Chapter 636 – Darren Appears!!
It was at the moment Snape froze.
A boy suddenly appeared on the streets of London.
He looked strikingly handsome.
With a helpless expression on his face—Darren.
He muttered quietly,
"Why is it night? It should be broad daylight. Smack someone, apologize, earn some Holy Father points… that would've been interesting."
He immediately abandoned the thought.
Because he sensed it.
Multiple signal sources had locked onto him.
Snape. Dumbledore. And others who had placed tracking measures on him.
No matter where he appeared, his location would be known almost instantly.
The signals were being transmitted continuously.
Darren realized Dumbledore would arrive very soon.
A faint gray mist appeared before Darren's eyes.
That was normal.
To fake blindness while still retaining awareness, there had to be some visual distortion.
Sensing Dumbledore's presence rapidly approaching, Darren immediately put on a confused, uneasy expression.
He reached out blindly, groping forward as if searching for support.
As though he could no longer see.
When Dumbledore arrived and saw this, his eyes nearly reddened.
"Darren!"
Dumbledore strode forward quickly and grabbed Darren's shoulder.
Darren relaxed visibly.
He smiled faintly and said,
"Headmaster Dumbledore… I'm fine. I just can't see after being hit by a spell."
"By the way—my brother… is my brother okay?"
"I fell into that veil earlier. I thought I'd die for sure. But then I suddenly appeared here… as if nothing happened."
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding…]
So many people arrived at once that Darren was momentarily stunned.
Nearly all the core members of the Order of the Phoenix were present.
He was secretly shocked by their speed.
But outwardly, when Dumbledore didn't answer right away, Darren showed growing concern.
Finally, he couldn't hold back.
He anxiously grasped Dumbledore's wrist and asked urgently,
"Headmaster… my brother and Sirius—are they both alright?"
"And the others… the Order members—are they all safe?"
"This shouldn't have happened. I was too weak."
"I should've persuaded my brother properly. I caused trouble for everyone."
"If anything happened to anyone… I'll take responsibility to the end!"
"And my brother—"
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding…]
Dumbledore sighed softly.
"Everyone is fine," he said gently.
"They were only worried about you."
"You've been missing for a month, Darren."
"If your portrait at the Ministry hadn't awakened, they might already have held a funeral for you."
He chuckled, but his expression was grave.
His eyes lingered painfully on Darren's injuries.
Blood was still seeping through the wounds.
These injuries—ones Darren had sustained while rescuing Harry and the others from the centaurs—had never truly healed.
And there was still poison from Voldemort lingering in his body.
It wasn't highly lethal, but it was enough to leave him incapacitated.
Yet Darren had forced himself to stand.
"Child… I'm glad you're back,"
Dumbledore said quietly.
He held Darren by the shoulders.
The members of the Order of the Phoenix stood with reddened eyes, barely daring to speak.
Those who had truly seen war could hardly bear to look at Darren's condition.
Bang.
The sharp crack of Apparition sounded.
"Severus!"
Dumbledore called.
Snape stared at Darren's injuries, fury flashing across his face.
"To St. Mungo's," he asked coldly,
"or the school infirmary?"
He swallowed the scolding that nearly escaped him.
Seeing Darren's unfocused eyes, he couldn't say anything more.
"The school infirmary," Darren said weakly.
"I don't want everyone to know I'm injured…"
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding…]
Snape sneered.
"That's awkward. To cover your disappearance, everyone said you were at St. Mungo's—and not recovering well."
Darren seemed to realize something.
He tilted his head toward Snape's voice and asked hesitantly,
"Professor… how long have I been missing?"
"My brother must be worried… I should—"
"About a month," Snape replied flatly.
"A month?!"
Darren exclaimed, clearly shocked.
Then he said hurriedly,
"I need to see my brother. I have to go to him—he must be terrified—"
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding…]
His body swayed, as if dizzy from exertion.
Snape's eyes hardened.
He immediately pulled out a potion and forced it between Darren's lips.
Darren nearly cursed internally.
He was pretending—he didn't even plan to sleep.
Snape's potions were always brutal.
The moment it went down, darkness surged.
Darren struggled weakly and murmured,
"Let… let my brother—"
His words cut off.
He lost consciousness.
Dumbledore summoned a stretcher and laid Darren upon it.
He said gravely,
"Do not let Voldemort know about this yet."
"If he learns Darren is alive, he may attack St. Mungo's immediately."
---
Harry had fallen asleep at his desk.
He vaguely heard his own snoring.
A newspaper lay tucked under his arm.
The headline read:
Harry Potter — The Savior?
The article rambled on about the return of the one whose name could not be spoken.
More than a month ago, he had appeared at the Ministry of Magic.
"We were instructed not to discuss it,"
a Ministry Obliviator was quoted as saying.
"Even so, there is reason to believe the location was the Department of Mysteries."
"It is rumored that the Dark Lord sought a prophecy—one concerning Harry Potter himself…"
The rest of the article was hidden beneath Harry's arm.
But between his fingers, a small section of print was still visible:
Darren Potter suspected killed in battle.
Attempts to contact Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore have received no response.
According to classmates, Darren Potter is believed to be recovering at St. Mungo's with severe injuries…
---