Hermione stepped forward and hugged Ning'an, who chuckled at Harry and placed the bag he was carrying on the edge of the fireplace, looked at him in surprise and asked:

"Where's Charlotte?"

"Let's go out and play, the giants of the woodland are celebrating the Summer Fire Festival today, and they were picked up by Jason as soon as they came back—" Hermione pulled the stunned Harry to the couch and sat down, and went to the side to pour three cups of black tea and gently placed them on the coffee table.

Harry looked at Hermione's skillful movements as if she were the mistress here, and didn't know what to say.

"By the way, Kakus has also sent you an invitation to their festival...... Pani may tell you these things in detail......"

"yes, got it."

Ning An and Hermione sat down opposite Harry together, obviously three people of the same age, but Harry felt as if he was facing the Weasleys, although he definitely didn't have a good impression of Ning An now as Arthur? Weasley was so good, but the aura that the two of them exuded made Harry feel amazed.

Poole had been dead since then, motionless and silent, and Harry was terrified, fearing that something might happen to his only companion.

"So what the hell happened, how did you end up in Tumbledown Alley, Harry?" Hermione asked with concern, but Harry looked at Ning An, and seeing Ning An staring at him with a smile, Harry was speechless for a while.

After hesitating for a moment, he didn't answer Hermione's question directly, but asked rhetorically without backing down

"What about you, how could you...... How did you end up here...... And...... Stay with him ......"

Hermione's expression of surprise came as she uneasily brushed her hair with her hand as she watched Harry nervously try to explain:

"Oh, I guess you know...... Yes...... Harry...... It's actually more complicated than you think, and I know about the Triwizard Tournament—"

"You know it all!?" Harry was shocked, Hermione said about the Triwizard Tournament, which meant that she really knew that Krum was pretending to be Ninchim, which made Harry hard to believe, his heart was dripping blood, and there was a feeling of deep betrayal, especially since this person was Hermione, his most trusted friend.

"No, not what you think, Harry!" Hermione hurriedly responded, "I also found out later, after the summer vacation-"

"So you accepted it?" Harry's voice turned cold, he couldn't imagine what kind of magic Ning An had cast on Hermione to make her do such an unreasonable thing, and he even wondered if Hermione had been controlled by the Imperius Curse.

"No, Harry, it's more complicated than you think......" Hermione tried to explain, but Harry had waved his hand indifferently, looking very tired.

"Don't explain, Hermione." He tilted his face to the side of the window, no longer looking at Hermione, "I just want to know why...... You'll be here, you'll believe in Ning'an......"

"Hmm......" Hermione put down the black tea in her hand, looked at Ning An, and then turned her gaze back to Harry, even though the latter had refused to make eye contact with them at the moment.

"Ning An and I are lovers...... We've been together for a long time. ”

Harry still turned his head, looking back and forth between Ning An and Hermione in a complicated manner, yes, he should have guessed a long time ago, since last semester Hermione would often lose her mind, be in a daze, pay attention to some strange things, and she would disappear for a while from time to time, not in the library, and not with herself and Ron.

Looking down, Harry saw the ring that Hermione's finger was slowly rubbing, and Ning An also had a very similar one on his hand, one with a capital letter H embedded in it, and another with a capital letter A on it.

"I see...... I should have guessed ......"

Harry muttered to himself, his mind seemed to drift back to last semester, in the Gryffindor common room, Hermione would often touch the ring alone in a daze, and he had wondered where Hermione got the ring, he originally thought it was just bought when she went to Hogsmeade, but he didn't expect it......

"So you've been hiding it from us?" Harry said expressionlessly, his voice cold as a machine, "Because you know in your heart that your lover is a bad guy, a dark wizard?" ”

"I won't let you say that, Harry!" Hermione said sternly, looking at Harry with a solemn expression.

And Harry didn't show any weakness in his eyes with Hermione, he felt that he had been deceived, that he had been deceived by his best friend, Ning An, this man, but in the Triwizard Tournament, he tied himself up, took his own blood, and brought Voldemort back to life, if Hermione- if Hermione knew all this, why did she-

"Alright, alright." Ning An clapped his hands lightly, the expression on his face was light, as if he didn't care about Harry's count, just gently patted Hermione's shoulder.

"That's the end of the old days, Harry," he said, looking at Harry, the look on his face was strange, he was no longer the childhood playmate who lived on Privet Road in Little Whinging, Harry thought to himself, he was a wizard now, a terrible dark wizard.

"We want to know what's going on, even if you don't, Harry—" Ning An's eyes suddenly met Harry

"Regents ......"

It was the last sound that drifted in his ears, the bright hall shook before his eyes and vanished, the images flashed through his mind like a movie, and he could no longer see what was around him.

In the dimly lit cemetery, someone was singing, and a figure slowly crawled out of the cauldron...... Summer vacation in the hot Little Huijin District, Privet Road is full of cars...... The starless night sky, the sudden arrival of Dementors, the rotten hands of decay and corruption...... A letter from the Ministry of Magic that he has been expelled from Hogwarts......

No, there was a voice screaming in Harry's head, it was so strange, how could this be, everything about him, everything he wanted to hide, was being read page by page-

He raised his wand at Dudley...... Slug Curse...... A voice was encouraging him...... Who is it......

"No, don't!"

Harry felt a sharp pain in his brain, and the hall, the marble, the rows of glass windows, the couch, all returned, and he found himself slumped in the couch, his back soaking wet and sweaty.

He looked up at Ning An and saw him sitting across from him, smiling and drinking tea as if nothing had happened, Hermione looked at him worriedly, which made Harry puzzled, but he was sure that something must have happened just now, what Ning An had done to him.

"So you really cast a spell on Dudley?" Ning An suddenly said, "You are too uncalm, so if you cast a spell outside the school like this, it is no wonder that you will be expelled from Hogwarts." ”

"What, you were expelled from Hogwarts!?" Hermione stood up in shock, Harry was about to say something about Ning An's behavior, but suddenly felt a pang of weakness.

Yes, he's been expelled from Hogwarts, and the Ministry of Magic is now hunting him down for him, just to catch him, and then break his wand, or throw him in Azkaban...... What else is there to care about.

“…… That's it. ”

Harry briefly talked about the Dementor attack and the arrival of the Ministry of Magic's investigators.

"You're so uncool, Harry—" Hermione's tone was still stern, but Harry had had had enough of this kind of teaching, and everyone had been telling him this since the summer, but no one thought about what he had endured.

Harry plucked his ears impatiently, shrugged his shoulders, and yawned nonchalantly, as if he hadn't heard Hermione, he had never done anything like this before, and it clearly scared Hermione.

Harry...... You ......"

"If I'm not welcome here, I can go somewhere else." He grabbed the fire bolt and got up.

"Wait, Harry—where are you going-" Hermione was a little anxious, "I mean, did you contact Dumbledore first, he should be looking for you, maybe we should get in touch with him first-"

"I've had enough, Hermione," Harry said calmly, looking at Hermione:

"You're here when I'm stuck on Privet Road and everyone is ignoring me...... Spend your vacation at another magic school...... ...... with your lover Oh, yes...... A let...... Voldemort's resurrected lover...... And now what are you saying to me...... Get in touch with Dumbledore......"

"It's not what you think it is." Hermione was arguing, but it had no effect on Harry, and after a short half-vacation, Harry seemed to have become a strange appearance, which also made Hermione very uncomfortable.

"Dumbledore never thought about me at all...... What should I say...... Say I've been attacked by Dementors...... I've read the Daily Prophet...... People describe me as a big liar on it...... Are you now in doubt about Voldemort's return...... I think what I'm telling is a lie! ”

"That's enough." Ning An interrupted Harry's words, motioned for Hermione to stop talking, stood up, bypassed the couch, and walked around the spacious hall a few times.

"Calm down Harry, you haven't been expelled from Hogwarts yet."

Harry was stunned for a moment, his mind racing, he was not expelled from Hogwarts, so Dumbledore made the decision? But what about the Ministry of Magic, and how powerful was Dumbledore to be above the Ministry?

"And the Ministry of Magic has reversed its decision to destroy your wand, and instead interrogated you......"

"How is that possible!?" Harry froze, he had seen the Ministry of Magic officials who had come to destroy his wand.

"I don't know, maybe you know, Dumbledore's men did some operation, maybe something else, but nothing has been decided yet."

"But how do you know—" Harry asked.

"Well, believe it or not, I've had a few good acquaintances at the British Ministry of Magic, and it's no secret that they didn't find you, so the second letter from the Ministry of Magic didn't get out—"

Harry's heart was beating violently, and a small glimmer of hope took root in his heart, and then quickly grew up that he could return to Hogwarts? Wouldn't he be thrown into Azkaban and spend his days with the Dementors?

"But...... I knocked out a Ministry of Magic official......"

"I haven't heard of this-" Ning An scratched his ears, "I think the person didn't report it, anyway, you were only accused of using magic outside of school, and you weren't charged with assaulting a public servant, I promise-"

Harry breathed a long sigh of relief, if what Ning An said was true, God forbid, oh my God, I couldn't believe it, just when he himself thought that he could only live in hiding like a rat in the sewers for the rest of his life, he was actually notified that there was a chance to turn around, which made Harry a little panicked and overwhelmed

"So...... Me, what do I do ......? ”

"I'll tell the Ministry of Magic that you're with me, and then they'll send you a notice of your trial, and after that, you're going to be interrogated, and the Wizengamot will decide whether you're guilty or not."

Harry's heart sank again, he didn't think he would get sympathy in court, Fudge hated himself to death, he said in the newspaper every day that he was crazy, a teenager who wanted to be famous, deliberately using someone whose name could not be mentioned to get everyone's attention, this is crazy behavior.

When he had the opportunity to judge himself, he would have hoped that Hogwarts would expel him and never set foot in the wizarding world again, so that it seemed to be no different from his previous situation.

"But...... Dumbledore will help me, will you......"

Harry struggled to say the name, the one he didn't really want to mention, but it seemed like the last hope.

"Ah, yes, of course—" Ning An nodded as he wandered across the marble floor, "Of course Dumbledore will help you, but he's out of his own hands now." ”

Hermione frowned, she still felt that Ning An was exaggerating, but this time she didn't say anything.

"Why?"

"If you've read the newspapers, you must know that Dumbledore has been removed from his position as chief wizard of the Wizengamot, and is no longer a member of it, and he is no longer the representative of the British seat of the United Council of Wizards, he is now only the headmaster of Hogwarts, and his influence on the Ministry of Magic is probably the lowest ever."

Harry was silent, he didn't want to admit this, but at the same time, he knew that Ning An was right, Dumbledore was now the same as him, two madmen who were shouting at Voldemort everywhere to come back, and people thought that this great wizard who had been famous for a lifetime was finally killed by Harry in his old age? Potter was confused, and they became a kind of person—liars who cheated on the world.

"To be honest, if it's just a Patronus spell used to protect yourself, it's easy to get your accusations dropped, after all, it's a dereliction of duty for the Ministry of Magic for the Dementors to come to the Privet Road-"

Ning An slowly walked into Harry, his voice getting quieter and quieter, but it became clearer and clearer in Harry's ears.

"But the problem is, out of anger, you used the Slug Curse on Dudley, which is a crime that cannot be cleared, especially if Fudge wants to get you to the handle, he will definitely attack this fiercely."

Harry lowered his head, he understood that Ning An was telling the truth.

"But maybe I have a way—" Ning An's words caused Harry to suddenly raise his head again, looking at him incredulously

"You know, I've had a lot of exchanges with Fukuji/zhang lately, and on certain things, if you're willing to exchange — I mean, maybe you'll be safe."

Ning An stood in front of Harry, and the meaning in his eyes made Harry feel that he had a plan

"What do I have to give?" Harry has grown a lot in the past few days, and he deeply understands that if you don't give, you won't get anything back, and Ning An is not Ron or Hermione, and he won't be willing to help him in vain.

"I want you to tell me who is encouraging you to attack your cousin in a fit of rage, Harry, and you know you're acting a little out of the ordinary."