Some time later.
"What's wrong, Harry? Is your scar hurting again?"
Sirius poked his head in from the doorway, asking with genuine concern.
He was covered in gray dust, with spiderwebs tangled in his originally dark, curly hair. His robes, though somewhat old, were still decent, yet now they were smeared with grime.
"No, I... I'm fine."
Harry composed himself.
The scar didn't hurt. But lately, for some reason, he constantly felt a chill running down his spine.
It felt as though something bad was about to happen.
However, when Harry recalled his grades in Divination class, he quickly tossed this "omen" to the back of his mind.
Instead, he said, "I was thinking, should we tell Eth—"
"Kreacher! Stop sneaking things away and hiding them!"
Mrs. Weasley's shout cut Harry off.
Immediately following it was the gloomy, croaking voice of the house-elf named Kreacher:
"Pureblood traitors! To dare give orders to Kreacher... these are the young master's things! Filthy thieves!"
"Kreacher! I dare you to say that one more time!"
Sirius roared, storming out like a whirlwind.
Soon, a loud bang echoed through the hall.
The portrait of the "Madwoman" hanging in the corridor was awakened by the noise and began to scream hysterically.
The scene instantly descended into chaos.
"...whether we should tell Ethan about the Order of the Phoenix," Harry mumbled the rest of his sentence, sighing.
Tonight was Harry's birthday.
Under Mrs. Weasley's leadership, they were conducting a grueling deep clean of the ancestral Black residence.
Ever since Lord Voldemort's resurrection, and with the activities of [Mr. Lamp] becoming more frequent, this ancestral home of the Black family—located at Number 12, Grimmauld Place and hidden by the Fidelius Charm—had resumed its function as the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix after several years.
Ron and Hermione were both here.
Only Ethan had not been invited.
"I feel like we shouldn't keep this from Ethan," Harry said to his best friends while flinging a stunned Doxy into a metal bucket.
His eyes shone with innocent light. "Ethan is such a kind and sincere person! He's never kept anything from us."
"Exactly!" Hermione chimed in, biting her lip anxiously. "What if Ethan gets attacked by enemies while we're enjoying ourselves here? What if he gets thrown off a mountain or beaten black and blue? What then?"
Hearing this, Ron's eyes went wide.
"Merlin's baggy Y-fronts... am I the only normal person left here?!"
The moment Ron imagined Ethan coming here, he couldn't help but shiver at the thought of this place turning into some sort of "distorted reality."
...However, it was fine.
No matter how magically capable Ethan was, as long as no one brought him here, Ethan could absolutely never find this place.
Ron muttered, "Hmph, right now, Ethan is probably happily vacationing with some girl somewhere!"
Ron pouted heavily, throwing a screeching Doxy across the room in annoyance. He couldn't help but fantasize about how great it would be if he were Ethan right now...
Bang! Bang!
"Waaah!"
The twins suddenly Apparated into the room, startling a scream out of Ron.
They teased him immediately. "Little Ronniekins, dreaming of something nice? You're drooling with happiness~"
Ron's face turned beet red. "Oh—shut up!"
Harry smiled as he watched them bicker.
At the same time, he made a silent resolution in his heart: After his birthday tonight, he would go directly to Headmaster Dumbledore and ask if Ethan could join the Order of the Phoenix.
Although Harry held Ethan in high esteem, the idea of having Ethan participate in his birthday party...
Sorry.
Harry maintained that he was just a normal human being. He only wanted a normal, safe birthday without blood plasma and screaming.
Recalling the previous years, specifically Ethan's birthday gifts—which nearly involved mounting the Dursleys' heads on the wall like house-elves—Harry couldn't help but shudder.
"Luckily, Ethan doesn't know about the existence of the Order..."
Harry let out a sigh of relief.
He failed to notice his godfather, currently transformed into a large black dog, guiltily tucking his tail between his legs.
Night fell.
A violent storm raged outside.
Beyond the windows was pitch blackness, and the rain lashed against the glass with a crackling rhythm, adding a chill to the air.
However, despite the terrible weather outside, the interior of the house was incomparably warm, glowing with orange light.
Everyone was gathered around the long dining table.
The table was laden with dishes meticulously prepared by Mrs. Weasley: glistening roast chicken, herb-crusted lamb chops slightly charred to perfection, creamy stew, honey-glazed carrots, and minted pea puree with gravy.
And, of course, the indispensable birthday cake.
Even the busy Lupin and Mad-Eye Moody had rushed back to celebrate Harry's birthday.
—This is absolutely the best birthday ever!
Harry thought happily, believing that nothing could ruin this warm and cheerful atmosphere.
Until the Weasley twins cracked a joke:
"Did you know? There's a legend that on pitch-black nights, the only house with its lights on will be targeted by a monster~"
"Oh dear, oh dear A towering monster that will reach down with long, sharp claws and snatch children right out of the chimney!"
"Oooooh Little Ronnie"
"Hah!" Ron laughed loudly in disdain. "Do you think I'm a three-year-old? Who would believe such rubbish—"
Before he could finish his sentence.
THUMP!
Suddenly, a dull, heavy sound came from outside the window!
It sounded like something massive stomping on the earth.
The house shook twice!
Ron: "???"
Everyone: "???"
Ron's smile froze. He laughed dryly, "It... it's just a tree getting blown about! What a coincidence—"
THUMP!
Another heavy impact echoed!
"Hrk?!"
Ron looked as if someone had suddenly choked him. His eyes bulged, and his face went instantly pale! He looked in terror at the twins, who wore equally bewildered expressions.
—Wait, did a monster actually show up?!
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
In the silent dining room, the sound was incredibly distinct.
It was rhythmic, and it was getting louder.
It was as if some colossal being was steadily walking toward the house!
Now, even the adults wiped the smiles from their faces.
"Shhh."
Professor Lupin calmly held up a finger, signaling for silence. He waved his wand and extinguished the lights in the dining room.
A second before the light vanished, Mrs. Weasley shot a fierce glare at the twins.
The meaning was clear: I will deal with you two later!
The Twins: We're innocent!
"I didn't know our words actually had magical binding power..."
"Next time, let's curse Snape to go bald..."
"Good idea..."
"Quiet!" Mrs. Weasley scolded in a whisper.
The dining room fell into deathly silence.
The only sound was the footsteps outside the window—clearer, heavier, and more earth-shattering.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
"..."
Harry gripped his wand tightly, swallowing nervously. His heart pounded in sync with the rhythmic heavy thuds.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
A blurred silhouette appeared outside the window, amidst the pouring rain.
Within the curtain of rain, a ball of orange light flared to life.
...What is that?
Harry squinted, straining to see.
Various images flooded his mind. Maybe it was the Lumos of a Death Eater. Maybe it was a fire-breathing alchemical device coming to burn them all to death.
Accompanied by the heart-palpitating sound of footsteps, the silhouette finally emerged slowly from the gloom.
When Harry saw it clearly, his jaw dropped in shock!
—It was a colossally massive "Giant"!!
Unlike the giants described in textbooks, this approaching figure was like a moving mountain range!
He couldn't even see its face, which was hidden in the clouds and mist. Only its muscle-knotted limbs were visible, and with every step it took, it emitted that heavy THUMP, THUMP sound.
Causing the earth, the house, and their hearts to tremble!
And that halo of light from earlier was emanating from the giant's chest. It was as if a bonfire or a furnace had been installed there, radiating a dim glow.
"Merlin..." Sirius tilted his head back, his wand drooping unconsciously in his hand.
He muttered in a daze, "Is it suddenly the end of the world...?"
In the stunned silence—
BOOM!
With a thunderous noise, the giant stopped in front of the window. It slowly bent its waist and reached out a hand that seemed to cover the sky and earth. It looked as if it was about to grab them!
"—Get the children out of here! NOW!"
Mad-Eye Moody roared!
He lunged forward, grabbing Harry by the shoulder, intending to Apparate him away!
This kind of monster was absolutely not something they could handle!!
Just then.
Ding-a-ling——————
The doorbell at the end of the corridor suddenly rang.
Everyone froze instantly.
Shocked and terrified, they stared at the door standing at the end of the dark, deep hallway.
It felt as though it were a gate leading to hell.
Swish.
The curtains covering the old woman's portrait slid open, though no one knew when.
As if it were all part of a design, the old woman didn't scream and shout as usual. In the dead silence, she spoke in a mocking, slippery voice.
Slowly, she said:
"Ding-dong, ding-dong... Shhh, he knows you're home."
As if in response to her words—
Creaaaaak——————
Right before everyone's eyes, the front door slowly opened by itself!
"Ah, aaaah!"
Ron let out a scream that was completely out of tune, shaking like a sieve. He clutched Lupin tightly, looking as if he might strangle the poor former werewolf.
CRACK!
A bolt of lightning flashed!
It illuminated the terrifying silhouette standing outside the door——————
Ta-da~!
Ethan stood in the doorway, throwing his hands up in the air.
He looked at the dumbstruck crowd with a beaming smile.
Cheerfully, he said:
"I'm here!"
"Surprised? Unexpected?"
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