"Main Hall."
A woman's voice said coldly in the elevator. The golden grates opened, and Dumbledore and Wade emerged.
Not long after they walked out, they saw a large fountain in the center of the antechamber. At the heart of the fountain was a group of pure gold statues. A handsome and noble wizard held his wand high, while a beautiful witch looked up at him adoringly. Surrounding them, centaurs, goblins, and house-elves gazed up in boundless admiration.
At the bottom of the fountain were many shimmering coins, with a small sign nearby that read:
[All proceeds from the Fountain of Magical Brotherhood are donated to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries].
The two of them stopped by the fountain at the same time and looked up at the statues.
"A beautiful work of art, isn't it?"
Dumbledore tossed a handful of coins into the fountain and said with a smile, "Though probably only wizards and house-elves would appreciate this piece. Centaurs and goblins might not find it so pleasing."
"Goblins would like the gold on it," Wade countered.
Dumbledore smiled and said, "True."
"Will the money here really be used for the patients?" Wade asked. "Muggle wishing wells are basically just tools for collecting money."
"You can rest assured on that point. Magic tends to make wizards a bit more trustworthy," Dumbledore said.
So Wade also took a handful of coins from his pocket and threw them in. The glittering Galleons stood out among the large pile of Silver Sickles and Bronze Knuts.
A stream of water sprayed from the ear of the house-elf statue, cascading down and striking the water's surface in front of Vold. The splashing droplets seemed to be tinged with gold.
After a moment of silence, Dumbledore sighed and said, "Wizards, centaurs, goblins, house-elves—we are actually equal in intelligence and magic... just as wizards, Squibs, and Muggles are all human."
"Every race makes up our world and is an inseparable part of society. But the prejudice and arrogance of wizards always cause other races to suffer, and wizards always end up swallowing the bitter consequences."
"Isn't it the same even among wizards?"
Wade said, "Pure-bloods despise half-bloods and Muggle-borns, nobles despise commoners, the rich despise the poor, the smart despise the foolish... even without racial differences, a chain of contempt is everywhere."
"But some contempt motivates us to improve," Dumbledore said, "while others simply cause misery because of one's birth."
Wade didn't speak.
Dumbledore might have been alluding to house-elves, or perhaps to Squibs or Muggles.
He was talking about things that a young child wouldn't think about, but Wade had no desire to reveal his inner thoughts to anyone.
After a moment of silence, Dumbledore said in a relaxed tone, "Let's go."
"Professor, where are we going?" Wade asked, following him.
"You don't even know our destination, but you're coming with me?" Dumbledore asked on purpose.
"You're Dumbledore," Wade said simply.
Dumbledore smiled again.
This time, his smile seemed much more genuine. His blue eyes, beneath his half-moon spectacles, crinkled, and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes smoothed out.
"I want to take you to meet someone," he said. "A long-lost old friend."
Leaving the Ministry of Magic, Dumbledore asked, "Have you ever tried Side-Along Apparition, Vold?"
"No, Professor," Wade replied, shaking his head.
"Then I can take you. You'll need to hold on tight to my arm." Dumbledore held out his arm. "It's not a very pleasant feeling, but don't worry, I'll ensure you're safe."
Wade took hold of Dumbledore's arm.
Dumbledore was very tall, and Wade felt that this made him look even more like a child.
"Excellent, let's go!"
The moment Dumbledore's words fell, Wade felt an intense squeezing sensation, as if the air from every direction was pressing in on him, trying to squeeze his body into a ping-pong ball...
With a "pop," Wade felt as if he had been squeezed out of a narrow tube. His body instantly returned to normal, and his limbs felt like they had just been reattached.
He took a moment to recover, then looked up to see Dumbledore patiently waiting for him to recover.
"Are you alright?" Dumbledore asked with concern. "It's a feeling you'll have to get used to slowly."
"I'm fine," Wade said, letting out a breath. "I heard that during the war, underage children had to learn to Apparate with others."
"Yes, that was the case back then," Dumbledore said.
Wade looked around. They were in a strange valley. A dark, winding path led into a dense forest.
On a nearby hillside stood a graceful but dilapidated old house. Not far away was an overgrown graveyard.
The surroundings didn't look inhabited.
Wade had a vague feeling of what was happening. He didn't ask any questions and followed Dumbledore silently along the winding path.
Dumbledore didn't make him guess. He waved his wand, and a mist surged forward. Then, Wade saw two faint figures appear in front of them.
He couldn't make out their faces, only that they were a man and a woman. The man was on a horse and seemed well-dressed and distinguished. The woman was hunched and slightly stooped, wearing ragged clothes.
They looked so mismatched, yet the man lifted the woman onto his horse, and the two of them rode off along the country lane.
"Many years ago, there were two young people here—the handsome son of a Muggle family, Tom Riddle, and the daughter of a wizarding family, Merope Gaunt, who ran away together. This was a shocking scandal at the time."
"In people's eyes, Riddle was the local gentleman, while the Gaunts were a group of crazy vagrants. They were a complete mismatch. So when Tom Riddle returned to the village alone a few months later, the villagers weren't surprised at all."
In the mist, a man stumbled back, the girl no longer by his side.
Dumbledore held out his arm. "Come, let me show you what happened to Merope next."
Wade took his arm again.
With a "bang," the two of them appeared in a narrow alley.
Dumbledore cast a Disillusionment Charm. As they walked out of the alley, Wade recognized it as a neighborhood in London.
There were some Muggles on the street, but they couldn't see Wade and Dumbledore at all.
The mist surged again. A blurry, heavily pregnant woman walked with great difficulty on the street. He could faintly see white snowflakes falling onto her shoulders.
Wade followed behind her and heard Dumbledore say, "Merope, who had lost her husband, was pregnant and very poor. On a snowy, blustery night, she gave birth to a child in the orphanage up ahead."
The woman's blurry figure fell. People from the orphanage next door heard the commotion. They ran out of the large iron gate, shouting to each other, and together they helped the woman inside.
The scene shifted, and a baby was born.
A woman wearing an apron held the baby and brought him over for his mother to see him. The woman struggled to say something, then went still, her arm falling limply.
"After giving birth to the child, Merope passed away. Her last wish was to name the child after his father—Tom Marvolo Riddle."