The train ride home was quiet. Edmund sat with his friends, but his mind was elsewhere. The O.W.L.s were behind him. Fourteen Outstandings and one Exceeds Expectations, if his instincts were correct. But the official results would not arrive for another week or two—they were always sent to students' homes during the summer. He would have to wait.
His friends were in a different position. They had just finished their fourth year, same as him, but they had not taken O.W.L.s. They would sit for them in fifth year, like everyone else. The gap between them had widened.
"I can't believe you actually did it," Cassius said, staring out the window. "Fifteen O.W.L.s. As a fourth year."
"I can't believe I'm going to have to take them next year," Arthur groaned. "While you're already done."
"You'll be fine," Edmund said. "You've been studying."
"Not like you."
Horace was reading ahead in a fifth-year Potions text, his brow furrowed. "I want to be ready. If you can do it, I can at least try."
Astrid said nothing. She sat by the window, her rune stones in her hands, her eyes distant. But when Edmund looked at her, she smiled.
---
The Prince manor was waiting when Edmund returned. It was always waiting, the same cold rooms, the same overgrown garden, the same silence that settled into the stones and stayed. He walked through the entrance hall, his trunk floating behind him, Perseus on his shoulder. Mrs. Larch had left food in the kitchen, opened the windows, aired the rooms.
He spent the first week resting. He walked the grounds, visited the cemetery where his ancestors lay, sat by the stream he had discovered years ago. He did not study. He did not practice. He simply existed.
The letters began to arrive on the tenth day of July.
---
The first was from the Wizarding Examinations Authority, a thick envelope sealed with a wax crest. Edmund opened it in the library, his hands steady.
*Mr. Edmund Prince,*
*We are pleased to enclose your results for the Ordinary Wizarding Levels, sat in June of your fourth year.*
He unfolded the parchment.
**O.W.L. RESULTS – EDMUND PRINCE, SLYTHERIN**
- Charms: Outstanding
- Transfiguration: Outstanding
- Potions: Outstanding
- Defence Against the Dark Arts: Outstanding
- Herbology: Outstanding
- Ancient Runes: Outstanding
- Care of Magical Creatures: Outstanding
- Arithmancy: Outstanding
- Magical Theory: Outstanding
- History of Magic: Outstanding
- Astronomy: Outstanding
- Healing Magic: Outstanding
- Wardcraft: Outstanding
- Alchemy: Outstanding
- Muggle Studies: Exceeds Expectations
Fourteen Outstandings. One Exceeds Expectations.
He read the parchment twice. Then he folded it carefully and placed it in his journal. The system pulsed.
**System Notification: O.W.L. Results**
*O.W.L. Results: Outstanding in 14 subjects, Exceeds Expectations in 1 subject. Performance rating: Exceptional.*
**Rewards:**
*- +500 XP*
*- Skill Tree Unlocked: N.E.W.T. Preparation*
*- Skill Tree Unlocked: Advanced Healing*
*- Skill Tree Unlocked: Master Wardcraft*
**Level Up!**
**Level:** 6
**XP:** 1,028 / 3,200
He dismissed the interface and walked to the window. The garden was overgrown, the fountain dry, but the sun was setting behind the hills, and the light was gold and green.
He had done it.
---
The second letter arrived the next day. It was from Hogwarts, written on parchment that smelled faintly of the castle.
*Dear Mr. Prince,*
*We are pleased to inform you that you have been appointed a prefect for Slytherin house for the coming school year. In recognition of your academic achievements and your demonstrated leadership, the Headmaster and the Heads of House have selected you to join the prefect body.*
*Prefects are expected to uphold school rules, assist younger students, and serve as role models for their houses. A prefect's meeting will be held on the train before the start of term. Your prefect badge is enclosed.*
*Congratulations.*
*Yours,*
*Professor Minerva Marchbanks*
*Deputy Headmistress*
Edmund stared at the letter. Prefect. He had not expected it. He had spent most of his time in the library or the Room of Requirement, not building the kind of social connections that usually led to prefect appointments. But his academic record was undeniable. And perhaps Professor Snape—no, Professor Burke—had seen something in him.
He picked up the small silver badge from the envelope. The serpent 'P' gleamed in the afternoon light.
He pinned it to his robes and looked at himself in the mirror. Prefect Edmund Prince. The last Prince. He would have to live up to it.
---
The third letter arrived three days later. It was from Professor Marchbanks, written in her precise hand.
*Mr. Prince,*
*I am writing to formally congratulate you on your O.W.L. results. Fourteen Outstandings is unprecedented for a fourth-year student. The Ministry has taken note.*
*As you know, students who achieve an Outstanding or Exceeds Expectations in a subject are eligible to continue to N.E.W.T.-level study. I have attached a form for you to indicate which subjects you wish to pursue. Please return it before the start of term.*
*There is another matter. Given your accelerated progress, you are eligible to sit for your N.E.W.T.s at the end of your sixth year—a full year early—should you wish. However, I understand that you are considering taking all fifteen subjects at N.E.W.T. level. That would be an immense undertaking, even for you.*
*Please indicate on the form whether you intend to sit for N.E.W.T.s in sixth year or seventh year. I await your response.*
*Yours,*
*Minerva Marchbanks*
*Deputy Headmistress*
Edmund read the letter twice. Early N.E.W.T.s. He could finish his education in two years instead of three. But fifteen subjects at N.E.W.T. level was a different challenge entirely. The N.E.W.T. curriculum was designed to be mastered by students who devoted their full attention to a handful of disciplines. To attempt all fifteen would require more time, not less.
He picked up his quill and wrote on the form:
*I wish to take N.E.W.T.-level study in all fifteen subjects. I will sit for the examinations at the end of my seventh year, with the rest of my year. The extra year will allow me to master the material across all disciplines.*
He sealed the letter and gave it to Perseus. The barn owl took it without complaint, winging out into the summer morning.
---
The other letters arrived over the following week.
Cassius wrote from France, his handwriting as sharp and impatient as he was.
*Edmund,*
*My father heard about your O.W.L. results. He says you're either brilliant or insane. I told him probably both.*
*I'll be taking my O.W.L.s next year like a normal person. But I'll need your help studying. Don't think you're getting out of it just because you're done.*
*Also, congratulations on the prefect badge. I didn't get one. My father is furious. He says the Warrington name deserves recognition. I told him maybe I should stop hexing first years in the corridors.*
*—Cassius*
Arthur's letter came the next day.
*Edmund,*
*Grandmother says she's proud of you. She also says prefect is a good step toward Head Boy. Something to think about.*
*I'm nervous about O.W.L.s next year. Everyone will be watching, especially now that you've set the bar so high. Grandmother says I should just focus on my own work and not compare myself to you. She's probably right.*
*Congratulations on the badge. I got one too—Gryffindor prefect. We'll be patrolling together.*
*—Arthur*
Horace's letter was longer, full of calculations.
*Edmund,*
*My mother cried when I told her about your O.W.L. results. She said the Prince family must be very proud. I didn't know what to say.*
*I'm going to start studying for O.W.L.s now. I want to be ready. I know I can't match fourteen Outstandings, but I want to do well. Will you help me?*
*Also, congratulations on the prefect badge. I didn't get one, but that's fine. I spend too much time in the potions lab anyway.*
*—Horace*
Astrid's letter was the shortest.
*Edmund,*
*Ravenclaw prefect. I expected it. You expected it.*
*Congratulations on your results. They are what they are.*
*See you on the train.*
*—Astrid*
Edmund smiled and tucked the letters into his journal. His friends had their own paths. He would help them where he could.
---
The rest of the summer was a balance of study and rest.
Edmund worked through the N.E.W.T. texts that Professor Marchbanks had sent, but he did not push himself to exhaustion. He had three years to prepare. He could afford to go slowly.
He practiced spells in the garden, brewed potions in the old shed, carved runes into pieces of wood. The ring pulsed when he worked, guiding him when he faltered, but the progress was his own.
He also wrote to Healer Strout, accepting her offer to supervise his independent research. The project would focus on the connection between ancient runic wards and healing magic—a subject that had fascinated him since his first year.
**Progress – End of August**
*N.E.W.T. Preparation (Initial):*
- Charms: 35%
- Transfiguration: 32%
- Potions: 38%
- Defence Against the Dark Arts: 28%
- Herbology: 25%
- Ancient Runes: 30%
- Care of Magical Creatures: 22%
- Arithmancy: 20%
- Magical Theory: 40%
- History of Magic: 18%
- Alchemy: 15%
- Healing Magic: 45%
- Wardcraft: 20%
- Astronomy: 25%
- Muggle Studies: 15%
He was strongest in the subjects he had been practicing longest. The others were barely started. But he had three years. That was the point.
---
On the last day of August, Edmund packed his trunk. His prefect badge was pinned to his robes. His wand was in his pocket. Perseus was on his shoulder.
The carriage would take him to King's Cross in the morning. Fifth year was beginning. He would be studying the sixth-year curriculum in most subjects, sitting in classes with students older than him. He would be a prefect, responsible for younger students. He would be working on independent research with Healer Strout.
And he would be doing it all while his friends took their O.W.L.s.
He was ready.
---