Many people, when writing in a diary, start with "Dear Diary." When Lily wrote "Honored Lady Ravenclaw," she did indeed feel the same relaxed ease as if she were writing in a diary.
In truth, she had a long list of questions she wanted to ask, such as how Lady Ravenclaw had gotten into the book, and how the Handbook had been made. However, what Lily cared about most was still Wormtail's whereabouts.
"There is a matter troubling me... I would like to know which wizarding settlements exist in Albania, or which ancient ruins Dark wizards might linger around."
A map appeared on the blank page of the Handbook, marking every Albanian wizarding settlement recorded in the Hogwarts library.
Lily looked at the dozens of locations and, for a moment, felt completely overwhelmed. There was not much time left before the start of term. She had no confidence that she could search all of Albania in such a short time.
She sighed, then continued speaking with the ghost of Ravenclaw inside the Handbook.
"Thank you, Lady Ravenclaw. You've been a tremendous help."
Helena: I know.
Lily thought that this ghost was rather proud.
After thinking for a moment, she wrote, "Honored Lady Ravenclaw, I am pursuing a Death Eater connected to the Dark Lord. He is currently in Albania. May I ask if there are any local Death Eater hideouts?"
Helena: The Hogwarts library contains no relevant information. However...
The writing inside the Handbook was quickly erased. Then the map of Albania appeared again, and a stretch of forest southwest of Tirana was circled in red. A note beside it read: Voldemort once operated here.
Lily immediately sharpened with focus. She marked the location on the map she had bought, then hurriedly sent it to Harry and the others.
After Sirius and the others received the letter, they discussed it briefly and decided to trust this potential ally who was helping them from the shadows. They set out at once for the destination.
By the time they reached the forest, it was already the early morning of January 6. The sky was just beginning to brighten, and the air seemed to carry the salty tang of the Adriatic Sea. This place was indeed not far from the Mediterranean. Ancient pines and firs stood in the iron-gray dawn, while the howls of wild beasts echoed in the distance.
There were terrifying local stories about witches, and some rumors even claimed that man-eating giant serpents lived deep in the forest.
The moment Harry walked into the woods, he suddenly clutched his forehead.
"My scar hurts. Voldemort must be nearby!"
Everyone grew alert. Forested areas had always been full of danger, and if Wormtail knew someone was tracking him, he might launch an ambush at any moment.
Harry looked at his three companions and gave his instructions with a serious expression. "From this point on, use every means possible to stay hidden. Voldemort may already have noticed my arrival. I'll be responsible for searching for his traces. You wait for your chance to act. Above all else, keep yourselves safe."
Ron patted his chest and said loyally, "Mate, let him come. Weasley sons and daughters have never known fear!" He said it with the heroic force of a Viking raider, as if he could not wait to pick up a battle-axe and fight Wormtail for three hundred rounds.
Hermione glanced at the red-haired boy and said helplessly, "Could you not try to be a hero? We just need to follow the plan."
"All right, all right... But don't worry, mate. I'll be right by your side whenever you need me. Don't be scared!"
Neville silently nodded.
The four children had already decided on a rough tactic. Harry would act as bait, while the other three would lie in ambush. Sirius and Lupin, standing nearby, were left stunned as they listened.
"None of you are to do anything reckless. Wait here obediently. Black and I will deal with Wormtail," Lupin ordered sternly.
Even Sirius was no longer indulging Harry and the others this time. He nodded and said, "Moony's right. Listen to him."
"If all of you leave, what happens if Wormtail comes after us?" Harry asked calmly.
Sirius hesitated. "Then you go back first?"
"There isn't enough time. We might also be attacked on the way back," Hermione added quietly, taking half a step forward before shrinking back behind Harry.
The four young wizards smiled in perfect unison. That was right. Sirius and Lupin should never have brought them to Albania in the first place. Now they had ten thousand reasons to join the fight. Besides, without the Polyjuice Potion Hermione had provided, Sirius would never have been able to take the plane.
"Oh, so you schemed against me," Sirius said fiercely, but there was laughter in his tormented eyes. "Fine, fine. I can't win an argument against you. Harry, you stay close to me and Moony."
Lupin silently sighed.
Ron, Neville, and Hermione cast Disillusionment Charms on themselves. Their skillful casting made both adult wizards look at them with new respect.
In truth, the four-person group felt that Sirius and Lupin were the ones dragging them down.
Harry took the lead and advanced deeper into the forest. The scar on his forehead hurt more and more, as if sharp needles were stabbing into his skull again and again. It did not break him. Instead, it filled his heart with anger.
Deep in the Albanian forest, they saw a treehouse built into a thick, squat old banyan tree.
"That's the place. Wormtail's hiding place."
The treehouse was clearly old. Beneath the tree was a stretch of swamp, with dense aerial roots hanging into the water. Black pools were covered in fallen leaves, giving off the dull stench of rotting vegetation.
Harry stood outside the swamp and stared at the leaf-covered water for a while.
"Is something wrong?" Sirius asked through gritted teeth.
"If I were Voldemort, I would definitely set traps under the water," Harry said calmly.
Ron's voice came from nearby. "Makes sense, mate. Mentor Anmond always says that when exploring ancient tombs, you have to be extremely careful. You never know which brick is a pressure plate."
"Don't talk, Ron, you idiot!" the invisible Hermione squeaked. Then she hurriedly apologized. "Sorry, I shouldn't have spoken. I, I'll stop talking now."
Lupin asked, "What do we do now?"
Harry closed his eyes tightly, raised his wand, and shouted, "Purify the Unclean!"
The spell from the High Tower King took effect. A faint white light shone from the tip of Harry's wand and illuminated the pools. Then countless pale arms stretched out from the water, and one miserable, gloomy face after another slowly surfaced.
"Inferi!" Sirius recognized those dreadful things. They were undead created through extremely evil Dark magic.
"Merlin's beard, how many people did Voldemort kill?" Lupin's face filled with pity.
Inferi feared light and fire. Under the effect of the spell, their bodies burned beneath the water. These innocent people murdered by Voldemort had been turned into soulless walking corpses, and now their harmful remains were gradually disappearing as well.
Harry stared coldly at the Inferi. His mood was terrible, so he pointed his wand at the treehouse, and a surging stream of red flame sprayed from the tip.
It was Fiendfyre, capable of destroying Horcruxes. It was a classic form of Dark magic, and its power was terrifying. It could devour everything in its path, expand without limit, and could not be extinguished by ordinary means. If the caster could not control it, the flame would consume the wizard himself.
Both adult wizards stared at the boy in shock. Profound magic like the Fiendfyre Curse often required emotional guidance. To cast such a spell, one needed a powerful desire for destruction.
Harry had always seemed obedient and sensible, yet the moment he acted, every move was ruthless. What on earth was Hogwarts teaching these days?
Fiendfyre shot out like an arrow and landed on the treehouse. In just a few breaths, it ignited the entire banyan tree.
It looked like a forty-foot-tall torch, its radiance lighting up the sky above the forest.
"That's enough, Harry! The fire is getting bigger. You won't be able to control it!"
Sweat was faintly visible on the boy's forehead. He hurriedly shouted, "[Finite Incantatem]!"
He cast the counter-spell again and again, and finally suppressed and extinguished the Fiendfyre. By then, however, the treehouse and the banyan tree had already turned into gray smoke and dust, drifting down over the swamp.
"Is Wormtail dead?" The thought appeared in everyone's mind.
Harry's forehead suddenly began to hurt again.
At that moment, his senses connected with Voldemort's. Harry saw "himself" watching Sirius from behind a pine tree, fear and malice brewing in his chest.
"Careful!"
Harry shouted. Then a Disarming Charm shot from behind everyone and struck Lupin. The powerful impact blasted Lupin away, and he crashed into Sirius, knocking him down as well.
Then a terrible voice rang through the woods.
"Avada Kedavra!"
Harry saw the killing green light appear between two trees.
In that instant, he felt calm, as if all fear had vanished.
Before the Killing Curse struck the boy, his body suddenly twisted and contracted. Apparition activated. Harry avoided the attack, and when he appeared again, he was already hidden in the woods.
After escaping death, Harry's heart hammered hard against his ribs. He could only keep taking deep breaths, but his hands and feet were still trembling, and hallucinations even appeared before his eyes.
Fear came flooding back. Harry had not expected himself to be so afraid of death.
A woman's piercing scream appeared beside his ears.
The woman cried out, "Don't touch Harry! Don't touch Harry! Please, don't touch Harry!"
Then came another voice, impatient and male, threaded with a hissing tone. "Stand aside, you foolish woman... Stand aside now..."
"Don't touch Harry, please. Kill me instead. Kill me, please, don't touch Harry! Please... have mercy... have mercy..."
Wormtail Apparated in front of Harry. The boy's whole body was trembling under the torment of fear and hallucinations.
A cold voice drifted out of Peter Pettigrew's mouth. It was Voldemort speaking.
"Harry Potter, you fool! Instead of staying beside that disgusting Skyl, you came looking for death. Did you think learning a bit of insignificant Dark magic would let you resist me? And your little cleverness, Nagini will eat your friends one by one. Very soon, they will come back to keep you company."
He laughed with satisfaction, making Wormtail's ugly, fat face look even more revolting.
Voldemort raised his wand and began, "Avada..."
Before he could finish the incantation, a woman's roaring voice rang out behind Wormtail.
"Don't touch Harry! [Expelliarmus]!"
Harry, your mother has come to save you!
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