Chapter 159: Secrets of the Darkest Art
On the day after Christmas, Jon lingered in bed until nine o’clock—a rare occurrence.
His mind still lingered on last night’s kiss in the Rose Garden… He might never forget that exquisite sensation, nor that intoxicating taste!
Almost without thinking, Jon picked up the wand resting on his bedside table and pointed it into the air.
“Expecto Patronum!” he whispered.
Effortlessly—so effortlessly, it required almost no exertion at all.
A silvery Patronus drifted lazily into existence, casting him a reproachful glare, as if reproaching him for summoning it when no Dementors were around.
“Sorry!” Jon chuckled, waving his wand as the silvery Patronus slowly dissolved.
Tucking his wand back into his pocket, Jon climbed out of bed and pulled on his yellow-and-black robes.
Then he noticed the tailcoat laid neatly by the bed. Carefully, he hung it up and stored it in the wardrobe.
...
The Hufflepuff common room was quieter than usual. A dozen or so students lounged about, chatting idly, their conversations frequently broken by yawns.
After all, most of them had overindulged at last night’s Yule Ball...
Jon still felt the dull ache in his legs and back. After the kiss in the garden, he and Astoria had returned to the Great Hall, where she dragged him back onto the stage to dance a tango. They only let go of each other at midnight, when The Weird Sisters finally stopped playing and Dumbledore declared the ball over.
Yawning, Jon found a seat and sat down.
Nearby, Zacharias Smith was taunting Cedric Diggory.
“Did Delacour ditch you last night? I saw her dancing with Ravenclaw’s Davies for the rest of the evening.”
“It’s not like that…” Cedric stammered, flustered.
But then Zacharias turned his attention to Jon. He paused, then smirked.
“Well, well, the dance prince finally woke up?”
“Don’t talk nonsense…” Jon shot back quickly.
“This isn’t nonsense… I saw you dancing from nine until midnight last night,” Zacharias said meaningfully. “Didn’t even switch partners once...”
“Then you must be really bored!”
Jon didn’t bother arguing. He stood up at once and left the Hufflepuff common room.
Behind him, Zacharias’s laughter rang out.
...
Passing the Great Hall, Jon caught the sound of raised voices from the opposite corridor.
“I heard it in the garden—Hagrid’s a half-giant!” Ron Weasley was saying heatedly. “You don’t understand what that means… Giants are evil, vicious by nature… They’ve carried out massacres against wizards and Muggles alike… All the giants in Britain were wiped out by Aurors… They’re sworn enemies of wizards...”
Ron spoke so fast that Jon caught only half of it.
“So what?” Hermione Granger retorted coolly. “I’ve suspected Hagrid might be a half-giant for ages; he couldn’t possibly be a pure-blood giant—real giants are twenty feet tall! But honestly, we shouldn’t be paranoid about giants. They can’t all be that terrifying… It’s prejudice, just like how people treat Werewolf.”
Compared to last night, the two of them actually seemed less hostile. The argument, though heated, was far less severe.
Jon had no interest in getting involved, but he agreed with Hermione. Rubeus Hagrid might be a little clumsy, but he was hardly “evil” or “ferocious.”
“Harry!” Jon called, waving casually as if he’d just happened by.
Hermione and Ron immediately fell silent, shooting each other disdainful looks.
Harry Potter jogged over. Heavy shadows lay under his eyes—he clearly hadn’t slept much.
Jon clapped him on the shoulder and drew him into a quiet corner.
“The golden egg. Have you figured out its secret?” Jon asked in a low voice.
Harry flushed in embarrassment and shook his head.
Judging from his expression, he hadn’t even thought about it, let alone tried to solve it.
“Put it in water,” Jon said, patting his shoulder again. “You’ll hear what it’s really saying.”
Harry looked at him in surprise.
“You told me the first task was dragons. Consider this a return favor. We’re even now.” Jon shrugged.
With that, he turned and walked into the Great Hall without looking back.
Harry remained rooted to the spot, lost in thought.
Jon knew perfectly well that even if he hadn’t told him, Harry would have gotten hints from Mad-Eye Moody. And there was also Ludo Bagman, doing everything he could to steer Harry toward winning the Triwizard Tournament.
Still, a symbolic gesture never hurt.
...
Breakfast was far more lavish than usual: toast, sweet pastries, bacon rolls… and pitchers of orange and grapefruit juice, far better than Pumpkin Juice.
The Great Hall’s tables had returned to their usual setup—the four long house tables.
Jon sat at the Hufflepuff table, nibbling on toast, when he spotted Astoria entering.
Her golden hair was tied back into a ponytail again, and she had changed back into her black robes. Her eyes darted at once toward the Hufflepuff table.
Their gazes met. She flushed, clearly remembering last night, then quickly waved at him with shy hesitation before scurrying off to the Slytherin table to sit beside her sister, Daphne Greengrass.
Jon couldn’t help but smile, slipping a slice of bacon into his mouth.
...
After breakfast, Jon returned to the Hufflepuff common room.
It was the holidays—no classes. But he still had something important to do.
He carefully locked his dormitory door, drew the curtains, and made sure nothing would disturb him.
Finally, he pulled a book from the shelf—the birthday present he’d received yesterday.
The Secrets of the Darkest Art.
He slowly opened its sinister cover.
Author's Note
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