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Chapter 427: End-of-Term Exams
Chapter 427: End-of-Term Exams
As Kyle exited the classroom, he felt a wave of relief wash over him. Based on Professor McGonagall's earlier words, he had expected the assessment for the Most Promising Newcomer Award to be a hassle, but it turned out to be surprisingly straightforward.
By the time Kyle reached the upstairs classroom, the exam had already begun. Upon seeing him, Professor Flitwick seemed slightly flustered.
"Merlin's beard! What are you doing here? Didn't Professor McGonagall find you?" He scurried over to Kyle's side and pointed in the direction of the second floor. "Hurry to the room next to the library. Someone is waiting for you there..."
"I just came from there, Professor Flitwick," Kyle said.
"What?" Professor Flitwick paused, "You've already met Professor Sprout?"
"Yes," Kyle replied. "I passed the assessment, and she told me to come for the exam. She mentioned that I should still make it in time."
"Indeed, you're just in time, and in fact, the exam hasn't started yet." Professor Flitwick said with a smile after hearing Kyle's answer. "However, you didn't have to come at all, to be honest..."
Kyle remained silent.
Although Professor McGonagall had said the same thing, everyone was busy with their exams, and the castle was deserted. He would only be bored if he went back.
The two of them entered the classroom together.
The exam for Charms class involved the Leg-Locker Curse, which Kyle naturally completed with ease.
After dinner, the students hurried back to the common room to resume their revision for the upcoming exams.
The moment the Potions class exam ended the next morning, the atmosphere in the entire castle plunged to a terrifying level. Even during lunch, everyone was unusually quiet, as if the soul-sucking Dementors were about to attack the school the very next day.
"That was brutal," Mikel sighed, unable to hold it in any longer. "I couldn't think straight with Snape standing behind me. I messed up so many steps, and the color of my potion was all wrong.
And as I was leaving, he wrote something in his notebook. I bet that's a big, fat zero."
His words resonated with those around him.
It seemed like everyone had experienced being watched by Snape, feeling as if he wanted nothing more than for them all to fail.
However, the afternoon exam supervised by Hagrid for the Care of Magical Creatures class was much more interesting.
He had somehow acquired a large barrel of Blast-Ended Skrewts, and according to him, passing the exam required figuring out what the Skrewts liked to eat the most.
There were three types of food available in the arena, all of which were part of the Skrewts' diet. Even if one chose blindly, they would pass, making this by far the easiest exam they had ever taken.
Kyle also had plenty of opportunities to chat with Hagrid.
"Thank you for the healing potion, Kyle," Hagrid whispered. "There are some spiders in the Forbidden Forest that haven't been looking too well lately. They could really use that potion."
"How are they doing now?" Kyle asked.
"Much better," Hagrid replied happily. "They look just as healthy as they did before. Good as new."
"I'm glad to hear that," Kyle said, equally pleased.
Hagrid then gave Kyle full marks without even glancing at the Blast-Ended Skrewt in his hand.
In the middle of the night, they had their Astronomy exam, and everyone forced themselves to stay awake as they made their way to the top of the tallest tower, grumbling about how this class should have been scheduled as the last exam.
That way, they wouldn't have to worry about being late for the next day's exam and could get a good night's sleep.
The History of Magic exam on Wednesday afternoon was the most grueling one yet. The classroom was stuffy with all the windows and doors closed, and the lack of ventilation made it unbearably hot.
Early in the morning, Kyle headed to the Divination classroom and placed a brand-new crystal ball in the corner, positioned directly across from Professor Trelawney.
The exam took a long time, with each person taking around ten minutes to finish, making Divination the longest exam they had faced so far, lasting from morning until noon.
When Professor Trelawney finally emerged, Kyle, who had been waiting for a long time, hurried back into the classroom.
Unfortunately, this time, Professor Trelawney didn't make a single true prophecy throughout the entire exam.
The crystal ball remained untouched, pristine and devoid of any recordings.
Kyle picked it up with a hint of disappointment and put it back into his pocket.
It hadn't been cheap—ten galleons a piece—and he wondered if he could get a refund...
By the time Kyle arrived at the Great Hall, it was already filled with students.
Everyone was excitedly chatting, eagerly anticipating the end of the afternoon exams.
Kyle sat down between Conner and Cedric, just in time to hear them talking about O.W.Ls.
"How do you feel?" Conner asked. "Were the questions difficult?"
"A bit harder than the usual tests," Cedric replied, "but manageable. It's all material we've learned before, so don't worry, you guys will definitely pass next year.
In fact, it's the N.E.W.T.s in our seventh year that are truly challenging. Many seventh-year students haven't slept at all these past few days, cramming for the exams."
"How do they manage during the day then?" Mikel piped in from the side. "Aren't they exhausted after going several days without sleep?"
Just losing a few hours of sleep for the Astronomy exam had made him feel incredibly sleepy today, and he doubted he could even get out of bed if he pulled consecutive all-nighters.
"They just power through it," Cedric said, "or they take a Wake-Up Potion the night before. Although many potions are prohibited during the final Wizarding exams, Wake-Up Potions aren't on the banned list. As long as you take it early enough, there's absolutely no problem."
The final exam was Defense Against the Dark Arts.
Professor Lupin had prepared the most unusual exam they had encountered so far—an outdoor exam resembling an obstacle course.
The area he had set up next to the Forbidden Forest came in handy.
They had to make their way through a forest inhabited by hinkypunks, navigate a swamp filled with imps, and then locate three bowtruckles hidden in a bush. If they didn't find them all within the time limit or harmed the bowtruckles, points would be deducted.
"Well done, Kyle."
As Kyle emerged from the passage, Professor Lupin said with a beaming smile, "Full marks!"
Kyle was the first to achieve a perfect score.
Mikel, who had entered the course with him, was still stuck at the first obstacle, mesmerized by the hinkypunks and constantly spinning in place as if something was blocking his path. Every now and then, he would jump, trying to overcome the invisible barrier.
It was only after a few minutes that he snapped out of it by crashing into a tree, his face flushed with embarrassment.
Conner also passed the exam, and like Kyle, she earned full marks.
...
(End of Chapter)
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