Following the principle of proximity, Quinlan thanked Zabini, George, and the others.
Even after being rejected, Zabini smiled with effortless grace, though a flash of humorless calculation swept across the corner of his eye as he scanned the compartment. There were still many others, restless and scheming in the shadows, far beyond just them.
How annoying.
George and Fred seemed to be in high spirits. Ron was also in the compartment; the Weasleys had won big.
The atmosphere among the four of them was quite subdued, as none of them knew quite what to say.
Blame Vespera? Of course not. From the House Cup to the common room, everything she had said was entirely correct.
The three boys had genuinely broken the rules and even hurt Neville. And in the end, they had still won the House Cup.
As for Rederson, he entirely deserved it. Harry figured that if anyone were to clip Hedwig's feathers, he would fight them to the death too.
Eventually, it was Ron who broke the silence. "Vespera, you... what are your plans for the holidays?"
"Hmm... help the matron raise a bit more sponsorship, I suppose."
"The matron?" the three of them asked in unison, looking puzzled.
Vespera explained, "Well, I live at Wool's Orphanage in London. The orphanage should be getting another renovation soon. If you'd like, you can come visit."
And if they happened to make a generous sponsorship while they were at it, that would be even better.
The three boys hadn't expected her to live in an orphanage, and they lowered their heads in a wave of guilt and self-reproach. Ron offered an awkward smile, thinking his big mouth deserved to be stuffed with Merlin's drool-rag.
"Sorry..."
"It's fine. I really like life at the orphanage. It's nothing to be ashamed of. London has plenty of abandoned children, and I'm one of the lucky ones."
Harry felt a deeper pang of sadness. In a way, he was an abandoned child too—albeit passively.
"I'm serious, if you want to, you can come visit. Conditions at our orphanage are very good—best in London, in my opinion."
"Yeah, I'll definitely go."
"Me too."
"Me too."
Then the four of them went back to eating, drinking, and sleeping soundly.
None of them had slept very well the night before.
Vespera had made several trips to the library to return and borrow books, while Hermione and the others had been preoccupied by the bloodshed the previous night.
At the familiar King's Cross Station in London, the young wizards said their goodbyes and rushed toward their parents.
Vespera had plenty of acquaintances and even more casual contacts. Yet they all came over to bid her farewell—a scattered crowd of some thirty people.
Draco, Nott, Zabini, the Weasleys, Ravenclaw classmates, a few Hufflepuffs, and even a handful of Gryffindors were secretly waving at her.
After the commotion subsided, only Harry and she were left—two kids with no one to pick them up.
"Aren't you going home?" Vespera asked, pushing a pile of luggage.
"I don't really want to go back to Uncle Vernon's."
"Oh."
It wasn't the answer she had expected, but it made a certain kind of sense. Harry continued, "Can I come with you?"
Vespera agreed. The orphanage had plenty of beds, so an extra Harry was no big deal.
"Alright, but you should write a letter to your uncle first. Even if you don't want to, it's necessary."
A moment later, Hedwig flew off into the distance with a letter in her beak, while Perrin flapped his wings in envy.
The two children exited the station, hailed a taxi, and arrived at the orphanage in no time.
"Pela! Pela's back!"
A boy squatting by the courtyard gates spotted the taxi from afar and ran inside to spread the news.
By the time she stepped out of the car, the children swarmed out in a flurry, and there were several unfamiliar new faces in the crowd.
"Oh, you're finally back. Just how slow is that train of yours? The food is about to get cold," the matron said, walking out behind them with a feigned complaint.
"Lads and lasses, give your older sister a hand with the luggage. And this young gentleman is..."
"He's my classmate, coming over for the holidays."
"Hello, Matron. My name is Harry, Harry Potter." Harry felt a bit shy, but his eyes shimmered with something resembling envy.
"Welcome, Mr. Potter."
The children grabbed the luggage, some taking one bag, others sharing two, and excitedly carried everything inside while chattering away. "Welcome, welcome! Welcome, welcome!"
"Pela, Pela, I learned so much new knowledge at church this year. I'll tell you all about it later..."
"Brother Harry, have a candy. Sister Pela, you have one too." It was a child Pela didn't recognize.
She affectionately stroked the little girl's hair. "Thank you. Hello there, what's your name?" Harry took the candy, caught between pleasant surprise and mild panic.
"Tasha. Tasha Early."
At dinner, amidst the children's lively competing accounts, Vespera learned about all the changes the orphanage had undergone while she was away.
Using the sponsorship Quinlan had provided at the start of the term, the matron had completely overhauled the orphanage's facilities.
Two months later, she ran for election and became the head of the Women and Children's Protection Committee for that district.
Now, Wool's Orphanage had officially been renamed "Wool's Welfare Home."
Thanks to years of tireless effort by her and Father Solway, the government had finally agreed to let the welfare home partner with the church, raising funds from society to open a school for orphans of appropriate age.
Tuition was jointly covered by the church and surrounding welfare homes, while the government recruited teachers from various professional sectors.
Harry walked down the welfare home's hallway of honor. From black-and-white photographs to color pictures, everything about the orphanage had transitioned from monochrome to vibrant color.
From pictures showing not a single smiling face to a welfare home now filled with laughter. "That's fantastic, Perrin! Even if you can't fly, you're still a master at catching mice!"
"Perrin, Perrin! Brilliant, brilliant."
It was hard to imagine the hardships and struggles behind it all. The wall of honor displayed the children's various achievements.
Bread-making competitions, writing contests, fashion design competitions, running races...
Every field, as long as someone participated—win or lose—was meticulously framed and hung on the wall.
The children here did not lack love. To be honest, in a sense, this place could practically be called a school.
Harry was envious, genuinely so.
He suddenly understood why Vespera had said it wouldn't matter even if she dropped out of Hogwarts.
A few days later, while Harry was playing in the dirt with his newly made friends behind the welfare home, Dumbledore arrived to pick up Vespera.
Both of them looked surprised at each other's appearance. "Harry?"
"Headmaster Dumbledore?"