Home at Last!

"Goodbye~"

Most of the students' parents were already waiting for them on the platform. After saying farewell to his friends, Adam found his grandparents there as well.

"Oh, darling, did you have a good time at Hogwarts?"

After hugging the two elders in turn, Adam smiled brightly.

"It was great. I made some really good friends!"

"That's wonderful~"

Emma ruffled his hair.

"Come on, your father and mother are waiting for you at King's Cross Station."

"They came too?"

Adam froze for a moment, then rushed out of Platform Nine and Three-Quarters first. Sure enough, he spotted Mr. Reed and Madam Li watching from nearby.

"Oh, darling~"

Madam Li rarely showed such an emotional side, but this time she hurried over and pulled Adam into a hug, pressing his head against her shoulder.

"You've grown taller!"

"Of course, Mom. It's been a whole year."

After letting go of Madam Li, Adam looked at Mr. Reed.

Mr. Reed did not make such a grand gesture. He merely gave Adam a reserved nod.

Adam was not surprised. His father's style changed all the time these past few years, and he was always full of theatrics. Within three days, he would surely be back to normal. Adam just did not know which employee had given him parenting advice this time, or what script he was following.

"Did you encounter any danger at school?"

"There did seem to be some dangerous things happening at school, but they had nothing to do with me."

"That's good."

Mr. Reed nodded and pulled a glass bottle of cola from his pocket.

"Welcome home."

Oh-ho~ So this time he was playing the cold-on-the-outside, warm-on-the-inside father?

Since British dentists practically charged robbery rates in broad daylight, Mr. Reed and Madam Li paid close attention to Adam's dental health. They rarely allowed him to drink sweet fizzy drinks like this. In the past, getting to drink happy water really would have made Adam happy.

Even though he now had all the happy water he could want, Adam still reached out to take the cola.

To his surprise, Mr. Reed dodged his hand first, then, under Adam's puzzled gaze, pressed his thumb against the bottle cap...

About ten seconds later, his face red from straining, Mr. Reed silently pulled a bottle opener from his other pocket.

Pop~

"...Thanks, Dad."

Holding back his laughter, Adam took the cola and had a sip.

"Ahem!"

Under the amused gazes of his wife and parents, Mr. Reed coughed awkwardly twice.

"We should get going. You surely haven't eaten anything good on the way, right? We've prepared a lavish welcome-home dinner~"

Having anticipated exactly that, Adam had not touched his utensils while watching his friends gorge themselves on food throughout the train ride before their parting. He had deliberately gone hungry.

"Okay~"

"Going to Egypt?"

At dinner, Adam brought up his idea of going to Egypt with his classmates for a group trip. As expected, all four parents hesitated when they first heard it.

"The classmate you mentioned is...?"

"His name is Uther Ramses."

That surname immediately drew his parents' attention, while his grandparents seemed to have no reaction at all.

"His father is the Minister of the Egyptian Ministry of Magic."

This time, it was his grandparents who reacted strongly.

"Ramses?" x2

"Minister of Magic?" x2

The two couples exchanged looks, then launched into a flurry of information-sharing. Adam occasionally spoke up to correct their misunderstandings.

"A descendant of the Pharaoh... no wonder he's the Prime Minister of Egyptian wizards."

Mr. Reed nodded, then looked at Adam.

"If that's the case, we probably don't need to worry too much about safety. Your mother and I can make time too, but the problem is that we're both Squibs..."

Apparently, Mr. Reed had learned some knowledge about the Wizarding World from his parents during this period.

Adam hesitated. That really did seem like a problem. Even if Uther and the others did not discriminate against Squibs, Adam could not guarantee that every other wizard they encountered along the way would be the same.

Although there was no need to fear the Trace in places where wizards gathered, if something like that happened, he could hardly pull out the Wand of Darkness and the Clow Cards in front of his parents, then put on a performance of growing trees for ten years and turning them into people in ten seconds, could he?

Besides, even if he killed the other party, he could not erase the emotional harm his parents suffered... Eh, perhaps the Erase Card could remove memories?

No, no!

Had he spent too long around that criminally handcuff-worthy Bernard? Why were his thoughts becoming dangerous too?

Right, someone as pure-hearted as him could not possibly come up with such ideas. It had to be Bernard's influence!

"Then why don't we take Adam there?"

Old Reed looked eager to give it a try.

"I've never been to Egypt!"

"I don't mind, but Adam, do you remember..."

Emma looked at Adam.

"Of course, Grandma."

Adam winked at Emma, signaling that she did not need to worry. He had not forgotten.

"What are you two talking about?"

Mr. Reed's suspicious gaze shifted between his son and mother.

According to what his employees said, grandparents and grandchildren seemed particularly likely to become extra close... Based on Mr. Reed's experience so far, that conclusion was entirely accurate.

"Nothing, Dad. It's a secret between Grandma and me."

Mr. Reed cast the two of them a resentful glance, then helplessly picked up a bite of food.

That night, after returning to his room, Adam released Kero, Suppi, and Ares—the owl Adam had bought when he went to Diagon Alley with his grandparents before school started.

Ares was a male snowy owl. Adam had named him Ares with high expectations at the time, and the little fellow had indeed lived up to them. He normally had an excellent temperament, was fierce when hunting, and delivered letters efficiently.

When he opened the cage, however, Adam found Ares looking utterly listless.

"What happened? Hm? Did you go hungry?"

Adam checked. The food in the cage was still there; there was even more left than expected.

"Has your appetite gotten worse too? Did the train ride make you sick from all the shaking? Doesn't seem like it... Don't tell me you're ill?"

Ares showed no sign of improving after coming out of the cage. Just as Adam was at a loss over whether to send him to St. Mungo's or Eeylops Owl Emporium in Diagon Alley, Suppi spoke up.

"I think he might be a little depressed..."

"Depressed?"

Adam was startled.

"What could an owl possibly be troubled about? Is it because I haven't had him deliver letters lately? Ares loves work that much... Wait, you can actually tell whether an owl is depressed?!"

"You just have to feel it with your heart!"

"You... just need to feel it with your heart?"

Seeing Suppi speak with such conviction, Adam believed him.

Suppi was the Sealed Beast in charge of the Dark Cards. Many of the Clow Cards under his command did lean toward yin energy, spirituality, and similar things.

"Then what should I do? Have Ares deliver letters?"

"He doesn't seem depressed because he hasn't been delivering letters."

Suppi continued staring at Ares for a while, then tilted his head uncertainly.

"He seems to have... uh... he has... lovesickness?"