Chapter 269: The Order of the Phoenix!
Moody pressed a slip of parchment into Harry's hand. The moment he read, "The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix may be found at Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, London," the flanking houses began sliding apart like heavy curtains.
Then, a quaintly decorated house was revealed between them.
The Black family home wrapped them in serpentine grandeur. Snake-shaped door knockers gleamed in brass, silver serpents coiled around chandelier arms, and even the coat rack resembled a cobra poised to strike. Every surface declared generations of Slytherin pride.
"They really are consistently Slytherin," Aiden joked.
"But Sirius is a Gryffindor," Lupin said, winking at Aiden.
At the entrance stood an umbrella stand made from a troll's leg, and the walls were covered with house-elf heads.
At the end of the corridor was a narrow sitting room where many Order of the Phoenix members gathered for discussion.
Harry peered through the doorframe and saw his godfather, smiling at Sirius with relief.
Aunt Molly walked over, extending her hands. "Harry, it's so good to see you. You've lost some weight."
Aiden tried to slip past his aunt into the meeting room but was knocked on the head by Mrs. Weasley.
She pointed inside, and Aiden quickly slipped over. Mrs. Weasley sighed and turned to Harry.
"You go upstairs first. Ron and Hermione are already up there."
In the sitting room, Aiden casually found a place to sit.
"Sirius, your thinking is too radical. There are no witnesses, no casualties, and no evidence," Arthur reasoned calmly.
Due to Dumbledore's break with the Ministry, Arthur was sidelined at the Ministry, so he naturally joined the reformed Order of the Phoenix and appeared at the meeting.
"He nearly killed Harry. Isn't that evidence enough?" Sirius retorted.
"But monitoring that secret weapon is most important!" Hestia Jones spoke up.
"We should trust Dumbledore!" Lupin also shared his view.
"But that thing was destroyed by me last year. I'm guessing he probably won't rebuild it in the same place," Aiden said, raising his hand.
Everyone's gaze turned to Aiden, their eyes filled with confusion.
Moody's magical eye swivelled toward Aiden, both pupils fixed on him with uncomfortable intensity. "You know what we're discussing?"
"The secret weapon at Riddle Manor?" Aiden shrugged casually. "Already dealt with. Destroyed it during our last encounter."
"See, I told you we should act tonight," Sirius said, lightly tapping the table.
"What's the situation at the Ministry?" Aiden asked, seeing the tense atmosphere and changing the subject.
"Very bad," Arthur said, shaking his head.
Moody's scarred face twisted in disgust. "The Ministry's split completely. Amelia Bones leads the hawks, while Fudge commands the ostriches. Neither side will budge an inch."
"And Barty Crouch, after his recovery, he returned to the International Magical Cooperation Department. Due to his son's incident, his power is greatly constrained," Tonks added.
"But as a neutral party, he actually has the most followers under him," Arthur spoke again.
"So the Ministry is completely unreliable, and he's getting stronger every minute. We need to act," Sirius proposed again.
Then everyone turned their gaze to Aiden.
"Why are you all looking at me?" Aiden asked, somewhat puzzled.
"You speak up. After all, you're the strongest fighter here," Moody voiced everyone's thoughts.
"Let's lie low and see what the Ministry wants to do. No matter what, we should wait for the monsters to show themselves before cleaning them up. Otherwise, how can we judge who's an enemy and who's a friend?" Aiden said, crossing his hands under his chin.
"But the mysterious..." Sirius wanted to say something more but was interrupted by Aiden.
"Don't worry, everything is under control," Aiden said, giving him a reassuring expression.
"Then what about Harry Potter?" From the corner, Snape spoke up.
"Tell him the truth," Sirius immediately jumped out.
"No way, he's still a child!" Molly immediately objected, while Aiden watched the drama from the side.
"He's not young anymore, Molly. We should let him decide his own future," Sirius reasoned.
"Oh really? He's not James," Molly shot back.
"He's not your son either," Sirius retorted.
"I think this boy shouldn't become a serious criminal like his godfather," Snape said sarcastically.
In fact, he also didn't want Harry to know the truth.
"Shut up, Snivellus..."
Then the two started arguing. Moody, annoyed by their bickering, simply declared the meeting over.
After the meeting, Aiden was sent upstairs by Molly, while Snape left without accepting Molly's invitation to stay.
At the door, Hermione was already hugging Harry.
"Ahem," Aiden pretended to cough, and the two immediately separated.
"Ron, have you gotten stronger?" Aiden asked, looking at his cousin behind Hermione with puzzlement.
"We're together every day," Ron replied, equally confused. "How could you not notice?"
Aiden, who hadn't seen Ron for over a thousand years, stared blankly. "..."
"Never mind, don't worry about these details," Aiden said with a wave.
Hedwig immediately flew into Harry's arms, affectionately nuzzling him.
"Hedwig has been restless and anxious. She's very worried about you and kept pecking me to urge us to write back," Ron said, raising his hand to show Harry the wounds.
"Sorry, Hedwig," Harry said, stroking Hedwig's head.
Downstairs, Mrs. Weasley was also calling everyone for dinner, so they all went down together.
The twins Apparated downstairs in a flash. It seemed they had good talent in this area.
"Enough! Just because you're allowed to use this magic now doesn't mean you should use it for everything," Molly said, giving each twin a smack.
Just then, Harry appeared at the bottom of the stairs with Ron, Hermione, and Aiden following behind.
"Harry!" Sirius pushed past the Weasley family and pulled Harry into a fierce hug.
Everyone came to the dining table where Molly had prepared a sumptuous dinner.
Crookshanks was nestled on Sirius's legs being affectionate, while Tonks was changing into pig noses and playing with Ginny.
Aiden watched Tonks's magical flow with interest.
This amazing talent was probably a remnant from her ancestors' exploration of magical creature transformation. Soon Aiden lost interest.
Arthur spoke up, "I don't know why, but it seems the entire Wizengamot court will attend your hearing at the Ministry."
Arthur was hinting at something, but Aiden saw through his little scheme. He wanted to tell Harry the truth.
"I don't understand what grievance the Ministry has against me!" Harry said, his green eyes filled with confusion.
"Tell him. He'll find out sooner or later!" Moody said.
Kingsley slid a copy of the Daily Prophet across the table. Harry's own face stared back at him beneath the mocking headline: "The Boy Who Lies". Inside, his name had become a punchline scattered throughout articles and editorial cartoons.
The back of the paper read, "With Fudge, all is well."
Dumbledore and Aiden's photos were prominently featured as well.
Dumbledore was labelled as an "old madman", while Aiden was portrayed as the new generation's "war maniac" of the Prewett family.