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Chapter 101: The car crash that Harry and Ron couldn\'t escape

In the month Harry spent at the Burrow, he had hardly paid any attention to the diary he once cherished.

Riddle was anxiously waiting, but the start of the school year at Hogwarts was drawing nearer. If Harry returned to school, he would be back under the watchful eyes of Dumbledore and Dracula, making it even harder to obtain Harry\'s blood.

"No, I can\'t remain passive any longer!"

Determined, the diary Riddle resolved to take action.

Harry felt the summer ended too quickly.

He looked forward to returning to Hogwarts, but at the same time, the past month at the Burrow was just as wonderful, equally among the happiest times of his life.

The thought of the Dursleys and the possible mistreatment he might face on his next visit to Privet Drive made him envious of his good friend Ron, who had such a warm and loving family.

On the last night before departure, Mrs. Weasley had prepared a grand dinner with all of Harry\'s favorite foods, culminating in a mouth-watering honey pudding.

Fred and George had prepared two homemade fireworks, and they put on a spectacular fireworks display during the last dinner before school started, making the evening even more perfect.

The twins received praise from everyone except Percy. Harry and Ron even privately commended them, believing the twins could surely achieve their goal before graduation—to create a giant firework capable of engulfing Hogwarts Castle.

After the festivities, the wizards at the Burrow each had a cup of hot chocolate and then went to bed.

The next morning, the rooster in the Burrow\'s yard crowed right on time to wake the Weasley family.

As soon as the rooster crowed, Mrs. Weasley woke everyone up. But they still seemed flustered, as if there were many things to finish before leaving.

Mrs. Weasley was running around, finding extra bedding and clothes for Ginny, preparing snacks and lunch for the returning Weasley brothers, and gradually growing more agitated.

Everyone kept bumping into each other on the narrow staircase.

On the crowded stairs, Fred was halfway dressed, George was holding a piece of leftover bread, Ron was tugging at his pants, and Harry was rushing upstairs to retrieve forgotten textbooks...

When everything was nearly ready, Mr. Weasley tried to carry Ginny\'s trunk to the car but tripped over a Bludger in the yard and almost broke his neck.

"Why is there a Bludger at the garage door?" Mr. Weasley gasped in pain, holding his aching neck, and questioned Fred and George. "Fred, George, did you not clean up the Bludger after your Quidditch game?!"

"It wasn\'t us, Dad!" Fred said.

"It wasn\'t us, Dad!" George added.

Fred, seeing Mr. Weasley\'s irritation, wanted to find someone to blame. He glanced at the proud rooster nearby and, with a quick thought, came up with an idea.

"Dad, I think this rooster must have kicked the Bludger over here!" he said.

George immediately caught on, and with a knowing look at Fred, said, "Yeah, Dad, Muggle chickens can play basketball, so why can\'t our magical chickens play Quidditch?"

When it came to Muggle games, Mr. Weasley forgot his pain and stood up with interest. "Basketball? Is that the sport where you use a basket to put the ball in? Is that a Muggle sport?"

Harry had to step in as a commentator, explaining the rules of basketball.

"Forget about basketball and Quidditch; we\'re going to be late!" Mrs. Weasley\'s urging finally made Mr. Weasley remember the important task and quickly put Ginny\'s trunk into the back of the old Ford Anglia.

With the use of the Undetectable Extension Charm, six large trunks, two owl cages, and a rat cage were all crammed into the trunk, with plenty of space left.

"Don\'t tell Molly," Mr. Weasley said quietly to Harry, showing off his achievement with pride.

When they finally had everything packed and got into the car, Mrs. Weasley glanced back in surprise—

Harry, Ron, Fred, George, and Percy were comfortably seated in the back, while she and Ginny were in the front passenger seat, with seats extended to be as spacious as a park bench.

"Muggles are smarter than we thought," she marveled, "You can\'t tell from the outside that the car is so spacious!"

Hearing Mrs. Weasley\'s praise, Mr. Weasley looked a bit embarrassed and quickly started the car engine.

With a "vroom," the car drove out of the yard.

Harry looked back at the strange house with reluctance, wondering when he would see it again...

Then they were back.

George had forgotten his homemade firework at home.

Ten minutes later, with a "screech" of the brakes, the car stopped in the yard again so Fred could run back to get his broomstick.

By the time they set off again, it was quite late, and Mrs. Weasley seemed so angry that steam could almost be seen coming from her ears.

Mr. Weasley glanced at his watch and then at his wife.

"Molly, dear—"

"No, Arthur." Mrs. Weasley seemed to know exactly what Mr. Weasley was going to say and cut him off immediately.

"No one will see us. There\'s a small button for the invisibility booster I installed—it will make us invisible and we\'ll fly up into the clouds. It\'ll take ten minutes to reach King\'s Cross Station and no one will know..."

"I said no, Arthur, not in broad daylight," Mrs. Weasley firmly refused Mr. Weasley\'s request.

So, the old Ford Anglia was stuck on the road to the station, caught in traffic with a bunch of other cars dropping kids off at school.

When the Weasleys finally arrived at King\'s Cross Station with Harry, Platform 9? was already empty of young witches and wizards; they were the last family to arrive at the station.

Standing in front of the wall between Platforms 9 and 10, Mrs. Weasley nervously watched the clock on the wall—five minutes until eleven, meaning the train would depart in five minutes.

They had to pass through the wall in a nonchalant manner within five minutes without attracting the attention of the Muggles around them.

"Don\'t worry, Mom," Fred said with a grin, "we\'re just in time!"

Percy went first, glancing around before quickly walking into the wall and disappearing. Mr. Weasley followed with Fred and George right behind him.

"I\'m taking Ginny," Mrs. Weasley turned to Harry and Ron, "You two have been through this before, so you\'ll be fine. Just follow us."

She grabbed Ginny\'s hand and walked forward, disappearing in an instant.

"Let\'s go together; there\'s only a minute left," Ron said, looking at the clock, eager to go.

Harry nodded, checked to make sure Hedwig\'s cage was securely on top of the cart, and then turned the cart towards the wall.

He was very confident, as passing through the wall was not nearly as uncomfortable as using Floo Powder.

They both crouched down confidently and pushed the cart towards the wall, gradually speeding up into a run—

"Bam—clang—crash—"

The two carts collided with the wall and bounced back. Ron\'s trunk landed heavily on the ground, and Hedwig\'s cage bounced onto the shiny floor and rolled aside.

Hedwig\'s head knocked against the cage, and she squawked angrily.

Their odd behavior attracted the attention of a large crowd around them, and security guards rushed over.

"What are you two boys doing?" a guard asked irritably.

"Um... if I say the cart slipped, would you believe me?" Harry said awkwardly, getting up while holding his ribs.

Ron hurried to pick up Hedwig.

Hedwig continued flapping her wings and squawking, causing many of the onlookers to complain about animal cruelty.

"An owl is a wild creature that longs for freedom. Why are you keeping it in such a small cage?" a middle-aged Muggle woman approached, wearing an animal protection association badge.

"But Hedwig is actually a pet," Ron argued.

"Lies!" the animal protection woman said loudly, "In all my years of working with animals, I\'ve never seen anyone keep an owl as a pet!"

But Harry and Ron were no longer paying attention to the stubborn woman.

If it were any other time, they might have argued with her, but with only twenty seconds left and the clock\'s second hand approaching twelve, they were just anxious.

Ignoring the strange looks from others, Harry ran up to the wall, pressing his whole body against it.

The wall remained solid and unmoving.

"We\'re going to miss the train," Ron also came over, pushing the cart hard against the wall, "I don\'t understand why the passage is closed..."

Harry looked up at the clock, feeling dizzy with panic.

Five seconds... Four seconds...

He gritted his teeth, stepped back sharply, and then "thud" slammed into the wall.

"Ouch—" he clutched his head and cried out in pain.

"It\'s over," Ron said, staring blankly as the second hand passed twelve, "The train has left. What if Mom and Dad can\'t come to get us?"

At this moment, Harry, with a large bump on his head, was too dazed to hear what Ron said.

"Looks like the kid has a problem with his brain," the animal protection woman, observing Harry\'s collision with the wall, shook her head sympathetically, "What a pity, to have such issues at such a young age."

The nearby guards also sighed and shook their heads, signaling one of them to find the station\'s medical staff to check on him.

"Harry, is this your diary?" Ron suddenly pointed to the floor next to Harry, "Did it fall out of your trunk?"

Harry looked in the direction Ron was pointing, surprised to see Tom\'s blank diary open with some writing faintly appearing.

"Tom?" Harry quickly turned to block Ron\'s view.

The diary read—

"Harry, if you\'re feeling distressed, I think I have a way to help you get back to Hogwarts."

Harry\'s expression shifted from anxiety to ecstasy, but he had no quill to ask Tom how he could help.

The diary seemed to understand Harry\'s situation and, without waiting for him to ask, provided the solution—

"Harry, I can create a Portkey for you. If you need it, I can make one that leads to Hogwarts."

Riddle had already planned this in his mind.

As Harry was about to pass through the wall between Platforms 9 and 10 to reach Platform 9?, Riddle manipulated the magical barrier to prevent him from boarding the Hogwarts Express.

Riddle knew that Harry, having a similar childhood and considering Hogwarts his home, would be unable to accept the possibility of not being able to return to Hogwarts.

Thus, at the height of Harry\'s anxiety, Riddle could offer to make a Portkey to Hogwarts, gaining his trust.

However, this Portkey was certainly not intended for Hogwarts; Riddle was more interested in avoiding the two old enemies there!

Riddle planned to make a Portkey directly to the Riddle House and the Riddle graveyard, sending Harry Potter straight to Voldemort himself.

This way, Voldemort could arrange for his Death Eaters to collect Harry Potter\'s blood and simultaneously use the remains of Tom Riddle and his Death Eater servants to complete his resurrection!

If Riddle had a mouth in his diary form, he would have laughed uncontrollably. He thought his plan was simply perfect!

"A Portkey?" Harry looked at the writing in the diary with joy and turned to Ron, "Ron, do you know what a Portkey is?"

"Why are you asking about Portkeys all of a sudden, Harry?" Ron asked in surprise, "Portkeys require approval from the Ministry of Magic, and we can\'t use them privately to get back to Hogwarts."

Harry\'s eyes brightened, "Just tell me what a Portkey is; maybe we can find one."

"Oh, a Portkey is a very convenient means of transportation, somewhat like Floo Powder," Ron said, "But seriously, it\'s quite difficult to find a Portkey."

Hearing Ron\'s description—"a Portkey is somewhat like Floo Powder"—Harry couldn\'t help but think of his last experience with Floo Powder and the evil hag he encountered in Knockturn Alley.

He shivered and instinctively felt a bit of aversion towards the Portkey mentioned in the diary.

"I think we should wait by the car," Harry said, looking at the two medical staff approaching from a distance, "We can consider the Portkey only if absolutely necessary..."

"Harry!" Ron suddenly jumped up and shouted, "The car!"

"What\'s wrong?" Harry was startled by his sudden action and asked in surprise.

"We can fly to Hogwarts in the car!" Ron said excitedly.

"But I think..." Harry was still a bit hesitant.

"We\'re stuck, right? We need to get back to school, don\'t we? In truly urgent situations, young witches and wizards can use magic. There\'s a provision in the Regulations, Clause 19 or so..."

Clearly, these lines were something Fred and George had said to Ron.

But Harry didn\'t know about the dubious nature of this regulation and only wanted to get back to school as quickly as possible.

"Can you drive?" Harry\'s hesitation turned into excitement, instantly forgetting about Riddle\'s mention of the Portkey.

"Absolutely!" Ron said, turning the cart towards the exit, "Let\'s go; if we hurry, we might still catch the Hogwarts Express."

The two of them bypassed the concerned medical staff, quickly making their way through the curious crowd, exiting the station, and returning to the old Ford Anglia parked on the side road, leaving Riddle in Harry\'s backpack feeling hopeless.

Crossing the calm and deep, mirror-like surface of the Black Lake, against the dark horizon, the silhouette of Hogwarts Castle\'s turrets and towers stood tall on the high cliff on the opposite side of the lake.

The castle was brightly lit, with countless candles floating in the air, illuminating the four long tables filled with people, making the golden plates and goblets sparkle.

The enchanted ceiling clearly reflected the brilliant stars of the night sky outside.

Professor McGonagall, wearing glasses and her hair tightly styled into a bun, placed a new Hogwarts Sorting Hat on a stool in front of the new students.

Druella held up a goblet, gently shaking it.

He watched the surprised exclamations from the young witches and wizards about the newly refreshed Sorting Hat, with a slight smile, very pleased with his achievement.

But it seemed that not all the audience was impressed by Druella\'s masterpiece.

When Druella\'s gaze inadvertently fell on the two red-haired figures, he noticed that they showed no interest in the Sorting Hat whatsoever.

Seeing the ungrateful twins, Druella was quite displeased. He set down his goblet and glared at them with an unfriendly expression.

However, the usually mischievous Fred and George were completely unaware of Professor Druella\'s fierce gaze and did not engage in their usual antics or set up a betting pool to deceive a bunch of Slytherin\'s wealthy second-generation students.

The two of them sat at their seats absentmindedly, even looking a bit worried.

"Why are these two so subdued today?"

Druella furrowed his brows, observing the twins\' unusual behavior.

Just as he wanted to go down and ask them what had happened, a muffled sound spread throughout the entire castle.

The professors who were waiting for the division ceremony raised their heads in shock and subconsciously craned their necks to the northeast of the castle ...