After that night, Cassandra finally returned to normal.
She still worked hard, but no longer pushed herself to the point of neglecting sleep and food. Every day she would seek Tom out to ask questions, and she no longer cared about the strange looks from others.
She felt Tom's words were absolutely right. As long as she became better than the version of herself from the day before, there was no need to care about what anyone else thought or said.
Once revision week began, their interactions grew more frequent. Still, most of Tom's attention shifted back to Daphne, because her birthday was approaching fast.
He even set the vampire matter aside.
The reason was simple. That pathogenic vampire had fled, and now the unlucky ones were the wizards in Spain.
...
The final Saturday before exams arrived.
Today was Daphne's birthday.
Early in the morning, Tom was already busy. He first arranged for the house-elves to prepare cake and a grand meal. Then he went to the unicorn territory in the Forbidden Forest to decorate the area. He even caught several Puffskeins, enchanting them and turning them into different colors to use as decorations.
By noon, he brought everyone who would be attending the celebration over one by one.
Astoria, Hermione, Cho, Ginny, Luna, Penelope, Hannah, Susan…
And the most unexpected guest of all…
Cassandra?
Daphne's face had been blooming with joy. The moment she saw Cassandra following behind Tom, she immediately switched to her cold, distant expression.
"Happy birthday, Greengrass," Cassandra said calmly, unfazed by the sudden change in Daphne's attitude. She took out the birthday gift she had prepared in advance, a delicate set of hair clips.
One could not strike someone who brought a gift.
Even though Cassandra was not smiling, the present was clearly chosen with care.
Daphne had no choice but to thank her politely. Then, while Cassandra went to look at the unicorns, Daphne quietly grabbed Tom, pouting in displeasure.
"Why did you bring her too?"
"No frowning on your birthday."
Tom laughed, gently pinching Daphne's cheek and smoothing the crease between her brows before explaining.
"She overheard me mentioning your birthday earlier. She already prepared a gift, so I figured I might as well bring her along."
"The moment I see her, I think about how arrogant she used to be," Daphne muttered, still unhappy.
"That was family influence. She was taught badly," Tom said patiently. "Cassandra is actually pretty… foolish. She's easily influenced by others. Look at her now, isn't she much better? And more people just makes it livelier."
Tom understood her much better now. Most of the problems stemmed from her overly strict father. Too much pressure. From the sound of it, the rest of the Voray family were not much better either.
Quite similar to the Malfoys, really.
No wonder they were distant relatives from a thousand years ago.
Once petty people gained power, their tails shot straight into the sky. Clearly nouveau riche, yet convinced they were superior, even more active and greedy than many old noble families.
"Let's not talk about that," Tom said, resting a hand on Daphne's shoulder. "Think about what kind of gift I prepared for you instead."
Daphne's attention was immediately diverted. She acted spoiled and insisted on seeing it right away, but Tom refused, insisting on waiting until after the meal.
Left with no choice, Daphne went to pull the girls who were playing with the unicorns and Puffskeins back so they could eat.
Aside from Padma, Hannah also showed off her cooking skills. Her roasted lamb received unanimous praise. When it came to cooking, Hannah was an absolute genius. Tom would occasionally go find her just to mooch a meal.
At last, the candles were blown out, the cake was cut, and Daphne made her wish.
She immediately urged Tom to take out the gift.
Everyone else was just as curious about what Tom had prepared for her.
Under a dozen expectant gazes, the boy glanced around, whistled once, and Usagi shot into the sky, rolling wildly like an eel. The sky darkened at once.
"Now this feels right."
After building up the suspense long enough, Tom finally presented the gift.
The exquisite gift box opened on its own. Brilliant, multicolored light burst forth, filling the girls' vision. Only when the glow dimmed did they finally see what lay inside.
A breathtaking crystal lotus.
It had twenty-four petals in total. Each petal reflected a different color, the hues constantly shifting.
"So beautiful…" Daphne cradled it carefully in her hands, the more she looked, the more she loved it.
"But it can't just be for looks, right?" Hermione asked.
She adored the crystal refinement of the lotus, but she knew Tom well. He favored things that were both gorgeous and practical. He would never give Daphne a mere ornament.
"Of course not," Tom said with a grin. "Each petal represents a different spell. Some are offensive, some defensive, and others are useful everyday charms."
"Temperature regulation, dehumidifying, cleaning, refilling, Summoning Charm, and more. It covers most commonly used spells. As long as you carry the lotus, it's basically equivalent to being a master of silent casting for all of them."
"The difficulty of making it isn't that high, but handling compatibility between the spells is tricky. Engraving the magical runic circuits is also extremely delicate. The most important part is the material. It has to be beautiful and durable."
"For that, I had to shamelessly rely on Nicolas again to get magical crystal water. That stuff is almost extinct. Worldwide production is under a hundred pieces a year."
Daphne's face lit up with pure delight. The other girls' eyes turned red with envy.
"Tom…" Astoria sighed softly. "You're really going to spoil my sister into a useless person."
Daphne was already lazy enough. Now she had such a perfect tool for cutting corners. That was dangerous.
"Astoria!" Daphne said, pretending to be angry. "Is that how you talk about your sister? You're just jealous. Hehe, Tom treats me so well."
"I'm not jealous," Astoria protested quietly, though the guilt in her tone was unmistakable.
Tom rubbed her head gently and gave her a meaningful look. Astoria understood instantly and broke into a bright smile.
Silly sister. It won't be long before I have one too.
After that, Hermione, Cho, Ginny, Penelope…
Tom found the right moment to subtly reassure each of them in turn, ensuring everyone was treated fairly. The faint traces of jealousy in the girls' hearts vanished completely.
...
While laughter and warmth filled Tom's side of the forest, inside the castle, someone was already packing up quietly.
It was time to run.