Chapter 441: The Start of Holidays
Chapter 441: The Start of Holidays
Apparently unwilling to face the letters from the parents, despite Madame Pomfrey's insistence that he wasn't fully healed yet, Lupin checked out of the hospital wing. He gathered his belongings from his office and quietly left the castle, without asking anyone to see him off, except for a single dog that accompanied him onto the carriage.
The office was once again emptied, leaving many students feeling dejected... Just as Harry had said, Lupin was one of the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers they had ever had.
They didn't mind that Lupin was a werewolf. Even if he was, an entire school year without any incidents was enough proof that he wouldn't harm anyone.
But there was nothing they could do about it... Their opinions didn't matter in this case.
"I wonder who they'll send us next year!" Cedric sighed in resignation. It was incredibly difficult these days to find a decent Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.
"Maybe... they'll send a vampire," Fred mused.
"A zombie would be cool, too," George added.
Autumn's request was much simpler... as long as it wasn't a Dementor, she would be fine with anyone.
Later in the afternoon...
Lupin's guess had been correct. During mealtime, hundreds of owls suddenly flew into the Great Hall, each carrying an envelope.
Most of them were ordinary letters, but quite a few were red Howlers.
They circled a few times and, upon realizing their targets weren't present, turned toward the Headmaster's office.
However, these owls didn't attract too much attention because the exam results had been released.
Compared to the Howlers, the scores on the transcripts were far more pressing, as they directly impacted whether the students would be able to enjoy a pleasant holiday or not.
Cedric had achieved high scores in his O.W.L.s, ranking first in the school. Since morning, Professor Sprout could be seen wandering around various parts of the castle, either chatting with Professor McGonagall or inviting Professor Flitwick to go drinking at the Three Broomsticks.
Fred and George had also done well, although not as impressively as Cedric. They had nonetheless earned enough points to shut Mrs. Weasley's mouth.
In their words, their scores didn't need to be too high; they needed to leave some room for improvement for their N.E.W.T.s.
"It'll be your turn next year," Fred said, patting Kyle's shoulder in a somewhat condescending manner, as if he were now a wise senior.
George stifled a laugh. "Fifth year is going to be brutal. I hope you guys can tough it out."
Kyle didn't say anything. He simply opened his own transcript and showed it to the two of them.
The rows of perfect scores made Fred and George's teeth hurt, so they promptly shut their mouths.
Seeing the comical look on their faces, everyone burst out laughing, including Fred and George themselves.
By evening, Slytherin's points still hadn't caught up, which meant the banquet would be held with black and yellow decorations. The Hufflepuff table was the liveliest, with everyone celebrating... This was their fourth consecutive year winning the House Cup.
"It's a shame..." Michael sighed, turning to look at Kyle. "I thought you could have gotten the Special Award for School Contribution for seven consecutive years."
"That kind of thinking isn't good," Kyle said with a smile.
It wasn't easy to get the Hogwarts Special Award for School Contribution, especially after he had already won it for three consecutive years.
If the holidays could be postponed for a while, and if the truth about Sirius Black were revealed before then, Dumbledore might consider giving him another trophy, taking into account his outstanding performance.
But the school would be breaking up for the holidays tomorrow, and even a Resurrection Potion couldn't be brewed in such a short time.
George, the last one to enter, closed the compartment door and excitedly asked, "How are your preparations for the Quidditch World Cup going?"
"All set with the hats!"
Cedric replied with a smile, "I ran into Professor Babbling in the corridor the other day and specifically asked her about some runic formulas to make those decorations come alive."
"Professor Babbling!" Autumn exclaimed, "How did you manage to find her outside of class?"
As one of the most mysterious professors at Hogwarts, Professor Babbling rarely appeared in the castle outside of her weekly Ancient Runes class.
Autumn had tried to seek her out several times before, but to no avail.
"It was a coincidence," Cedric explained, "She was on the eighth floor and seemed to be on her way to see the Headmaster.
What about you guys, how are your preparations coming along?"
"Well, of course..." George pulled out a firework, "...we've specially modified these to display patterns that last for ten minutes after they explode!"
Connor and Autumn also presented the accessories they had made.
Then, their gazes turned to Kyle.
Kyle's main task was the badges, something he was extremely familiar with and adept at making.
All the preparations were going smoothly, and they were just waiting for the day of the Quidditch World Cup to arrive.
The thought of it made Cedric a bit restless, and he couldn't help but express his excitement, "I really wish it would start soon."
"You're not wrong," Fred smiled, "but we also need time to make more products, so let's hope it doesn't start too soon."
"Normal time is fine," George said.
As the train made its way towards King's Cross Station, the group had intended to continue crafting some items, but they couldn't focus.
Their compartment door was opened at intervals, sometimes by Lee Jordan, sometimes by Ginny.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione had also paid them a visit.
Ever since Lupin's slip of the tongue in the hospital wing, they had been looking for excuses to talk to Kyle, hoping to get some useful information from him.
But Kyle wasn't Hagrid, and he didn't give them any opportunities.
The trio chatted aimlessly for a while, but in the end, they left dejectedly without gaining any insights.
Not long after they left, Neville showed up...
After misspelling runes three times in a row, Fred gave up and put away the firework-making supplies, taking out a pack of Exploding Snap cards and a Wizard's Chess set instead.
"Stop goofing around in the corridor and get back inside!"
Percy's voice echoed from outside, followed by a clatter of hurried footsteps.
"He won't be the Head Boy anymore after we get off the train," Fred said as he opened his cards, a smile playing on his lips, "I guess he wants to make the most of his last moments of power."
"Percy's graduating," George said excitedly, "I can't wait to see how much more fun school will be without him around."
"This is a first," Fred winked, "We'll be looking forward to the start of term while on the holiday train home."
Amidst the noise and laughter, the train finally pulled into King's Cross Station.
...
(End of Chapter)
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