Chapter 441: The Start of the Holidays
Chapter 441: The Start of the Holidays
Lupin seemed reluctant to face the letters from the parents. Despite Madam Pomfrey's insistence that his injury had not fully healed, Lupin insisted on checking out of the hospital, went to his office to pack up some things, and silently left the castle on his own.
Lupin did not want anyone to see him off; only a dog 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 professors.
They did not care if Lupin was a werewolf or not. Even if he was, an entire school year without any incidents was enough to prove that he would not harm anyone intentionally.
But there was no way... Their opinions did not matter.
"Who knows what kind of professor we'll get next year!" Cedric sighed helplessly. In these times, it was difficult to come across a good Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.
"Maybe... How about a vampire?" Fred mused.
"A zombie would be great too," George suggested.
Autumn's request was much simpler... As long as it wasn't a Dementor, anything was fine.
In the afternoon...
Lupin's previous guess was correct. During dinner, hundreds of owls suddenly flew into the Great Hall, each holding an envelope.
Most of them were ordinary letters, but there were also many red howling letters.
They circled a few times and, upon realizing their target was not there, turned and flew towards the Headmaster's Office.
However, these owls did not attract much attention because the exam results had been released.
Compared to the howling letters, the scores on the report cards were what mattered most at the moment, directly affecting whether they could have a pleasant holiday.
Cedric achieved high scores in his O.W.L.s, ranking first in the school. Since the morning, Professor Sprout had been seen wandering around the castle, either chatting with Professor McGonagall or inviting Professor Flitwick to have a drink at the Three Broomsticks.
Fred and George also did well in their exams, even though they did not score as high as Cedric. They still managed to get some points, enough to silence Mrs. Weasley.
In their words, the scores didn't need to be too high; they should leave some expectations for their N.E.W.T.s.
"It'll be your turn next year," Fred said, patting Kyle's shoulder in a condescending manner.
George held back a laugh, "Fifth year is really tough. I hope you guys can hold on."
Kyle didn't say a word; he just opened his report card and showed it to the two of them.
The rows of neat scores made Fred and George's teeth hurt, and they quickly closed their mouths.
Seeing the two of them looking embarrassed, everyone, including themselves, burst into laughter.
In the evening, Slytherin's scores still couldn't catch up, meaning the banquet was held in black and yellow decorations. The Hufflepuff table was the liveliest, with everyone celebrating... This was their fourth consecutive year winning the House Cup.
"What a pity..." Mickel sighed, turning to look at Kyle, "You didn't get the House Special Contribution Award this year. I thought you could win it for seven consecutive years."
"That kind of thinking is not good," Kyle said with a smile.
The House Special Contribution Award at Hogwarts was not so easy to obtain, especially after he had won it for three consecutive years; it became even more difficult.
If the holiday could be postponed for a while, and if Dumbledore could consider his outstanding performance in the Sirius Black incident, he might have given him another trophy.
But the school was going on holiday the next day, and there wasn't enough time to brew a Revive Potion.
The celebration of the four consecutive championships lasted until midnight and ended the next morning, when the Hogwarts Express departed from the station on time.
Kyle, Conna, and Cedric had claimed a large compartment for themselves. Before long, Autumn, Fred, and George joined them.
As George closed the compartment door, he asked excitedly, "How's the plan for the Quidditch World Cup coming along?"
"Everything's hat and smooth!"
Cedric smiled and said, "I ran into Professor Babbling in the corridor a few days ago and specifically asked her about some Runic formulas that could animate those decorations."
"Professor Babbling!" Autumn exclaimed, "You actually met her outside of class?"
As the most mysterious professor at Hogwarts, Professor Babbling rarely appeared in the castle except for her weekly Ancient Runes class.
Autumn had sought her out before, but to no avail.
"It was a coincidence," Cedric explained, "She was on the eighth floor, and it seemed like she had something to discuss with the Headmaster."
"And you guys, how's your preparation going?"
"Do we even need to say it?" George pulled out a firework, "After our special modifications, the pattern it creates will last for ten minutes!"
Conna and Autumn also took out the accessories they had made.
Their attention then turned to Kyle.
Kyle's main task was the badges, something he was very familiar with, and he crafted them with ease.
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All preparations were in order, and they were just waiting for the day of the Quidditch World Cup.
Just thinking about it made Cedric feel excited, and he couldn't help but say, "I wish it would start sooner."
"You're right," Fred laughed, "But we also need time to make more products, so it's better not to start too soon."
"Normal time is fine," George said.
The train continued its journey towards King's Cross Station, and the group had planned to make some more items during the ride, but they couldn't focus.
Moreover, their compartment door would be opened every now and then, sometimes by Lee Jordan and sometimes by Ginny.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione also paid them a visit.
Ever since Lupin let something slip 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; he wouldn't give them any chances.
The three of them chatted aimlessly for a while, but in the end, they didn't get any information and had to leave the compartment dejectedly.
Soon after they left, Neville showed up...
After writing the Runic formula incorrectly three times, Fred simply put away the firework-making materials and took out some Exploding Snap and Wizard's Chess.
"Don't play in the corridor, go back to your seats!"
Percy's voice could be heard from outside, along with a chaotic patter of footsteps.
"After the train arrives at the station, he won't be the Head Boy anymore," Fred opened his deck and smiled, "He probably wants to enjoy it one last time."
"Percy's graduated," George said excitedly, "I can't even imagine how happy school life will be without Percy."
"This is a first," Fred blinked, "We'll be looking forward to the start of school on the holiday train."
Amid the commotion, the train finally pulled into King's Cross Station.
...
(End of Chapter)
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