Chapter 619: I Feel Very Disturbed!!
The final exam was History of Magic.
There were no practical lessons in History of Magic, so the exam was held in the afternoon. Darren knew what was going to happen tonight.
So he slept through the entire night and took the whole morning to rest.
This was normal. After all, he had exhausted his magic the previous night, and no one would force him to get up and study.
By the time he arrived at the Great Hall, it was already noon. Harry was waiting there.
When they saw that Darren looked much more energetic, they all breathed a sigh of relief.
"After the exam this afternoon, we'll finally be free!"
Ron said loudly. Darren laughed and nodded in agreement.
He immediately started stuffing food into his mouth. There probably wouldn't even be dinner that night.
If he didn't eat enough now, he'd have to go hungry until tomorrow.
"Slow down, slow down, drink some juice!"
Hermione said worriedly. Darren nodded.
But he still didn't stop eating. Only after he was completely full did he finally slow down.
Soon after, the long tables in the Great Hall vanished, replaced by individual desks.
Darren sat down and began reading the exam paper, his speed visibly increasing.
It wouldn't be long before Harry was dragged into a dream by Voldemort and had to rush to the Department of Mysteries.
If Darren didn't finish quickly, he might have to leave halfway through without completing the paper.
If that happened and his little "holy father" didn't get full marks, it would be a real pity. So he wrote even faster.
Professor Marchbanks looked shocked when she saw how quickly he was writing.
"Child, you—"
"Professor, I exhausted my magic last night. I still have a headache, so I want to finish quickly and go back to rest early."
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding…]
Professor Marchbanks understood immediately.
She no longer tried to restrain Darren's pace and instead turned to watch the other students. Darren finished his paper barely half an hour after the exam began. He would have liked to stay seated for a while.
But Professor Marchbanks had already collected his paper.
"Child, hurry back and rest. I think your paper is very complete."
Darren could only look at her gratefully.
He then pretended that his head hurt, slowly got up, and left.
He deliberately walked slowly, waiting for Harry to come find him.
But after waiting for half an hour with no sign of Harry, he went to the library instead. He lay down there and soon fell asleep.
Almost the moment he fell asleep, he woke up again.
He saw Hermione and Harry turning away.
"What's wrong? What are you going to do?"
Darren stopped them.
They froze, clearly wondering how Darren had woken up so quickly.
"It's nothing, we're just going to—"
"Don't hide it from me. What's going on? Otherwise, I'll follow you everywhere, and you won't be able to shake me off!"
With no other choice, Harry told him about the dream.
"He's caught Sirius. He said he's going to torture Sirius to death… I'm going to save him. But Darren, you can't go. You ran out of magic last night, and you still have a headache today. I don't want you—"
"Then you think I'll agree to you going alone? Even in my current state, I'm stronger than you, stronger than you all combined.
Listen to me. You have to take me. Even if I die, I won't let anything happen to you. Only I can stop Voldemort, right?"
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding…]
"Don't say nonsense. If you're going, you must promise me that you'll survive. Give me that promise!"
Darren laughed.
"Of course. When have I ever broken a promise?"
Harry finally let out a small sigh of relief.
But then Darren suddenly asked, "But what if this is just a dream?"
Harry, Hermione, and Ron all looked at him at once. Darren paced anxiously.
"I just feel that something isn't right…
I have a very ominous feeling, one I've never had before. Brother, can you verify it?
I'll distract Umbridge, and you go check whether Sirius is at home!"
"Sirius is in danger right now…" Harry said anxiously.
Darren shook his head hard.
The plot still had to move forward.
"It's unlikely that Sirius has really been captured. I really think this is a conspiracy. Brother, you must verify it properly. A delay of a little while won't make things worse!"
Harry looked at Hermione and Ron.
He desperately hoped one of them would persuade Darren. At a moment like this, going to Umbridge's office…
Every minute could mean life or death.
But Hermione sided with Darren.
"Listen to me, Harry. Listen to Darren. We should verify it. I also feel that this looks more like a trap.
Harry, you and Darren are the same. You both care too much about saving people. The Triwizard Tournament… Mr. Weasley… the basilisk in second year… maybe he's using this exact weakness to lure you."
"Care too much about saving people? Are you saying Darren and I shouldn't save anyone?
That during the Triwizard Tournament, during the basilisk incident, when Mr. Weasley was in danger, we should've just stood by and watched people die?"
Harry roared angrily.
Darren tugged at his sleeve.
He said solemnly, "Brother, listen to me. I want to save Sirius too. But we need a plan.
If we rush in blindly, we could disrupt the Order of the Phoenix. Brother, you're the key target. You can't afford to have anything happen to you."
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding…]
"He's my godfather. I don't have time to verify—"
"No. Brother, you must verify it."
"What if Sirius really dies? Darren, why won't you let me go right now? If it were Remus, would you still say this?"
Harry said through clenched teeth.
The moment the words left his mouth, he regretted them.
He knew Darren cared about Sirius just as much. In fact, Darren cared deeply about everyone.
He quickly apologized.
But Darren's eyes were already red. Hermione and Ron both sucked in sharp breaths.
The library fell silent.
Finally, Darren said softly, "I won't let him die, brother. Trust me…"
Harry gave in.
He agreed to the plan, and the group walked out of the library together.
Just as they were about to leave, they ran into Ginny, Luna, and Neville.
"Take us with you. We heard everything!"
Darren really wanted to say that bringing them along was basically sending them to their deaths.
If it weren't for the protagonist's plot armor, everyone except Harry would probably die.
But there was no helping it.
People with halos always had privileges.
Of course, he couldn't agree so easily.
He put on a stern expression and said, "No. All of you go back. Ginny, my brother and I treat you like family. Go back now. I order you to go back.
Luna, you're one of ours, and I'm asking you to go back.
Neville, I don't think your grandmother would agree to this. I'll buy you some time and contact her. If she agrees, then you can come."
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding…]