Harry continued, "Even though Voldemort has been gone for years, many wizards still live in fear of him. I'd bet anything that if the Ministry of Magic enforced just one simple thing, that fear would vanish in no time."
Hermione asked curiously, "What kind of thing?"
"The first thing every wizard must do when they wake up each morning: shout at the top of their lungs—'Voldemort, you piece of shit!'"
Hermione: "..."
Harry said, "Don't underestimate it. Even if it's just a few words, human psychology is complicated. Over time, it would work. The fear would fade."
"I don't think any Minister of Magic would ever pass such a law. But if you became Minister, I suppose you could try it."
"Me? No thanks. You're the one who'd make a better Minister."
"Oh right, just now you asked what Voldemort looked like. I've never seen him myself, but I imagine he was the refined, charming type back in the day."
Harry couldn't help but picture a certain scene: a young Tom Riddle standing in the shadows of the Chamber of Secrets, facing off against him.
He really should be called Tom Riddle.
Hermione didn't expect Harry to describe Voldemort like that.
"As for this notebook," Harry said, "Voldemort's soul is hiding inside it. But he can't just pop out—he needs to slowly corrupt someone through communication, feed off their soul, and only then can he gain enough power to escape the book. It's a slow process, nothing to worry about."
Hermione shuddered.
Thinking about Voldemort's appearance made Harry suddenly recall cameras… which inevitably led to thoughts of future smartphones.
Damn, I really miss them… Harry sighed internally.
Then, a sudden realization struck him. His eyes widened as he asked urgently, "What year is it right now?!"
Hermione looked confused. Before she could answer, Harry muttered to himself, "Second year… 1992."
An idea had taken hold.
He needed to find someone. Someone whose invention might help solve a lot of problems.
Steve Jobs, who launched the iPhone in 2007.
But that was more than a decade away. Could anything be done now?
Harry wracked his brain, trying to remember Jobs' biography. In 1996, he'd returned to Apple and started work on the OSX operating system—what would become the foundation of iOS.
Harry could only hope Jobs was already enough of a genius to be thinking about the base-level Apple OS now.
As for right now, Jobs was probably stressing over Toy Story at his animation studio.
Harry shook himself from his thoughts and returned to the present, rejoining Hermione to finish shopping.
Eventually, the two of them emerged from the crowds carrying heaps of supplies.
Once Hermione was gone, Harry sprang into action. He was fed up with the Trace.
If only I could sneak into the Trace Registry at the Ministry and destroy mine…
Then he could Apparate directly to Hogwarts instead of wasting ten hours on a train.
Maybe Dumbledore would help?
No… that wasn't realistic.
After a dull and exhausting trip, Harry finally arrived at Hogwarts.
He'd been planning to go straight to the Headmaster's office, but halfway there, he detoured and descended into the gloomy dungeons of Snape's lair.
The office had a few new additions—odd specimens floating in jars of murky liquid.
Snape hadn't expected Harry at this time of day, so he looked surprised for a moment—then quickly rearranged his face into its signature icy sneer.
"With your precious little free time before school begins, you came here, Potter? Hoping I'll go easy on you in Potions this year?" he said in his usual sarcastic drawl.
Harry, unfazed, said calmly, "I want to know if there's a way to destroy the Trace that the Ministry put on me."
Snape raised an eyebrow. "I never imagined Harry Potter would be obsessed with such things. Planning to cast off all restraint? Idolizing the Dark Lord, perhaps?"
"No nonsense," Harry said, face unreadable. "Can it be done or not?"
"If not, I'm leaving."
He turned to go.
Snape's face twitched with annoyance. With a touch of anger, he called after him, "Of course it can be done."
Harry turned back. Snape was already standing, a smug expression on his face.
"There's no problem potions can't solve."
"Destroying the Trace is simple. Once its caster—the Ministry—detects the wizard is of age, it burns itself out automatically."
"You're talking about Aging Potion?" Harry asked.
Snape snorted, "That's child's play. It wouldn't even pass basic detection spells."
"But my enhanced version—an upgraded formulation—will make you an adult in every sense. Once you drink it, your Trace will immediately burn away."
Harry cheered inwardly: Snape is a goddamn genius.
Outwardly, he stayed calm. "How long will it take?"
"Half an hour," Snape said, clearly annoyed by Harry's attitude. "Why are the people who need my help always the ones who act the most arrogant?"
"Fine. I'll be back in thirty minutes."
"There are two versions—temporary and permanent. Which one do you want?"
Harry froze.
There's a potion that can make the effects permanent?!
He'd assumed high-level Aging Potions only lasted a short while.
He was tempted. After all, he was an adult soul.
But after some thought, he declined.
He didn't have a plan for what to do with an adult body right now. Better to let things unfold naturally—give himself time to think.
"I'll just take the temporary version."
"Very well. You may leave now." Snape picked up his cauldron.
Dumbledore's Office
"Headmaster, I'd like to borrow something."
Dumbledore looked up. "And what would that be?"
Harry glanced around. Not seeing it, he said, "The Pensieve."
Dumbledore looked genuinely surprised. "How do you know about the Pensieve?"
"Divination," Harry replied coolly.
"If you know what it is, then you must know what it does. What do you want it for?"
Harry's eyes narrowed with intensity. "It might help prove Hagrid's innocence, show who really opened the Chamber fifty years ago. And even more—it might provide evidence that Sirius Black, my godfather, wasn't the one who betrayed my parents."
Dumbledore stood up in shock. "How do you know that?!"
"Divination."
"You're telling me the person who betrayed your parents wasn't Sirius? How can you possibly—"
"Divination."
Dumbledore's face turned grim. "Then who was it?"
Harry saw his expression and quickly corrected himself: "You should take a closer look at Ron's pet rat."
Dumbledore's face darkened. "An Animagus."
"Don't spook him yet," Harry warned. "Interrogating that filthy rat now won't help. We need solid evidence to clear Sirius' name. Do you think the Ministry is going to admit they wrongly imprisoned someone for ten years? The current Minister and the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement would both be forced to resign."
"Give me the Pensieve. I might find something in it that could even prove Voldemort has returned. I want to see if those bastards in the International Confederation of Wizards and the Ministry still dare to claim we live in a world without darkness."
Dumbledore was utterly speechless.
(Note from the author: I actually thought the iPhone 4 was released in 2004… and assumed Harry started Hogwarts in 1998, which would make this 1999. But after googling it, I nearly cried. I had to force the plot to work somehow…)
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⚡🦉 THE REBIRTH OF HARRY POTTER 🦉⚡
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