v4 Chapter 183： loot and forgiveness

"Oh, it's from home..." Tom casually said to Padma, "Can I open it and take a look?"

"Of course." Padma nodded.

Harry clenched his fists nervously, he didn't know why the box appeared in Padma's hands. He just wanted to knock the box out of Tom's hand now, then grab Padma by the collar and ask her why she wanted to kill Tom and Hermione. But seeing Tom's calm look, he didn't have any trouble, so he could only stand aside and stare at the box.

Tom was also a little puzzled. Padma's behavior of trying to let Hermione touch the cursed necklace was undoubtedly malicious, so why didn't Hermione's anklet sound the alarm?

It can't be that Padma and Voldemort happened to use the same box, right?

A conjecture appeared in his mind.

The anklet could not detect maliciousness, indicating that Padma was not malicious at all.

This may seem like nonsense, but it actually means that Padma has no idea that the necklace in the box has a curse.

"You said it was sent to you by your family, so can you tell me when it was sent?" Tom showed great interest in the box.

"Uh," Padma was stunned for a moment. She didn't expect Tom to ask such a question. She recalled and said uncertainly, "It seems like this morning?"

Harry and Hermione were speechless: Can't remember that?

No matter how dull the two of them are, they can still find out that Padma's state is not right: how could anyone not remember when the gift they sent arrived? It's not a long time ago, it just happened this morning.

"Who sent it? Your father or your mother?" Tom continued gently.

Padma is blocked.

Now, she herself realized something was wrong.

In her eyes, this necklace was a gift from her own family, but once she was asked about the specific details, she would get stuck.

"This is my dad... No, it's my mother, wait, that's not right, I'm a little confused." Padma put her head in her hands, her face full of pain.

"This is not something sent from your house at all," Harry put his hand on Padma's shoulder and shook it vigorously, trying to wake her up, "You are confused by horses and people's magic!"

Malfoy couldn't be convicted yet, so Harry changed his tune halfway through.

Hearing what Harry said, Padma was stunned for a moment, and then the expression on his face gradually became more vivid. Padma's cognitive barriers are like a thin membrane, which disappears after being pierced.

She looked at the box in Tom's hand and screamed, "I found this box in the hallway this morning! I was just curious about what was inside, and I was going to open it to take a look and give it to Professor McGonagall. As soon as I touched the box, my mind went crazy! It seemed like a voice was telling me that this was a gift my family sent me to show her to Granger... I did. "

Speaking of this, Padma also broke out in a cold sweat. If Granger really opened the box and made a three-pointer and two-pointer, the suspicion on himself would be inextricable.

"Is it the Imperius Curse?" Harry felt that she might have been under the Imperius Curse and was under control, listening to Padma's description, but Tom shook his head.

"The Imperius Curse is not so easy to remove. I think it is a Confusion Curse. This spell is easy to see through the prompting of outsiders, but I often don't realize the logical problem by myself, and the Confusion Curse is far more difficult to cast than Imperius Curse lower."

Several recognized the possibility.

"Who cast the Confusion Charm on me." Padma's slender eyebrows were raised, and anger flashed in her eyes. She vowed to find this man and teach him an unforgettable lesson.

"I suspect it's Draco Malfoy." Harry finally revealed his speculation.

"Malfoy? I didn't offend him?" Padma couldn't help but stunned when she heard the name. She didn't interact with Malfoy at all. Why did he hurt herself?

"Sometimes you're just unlucky." Tom put the box in his trouser pocket and walked towards the principal's office with a few people.

It's still a bit difficult to find someone in a huge castle, but if Dumbledore ordered it, it would be much more efficient.

Dumbledore was speechless when he saw Tom again: Yodel was the most diligent student he had ever seen in the headmaster's office. The other students, even though Dumbledore's image of an amiable grandfather, kept him at a distance. Usually I can't wait to walk around the principal's office, not to mention running inside every three days.

But after seeing Padma, a rare visitor, Dumbledore faintly sensed something was wrong.

Padma, who had just entered the principal's office, was very nervous, and she didn't even know where to put her hands. It was Dumbledore who took the initiative to ease her emotions.

"Miss Patil? Didn't expect to see you here today? Would you like some finger biscuits, I didn't see you in the auditorium just now."

In just two sentences, the nervousness in Padma's heart melted away. She had the illusion of visiting the old grandpa's house next door.

"Thank you, if you can..." She actually hid in the corner with a plate of maple finger biscuits.

"Professor, look - don't touch the contents with your hands." Tom handed the wooden box to Dumbledore, reminding him that the contents were cursed. It would be funny if Dumbledore accidentally touched the necklace and was cursed. What Voldemort had in mind, Tom did it for him...

Dumbledore cautiously lifted the lid of the box with the tip of his wand and saw the gold necklace inside, his expression became solemn, because he could clearly perceive the magic power contained in the necklace. This necklace can easily take the life of a student!

"Where did it come from?" He stared at Tom with burning eyes.

After hearing the ins and outs of the matter, Dumbledore turned his head to look at the portrait on the wall. At this time, the former headmasters of Hogwarts had already woken up, and what Tom had told them made them angry.

It's appalling that someone brought such a dangerous item into the campus and used the Confusion Charm to instigate classmates to take the necklace and harm others.

"This is a shame for Slytherin Academy!" The headmaster named Phineas roared extremely angrily, because he saw something different in the eyes of other headmasters.

"This is an example, everyone should not be prejudiced against all Slytherin teachers because of this example..."

"Hmph, everyone should be vigilant about the negative impact of a large number of routine actions on Slytherin Academy." The headmaster sarcastically made Phineas's face turn pale.

"Okay, there's no definite evidence yet," Dumbledore suppressed the disputes between the former headmasters. He asked the headmasters to look for Malfoy in the portraits in every corner of the school, and invited Snape by the way.

The principals responded with a bang, and quickly disappeared into their respective portrait frames.

After a while, the door to the office was pushed open, and Snape strode in with a gloomy face. He was brought in along with the suspect Draco Malfoy.

There is no surveillance used by Muggles in Hogwarts Castle, but every portrait can actually serve as surveillance. Ask them to inquire about the whereabouts of people, it is easy to catch.

That's what Snape did, finding Malfoy without a hitch and taking him to the headmaster's office.

"Roll up his sleeves." Dumbledore looked at Snape, who silently dragged Malfoy aside and lifted the cuffs of his robe.

During this process, it seems that because of his fate, Malfoy didn't say a word from beginning to end, just silently endured.

When the bright red Dark Mark was exposed to everyone's sight, a look of joy appeared on Harry's face, and Dumbledore sighed. When the things they imagined in their hearts came true, their reactions were diametrically opposite. Harry rejoiced that his old enemy was about to suffer, Dumbledore grieved the fall of a soul.

"Draco, you still joined the Death Eaters after all." Looking at the Dark Mark on Malfoy's arm, Snape felt a little uncomfortable. The Death Eaters were by no means a good organization, and he would have objected to Draco joining it, if at all possible.

It's just that many times the development of things is not transferred by people's will.

"Aren't you?" Malfoy gave Snape a sarcastic smile.

Snape was silent.

"Malfoy, so you brought this box into Hogwarts?" Harry couldn't hold back his inner turmoil and asked sharply as he walked up to Malfoy.

Malfoy looked at Harry with unfocused eyes, refusing to answer his questions.

"We can use Veritaserum," Snape suggested. He has kept a little Veritaserum in his office for these crucial moments.

"Maybe we have another way." Dumbledore looked at Malfoy's expression thoughtfully. He walked over to Malfoy and tried an Imperius Curse.

Malfoy's eyes recovered, and when he saw the people in the room, his face turned pale.

Good news: The Imperius Curse has been lifted.

Bad news: Dumbledore unraveled.

"Professor..." Malfoy opened his mouth, but his tone was full of bitterness, and he didn't know how to explain it.

In the past, he should have called his father to make peace with himself, but now he has no father's protection. At this moment, Malfoy suddenly felt so powerless.

It turns out that without my father, I am nothing.

But thinking of Lucius in custody, Malfoy's heart rose again: he must not be sent to Azkaban or expelled from Hogwarts, otherwise who will save his father?

So he summoned his courage and said to Dumbledore, "I'm under the Imperius Curse, and I don't want to do it!"

Malfoy's words are more like forced sophistry. Because although the Imperius Curse can be lifted, the magical world currently has no reliable means to distinguish whether a person is controlled by the Imperius Curse or from the heart, which is also the reason why a large number of Death Eaters can escape their crimes after the war.

After Malfoy said this, he felt extremely uneasy. He knew he was telling the truth, but it was hard to say whether Dumbledore believed it or not. The reputation of his family has never been very good with Dumbledore.

Will he take the opportunity to convict himself and expel himself from Hogwarts? In that brief silence, Malfoy began to think wildly.

"I trust you," Dumbledore said softly. His voice was soft, but it sounded like thunder in Malfoy's ears.

"Professor!" He raised his head, choked a little.

In the past, he always ridiculed Dumbledore for being pedantic, and always gave a second chance with a soft heart, but now he realized the value of this character.

Maybe when he leaves the headmaster's office and returns to Slytherin for a few days of peace, he'll throw the idea out of the sky, but for now he's really grateful to Dumbledore.

Seeing that Dumbledore was actually going to let Malfoy go, Harry was a little impatient. He wanted to say something, but Hermione behind him promptly pulled his sleeve and told him to take it easy.

Dumbledore has his own reasons for doing things.

Harry was silent.

Malfoy is starting to tell his story bit by bit.

After listening to Malfoy's confession, Dumbledore looked at him with his lake blue eyes, and he didn't speak until Malfoy was a little uneasy.

"I can understand your feelings for saving your father, and I can assure you that Lucius will get a fair trial."

Malfoy's face twitched: what's the difference between putting his dad in Azkaban? Did he not know what his father had done?

"You must be tired Let's go back to rest first." Dumbledore waved his hand and ordered the people in the room to be expelled.

"Draco, I hope you don't make another slap in the face next time. I appreciate your courage in resisting Bellatrix, and I hope you can keep this bravery."

It's hard to say whether Malfoy has listened to Dumbledore's teachings, but there is no doubt that he didn't have the guts to take Bella's mission.

"How could he spare that guy? In my opinion, that's obviously a sophistry!" Harry walked out of the office with a look of indignation. He really couldn't understand why Dumbledore would let Malfoy go lightly. At this point Padma, Draco and Snape were separated from them, and only Tom, Hermione and Harry were left roaming the corridor.

"Because it really can't be proved that Malfoy wanted to assassinate us, and his confession is also very valuable." As the target of the assassination, Hermione spoke for Malfoy instead.

As for the Death Eaters targeting Hermione, Tom didn't want to discuss it for the time being. He paid more attention to the content of Malfoy's confession.

"Malfoy didn't mention You-Know-Who, did he?" he whispered.

Harry and Hermione frowned at the same time.

"He's lying?" Harry's first reaction was that Malfoy was hiding something.

Tom shook his head, preferring another possibility than Malfoy lying.

"Impossible, absolutely impossible!" Harry read Tom's eyes, so he froze.

"You really need to learn Occlumency, Harry." Tom sighed.

——

Two in one, four thousand words, good night