Mentor and Friends

"You said, what are they trying to cover up?" Grindelwald said softly, as if he was asking the saints around him, and he seemed to be asking himself, "This kind of cover-up is not very clever, as long as you seriously check it out I can find the flaws in it, but they can still successfully become professors at Hogwarts, is it really the headmaster who should retire because of his old foolishness?"

The older the old guy, the smarter he was. It is impossible for him not to know such an obvious lie. The biggest possibility is that he still hired those two people even though he knew their identities were false.

I don't know...does he know about this situation...

"Are you afraid that these two people will become variables in our plan in England?" Seeing Grindelwald lost in thought, someone beside him asked.

"Very likely, isn't it?"

The aura that the young man showed at the moment he blocked him from putting pressure on the child made even him a little bit afraid. Although he quickly put away the aura and went back, Grindelwald couldn't forget it. That moment gave him heart palpitations.

"You want to do that?"

"The situation in Germany will not change for the time being. We will stay in the UK for the time being and see what happens."

"Then... Mr. Dumbledore's letter to you..."

"I'll answer it myself." Before he was sure that those two people would not pose any danger to Al, let's wait for a while about the duel.

The next day, Harry followed Dippet's invitation and went to Diagon Alley.

"The kid Tom has changed a lot." Dippet smiled and said to Harry, "Harry, I think hiring you to Hogwarts is the most correct decision I've made over the years I've been in office."

"It didn't even occur to me that I could help." Speaking of Tom, Harry would think of the recent embarrassment between him and Tom, but fortunately he didn't pause too much.

"You're a good boy." Headmaster Dippet looked at Harry.

When Harry found him, he was still a little hesitant. After all, there were many things that Harry didn’t want to say, and as the headmaster, he hired a professor with unknown background. The Ministry can't find anything, but after all, he is the principal, and he has to be responsible for the school.

However, he hired Harry after all, and it turned out that he was right.

"Albus has been very worried about Tom's affairs. You know, when he went to the orphanage to deliver a letter to Tom, the situation Tom showed was too different from the situation after he entered school. The kid was obsessed with black magic. We always Worrying about him."

Harry looked down.

Tom thought the headmaster didn't know, but in fact the headmaster had been worried about him for a long time, but he probably thought that, except for Professor Dumbledore, everyone else had been fooled by him.

"I noticed that Tom has changed a lot since you came, although he hasn't noticed it yet." Dippet looked at Harry with a smile.

"Really……"

"Harry, I think I need your help with something."

"Huh?" Harry raised his head to look at the principal, but was surprised to find that the other party's eyes were shining solemnly.

"Albus looks much better these years." There are not too many people who know Dumbledore's past, but at least in this era, Dippet, who is Dumbledore's teacher and friend, knows Clearly, "He's been through some things, and it's made him have a bad time over the years."

Harry looked at him suspiciously. Logically speaking, Dippet should not know that he knew about Professor Dumbledore's past. Why...

"Of course, that's his private matter, I can't tell you." Dippet added, "Even if you don't know, there are some things you can always do."

"You mean..."

"After this semester is over, I'm going to retire."

Harry's eyes widened suddenly. The principal's retirement date was much earlier than he knew. What's going on?

"The Ministry of Magic and the board of directors have almost already made a default decision. If there is no accident, the next headmaster of Hogwarts will be Albus."

Of course, there will be no accidents. After the duel with Professor Dumbledore is over, no one will object to him becoming the headmaster.

"However, the current Albus is not suitable to be the headmaster yet."

"What do you mean?"

"Harry, Albus has experienced many things. Although he has gradually stepped out of the shadows over the years, he is still obsessed with some people and things. He is obsessed with private affairs, so he is not suitable to be a Hogwarts student. Principal, I don't know when he can really let go, but before that, I think you can help him." Dippet said to Harry earnestly.

"Me?" Harry pointed to himself in surprise.

"I can see that you have a very good relationship," Dippet nodded. "In recent years, few people have been so close to Albus."

Even Albus told him personally that when facing Harry, he can always relax inadvertently, and Harry has an unimaginable affinity for him.

"After I retire, Professor Slughorn will be able to return. At that time, you will be the head of Gryffindor."

Harry fell silent.

He originally chose to teach at Hogwarts because Hogwarts can give him a feeling of "home" no matter what time, and in this age filled with gunpowder, Hogwarts is relatively safe, he Originally, I wanted to stay in Hogwarts quietly and wait for the day when I got in touch with Hermione before leaving, but I didn't expect...

"Harry, Albus needs you." Dippet sighed softly.

That sigh contained too much regret and pity for Dumbledore's experience. If Harry didn't know Dumbledore's past, maybe he wouldn't understand the meaning of this sigh.

Suddenly, he remembered the scene of seeing Dumbledore in the whiteness of the platform during the final battle with Voldemort.

The trembling when mentioning Grindelwald, recalling the helplessness of the past.

"I'm such a fool, Harry. I haven't learned anything in all these years." That's what he said to Harry.

It was also at that time that Harry finally understood what Dumbledore was seeing when he looked at the Mirror of Erised.

It was just an old man, an old man who couldn't escape until his death.

Harry, Albus needs you.

Maybe Dippet will never understand how much this sentence touched Harry.

He has received help from the principal many times. Although he later learned a lot of truths, this still cannot stop his longing for the principal.

Even though the war made him witness the death of many people, he still couldn't forget the despair when the headmaster fell from the astronomy tower.

Albus here, is he going to keep dying like this, as Harry knows?

He can obviously help his...

but……

Harry, don't try to reverse history as you know it, even though your space may be completely different from ours.

He remembered what Hermione had specially marked in red ink for him when she sent the message.

Hermione understood him. No matter how many things he had gone through, Harry was still the same Harry. In Snape's words, he was a meddling idiot who thought he could save the world with his own abilities alone.

Hermione was afraid that the space Harry was in was similar to the world they were in, and that Harry would be involved.

Harry is the kind of person who, even after using the time-turner countless times, will still forget the principle of "cannot participate in what happened at a given time".

So when sending the letter, Hermione specially wrote that sentence in the most prominent place on the letter.

That's why Harry hesitated at this moment.

"Harry, you'll never know if things will go your way when you intervene, and it may even get worse." This is what Hermione told him solemnly.

Therefore, although Dippet's entrustment made him feel deeply at this time, he still did not agree.

"Harry, you still have half a year to think about it." Principal Dippet looked softly at the young man in front of him.

He knew that Harry might have this concern. Although he didn't know the source of this concern, he still hoped that someone could help Albus. As far as he could see, Albus was almost only in front of Harry. To relax a little.

He didn't know what magical powers this child had, but at least, he was a hope.

After saying goodbye to Dippet, Harry dodged into Knockturn Alley.

There are a lot of people in Knockturn Alley today, but what is inconsistent with it is that it is strangely quiet here.

It was obvious that many people were acting here, but there was no sound at all, it was eerily quiet.

Harry came to a store in a familiar manner.

This is a place where rare magic minerals are sold. Harry came here with Draco before, so he knew about it.

"Good afternoon, distinguished guest." The shopkeeper's voice sounded without sincerity, "What do you need?"

Harry's whole body was hidden in the black robe, and his hood completely concealed his appearance. Hearing the innkeeper's question, he handed over a piece of parchment.

"Heh, that's not a small amount." The shopkeeper looked at the parchment handed over by Harry, with a hint of surprise in his eyes.

"You can set the price whatever you want." After he and Ron bought some of the magic crystals they brought over, they got a lot of wealth. In addition to the Garen they already had in their space bags, they bought what they needed on the list. The magical minerals are not a problem at all.

"Of course, when do you want it?"

"If it's in stock, then it's now." Harry said in a low voice.

"Wait a moment." The man walked into the small room behind him, while Harry looked out boredly.

This store is not in the center of Knockturn Alley, it is very close to Diagon Alley, and even the path leading to Diagon Alley can be seen from Harry's perspective.

Suddenly, Harry narrowed his eyes.

He seemed to... saw a familiar figure?

At the entrance of Knockturn Alley, Grindelwald stood quietly with his hood on, and Dumbledore's figure disappeared in a flash on the street of Diagon Alley that the entrance led to.

Harry looked at the figure of Grindelwald standing quietly at the entrance. The saint did not follow him, which proved that Grindelwald should have come here alone.

Harry looked at it for a long time, and suddenly had an epiphany.

He...he didn't dare to see Dumbledore, so he just stood here and looked at him?

"Guest, what do you want?" At this time, the shopkeeper came out with the magic mineral Harry wanted, and Harry took it silently. After the shopkeeper gave the money, he decided it was reasonable, left the Gallon and left.

He didn't even dare to look at Grindelwald again. For the first time, he felt that the silence in Knockturn Alley made him feel suffocated.