Upon returning, Wayne's first task was responding to a mountain of letters.
Normally, owls could deliver mail to Paris, but Nicolas' home had protective enchantments preventing their entry. Thus, the letters accumulated at Wayne's residence – a peculiar owl talent.
When Penelope handed him the thick stack, just looking at it gave him a headache.
This... being too popular certainly had its drawbacks.
He first extracted letters from Hermione and Cho. Both knew he'd gone to France and hadn't worried excessively. Their letters contained mundane matters – snippets of their daily lives and amusing anecdotes.
Wayne promptly replied, informing them of his return and mentioning the creatures he had brought from France, inviting them to visit the following day.
Next came the twins' correspondence. Their resentment practically bled through the parchment – likely victims of their report cards. One section featured altered handwriting, possibly a contribution from Ron. The grammatical errors rendered it utterly non-threatening. Disappointing.
Their recent letters inquired about his whereabouts and why he hadn't replied. Mrs Weasley kept urging them to invite him to The Burrow for an extended stay. Harry had already accepted their invitation for the second week of August.
After consideration, Wayne decided to visit The Burrow in mid-August. The interim period would be spent completing the thesis promised to Professor McGonagall, renovating his home, and making time for Hermione and Cho – their letters already radiated palpable melancholy.
Cedric's letter struck similar notes, urging Wayne to visit as holiday boredom had become unbearable. He was also pranked twice by the twins using joke shop items, so he asked Wayne to help him get even.
This left Wayne silent for a long while.
'Seriously? A soon-to-be fourth-year senior student is actually asking a little second-year like me to back him up.'
'Have you no shame?'
'Who taught you to be this shameless? You're practically ruining Hufflepuff's reputation!'
Then there was Harry.
His letter was full of gratitude—the Dursleys' treatment of him had improved dramatically.
He now ate the same meals as Dudley, and whenever clothes were bought for Dudley, he got a set too.
The only thing was that the three of them still rarely spoke to him, opting instead to ignore him. But Harry preferred it that way—there wasn't much to talk about between them anyway.
The rest were letters from others. Some were ordinary greetings, others were orders from Slytherin students for custom protective gear. There were also several love letters from girls inviting Wayne out during the holidays.
Toby and Norman were complaining again about their poor sleep quality, so Wayne sent them a bottle of Draught of Living Death free of charge.
"Senior, has anyone come to the house recently?" Wayne finally asked after replying to the letters.
Penelope placed the prepared food on the table and sat opposite Wayne. "Your uncle dropped by."
As she spoke, Penelope gave the boy a complicated look. "You never told me your uncle was... that person."
"Huh?" Wayne was puzzled. "How did you recognise him?"
Although Humphrey was currently the top civil servant, officials like him operated behind the scenes, allowing politicians like Prime Minister Jim Hacker to take centre stage.
Penelope explained quietly, "Sir Humphrey was on a talk show a few days ago, alongside Prime Minister Hacker."
"I'd just seen him on TV, and then the real person showed up at your house. You should've seen my face."
Wayne couldn't help but laugh.
"Senior, your expression right now is pretty funny too."
Penelope: "..."
'This kid really has no tact!'
Wayne continued, "Apart from my uncle, anyone else?"
"No, that's it," Penelope shook her head.
"How's your progress with the spells I taught you?"
Penelope's face flushed, and she stayed silent.
Wayne frowned. "You didn't practise?"
"No, I just... couldn't master them," Penelope admitted awkwardly. "Those spells are still too difficult for me, especially the Lightning Net..."
"Fine, I'll check your progress later." Wayne sighed and focused on his meal without another word.
...
After eating, he took Penelope back into the trunk.
The results were... less than ideal.
How to put it? There was a certain beauty in the lack of intensity. The current from the Lightning Net wasn't even enough to stun fish.
Talent—this world is so unfair.
You could have ample intelligence, exceptional discipline, and a diligent attitude towards learning.
But without talent, you'd still only ever be an outstanding ordinary person. No matter how outstanding, ordinary is all you'd ever be.
Penelope was a case in point. Her wandwork, gestures, incantations, even her focus—none of it was technically wrong. Yet the spells came out weak and flimsy.
Penelope was deeply embarrassed.
She knew exactly how precious Wayne's notes were—they contained his personal insights into spellcasting. Following them made learning much easier.
However, her results were so poor that she felt she'd failed to meet his expectations.
"Senior, wait here a moment..." Wayne said a few words before walking back to the small wooden cabin and taking out a vial of potion.
"You'd better think carefully. Once you drink this, even after graduation, you'll be working for me."
As a proper blue-blooded Londoner, Wayne's way of doing things was perfectly in line with capitalist traits. He would never do anything without benefit.
Even though he had some fondness for Penelope and thought it was quite impressive for a Muggle-born girl to have achieved what she had, he still expected a return on his investment.
The Potential Elixir could easily fetch thousands of Galleons on the market—what's more, it was practically priceless due to its scarcity.
Only he and Snape in the entire world could brew it.
Given Snape's temperament, convincing him to sell his own potions was nearly impossible.
If Penelope wanted it, she would have to pledge her future in return.
Without hesitation, Penelope took the vial and downed it in one go, then looked challengingly at Wayne.
"With such a generous boss like you, even if you tried to kick me out, I wouldn't leave."
Wayne waved his hand grandly. "Then it's settled. After I graduate, I'll appoint you as my personal secretary."
...
"Dad, Mum, I'm heading out!"
Early in the morning, Hermione had already gotten up, finished breakfast, and rushed back to her room to get ready.
Finally, she slung her small backpack over her shoulders and stepped out of the house.
Watching his daughter practically skip with joy, Mr Granger, who was watering the garden, scratched his head in confusion.
"What's gotten into her? She's suddenly so happy."
Mrs Granger leaned against the kitchen window, smiling. "It must be because Lawrence is back. Otherwise, Hermione wouldn't be leaving this early."
"Usually at this time, she'd be reading."
...
As if mirroring Hermione, Cho was in a similar state, though Mr Chang was far less composed.
Upon hearing that his daughter was going to Wayne's house, he nearly insisted on going with her. It took both Cho and Mrs Chang to talk him out of it finally.
The two girls arrived at Wayne's doorstep almost simultaneously, exchanging a knowing smile before Hermione pressed the doorbell.
Spending every day together at school was one thing, but after the holidays began, not seeing the lively Wayne left a strange emptiness in her heart.
She found herself zoning out easily, her thoughts drifting to what that guy might be up to.
Surely he wasn't off charming some other little witch, was he?
But the thought that Wayne had gone to France to see Nicolas Flamel quickly put their minds at ease.
The door soon opened, and the smiles vanished from their faces the moment they saw who was standing there.
"Penelope, what are you doing here?" Cho asked warily.
Hermione also stared at the blonde senior without a word, her small fists clenched tightly.
"Didn't Wayne tell you? He hired me over the summer to tidy up his place and cook for him occasionally."
"But..." Cho glanced at her watch. "It's only eight o'clock..."
"Oh, I didn't go back last night because of some... matters," Penelope replied casually. After taking the Potential Elixir the previous evening, she had initially felt unwell but later became too excited and ended up practising magic until very late.
Wayne had simply let her stay in the guest room.
"Come in, won't you? Wayne usually doesn't wake up until ten or even eleven. Have you had breakfast yet? There's plenty here—help yourselves."
Cho and Hermione exchanged glances as Penelope welcomed them like the lady of the house. The same thought crossed both their minds simultaneously.
Dreadful—they'd been ambushed!
How could their senior speak so casually about staying over at Wayne's place?
With uneasy hearts, they entered and sat stiffly on the sofa, the atmosphere growing awkward, until Wayne finally woke up.
"Hey, long time no see, Hermione, Cho."
The boy greeted them cheerfully, only to find all three sitting in silence. He frowned in confusion.
"What's going on with you lot?"
"N-nothing," Hermione shut the book she'd brought with her. "Didn't you say you have new creatures? Show me now."
The young witch placed the book on the table, walked over to Wayne, and took his hand. Not to be outdone, Cho quickly claimed his other side.
Assuming their enthusiasm was due to not seeing him for a while, Wayne didn't think much of it and led both girls into the enchanted suitcase.
Watching the trio disappear, Penelope chuckled softly before heading into the kitchen, entirely unbothered, to prepare lunch for the household.
...
Inside the enchanted suitcase...
After showing Cho and Hermione the Kneazles, Wayne naturally began recounting his adventures in France, though he instinctively omitted any mention of Fleur, a survival reflex kicking in.
"So Nicolas Flamel's house is full of alchemical artefacts, even Muggle appliances?" Hermione marvelled, imagining what it would be like to live in such a place.
"Well, it suits his reputation as a master alchemist," Wayne shrugged. "I'm planning to renovate my place too—you'll get to see it once it's done."
"Though first, I've got to finish that essay. Professor McGonagall's already hounding me about it."
When he'd checked his mail yesterday, one letter from Professor McGonagall had scared him so much he hadn't dared reply. He planned to send his completed essay along with his response.
Neither Hermione nor Cho knew he was submitting a paper to Transfiguration Today.
Their astonishment was palpable when they discovered the news.
Hermione subscribed to the academic journal herself. While she recognised every word in it, the sentences made sense to her only in fragments.
The fact that Wayne—whose work would soon feature in a publication she struggled to understand—left the young witch feeling rather deflated.
"Alright, you're free to do as you please. I need to head back and get some work done." After a quick bite to eat, Wayne prepared to burn the midnight oil.
"...What's going on with Senior Penelope?" Cho's slender eyes fixed on the young man with a hint of reproach. "She said she stayed here last night."
It wasn't until Wayne explained about the Potential Elixir that the girls finally relaxed.
Both women who had taken the elixir knew that sudden, significant strength gains could indeed lead to heightened excitement.
Still, they remained somewhat wary.
Their rival was a beautiful senior with golden curls, immensely popular at school. Extra caution was necessary.
Knowing Wayne had work to do, they didn't disturb him excessively.
Hermione sat beside him doing homework while Cho stayed outside on the lawn with the three Unicorns.
Diana had now grown to nearly the same size as her mother, Hestia. For some reason, Diana's coat wasn't silver-white but bore a faint pink hue, making the little one appear even more adorable.
Thanks to Wayne's influence, all three Unicorns willingly approached Cho. The Thunderbird Mia flew over, stretched her wings, and called out twice. Unfortunately, Cho wasn't Wayne and couldn't understand what she was saying.
Just then, Gardevoir teleported before her, using telepathy to communicate.
"Miss Chang, Mia would like you to groom her feathers. If you'd prefer not to, I can assist instead."
"Is that so?" Cho suddenly understood. "Thank you, Gardevoir. I think I want to give it a try. Do we have any grooming tools?"
Gardevoir promptly returned with a specialised Thunderbird grooming set – something Wayne had custom-ordered when purchasing care tools for the gargoyle.
Inside the cabin, Wayne had finalised his dissertation's primary focus: 'On the Timing and Techniques of Magical Power Conversion During Multiple Transfigurations'.
The challenge of multiple transfigurations lay in two aspects.
When magic becomes infused within matter, its properties change. Thus, during secondary or even tertiary transfigurations, greater concentration and deeper understanding of Transfiguration become necessary.
But after fully mastering this particular difficulty, Wayne discovered that the magical power already present within transfigured objects could be utilised. Rather than repeatedly applying magic, one could sustain the transformation by manipulating existing magical energy.
This approach proved smoother and more intuitive.
Before bed the previous night, he'd skimmed through recent issues of Transfiguration Today and found no discussion of this concept – a gap he was perfectly positioned to fill.
Hermione initially sat beside Wayne, curious about his writing. But she was soon shooed away. These weren't concepts for her current level.
One must learn to walk before attempting to run. But his paper wasn't intended for those still learning to walk, nor even for those who could run.
It was written for those who could already fly.
He didn't need many readers – just those with sufficient credibility and influence.
By afternoon, he'd only managed an introduction and outline.
After dinner and seeing all three girls home, Wayne returned to his furious writing.
***
Two days later, the work was substantially complete.
After one final review, he sent it to Professor McGonagall, intentionally leaving a few gaps to give the professor some sense of participation.
With some free time on his hands, Wayne took Hermione and Cho out for a couple of enjoyable days before beginning the renovations on the house.
What he envied most was how Nicolas' home allowed effortless Apparition to any location. Although Apparating could achieve the same, not all wizards could use it as freely as they did. Many required lengthy preparations before teleporting.
Nicolas taught him this ancient magic, complete with runes. The prerequisite for achieving this was inscribing runes throughout the entire house, then providing a massive energy source to activate the magic permanently.
Wayne first went to Diagon Alley to purchase copious materials, spending nearly eight thousand Galleons before clearing out an entire basement.
After half a day's work, he completed the magical conduction device and finally, with great care, placed the Philosopher's Stone into the prepared slot. Crimson magical power flowed out like blood, staining the gilded magical array with a red glow.
When all the runes and arrays were activated by the magic, the entire house gave a slight tremble.
Wayne silently thought 'bedroom', and the next moment, he appeared beside his bed.