Dumbledore's appearance was like a shot of strength straight into the hearts of all the young witches and wizards.
Only at a moment like this could they truly understand just how important Dumbledore's presence was. And his return really did allow the witches and wizards, who had been at a loss and swept up in the tense atmosphere around them, to calm down and relax for a while.
After all, everyone knew that the most famous wizard capable of standing against the Dark Lord was the man right in front of them, the greatest wizard of the age...
In contrast to everyone else's excitement and joy, Pansy and the others were rather indifferent.
To be more exact, from the very beginning, Pansy and the others had never placed their hopes of fighting Voldemort on Dumbledore.
Or perhaps it was because Draco's presence had given them another option.
With absolutely no grace befitting a lady, Pansy licked the crumbs from her palm and lazily narrowed her eyes like a well-fed kitten. "Our great savior doesn't look too good."
"Not only that, I noticed that none of the wizards who came back were from the Ministry of Magic."
Hermione in particular had not seen that pink figure, the self-styled High Inquisitor, among the professors. Was it because the Ministry needed more hands?
Hermione's words made Pansy pause.
"Maybe something happened?"
"I wonder if Dobby left out something important."
While Pansy and Hermione were whispering to each other, Harry Potter also returned to the Gryffindor table with the Weasley twins beside him.
From the expressions on the twins' faces, it was obvious they were deeply worried about Harry Potter.
It was worth mentioning that aside from Ginny, the entire Weasley family had disappeared from Hogwarts that day and only returned to school today.
There was every reason to believe that had a great deal to do with what happened...
...
With Dumbledore back in charge, life seemed to have returned to normal on the surface, but in truth, undercurrents were moving everywhere.
Even on the weekend, Hogwarts Castle felt unnaturally quiet.
Draco walked slowly through the empty corridor. Along the way, there was hardly anyone in sight. When he occasionally looked out the window, he could only make out faint little black dots above the Quidditch Pitch.
Very unusually, Draco did not have a little tail following behind him this time...
In his hand, Draco casually turned over a mirror that looked completely ordinary at first glance. "Not time yet? That does fit that lunatic's erratic personality."
Just as Draco stepped down the final marble stair, the handsome face reflected in the mirror suddenly froze for a moment.
Because walking toward him down the corridor was a wizard both sides cared about very much...
"Harry Potter."
"Draco... Malfoy!"
Compared to Draco's calm tone, Harry Potter's reaction was extremely agitated.
The way he ground his teeth made it look as though Draco had done something unforgivable to him.
Instinctively, Draco shifted slightly to the side and touched his cane, while the corner of his eye kept searching the surroundings.
"What, are you planning to take revenge on me here?"
That stance allowed Draco to respond properly to an attack from any direction, while also checking whether Harry Potter had anyone else lying in wait nearby.
But...
No one else? No fluctuations of magic either.
Was this really just a chance encounter?
Only after finding nothing did Draco stop himself from drawing his wand and decide to hear what Potter wanted to say.
Unfortunately, Harry Potter's first sentence made Draco regret it at once, because it was no different from before.
"You despicable Death Eater!"
"..."
Faced with Draco's almost pitying look, the already unstable savior seemed even more provoked.
"Your plan will never succeed! Because I'm the one Dumbledore spoke of..."
"Spoke of?"
"..."
Harry Potter's abrupt pause made Draco turn back with interest.
But after realizing what he had just let slip, Harry Potter hurriedly changed the subject in a clumsy attempt to cover it up.
"Just like in the battle at the Department of Mysteries, you got nothing... even if... even if Sirius..."
"Sirius?"
"Listen, I'm going to get revenge!"
For the first time, Draco really looked at the wizard standing before him, someone who was obviously the same age as him, yet somehow seemed underdeveloped.
It was not only because of the matter involving Sirius, but also because of that declaration Harry Potter had just made.
Revenge?
Draco slowly looked Harry Potter up and down from head to toe. Only after the other man backed away a few steps in uncertainty did Draco withdraw his gaze.
Talking about revenge right in front of the person involved?
Draco let out a cold laugh at such childish words. "I'm not afraid of trouble, but perhaps I should deal with a future problem right here."
"You!?"
As Harry Potter watched the wand slowly being drawn from the cane, all he could do was stand there stiffly.
Under the crushing pressure of Draco's violent magic, he found that he could not react at all.
And in that very instant, Harry Potter vaguely understood where the gap between them truly lay...
...
With the outside world in such chaos, whether one continued studying at Hogwarts no longer seemed all that important.
Of course, for the sake of safety, being a student here still mattered a great deal to most wizarding families. After all, Dumbledore was the headmaster.
But Draco was not included among them...
Just as Harry Potter gritted his teeth and prepared to draw his own wand, a cold and furious voice rang out, one that only a small number of people could detect carried a trace of urgency as well.
"Potter!"
The voice came from the other end of the corridor. It was Snape, dressed in black.
He had not even come close yet, and already he was calling out Harry Potter's name. It was obvious he was deeply worried about what might happen next.
Without sparing Draco even a glance, Snape stepped directly between the two of them.
"What are you doing, Potter?"
That same cold tone as always only provoked Harry Potter again.
"I was just thinking about what spell I should use on Malfoy, sir!"
"Put your wand away immediately. And Gryffindor loses ten points!"
Watching the scene between the two of them, Draco closed his wand again.
Although he was somewhat concerned about Sirius, Draco had no intention of staying here with them any longer.
Partly because he knew he would not get any answers, and partly because he had little interest in the complicated relationship between Snape and Potter.
But just as Draco was about to leave, Snape called after him...
"Mr. Malfoy, I need to inform you that during this holiday, I will find a time to pay you a home visit."
"????"
Draco's face filled with question marks.
Since when had Hogwarts started doing home visits?