Chapter 74 - End of the first year

After calming Hagrid and assuring him, that everything was alright and that in the end, everything worked out, the half-giant left, but not before apologizing again, telling us that he will never touch alcohol again. Once Hagrid was nowhere to be seen, Thomas, James, Michael, and Adam continued walking towards the Great Hall.

"Can you believe he blamed himself so much?" Michael said, still visibly affected by Hagrid's emotional outburst. "He's such a kind soul, and all he ever wanted was to help us. It's not fair that he's burdened with this guilt."

"I agree," Thomas replied. "But I'm glad we were able to reassure him."

And soon the boys left their side of the castle, however, the moment they walk down the stairs, James, scoffed at the sight of the green and silver decorations that adorned the castle, almost as if the Slytherins wanted everyone to know and get jealous that they had won their seventh consecutive House Cup.

"Those damned snakes," James grumbled, rolling his eyes. "Seven years in a row! It's getting ridiculous."

Thomas chuckled, understanding James' frustration. "Well, they certainly know how to win, I'll give them that. But hey, we shouldn't let it ruin our day since well, they don't get anything for it."

Michael grinned, teasingly nudging James. "Come on, James, give them some credit. They do have some talented witches in their house."

James rolled his eyes. "Talented, cunning, and ruthless," he muttered. "But still, seven years in a row? It's getting old, mate. Bloody hell if not for us getting caught by McGonagall, our house would have owned the cup."

Adam joined the conversation, seeing as his friend was about to start some kind of war if they let him alone. "Well, we'll just have to make sure Ravenclaw takes the cup next year. We can't let those snakes have all the glory, right?"

James grinned in response. "You're damn right, mate! We'll show them what true Ravenclaw determination looks like."

When they entered the Great Hall and the four of them made their way towards the Ravenclaw table and as they approached the table, their fellow housemates turned their attention towards them. Their chatter gradually subsided, and all eyes fell upon Thomas. Suddenly, a familiar voice called out his name in surprise.

"Thomas!"

It was Emily, Matthew's girlfriend and someone whom Thomas regarded as an older sister figure. She leaped over the table and rushed towards him, enveloping him in a tight embrace. The Ravenclaw table erupted into cheers and applause, relieved to see their young seeker alive and well.

The rest of the Great Hall fell silent, as their attention was captured by the unexpected cheers that came from the surprisingly loud Ravenclaws. The other houses' students looked over quite shocked to see the Ravenclaw seeker that they had heard was injured, while the teachers, save for Dumbledore and Flitwick, hadn't expected such a reaction from the quietest house this school had.

Amidst the commotion, Emily released Thomas from the hug but kept her hands on his shoulders, as she looked at him, worried that she might have hurt him. "Oh, Thomas, we were so worried about you! We heard rumors about what happened, and it was dreadful. But seeing you here, safe and sound... I can't tell you how relieved I am."

Thomas smiled gratefully at Emily, touched by her genuine care and concern. "Thank you, Emily. I'm fine, really. It was tough, but I'm back now."

The Ravenclaw table erupted into cheers once again and Thomas' face went beet red in embarrassment as he sit down beside Matthew together with his friends, though he couldn't help but glance over at the Gryffindor table. His eyes met those of Harry and Hermione, who were looking back at him with happiness to see him again and Thomas could see that both were relieved to see him back at Hogwarts. A small smile tugged at the corners of Thomas' lips as he nodded subtly at his friends, however, his attention was quickly diverted as he noticed Ron, enthusiastically indulging in a mountain of food. Ron's face was practically buried in his plate. Thomas couldn't help but chuckle, finding the fact that their friend was more focused on his food than what just happened at the Ravenclaw table.

Suddenly Dumbledore rose from his seat making everyone stop talking or eating and looking over at the headmaster.

"Another year gone!" Dumbledore said cheerfully. "And I must trouble you with an old man's wheezing waffle before we sink our teeth into our delicious feast. What a year it has been! Hopefully, your heads are all a little fuller than they were … you have the whole summer ahead to get them nice and empty before next year starts …"

"Now, as I understand it, the House Cup here needs awarding and the points stand thus: in fourth place, Ravenclaw, with three hundred, in third, Gryffindor, with three hundred and twenty-two, in second Hufflepuff have four hundred and twenty-six and in the first place, Slytherin with four hundred and seventy-two points."

A storm of cheering and stamping broke out from the Slytherin table. And Thomas, Harry, and their friends could see Draco Malfoy banging his goblet on the table celebrating their "hard" earned victory.

"Yes, yes, well done, Slytherin," said Dumbledore. "However, due to a popular demand from the Slytherin house a year or so ago, recent events must be taken into account."

The room went very still. The Slytherins' smiles faded a little, as most of the older students remembered that this way they cheated their way to first place. And sadly for them, someone was going to do the same thing now.

"Ahem," said Dumbledore. "I have a few last-minute points to dish out. Let me see. Yes … First, to Mr. Ronald Weasley …"

Ron went purple in the face making him look like a radish with a bad sunburn.

"… for the best-played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in many years, I award Gryffindor house fifty points."

Gryffindor cheers nearly raised the bewitched ceiling, the stars overhead seemed to quiver. Percy could be heard telling the other Prefects, "My brother, you know! My youngest brother! Got past McGonagall's giant chess set!"

"Second, to Mr. James O'Sullivan and Mr. Michael McKenzie," Dumbledore continued, "For their unwavering support and courage during the intense game of chess that led to Mr. Ronald Wesley's victory, I award Ravenclaw house fifty points each."

The announcement of James and Michael's accolades echoed through the Great Hall, causing an eruption of joyous cheers and applause from the Ravenclaw table. Thomas and Adam couldn't help but join in the celebration, clapping and cheering alongside their fellow Ravenclaws.

At last, there was silence again.

"Third, to Miss Hermione Granger and Mr. Adam Wood … for the use of cool logic in the face of danger, I award Gryffindor and Ravenclaw house fifty points."

Hermione buried her face in her arms and Harry strongly suspected she had burst into tears. Meanwhile, Thomas could only smile at his friend, knowing very well just how much it hurt Hermione to be the reason behind the lost points of her house, and now, both the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws were catching up with the other two houses.

"Forth, to Mr. Harry Potter …" said Dumbledore. The room went deadly quiet. "… for pure nerve and outstanding courage, I award Gryffindor house sixty points."

The din was deafening. Those who could add up while yelling themselves hoarse knew that Gryffindor now had four hundred and eighty points, and took the lead, leaving the Slytherin behind with just eight points more than them. However, the headmaster didn't seem to be done with his speech as he smile towards the Ravenclaw's table.

"And now," Dumbledore's voice carried across the silence, "for an act of extraordinary courage and an unwavering desire to protect his friends in the face of mortal danger, not to mention even though he kept getting juries that would have killed even the best Auror... I award Mr. Thomas Grayson eighty points."

Time seemed to freeze as those words sank in. The Great Hall erupted into gasps, murmurs, and stunned whispers as the eyes of all of the students widened in disbelief as they turned their gaze towards Thomas. At the same time, Thomas felt his heart skip a beat, as he didn't expect the headmaster to actually mention what he had done to protect the stone and Harry.

Someone standing outside the Great Hall might well have thought some sort of explosion had taken place, so loud was the noise that erupted from the Ravenclaw table. James, Adam, Michael, Matthew, and all of the boys in the Quidditch team stood up to yell and cheer as Thomas was being launched into the air.

"Which means," Dumbledore called over the storm of applause, for even Gryffindor and Hufflepuff were celebrating the downfall of Slytherin, "we need a little change of decoration."

He clapped his hands. In an instant, the green hangings became bronze and the silver became blue, the majestic Slytherin serpent vanished, replaced by a soaring Ravenclaw eagle. Snape was shaking Professor Flitwick's hand, a rare genuine smile gracing his face. Thomas caught Snape's eye and knew instantly that his favorite professor was somewhat proud of him. It warmed Thomas's heart, and he returned the smile with gratitude.

As the Great Hall transformed with the Ravenclaw colors, almost everyone was happy that for once in seven years another house won the cup. The Ravenclaw students erupted into cheers, their faces beaming with joy and excitement. Thomas couldn't help but feel happy for his house, and even though he knew that life wouldn't become easier in the coming years, Thomas allowed himself to savor the moment. It was a night of celebration, a night to bask in the glory of victory. What could be better than winning at Quidditch, discovering new knowledge, making new friends, and overcoming the obstacles that came their way?

The next day, Thomas and his friends had almost forgotten that the exam results were still to come, but come they did. To their great surprise, both Harry and Ron passed with somewhat good marks, Hermione, of course, came top of the year which surprised everyone, even her since they would have thought that Thomas would take that place. Even Neville scraped through, his good Herbology mark making up for his abysmal Potions one. James, while not being anywhere near the top twenty still passed with better grades than Harry and Ron. Adam for one, took the tenth place, but to everyone surprise, Thomas got the third place while Michael got the second. Now, to his friends, this came as a shock, considering that amongst them, Thomas was the one who worked the hardest, even more than Hermione in some matters, but he hates with passion the boring history class which is why his score was lower than his two friends. At the same time, Ron and Harry had hoped that Goyle, who was almost as stupid as he was mean, might be thrown out, but he had passed, too. It was a shame, but as Ron said, you couldn't have everything in life.

And suddenly, their wardrobes were empty, their trunks were packed, Neville's toad was found lurking in a corner of the toilets, and notes were handed out to all students, warning them not to use magic over the holidays ('I always hope they'll forget to give us these,' said Fred Weasley sadly). Thought this rule might not mean much to someone that wasn't exactly bound by the rules of the Wizardly World due to his relationship with other factions.

After leaving the castle, Hagrid was there to take them down to the fleet of boats that sailed across the lake, and after that, they boarded the Hogwarts Express.

As the Hogwarts Express chugged along the tracks, Thomas and his friends found themselves crammed into one compartment. They talked about the past year, sharing stories of their adventures, successes, and even their failures.

They laughed at the pranks James and the twins had pulled, the spells they had learned and mastered, and whatever each of them found interesting.

Though everything has to end, and as the train neared the station, their laughter subsided, and a bittersweet feeling settled over them. They knew it was time to bid farewell, for now, to return to their respective families and homes.

With hugs and well wishes, they stepped off the train, and down to the platform bustling with students and families alike. Thomas and his friends stood together for a moment before they started dispersing to find their own families, but not before promising to keep in touch and visit each other during the summer break.

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