The celebration—
belonged only to Hogwarts.
The other teams?
Silence.
Bitterness.
Matthew blamed everything on Claven.
"If you hadn't interfered, we'd have won!"
Claven sneered.
"Not my problem."
"We're competitors."
"What—should I have let you pass?"
"Grow up."
"You—!"
"Still want to fight?"
Tension exploded—
until Kelly Ann stepped in.
"Enough."
Even she—
was unwilling to lose with dignity.
Soon—
Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry departed first.
They didn't want to stay—
not even one extra day.
At the docks—
David Morley awkwardly spoke.
"I… might visit America this summer."
Kelly Ann smiled.
"Then come find me."
"I'll show you around."
Morley looked like a kid who'd just been handed candy.
Behind them—
a student whispered:
"He likes you."
Kelly Ann didn't deny it.
She was waiting.
Meanwhile—
another team returned the Muggle way.
Planes.
Taxis.
Ordinary travel—
for extraordinary losers.
As for Wagadu—
they were detained.
Even if they hadn't known Coates' plan—
they had still cheated.
In Hogwarts—
things were far from over.
Severus Snape spent the entire night using Legilimency on Conrad Coates.
But Coates—
was a master of Occlumency.
His mental defenses—
were ironclad.
When Snape finally broke through—
he discovered something worse.
The memories—
had been tampered with.
By morning—
nothing useful.
And then—
Coates was taken away by Barty Crouch Sr..
But once inside the Ministry—
Crouch exploded.
"Dumbledore!"
Because Coates—
remembered nothing.
Not even himself.
A complete wipe.
Snape had acted first.
A powerful memory charm—
enough to send Coates to
St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries
for years.
Back at Hogwarts—
the champions stood in the headmaster's office.
Dumbledore smiled.
"You have brought honor to Hogwarts."
"Your names will be engraved."
Glory.
Recognition.
Then—
money.
20,000 Galleons.
Distributed.
Sean and Penelope:
4,000 each.
The rest:
3,000 each.
No one objected.
Even though—
everyone knew who carried the match.
"Can I keep it myself?" Sean asked.
Dumbledore shook his head.
"Not yet."
Sean sighed.
Uncle Hens… definitely locking that away for ten years.
When the others left—
Sean stayed.
"The Scepter… destroyed?"
"No."
"It remains… in the Mirror of Erised."
Sean froze.
So next year—
the Philosopher's Stone…
and the Scepter…
would be in the same place.
That's insane.
"And the Runespoor?"
"Hagrid is… giving it a funeral."
Of course he is.
Sean ran.
Found Rubeus Hagrid—
digging a grave.
The massive three-headed snake lay beside him.
"…Can I take some blood?"
Hagrid nodded.
"Snape already took venom."
Sean drew a vial.
Dark red.
Back in his dorm—
his cat reacted instantly.
Too much magical presence…
So—
he went somewhere else.
Room of Requirement.
Carefully—
he dropped a single bead of blood.
Activated his Magic vision .
The energy—
was overwhelming.
Then—
it dissolved.
Light.
A miniature Runespoor—
formed inside his vision.
"…It worked."
Excitement surged.
Stronger magical creatures = usable.
Moments later—
he summoned it.
Half-sized—
but real.
Alive.
"…Another Pokémon unlocked."
He laughed quietly.
That night—
he used the Wizard's Heart again.
And finally—
the "container" expanded.
Again.
Two hours.
Until saturation.
"…Feels like I overate."
Now—
his magic power—
had reached half of Snape's level.
One more breakthrough—
and he'd rival elite Aurors.
The next morning—
he was energetic.
Everyone else?
Miserable.
"Exams are next week!"
"I learned nothing!"
Cassius collapsed on the table.
Sean shrugged.
"Try not to get beaten too badly at home."
"I don't want to go home…"
"I want to go to America with Morley."
"…He's leaving?"
"You didn't know?"
"Because of love."
Chris rolled her eyes.
"…Hopeless."
Then—
she froze.
Newspaper in hand.
"Look."
Sean read the headline:
"Barty Crouch in International Dispute—
Wagadu Professor Found Dead at St Mungo's!"
"…Coates is dead."
Sean's eyes narrowed.
No mention—
of Herpo the Foul.
Nothing about the real threat.
Dumbledore… covered it.
But that only meant one thing—
The danger—
was still out there.
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