Golden Cup

Shortly after lunch, the sun made a rare appearance, its golden, soft sunlight making the snow and ice even more sparkling. Looking at it for too long would make your eyes feel swollen, your nose itchy, and make you want to sneeze.

On the Third Floor of Hogwarts Castle, Loren and Hermione strolled along the corridor by the window. Warm golden sunlight streamed through the windows, casting elongated square patches of light across the corridor, providing a slight warmth as they walked.

Harry and Ron ran ahead, stopping and starting, always speeding past the shadows to burst into the golden sunlight, tilting their heads back, closing their eyes, and basking in the rare winter sunshine. Just as Loren and Hermione were about to catch up, they let out a yelp and dashed into the next patch of light.

Golden light shone on the boys' faces, casting soft, fuzzy shadows from their still-growing fine hairs.

The dramatic historical events and worrying Prophecy of the morning were all melted away by the warm sunlight.

Harry quickly arrived at the Defence Against the Dark Arts office and Ron loudly on the door. "Professor Lupin! Professor Lupin! We've come to see you!"

The wooden door wasn't locked; it creaked open, releasing a sweet aroma of pumpkin porridge. Behind the desk, Professor Lupin, who was drinking pumpkin porridge, looked up blankly, his hand holding the last spoonful of porridge halfway up, unsure whether to put it down or put it in his mouth.

"Professor, are you eating this every day to avoid us?" Harry's complaint was tinged with concern for Lupin.

"Yes, yes!" Ron followed Harry into the office.

Although Loren and Hermione, who came in later, did not speak, their eyes revealed a certain worry.

"What?! I wasn't trying to get away from you..."

Lupin shook his head, both amused and exasperated. He quickly swallowed the last spoonful of pumpkin porridge, hastily cleaned it with Cleaning Charm, and put the tableware away in the cupboard. He then invited the others to sit down and took out the tea leaves he had collected during his reconnaissance. As he brewed the tea, he explained, "I'm doing this for the Animagus ritual. Many foods in the Great Hall could damage the leaves and cause the ritual to fail, so I eat soft food in the office for all three meals."

Lupin was a little embarrassed to go into details, afraid of being tempted in the Great Hall. Ever since he joined Hogwarts and the food improved, he seemed to have become a bit greedy, especially on the night of the full moon and in the days following it. He had a particular fondness for roasted chicken legs. The night Harry and Ron discovered his Werewolf identity, they were almost startled by the sound of him gnawing on a chicken leg.

"I see..." The group nodded in realization. Loren and Hermione were the ones who proposed the idea of training Animagus to be Werewolf, while Harry and Ron were told about it by Lupin that night.

"How are you all doing with your Animagus training?" Lupin poured hot tea for the group, not caring whether the tea leaves had dispersed or not; perhaps he didn't even realize that the tea leaves needed to steep for a while.

Lupin joked with a smile, "You guys started practicing before me, so don't let me, the latecomer, surpass you."

"How is that possible!" Harry and Ron immediately turned their gazes to the other two, their eyes filled with pride, as if they were the ones who had started brewing the Secret Potion.

Hermione held the hot tea, her head bowed, seemingly examining the tea closely.

Loren smiled sheepishly, "We were too relaxed during the holidays, and on Christmas Day, we forgot to say the spell to our hearts..."

"You've even forgotten Hermione?" Harry and Ron looked at Hermione in disbelief. It was normal for Loren to forget, but how could the Miss Know-It-All have forgotten as well?

Hermione's ears gradually turned red. She couldn't refute it, so she could only give someone a good scolding in her heart.

It's all Loren's fault. If he hadn't pulled her into his arms, how could she have...

"We just got back from Diagon Alley ..." Loren said at the right moment, taking out a few Mandrake Leaf from his pendant. "These are Mandrake Leaf I bought at the Potions supply store. You can start practicing now."

"This..."

Harry and Ron exchanged a glance, their eyes flashing with intense struggle. With Mandrake Leaf in their mouths, their holiday was over. They couldn't eat delicious food, play to their hearts' content, or even pay attention to the position of their tongues when they spoke.

They were unwilling to give up their leisurely holidays, yet they also had a desire to improve themselves.

This is the dilemma of ordinary students: they can't completely give up like Seamus and Dean, but they also can't be as ruthless as Neville, so they're stuck in the middle, neither here nor there.

After struggling and hesitating for a while, Harry and Ron reluctantly accepted the Mandrake Leaf and painfully put them in their mouths.

"And you two, when are you going to start practicing?" Harry looked at Loren and Hermione, and as he spoke, he could feel the cold, bitter taste of the Mandrake Leaf.

"Let's wait for the next full moon," Loren said readily.

Harry and Ron's eyes widened suddenly, their expressions filled with grief and indignation.

Lupin finally couldn't help but burst out laughing.

They chatted until three or four in the afternoon, when the bright sunlight slowly faded. Just as Loren and Hermione were about to say goodbye, a silver-white Phoenix radiating a soft glow flew into Lupin's office, and Dumbledore's gentle yet powerful voice rang out from its Phoenix:

"Loren, Hermione, please come to the Headmaster's office. I think it's time to send you back."

"Oh..." Ron sighed, muttering dejectedly, "I thought you guys would stay at school until the holidays were over."

Harry's smile gradually faded. After Christmas, the quiet Castle became rather boring. He rarely saw the professors, and he wasn't familiar with the few students who stayed at the school... Loren and Hermione weren't there, nor were George and Fred. It was much harder to get through the Christmas holidays than the previous two years.

"You can write to us, the holidays will be over soon..." Hermione comforted her for a moment, then suddenly remembered something and reminded her, "Remember to do your homework, don't wait until the night before school starts to copy other people's work, and also Mandrake Leaf, remember to eat less food that requires chewing..."

Hermione rambled on for quite a while, and Harry and Ron suddenly felt that the holiday wasn't so bad, at least not as bad as Loren's, since they heard they were neighbors.

Harry and Ron exchanged a glance, then stared at Loren with pity, leaving Loren bewildered.

After saying their goodbyes, Harry and Ron stayed in Lupin's office, while Loren and Hermione headed towards the Headmaster's office.

"Headmaster..." Loren pushed open the Oak Door, and Hermione squeezed in beside him, "When do we... depart..."

Loren paused as he saw Dumbledore standing in front of the desk, carefully examining a small Winky Golden Cup Golden Cup two finely crafted solid gold handles and an exquisitely carved badger, a symbol of Hufflepuff, on its surface.

If viewed from another perspective, the Golden Cup is enveloped in a clear, yellow Magic Power radiance, a vast and boundless yellow light, but it is mixed with wisps of black smoke, giving it an indescribable eeriness.

Loren and Hermione stepped forward and examined the delicate handle on the small Golden Cup and the badger-shaped carving on the cup.

"This is..." Loren examined the carvings on the cup, already having the answer in his mind, and murmured, "The Hufflepuff's Goblet."

Hermione's eyes widened instantly.

"Yes, Lady Helga Hufflepuff's Golden Cup ..." Dumbledore murmured, a strange glint in his eyes, "And yet another Horcrux of Voldemort ..."

Hermione's eyes widened even more.

Loren noticed that besides the various silverwares and Golden Cup on the table, there was also a small glass bottle containing a wisp of silvery-white smoke-like substance, which looked like someone's memory.

He looked up at Dumbledore: "Headmaster, can you tell us what happened in Diagon Alley? And how was this Golden Cup found?"

"Of course, there's still some time before dark, so we can sit down and have another glass of Pumpkin Juice, can't we?" Dumbledore sat back down behind his desk, poured Pumpkin Juice for the two of them, poured himself a glass, and said slowly, "Mrs. Lestrange attacked Diagon Alley. She caused several explosions in the streets to attract the attention of the Aurors of the Ministry of Magic."

"She disguised herself as a customer conducting business, and after the explosion distracted the Aurors and Dementor, she took a goblin manager hostage, stormed into the underground vault, and stole the Golden Cup."

"Fortunately, Minerva and her team arrived in time. Although Bellatrix Lestrange injured Severus and escaped, the Golden Cup was recovered."

"Injured?!" Loren quickly asked, "Is Professor Snape alright?"

Dumbledore shook his head, a deep light flashing in his eyes. "It's nothing, just a few ribs broken from being hit by the Repelling Charm."

Loren was taken aback by what he heard.

Repelling Charm? Would a seasoned Death Eater like Bellatrix use Repelling Charm?

Shouldn't it start with the Cruciatus Curse, followed by the Shattering Curse and then the Killing Curse? Why would you use such a low-level spell as the Repelling Charm?

Loren glanced at Dumbledore, instinctively thinking that Professor Snape had deliberately let Bellatrix go, but he didn't know whether it was Dumbledore's instruction or Professor Snape's own decision.

If it's the former, that's fine; if it's the latter...

"Headmaster, how should we destroy this Horcrux?" Hermione asked softly, her gaze fixed on the small Golden Cup. "Is there any way to keep Lady Hufflepuff's Golden Cup?"

"I can't promise you, Hermione, but I will try." Dumbledore gave her a gentle smile, then slowly drank the Pumpkin Juice in his glass, along with the many questions in his mind.

The Diary, Ravenclaw's Diadem, Gaunt's Ring with the Resurrection Stone, Hufflepuff's Goblet... How many Horcrux did Tom leave behind, and did he create any new Horcrux?

To completely defeat Voldemort, the answer to this question must be determined... Currently, he can only think of two ways— Harry and Severus.

What exactly is Tom plotting while hiding in Ilvermorny? Is it related to that strange Snake Tree?

Dumbledore caught a wisp of smoke from a glass bottle on the table, which only made his headache worse.

Loren also noticed the wisp of smoke containing a memory and asked curiously, "Headmaster, whose memory is this? Is it some important clue?"

"It was a House-elf named Hokey ..." Dumbledore said, regaining his composure. "Its owner was Lady Hepzibah Hufflepuff. She bought the Slytherin's Locket from Borgin and Burke. At first, I thought it was because she was a descendant of Hufflepuff and was collecting the relics of her ancestor or something..."

"But later, I discovered that Hokey was imprisoned in Azkaban on charges of manslaughtering Ms. Hepzibah ... I realized there might be more to this than met the eye, and I've been hoping to meet with him alone. However, since last year, Cornelius has been wary of me."

Dumbledore gave a strange and intriguing smile, "To this day, Cornelius wants me to give the credit for defeating the Death Eater to the Aurors, and for that he has agreed to let me meet with Hokey alone... He probably thinks I am investigating Hufflepuff's Goblet, and is even willing to give me the Golden Cup as well."

Hermione keenly sensed something and tentatively asked, "Madam Hepzibah was killed by Voldemort, wasn't she, Headmaster? He did it for the Slytherin's Locket and the Hufflepuff's Goblet, to turn those two Legendary Wizard ' relics into Horcrux!"

Dumbledore nodded. "I think so. If time allowed, I would like to show you this memory, but for now, I can only dictate it to you... In short, two days after Voldemort learned that Lady Hepzibah possessed these two Founders relics, Lady Hepzibah died. The Ministry of Magic determined that the House-elf Hokey had accidentally poisoned her mistress's bedtime cocoa tea..."

"Poor House-elf ..." Hermione said sadly, already guessing what was going to happen next. "Headmaster, can we save her?"

"I'll figure something out..." Dumbledore said, pursing his lips and looking at the girl's pitying gaze, unable to tell her the rest of the story.

Hokey was already a very old House-elf. Its memories had been altered by Voldemort, and it truly believed that it had accidentally killed its master. Filled with guilt and self-blame, it spent its long prison life. Although the Dementor didn't particularly like the smell of House-elf, it was still tortured beyond recognition.

Based on Dumbledore's experience as an old wizard, Hokey probably doesn't live much longer.

Loren noticed the old headmaster's hesitant expression and had a vague guess in his mind. He looked at Hermione beside him but couldn't think of any words to comfort her.

"Let's go, the sun is about to set!" Dumbledore put down his empty teacup, winked at the two young wizards, "Please have some consideration for this old wizard who is over a hundred years old. After I take you home, I will have to rush back before dark."

The centenarian headmaster took the hands of the two young wizards, and Fawkes stood on Dumbledore's shoulder. With a flicker of firelight, the three disappeared from the office.

——

Happy New Year! I wonder if I managed to time it right, hehehe.