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Chapter 648 – I'm Not Stupid!!
By this point, Slughorn had already finished questioning Zabini about his glamorous mother and Neville about his Auror parents.
However, after realizing that Neville might not have inherited much of his parents' brilliance, Slughorn's enthusiasm toward him cooled noticeably.
Then he pointed at Ginny and said,
"This young lady—after I entered the carriage, I saw her cast a particularly beautiful Bat-Bogey Hex, so I invited her right away."
That single sentence was all Slughorn gave Ginny before turning his attention back to Darren and Harry.
"So," Slughorn continued, rubbing his hands together,
"now comes the main event. Potter brothers, let's start with Harry."
"Harry, tell us—what exactly did you encounter at the Ministry?"
Harry subconsciously looked at Darren.
What was he supposed to say?
Say that he had watched Darren almost die?
That his heart had nearly shattered?
Harry couldn't say it.
Slughorn didn't push him. Instead, his gaze shifted eagerly to Darren.
"Look at this," Slughorn said excitedly.
"Our little hero—Triwizard champion in fourth year, inventor of a new antidote, creator of the Squib-to-wizard potion…"
"I've even heard rumors that you developed a brand-new compound decoction[PolyjuicePotion]. Darren, is there anything you can't do?"
Darren flushed, putting on a shy expression.
This only made Slughorn praise him even more for his modesty.
By the time Slughorn finally stopped reminiscing, Darren's plate was already empty, and the sun outside had begun to set.
Only then did Slughorn dismiss them.
He urged them to hurry back and change clothes, saying he would be delighted to see Darren, Harry, Zabini, and McCall again.
As for the others, he didn't mention them at all.
It was clear they wouldn't be invited again.
Darren intended to follow Harry back.
But Harry suddenly said,
"Darren, let's go—let's follow Zabini. We can sneak into the Slytherin carriage and see what they're planning!"
"That's… not really a good idea…"
[Ding, Father +20]
"Don't hesitate!" Harry urged.
"This is the only way to find out what Malfoy's up to!"
Harry pulled out the Invisibility Cloak, threw it over himself and Darren, and dragged him after Zabini into the Slytherin carriage.
The door closed too quickly.
Darren managed to slip inside—but Harry didn't.
He was pressed awkwardly against the door for a moment before finally squeezing in.
For an instant, Darren saw Malfoy's gaze flick toward his shoes.
But the next second, Malfoy was already leaning back in his seat again, flanked by Crabbe and Goyle.
Pansy Parkinson was combing her hair in front of a mirror.
When she saw Zabini enter, she asked lazily,
"So? What did Slughorn want?"
"What else?" Zabini replied.
"A gathering for relatives of important people."
"Harry Potter, Darren Potter, McCall, Bell, Longbottom… Weasley's little sister…"
"What?" Malfoy snapped.
"Longbottom went too?"
Zabini nodded.
Malfoy's face darkened.
"That old fossil," Malfoy sneered.
"My father gets thrown into Azkaban and suddenly he looks down on us."
Zabini shrugged.
Malfoy leaned back, pretending not to care, then scoffed,
"Inviting Darren Potter… Hmph. That bloodhound smells profit."
"He sees a prodigy and can't wait to slap his name on Darren's research."
"Probably not," Zabini said.
"Darren Potter is Dumbledore's prized student. Slughorn wouldn't dare. If Darren complained—"
"That's where Hermione comes in," Pansy cut in disdainfully.
"Do you really think Darren Potter would complain?"
Zabini sighed.
Malfoy finally said,
"Forget it. Cassandra Worley has been watching him anyway. The Worley family won't let their future son-in-law be bullied."
"Son-in-law?!"
Pansy screeched.
"I'm just saying," Malfoy replied lazily.
"Potter keeps stupidly insisting on waiting until after the war…"
Zabini sighed again.
"Enough of that," Malfoy said proudly.
"Next year—next year everything will change. I might move to a far more exciting and powerful place."
"But you're still a student," someone muttered.
"The Dark Lord doesn't care about school," Malfoy sneered.
"Exams? What wizarding exams?"
Everyone in the carriage inhaled sharply.
Malfoy laughed.
"All right—change your clothes. We're arriving at Hogwarts."
Zabini and the others filed out.
Malfoy changed his robes.
As he reached for his trunk, he suddenly spun around, pointed his wand straight at Harry, and shouted,
"Petrificus Totalus!"
Harry collapsed instantly.
"Darren," Malfoy said smugly,
"I know you're here. Touch me, and I'll kill Potter immediately."
His wand was aimed at Harry's face.
Darren removed the Invisibility Cloak.
"What are you doing?" Darren asked urgently.
"You found me—fine. Don't hurt him."
"Simple," Malfoy said.
"Don't resist."
"Stupefy."
Darren closed his eyes and fell.
Malfoy dragged him aside.
Then he kicked Harry hard in the face several times until blood ran from his nose.
"I promised your idiot brother I wouldn't kill you," Malfoy sneered.
"So I'll do something nice instead."
He draped the Invisibility Cloak over Harry.
"That way, when you get back to London, no one notices you."
"As for Darren Potter—I'll send him to the infirmary…"
Before Malfoy could finish—
He collapsed.
Darren stood behind him.
Harry stared at Darren in disbelief.
"Oh, brother," Darren said helplessly,
"after all these years, do you really think I'd still be that stupid?"
He lifted the Petrification Spell from Harry.
Then Darren crouched down and tore open Malfoy's sleeve.
A black, twisted Dark Mark burned clearly on Malfoy's arm.
"So he really is…"
Harry gasped.
Darren immediately covered Harry's mouth.
"Don't," Darren said softly.
"His father is in Azkaban. This is the Dark Lord's punishment."
"No child this young should bear that mark—especially not now, right under Dumbledore's nose."
"And… I'm partly responsible for this."
"Even if I know I'm right… I still…"
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
Darren exhaled slowly.
"Come on, brother. If we didn't see it, then we didn't see it."
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Holy Father +100]
They disappeared into the corridor.
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