End of Term

June 25th—the last day of the term.

After packing their luggage, the students headed to the Great Hall for the leaving feast.

Just as in the original story, Harry Potter did not attend the feast. He was probably in some corner with Nearly Headless Nick, asking whether Sirius Black could become a ghost.

The good news was that Dumbledore had returned.

Dumbledore had fully recovered. He sat at the staff table, speaking in low voices with Professor McGonagall and Hagrid. There was not the slightest sign that he had once suffered grave injuries. Yet his expression was unusually solemn, stripped of his trademark smile and easygoing air. Clearly, Grindelwald's actions and the Order of the Phoenix's devastating losses had filled him with a heavy concern for the future for the first time.

At the Slytherin table, Sazerus and Cherry Moon were nowhere to be seen. Meanwhile, the long-absent Blaise Zabini had returned in high spirits, animatedly recounting his romantic exploits at Castelobruxo.

Throughout the feast, Skylar remained distracted and barely spoke. His gaze drifted aimlessly, as though his soul had already floated far away and his body was nothing more than an empty shell.

Apart from the concerned looks Daphne occasionally sent his way, everyone else merely assumed that Skylar was troubled by the turmoil in Britain's wizarding world. No one paid it much attention or reacted further.

The next day, when the Hogwarts Express started moving, the compartment gave a brief jolt.

Skylar's fingers tightened instinctively, his fingertips pressing against the glass before quickly loosening again, as though it had been an insignificant gesture.

The scenery outside began to slide backward—green slopes, scattered shadows of trees, all cut into fragments by the sunlight. He watched intently, yet it was as though none of it truly entered his eyes.

Voices