So she quickened her pace, casting Shield Charms on herself one after another as she ran toward Audrey. A second before the ground collapsed completely, she stepped clear and landed on the table as well.
Now barely a few dozen centimeters apart, the two pointed their wands at each other.
"Beautiful! Two lovely young ladies are fighting, but it's the innocent dueling platform's floor that suffers. And at this crucial moment, Emily has chosen to turn the tables by jumping onto the table Audrey summoned."
Lee Jordan's commentary paused. "The outcome of this battle is about to be decided!"
Just then, Audrey and Emily turned to look outside at the same time. Immediately afterward, Snape hurried out with a grim expression.
"What's wrong? Why did they stop?"
"What happened?"
"Snape suddenly ran out."
"...That explosion just now wasn't from the Collapse Jinx. It came from outside."
"Something must have happened outside!"
Edward immediately restored the dueling platform and said loudly, "Don't panic, everyone. It might be a professor testing a new spell, or Peeves might be up to no good again."
He then walked over to Audrey. "Audrey, help keep order. I'm going out for a bit."
"All right! Be careful."
It was already past eight. Night fell late in winter to begin with, especially with Hogwarts surrounded on all sides by primeval forests, far from city lights and neon.
But now a green glow shone in the sky, hanging over Hogwarts.
Edward went outside the castle and looked up to see an enormous skull in the sky, made up of countless emerald-green, starlike specks. A great snake emerged from the skull's mouth like a tongue.
It rose higher and higher, a cloud of green smoke giving off a dazzling light. Against the pitch-black night sky, it looked like a