Although Wade quickly mastered Apparition, Dumbledore did not end their lessons there.
For the next two days, they continued practicing every afternoon in the forest clearing.
Of course, since there was still another Wade attending classes at school, no one noticed his secret lessons.
The more proficient one becomes with a spell, the easier it gets. For example, when Wade needed to transfigure a button into a beetle, he no longer had to construct a mental image—it was as simple as a flick of his wand.
The same applied to Apparition.
At first, Dumbledore greatly admired Wade's diligence, but as time passed, he began to dissuade him. Eventually, he stopped saying anything and simply provided silent support.
However, when Wade returned to school, Dumbledore couldn't help but sigh deeply.
Professor McGonagall, who was in the middle of reporting the holiday arrangements, paused and asked in confusion, "Is there something wrong with the schedule?"
"No, I was just thinking…" Dumbledore hesitated, then smiled bitterly. "Since when… did Hogwarts become a place where students feel unsafe?"
Professor McGonagall frowned and said seriously, "Who said that? Everyone knows Hogwarts is the safest place in the world."
Her expression practically had nonsense written all over it.
Dumbledore, however, did not explain. He picked up the list of students staying over the holidays, glanced at it, and, seeing that Harry's name was not on it, asked casually, "Will Harry be spending the holidays in Hogsmeade again?"
"I heard Wade invited him," Professor McGonagall replied. "He'll likely be staying with the Grey family over the holidays."
"Hm…"
Dumbledore pondered for a moment, then put the list down with a smile.
"Friendships formed during school years are always special. But such a close bond between a Gryffindor and a Ravenclaw—now that's quite rare in my memory."
"Indeed." Professor McGonagall sighed. "Wade Grey's study group has been remarkably effective. Every student in it is excelling—even Neville has improved significantly! I just wish more students would follow their example."
"These things can't be forced. A good leader makes all the difference."
Dumbledore removed his glasses and wiped them before saying, "I'll be heading to the Wizengamot for the next few days. I'll leave the holiday arrangements to you."
"Understood… When will you be back?" McGonagall asked.
"Christmas." Dumbledore smiled. "I wouldn't want to miss the school's Christmas feast."
…
On the last day before the holidays, the school arranged a Hogsmeade weekend.
However, this time, the little wizarding village held no appeal for Wade.
Instead, he planned to finalize the production of the enchanted protective Jinx-Off vests with the Weasley twins before conserving his energy for an afternoon of Apparition practice.
At night, an exhausted Wade sat at the dining table. He had just started eating when someone sat down beside him.
At first, he thought it was Michael, but then he heard the person ask, "Wade, why didn't you go to Hogsmeade today?"
Wade was momentarily stunned. He turned his head and saw Caryll beaming at him.
Come to think of it, Dumbledore had even given Wade the task of looking after Caryll!
But Wade had been far too busy—even with a Time-Turner, he always felt like there wasn't enough time. Let alone keeping an eye on Caryll when they weren't even in the same house.
And Caryll's attitude had always seemed a little strange to Wade. He was warm and cheerful… yet Wade felt as if he was deliberately avoiding him, whether intentionally or not.
Is it because he is afraid I would notice something is off about him? Or is it…
Many thoughts ran through Wade's mind, but on the surface, he only hesitated briefly before responding:
"I already bought everything I needed. Besides, Diagon Alley has a much better selection."
"Diagon Alley, huh…" Caryll said wistfully. "I've heard about it for so long, but I haven't had the chance to go yet!"
"If you're staying at school for the holidays, you'll have to wait until summer break for a chance to visit," Wade said.
"Oh, I'm not staying! I'm going home!" Caryll said.
Wade was taken aback. "Going home?"
"Yeah!" Caryll happily grabbed a roasted potato, peeling it as he spoke. "Just like you guys, I'll take the train to King's Cross, and then my dad will pick me up!"
"Mr. Johnson… You got in touch with him?" Wade asked slowly.
He remembered Dumbledore had mentioned that Landon Johnson had gone missing. So how had this person contacted Caryll at Hogwarts?
"Of course!" Caryll said, then suddenly seemed to remember something and winked. "Don't tell anyone else, okay? You know, my parents don't like wizards."
"Hmm… okay," Wade agreed.
After everything that had happened, it was understandable that Mr. Johnson didn't like wizards. The fact that he still allowed Caryll to study at Hogwarts was already quite open-minded.
But Wade couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right… A strange unease made his scalp tingle.
"By the way, you should come over to my place for the holidays!" Caryll suddenly suggested. "My parents really want to see you. They even talked about visiting your family!"
Wade hadn't fully processed everything yet, but he instinctively refused. "Probably not. I'll be really busy this holiday… Plus, my parents are going on vacation to Australia."
"Oh… That's a shame. Let's plan for summer break then—it's a longer holiday anyway."
Caryll didn't seem disappointed at all. He simply dipped his roasted potato in ketchup, finished it in a few bites, and then returned to the Gryffindor table.
Just then, Michael finally arrived, sitting down next to Wade.
"Was that Caryll just now? Did he need something from you?"
"He was asking about holiday plans," Wade said. "What about you? Did your parents agree to let you spend Christmas at my place?"
"They couldn't be happier!" Michael scoffed. "My mom was so excited—she said she can finally have a peaceful Christmas! They're planning on having some alone time and even told me not to disturb them."
He tilted his head slightly and noticed several Muggle-born girls handing their home phone numbers to Caryll, reminding him, "Don't forget to call us over the holidays, Caryll!"
"Of course!" Caryll grinned as he tucked the notes away.
"This guy's popularity is almost catching up to mine!" Michael huffed.
But this time, Wade didn't respond. His fork stopped midair, and a chill ran down his spine.
He finally realized what had been bothering him.
Caryll kept mentioning "my parents" as if Mrs. Johnson were still alive.
But that is too strange!
Isn't Mrs. Johnson long gone?
Did Mr. Johnson hid the truth from Caryll when they got in touch?
But judging from Caryll's tone, it was as if his mother had personally spoken to him… this guy might be easygoing, but if his mother had never responded in their conversations, surely he would've noticed something is off, right?
Wade put down his fork. His stomach felt heavy, like he had swallowed a block of ice. His appetite was completely gone.
"Hey, look at Professor Abigail!" Michael suddenly said. "Haha! She's already dressed up for Christmas!"
Wade turned his head and saw Professor Abigail wearing an overly festive Christmas robe. The red robe had fluffy white trim and was decorated with Christmas trees, bells, and stars.
She had even put on a red, pointed Santa hat.
Professor McGonagall looked at her in surprise, while Hagrid wore a dumbfounded expression, hesitating as if debating whether to remind her that Christmas was still a few days away.
Dumbledore, however, was thoroughly delighted by her outfit. With a flick of his wand, he conjured a matching pointed Christmas hat for himself, complete with a sparkling star at the tip.
Over at the Gryffindor table, Fred whistled and called out, "Professor, your outfit is fantastic!"
"Haha, isn't it great?" Professor Abigail proudly put her hands on her hips and showed off her unique attire. "I won't be staying at Hogwarts for the holidays, so for me, today is my Hogwarts Christmas!"
"That's right! Today is our Christmas!"
"Merry Christmas, Fred!"
"Merry Christmas, George!"
The Gryffindors immediately joined in, pounding on tables, stomping their feet, clapping, and even breaking into Christmas songs.
The once-dull atmosphere suddenly became lively. Professor Flitwick pointed his wand at the ceiling, and large white snowflakes began to drift down. Small fairies carrying flower baskets fluttered around the Great Hall, spreading festive cheer.
Lee Jordan from Gryffindor jumped up and shouted toward the staff table, "Professor, can we have some Butterbeer? Please?"
Dumbledore cheerfully replied, "Why not?"
He waved his wand, and suddenly, golden Butterbeer appeared on every table. Though there wasn't a huge amount, the students were already on the verge of going wild with excitement.
Only Wade remained unfazed, silently moving a glass of apple juice in front of himself.
"Don't get too drunk, children."
Amid the cheers, Dumbledore said happily, "Or you'll all oversleep and miss tomorrow morning's train."
But the students weren't listening anymore. They were happily pouring drinks, while house-elves arrived just in time with special Christmas candies for the long tables. The air was filled with sweetness and joy.
They all shouted—
"Merry Christmas, Hogwarts!"
"Hummmm—"
Wade vaguely thought he heard a long, deep hum. Instinctively, he activated his enhanced vision and saw that the protective enchantments flowing throughout the castle remained intact.
However… the golden magical runes seemed to be more active than usual. The fine lines of magic appeared clearer, as if the castle itself was cheering along with the students.
…
The next morning, while students with weak alcohol tolerance were still rolling around in bed with headaches, Wade had already packed his things and left the dormitory.
He first went to the library and used a Copying Charm to duplicate the books he planned to read over the holidays, bypassing the library's borrowing limits.
Unfortunately, many books with strong protective enchantments were immune to copying—otherwise, Wade would have built an entire library of his own by now.
There were quite a few books to duplicate, but Wade simply reversed time to finish his work. By the time he was done, Hermione had also arrived at the library.
She checked out several large tomes and stuffed them into her bag, which had been enchanted with an Undetectable Extension Charm.
"Let's go, Wade," Hermione checked the time and urged, "Everyone is about to leave."
"Alright."
Wade slung his backpack over his shoulder, and the two of them headed toward Professor McGonagall's office.
On the way, Hermione suddenly asked, "Wade, are you planning to keep taking all your electives like Percy until you get twelve OWLs?"
"Yeah, that's the plan," Wade replied.
Seeing the troubled look on Hermione's face, he added, "You don't have to follow my lead—just go at your own pace and do what feels right for you."
"I want to get all the OWLs too, but…"
Hermione frowned slightly with a hint of frustration in her expression. "Professor Trelawney's Divination class is completely pointless. She just encourages students to make things up. Honestly, Arithmancy is way more interesting."
"Every subject has its purpose… but for now, there's no real need to take Divination," Wade agreed.
Anything useful about Divination could be found in books. As for Professor Trelawney's cryptic, mystical act—it was nothing more than entertainment.
Although Wade felt that he might have some talent for Divination, he had always approached the subject with extreme caution.
Throughout history and legend, those who placed their faith in Divination rarely met a good end, and almost no one had ever successfully changed an unfavorable fate.
Rather than struggle in vain, only to find that their own choices had actually helped fulfill their destiny, it seemed better to remain ignorant and simply move forward.
"So, are you really going to keep taking the class?" Hermione asked.
"Mmm… let's just say I have a habit of collecting all achievements." Wade replied.
Hermione was speechless for a moment before saying, "Honestly, Muggle Studies isn't really useful for me either… I think I'll talk to my parents over the holiday. Maybe I'll drop two subjects later on."
"That sounds like a good idea. You've been pushing yourself too hard lately," Wade agreed. "Focusing on the subjects you're best at will be more beneficial."
Hermione shot Wade a resentful look.
He didn't seem to realize that he was one of the reasons she had been feeling so pressured.
After all, having another student in their year taking every elective made Hermione feel like she had to keep up. Even though she despised Divination, she still forced herself to attend.
Her hesitation stemmed from that pressure—being Muggle-born, there was always a lingering insecurity in her heart.
That was why she constantly pushed herself to be the best, afraid of failing exams, of being unprepared when a professor asked a question, or of being surpassed by someone else.
Yet to Wade, her dilemma seemed so simple—either a subject suited her, or it didn't.
Hermione let out a quiet sigh and suddenly made up her mind—
She would stick with it for another half a semester. If those two subjects still didn't provide meaningful value, then… she'd drop them.
As they talked, they arrived at Professor McGonagall's office.
Wade knocked on the door, and Professor McGonagall's voice promptly responded, "Come in!"
They entered the office and removed the Time-Turners from around their necks. As they handed them over, Hermione let out an involuntary sigh of relief, while Wade looked reluctant to part with his.
Professor McGonagall couldn't help but chuckle at his expression. "Don't worry, you'll get it back in three weeks."
She locked the Time-Turners in a box and placed it back on the shelf before turning to them and saying, "Off you go… the carriages are waiting for you."
Bidding farewell, Wade and Hermione left.
As they stepped out of the castle, they saw students from different houses preparing to depart. Outside, Hagrid stood by the Thestral-drawn carriages, waiting for them.
This short yet seemingly endless term had finally come to an end.
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