-----
-----
Rufus's words made Dumbledore pause mid-step, like he'd been caught off guard. He just stood there, silent, while Rufus calmly looked at both Dumbledore and Wentworth. For a moment, the whole scene was dead quiet.
But then, from the nearby forest, came the sound of footsteps.
The soft crunching of leaves instantly got everyone's attention. Rufus, Dumbledore, and Wentworth all turned in the direction of the sound at the same time. A few Aurors even raised their wands and pointed them toward where the noise was coming from.
Suddenly—snap!—a bright white flash cut through the darkness of the night. It was blindingly sharp, and right after that, a woman with huge, curly hair stepped out of the woods. She was holding a notebook and a quill, and behind her followed a man with a camera hanging around his neck.
Rufus's expression soured the moment he saw her, and Dumbledore's face didn't look too happy either.
"Wow, what a surprise!" the woman said with an exaggerated grin. "Didn't expect to run into so many big names out here this late at night. So tell me—what's the new Head of the Auror Office, Mr. Rufus, doing out here with none other than Headmaster Dumbledore of Hogwarts?"
The woman, wearing glasses, scanned Rufus and Dumbledore with a curious gleam in her eyes. And as she spoke, Wentworth suddenly noticed that the quill in her hand had started writing in the notebook all by itself.
It was a strange sight—and just then, a name popped into Wentworth's head: Rita Skeeter.
And sure enough, once her eyes moved past Rufus and Dumbledore and landed on Wentworth, it was like she'd just struck gold. Her eyes lit up with excitement.
The next moment, she snatched the camera from the man behind her and started snapping photo after photo of Wentworth and Dumbledore. The flashing lights were so intense that Wentworth had to quickly turn away and squint.
"Rita Skeeter! What are you doing here?" Rufus stepped forward before Dumbledore could even speak. "This is a Ministry operation—please leave immediately!"
Hearing Rufus call her by name, Wentworth realized his guess had been spot on. But at the same time, he felt a sinking feeling in his gut.
And just as he feared, Rita Skeeter wasn't the least bit intimidated by Rufus, despite his status as Head of the Auror Office. She didn't even bother responding to him. Her attention stayed locked on Dumbledore and Wentworth.
With a quick little jog, Rita came right up to Wentworth, smiling sweetly as she asked, "I know you, kid! You're a Hogwarts student, right? Not long ago, Dumbledore took you along to the Quidditch World Cup final! So, here's the question—Hogwarts has tons of students, why did Dumbledore specifically take you to the final? Is there something… special between you and the Headmaster?"
Wentworth looked completely baffled, blinking as he replied, "Ma'am, I don't know what you're talking about."
The smile on Rita's face twitched, and she grit her teeth as she repeated through clenched jaws, "Ma'am?!"
At that moment, Dumbledore stepped forward and put himself between her and Wentworth. He looked Rita right in the eyes and said in a firm, heavy tone, "Rita, I suggest you stay away from my student."
But Rita acted like this was nothing new. She just gave Dumbledore a fake, overly sweet smile and said with a bit of a sarcastic tone, "Of course, Headmaster Dumbledore. But tell me this—what exactly are you doing out here in the forest so late at night, with a Hogwarts student by your side, making such a scene?"
Dumbledore frowned and responded calmly, "I don't believe I owe you an explanation about my whereabouts."
"Ohhh," Rita said, raising her eyebrows in mock surprise, her voice dripping with drama. "So what you're saying is, whatever you're doing with a student out here in the middle of the night is a secret? Wow, that's a very... interesting answer. I'm sure our readers will be absolutely fascinated!"
Hearing that, Wentworth finally understood why Hermione and the others hated this woman so much in the original books.
Just as he was about to speak up, Dumbledore grabbed him by the arm and turned to Rufus.
"Rufus, I'm taking Wentworth back to Hogwarts. If there's any news, please let me know when it's convenient."
Rufus quickly nodded. "Of course, Headmaster. And if I need your cooperation with the investigation, I trust you'll be willing to help."
Dumbledore gave a slow nod in response.
Rita, overhearing this exchange, perked up immediately. It was obvious she was very interested—but maybe she knew she wouldn't get any solid answers from Dumbledore, or maybe she was just a little wary of him because of who he was.
Either way, she shifted her focus back to Rufus.
But Rufus didn't give her the time of day. He walked off to the side and began giving instructions to the other Aurors, clearly not interested in entertaining her.
And while Rita's attention was still on Rufus, Dumbledore didn't waste a second. He took Wentworth's arm, and with a quiet pop, they Disapparated—straight back to Hogwarts.
When Wentworth returned to the front gates of Hogwarts Castle under Dumbledore's lead, the first thing he saw was Ilona waiting there for him.
"Professor Ilona, what are you doing here?"
Seeing her standing out in the cold wind, who knows for how long, Wentworth was honestly a bit moved—he didn't even know what to say.
Ilona quickly walked up to him and gave him a once-over. Only after making sure that Wentworth was completely unscathed did she finally let out a long sigh of relief.
"I told you, Professor Ilona, I'd make sure Wentworth stayed safe," Dumbledore said gently from the side.
But Ilona's tone was still stiff, clearly not over her anger. "Headmaster Dumbledore, I never doubted your power. But my students' lives are extremely precious to me. I don't want to see them getting hurt in any way."
Dumbledore didn't argue. He simply gave Wentworth a small push and said kindly:
"Go on back to your dormitory, Wentworth. I think your friends are probably worried sick about you."
"....."