The Prince manor was quiet in the summer. Edmund had grown used to the silence over the years, had learned to fill it with the rustle of pages and the soft hum of magic. But this summer was different from the ones before. He had a goal: complete the remaining fourth-year subjects and petition for early O.W.L. sitting.
The day after returning home, he wrote to Professor Marchbanks.
*Dear Professor Marchbanks,*
*I am writing to formally request permission to sit for my Ordinary Wizarding Levels at the end of the coming school year—my fourth year. I have attached my academic records and a letter of recommendation from Professor Merrythought. I understand that this is an unusual request, but I believe I am prepared.*
*I have completed the third-year curriculum in all subjects and the fourth-year curriculum in Charms, Transfiguration, and Potions. I am currently working on the remaining fourth-year subjects and expect to complete them by the end of the summer.*
*Please advise on the process for requesting an early sitting.*
*Yours,*
*Edmund Prince*
He sealed the letter and gave it to Perseus. The barn owl took it without complaint, winging out into the summer morning.
---
The response came a week later.
*Mr. Prince,*
*Your request for early O.W.L. sitting has been received and reviewed by the Hogwarts Examination Board. While early sitting is rare, it is not unprecedented. However, before your request can be approved, you must pass an eligibility examination administered by the Wizarding Examinations Authority. This examination will test your knowledge of the fourth-year curriculum in all subjects. A passing score is required to proceed to the O.W.L. examinations themselves.*
*The eligibility examination will be held at Hogwarts on September 15th, before the start of the Michaelmas term. You will have one week to prepare upon your return. Please confirm your intention to sit for this examination by August 1st.*
*Yours,*
*Professor Minerva Marchbanks*
*Deputy Headmistress*
Edmund read the letter twice. An eligibility examination. He had expected resistance, delays, bureaucratic hurdles. Instead, the Ministry had given him a path—a test, administered at the start of fourth year. He had the summer to prepare.
He wrote back immediately, confirming his intention.
---
The letters from his friends arrived over the following weeks.
Cassius wrote from France, where he was visiting relatives.
*Edmund,*
*My father heard about your early O.W.L. request. He says you're either brilliant or insane. I told him probably both.*
*I'm going to take my O.W.L.s on time—fifth year like everyone else. But I'll help you study if you need it. Just don't expect me to understand Arithmancy.*
*—Cassius*
Arthur wrote from Hogsmeade, where he was staying with his grandmother.
*Edmund,*
*Grandmother says she's proud of you. She also says the eligibility exam is brutal—harder than the actual O.W.L.s in some ways. They test fourth-year material, but they also test your ability to handle pressure. She says the examiners try to rattle you.*
*She gave me a list of books to send you. They're in the package attached. Use them well.*
*—Arthur*
Horace wrote from Edinburgh, where he was studying with a master potioneer.
*Edmund,*
*I asked my tutor about early O.W.L.s. He said only one student in the last fifty years has successfully sat for them early. That student was Albus Dumbledore.*
*No pressure.*
*—Horace*
Astrid wrote nothing. She sent a small package containing a single rune stone, carved with the symbol *Ansuz*—the rune of communication, of divine breath, of the voice that speaks truth. A small note was tucked inside.
*You will need this.*
*—A*
Edmund placed the rune stone on his desk, next to his grandfather's ring. He would carry it with him when he took the exam.
---
The summer became a blur of study and preparation.
Edmund created a schedule and stuck to it rigidly. Mornings were for the remaining fourth-year subjects—Herbology, Ancient Runes, Care of Magical Creatures, Arithmancy, Alchemy, and Defence Against the Dark Arts. Afternoons were for review of all fourth-year material, with a focus on the subjects he had completed earlier. Evenings were for practice exams, timed and graded by the system.
He woke at dawn, studied until noon, ate a quick lunch, and studied until dinner. He practiced spells in the garden, brewed potions in the old shed, carved runes into pieces of wood, and read until his eyes burned.
The system tracked his progress with ruthless efficiency.
**Progress – End of July**
*Fourth Year Curriculum (All Subjects):*
- Charms: 100% (Complete)
- Transfiguration: 100% (Complete)
- Potions: 100% (Complete)
- Defence Against the Dark Arts: 78%
- Herbology: 72%
- Ancient Runes: 75%
- Care of Magical Creatures: 68%
- Arithmancy: 65%
- Alchemy: 62%
*Healing Fundamentals: 72%*
He was close. By the end of August, he would have mastered all fourth-year subjects. Then he would spend the first two weeks of September reviewing before the eligibility exam on September 15th.
---
The letters continued.
He wrote to his friends about his progress, about the eligibility exam, about his fears and his hopes. He did not hide his anxiety. The exam was brutal. Arthur's grandmother had said so. Only one student in fifty years had successfully sat for early O.W.L.s. That student was Albus Dumbledore.
Edmund was not Dumbledore. He knew that. But he had the system. He had the roadmap. He had worked harder than anyone he knew.
He wrote to Professor Marchbanks, asking for advice on the eligibility exam. Her response was brief.
*Mr. Prince,*
*The eligibility exam tests knowledge, yes. But it also tests character. The examiners want to see if you can handle the pressure of sitting for O.W.L.s a year early. Do not let them rattle you. Trust your preparation.*
*Yours,*
*Minerva Marchbanks*
He wrote to Healer Strout, asking about the magical exhaustion he had been feeling. Her response was longer, more personal.
*Edmund,*
*You are pushing yourself too hard. I can hear it in your letter. The exhaustion you are feeling is not just physical. It is magical. Your core is being drained by the constant study and practice.*
*You need to rest. Not just sleep—true rest. Days without studying. Days without practicing spells. Days when you simply exist.*
*I know you will not listen. You are too driven. But I am telling you anyway. Rest is not weakness. It is strategy.*
*Yours,*
*Healer Miriam Strout*
Edmund read the letter and set it aside. He could not afford to rest. Not yet.
---
August passed. The days grew shorter, the nights cooler, and the garden that had been green and lush began to show the first signs of autumn. Edmund worked through the last of the fourth-year subjects, checking each one off his list as the system confirmed mastery.
**Progress – End of August**
*Fourth Year Curriculum (All Subjects):*
- Charms: 100% (Complete)
- Transfiguration: 100% (Complete)
- Potions: 100% (Complete)
- Defence Against the Dark Arts: 100% (Complete)
- Herbology: 100% (Complete)
- Ancient Runes: 100% (Complete)
- Care of Magical Creatures: 100% (Complete)
- Arithmancy: 100% (Complete)
- Alchemy: 100% (Complete)
*Healing Fundamentals: 78%*
*Eligibility Exam Preparation: Practice exams completed (12 of 12). Average score: 94%.*
He was ready.
---
The first week of September, Edmund returned to Hogwarts.
The castle was quiet, most students not yet arrived. He spent the days in the library, reviewing his notes, taking practice exams, and trying to calm his nerves. The eligibility exam was in one week. He had never been more nervous in his life.
His friends arrived a few days later. Cassius found him in the library, hunched over a stack of practice exams.
"You look terrible," Cassius said.
"I feel terrible."
"You're ready. You've been ready for months. Stop worrying."
Edmund looked up. "What if I fail?"
"Then you take the O.W.L.s next year like everyone else. It's not the end of the world."
Cassius was right. But Edmund did not want to take the O.W.L.s next year like everyone else. He wanted to take them now. He wanted to prove that he was ready.
---
The night before the exam, Edmund could not sleep.
He lay in his bed in the Slytherin dormitory, staring at the canopy above him, the green light of the lake shifting on the ceiling. His roommates were asleep. Cassius was snoring softly. Horace had curled into a ball. Elias was a dark shape beneath his blankets.
Edmund slipped out of bed and walked to the common room. The fire had burned down to embers, casting the room in shades of orange and shadow. He sat in the chair by the window, looking out at the lake, and pulled out the rune stone Astrid had given him.
*Ansuz.* The rune of communication. The rune of the voice that speaks truth.
He held it in his palm and closed his eyes.
He thought about the journey that had brought him here. The day he had woken in the Prince manor, a ten-year-old boy in a stranger's body. The first time he had cast a spell. The first time he had healed a creature. The first time he had felt the system pulse with approval.
He thought about his friends. About Arthur's grin, Cassius's competitive streak, Horace's earnestness, Astrid's quiet strength.
He thought about the school he was meant to build. The children he was meant to find. The future he was meant to shape.
He opened his eyes. The rune stone was warm in his palm.
He was ready.
---