Ever since Vinda Rosier had taken over everything related to the Horcruxes, Kyle felt as though a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
He no longer needed to ask Professor McGonagall for leave and simply resumed his usual duties, ensuring the safety of students during exams, right up until the History of Magic exam concluded several days later.
At Hogwarts, History of Magic traditionally marked the final exam of the season—this applied to both O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s.
That morning, even Professor McGonagall had come to the Great Hall, occasionally making the rounds to supervise the seventh-years as they wrote their papers.
Though Professor Marchbanks had assured everyone several times that everything was going smoothly and there was nothing unusual about this exam, McGonagall still couldn’t relax. She couldn’t stay in her office for long without feeling the need to check in.
Once all the exam papers were collected, Hogwarts Castle—silent for days—erupted in a wave of cheers that echoed through its halls.
“No more homework ever again!” Ron shouted from a window as he hurled his History of Magic textbook out.
“Ron!” Hermione glared at him. “How could you do that?”
“Relax.” Ron shrugged. “Ginny already has a copy of History of Magic. I don’t need to hang onto the old one.”
With so many Weasley children—spread across nearly every year—books often got passed down through the family. The History of Magic book Ron had just thrown had once belonged to Charlie.
Same with the Advanced Transfiguration Guide used in sixth year—it had originally been Bill’s. By the time Ron got it, the cover was already wrinkled and worn.
Traditionally, that book would have gone to Ginny next. But Fred and George had put a stop to that, waving their hands and buying her a brand-new set.
Hermione knew all of this.
“That’s not what I meant!” she said, exasperated—but didn’t press the matter any further.
A flood of students poured out of the castle and onto the grounds outside.
Kyle was among them.
Today, Kanna had also come to Hogwarts. Kyle watched as she poured a bottle of blue potion into the Black Lake and asked curiously,
“Why the sudden interest in brewing a potion for Merpeople? Did Director Sykes give you the recipe too?”
Kyle couldn’t figure it out. Sykes was the director of St. Mungo’s—why would she have a recipe for magical creature potions? That seemed like something only Newt would care about.
Could St. Mungo’s have a magical creature treatment ward he didn’t know about?
“It’s not a supplement. It’s a Gillsac Potion I brewed,” Kanna explained.
“Gillsac Potion? What’s that?” Kyle asked, frowning.
“It’s like Gillyweed. It lets you grow gills and webbed feet to breathe underwater—and it lasts for half a day.”
“Ah, got it,” Kyle nodded.
So basically a stronger version of Gillyweed—kind of like how Dittany is an upgraded version of a regular healing potion.
“Then why are you dumping it into the Black Lake?” Kyle gave her a sideways glance. “You think the Merpeople need another pair of gills?”
“That’s because I... messed up...” Kanna’s voice grew quieter.
“There was only harvested Gillyweed in Uncle Snape’s storeroom. It still allows someone to grow gills and webbed feet when eaten, but obviously, potions need fresher ingredients.”
She pulled out another long-necked bottle and poured more of the blue potion into the lake.
“But Uncle Snape said that even though this failed version won’t work on wizards, it can still be really beneficial for magical creatures that live in water.”
“Since I was coming to see Professor McGonagall anyway, I figured I’d test it out in the Black Lake.”
Kanna crouched at the water’s edge and watched the surface.
The Merpeople didn’t appear—but the giant squid did. It behaved like Sybill Trelawney spotting a bottle of sherry, gulping down the lake water at the shore with great enthusiasm.
Judging by its reaction, this so-called failure could still be considered a success in some sense.
Kanna quickly noted down the changes in the squid’s behavior.
“Snape…” Kyle glanced back toward the castle. “When did he leave Hogwarts?”
“Kyle… uh, Professor…”
It was always lively after exams. Just as Hagrid left, someone else came over.
This time it was a group of seventh-years—Justin Finch-Fletchley from Hufflepuff at the front, followed by his usual companion Macmillan, and Neville from Gryffindor.
Back before Kyle had graduated, they’d all been close friends. Justin, in particular, had joined him on more than one late-night trip to the kitchens.
So even though Kyle was now a professor, they still couldn’t quite adjust to calling him that.
Justin jogged over, barely able to contain his excitement. “We’re planning a party—want to join us?”
“A party?” Kyle glanced at him, then at Neville. “A joint one between two Houses?
“Are you thinking of heading up to the tower, or having Gryffindor sneak into the kitchens? I have to remind you, even if you're graduating, there are still limits. If you go too far, Professor McGonagall can still hand out detention before the term ends.”
“No, not two Houses—three. Well, technically four,” Macmillan stepped forward to clarify. “And we promise—Professor McGonagall won’t find out.”
“Because we’re going somewhere she’d never think to look,” Justin said.
“DA’s secret base.”
“DA?” Kyle blinked. “You mean Dumbledore’s Army?”
“Exactly.” Neville nodded, with a confidence and pride on his face that had never been there before.
“Every member who joined the DA stayed during the last war. All of us kept our promise.”
After the war, Neville had changed. He’d grown so confident that his grandmother, Mrs. Longbottom, once suspected he’d been replaced and insisted on casting a Revelio Charm on him.
Luckily, Professor McGonagall stopped her just in time.
“Yeah,” Justin added, “but… the DA’s finished its mission. It’s time to disband. We just want one last celebration.”
Most of the original DA members had been upper-years when the group was founded. When Kyle graduated last year, nearly half had already left. With this year’s graduation, the number would be halved again.
There might not even be ten members left—so disbanding was really just a formality.
Of course, it was only nominal.
For a long time to come, they would carry the identity with pride.
After all, out of all the clubs at Hogwarts, only the DA had taken part in the war against Voldemort—and won.
“This party is just for DA members. Potter and Granger went to get Butterbeer, and the others are setting up the venue on the eighth floor.”
“So come on,” Justin said again. “I promise it’ll be the liveliest party you’ve ever seen.”
This time, Kyle didn’t turn him down—just said he’d drop by later to take a look.
The three looked thrilled, chatted with Kyle a little longer, and then hurried back to the castle.
Just then, Kanna stepped out of the entrance.
“What did Professor McGonagall say?”
“She said she’ll go to the Ministry that day, and told me not to worry.”
“You really don’t need to.” Kyle smiled. McGonagall had already handed over all the ‘Horcruxes’ to the Ministry—they had no reason to keep making things difficult for Snape.”
“Snape… I mean, Professor Snape. He let you come on your own?”
“He doesn’t want to go out.” Kanna sighed.
“Since the last hearing, there’s been an Auror keeping an eye on him around the clock. Uncle Snape didn’t want to see them—so I came instead.”
“Aurors… are they giving him trouble?” Kyle asked.
He suddenly remembered that Kingsley was now Head of the Auror Office—and he had a decent relationship with him. On top of that, Kyle had always felt a little guilty over the whole Horcrux affair.
If he went to Kingsley directly, maybe he could get the surveillance lifted.
After the Horcruxes were turned over, the second hearing was basically a formality. Even Snape wouldn’t be foolish enough to try and run now.
Still, it was obvious Snape hated being watched by Aurors. And if it bothered Snape, that made Kyle just a little happier.
That was why he’d been debating whether to go see Kingsley or not.
“It’s a bit of a nuisance,” Kanna said softly. “Every time he sees an Auror outside the window, Uncle Snape gets really moody. He’s never said anything, but I can tell.”
“Oh…” Kyle’s lips twitched into a slight smile before quickly returning to normal.
“Is that all?” he asked.
“Well… there’s also the problem with buying ingredients.” Kanna thought for a moment. “Some of the ones I need for the potions I’m studying aren’t sold in Diagon Alley. I’d have to go to… places that aren’t exactly safe to get them.”
"But with Aurors watching, Uncle Snape definitely can’t go—and he refuses to tell me the address."
“I see,” Kyle said, his thoughts wavering slightly.
As much as he found Snape’s foul mood entertaining, he hadn’t expected it to affect Kanna too.
The truth was, when brewing potions—especially the complex ones—certain restricted ingredients were absolutely essential.
As a Potions Master, Snape naturally had his own channels. Of course, they weren’t exactly legal.
Kanna, unaware of Kyle’s train of thought, continued talking as they walked.
“I searched all over Diagon Alley for fresh Gillyweed weed but couldn’t find any. And Uncle Snape won’t tell me where to get it.”
“Wait a second,” Kyle suddenly stopped her. “The potion you need—it’s made from Gillyweed?”
“Yes.” Kanna nodded. “That stuff’s incredibly hard to find, especially unharvested. There’s none in Britain at all—you have to go all the way to the Mediterranean. And I can’t just go that far right now.”
“Says who?” Kyle let out a laugh and grabbed her by the arm.
“Come with me.”
He took off at a run toward the wooden cabin, dragging Kanna behind him.
When they got there, he said nothing. Instead, he dropped a suitcase to the floor, flipped it open, and jumped straight in.
“Kyle, you—”
Still baffled, Kanna didn’t even have time to finish her sentence before Kyle vanished from sight.
Left with no choice, she followed him into the suitcase.
Inside, Kyle led her directly to the only lake in the entire space. He stopped beside a patch of empty flowerpots. Once filled with Chomping Cabbages, now only a dozen or so plants remained.
“Kyle, why did you bring me here?” Kanna finally managed to ask.
“Didn’t you say you needed fresh Gillyweed?” Kyle drew his wand and pointed at the surface of the lake. “Take a look. Isn’t this what you’re after?”
With a flick, the surface of the water parted, revealing a Kelpie below, busy munching on something.
Kanna blinked in confusion, not understanding why Kyle was showing her a Kelpie—until she noticed the coral-like plant in its mouth.
“Gill… Gillyweed…” Her eyes widened.
Long, ribbon-like leaves, coral-shaped roots—this was what unharvested Gillyweed looked like. And there wasn’t just a little—there was an entire patch of it growing at the bottom of the lake.
“You… how… I thought this plant was nearly impossible to cultivate on a large scale in Britain?”
“I thought so too,” Kyle said with a shrug. “I bought some from Diagon Alley ages ago and just tossed it in here. Forgot all about it. If the Kelpie hadn’t brought it to the surface, I’d have never known there was such a big patch down there.”