Chapter 1075
News and Sighs from Afar
Chapter 1075 News and Sighs from Afar
Mrs. Grey's voice was very soft, so soft that it seemed as if it could be blown away by the wind.
Suddenly, for no apparent reason, Wade felt a chill run down his spine.
He steadied himself from retreating and asked in a soft voice:
"Who?"
Mrs. Grey looked down at him sadly, and after a while, she answered irrelevantly:
"About two weeks ago, I first felt something was wrong... I'd never felt that way before, but I seemed... I seemed to instinctively know... what it was..."
Wade: "What?"
Mrs. Grey, however, seemed not to hear him and continued muttering to herself:
"That feeling is very vague, extremely vague... You'll understand when you become a ghost too. Most of the time, it's as if we live in the memories of our past lives, and everything else... is very vague..."
“That was something very, very ancient…far older than my mother’s time…a truly terrifying thing…”
"I thought I was imagining things, that it was a nightmare... even though ghosts don't usually dream..."
"I thought... it was just my own thoughts playing tricks on me again... I didn't pay much attention to it..."
Mrs. Grey crossed her arms, her eyes wide, and her lips trembled slightly as she spoke:
"But yesterday—no, early this morning, before dawn… I felt it again… I don't like this feeling; it reminds me… reminds me of the time I was killed…"
“It’s alright, you can tell me,” Wade said gently. “I’ll help you see what’s going on. If I can’t figure it out, there’s always Dumbledore.”
Mrs. Grey looked up and stared intently at Wade.
I don't like you.
She said it suddenly.
Wade was somewhat surprised, and even more confused, and casually asked, "So?"
“You remind me of someone,” Mrs. Grey said to herself, “just as clever, handsome, and talented… very, very charming, and very understanding… very compassionate…”
Her face was a mixture of resentment and affection, with anger mixed with a hint of confusion.
Wade guessed who it was and didn't interrupt rashly.
Mrs. Grey continued, "But he's a liar! He lied to me!"
She spoke angrily, scratching her arm involuntarily; for a moment, her resentment seemed to overwhelm her fear.
But soon, when she looked at Wade, her jumbled thoughts returned to the present moment.
Mrs. Grey's eyes narrowed, and she glanced around nervously, as if afraid of something unseen, muttering:
“You look a lot like him. I…I don’t like you…but I know you, you are someone who can see…”
Wade's brow twitched slightly, and he looked intently at Mrs. Grey.
The Ghost Lady seemed to have finally convinced herself and made up her mind, extending a palm.
Wade looked down.
Her exceptionally slender hands were bluish-white, with long, thin fingers and neatly trimmed nails, resembling the hands of a pianist.
Wade hesitated for a moment, then gently grasped it.
It's like holding a wisp of air—you can feel a slight resistance, but it doesn't feel like touching a real object.
The moment their palms touched, an extremely biting cold emanated from the ghost, causing Vader to shiver involuntarily.
Their hands touched briefly before separating; Mrs. Grey quickly withdrew her hand and said nothing more.
She turned around, disappeared into the wall, and vanished down the corridor.
……
When Wade returned to the common room, his body temperature had returned to normal, but his fingertips still seemed to retain that lingering chill that made one feel numb all over.
As I entered, a burst of cheerful laughter suddenly erupted in the lounge.
Seven or eight students were sitting around the fireplace playing a card game, while a group of people stood around watching. No one knew what was going on, but the group was laughing so hard they were doubled over, having a great time.
Michael sat unsurprisingly in the center of the crowd.
With a smile on his face, he raised his glass, tilted his head back, and drank it all in one gulp. Turning his head, he saw Wade, put down his glass, and squeezed out of the crowd.
"Hey, Wade," Michael said with a smile. "It's rare to see you back in the common room so early. Finished your research for today?"
"Hmm...I guess so."
Wade mumbled, glancing at the group that had burst into laughter again, and asked in confusion, "What are you guys playing?"
"The Exploding Pot Wizard Card, a recent invention of the Weasley twins. The more people there are, the more fun it is."
Michael asked enthusiastically, "Would you like to give it a try?"
Wade shook his head and said, "Never mind, I'm not interested. Besides, something happened to me today..."
They went upstairs, and Wade lowered his voice to tell Michael about the conversation in Percy's office.
"You'd better take some time to remind Fred and George tomorrow."
Wade said, "If students can leave the school through secret passages, then dark wizards could also come in—this concern may not be unfounded, and there's no need to clash with Percy over it."
Michael nodded and added, "Anyway, they're graduating soon anyway, so whether the secret passage is sealed or not won't make a difference. It's the future students who will be in trouble... Except for Hogsmeade weekends, no one can leave freely." He gave a gloating smile.
“Not necessarily,” Wade said. “It’s still uncertain how long Percy Weasley will stay in school.”
"Then I hope he leaves as soon as possible... preferably tomorrow morning!"
Michael spoke expectantly, then began to complain:
"Wade, you might not know this, but lately the professors have been emphasizing safety, and even Quidditch training isn't as fun as it used to be!"
"I really don't know how much excitement there will be in our house's match against Slytherin next month."
"Oh, right, this is for you!"
Standing in front of the dormitory, Michael took a newspaper out of his pocket and handed it to Wade.
“The Daily Prophet?” Wade took it and said, puzzled, “I subscribe to it myself.”
“This is different,” Michael said. “This is a special international supplement to the Daily Prophet. I heard that only subscribers of more than five years can get it. Qiu Zhang specifically asked me to give it to you.”
“Qiu Zhang?” Wade’s expression turned slightly serious. “Is there anything inside that I should be aware of?”
“This!” Michael pointed to one of the lines of text.
Wade frowned and looked at it carefully.
This is a newspaper from a few days ago. The passage Michael was referring to reads:
From the 9th to the 18th of this month, a serious armed conflict occurred in Kizlyar, Dagestan, within the Russian Federation, resulting in the deaths of at least 78 Muggles and injuries to hundreds of others.
Russian Ministry of Magic spokesman Mr. Voronov stated that unusual magical fluctuations had been detected near the scene of the incident, and the possibility of dark wizards being involved could not be ruled out...
The following is a series of event details.
A group of heavily armed Muggles took thousands of people hostage. After a standoff and fierce battle, 78 people were killed and hundreds were injured.
As for the so-called traces of dark magic, after listing a series of speculations and the Auror's investigation process, the newspaper stated with great certainty—
No wizards were involved in this incident, nor did any wizards die. It was entirely due to the Russian Ministry of Magic recently updating its equipment, which caused errors in the monitoring results.
While conflicts of this magnitude are rare in Muggle society, they are not uncommon either. Wizards should not be alarmed or exaggerate the situation; they should simply watch as the Muggles resolve their own problems.
Wizards planning to travel or work in Russia are advised to postpone their plans until the situation there stabilizes.
His consistently eulogistic writing style almost made people believe that Fudge had gone to work in the editorial department of the Daily Prophet after his resignation.
Wade read it twice more, then asked in confusion, "This is indeed a big deal... but why do I need to know about it?"
Thousands of kilometers away, no matter how intense the conflict between dark wizards or Muggles is, it will not affect Hogwarts.
Wade suspected he might have gotten himself into some kind of "exploding pot" game segment, similar to the "Truth or Dare" game where you have to "confess to a stranger." This time, Michael's task was something like "playing tricks on Wade Gray."
But Michael looked at him with disappointment, then shook his head and sighed heavily.
"I knew you'd react this way, but Qiu just wouldn't believe it... She simply doesn't understand that some people look almost sixteen, but they're still no different from six-year-olds; they haven't grown up at all!"
Wade narrowed his eyes and said slowly, "Michael, go to the maze tomorrow afternoon to practice your spells! I can let you make the first move."
Michael coughed lightly, then said in a serious tone, "Don't joke around, I have class tomorrow afternoon!"
He reached out and patted Wade on the shoulder, saying, "Sigh, what a waste of Qiu's good intentions... Wade, do you remember who your dance partner was at that Christmas party?"
“Dance partner? Natalia of Kadosdoris,” Vader said without hesitation. “What’s wrong?”
"Oh, Qiu probably misunderstood your relationship."
Michael pointed to the newspaper and said, "But even as a regular friend, you should at least send your regards when something like this happens in her country, right?"
……
The candlelight was lit.
Before going to sleep, Wade finally picked up his pen and wrote a line in his friend's notebook:
I saw the news about Kizlyar. Are you and your family safe?
After the last stroke was written, the words on the parchment remained as vibrant as ever. They showed no sign of fading even after the ink dried.
Perhaps Natalia hasn't had time to check the Book of Friends yet... or perhaps she's already buried the Book of Friends related to Vader under thick books, or even lost it...
Wade frowned, glanced again at the page with Dumbledore who remained silent, sighed softly, closed the Book of Friends, and went to wash up and go to bed.
Almost as soon as he closed his eyes, he felt as if his body was being pulled.
He's falling!
A long sigh rang in my ears.
No... that wasn't one person's voice...
That was the simultaneous sigh of dozens, even hundreds of people!
(End of this chapter)