Chapter 519 – Still Don't Understand?!
Harry asked, realizing the full scope of what had happened.
Moody laughed.
"Don't you understand yet?
"I did all of this. I put your name in the Goblet of Fire, and I turned the Triwizard Cup into a Portkey.
"The note from Darren? That was orchestrated too. I had Cedric deliver it to Darren to make him want to sign up.
"And yes, I gave him a… push—so he acted exactly as needed.
"I staged everything at Hogwarts. We wanted the whole world to see that the Dark Lord had returned from nothing!"
"But… but… you helped me…" Harry stammered.
"Yes! Yes! Do you doubt Professor Moody, who's always trying to help you?
"Even Darren, no matter how suspicious, he can see I was trying to help you in that scene, can't he?"
Moody smiled, a crooked, sharp smile.
He pointed his wand at Harry and said, "Well, it's all over now. You should die—so that everything my master has done won't be in vain."
Harry's blood boiled.
"He can't even defeat my brother! If Darren had his full magical strength, Voldemort would've been dead long ago!
"He was scared of Darren, had to use potions, had to cast spells on him just to make him hesitate before attacking!
"Voldemort is a coward, a weakling, someone who doesn't even dare to face Darren directly!"
Harry's growl echoed in the room.
Moody's face twisted slightly, a shadow of distortion crossing his features.
"What do you know? You don't understand anything… Of course, I probably shouldn't have told you that… Now, you can die!"
Harry secretly clenched his wand.
Then he noticed a figure appearing behind Moody.
"Faint!"
A brilliant red light flashed.
Harry saw Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, and even Snape.
They burst into the office and immediately subdued Moody.
"This is not Moody," Harry realized, his unease growing.
Dumbledore shook his head and sighed.
He began searching inside Moody's office.
Eventually, Dumbledore opened a large suitcase and found the real Moody—unconscious inside.
"So, Severus, fetch the Veritaserum. It's time to interrogate this 'Professor Moody'!"
As Professor McGonagall escorted Barty Crouch Jr. away, Harry turned to Dumbledore pleadingly.
Dumbledore sighed.
He looked at Snape.
"Severus, I need you to take this child to St. Mungo's."
Harry saw a flash of anger in Snape's eyes, but in the end, Snape sneered and stepped in front of him.
Then he grabbed the back of Harry's neck with clear disdain.
Harry panicked for a moment, thinking Snape might be trying to strangle him.
But then he realized Snape was only holding the back of his neck firmly.
The next second, the world spun.
Harry felt as if he were being pulled from a pipe, and then he landed roughly on solid ground.
"Harry! You're finally here!"
It was Ron.
Harry remembered he still had two friends here—but he didn't know what to say.
All he wanted was to see Darren first.
"He's awake… He said he wanted to see you first. Fortunately, you arrived in time."
Hermione's voice carried helpless concern.
She had been trying to persuade Darren to rest, but he refused, insisting he couldn't sleep until Harry was safe.
Harry finally saw Darren.
He was dressed in a hospital gown now.
The wounds across his body were slowly healing, though many still oozed blood as they closed.
From time to time, his face showed sharp twinges of pain.
A female doctor hovered nearby, constantly moving her wand to accelerate the healing process.
"Good, you're finally here. You better persuade him to rest immediately.
"The pain of healing is just as intense as the injuries themselves. Patients need sleep to recover properly."
Harry understood immediately.
He remembered when, in his second year, Professor Lockhart had broken his arm and Madam Pomfrey had given him a potion to sleep, though he still woke in the middle of the night.
Darren was far worse off than Harry had ever been, and he had endured it silently.
"Don't be silly. You're awake again. Waiting for me to do something?" Harry said, half-teasing, half-concerned.
Darren spoke gently, his voice hoarse.
"Brother… actually, when Voldemort spoke, I was still somewhat conscious…"
Harry's face went pale.
Right—Darren must have known he wasn't a savior.
He was just a boy Mom had protected.
"Don't say that. When I was in first grade, I checked everything. I knew.
"I know how a child like you could endure a curse like that," Harry said quietly.
"So?"
"So, brother, don't give up so much. In my heart, you'll always be the best…"
Darren's eyelids drooped.
His voice softened further.
"…Brother… I only have you… Anyway… you've protected so many people… Don't worry about me, brother… I'm so sleepy…"
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Holy Father Shen +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
［...］
"Darren! Darren!"
Harry's heart ached with worry as he looked at Darren's groggy form, shouting frantically,
"If you don't die, I'll only have you!"
"Who said that… and also… Sirius… and Remus… and Hermione… and Ron…"
Darren's voice faded.
Harry broke down, tears streaming freely.
"Don't let him die… don't let him die…"
Hermione and Ron were struck dumb, standing frozen in shock.
Until—
"Oh, kids, he's not dead. He's just too weak and fell asleep…"
The female doctor standing nearby nearly panicked, fearing for her patient.
It turned out Harry's shouting was the cause.
She nearly rolled her eyes in frustration at him.
"Is he really not dead?" Harry asked, astonished.
"Of course. But you also need to stay at St. Mungo's. Your injuries are severe.
"I can accompany him, of course, though it looked like you killed him!"
Harry flushed with embarrassment.
He noticed Hermione and Ron's wide-eyed stares.
And Snape's hurried footsteps echoed—he had come to check on Darren and found Harry shouting desperately.
Upon realizing it was Harry yelling, Snape's eyes narrowed.
Harry silently vowed that Snape would hate him even more.
If he were still at Hogwarts, Snape would surely find some way to deduct a hundred points from him.
Even so, Harry knew that if it weren't for his own careful restraint, Snape might have unleashed his full temper—spitting and worse—on him.