Chapter 715: Discrimination (Edited)

When Harry followed them into Dumbledore's memories, they found themselves in an old, bustling street in London.

Not far away, Fish faced a much younger Dumbledore with red hair and beard, making funny faces behind him.

The young Dumbledore, dressed in a stylish fuchsia velvet suit, strode down the sidewalk with long strides; his appearance, attire, and air of distinction drew the attention of many passersby.

Harry and the others hurried to follow him, and Fish turned his head and made a cute face at the real Dumbledore.

"Hey, he's a bit..."

Fish stuck out his tongue and made a strange sound with his mouth.

Naturally, Dumbledore was not offended by it but cheerfully returned Fish's funny face.

Hermione and Harry were not surprised by it, but Ron, who saw this side of the headmaster for the first time, was completely stunned.

Then, without causing any more mischief, Fish bounced back towards Hermione and the others, staying not far behind young Dumbledore, and finally went through a large iron gate leading to a bare courtyard.

At the back of the courtyard stood a square, gloomy, and antiquated building with high fences around it. He climbed the few steps leading to the main door and knocked. After a few moments, a disheveled girl with an apron opened the door.

"Good afternoon, I have an appointment with Mrs. Cole, the housekeeper, I believe."

After a brief exchange of words, Dumbledore followed the girl inside the house, followed naturally by Fish and the others.

They entered a hallway with black and white tiled floors. The whole room appeared dilapidated but was very neat and impeccable.

Then, a thin, bony, tired-looking woman approached them. Her face was sharp, more anxious than fierce, and she must have been the mentioned Mrs. Cole.

"...take the iodine upstairs to Martha, Billy Stubbs has scratched his scabs, and Eric Wally's blood has stained the sheets... What bad luck to catch chickenpox!"

Mrs. Cole said as she walked towards Dumbledore, while turning her head to give instructions to another apron-clad assistant. It was easy to guess from Mrs. Cole's words the cause of the anxious expression on her face.

So anxious and busy was Mrs. Cole that she was only a few feet away from Dumbledore when she suddenly noticed his presence.

The young Dumbledore greeted her and reminded her of their appointment.

Mrs. Cole blinked and, snapping out of her trance, said, "Ah, yes. Well... well... you'd better come to my room. Yes."

She led Dumbledore to what seemed like a cabin, half living room and half office. It was as humble and shabby as the hallway, with old and mismatched furniture. She invited Dumbledore to sit on a rickety chair, while she herself sat behind a cluttered desk and nervously looked at him.

"Albus, what have you done?"

(?ω?)

The strange reaction of Mrs. Cole upon seeing Dumbledore caught Fish's attention, and he turned his head towards the real Dumbledore and asked.

"Well, actually, nothing." Dumbledore helplessly shrugged his shoulders. "Perhaps my choice of Muggle attire was too formal, which would have been out of place in a less affluent orphanage."

While they spoke, the young Dumbledore had explained his purpose to Mrs. Cole: to invite eleven-year-old Tom Riddle, or Voldemort, to study at Hogwarts.

They then witnessed how the young Dumbledore, under Mrs. Cole's watchful gaze, casually picked up a completely blank piece of paper from the table and handed it to her, while simultaneously waving his wand.

"Take this. I believe you will understand when you look at it."

Mrs. Cole's eyes briefly shifted away, then refocused as she examined the blank sheet attentively for a moment.

"It seems to be perfectly in order," she calmly remarked, returning the paper to Dumbledore.

Fish: Staring intently.

(?ω?)

"Ahem!" Dumbledore awkwardly coughed twice, trying to explain, "I wasn't very skilled at it before, but now it's a piece of cake. Mrs. Cole is too clever."

The scene continued on its original course, and under the influence of Dumbledore's spells, Mrs. Cole gradually opened up, revealing to them how Voldemort was born and what life was like at the orphanage.

"This Voldemort... He has been a bad boy since he was a child!"

(??ˇ?ˇ??)

After hearing the description Mrs. Cole gave of Voldemort, Fish said with utmost seriousness, "Fish hadn't bullied any other cat until he was adopted by Minerva!"

Before swallowing the shiny little ball, young Fish had only been harassed by other stray cats. But after swallowing the shiny little ball, they gave up their territory and treats without even waiting for Fish to fight for them.

As a stray cat, Fish not only didn't intimidate other cats but often shared the food he obtained from humans with the cats and dogs around him. Only mice and birds were unfortunate enough to become his prey.

"Yes, Voldemort had shown his cruel side at a young age, but at that time, I just thought he lacked proper upbringing, and an education at Hogwarts should have allowed him to correct his mistakes. Unfortunately..." Dumbledore let out a long sigh.

By this point, young Dumbledore had also met young Voldemort, and there was no trace of the Gaunt family in his face. Merope's last words had come true: he was a miniature version of his handsome father. He was tall for an eleven-year-old, dark-haired, and pale.

Upon seeing Dumbledore, Voldemort initially showed caution, and after Dumbledore introduced himself, he displayed fierce resistance... He mistook Dumbledore for a staff member from the asylum, wanting to send him there.

"You weren't as kind when you took Fish to school, nya!"

(ΦДΦ)

Fish yelled angrily at Dumbledore.

The Dumbledore he remembered had been patient with Voldemort, and even when he was being bad, Dumbledore had remained calm.

But what about him?

Fish remembered how he had been forced to run away from the old mean Dumbledore.

Dumbledore turned the corner of his mouth and explained with an ironic smile, "At that time, you were a cat... I didn't know you could transform into a human, and I didn't understand the language of cats..."

"Just because he's a cat doesn't mean he can casually intimidate!"

(`Д´)

Fish became even more furious, his tail behind him standing on end, and the cat ears on his head pressing down.

Fish angrily glared at Dumbledore, wanting an explanation.