Harry felt that whoever came up with this kind of match had to be an absolute genius.
He watched the owner of the Quidditch Quality shop get knocked off his broom by a snowball, then saw a gap-toothed wizard in green preparing to throw the Quaffle—only for the goal hoop to be packed completely with snow.
The pitch was blanketed in white. In the end, the Quidditch Quality shop owner managed to catch the Golden Snitch.
A loud crack echoed through the stadium as a group of broom-riding ice witches soared overhead, scattering handfuls of sweets from the bags on their backs.
The Golden Snitch in the shop owner's hand trembled violently, burst free, and shot into the sky.
It transformed into a massive firework.
Adults and children alike were completely wild with joy that day.
Laughter filled the entire amusement park, making this not-yet-opened magical park settle into everyone's hearts long before its official debut.
In the VIP room above, Barty Crouch Sr. sighed. "Holding a match like this every year would be quite something."
John watched the firework burst into the words Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes and gave a soft laugh. "That's one way to cover maintenance expenses."
All those pricey fireworks and ice witches were free advertising.
It was the perfect chance to build a reputation—no one would pass up the opportunity to invest.
Listening to the cheers below, Crouch felt the fear left by the Dark Lord fade away.
He understood the success of today's event as well. "All right. For what comes next—so long as it isn't too outrageous—I'll turn a blind eye."
Barty Crouch Sr. looked at John, his expression turning stern. "Incidents like what happened to the Shafiq family must not happen again."
He had originally come today to demand an explanation about the attack on the Rosier family.
The public report claimed the culprit hadn't been found and suggested Dark wizards were responsible.
But Crouch's people had reported seeing the Star Desciples' execution platform appear that night.
"There aren't many Rosiers left," Crouch said, softening his tone. "If something happens to them, it will cause social unrest."
John gave a quiet laugh. "Barty, some things can't simply be dragged out and ignored."
"We both know what they've done." John's voice carried an unspoken meaning. "And as I recall, you're not the indecisive type."
"I'm only worried you'll go too far—and then there's that business with old Jack," Crouch said gravely. "At least three wizards disappeared. You could have let the Aurors handle it."
"You know very well those men went after an underage kid," John replied mildly.
"You…" Crouch was at a loss for words. After a long pause, he said, "Amelia Bones is watching you closely."
"I don't mind being watched," John said, unruffled.
Crouch gave John a long, deep look before leaving the stadium.
John straightened his clothes and gazed down through the floor-to-ceiling window.
If not for the red and green shirts, Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley almost looked as though they had blended together.
"Sir," Tommy said as he entered once Crouch had left. His expression was grim. "We've got results from the giant investigation."
"The giants have disappeared."
Searching for giants across the world was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
But John had a half-giant friend who had once visited the giants' territory. He'd gotten their whereabouts from Hagrid.
Now, with Johnny Silverhand's Floo network spread across Europe, several days of searching had led to a discouraging conclusion.
"Sir, can it be because of Voldemort," Tommy asked, "or Grindelwald?"
John thought for a moment. "Grindelwald wasn't known for working with magical creatures during his active years. So it's Voldemort, then?"
A faint chill flashed through his eyes. John wasn't surprised that giants would join Voldemort.
They had been driven out long ago; bitterness toward wizards was inevitable.
Their resistance to magic was extremely high—ordinary spells couldn't harm them.
If Voldemort had drawn them in, his strength had just grown considerably.
"It seems he's already gathering his forces for war."
John rubbed his ring, his eyes half-lowered.
Giants weren't suitable for stealth. The moment those massive creatures appeared, they would be spotted instantly.
Voldemort recruiting them could mean only one thing—he was preparing the foundation for war.
"What about Bellatrix and Narcissa?" John asked next.
Tommy looked troubled. "Narcissa hasn't contacted Bellatrix in a long time. The only thing we can confirm is that Bellatrix is still somewhere in the country."
"Voldemort left his only remaining subordinate inside Britain just like that?" John narrowed his eyes, wondering if Voldemort had abandoned Bellatrix entirely and was using her as bait.
"Publish an article. Make sure the Order of the Phoenix sees it."
John had no intention of informing the Order personally, despite the delicate relationship between the Constellation Society and the Order.
They were still a force that could be used against Voldemort—so it was better to let them handle the matter of the giants.
After that day,
A newspaper article titled Where Have the Giants Gone? appeared.
It cited the perspective of a magizoologist who had gone searching for signs of giant activity.
The article quickly drew the attention of the Order of the Phoenix.
At the dinner table, Charlie frowned. "First dragons go missing, and now giants too?"
Lupin's expression shifted. He took the newspaper and began reading.
"Arthur," he said quietly.
As head of the family, Arthur Weasley gave a solemn nod.
They left together to discuss the matter somewhere more private.
Harry still didn't know anything about it—he was busy helping Sirius decorate the Black manor ahead of time.
Today, however, the old house received an unexpected visitor.
Hearing the doorbell, Harry ran to answer it.
And the moment he opened the door, he saw the last person he wanted to encounter.
"Snape… Professor." He had no idea why Snape would show up here.
"Harry, who is it?" Sirius called from inside, still trying to figure out how to light the star on top of the Christmas tree.
It was a Muggle-style Christmas ornament Mr. Weasley had given him.
Sirius came downstairs—and his expression darkened instantly.
"Severus? What are you doing here?" Sirius hadn't forgotten how this man had taken his grudge out on Harry by putting him in detention.
"You should learn to read, Black," Snape drawled in that long, slow voice. "Order of the Phoenix, meeting."
Sirius understood immediately. He opened the window to let an owl in.
Attached to its leg was the summons for the meeting.
A short while later, Mr. Weasley arrived at the Black manor with several of the children.
Ron came in and greeted Harry.
"Harry, you and Ron go upstairs for now," Mr. Weasley said, sending them up.
Harry wanted to stay and listen, but he could feel the heaviness in the air around the Order.
Tonks and Moody had also arrived.
Kingsley still needed to stay at the Ministry a while longer to handle Auror assignments.
Moody stumped in on his wooden leg. He'd been injured by Death Eaters not long ago, and even with Christmas approaching, the wound still gave him trouble.
"Everyone's here except Kingsley."
Lupin placed the newspaper on the table. "The giants have disappeared."
"Dumbledore once sent Hagrid on a secret mission," Moody growled, voice rough. "That mission failed."
"The Death Eaters made contact with the giants. We originally thought that after the Death Eaters were wiped out, the matter would end there."
"But clearly, it didn't," Tonks said anxiously. "How do we know it's the Dark Lord?"
"Besides Hagrid, only Death Eaters ever went there," Lupin said gravely. "Giants don't migrate. For them to vanish on such a large scale, there's only one possibility."
"They've been hidden away," Sirius finished.
The atmosphere grew heavy.
"Where's Dumbledore?" Mr. Weasley finally asked.
For a matter this serious, it was strange that Dumbledore wasn't present.
Snape answered in his usual slow drawl, "Dumbledore is at Hogwarts. Something hidden at Hogwarts…"
Lupin lifted his gaze toward Snape, hoping for some explanation.
Snape pretended not to notice.
The meeting dragged on late into the night. It was nearly midnight when Kingsley arrived at the Black manor.
There was simply too much happening at the Ministry.
As Ministry employees themselves, Mr. Weasley, Tonks, and former Auror Moody understood.
But the moment Kingsley stepped in, he dropped a bombshell.
A real head-spinning one.
"Old Jack is missing."
"The werewolf councillor?" Sirius asked immediately.
Lupin shot to his feet, unable to stay seated. "What happened?"
Kingsley said grimly, "It's suspected he was attacked by anti-werewolf extremists. Aurors wanted to intervene, but they were stopped."
"Huh? Who can stop Aurors?" Bill blurted out instinctively.
In the wizarding world, most people subconsciously believed Aurors held tremendous authority.
That was precisely why the Department of Magical Law Enforcement was the Ministry's most powerful arm.
Kingsley spoke a name that made everyone's scalp prickle.
"Johnny Silverhand."
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