Just a few days after the conversation between Jon and Draco, the combined forces of the British and French Ministry of Magic gained new gains in their strategy of attacking Northern Europe.
A portion of the pureblood descendants who hadn't yet had time to be relocated and had previously been imprisoned after the Triwizard Tournament were rescued.
It was said that because the retreat from the Witching Horizon was too hasty, the pureblood descendants were relocated at the end, and as a result, the "heroic" British and French magical allied forces seized the opportunity and succeeded in rescuing them.
This allowed a considerable number of purebloods who originally thought that their families had been torn apart to regain the opportunity to reunite.
According to the past practice of the British Ministry of Magic, the rescued captives need to be subjected to the screening process by using Legilimency or Truth Potion, or first confined for a period of time to prevent spying and being controlled by the Imperius Curse.
But for these pureblood noble young lords and young ladies who had suffered a lot from "fright" and "torture", no one would be insensitive enough to bring up this matter, and after rescuing the captives, they let their families, who had long been impatient, lead them back to their own homes.
And among them, of course, there was Draco.
On the night they returned home, Narcissa had prepared a sumptuous meal, and the Malfoy family was finally able to get together and have a good meal.
Draco devoured the meal, losing all semblance of his previous pureblood noble manners.
Lucius and Narcissa both looked at him in pain, thinking that it was because he had suffered so much in the Witching Horizon that he couldn't even eat.
But in fact, it was just that he had a big appetite once he returned to his familiar surroundings.
"Luckily this operation of Selwyn and the others didn't go wrong, even if there are no more gains, rescuing you guys is still a great achievement."
Lucius had that rare doting expression on his face as he looked at Draco.
Just as he heard his words, Draco, who was gorging himself, suddenly froze.
He looked up a little nervously, glancing from side to side in his all-too-familiar home before meeting Lucius's gaze, which was already beginning to feel out of place.
"Actually..."
"Wait!"
Lucius' face darkened completely as he watched Draco's look of wanting to say something, but it was clear that such gloom was not directed at Draco.
Narcissa hadn't sensed anything unusual yet, and she looked at her husband with a disgruntled look on her face and was just about to tell him to be nicer to his son when she saw that Lucius had pulled out his wand, and proceeded to apply a sound isolation ward to the surroundings.
"Go on."
Silence fell around them, and all that could be heard was Draco swallowing.
His eyes were filled with nervousness and unease as he stammered.
"Yes. It was Jon Green... he let us all go back on purpose. The purpose was just to get me to give you a message."
"What did he want me to know!"
Lucius' face was grim to the core, but he still didn't stop Draco from speaking.
Others might have despised that boy, but Lucius himself knew better than anyone how the Lestrange family had become extinct, and how his own lord had been forced into a corner before.
"He... he said, 'Honourable Mr Malfoy, perhaps there is something, in the present time, that allows us to have peer-to-peer co-operation.'"
"Bang!"
Lucius's palm slammed down on the table angrily, his face reddening.
"Wasn't he looking down on me before! Now that he has been pushed to the point of death, he starts to beg me to come!"
Only Lucius' ragged breathing echoed in the air, and neither Narcissa, who had already heard what was going on, nor Draco himself, spoke again, simply waiting for Lucius' own face to change from grim shade.
Only after a long time did he ask again.
"What else did he say?"
Draco whispered an address.
"Fifteenth, Purple and Gold Street, Lahti, he said to remember this place if you still have any ideas about standing on both sides of the fence."
Lucius didn't make a sound, he just clenched his fists without another semblance of expression on his face.
***
"What makes you so sure that he won't just bring his own son to Voldemort?"
In Durmstrang's Headmaster's office, a candle flame danced and reflected an old and a young figure.
Jon looked at his arm, which had taken on an unnatural pale blue colour, and said softly.
"Because he is himself an opportunist or an opportunist who is not so confident in his lord, and at the same time an opportunist who loves his family, so, no matter whether he agrees or not, he will not reveal this matter, whereas, if, for example, he still has a drop of suspicion about the situation at hand, then it is possible for him to find us at that address."
Grindelwald was also watching Jon's arm, which just ten seconds ago had been surrounded by a blue mass of Fiendfyre curse, and by this time there was no longer any fire, except for the light pale blue halo.
"But what you're asking him to do isn't asking him to bet on both sides and if he dares to go through with it then no matter what Voldemort won't spare him."
"Would he know the importance of that thing?"
Jon said with an expressionless face.
"This is something that Voldemort has been hiding from everyone, only the most core people on our side know about the existence of such a thing, Lucius has no idea what the thing we asked him to find is. And in his perception, someone like Voldemort, wouldn't give a damn about everything other than himself, so it was a simple matter of stealing something and destroying it."
Grindelwald gave him a deep look, but a smile spread across his face.
"You're really different from Albus, but it's because of that difference that you are actually better suited to be a leader than he is."
"Don't change your mind and call me wicked, Mr Headmaster, I won't show him any mercy. If he wants to atone for his sins then he'll have to pay the price, and if he wants to go all the way to the dark side, then the same applies."
"Do you think he'll say yes?"
"Eight or nine, to put it in a narcissistic way, he's actually a bit afraid of me, just like his son."
Grindelwald's eyes suddenly lit up with excitement.
He watched with his own eyes as that last bit of blue halo on Jon's arm completely disappeared, leaving behind only a white and slender arm!
"How does it feel!"
Jon raised the hand with the ring, at this time, the five gems on the ring had all lost that azure colour of the past, and were instead dull.
After closing his eyes and quietly feeling the magic power in his body once more, a hint of a smile appeared on Jon's face.
"Very high quality of magic power, Mr Headmaster!"
And just as both of their faces showed joy, the fire of the fireplace suddenly jumped as well.
A Floo Network, designed to connect to the fifteenth house on Purple and Gold Street in Lahti, Finland, was activated!
Jon and Grindelwald looked at each other, both of them having a somewhat meaningful gaze.
"What's it called?"
"Good things come in pairs."
----
#Flashycow, Thanks for all your love and support.
Completed novel. Read all advanced chapters on P@treon. If you have some extra pocket money, Support me at P@treon: www.p@treon.com/Crazy_Cat.
Happy Reading!!!
#Flashycow, Thanks for all your love and support.
Completed novel. Read all advanced chapters on P@treon. If you have some extra pocket money, Support me at P@treon: www.p@treon.com/Crazy_Cat.
Happy Reading!!!