new TV was showing the morning news.Dudley was stuffing food into his mouth desperately, his small eyes were fixed on the screen; Uncle Vernon was reading the newspaper; Aunt Petunia was looking at something in the kitchen, but her eyes were squinting out the window to look at the neighbor's vegetable patch.

They didn't respond to Harry coming downstairs.Harry sat down with a piece of toast himself, not expecting the Dursleys to remember his birthday.He had to eat well, and this was probably his last peaceful breakfast this summer at the Dursleys.

Sure enough, when Aunt Petunia finally felt that she couldn't see anything illegal under those egg-shaped three-fold leaves with bright red butterfly flowers, Uncle Vernon also folded the newspaper: "I think I should go out." Now, Petunia, Maggie's train arrives at ten." He emptied his glass and stared at Harry as he stood up: "Maggie is staying here for a week, boy, be polite to her! "

Harry nodded curtly, but he was thinking in his heart that if this trend continued, he would hopefully find a reason tonight.

Aunt Marge didn't come often, but every time it brought him painful memories: the last time the dog chased him up a tree, the last time she gave him a box of dog biscuits for Christmas, and the last time It was to beat him on the shin with a cane to keep him from beating Dudley in the game-oh no, he learned to be good when he came back, and he pretended to be blunt in everything that had anything to do with Dudley. Aunt Marge didn't beat him, but She'd gone around declaring him hopelessly stupid ever since.

Uncle Vernon squinted at Harry for a moment, clearly suspicious of his calm reaction.But time didn't allow him to linger, and Aunt Petunia saw him to the door, then brought a new bow tie for Dudley to put on, and everything was the same as before.

Harry went back to his room after breakfast.The things he took out of the luggage had already been sorted and tied into a square package, and Hedwig had already been locked in a cage.At that time, he only needs to take these - take out the box in the cupboard - open the door and go out to catch the Knight bus, and it will take about 10 minutes.

It wasn't long before Harry heard Aunt Petunia telling him to come downstairs to meet his guests.He walked down slowly, opened the door, and soon saw a big purple face that closely resembled Uncle Vernon's.Aunt Marge slammed her suitcase into Harry's arms and called for her precious nephew Dudley.

Harry staggered back several times as he was pushed.He stood against the wall, watching Aunt Marge hug Dudley and Aunt Petunia coldly.No one noticed him, and Harry carried his suitcase and walked upstairs, but the sound downstairs still got into his ears without omission.

Uncle Vernon came in from behind, still complaining: "Which guy is going out in such a big way, the convoy is blocked in a whole row, fortunately I know the shortcut...Maggie, what do you want to drink?"

"What caravan?" Aunt Petunia asked sensitively. Her greatest hobby was collecting all kinds of gossip.

"Oh, the long row of Rolls-Royces... even the Apsara statues in front of the cars are made of gold - it's blinding, the sun makes them too bright," said Uncle Vernon angrily, and Harry figured he must very jealous.He was about to close the door when suddenly there was a loud noise coming from far and near. "What's the matter?" he said impatiently, pulling the door open again.

From the staircase window, Harry saw his neighbors poking their heads out of the living room one by one, and stretching their necks on the balconies and lawns, with expressions on their faces ranging from surprise to envy.He followed their gazes to the road, and saw a long black convoy passing silently.He couldn't even hear the sound of the engine... Harry raised his eyebrows. Could this be the convoy that Uncle Vernon mentioned just now?

Aunt Petunia and Dudley crowded to the door.When they saw the overlapping double R logos clearly, they all opened their eyes wide and opened their mouths wide.And as if to surprise them even more, the cars slowly stopped halfway through the door.

The people living in Privet Drive are ordinary people, and there is not even a district council member among them, let alone nobles.Rolls-Royce is a symbol of nobility in the UK, and ordinary people cannot afford to drive it.Usually, they can only see those luxurious castles and vast manors on the TV screen, and there are very few opportunities to see them up close.Harry could fully understand why this was causing a stir.

It was none of his business though, and he continued upstairs, thinking about his problem: how to spend as little time with Aunt Marge as possible...

There was a sudden commotion outside.People ran out of their houses one after another, lying on their fences and looking out, completely ignoring the vicious sun above their heads.It seemed that someone got out of the car, and everyone was pointing at them in a non-obvious manner.Harry looked out the window again, and couldn't help being a little surprised: why is everyone looking this way?It was impossible for the Dursleys to have such a relationship, and he could vouch for it with the experience of his two lifetimes.

Harry had reached the top of the stairs.He looked back at the doorway below. Dudley, Aunt Petunia, and Aunt Marge froze in place, as if they had been turned into sculptures, while Uncle Vernon had gone out, out of his sight.Harry withdrew his gaze, and was about to move his suitcase to a spare room, when he suddenly heard his own name faintly: "...I'm here to invite my friend to spend the summer vacation with him. His name is Harry Potter."

Harry almost dropped the box in his hand to the ground.This voice...? !If it is really him, that is too bold!

He looked downstairs slowly.Apparently he wasn't the only one shocked: Dudley's fat fingers trembled, his jaw seemed to freeze in astonishment; Uncle Nong poked his head out of the door to look at him, and Harry had never seen his eyes open so wide; and Aunt Marge, she couldn't help crying: "My honorable gentleman, you must admit your mistake!" Man! There is a Harry Potter here, but there is no doubt that he is not your friend..." She looked disgusted, as if Harry was actually a bug.

But the visitor didn't listen to her at all.Someone pushed the half-closed door open, and Harry saw a man who haunted the hearts of all the girls at Hogwarts—Professor Mal Vironka Roald.He wore a crisp black tuxedo, a black waistcoat, and a round tie over a white shirt.The sun hit his shoulders, and the outline was covered with a faint golden light.

These all suit him very well, and he looks very handsome... Voldemort looked up and saw Harry staring at him blankly, and raised a spring-like smile: "Harry, long time no see." With that smile, everywhere There were gasps one after another. This person...does he know what he is doing?He'd charm a slice of Muggles!Harry nodded heavily to himself in his heart. Sure enough, as long as he wanted, he could make himself very attractive!

Uncle Vernon finally came to his senses, and welcomed Voldemort in with a visibly flattering smile.Seeing Aunt Petunia hurriedly pulling Dudley out of the way for him, Harry couldn't help crying and laughing: Do you know who he is?Are you in such a hurry to build a relationship?He was slandering, when suddenly he saw his uncle and aunt winking at him wildly, with the look of "you hurry up and come down and wait for you to look good".

Harry watched Voldemort stepping in unceremoniously, and raised his head as he passed the porch below: "Didn't I tell you? How is the luggage packed?" Harry was stunned, how did he know that he had packed his luggage? ... Voldemort looked at him, let out a chuckle, and then walked into the living room.The Dursleys looked at each other, and followed obligingly.

Harry was left standing on the stairs, racking his brains over the letter he'd received that morning.It turns out that Voldemort had already made up his mind that he would come by himself, so he didn't write the time and place?Harry scratched his head and headed to his room. Anyway, this was good news.He can justifiably stay away from Aunt Maggie... If Voldemort makes such a scene, maybe she will be afraid of him in the future...

Harry packed his luggage quickly and put it in the hall with Hedwig's cage.Then he walked into the living room, and immediately found that the atmosphere inside had changed.The original attitude of the Dursleys was just courteous, but now it is completely respectful.When he entered, Uncle Vernon was tremblingly asking: "...You mean, apart from such a large piece of territory, you also own half of Bristol Bay, Your Excellency the Duke?"

What?Duke?Harry stared at Voldemort suspiciously, how did this come about?

Voldemort returned him a look that I will talk about later, then got up and pulled him to his side, and then he answered Uncle Vernon slowly: "It's all thanks to the generosity of Her Majesty the Queen." The Dursleys watched him helplessly. His movements revealed disbelief and jealousy in his eyes.Aunt Marge's small eyes rolled between the two of them, and finally she couldn't help it: "My lord, how did you know Harry? It's very imaginable..."

Harry never knew that there would be a day when Aunt Marge spoke so softly.She had already said just now that Voldemort must have admitted the wrong person.Voldemort looked at Harry and raised the corners of his mouth: "On the train, we sit in the next compartment."

As soon as these words came out, the expressions of Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon changed.train?The only train Harry ever took was to go to that damn magic school... Doesn't that mean that this unusually young and handsome Duke in front of him is also... that kind of person?They exchanged a look in horror.

But Aunt Marge was completely unaware of this.She had already made up her mind that she would take the train to Penzance if she had nothing to do in the future, and she didn't believe that this kid was the only one with that kind of luck (she thought Harry was studying at the St. Bruce's School for Young Safety Offenders in Penzance).

The atmosphere suddenly became awkward because of the fear of the Dursleys.Uninterested in their reaction, Voldemort turned to Harry and asked, "Are you packed?" Harry nodded.

"Then I'll take Harry to Roald Manor." Voldemort stood up, his tone slightly lowered, "Thank you for taking care of Harry over the years." The Si Li couple could not help but start to tremble.But then he changed his enthusiastic tone again: "You are also welcome to come here when you are free."

Just as Aunt Marge was about to answer, Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia hurriedly pinched her hard from behind, but she didn't dare to yell out loud, so the "yes" was replaced by half a scream.Voldemort noticed their small movements, these two people are quite sensible!

Harry was within the distance of being pulled out of the house by Voldemort to his car (his luggage was graciously carried away by someone Voldemort found somewhere), and he felt everyone around him staring at them.The luxury cars were still parked outside, and everyone was curious about what their owners were doing here.When they saw that Harry, who was usually inconspicuous, was one of the protagonists in this incident, they all stared round their eyes.

Voldemort seemed content with the stir he had caused, though. "Exceeded expectations," he concluded succinctly, as he and Harry sat in the spacious backseat.

Harry was already simmering with a lot of questions.As soon as the car door was closed, he couldn't help asking: "Did you know that Aunt Maggie was coming today?"

Voldemort looked at him and spread his hands innocently: "No, I only know that your birthday is today."

The lights in the car were not very bright, and Harry could only see the shadow cast by Voldemort's browbones, the corners of his brows curved softly.He couldn't help but move in his heart, and changed the question: "What about the Duke?"

"That's true." Voldemort's tone sounded like he was talking about the weather, rather than one of Britain's most distinguished noble titles: "I am the last descendant of Salazar Slytherin, and I should inherit all his Honor and property. Naturally, in compensation for the oldest noble family, the Queen gave me a new land and castle."

Harry vaguely remembered that he had indeed seen in the newspaper that there was a very young new duke in the new round of knighthood ceremonies, but he just glanced at it and turned it over without paying attention at all. "Half a bay?" said Harry emphatically.He suddenly thought, "Doesn't everyone know that you are a descendant of Slytherin?"

"May I take this to mean you're worried about me?" Voldemort's mouth curled into a smile.He suddenly pulled Harry closer, leaned over and kissed him on the forehead, "The Order of the Phoenix won't guess."

Harry blushed instantly.He was only fortunate that the light blocking effect of the car glass was good enough, and the lights in the car were not bright enough.

At the same time, under the lamppost of Privet Drive, a big black dog sat there, staring plaintively at the flying dust of the convoy.It's just a little bit too late... If I had known about it, I would have just broken in. Why would I want to surprise Harry with an Animagus?