Time passed quickly. Before he realized it, Jon had already spent two full weeks at Hogwarts under the identity of "Albus Dumbledore."
As Halloween drew closer, the weather steadily turned colder. Early in the mornings, it was common to see thin layers of frost inexplicably coating the school grounds.
Although he had handed over all routine school management to Deputy Headmistress Professor Minerva McGonagall, and the plan to cultivate the Chosen One had been entrusted entirely to the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Severus Snape, the Headmaster of Hogwarts—especially one as illustrious as Albus Dumbledore—was still overwhelmingly busy.
At least ten owls arrived at Hogwarts every day looking for him. Half of the letters came from the Order of the Phoenix, the other half from the Ministry of Magic, and every single one involved problems that were both thorny and troublesome.
Fortunately, the Headmaster's Office housed dozens of well-informed "advisors." With them all talking at once, coming up with a barely workable solution was not particularly difficult.
Of course, the real nightmare was the endless stream of meeting invitations. Whether it was the Wizengamot, the International Confederation of Wizards, or the Order of Merlin, invitations from these prestigious wizarding organizations were the true headaches.
After all, Jon had not inherited all of Albus Dumbledore's memories. Being able to recognize a handful of moderately well-known British wizards was already his limit.
There was no way he could match Dumbledore's ease in chatting and laughing with witches and wizards from all over the world.
Thankfully, these were extraordinary times. With Voldemort as an excuse, Albus Dumbledore insisting on staying in Britain—and rarely leaving Hogwarts—was entirely reasonable.
Even if it slightly damaged Dumbledore's personal reputation, there was simply no alternative.
Because of his overwhelming "workload," and in order to avoid arousing Madam Pomfrey's suspicions, Jon could not visit Astoria too often.
That said, Astoria's condition was slowly improving. Although she was still some distance away from a full recovery, she was now able to take walks in the Hospital Wing garden with the help of crutches.
The trouble was that every visit required him to knock Daphne Greengrass out for a short while using the "Draught of the Living Dead."
It was extremely inconvenient—and made Jon feel rather guilty toward Daphne.
...
On the day before Halloween, Jon went through the letters addressed to "Dumbledore" as he usually did.
"Diagon Alley has been attacked again…"
Setting aside a letter from the Minister's Office, Jon explained to the former headmasters, "These terrorist attacks are becoming more frequent. This time, the victim was Mrs. Charlotte Abbott, a Healer from St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. She was murdered in her own home."
"These heartless bastards," Headmistress Dilys Derwent said angrily. "They even target Healers! Even in wartime, they should be protected!"
The other headmasters voiced their strong condemnation as well.
"The Ministry should strengthen protection for St. Mungo's medical staff," Headmistress Phyllida Spore suggested. "They could station more Aurors at the hospital and reduce the time Healers spend outside."
"Thank you for the suggestion, Phyllida," Jon said, lowering his head as he wrote line after line on the reply parchment.
"Unfortunately, the Ministry is short on manpower as it is. Aside from Aurors, they're urgently training a Magical Law Enforcement Squad. Still, I don't believe a wizarding force like that can develop meaningful combat strength in such a short time."
After tying the reply to the owl's leg and sending it back into the sky, Jon opened the second letter.
The second letter was from Hannah Abbott, a sixth-year Hufflepuff student.
She was applying for a temporary withdrawal from school due to her mother's murder in London.
"Oh, Hannah…"
Jon bit his lip before picking up his quill.
In his reply, he urged Hannah to reconsider her decision carefully and assured her that Hogwarts was absolutely safe. At the same time, Jon Hart wrote another letter to Professor Pomona Sprout, hoping she would speak with her student.
After sending out the two replies, Jon's gaze finally fell on the third letter.
This one was unsigned.
And unlike the first two, which were addressed to Albus Dumbledore, this letter was addressed to Jon Hart.
Jon slowly opened the third letter.
...
"Dear Jon,
Long time no see. I hope you've been enjoying your time at Hogwarts.
Our journey has been quite pleasant, aside from one or two minor incidents. Near the Polish border, we encountered two mad trolls and a Red Cap. Later, in a tavern in Minsk, Gellert had a small disagreement with a Vampire—and successfully persuaded it to switch to a vegetarian diet. Other than that, everything has gone smoothly.
Three days ago in Amalskiy, I managed to tame a very cute little polar bear cub. Unfortunately, as we traveled south, it seemed to find the weather too warm and refused to continue the journey with us. We have just arrived in Novosibirsk, where both the scenery and the people are absolutely wonderful. The weather is a bit chilly, but that poses no problem for Gellert or me.
Next, Gellert and I plan to continue east to Lake Baikal to admire the scenery there (Jon reading this: looks like my prediction was spot on!). In addition, Gellert wants to visit the Kodosdoriz School of Magic even farther east. To be honest, I'm quite interested in it myself. A magical academy so close to the Arctic Circle is surely one of the most mysterious in the world.
I hope everything is going well for you at Hogwarts.
Yours faithfully,
Albus Dumbledore
P.S. Gellert seems to have something he wants to tell you, so I've enclosed his note along with this letter."
...
"Mr. Grindelwald has something to tell me?"
Jon muttered, momentarily stunned.
"Don't mention that name!"
Headmaster Armando Dippet shouted irritably from the portrait wall nearby.
"Sorry, sorry…" Jon apologized at once, noticing a small slip of paper enclosed with the letter.
The note was brief, written in a handwriting he did not recognize.
"Go to Durmstrang before Halloween. Thanks!"