Leaving Bhutan and returning to Hogwarts, on Friday Aiden received an invitation from Jacob, the parchment warm in his clawed hands.
"They are getting married?" Aiden said, looking at the invitation in genuine surprise.
"Yes, Santos has brought some changes since taking office. At least she believes that if wizards and Muggles truly love each other, they can be together. But she requires wizards who marry Muggles to no longer use magic. Ministries of Magic in various countries have established Offices for the Prohibition of Misuse of Magic in response to this policy," Newt explained patiently.
The changes in the wizarding world over the past few days reminded Aiden of his brother-in-law's future workplace.
"So..." Newt looked at Aiden expectantly.
"What?" Aiden had not reacted yet.
"Are you going to Jacob's wedding?" Newt asked.
"Of course. Why wouldn't I go? What's with that look? Wait, I am past the age of being a flower boy!"
Sure enough, Newt pulled out his wand and changed Aiden into a well-tailored little suit with a flash of magic.
"Looks good. Queenie will like it," Newt said, pulling Aiden around in a circle to inspect the transformation.
Nodding with satisfaction, he pulled out a hat-shaped Portkey. After some nauseating spinning, they arrived in New York.
"Couldn't you get something else? Robes would be fine. It is December now!"
In the biting cold wind, Aiden and Newt walked through New York's snow-covered streets, their breath misting in the frigid air.
Although the cold wind rolled with heavy snow covering the entire street, the bakery on Fifth Avenue was still warm as a hearth inside, golden light spilling onto the white pavement.
"Albert, do not forget the Polish dumplings. And the Polish cookies can only be baked for eight minutes at most!" Jacob called out.
Inside the shop, Jacob adjusted his appearance in front of the mirror while extending his hand to gesture a shooting motion at the staff.
"Yes, Mr K," a young man said, nodding quickly and running into the back kitchen.
Ding-a-ling. The bakery door was pushed open, cold air rushing in.
"Hey, Newt, Aiden, come over! Queenie has been waiting for you for a long time."
Jacob saw the two push the door open and came forward to welcome them with obvious excitement.
"Congratulations, Jacob, and you look great tonight!" Aiden praised genuinely.
"Congratulations," Newt said, smiling warmly at him.
"Come here; I always feel this bow tie is still a bit off. Oh right, take this speech, you haven't forgotten you are the best man, have you?" Jacob said, pulling Newt to adjust his bow tie.
Queenie walked out from the back kitchen, her dress shimmering.
"Darling!"
"What!" Jacob's voice went off-key with surprise.
"Trust that Newt can do well. Do not put too much pressure on him," Queenie said, coming over and covering Jacob's eyes with her hand playfully.
"Oh, Newt, do not be nervous about the speech," the Legilimens said, seeing through Newt's emotions.
"I am not," Newt tried to explain.
"Then it is not about the speech," Queenie said, narrowing her eyes knowingly.
Then she stopped teasing Newt because a new target appeared.
"Oh, Aiden, let me see. So cute."
Queenie came up and cupped Aiden's face, capturing him in her gentle grasp.
"Queenie, you should know I am past the age for being a flower boy!" the captured dragon protested.
"But we all know you have a way, right?" Queenie said, smiling with persuasive charm.
"You have defeated me," Aiden said, sighing in resignation.
"Then I am counting on you. And thank you for everything you have done for us, Aiden!" Queenie said, rubbing Aiden's head affectionately before walking into the venue.
Outside the bakery, Newt memorised the lines Jacob had taught him, mouthing the words silently.
A woman in a silver trench coat walked over. The two exchanged warm smiles of recognition.
Theseus and Lally also arrived, brushing snow from their shoulders. Newt sent them in and ran into Aiden coming out for air.
"How did you end up like this?"
Newt looked at the child before him, who appeared to be about seven years old now.
"All because of you, making me be a flower boy!" Aiden said, kicking Newt's shin.
"You actually went through with it," Newt said, laughing.
While the two joked around in the falling snow, a lonely figure appeared on a bench across the street.
The two crossed the street and came before Dumbledore, who sat watching the bakery window.
"This is truly a historic day. The future of the past has become the past of the present," Dumbledore said, his voice philosophical.
"Interestingly, when you are in the midst of it, you will find these historic moments so ordinary," Newt observed.
"Perhaps this is what the world looks like when it is back on track?" Newt said, smiling and bouncing on his toes.
"That would be quite nice," Dumbledore said, looking into the distance with ancient eyes.
"Hey Newt, tell me you have Jacob's ring," Queenie called from behind them. The bakery door opened, and she beckoned urgently.
"I have it!" Newt said, raising his hand and running over.
"How is Credence?" Aiden asked, sitting on the bench beside Dumbledore.
"Unconscious. We used your Philosopher's Stone to keep him alive. I need to thank you, Aiden," Dumbledore said, extending his hand.
"Spare me," Aiden said, swatting his palm away.
"Come on, do not just watch from outside," Aiden said, pulling Dumbledore towards the bakery.
A peculiar group photo was thus captured and placed in the bakery's most prominent position—wizards and Muggles together, smiling at a future they had fought to preserve.
After attending the wedding, Dumbledore led the group back to Hogwarts through the winter night.
Newt once again set out on a journey to distant lands, while Aiden was finally about to begin his advancement to the next Sequence.
"Are you sure you do not need me watching from the side?" Dumbledore asked, his voice holding genuine worry.
"No need. Looking directly at my true form might drive you mad," Aiden said, shaking his head.
The door to the Room of Requirement closed with a heavy thud. Aiden removed the gemstone from around his neck, its weight familiar in his palm.
"It is up to you, System," Aiden said. In the empty chamber, his voice echoed around the stone walls.
"Heh, men," the long-absent system sent mockery through their connection.
Immersing the gemstone into the prepared container, the system released the Observer's characteristics. The clear water in the cup began to change colour, shifting through impossible hues.
Fishing out the system, the potion was also prepared—a swirling mixture that defied normal physics.
The potion seemed to be a product condensed from a large amount of grey mist, dense and otherworldly. The grey mists collided with each other and, in the flashing light revealed reflections of the collective unconscious sea.
Raising the potion to his lips, he drank it all in one gulp, the taste being both everything and nothing.
As a Sequence 3, the body woven from dreams dissolved again into component threads.
The dream began flowing towards the maze composed of secrets stolen from thousands of minds.
The wizard's cognition, contained in tens of thousands of secrets, clearly deconstructed every detail of the entire world for Aiden—past, present, and potential futures laid bare.
At the same time, combining with the world's full picture in Aiden's memory, it shaped his Island of Consciousness into a miniature world, complete and self-sustaining.
The barriers of the mind were dismantled and merged into the maze, while the maze guarded Aiden's Island of Consciousness—it should be called the World of Consciousness now.
As long as one believes oneself strong enough, one will be strong enough, not constrained by external appearance, Aiden thought, understanding flooding through him.
At this moment, Aiden truly transcended the constraints of the collective unconscious sea and could, to a certain extent, dominate it, bending perception itself to his will.
At the same time, the Island of Consciousness advanced to the World of Consciousness, able to clearly map every living being's connection to the collective unconscious sea, thus easily uncovering the secrets hidden deep in their hearts.
The dreams gathered and merged again like a river flowing backward. Aiden's figure emerged from the maze, transformed and reborn.
Sequence 2—Discerner—descended upon the mortal world.