days at Hogwarts

Chapter 423 Quidditch Begins (page 12)

The air was cold and the moon was still high in the sky.

Molly and Arthur were walking in the middle, with George and Fred on the right, Harry on the left, and Ron, who was holding his sister who could barely keep her eyes open. Loren and Hermione were walking on the far side, shoulder to shoulder. They bumped shoulders with each other and walked with difficulty along the dark and damp path towards the village.

Molly's small complaints mixed with the rustling footsteps, breaking the silence.

"Oh, why are you dragging me with you? I clearly told you to stay at home." Molly grumbled, "One more person will get one more ticket. How many galleons will it cost?" , if I use it to buy wool, I can give each of you one more sweater this Christmas...even if it is replaced by bread and spices, really..."

Fred's head was already in a daze because he woke up early. He suddenly felt even more dizzy when he heard his mother's constant chanting: "Stop mum, Bill got the tickets from Gringotts, half price."

Molly glared at him: "Half price is enough to knit you an extra sweater."

The Weasley children were silent, finding their mother disappointing and annoying at times like this.

Loren and Hermione looked at each other and laughed in unison.

Today was the day when the Quidditch World Cup final was held. They were woken up by Mrs. Weasley before dawn. After breakfast, they were on their way to the game. Mrs. Weasley, who was supposed to stay at home, was also forcibly Drag out of the Burrow.

Although she complained that some people were ignorant, the smile that had been hanging on Mrs. Weasley's cheeks since she left the house betrayed her joy.

George shook his head and listened to his mother's nagging. His sleepiness gradually dissipated. He looked around and asked with some confusion: "Why don't you see Bill, Charlie and Percy?"

"Don't they apparate?" Molly adjusted her baseball jacket and twisted her waist awkwardly. The tight jeans underneath her body made her uncomfortable, "so they can take a nap."

"So they are still sleeping soundly?" Fred asked angrily, "Why can't we also Apparate?"

"Because you are not old enough and haven't passed the exam yet..." Molly couldn't help but adjust the thin cowhide belt on her trousers. She couldn't help but look at Arthur, who was also dressed up, and asked, "It really looks like hemp." Why are they dressed like this?"

"Of course, dear, Muggles like to dress like this." Arthur looked a little proud. He raised his head and spread his arms, turned around and asked, "Harry, Loren, Hermione, I look like a Muggle to me." Bar?"

"Yes, Mr. Weasley!" Loren replied seriously, "You look like a 100% Muggle!"

Hermione was holding back her laughter.

Arthur was extremely satisfied with the two people's reactions: "Harry, what do you think?"

"Very good, 100% Muggle." Harry said with a smile. He looked at the village in front of him and asked, "Should we walk to the Quidditch World Cup?"

"No, no, no, that's too far. We only need to walk a short distance." Arthur explained, "It is very difficult to gather a large number of wizards together without attracting Muggle attention, especially in Quebec. It is such a grand occasion as the Digi World Cup, so the Ministry of Magic has to be very careful...choose the most suitable location and the time that is least likely to attract Muggle attention."

Ginny rubbed her sleepy eyes: "Is this why we got up so early and rushed on our way?"

Molly pulled her into her arms and rubbed her head distressedly.

Harry looked at Arthur again and asked curiously: "So how can everyone get there without attracting Muggle attention?"

"It's really difficult to organize. The main problem is that there are about a hundred thousand wizards coming to watch the World Cup, and the Ministry of Magic can't find a magical venue that can accommodate so many people without being noticed by Muggles."

Arthur sighed: "As you know, Muggles have expanded their footprints very quickly. In recent years, even the primeval forests where unicorns live and the islands where giants hide have been nearly discovered. Unexpected, it seems to be because of satellites or something... Maybe in a few years, the Quidditch World Cup will not be held. We can no longer hide a hundred thousand wizards and a group of players flying in the sky without Discovered by Muggles."

Loren looked up at Mr. Weasley, not expecting such a secret.

He thought for a while and suddenly asked: "Isn't it a place like Diagon Alley that Muggles can't enter?"

Hermione looked at Arthur with the same curiosity.

"Oh, good question..." Arthur raised his head and looked at the village of Ottery St. Catchpole in front of him. The villagers inside were still in a deep sleep. "Some places can really avoid Muggles. But imagine, how could we possibly cram a hundred thousand wizards into Diagon Alley or Platform Nine and Three Quarters?"

Breathing the moist mist, they walked through the village path and walked towards the Stoat Mountain on the other side of the village. Everyone who was originally sleepy and confused gradually woke up.

Arthur spoke unhurriedly about the Ministry of Magic's preparations for the Quidditch World Cup: "So we had to find an uninhabited swamp and take all measures to prevent Muggles. The entire Ministry was busy with this matter for several days. moon."

"First of all, we must stagger everyone's arrival time. People with cheap tickets have to arrive two weeks in advance. Some people use Muggle transportation, but only part of it. We can't let too many people fill up Muggle transportation. Buses and trains.”

"There are wizards coming from all over the world, and some people use Apparition, so we have to provide some safe places for them to Apparate, away from all Muggles. I heard that the golf course is located next to a forest and can be used for Apparition. A place to stay.”

Arthur spread his hands: "For those who are unwilling or unable to apparate, we use portkeys."

"Portkey?" Harry repeated.

"You know the portkey, right? The function of this thing is to transport wizards from one place to another within a specified time. If necessary, a large number of people can be transported."

Arthur pointed to the vaguely visible Stoat Mountain shrouded in the morning mist not far away: "The Traffic Management Department of the Ministry of Magic has placed two hundred door keys across the UK. The one closest to us is on the top of Stoat Mountain. We’re going there now.”

"What kind of portkey?" Harry asked curiously.

"Ah, there are all kinds of things." Arthur was very talkative. "Of course, most of them are inconspicuous things, so that Muggles won't pick them up and play with them. They will think that this is It was thrown away carelessly by others..."

Listening to Arthur's ramble, it was already half an hour after the group arrived at the foot of the mountain. The cold mountain wind blew down from the slope, as if it would freeze their hands and feet.

"Hey, Arthur, here! Come here!" A rough voice suddenly sounded, cutting through the quiet night sky. A middle-aged wizard stood under the tree and waved to them. .

"Hey, Amos!"

Arthur smiled and strode up, and the others followed silently behind him.

The middle-aged wizard had a warm smile on his red face. When he shook hands with Arthur, his short brown beard trembled, and he looked a little happy: "You made me wait so long!"