As the music swelled — Try Everything once again — the screen faded to gold.
For one long heartbeat, no one spoke. Then the Great Hall exploded into thunderous applause.
"That was brilliant!" cried Terry Boot.
"I want a Zootopia sequel!" yelled Lee Jordan.
"I want that bunny on the Gryffindor Quidditch team!" laughed Fred.
Even the professors applauded. Flitwick was practically bouncing. "What remarkable storytelling!"
McGonagall leaned toward Dumbledore. "I must admit, Albus… that was inspiring."
Dumbledore smiled, eyes twinkling brighter than ever. "Indeed, Minerva. Perhaps our world has a few lessons to learn from theirs."
As the final notes of Try Everything faded away, the golden light from the projection dissolved into the air, and the candles flared back to life one by one. The Great Hall brightened until every enchanted flame floated high again, bathing the room in warm light and gleaming reflections off silver goblets.
I smiled, lowering my wand. "Well…" I said, my voice carrying easily through the murmuring crowd, "I hope you all enjoyed the movie as much as I did."
"Enjoyed it?" Fred Weasley shouted, standing on the bench. "Mate, that was brilliant!"
"Just like Kung Fu Panda and How to Train Your Dragon!" George added.
"Yeah!" Terry Boot piped up eagerly. "When can we get our hands on those Wiphone things Judy was using?"
A mischievous grin tugged at my lips. "Right now, in fact."
The hall erupted in gasps and cheers.
"There are about two hundred and eighty students in Hogwarts right now," I said over the noise. "And including the teaching and non-teaching staff, that brings us to two hundred and ninety-seven." I paused, enjoying the growing anticipation. "And I happen to have a Wiphone for each and every one of you."
The explosion of sound that followed nearly blew the roof off. Students cheered, pounded their tables, and even a few professors exchanged curious looks.
Ron raised his hand, half shouting, "How much does it cost?"
The cheers dimmed as reality dawned on them. Every student suddenly looked like they were calculating their Gringotts balance and losing hope fast.
I chuckled. "Don't worry — it's not going to cost you anything."
That earned a few disbelieving laughs.
"No, really," I continued, raising my hands. "You don't owe me a single knut for one of these." I waved the sleek black device in my hand with mock flourish. "You can all thank your lucky stars for being schoolmates with Benjamin Carter."
That set off a wave of laughter and applause.
I waited for it to subside, then continued, "However, I will ask one small favor. When you go home tomorrow, show off your Wiphones to your families, friends and acquaintances. If they're interested—and I'd wager most will be—you can tell them that the official Wiphone store will open in Diagon Alley next month."
That announcement brought another eruption of cheers. Someone in Gryffindor shouted, "We're going to be famous!"
I raised my hand again, and gradually the hall quieted. My tone shifted slightly, serious now. "There's one thing you should understand, though. The Wiphone and everything in it are the result of proprietary magitechnology — a combination of enchanted materials, experimental charms, and runic architecture that took months to perfect. It's powerful, yes, but delicate."
Students leaned in, listening.
"So," I said, "if anyone gets the bright idea to pry one open or peek under the casing, they'll find themselves holding a handful of ash. There are self-destruct runes built inside the device — they'll activate instantly if tampered with."
The hall went dead silent. A few wide eyes darted around.
Then Seamus muttered, "Blimey. Note to self: don't try to 'improve' it."
I smiled. "Wise choice."
"Now," I said, clapping my hands lightly, "let me show you how it works. Hermione, would you be kind enough to assist me?"
Hermione, seated beside Luna at the Ravenclaw table, froze mid-sip of orange juice. Her cheeks turned pink as the entire hall's attention shifted toward her.
She sighed and stood, brushing imaginary dust off her robes. Fred and George immediately started wolf-whistling. Hermione quickened her pace, trying not to smile.
"Thank you, Miss Granger," I said warmly as she joined me in front of the staff table.
She shot me a mild glare that only made me grin more.
I reached into my pocket and pulled out another Wiphone — hers. It had a soft cream-colored back cover, decorated with moving cat emojis that blinked and pawed at the edges.
"For you," I said, offering it to her.
She blinked in surprise, taking it gingerly. "It's… adorable," she admitted, smiling despite herself.
"You're welcome," I said. "Now, let's link it to you."
I switched on the device, and the screen came alive with a swirl of light and soft chime. I held it up to her face, and the front camera shimmered with runic recognition patterns.
A moment later, the words 'Owner Registered: Hermione Granger' appeared.
"There," I said, handing it back to her. "It's bound to you now. Only your face will unlock it. No one else can open it or view its contents."
The crowd murmured with awe.
"Now," I said, holding up my own device beside hers, "hold them like this." I pressed the two screens together. After three seconds, a clear ding sounded.
I pulled my Wiphone back and showed it to the hall. "See? Contact added." On the screen, a small picture of Hermione appeared beside her name.
"All you need to do is hold your phones together for three seconds to add someone to your contacts. Then you can call, send messages, or share pictures and videos."
Daphne raised her hand. "How many people can we add?"
"Good question," I said. "The upper limit is one hundred contacts. It's not infinite — but for new technology, that's plenty."
There were approving nods all around.
"Now," I said, clapping my hands once, "I'm confident you'll all figure out the rest on your own. So, without further ado…" I grinned. "Let the gift-giving begin!"
The hall erupted in cheers.
From my Storage ring, I summoned a large chest and set it down with a soft thud. Inside, neat rows of gleaming new Wiphones shimmered in the candlelight, each with a unique rune-coded color.
I started with the professors.
Dumbledore received his first — a midnight-blue device with shifting constellations glowing softly across the back. His eyes twinkled brighter than ever.
"A delightful bit of magic, Benjamin," he said, smiling.
McGonagall's Wiphone had a silver tartan design. She gave me one of her rare smiles as she accepted it. "Practical and tasteful. Very well done."
Flitwick nearly squeaked with delight when I handed him his — a bronze one with floating runic formulas drifting lazily across the surface.
Sprout's had blooming vines.
Slughorn's shimmered in Slytherin green and gold.
Sinistra's glowed faintly like starlight.
Even Trelawney seemed entranced, muttering something about "visions in the glass."
One by one, I moved down the line — Moody, Hooch, Kettleburn, Babbling, Vector, Burbage — each accepted theirs with fascination.
When I reached Irma Pince and Madam Pomfrey, they both looked politely stunned.
"Don't worry," I said lightly to Pince. "It has a lock function for restricted content. No students will be reading anything inappropriate through it."
Her expression softened — barely.
Then came Hagrid. His Wiphone had a back cover with a moving dragon breathing gentle plumes of fire. His face split into a massive grin.
"Blimey, Ben!" he roared, hugging me so hard I thought my spine would snap. "Best gadget I ever got!"
I wheezed, "Glad you like it, Hagrid…"
And then — Filch.
The hall watched, curious, as I approached the caretaker with his Wiphone. His eyes were wide, suspicious.
"You're giving me one?" he asked quietly.
"Of course," I said. "You may not be a professor, and maybe you don't hear it enough, but to me, you're as much a part of Hogwarts as anyone here."
Filch froze. His throat worked silently, and for a second, I thought he might actually cry. He nodded once, took the phone with trembling hands, and walked away without a word.
Then came the students — an excited blur of laughter and magic.
One by one, I registered each device, linking it to its new owner. Every few seconds came the familiar ding of contact confirmation, echoing like little bells through the hall.
By the time I finished, over an hour later, the Great Hall was buzzing like a hive — flashes of light as pictures were taken, soft melodies as students tested their ringtones, laughter as they added each other to their contact lists.
Even the professors were comparing devices like curious first-years.
Dumbledore rose, his midnight-blue Wiphone glowing faintly in his palm. "Thank you, Mr. Carter," he said, his voice warm and proud. "Tonight has been extraordinary — thanks to you."
I inclined my head. "My pleasure, sir."
He turned to the students, raising his hands. "Now then — off to bed, everyone! Dream of better worlds, and perhaps you'll help build them!"
As the hall emptied, the sound of chatter and camera flashes echoed off the stone walls. Students snapped pictures of the enchanted ceiling, their friends, even the staff.
Hermione lingered beside me as the last few left. She looked up, smiling. "What is it with you and breaking expectations?"
I shrugged, grinning. "Why, Miss Granger, I thought you liked that about me."
She laughed softly. "Maybe I do."
We shared a quiet chuckle, walking side by side out of the Great Hall.
And as the door swung shut behind us, the soft glow of hundreds of Wiphones shimmered through the fading light — tiny constellations of magic and invention, lighting the way toward a new kind of world.
---
21st June 1994
Hogsmeade Station
"Care to tell me why you're staying in the castle when the rest of us are going home for the holidays?" Hermione asked, hands on her hips, her brow creased in that familiar mix of worry and mild exasperation.
We stood on the platform at Hogsmeade Station. The Hogwarts Express loomed beside us, steam hissing gently into the summer air, its scarlet frame gleaming beneath the sun. Students hurried about, trunks clattering, owls hooting, laughter and chatter mixing with the rhythmic chug of the train's idling engine.
All around us, students were glued to their new Wiphones, excitedly snapping photos of friends, recording videos, or waving them around like badges of honor. I had already said my goodbyes to Harry, Neville, Luna, Ginny, and Rachel. Only Hermione remained.
I smiled at her gently. "It's not like I plan to spend my entire summer vacation at Hogwarts," I said. "I'll only be here for a few days before heading home."
She narrowed her eyes. "But you won't tell me what you'll be doing in those few days, will you?"
I met her gaze, stepped closer, and took her hands in mine. Her fingers were cold from the mountain breeze, but they tightened around mine anyway.
"I know you're worried about me," I said softly.
She opened her mouth to reply, but I pressed a finger to her lips — gently, but firmly enough to make her pause.
"That's alright," I continued. "I worry about you too. All the time."
Her expression softened, and I slowly lowered my hand.
"I've known you for three short years, Hermione Granger," I said quietly. "And in that time, I've found you to be a remarkable young woman. There's a fire inside you — one that wants to make the world a better place. You're brilliant, brave, sometimes a bit unpredictable — but that's part of your magic. I would love to spend decades, centuries even, getting to know you better."
Her lips parted in a small, emotional smile.
"But," I added, "you should know that I have responsibilities — ones I chose for myself. I want to make things better too. Not just for this world."
Her brow furrowed slightly, but she didn't speak.
"And I'd love nothing more than to have you by my side while I do that," I said. "But sometimes, there'll be things I have to face alone. Not everything, and not all the time. But sometimes." I squeezed her hands gently. "When that happens, I need you to trust me. Can you do that?"
Hermione looked up at me, eyes glistening with that fierce mix of affection and frustration only she could manage. She sighed, her breath trembling slightly before she nodded.
"Of course, I trust you, Ben," she said softly. "More than anyone else. But I can't help worrying. It's who I am." She swallowed. "I just… I worry that something will happen to you. That I'll lose the best thing that ever happened to me."
My chest tightened at her words. I smiled faintly and lifted her hands, pressing a gentle kiss to them.
"Don't you worry, princess," I murmured. "I'm not going anywhere. I promise." I gave her a playful grin. "I'll be waiting for you when you get back from the Alps. And you'd better bring me some of that famous hot chocolate you mentioned."
That earned me a soft laugh — musical, genuine.
Before I could say anything else, she reached up and kissed me — warm, fierce, and brief.
The station erupted in cheers and wolf-whistles from the train windows. Hermione flushed scarlet, pulling away just as the final whistle sounded.
"See you soon," she said, smiling through her blush.
"Count on it," I said softly.
She turned and hurried to the train, Crookshanks tucked under one arm. As she climbed aboard, I caught sight of Harry, Neville, Luna, Rachel, and Ginny at the windows, waving enthusiastically. I waved back as the train gave a great hiss and began to move.
The wheels clattered, steam billowed, and within moments the scarlet engine was pulling away, curving around the bend until it disappeared into the hills.
The platform grew still again. Only the faint echo of the train lingered in the distance.
I stood there for a moment, breathing in the silence — the calm before something much larger. Then I turned away from the empty station and walked toward a quiet corner behind the ticket office.
With a wave of my hand, the fabric of space rippled — and with a shimmer of golden light, a portal opened before me. Stepping through, I emerged on the seventh floor of Hogwarts, directly across from the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy attempting to teach ballet to trolls.
The castle was silent now, emptied of laughter and noise. My footsteps echoed faintly against the stone. I walked past the blank stretch of wall three times, focusing my intent.
A door appeared.
When I stepped through it, the Room of Requirement unfolded before me — but not as I had ever seen it.
It was enormous, cavernous — far larger than the Great Hall. Runes pulsed faintly across the walls, like veins of living light, illuminating the room in a dim, golden hue. At the very center stood a massive altar of obsidian, its surface etched with concentric circles of glowing sigils.
And on that altar lay Smaug's colossal body. The dragon's scales gleamed like burnished gold now, every trace of the darkness that Morgoth's corruption had left within it gone.
I approached the altar slowly.
I had long known my greatest limitation wasn't knowledge — it was power. I wasn't weak, far from it. For my age, I was perhaps the strongest mage alive. But my body was still young, still growing. It couldn't yet hold the immense energy I needed for what lay ahead.
I couldn't afford to wait for time.
So, I had found another way.
A spell buried deep within the Grimoire — an ancient compound spell of Metamorphosis and Evolution magic: Draconic Bloodline Evolution.
A spell that required a dragon's corpse.
According to the Grimoire, the ritual fused a dragon's genetic and magical essence with the caster's body — granting draconic strength, endurance, immense magical capacity, a vastly lengthened lifespan… and even the ultimate gift: Draconification — the ability to take dragon form at will.
And Smaug — Smaug was a true dragon, not just a two-legged fire-breathing flying reptile, but a creature of cunning and powerful magic, the upper limit of what I could possibly absorb right now without exploding into a million pieces. The potential benefits were staggering.
But there was a catch.
A normal human body couldn't endure the sheer power within a dragon. The fusion would rip it apart, cell by cell, before completion. Only someone with a miraculous regenerative reagent could survive.
I glanced down at the vial of unicorn blood in my hand — the silvery-blue liquid shimmering faintly, alive with soft light. A substance that could keep one alive even an inch from death.
I smiled faintly. "That'll do."
Setting the vial aside, I removed my clothes, piece by piece, until I stood bare beneath the runes' glow. The air was cool against my skin, but the magic pulsing through the room made it feel alive.
I stepped into the center of the twelve glowing circles.
Carefully, I uncorked the vial and poured the unicorn blood into the center of the runic pattern. The liquid shimmered, spreading outward, tracing every line of the circle until it glowed a soft blue against the golden light.
I exhaled slowly. "Here goes nothing."
I pressed my palm to the floor.
Magic surged.
The runes flared white-hot — first beneath me, then beneath Smaug's massive form. The twelve circles began to spin, faster and faster, their symbols igniting until the air itself began to hum with a frequency that shook my bones.
Smaug's body began to glow, his form slowly breaking apart — matter turning to pure energy, flowing like molten gold toward the center of the ritual. Toward me.
When the first stream of power struck, it was agony — raw, blinding, consuming agony. Every nerve in my body screamed as the dragon's essence poured into me, reshaping me from the inside out. My vision blurred white, my muscles seared, my bones felt as if they were shattering and reforging in the same instant.
I gasped — then the unicorn blood responded.
Droplets of silvery-blue liquid rose from the glowing circle, drawn by the ritual's pulse, and seeped into my skin. Instantly, the agony dulled. The pain melted into warmth — unbearable, yet strangely serene.
The energy wrapped around me like a living thing, forming a cocoon of golden light.
My last conscious thought, as the cocoon sealed around me and the world faded into fire and silence, was a simple one — Hermione's face, her worried smile, her laughter echoing faintly in my mind.
I hope I can keep my promise to her.
And then, everything vanished.
Thus began the long fusion.
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[END OF VOLUME THREE]