Volume 5: The Burning Golden Flame Chapter 378 Jon's Dance Partner
This seems to be a problem, but as long as Jon doesn't think too much and directly gives a positive or negative answer, it can give Lucius many explanations.
There is no doubt that even if Jon and his team win the Triwizard Tournament, they will definitely need someone in the British Ministry of Magic to provide some reliable information.
So Dumbledore's side actually needs an undercover character, but if John refuses without thinking, it would be equivalent to sending a direct signal to Lucius.
We already have a better undercover agent in Voldemort's employ than you.
Of course, Jon couldn't tell this kind of thing to someone like Lucius.
The entire Malfoy family is a typical fence-sitter. Now that they see that Dumbledore's side is showing signs of regaining power, they are only showing goodwill to them for the continuation of the family in the future. It does not mean that he has really completely turned to the light. This is a typical speculative behavior.
As long as the wind direction changes slightly, he will definitely not hesitate to interrupt the cooperation with John and others again, and there is a high probability that he will add insult to injury and dedicate his "absolute loyalty" to Voldemort.
So after hearing his question, Jon refused without any hesitation, but he added a reason for the refusal.
"We certainly need such a person who can pass on information to us, but if this person is you, Mr. Malfoy, then let's forget about it."
Lucius was obviously disgusted with John's response without any demonstration, and his expression looked unhappy.
"Why forget it if it's mine? Can you find someone more suitable than me? I can provide you with a lot of valuable information, and it doesn't cost you anything."
Jon said calmly.
"I think you should know better than me what your situation is like under your master. If you were the former head of the Auror Command, you would indeed be worthy of our wooing. But now, we both know who controls the largest magical armed force. To put it nicely, you are now the head of the Auror Command, but to put it bluntly, you are the captain of the small fry team. You have not even entered the core of power."
Lucius looked unhappy because he knew that what Jon said was true, but it was precisely because it was the truth that hurt his self-esteem.
But John didn't care at all about Lucius's mood. Just like Dumbledore said, even if they wanted to win over a small number of Voldemort's men, they wouldn't want people like Lucius.
"And, as you said, Mr. Malfoy, you chose to make a deal with me because you trust our character. Then I will tell you the truth . We are unwilling to cooperate with you in this regard simply because we simply do not trust your character, even if you are willing to swear a blood oath. However, if you have someone with reliable character in the British Ministry of Magic who can be a suitable recommendation, then maybe we can consider it."
After saying these words, Jon stood up from his chair.
"If you have nothing else to do besides this, then let's end it here today."
Lucius's face was obviously turning green. He couldn't refute John's blunt words, but being so blunt made people despise his character, which really embarrassed Mr. Malfoy, who usually lived a pampered life.
Even if you are telling the truth, can't you express it in a more tactful way?
However, although Lucius was a little disappointed with John's rejection, he was not too depressed.
The main purpose of today's meeting with John was still for Draco's safety. As long as he gave a guarantee on this matter, his desire to cooperate with Dumbledore on some shady matters would be incidental.
After all, the Triwizard Tournament hasn't ended yet. Even if John wins in the end, the war between Voldemort and Dumbledore has only entered the balance stage. For Lucius, who is an expert fence-sitter, it is too early to choose sides at this time. The most he can do is to make sure that he has contact with both sides. In the end, no matter who wins or loses, they will have an acquaintance who is easy to talk to.
Now that John had rejected him outright on behalf of Dumbledore, Lucius had no intention of trying to please a cold shoulder.
There is a long way to go and there will be plenty of opportunities in the future.
After completing the transaction with Lucius, John did not stay in Hogsmeade for long and returned directly to the carriage.
It can be said that Lucius's demands in today's conversation were not beyond his and Dumbledore's expectations. The only thing that surprised John was that he could actually come up with conditions that could really impress him to complete the deal.
John felt that this deal was a good deal because he had no interest in Draco in the first place, and Draco himself obviously had no intention of competing with him for the first place. There was no life-and-death relationship between the two of them, so he didn't need to do anything deliberately to eventually meet Lucius's requirements.
In addition to getting some information about Adrian, he also got Dobby's freedom.
Putting aside other things, at least this house-elf who left a deep impression on him in the original book had a good ending. Jon already felt that the deal between him and Lucius was worth it.
After the last day of November, time officially entered the last month of 1994.
On the third day of December, it started snowing.
Overnight, the entire Hogwarts Castle was covered in white snow, and a solid layer of ice formed on the Black Lake as the temperature had been below zero for several days.
Many students in the castle now had a new place to play. After the lake froze, Jon ended his fishing activities. In his spare time, he and George sat on the ice and watched the slender girls skating on the ice from a distance.
"I have invited Daisy and she has accepted."
George raised the wand in his hand and tapped the ice in front of him, speaking in a boastful tone.
Jon rolled his eyes.
"Then did you know that before you invited Daisy, she asked the Warrior if she could invite him as a dance partner?"
"Damn it! You mean her first choice is actually you?"
"That's not the case. I'm just telling you not to think too much about her signal of agreement this time. I'm afraid that the greater your hope, the greater your disappointment in the end."
"Your worry is totally unnecessary. I just want to have the capital to dance with the Warriors so that I can go back and brag to Fred."
"Tsk, since you say so, then you can be my dance partner ."
"No way, you, Jon Green, haven't decided on a dance partner yet? You actually want to find someone like me?"
"What do you mean by a piece of shit like you? What's wrong with having a male partner? Who says that having a male partner is not okay?"
"Given your current fame in the wizarding world, if you really wanted to find a male dance partner, it would be on the headlines across Europe the next day. I've already thought of a headline for those reporters: 'Shocking! Jon Green's Misunderstood Homosexual Love'."
"Sorry, my preference is still women."
"But there are only twenty days left until the dance. If you don't take action now, all the girls around you will be invited. Don't look at me. Even if you don't care about public opinion, I will definitely not give up Daisy and choose you!"
"Come on, forget it. I'm just telling you, even if there really is no one else to choose in the end, I won't choose you!"
After the two of them teased each other, they turned their worried eyes to the girls who were showing off their figures on the ice.
"I'm actually shy and a little embarrassed to ask for a dance partner." Jon said sadly, "I'm so famous, why don't any girls ask me out?"
George gave him a disdainful look.
"There are only a few girls coming to Hogwarts Castle this time. Who do you want to invite you? You are a professor at Durmstrang. According to their rules, will students take the initiative to invite professors to dance?"
His analysis made Jon feel very reasonable. Even rabbits don't eat grass near their nests. They were classmates who saw each other every day in the carriage. It would be difficult to attack them if they were too familiar with each other. And he was a professor at Durmstrang. It would be bad for a professor to dance with his students on Christmas, right? Especially since there was not much age difference, and there was no need to consider Hogwarts Castle.
Jon felt that Grindelwald was at least half responsible for this matter. It was all his fault that he had to get himself into the gang, and now the consequences were apparent.
"Do you think Hermione has a dance partner now?" Jon suddenly asked.
George immediately shook his head.
"I haven't heard of her. She's been getting along very well with a girl in the castle lately. I haven't seen her much in the carriage."
"Then if I suggest to her that we work together to get through this Christmas, she will probably agree, right?"
George turned and looked at Jon as if he were an alien.
"Are you really going to make such an invitation to a beautiful girl?"
Jon was confused. He didn't seem to understand why George had such a strange reaction.
"Any questions?"
"Brother, have you never been with a girl before?"
Jon thought seriously about George's question, then nodded in agreement.
“I really haven’t gotten along with girls much.”
His answer left George speechless, but he really couldn't refute it.
Jon seems to be in the limelight in the wizarding world now, and he is still in the prime of his youth, but he is surprisingly clean.
To be honest, if Jon wanted to, he could have casually flirted with his classmates in the carriage after returning from Hogwarts Castle in his second year, and he had even more opportunities in his third year at sea.
But let alone a girlfriend for Jon, apart from Gabrielle who turned into a ghost, no one has ever heard of him having a slightly better relationship with any girl, except Hermione.
In addition, before the conquest of France, they had been in exile. Who would have the mood to think about relationships between men and women? Jon was almost always busy every day. Apart from thinking about the things in the carriage, he was also improving his strength to increase his sense of security. He never thought that at his age, it was the time for "premature love".
"Okay, you're right. You don't have any experience dealing with girls, but that's not an excuse." George taught Jon earnestly, "Even if you and Hermione have a good relationship, and you rescued her from the castle despite the dangers, you can't treat her the same way Fred and I get along with you. After all, she's still a girl."
"so what?"
"So if you want to invite her to be your dance partner, you can't use words like inviting good friends to go fishing together. You should use a more romantic invitation that can show your sincerity and make the lady fall in love with you."
Jon stared at him with empty eyes.
"Why do I feel more and more that what you are telling me is not about inviting Hermione to dance, but about wanting her to be my girlfriend?"
"Then what do you think it means as a boy to invite a girl to the Christmas dance? Especially when you are going to be the opening lead dancer." George also said.
"Can't we just dance? What time is it now? I'm not in the mood to talk about love. And to be honest, I have a good impression of Hermione, but if you want to say that I like her, then that's not the case."
George looked disappointed with Jon's honest words.
"Generally speaking, when you have a good impression of a girl, it's time to make a move. Otherwise, when should you wait? Do you really think there is love at first sight in the world? Those are just excuses men make for themselves! You have to communicate first to know if you are suitable for each other, right?"
Jon remained unmoved and shrugged.
"We are communicating now, why do we have to start talking about love to be considered as communication?"
George was speechless. He found that Jon's conservative thinking about feelings was not at all like a British person.
"If I were a woman, I would definitely call you a rock!"
He swung his wand hard, hitting the hard ice surface, as if he was hitting Jon's head.
But Jon didn't think it was a big deal. He was considered conservative in his previous life, but he wasn't straight either. He just felt that now was not the time for him to deal with his personal emotional issues.
Besides, he is only fifteen years old now. To be honest, it is still a bit early to say that it is puppy love. Jon really has no interest in the girls around him who have not yet fully grown into young ladies.
"Then it's settled. When I'm free in the next two days, I'll go find Hermione and ask her if she'd be willing to spend a night with me on Christmas Eve. Do you think she'd refuse?"
George rolled his eyes.
"Based on your current relationship with her, I bet she is actually waiting for you to speak first. Do you believe it?"
