Bang!
Amid the howling wind, the window was slammed shut. Neville immediately let out a long breath, his legs going weak as he nearly collapsed.
The two waited a while longer, figuring Wade had probably returned to the dormitory by now. Only then did they sneak out of their hiding place like two startled goblins and run silently all the way to Gryffindor Tower.
Harry still had the image of Wade speaking to Madam Pomfrey in his mind—
Unlike the gentle, quiet boy who would occasionally laugh when he was with them, Wade had looked like a deep pool just now. Even the air around him had seemed to grow denser.
His back was straight, his brow slightly furrowed. When he said he could help obtain the Potion, the certainty in his voice—the sense that nothing could stump him—had even reminded Harry of Dumbledore.
That unfamiliar feeling stirred something subtle in Harry's heart and even made him feel distanced from Wade—as though his friend had already taken a step ahead and become a mature adult, leaving others only able to watch his retreating back, unable to sling an arm around his shoulders as before.
While Harry was lost in thought, Neville, for some reason, remained silent as well. The torches on the stone walls flickered with an eternal light, trembling faintly in rhythm with their hollow footsteps.
It was not until they stood before the Fat Lady's Portrait, Harry gave the password, and the entrance opened that Neville seemed to snap back to himself.
Unable to help himself, he tugged at Harry's sleeve and lowered his voice, voicing the suspicion that had been circling in his mind all along.
"Harry, do you think... that baby... could be Wade's?"
Harry jerked violently. As he was about to climb through the entrance,