"Goodbye! Fleur~"
Inside the jolting two-person night-thestral carriage, Emily spoke in a strange tone, mimicking exaggeratedly.
After that, she even rolled her eyes at Link.
This was already the seventh time she had done this along the way.
To this, Link could only give a bitter smile.
Because Emily was imitating the way he had said goodbye to Fleur earlier.
Of course, her tone had been dramatically altered with a large dose of "magical modification."
Link himself didn't know what sort of madness had seized him. Based on his intelligence, he should never have done something as stupid as saying goodbye to Fleur in front of Emily, especially now, when Emily's emotions were unstable.
But at that moment, as he watched Fleur hurry across the lawn toward Madam Maxime, her silvery hair shimmering like waves under the sunlight, Link couldn't help feeling a spontaneous happiness.
He even had a strong hunch that he would be seeing Fleur, and maybe even Krum, again very soon.
Ever since Link had raised his Occlumency to Level 6, he'd often had such premonitions. They were usually trivial things like, "I'll probably eat roast lamb tonight," but they were always uncannily accurate.
Link strongly suspected it was a special ability that came from the sharp increase in his mental power.
So, when he had that same kind of hunch this time, the words "Goodbye, Fleur," came out of his mouth quite naturally, in a calm tone.
Looking at Emily's frowning, moth-like brows, and her eyes, almost rolled so far back that her pupils nearly disappeared, Link had to admit, even an angry beauty looked beautiful.
Facing such an Emily, Link not only didn't feel the slightest annoyance, he even wanted to lean over and kiss her.
And Link did exactly that, his movements were steady, precise, fierce, and most importantly, long-lasting, until Emily was practically gasping for air before he finally stopped.
Then Emily's cry of surprise rang out.
It was so loud that even the two night-thestrals pulling the carriage up ahead were startled.
Naturally, Link's fate was not a good one.
When Link had said goodbye to Fleur earlier, it had been a small, harmless thing, perfectly normal courtesy. So even though Emily had been unhappy, she couldn't really make a scene without damaging her image, she could only grumble in a sarcastic tone.
Now, however, Link's sudden and rough behavior gave Emily a proper reason to retaliate, and she immediately began hitting and biting him.
Link was more than happy about that and accepted it cheerfully.
After all, Emily was about to face her "big exam" and was terribly nervous. Letting her vent a little was a great thing.
And although her actions looked fierce, she had control.
She never hit sensitive spots like his face, waist, or ribs, just his back or arms, the tougher areas, and not very hard either.
To Link, that kind of "attack" was basically a massage, or Emily's way of acting spoiled.
And once a boy and girl start that kind of half-playful wrestling, it's often impossible to tell who's taking advantage of whom.
At least Link felt he definitely wasn't the one losing, those few fresh red "strawberry marks" on Emily's neck were the best proof.
"Huff~ huff~ You bad man!!"
Panting, Emily half-lay in Link's arms, scolding him. "From now on, you're not allowed to talk to that Veela again!"
"Of course. From now on, if I even see her, I'll run. I won't give her the chance to say a single word to me! And even if I can't escape, I'll treat her like air!" Link swore solemnly.
Hearing that, Emily was finally satisfied and smiled, nodding.
After that little quarrel with Link, the tension she'd felt over meeting Mrs. Flamel and Mr. Victoria was much lighter.
However, when she noticed that their carriage was about to reach Hogsmeade Station, and realized how disheveled she still looked from their tussle, her good mood instantly evaporated.
"Oh no!~ Look what you've done!"
While straightening her messy clothes and hair, Emily pointed to the red marks on her neck and shouted, "How am I supposed to face my father and Aunt Leonie like this? Honestly! I wonder if essence of dittany concentrate can remove these marks!"
As she spoke, Emily pulled a potion bottle from her bag, ready to apply it, but Link stopped her.
He tossed the potion bottle aside, drew her back into his arms, and helped smooth her hair.
"Why get rid of them? This kind of contact doesn't trigger the contract anyway. It'll even let Uncle Victoria see how close we are. Don't you think so?"
"But… but…"
Emily's eyes lit up at that. Though she said "but" twice, her body was perfectly obedient, she leaned against Link's chest, letting him tidy her up, and didn't mention the dittany concentrate again.
By the time they stepped down from the carriage at Hogsmeade Station, Link and Emily had completely restored their usual noble Hogwarts appearance.
Hagrid and Professor McGonagall came forward, dividing the noisy crowd into two groups per the roster, one to board the Hogwarts Express, the other to meet their parents waiting in Hogsmeade Village.
Naturally, at parting, Link once again became the center of everyone's attention.
Everyone wanted a chance to get close to this Hogwarts hero personally recognized by Dumbledore.
The Hufflepuffs, having the natural advantage, ended up closest to Link.
Link politely hugged everyone in farewell.
When it was John's turn, the big guy was already almost crying.
If it hadn't been for the sharp look Emily gave him, Link suspected John might've hugged him so tightly that others would've had to pry him off.
"Goodbye, Link." Compared to that, Cedric was much more composed. He gave Link a light hug, then winked mischievously at Link and Emily.
"Oh right, you'll send me an invitation, won't you?"
Strictly speaking, Emily was the same type of person as Mrs. Flamel, she would never show weakness in front of outsiders.
Hearing that, she showed none of the earlier shyness or nervousness she'd had around Link, and nodded graciously to Cedric.
Link smiled and said, "Of course. Don't worry, you'll be the very first to get one."
Satisfied, Cedric gave Link a thumbs-up, then jogged toward the Hogwarts Express, as a perfect Prefect, he still had to accompany the younger students on the train to keep order.
Once he left, the genuine smile on Link's face faded a little, but overall, he still greeted the others warmly and shook their hands.
Just as the Hogwarts Express was about to depart, Harry and the other two finally squeezed their way to Link.
"Oh! Link! Can I have your autograph?"
It was Ron speaking. He looked anxious, clutching a pen and paper, even shoving Harry aside.
His odd behavior made Link raise an eyebrow. With Ron's personality, it didn't seem like he'd idolize him that much.
After a moment's silence, Link frowned slightly.
"You're not planning to sell my autograph, are you?"
It seemed very possible.
After Dumbledore's public praise, Link had practically become the dream hero of the younger girls at Hogwarts. And as everyone knew, when young girls chased idols, they lost all reason, and the Weasleys were, well… painfully poor.
"How could I ever do something like that!? I'm not George or Fred!"
Ron blushed furiously as he shouted, but still pushed the pen and paper toward Link.
Link, still suspicious, signed his name anyway. Just then, Harry finally got a chance to speak. He stepped forward seriously and cautiously said,
"Link, I'll finish what you asked me to do as soon as I can!"
He was, of course, referring to the speech.
At the mention of business, Link's expression turned serious too. He nodded slightly, put an arm around Harry's shoulder, and said,
"We don't have much time, so try to finish it quickly. I know writing a professional, long speech is difficult for you. My suggestion is, you might look at speeches by great Muggle figures from history for inspiration. I think that'll help."
Hearing this, Harry froze a little. He seemed surprised that a pure-blood noble like Link would suggest he study the speeches of Muggle heroes.
Even among ordinary wizards, that idea was practically unthinkable, since to them, Muggles were mere ants, not capable of producing "great figures."
Link continued, "I should tell you, I'll also have someone prepare another speech. If, when the time comes, yours still isn't ready, I'll have you present that one as your own work. I hope you can understand."
Link's tone was gentle, to spare Harry's feelings.
But it didn't really help, Harry was stubborn by nature, and he still deeply disliked this idea of "taking someone else's work."
Still, he knew this was all for the sake of fighting Voldemort. So, gritting his teeth, he nodded.
"I won't let you down!"
"Good."
Link patted his shoulder.
Just then, the Hogwarts Express let out a piercing whistle, the signal for everyone to board.
The students gathered around Link were quickly ushered onto the train by Professor McGonagall and Hagrid.
Watching the trio's retreating backs, Link suddenly remembered that during their brief encounter, Hermione hadn't said a word to him, and her expression had been particularly unpleasant.
Trying to figure out a woman's thoughts was tiring and usually unrewarding, so Link didn't dwell on it. He simply turned and took Emily's hand, leading her out of the station.
Unlike the angry Hermione, Emily was in a great mood.
She touched the now-pink "strawberry marks" on her neck and smiled happily.
Hermione, she thought, is still too young, and far too shy.
When Link and Emily stepped out of the station, they were greeted by dozens of parents who had come to pick up their children, and by merchants enthusiastically hawking their goods.
Every year, Hogwarts' departure day was a festival for the entire village of Hogsmeade, because the crowds brought mountains of Galleons.
But this year was different.
Because of the recent attacks, the parents outside the station had no mood for shopping. One by one, after finding their children, they left Hogsmeade immediately, while the merchants looked on in disappointment.
Among all the families picking up children, the Flamels were undoubtedly the most eye-catching.
Not because Mrs. Flamel and Mr. Victoria had come personally, they hadn't, but because the old butler, Krell, had arrived leading a fully armed escort of thirty hunters. Their very presence declared the Flamel family's power to everyone nearby.
No one dared approach those fierce-looking hunters, so a large empty space formed around them.
Even the Ministry of Magic's strike team, stationed there for security, looked tense.
If the Flamel family's escort decided to turn hostile, their five-person team would be no more than a snack, barely enough to fill a tooth gap.
Equally nervous was Lucius.
Krell, who knew what had happened that night, didn't give him a single kind look. His one remaining eye glinted with menace, roaming over Lucius's vital spots as if he might order the hunters to attack at any moment.
So Lucius had lost all his usual grace, before the Hogwarts carriages even arrived, he was already sweating, rushing into the station to intercept someone early.
When Link and Emily finally appeared, however, the fierceness in Krell's eyes immediately softened.
Especially when he saw Link and Emily holding hands, his grin nearly split his face.
The hunters behind him, however, were not so cheerful.
The moment Link and Emily stepped out of the station, they surged forward in full formation, surrounding the two at the center, wands drawn, scanning the crowd warily.
"Good! Very good!"
Krell finally jogged over, beaming. "Young Master Link, Miss Emily, let's go home now. Madam and Mr. Victoria are waiting for us."
His words instantly made Emily tense again.
Feeling her body stiffen, Link squeezed her hand, then reached out to shake Krell's.
"Apparate!"
With a string of sharp cracks like firecrackers exploding, Link and the others' figures twisted and vanished.
Only then did the surrounding hunters finally relax. In small squads, they too Disapparated one after another.
When Link and Emily felt solid ground beneath their feet again, the human wall of hunters was gone, replaced by the wide square in front of the Flamel Castle.
Mrs. Flamel and Mr. Victoria stood smiling at the gates, watching them from afar.
Seeing them, Link couldn't help smiling too.
'I've finally come home,' he thought.
═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═
patreon.com/AmbitiousTranslator
🥳Joining Patreon keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please consider joining.🥰 You can access upto 20 advance chapter through Patreon.