"Link! Wait for me!"
Cedric caught up to Link.
Link wasn't surprised at all to see him.
He gestured for Cedric not to speak in the crowded public carriage and led him straight into the Prefects' carriage tea room.
"Sit down, Cedric. Don't rush. Have some black tea first, your lips are already chapped."
As Link spoke, a porcelain teapot floated over on its own and poured steaming tea for both of them.
Once they were settled, Cedric actually looked less anxious.
He pointed to the next compartment and lowered his voice.
"Talking here won't disturb Emily's rest, will it?"
"Don't worry. Every compartment here is enchanted with a soundproof charm."
Cedric let out a breath of relief, then leaned forward and said quietly, "Then I'll be direct, what exactly are you planning to do?"
"And don't tell me it's just because you don't like Malfoy or because you're standing up for a friend. I know you too well."
"You wouldn't go so far against the Slytherins just to help Hermione Granger. Especially when you just got engaged to the queen of Slytherin herself…"
By the end, Cedric's voice was barely audible. He even glanced warily toward the next compartment, and when he saw no movement, he went on, "Link, I hope you understand."
"As a friend, of course I can support you unconditionally. And I actually did just now. But as the President of the Hogwarts Student Council, I also have to know what exactly you're plotting. That's a responsibility I can't ignore."
Link took a slow sip of hot tea before smiling faintly.
"First of all, I need to thank you. As a friend, you've been flawless. But what I can tell you is this, this year, we're going to have a very special term."
"I knew it. I knew it!" Cedric leaned back, shaking one leg with a half-laugh.
"You're worried the Slytherins will turn to the Dark Lord, right? You're not the only one who's thought of that. Let's be honest, I just wanted to confirm whether you really plan to do something about it. I don't want to see things spiral beyond control either. If your thoughts align with mine, then I'll help you completely."
Link looked a little surprised, as if caught off guard by Cedric's words. He stared at him for a long time before finally saying, "Of course you'll help me. You have to, we're friends, aren't we?"
"I told you, that depends on whether your intentions match mine. If what you're planning harms Hogwarts or the entire British wizarding world, then no matter how close we are, I won't help you do it."
"That's the Cedric I know," Link said with a nod.
"You can rest assured, our goals are basically the same, to resist the Dark Lord, and to save Hogwarts and the wizarding world."
Hearing that, a faint smile returned to Cedric's otherwise serious face.
But before he could speak, Link continued, "However, there's one thing you've misjudged. This term, we won't only face Slytherins defecting and pressure from the Dark Lord. After all, Harry Potter's trial blew up just this summer, our relationship with Fudge is already strained."
As someone from a pure-blood family, Cedric obviously knew all about it. He nodded thoughtfully.
"You mean the Ministry's going to put pressure on Hogwarts? But I don't get it, sure, Hogwarts is under Ministry regulation, but technically it belongs to the Headmaster and all the staff and students. Even if Fudge wants to interfere, what exactly can he do?"
"That's simple," Link said with a faint smile. "For example, by sending in a new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor…"
At that, Cedric's head snapped up, but Link waved a hand to stop him.
"Just wait, Cedric. This coming term will be especially difficult. Changing that will take effort from all of us."
"Then it's all the more reason to suppress Slytherin!" Cedric said sharply. "At a time like this, we have to take harsh measures and eliminate every unstable element! Only then can we unite everyone's strength!"
His face was tight and grim, nothing like his usual warmth and kindness.
Link wasn't surprised.
Cedric was indeed kind, just, and gentle, but he wasn't a pushover.
Think about it, could a pushover manage hundreds of unruly students across a whole house or even a year?
Dumbledore calling Cedric "Hogwarts' most perfect student" was proof enough, he wasn't some saintly fool, but a brilliant, capable person.
When it came time to act decisively, Cedric never hesitated.
Link nodded.
"You're right. But you should know that most of the Slytherins haven't actually defected to the Dark Lord yet. You can't punish them for crimes they haven't committed."
"Everyone makes mistakes, don't they?" Cedric smirked. "If I want to punish them, I'll find a reason. Trust me, I've got plenty of experience in that area. But I get what you mean. Don't worry, I'll be careful. I won't push them into rebellion."
"Good," Link said with satisfaction. "You understand. When it comes to Slytherin, we'll take the 'boil the frog slowly' approach, that's the most deadly way."
"In that case," Cedric said, standing up, "I won't disturb you and Emily any longer. Oh, right, hand me Pansy and Malfoy. I'll turn them over to Professor McGonagall."
"Of course."
Link stood and handed him the sack. He knew perfectly well that Cedric's real goal was to smooth things over with the Slytherins back in the Prefects' carriage, but Link didn't stop him.
As he'd said earlier, boiling the frog slowly was the most lethal tactic.
With the bag in hand, Cedric left with a broad smile.
He'd gotten exactly the answer he wanted today, and he was in a great mood.
But as soon as he stepped out of the carriage, the door to the nearby compartment, the one that had been quiet this whole time, suddenly opened.
"Listening to you two so openly plotting against Slytherin House really doesn't sit right with me," said Emily as she sat down beside Link.
Her expression was gloomy, and there was still a red mark on her cheek, the kind you get from sleeping on it.
Link reached out to smooth her messy hair and said softly, "I understand how you feel. But we'll still need your help for the next phase of our plan."
"Slytherin's culture has already been twisted by Voldemort, you know that as well as I do. A house like that can't go far. If we want to change it, we'll have to be ruthless, even if it hurts."
Emily's eyes grew even sadder.
But in the end, she just nodded silently and leaned into Link's arms.
———
As night fell, the Hogwarts Express slowed and finally came to a stop at the Hogsmeade Station.
Half-awake, Emily was gently woken by Link.
After checking that their magically expanded bags were packed, they left the train through the special passage for the board members' carriage.
"Ahh…"
Emily took a deep breath, a look of relief on her face, which made Link smile even wider.
The cool early autumn breeze, mixed with the damp scent of pine, was heavenly after a full day on the train.
Not far away, students were still disembarking in noisy, chaotic crowds.
Compared to Link and Emily, their journey off the train was much rougher, dragging heavy luggage through the crowd, inching forward painfully.
It was the kind of chaos that could easily turn into fights or panic, the sort of thing prefects were supposed to control.
Naturally, that meant Hermione's job as a new prefect, not Link's.
"First years this way… this way, please…"
A clear, brisk female voice called from a distance. "All first years, please line up here and follow me."
Link and Emily both turned toward the voice, it wasn't Hagrid, who usually handled the first-year guidance.
In the dark, a swaying lantern approached them.
In its light, they could see a group of excited first-years already gathering around.
"Where's Hagrid? Even the first-year orientation's been reassigned?"
Emily frowned, clearly annoyed.
She didn't actually like that big, clumsy oaf, she was just venting her earlier frustration from the train.
"I told you, this term at Hogwarts will be very different," Link said with a smile. "But let's not talk about that, let's get moving."
He took Emily's hand.
She didn't resist, and together they walked down the dark road outside Hogsmeade Station.
There, about a hundred Thestral-drawn carriages stood waiting. Maybe it had just rained, because the Thestrals' coats were still damp.
Some students had arrived ahead of them, and they weren't in any rush to get on board, instead, they were enthusiastically "introducing" the Thestrals to second-years seeing them for the first time.
Of course, their "introductions" sounded more like ghost stories, deliberately making the creatures seem ominous, then laughing at the pale faces of their younger schoolmates.
It was one of Hogwarts' long-standing traditions.
Naturally, Link and Emily didn't bother joining in.
They took a carriage of their own, and after a short wait, followed the convoy straight to Hogwarts Castle.
One carriage after another touched down.
Strangely, Hagrid still wasn't there to collect the Thestrals, nor were there any professors in sight.
Thankfully, Cedric was reliable, he quickly rounded up a few prefects to maintain order and lead everyone toward the castle.
After crossing the long stretch of grass, Link finally followed the crowd up the steps into the entrance hall, and in the echoing shuffle of feet, into the Great Hall.
Compared to everything that had changed on the way, the Great Hall itself was exactly as Link remembered it.
Four long house tables filled the space. The enchanted ceiling above was dark, no stars or moonlight tonight.
Candles floated in midair, illuminating the silvery-white ghosts drifting around the corners, and the excited faces of the students below.
They were chatting loudly, swapping summer stories, calling to friends from other houses, admiring each other's new haircuts and robes.
At the entrance, Link and Emily finally separated, each heading to their own house tables.
The moment Emily sat down, several Slytherin prefects crowded around her.
They didn't have to say what they wanted, both she and Link could easily guess.
But since she'd already agreed to cooperate with Link's plan, Emily only nodded perfunctorily, giving little away.
As for Link, his arrival caused an even bigger stir.
The moment he appeared, the normally well-behaved Hufflepuffs went wild, swarming around him to ask about his confrontation with Malfoy on the train.
Link could only smile helplessly.
He knew they'd already heard the story, probably several different versions of it, each more exaggerated than the last.
They just wanted him to retell it in front of all the Slytherins, to show off a little.
Thankfully, Snape quickly killed their enthusiasm.
He didn't even have to say a word, just a few sharp glares from those dark, oppressive eyes, and every Hufflepuff sat down instantly, as meek as lambs.
That was Snape's authority, or rather, his intimidation.
Thanks to him, Link finally had a chance to look toward the staff table.
And there, his gaze met hers.
A short, plump witch with curly grayish-brown hair, topped with an ugly pink bow that perfectly matched her pink cardigan.
Dolores Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic.
An old acquaintance.
Though Link's interference had prevented her from making much of a scene at Harry's trial, it didn't change the fact that she was Fudge's loyal lackey, sent to Hogwarts to carry out his counterattack.
Interestingly, according to Percy's reports, this Umbridge was smarter than the one from the original story.
At the very least, after seeing Fudge lose to Barty Crouch Sr., her "loyalty" to him didn't seem quite so absolute anymore.
Link and Umbridge held each other's gaze for a long moment.
Finally, she gave him a nod, and an oily, nauseatingly sweet smile.
At that very moment, the great doors opened again.
Professor McGonagall led a group of wide-eyed, frightened first-years into the hall.
The Sorting Ceremony was about to begin.