Though Quidditch was the most popular sport at Hogwarts, not every student chose to attend the match. In each common room, a handful of students stayed behind. Gryffindor had the fewest—around five or six—while Ravenclaw's common room held over ten. Most were fifth or seventh years, their focus on exams overshadowing any interest in Quidditch. They preferred to spend their time studying in the library or nestled in the common room with their books.
Kyle turned his attention to the Hufflepuff common room on the Marauder's Map. Unlike other areas of Hogwarts, the map displayed the dormitory area in a simpler layout, distinguishing only between the boys' and girls' sections, each separated from the main common room by a thin ink line.
He noted down the names of everyone in the Hufflepuff common room—only six in total. Satisfied, Kyle considered closing the map and rejoining the game, but something urged him to glance at the underground classroom area. There, he spotted Snape's private storage room.
Kyle promised himself that he had no intention of sneaking in to "borrow" (or take) anything—at least, not yet. While Snape's storage room certainly held its share of valuable potions ingredients, Kyle's current interests leaned more toward Charms. Nevertheless, since he was already looking, he took a moment to trace the route to Snape's room, marking the entrances and exits of the nearby secret passages purely out of curiosity.
"Look! Cedric's speeding up!" A deafening cheer erupted from the stands, jolting Kyle back to reality.
He quickly closed the Marauder's Map and tapped it with his wand. "Mischief managed," he murmured as the ink vanished, leaving the parchment blank.
On the Quidditch Pitch, Cedric was diving at an incredible speed.
"It's the Golden Snitch!" the commentator shouted, his voice rising with excitement. "It's by the Slytherin goalpost, less than twenty feet off the ground!"
Higgs, Slytherin's Seeker, had spotted it too and accelerated, hot on Cedric's trail. The crowd held its breath, watching as the two Seekers hurtled toward the Snitch, their competitive energy filling the stands with tension.
And then, just seconds later...
"Cedric's got it!" the commentator yelled. "Cedric Diggory, the youngest Seeker ever, has caught the Golden Snitch!"
The stands exploded with cheers, a sea of yellow flags waving jubilantly in the air. Students screamed and hugged each other in celebration, their voices blending into one triumphant roar.
"We won! We won!" The young wizards around Kyle beamed and embraced in excitement.
"Thanks to Hufflepuff for a truly splendid Quidditch match," the commentator concluded, his voice filled with admiration.
An hour later, Cedric was carried back to the Hufflepuff common room by a jubilant crowd of students, receiving the hero's welcome reserved for Quidditch champions. To Kyle, though, he looked more like a hapless creature being paraded before its fate. Victory celebrations were essential, and that evening, a few older students raided the kitchen, returning with an impressive spread of meat loaf, biscuits, and more. Soon, the common room was brimming with the aroma of the freshly prepared feast.
"Kyle, where were you?" Kanna asked, puzzled, as she approached with a large, bone-in steak. "I didn't see you at the end of the game."
"I was in the bathroom," Kyle replied.
"That's too bad," Kanna whispered, "you missed the best part."
Kyle smiled. "Not really. I came back just in time to see Cedric catch the Golden Snitch."
"That's good," Kanna said, grinning before taking a hearty bite of her steak.
Kyle looked at her in mild bewilderment. "You're going to bed soon—are you sure it's okay to eat so much now?"
Kanna froze mid-bite, a little embarrassed. She averted her eyes and mumbled, "I...didn't eat much at dinner."
"Is that so?" Kyle replied, frowning slightly. "Funny, I thought I saw you... never mind, I must've remembered wrong."
Relieved, Kanna quickly excused herself before Kyle could ask anything further.
Everyone was in high spirits, though they didn't realize this would be their last carefree evening for a while. Final exams were fast approaching, and the professors seemed intent on preparing them with more homework than ever. Even their Wizard Chess games were abandoned as each day became a battle to tackle the stacks of blank parchment piling up around them.
The Easter holiday, less celebrated than Christmas, saw most students opting to stay on campus. With their heavy workloads, they spent countless hours sighing and yawning in the library, working through endless assignments. On top of the assignments, they also had to memorize the "essential content" flagged by their professors and practice wand movements for practical exams. The hallways echoed with the constant complaints of weary students.
"This is impossible!" Mikel groaned halfway through the holiday, throwing down his quill in frustration. "Who in Merlin's name discovered the twelve uses of Dragon's blood? It's too much to remember!"
"Dumbledore," Kyle answered from across the table, not even glancing up. "Care to duel him? Not a bad idea, actually. Beat him, and Snape might stop forcing us to memorize everything."
Mikel stared blankly for a moment, then sheepishly picked up his quill again. "What was the twelfth use of Dragon's blood...? Oh, right, an oven cleaner." He sighed. "Should've just paid attention."
Kyle grinned but didn't comment further.
An hour later, he finally put down his own quill and closed his well-worn copy of One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi.
"Kyle, are you finished with your homework?" Mikel and Ryan asked, looking at him like hopeful Nifflers spotting a Galleon.
Kyle rolled his shoulders and nodded. "Yes, it's all done."
Mikel's eyes lit up. "Do you think...we could borrow it, just to take a look?"
After a pause, Kyle nodded, handing over his homework without his usual hesitation. He knew Mikel and Ryan had already completed a decent portion on their own—about a third—so he wasn't as worried about them copying it word by word. The Easter assignments were unusually heavy, and a bit of help seemed fair.
"Just remember, don't copy," Kyle cautioned.
"Don't worry!" Mikel patted his chest confidently. "We won't make the same mistake twice."