Calm Before the Final Battle (Thanks, Not a Lolicon's Boba Milk Tea! Much Appreciated)

At breakfast the next morning, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were chattering excitedly at the Gryffindor table, their three heads pressed together as they talked over one another.

At the Slytherin table not far away, Su Yu ate quietly with Daphne, occasionally responding to the conversation of the little snakes around them. He held a fork in one hand while, beneath the table, he held Daphne's hand with the other, his thumb tracing circles over the back of her hand.

The Nine-Tailed Fox crouched on the table with a small piece of cheesecake before her, nibbling at it bit by bit.

The atmosphere at the two tables could not have been more different. Gryffindor was as lively as a festival, while Slytherin was as quiet as a library.

After finishing his food, Malfoy began clowning around. He sat sideways in his chair, gripping Crabbe's arm tightly with one hand. His eyes were wide, his head jerking rapidly from side to side in a nervous fashion as he repeatedly shrieked, "What's wrong? What's wrong?" He was deliberately exaggerating Ron's panicked appearance from the night before.

His over-the-top performance sent several Slytherin students nearby into gales of laughter.

Ron's face flushed red with anger. He abruptly turned his head and stared fixedly at the goblet of pumpkin juice in front of him, as though it contained some priceless treasure, deliberately refusing to look in Malfoy's direction.

Hermione glanced at Ron, then at Malfoy, sighed, and continued eating her fried egg.

Something changed during their first Transfiguration lesson.

Ten minutes into the class, Professor McGonagall suddenly announced that exams would begin on June first, only one week away.

The classroom instantly erupted. Seamus Finnigan shot up from his seat and cried in disbelief, "Exams? What are we even taking exams for now?"

The moment he finished speaking, Neville's wand slipped from his hand with a clatter. A red flash burst from its tip, and one of the legs of the desk before him suddenly vanished. The tabletop slanted and collapsed, sending textbooks and quills sliding noisily to the floor. Neville's face went pale. He bent down to retrieve his wand and nearly struck his head against the fallen tabletop.

Professor McGonagall quickly raised her wand and gave it a light tap. The desk leg reappeared, restoring the tabletop to its proper position. Then she turned, fixing Seamus with a sharp gaze and a clearly displeased expression.

"Classes are meant to continue your education," she said sternly. "Therefore, examinations will proceed as usual. And I trust that you have all been revising diligently."

"Revising diligently?" Harry could hardly believe his ears. The castle was already in chaos, and they still had to take exams. His mind was full of the Chamber of Secrets, the monster, and the attacks. How could he possibly fit Transfiguration spells and Potions recipes in there?

A wave of dissatisfied complaints immediately rose through the classroom.

"Headmaster Dumbledore's instructions are to ensure that the school continues functioning normally." Professor McGonagall's voice was cold and unquestionable. "And there is no need for me to say it: this is precisely the time for you to show what you are capable of. We shall see exactly how much you have learned this year."

Harry lowered his head and looked at the pair of rabbits he was supposed to turn into slippers. What had he learned?

Ron looked even more hopeless than Harry. His expression was as though he had just been informed that he would be moving into the deepest part of the Forbidden Forest. His face was full of resistance and terror, while a wisp of black smoke emerged from the tip of his wand with a beeping sound.

"Can you imagine taking an exam with this?" Ron asked Harry, raising the wand that had just begun beeping loudly, its tip still occasionally spitting out wisps of black smoke.

Three days before the first exam, Professor McGonagall made another announcement during breakfast. The entire Great Hall instantly fell silent, and everyone turned to look at her.

"Good news," Professor McGonagall said.

The moment she spoke, several students began whispering excitedly. The previously quiet hall became noisy at once. Some were guessing in hushed voices, some were exchanging whispers, and some could no longer sit still in their seats.

"Yes! Is Headmaster Dumbledore coming back?" several students shouted happily.

"He must have caught Slytherin's heir already!" a girl at the Ravenclaw table screamed.

"Is Quidditch starting again?" Wood roared excitedly.

Only after the noise subsided did Professor McGonagall continue. "Professor Sprout has informed me that the Mandrakes have matured enough to be used. Tonight, we can revive the petrified victims." She paused, sweeping her gaze across the students' faces. "I need hardly remind you that one of them may be able to tell us who, or what, attacked them. Let us hope this dreadful year ends with the culprit being captured."

Cheers erupted from the crowd. Ron looked far happier than he had in recent days, and then the three of them began discussing things among themselves again, their heads pressed together once more.

Su Yu had never really taken the exams seriously. Daphne had even been surprised, thinking Su Yu had simply given up.

Because he knew there would be no exams by the end of second year. He simply could not say so now, so he quietly watched the students in the Great Hall cheer and celebrate.

After lunch, Professor Graves led the Slytherin students to the History of Magic classroom and waited there for their class to end.

Su Yu noticed that Hermione and the other two were absent from the Gryffindors attending class today. Hermione had the Nine-Tails Cloak, so he was naturally not worried. He too was waiting for the person with the diary to reveal themselves, to see who it really was.

But the dismissal bell never rang.

Instead, Professor McGonagall's voice echoed through the corridors, magically amplified.

"All students are to return to their dormitories immediately! All teachers are to return to the staff room! At once!"

Su Yu knew the final battle was about to begin.

The students in the corridors began to stir. Professor Graves stood at the classroom door, watching the crowd surge past.

Then he walked over, slung an arm around Su Yu's shoulders, and pulled him away from Daphne's embrace.

"Oh, you terrible little brat," Professor Graves said with teasing amusement in his voice. "At your age, you shouldn't be lying around among women. That's what displeases me most about you, you know?"

Su Yu had no interest in dealing with this old queer. He quickly slipped free, stood up straight, adjusted the wrinkled collar of his robes, and looked expressionlessly at Professor Graves.

"Professor Graves, what is it?"

Professor Graves spoke in a voice only the two of them could hear, keeping it very low. "Want to go have a look at the Chamber of Secrets? I'm guessing you'd be very interested."

Su Yu rolled his eyes. He had long known what this old man was planning.

"Isn't it just Moaning Myrtle's girls' bathroom? Did you think I didn't know?" Su Yu kept his voice low as well. "Mr. Gellert Grindelwald?"

Professor Graves's shoulders trembled uncontrollably. His smile became increasingly wild, revealing a sharp confidence of victory. As he looked at Su Yu, he grew more and more excited, his mismatched eyes gleaming in the candlelight.

"You really are making me more and more interested in you." His voice carried barely contained excitement. "You always manage to surprise me, little one. So, together?"

Su Yu stared into Grindelwald's eyes, then suddenly shrugged.

Su Yu turned and told Daphne to take everyone in the class back to the Slytherin Common Room while he handled something himself. Daphne looked at him, her lips moving as though she wanted to say something, but in the end she merely nodded, reached out to straighten his collar, and said, "Be careful."

Daphne watched worriedly as Su Yu and Professor Graves left, then called everyone back to the Slytherin Common Room.

When they arrived at Moaning Myrtle's girls' bathroom, Su Yu did not hurry down.

He was waiting for someone, someone he was not certain about.

The bathroom was filled with a damp, moldy smell. Water dripped from the faucets, one drop after another, splashing across the tiled floor.

Grindelwald did not disturb Su Yu. He simply stood to one side and waited quietly as well.

Time passed second by second.