Chapter 120 Follow-up
"What the hell, you guys didn't even arrange a luncheon?"
After the funeral, guests left one after another. Tom, who was waiting for the feast, waited and waited but still didn't get to eat. He couldn't help but ask Lupin, only to receive this bad news.
"I'm sorry, Tom, we didn't think of that much at the time. So, what do we do now?"
Lupin said to Tom, looking embarrassed.
"It seems Gryffindor isn't very reliable. This time it's fine, but next time remember to prepare well. Tell the guests who haven't left yet and are willing to stay that I'm going to prepare luncheon now. Remember to give me the gift money then."
"Huh?"
Lupin was stunned for a moment.
Next time? A funeral? Does Tom, at such a young age, want to harm people just to hold a funeral? And what's this gift money? They've never collected it, so how should they give it?
However, Lupin, knowing he was in the wrong, still asked, "Do you want me to help?"
Tom looked at him strangely, "I'm ordering takeout. Are you planning to run errands yourself?"
Lupin immediately shut up.
While Tom went to prepare lunch, Narcissa, Andromeda, and Sirius finally put aside their differences in front of Regulus's tomb after so many years and were able to have a good conversation.
In the distance, Lucius stood alone. Draco had gone to chat with Harry and his friends.
When Draco returned to Lucius's side, Lucius asked curiously, "I saw you chatting happily with Harry Potter and his friends. Very good, you should really make friends with promising people at school. But what's going on with you chatting so happily with a Muggle-born Wizard just now?"
Draco looked at Lucius in confusion, "What's wrong with Muggle-born Wizards? Don't the Malfoy family's titles and lands all come from William I? Our ancestors even pursued Elizabeth I."
"Father, in the magic world, it's the right path to make many friends and few enemies. As for pure-blood theory, it's fine to fool others, but don't fool yourself like that foolish aunt who's locked up in Azkaban. Power and wealth are the true core of the Malfoy family, aren't they?"
Lucius looked at Draco with pleasant surprise, "Draco, you've grown. It's really good that you understand the true power of the Malfoy family. Did the Dark Lord teach you?"
Draco nodded at his words.
"Excellent, this Dark Lord's intelligence is finally online. It seems the Malfoy family has finally chosen the right side this time."
Lucius thought happily.
And Draco also asked the question in his heart, "Father, what's going on with Dumbledore? Is he really the new master of the Death Eater?"
Lucius glanced at Draco and whispered, "Dumbledore doesn't have to be, but he is. His becoming the master of the Death Eater can bring more benefits."
Draco was a little confused by Lucius's words, but seeing that Lucius didn't explain much, he decided to wait until he returned to school and ask his friends. Everyone brainstorming together would surely come up with an answer.
The time Tom spent preparing luncheon wasn't long. Soon, the outdoor long tables were filled with various freshly baked foods from Tom's member store.
The remaining guests were not many, mostly Sirius's relatives and close friends. The meal was quite enjoyable for both hosts and guests.
The only thing out of place was a separate two-person table set next to the long table. Lupin and Tonks, deliberately arranged to sit there by someone, met each other's gaze, eating the couple's set meal carefully provided by someone, and awkwardly chatting, like a blind date scene.
Sirius tugged at Tom's sleeve and whispered, "Why did you arrange Lupin and Tonks separately there?"
Tom didn't answer him directly, but instead twitched all over, startling Sirius. Then he looked up at the sky, his pupils losing focus, and said in a vague voice, "The threads of fate are tightly intertwined around them. Aphrodite's blessing descends here, and the Savior's godson is about to be conceived and born."
After speaking, Tom shivered again and looked at Sirius with a bewildered expression, "What happened to me just now?"
Sirius looked at Tom in shock. He hadn't realized that this kid was actually a prophet.
What surprised him even more was that Remus could find a partner, and in a May-December romance. So, should he also find a companion now?
This thought suddenly popped into Sirius's mind. But in the next second, what he thought was that as long as it wasn't Snape, anyone would be fine.
"Wake up, what exactly happened just now?" Tom pushed the dazed Sirius.
Under Tom's puzzled gaze, Sirius repeated his prophecy from just now, and then, counting on his fingers, he settled the score with Tom bit by bit: "Look, you said Remus and Nymphadora would become a couple. Remus is my good friend, Nymphadora's mother is Andromeda, who is my cousin, and their child's godfather will be Harry, who is my godson. So, how exactly do these relationships work out?"
Tom looked at Sirius like he was an idiot: "How do they work out? Just treat them separately."
Uh, that makes so much sense. Sirius was speechless.
......
In the following days, life finally returned to peace.
Dumbledore seemed to have come to terms with things during this period, no longer obsessed with finding Lord Voldemort's Horcrux. He was in a state of letting go and going with the flow.
Rita Skeeter's request for an exclusive interview was also politely declined by Dumbledore.
However, according to an anonymous source, Rita has obtained first-hand information from a well-informed insider and is currently editing, organizing, and polishing it, preparing to make a big splash and strive to become the best gold-medal reporter in the industry.
During this time, Grindelwald, in addition to diligently teaching and accompanying Dumbledore, occasionally visited the Aberforth Club to relax and unwind.
The artificial hot springs, delicious food, and fine wine here are truly excellent, and he is definitely not here for the Albus Dumbledore-limited themed events.
However, according to well-informed sources, on one occasion, Grindelwald, wearing Lockhart's skin, had a very unpleasant encounter with an elderly man who bore some resemblance to Dumbledore and was visiting for the first time, almost tearing down the shop.
This made onlookers wonder if there was any relationship between the two.
Rita Skeeter's work +1.
Umbridge, as a senior investigator for the Ministry of Magic, now fully pledges allegiance to Dumbledore and is under Tom's management. Therefore, she has been well-behaved during this period, not causing any trouble. She even submitted investigation reports to Fudge that were specially provided by Tom.
With everyone at Hogwarts who could cause trouble having no desire to bother small animals, the Castle was unusually calm.
Tom took the opportunity to gather his STARGAZER companions.