Volume 3: A Tombstone Stained with Sin and Blood Chapter 147 Strange Betrayal
"The Dark Lord will not be willing to swallow this anger. He will definitely find a way to get back what happened in the first half of the year. Now it seems that he has already taken action."
Dumbledore's words made the Weasleys freeze in their seats, but Arthur was quick to react and asked in a hurried voice.
"Are you saying that someone on the carriage is instigating Percy to betray us?"
Dumbledore looked at him with relief.
"It's not that exaggerated, Arthur. Percy didn't do anything harmful to us. Logically, he could have done more for us to get closer to what he wanted, but he rejected that person. He now just thinks that the future lies on the other side, and he wants to take the path he thinks is right."
"Percy is not the one who caused us the problem, but the problem itself. It's just that this problem has already happened and we have no way to change it, but the person who created this problem is obviously still on the wagon."
"Maybe he sneaked into the carriage early in the morning, but I never found him. He only started to take action recently. I don't know when he came into contact with Percy, and then it intensified his resentment towards us."
Molly wiped the tears from her face. Although she was sad about Percy's rebellion, she had not lost her ability to think.
"But why choose Percy? Even if he has good academic performance in school, what impact will it have on us if we instigate him to betray us? What benefit will it bring to the Ministry of Magic? This will not only expose the information of the person who sneaked into the carriage, but will also not change the current situation at all."
Lupin answered thoughtfully.
"Perhaps they want to use Percy's betrayal as an example, so that when he joins the Ministry of Magic, he will be given important positions, and the Daily Prophet will report this extensively. Originally, a small number of pure-blood families were more inclined to us, but their descendants may not see it that way, and Percy set a benchmark for them. The attitude used by the Ministry of Magic on him shows that as long as a pure-blood is willing to work for the Dark Lord, even if his position is different from that of his parents, they will not pursue it and will even focus on training him ."
His words did offer a possibility, but Mag also expressed a different opinion.
"This is not in line with the character of the Ministry of Magic and the Dark Lord. Percy's case can indeed set a benchmark, but it can't have much impact on us now. They may be able to make a big splash in public opinion, but in fact we have never had a say in public opinion. If they really want to make a retaliatory response to what happened in the first half of the year, it would be too much thunder and little rain."
Percy's rebellion, especially the video he left behind, really made both the Weasleys and the professor in the carriage feel bitter.
But to be honest, the practical significance of his rebellion is not that great. Even if he is indeed the best student among his peers, he is not so powerful that the movements of one person can change the situation.
If the person who came into contact with him used the Imperius Curse to force Percy to do something more extreme in the carriage, or even went further and directly killed any student in the school, the situation would be even worse and would be a huge blow to Hogwarts and the Order of the Phoenix.
Now he has chosen a means of "revenge" whose consequences can be said to be completely minor, which is very incomprehensible.
But no matter what the reasons behind this matter were, the fact that Percy had rebelled could not be changed. Arthur took a deep breath and said to Dumbledore with his head down.
"I am sorry that my son has done what he has done, Dumbledore."
It was impossible for Dumbledore to have any prejudice against the Weasley family because of this incident, he said in a gentle voice.
"I don't blame you. People have different ideas, that's for sure. He just chose the path he wanted to take, even if we all think that this path is wrong."
"I want to put my work in France aside for now." Arthur grabbed Molly's hand, and he was obviously in a low mood. "Take Molly out to relax. Besides, if Percy really joins the British Ministry of Magic..."
Dumbledore interrupted him with a serious expression.
"He won't affect you, Arthur. No one will doubt you. I can guarantee that."
"Of course I know. This is my own idea." He looked up at Dumbledore with a hint of pleading in his eyes. "It can be considered as a little comfort to us."
Dumbledore was silent for a moment, then finally nodded.
"Okay, I respect your idea. I will let Sirius bring someone to take over your work."
After confirming Percy's final whereabouts, the Weasleys did not stay in the carriage for long. They did not visit other children who were at school because they had no idea how to tell them such a result.
After they left, McGonagall asked Dumbledore.
"Is it possible for Arthur and Molly to go find Percy alone?"
Dumbledore took off his glasses wearily.
"Don't worry, let them do it themselves. If there is a need, Arthur will definitely not hide it from us."
"Then if the Daily Prophet reports that Percy has joined the Ministry of Magic, should we keep this secret from the students on the carriage?"
Dumbledore shook his head.
"This is different from the time with Horace. We are protecting these students, not blocking their access to information from the outside world. If we only selectively tell them certain news, sooner or later when they find out everything, they will lose trust in us."
He didn't say what was different this time from the one with Slughorn, but McGonagall wouldn't ask too much. She would faithfully carry out the task assigned to her by Dumbledore.
Later, things developed just as they had expected in the principal's office.
The headline of the Daily Prophet the next day was the news that Percy had "set things right" and joined the Ministry of Magic.
[The third son of the famous pure-blood scum family Weasley surrendered himself and was pardoned. Minister Fudge specially hired him as the secretary of the Abuse of Magic Office of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement]
This matter was not concealed in the carriage. At noon on the fourth day after Percy's disappearance, George, Fred, Ron and Ginny, who were originally a little worried about Percy's disappearance, all read the report.
The parents of a mixed-race student sent the daily newspaper of that day to the carriage, and that day, all the students in the school knew where the missing Percy had gone.
At noon on that day, all the Weasley children who were going to school on the carriage gathered together.
