Under the starry night sky, Harry dragged Dumbledore to the top of the nearest giant boulder and helped him stand up.
Dumbledore was soaking wet and shivering, his whole body weight still pressing down on Harry.
Harry's whole body was focused on his destination: Hogsmeade Village.
He closed his eyes, tightly grasping Dumbledore's arm, and suddenly stepped into that terrifying pressure.
Before he opened his eyes, he knew he had succeeded, because the sea breeze and the smell of the sea had disappeared.
He and Dumbledore stood on the dark road of Hogsmeade Village, shivering all over, his clothes dripping with water.
In a trance, Harry seemed to see Yin Corpses coming out of some shops, closing in on him step by step, but when he blinked, he found that there was no movement at all.
It was quiet all around, the night was very dark, only a few street lights and a few lit windows upstairs could be seen.
"We did it, professor!"
Harry felt a burning pain in his chest. "We did it! We got the Soul Tool! "
Dumbledore staggered left and right, bumping into him.
At first Harry thought that his Phantom Transfiguration was not practiced enough, causing Dumbledore to lose his balance, but then he saw Dumbledore's face, under the light of a street light in the distance, this face was paler than ever, without any signs of life.
"Sir, are you okay?"
"Not as good as before," Dumbledore said weakly, his strength was completely exhausted, specifically at this moment his mouth was twitching, "That potion ….. is not a healthy drink ….."
To Harry's horror, Dumbledore suddenly collapsed to the ground.
"Sir — — it's okay, sir, you'll be fine soon, don't worry — —"
He anxiously looked around, wanting to find someone to help, but he could not see a single shadow, he only knew that he had to find a way to quickly get Dumbledore to the school hospital.
"We need to get you to school, sir ….. I'll take you to Madam Pomfrey ….."
"No, what I need … is Professor Snape … but I don't think … I can go far …"
"Well--sir, listen to me--I will knock at a door, and find a place for you to stay--then I can run to Pomfrey--"
"Severus," Dumbledore said clearly, "I need Severus …"
However, before Harry could move, he heard running footsteps.
Someone had seen, someone knew they needed help — he turned and saw Lady Rosmerta running down the dark street toward them in plush high-heeled slippers and a silk dressing-gown embroidered with dragons of fire.
"When I was closing the bedroom curtains, I saw your apparitions appear!
Thank heavens, I really don't know what to do … Huh? What's wrong with Abusi? "
She stopped in her tracks, widened her eyes, and looked down at Dumbledore.
"He's injured."
Harry said, "Mrs. Rosmerta, will you let him stay in the broomsticks while I get help from the school?"
"You can't go back alone! Didn't you notice — didn't you see? "
"Please help me hold him."
Harry did not listen to her, and said to himself, "I think we can get him in--"
"What happened?" Dumbledore asked weakly, "Rosmerta, what's wrong?"
"Black — Obsidian mark, Abusi."
She raised her finger and pointed to the sky in the direction of the Hogwarts.
When Harry heard these words, his heart was filled with fear …
He turned to look, and there it was, hanging in the sky above the school — it was a dazzling green skull, and under the dark sky, the skull's mouth flickered like a snake's tongue.
He was all too familiar with this thing, because no matter when the Death Eaters broke into a building … no matter where they killed … they would always leave this mark …
"When did it appear?"
Dumbledore struggled to stand up, his hand gripping Harry's shoulder painfully.
"It must have been a few minutes ago. When I let the cat out, it wasn't there, but when I went upstairs —"
"We need to go back to the castle immediately."
Dumbledore steadied himself a little, and although his steps were still a little shaky, he seemed to be able to take control of the situation.
"Rosmerta, we need transportation — flying brooms —"
"There are two behind my bar," Mrs. Rosmerta said, looking very frightened. "Do you want me to run and get them?"
"No, Harry can do it."
Harry immediately understood and raised his wand, aiming at the bar.
"Rosmerta's brooms are coming!"
A second later, they heard a loud bang, and the bar's front door was knocked open.
Two brooms whizzed into the street, chasing each other to Harry's side, and then suddenly stopped at waist height, trembling slightly.
"Rosmerta, please send a message to the Ministry of Magic."
Dumbledore said as he mounted the broom closest to him. "Maybe the people inside the Hogwarts don't know that something has happened … Harry, put on your Invisibility Cloak."
Harry took the Invisibility Cloak out of his pocket and put it on, then mounted his broom.
When Harry and Dumbledore kicked off the ground and flew into the air, Mrs. Rosmerta was already stumbling towards her bar.
The two brooms flew quickly towards the castle, and Harry looked sideways at Dumbledore, wanting to give him a hand in case he fell. Unexpectedly, the appearance of the Mark of the Dark Lord seemed to give Dumbledore a shot of confidence.
He leaned over the broom, his eyes fixed on the Mark of the Dark Lord, his long silver hair and beard fluttering in the night sky behind him.
Harry also looked at the skeleton, and fear expanded like a poisonous bubble, squeezing his lungs. He was in no mood to think about other discomfort …
How long had they been gone?
Had Ron, Hermione, and Ginny used up their good luck?
Could one of them have caused the Mark of the Dark Lord to appear over the school?
Or was it Neville, Luna, or some other member of the D.A.?
If that was the case …
He was the one who told them to patrol the corridor, he was the one who told them to leave the safety of their beds …
Could it be that he was going to be responsible for the death of another friend?
They flew through the dark, winding alleys they had walked through before, and the night wind whistled in Harry's ears. Over the sound, he heard Dumbledore whispering something in a strange language.
His broom trembled for a moment as they flew over the wall and into the field, and Harry knew why.
Dumbledore was undoing the spells he had set up around the castle so that they could quickly enter the school.
The Mark of the Dark Lord was flashing above the Astronomical Tower, the highest point of the castle.
Did that mean that death had happened there?
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