Over on the Ravenclaw side, the atmosphere was quite restrained. Because Vespera had said some things before the banquet began, the little eagles were watching Headmaster Dumbledore closely up on the stage.
It had been about some remarks concerning "manufacturing a god."
The Great Hall's decorations had transformed into the emerald green symbolizing Slytherin, and Professor Snape wore an imperceptible smile.
This was Slytherin's eighth consecutive House Cup victory, and the little snakes were somewhat restlessly excited about it.
The Gryffindor students, meanwhile, looked quite dejected.
"Dear students, quiet. Here, I would like to commend some of the students from Gryffindor. They have displayed Gryffindor's courage, determination, and daring."
"Miss Hermione Granger, your intelligence and daring earned fifty points for Gryffindor. Mr. Ron Weasley, your courageous self-sacrifice in the game of wizard chess earned Gryffindor another fifty points."
"Mr. Harry Potter, you bravely dueled with Quirrell and ultimately protected the Philosopher's Stone. You have secured sixty points for Gryffindor."
The scene was dead quiet, and the Slytherin side was silent beyond belief. The scores were now tied, and the gazes Gryffindor cast toward Dumbledore were filled with anticipation.
Perhaps they could get a few more points.
Hufflepuff was dumbfounded by this sudden point addition; they seemed to have dropped to fourth place. As for Ravenclaw, everyone sat there like a statue, except for Quinlan, who calmly sipped her tea.
The students of the eagle house were not fools; for the most part, they lived in a world of their own. They were studious and knowledgeable, and their learning gave them a profound understanding of how things worked.
Therefore, Quinlan had hit the nail on the head.
The little eagles turned it over in their minds, pondering whether the real reason Headmaster Dumbledore was doing this was indeed to "manufacture a savior god."
"Lastly, Mr. Neville Longbottom. You stood up for the honor of the House to stop your classmates from breaking school rules. For your courage, I award Gryffindor ten points!"
"Whoop! Ah!" Gryffindor's cheers sounded lonely and abrupt in the Great Hall. The Hufflepuffs, still trying to make sense of it all, joined in with their cheers.
The decorations in the Great Hall instantly shifted to Gryffindor's representative colors, while the dining tables on either side were frighteningly silent.
"I announce that this year's House Cup belongs to—"
"Sonorus. Hold on—" Everyone searched for the source of the voice; it came from Ravenclaw.
It was Vespera Quinlan, sitting there drinking tea.
"Is that so, Miss Quinlan? I should think that defeating Quirrell and protecting the Philosopher's Stone is worth any number of points."
Headmaster Dumbledore replied to her, while the students of Hogwarts looked on with various hidden thoughts.
Quinlan spoke her mind directly, paying him no heed: "If you want to award extra points to Gryffindor, of course that's fine."
"Then you should have added them earlier, rather than doing it now without giving everyone a chance to react, handing them the House Cup in one fell swoop."
It was rare for a student to question a teacher at Hogwarts, and questioning the Headmaster himself was rarer still.
The clever students all grasped her underlying meaning.
Slytherin looked up at the towering Headmaster with a sense of natural scrutiny; most of their parents were members of the school's board of governors.
Gryffindor's students glared daggers, and if looks could kill, Quinlan would have been burned to ashes millions of times over.
Ravenclaw had cast aside their usual detached amusement as spectators, sitting quiet and still like stars gazing down at a high tower.
Hufflepuff, after their brief commotion, went back to eating hard, their eyes darting back and forth between the three houses and the teachers.
"Any house wishing to win the House Cup should compete on an equal footing." Quinlan did not care how big of a wave her words would make.
She wanted to say it, she felt she ought to say it, and so she said it.
"Other students were barred from participating because they followed the rules, while the trials in the underground chambers seemed tailor-made for those three... Headmaster, are you encouraging students to break the rules?"
"Even if it were an exceptional circumstance, a dangerous intruder sneaked into Hogwarts to steal the Philosopher's Stone—what were you professors doing?"
The professors in their seats were shaken, and Hagrid guiltily dropped his plate onto the floor.
"Miss Quinlan, you must take responsibility for your words." The Headmaster, pinned by the gazes of the professors, replied with understated ease.
Meeting her own Head of House's warning glance, Quinlan pressed on: "I certainly can, and I can accept expulsion if it comes to that. After all, apart from having magic, this place isn't such a great spot anyway."
Shock rippled through the room.
"Miss Granger used the Full Body-Bind Curse on her fellow Gryffindor classmate, and the three of them violated the rule prohibiting entry to the corridor on the fourth floor."
"Deduct ten points from Gryffindor. That's not too many, Professor McGonagall."
McGonagall had participated in setting up the obstacles, and as Head of House, she naturally wanted her own students to win the House Cup.
Yet as a professor of Hogwarts, she bore the responsibility of dereliction of duty.
"...Yes." With her agreement, the scores of the two houses slowly leveled out.
By some absurd twist, Hogwarts had a tie at the end of term.
Someone in Hufflepuff shouted out: "So whose House Cup is this anyway? History doesn't seem to have any record of a tie."
"There was no tie in the past, but we're setting a precedent today."
As soon as she finished speaking, the decorations in the Great Hall split in two, and the green belonging to Slytherin reappeared.
Dolly the Pixie, cloaked in invisibility, tweaked her little pinky finger and vanished once her task was complete.
"Announce the results, Headmaster Dumbledore."
Under everyone's gaze, Dumbledore spoke: "Then let us congratulate this year's winners of the House Cup."
"Gryffindor, and Slytherin."
Sporadic cheers and celebrations echoed through the cavernous Great Hall, mostly coming from the Hufflepuff students.
After the banquet ended, there were still two or three days left before going home. During these few short days, Quinlan was subjected to all sorts of petty tricks.
Her usual spot in the library was occupied by a scrap of paper claiming someone was sitting there, though no one ever showed up until sunset.
A jet of water would suddenly shoot out from somewhere, heading straight for her head.
There were plenty of people in the corridors who "accidentally" bumped into her—all harmless, trivial little tactics.
That was until Perrin in the owlery had his wing feathers clipped and could no longer fly.
"Good evening, the Fat Lady. Dragon dung."
"Password correct."
The Gryffindor students were gathered in the common room, and Percy was briefing them on reminders for going home.
Hearing the door open, he looked over in puzzlement: hadn't roll call been taken before they started? No one was missing.
He was the first to catch sight of Vespera.
"Vespera? What are you doing here, and how did you find out our password?"
Harry and the other two were glared at fiercely by certain students, who suspected they had leaked it.
The three culprits themselves looked equally baffled.
Carrying her owl cage, Quinlan walked up to Percy and released Perrin.
She stroked his feathers with a gentle touch, a smile still lingering at the corners of her mouth. "Who did it?" Most of the people present had no idea what was going on.
"I'll give you three chances."
"Get out here."
Almost instantly, a wand flared with light, and the sofa right next to a certain student exploded into pieces.
"One."