Chapter 502 The Calm Before the Storm
Ada didn't know how far Scotland was from Versailles. She only knew that the shortest point in the Strait of Dover was more than 30 miles. But this short distance of 30 miles seems to be a natural chasm that makes the two countries very different.
Ada no longer remembers how many times she has crossed the Strait of Dover. She will land in Calais and then transfer to Versailles.
The ferry cut through waves and parted the sea water, and docked at the passenger port in less than two hours.
After disembarking and landing, Ada did not stop in Calais, nor did she choose to leave by train, but directly used Apparition to get on her way. She was so anxious to return home that she had no intention of admiring the French scenery along the way.
When I returned to Rose Manor, I was just in time for dinner. Ida was greeted with dust-dusted hands and a heart-warming hug. Vida didn't ask Ada why she suddenly came back. This was home, a place where she could come back at any time.
Then it was Christmas, and I received many gifts, including clothes, jewelry, etc. The most special gift was the twins, who sent a howling letter.
On Christmas morning, the twins' angry roar lasted for a full quarter of an hour before stopping. The deafening roar almost blew off the roof of the manor.
Feeling that she was dead, Ada blushed and changed her clothes, walked out of the brick-red building and went to the pigeonhouse to feed the pigeons.
Watching the pigeons peck at the scattered bread crumbs, Ada's red face gradually returned to its normal color.
In the idle days after Christmas, feeding the pigeons became the first thing Ada did when she got up every morning. Listening to the pigeons cooing in the ears and watching them hovering in the sky, Ada's chaotic mood will calm down.
The days at Rose Manor were peaceful and peaceful, with no intrigues or intrigues, and no Voldemort watching in the dark. Now Ada is like a fisherman who has put away his fishing net, finding a moment of peace in his busy life.
In a blink of an eye, the half-month Christmas vacation was over, and Hogwarts lost its female student body president, just like losing the brightest jewel in its crown.
Ada still stayed at Rose Manor, and she also wrote in her diary:
January 1, 1996
Happy new year. It’s decided that we should love and work, that’s it!
…
January 2, 1996
I am very tired and don’t want to love or work. If possible, please let me be a useless person...
…
January 3, 1996
My grandmother asked me what I planned to do next. I didn't answer because the word idle made me ashamed.
…
Early that morning, Hogwarts had officially started school, and Ada appeared in front of the pigeonhouse on time, carrying a small bowl full of bread crumbs.
The crumbs were sprinkled casually, and the pigeons swarmed up. Ada stretched out her finger and counted the number. She found that there were unfamiliar faces among the pigeons. She didn’t know whether they were pigeons that had flown from elsewhere or were young pigeons that had just emerged from the nest.
At this time, there were footsteps behind Ada. Ada pointed at the strange pigeon and said with a smile: "Look, Laura, we have a new friend today. It is very beautiful."
"It is very beautiful, but I think you will not be in the mood to admire pigeons after reading today's newspaper." Laura said, handing over two newspapers as she spoke.
One is the Daily Prophet in the British wizarding world, and the other is a local newspaper in France.
After taking the newspaper and opening the Daily Prophet, ten black and white photos filling the front page came into view.
Some of the nine wizards and one witch were laughing silently, while others were arrogantly tapping the edges of their pictures with their fingers. Each photo was labeled with a name and the crime for which he was imprisoned in Azkaban.
Bellatrix Lestrange, Antonin Dolohov, etc., these ten people are all Death Eaters, Voldemort's loyal subordinates, and his right-hand men.
Continuing to look down, the newspaper reads:
The Ministry of Magic announced last night that a large-scale prison break had occurred in Azkaban.
Minister Cornelius Fudge confirmed in an interview in his office that ten felons escaped last night and that he had informed the Muggle Prime Minister of the dangers of the fugitives.
Put down the Daily Prophet and open the local newspaper, which also reported on the escape of ten felons from Azkaban. But the local newspapers were not as worried as their British counterparts. They believed that these ten people could not threaten the security of the French magical community.
The French wizarding community has always scorned the talk of Voldemort's return, thinking that Dumbledore was hysterical. People from the French Ministry of Magic privately ridiculed Cornelius Fudge as a softie and described him as worthless.
Now that these ten felons have escaped from prison, they are all Voldemort's men. The French wizarding community has finally stopped laughing and started to take this matter seriously.
But they still underestimated the seriousness of this matter, or they underestimated Voldemort. After all, when Voldemort was at the peak of his power, he never touched other countries.
Except for the British mainland, the wizarding world in other countries knows Voldemort's name and the numerous crimes he has committed, but they do not understand the horror of Voldemort, and they know very little about his ambitions.
In most places, Grindelwald's name is louder than Voldemort's, because the horror brought by blood is often the most intuitive and impressive.
Passing the newspaper back to Laura, Ada continued to scatter the bread crumbs in the bowl, but at this time she had no intention of observing the pigeons.
The importance of these ten fugitives is beyond doubt, and they add another piece to the puzzle of Voldemort's success. Some are like Messi joining Saint-Germain, which is the most important reinforcement for the championship team.
Ada didn't know how many blank pieces there were in this puzzle. The fewer pieces left, the more difficulties this war would face.
"Do you want to pack your things and go back?" Laura asked, "Does this count as being ordered to do something in danger?"
Ada shook her head and did not stop moving her hands. She said: "It won't help if I go back. I can't turn these people out one by one. These people must be gathering around their masters, waiting for their masters to blow the horn of counterattack."
People say it's not too late to fix the problem before it's too late. Ada's final push against Dumbledore was to hope that the principal would make drastic changes instead of making minor repairs to the leaky sheepfold.
Now it is not just a matter of lost sheep, but ferocious wolves have entered the sheepfold. The situation has developed to the worst direction, and no matter how much repairs are made to the sheepfold, it will not help.
As long as the wolf remains in the sheepfold, not a single sheep can be saved.
"Then what are you going to do next?" Laura asked, "Continue to feed the pigeons, write a diary, or chase the little animals in the garden away?"
Ada frowned and asked, "Am I acting like an annoying naughty child recently?"
"Not like a naughty kid." Laura said, "You are!"
Ada's "That's okay" was forced to swallow before she could say it. She said: "That's not important. By the way, are the roses in the flower bed blooming well?"
Rose Manor is called Rose Manor precisely because of the roses that bloom in the garden all year round. Ada didn't even need to open the window. She could see the delicate and unbeatable roses just by standing by the window. She didn't need to ask such idiotic questions.
Laura folded the newspaper in her hand and said slowly: "The flower bed is only a small area, but there are more and more roses, and it is overcrowded. Now that there are more flower species other than roses, those roses are starting to move."
The small bowl in her hand was already empty. When Ada turned her hand over, the small bowl disappeared.
Ada shook her hands and said meaningfully: "Spring is coming, the season when all things grow. But the severe cold before spring is the most cruel."
"It's very simple, then pull out what should be pulled out, prune the branches when they should be pruned, water when they should be watered, and fertilize when they should be fertilized." Laura said, "You are the master of the flower garden."
Ada put her hands behind her back, pretending to be a worldly expert, and said leisurely: "Yes, I am the owner of the flower garden. I have almost forgotten this, always thinking about the bad things in other people's gardens. .”
"I have been waiting for this moment for a long time." Laura said, with overwhelming hatred in her eyes.