The Thestral-drawn carriage sped through the vast expanse of clouds, quickly leaving the village buildings far below. Perhaps because the creatures knew the way, the return journey was much faster than their trip there, and soon they were passing beyond the area where Devon was located.
"Are you going back to Hogwarts now?" Kyle suddenly asked as they approached London.
"What do you mean?" Kanna asked, glancing at him. "Aren't you going back?"
"I have some business in Diagon Alley," Kyle said.
"Right now?" Kanna frowned.
"Yes, right now," Kyle replied, pausing for a moment as if considering something.
If they returned to Hogwarts first, the detour would take too long, making it too late to visit Diagon Alley. But now that they were already near London, they could stop by without much trouble.
Still, Kyle wasn't entirely comfortable with the idea of Kanna traveling back to the wizarding school alone. The Thestral-drawn carriage was exceptionally rare, regarded as one of the finest magical means of transportation. With Death Eaters becoming increasingly brazen, he worried it might draw unwanted attention.
"If you don't have anything else to do…" Kyle hesitated before suggesting, "Why don't you come with me? We can grab lunch in London."
"Sure, of course," Kanna replied with a smile, agreeing without hesitation.
"Then it's settled."
Kyle stepped outside the carriage and whispered a few words to the Thestral. The creature, which had been flying toward Hogwarts, abruptly changed direction and set course for London.
"Wait…" Kanna suddenly thought of something. "There are a lot of people in London. What if a Muggle sees the carriage?"
"Don't worry," Kyle reassured her. "That's another advantage of a Thestral-drawn carriage. Muggles can't see these magical creatures—just like they can't see Dementors. As for the carriage, that's even simpler."
He took out his wand and tapped it against the carriage. Instantly, a shimmering veil spread over it, distorting its outline.
"A concealment charm. It's a bit basic, but in London, it's more than enough."
The carriage drifted through the gray clouds over the city, reaching its destination in less than half an hour. They landed in a square that looked a bit dated.
"Get ready," Kyle told Kanna. "This place is also protected by the Fidelius Charm."
Kanna nodded, looking slightly nervous.
As the carriage came to a stop, before either of them could step down, an indifferent voice called out from outside.
"Who's there? Show yourselves. No wands."
The voice sounded familiar.
"Don't worry, Charlie, it's me."
Kyle stuck his hand out of the carriage first to show he wasn't holding a wand, then leaned forward so they could see him properly.
"Kyle?" Charlie said in surprise. He hurried over but kept his wand at the ready.
"I should've known. This carriage is straight from Hogwarts. They haven't changed it in decades."
"Then why did you point your wand at us?" Kyle asked.
"I had to—it's my job. Gotta be sure," Charlie said with a grin. "But there's still one more question: where are you headed?"
"12 Grimmauld Place," Kyle answered. "That should be proof enough that I'm not someone under Polyjuice Potion."
"The Death Eaters don't know that address," Charlie said, finally lowering his wand before pulling Kyle into a brief hug.
At that moment, Kanna stepped out of the carriage.
Charlie froze for a moment before narrowing his eyes. He didn't say anything, but the look he shot at Kyle was unmistakably teasing.
"We just happened to be passing by," Kyle said smoothly, pretending not to notice Charlie's expression. Then, getting straight to the point, he asked, "Are Fred and George here?"
"They got back about half an hour ago," Charlie confirmed, though he hesitated slightly before pulling Kyle aside and lowering his voice.
"Not to be a spoilsport, Kyle, but this is the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. Does Headmaster Dumbledore know you've brought this girl here?"
"I haven't had a chance to tell him yet," Kyle admitted, "but I can assure you, Kanna is on our side."
Dumbledore had already made his stance clear when he approved Kanna's visit to Nicolas's manor. Even if she hadn't officially joined the Order, her connection with Snape granted her the right to be in the know.
"Okay, I have no doubt about that," Charlie agreed after only a moment's hesitation.
"Come with me," he said, waving to Kanna before taking the lead. "Mum will be so happy to see you."
To Kanna's shock, a house suddenly appeared out of thin air, forcing the buildings on either side, numbered 11 and 13, to shift aside as if making room for it.
"Come on, hurry up," Charlie urged, climbing the stone steps and pushing open the door. Without hesitation, he called out inside, "Mum, look who's here!"
"Keep your voice down, Charlie!" Mrs. Weasley emerged from one of the rooms, frowning. "Shouldn't you be outside on guard duty? What are you doing back here? It's still a while before lunch."
"No, Mum, it's Kyle," Charlie explained.
"Kyle?" Mrs. Weasley looked momentarily surprised before her eyes flicked past Charlie, searching.
"Oh, Kyle, dear, what a surprise."
She quickly walked over, glancing at Charlie first, and after receiving a confirming nod, immediately pulled Kyle into a warm hug.
"What are you doing here at this time of year?" she asked. "I asked Dumbledore before, and he said you had other things to do over the holidays and couldn't come."
"That's right. We were on our way back to Hogwarts and happened to be in London, so we thought we'd stop by," Kyle said.
"We?" Mrs. Weasley's gaze shifted past him, finally noticing the girl standing behind him.
To be honest… for a moment, she was even more excited to see Kanna than Kyle.
"This… I suppose you must be Kanna. Kyle has mentioned you quite a bit."
"Yes." Kanna turned her head slightly toward Kyle, who was acting as though nothing unusual was happening, then looked back at Mrs. Weasley. "Kanna Prince."
"Welcome, dear," Mrs. Weasley said warmly, pulling her into a hug. "I'm so glad to have someone new here."
"New?" Kanna was slightly puzzled.
Truthfully, she still hadn't figured out what was going on or where exactly she was.
The Weasley family? No, that couldn't be it. She distinctly remembered that the Weasleys, Kyle, and Cedric all lived in St. Catchpole Village.
Seemingly reading her thoughts, Mrs. Weasley asked, "My dear, didn't Kyle tell you where this was?"
Kanna shook her head.
Mrs. Weasley immediately shot Kyle a disapproving look, but before she could explain, two excited voices interrupted from behind her.
"Kanna…!"
"What are you doing here?!"
Fred and George came bounding into the hallway, nearly knocking Ron over as he stepped out to investigate the commotion.
"You know each other too?" Mrs. Weasley asked in surprise.
"Mum, we've all known each other for six years," Fred said quickly. "And it's not just us—Dad, Charlie, and Bill know her too."
He was referring to the last Quidditch World Cup when Kanna had spent time with them. Mrs. Weasley, however, hadn't attended, so she had never met her.
"She's Kanna, the one we were telling you about," George added eagerly. "And one of our best friends…"
"But she and Kyle obviously have a better relationship," Fred finished.
The twins exchanged knowing looks before their expressions twisted into identical mischievous grins—ones so exaggeratedly suggestive that even Mrs. Weasley couldn't stand to witness them.
Without hesitation, she twisted their ears and shoved them back toward the other room.
"Sorry, dear, please ignore those two impure-minded troublemakers," Mrs. Weasley said calmly, turning back to Kanna as if nothing had happened. "Now, where were we? Oh, yes—the Order of the Phoenix."
"Order of the Phoenix?" Kanna blinked.
"That's right," Mrs. Weasley confirmed. "It's an organization Dumbledore set up to fight the Death Eaters, and this is its headquarters."
She clapped her hands lightly, as if dismissing the matter. "Alright, enough standing around in the doorway. Come with me—I've made beef stew for lunch. It'll be ready in a little while."
Then she turned back to Charlie. "Charlie, you're still on duty. Bill will come and relieve you at lunchtime."
"Okay, Mum."
Charlie, who had been about to step inside, let out an exasperated sigh but obeyed, stepping back out and closing the door behind him.
"This way, dear," Mrs. Weasley said, leading Kanna and Kyle toward the kitchen.
As they moved through the house, Kyle suddenly became aware of several heads peeking out from the direction of the stairs.
From top to bottom, he spotted Harry, Hermione, Ginny… and, standing right next to them, Ron.
"Why are you still here?" Kyle asked, a little puzzled. "Today is the last day of the holiday—don't you need to take the train to school?"
The Hogwarts Express had departed early in the morning, so they shouldn't still be here under normal circumstances.
"We were," Harry explained, "but Mr. Weasley said that Professor Dumbledore arranged a one-time Floo Network connection, so we'll be able to return to school in just a second."
"I see, that's quite convenient," Kyle said.
"Yes," Harry nodded. "But Kyle, why are you here, and at this time of day?"
"I just said, I was passing by," Kyle replied.
His words seemed to satisfy Mrs. Weasley and Harry, but Fred and George weren't so easily fooled.
As Mrs. Weasley led Kanna into the dining room, the twins moved in unison, each grabbing one of Kyle's arms and dragging him into another room.
"Fess up…"
"What the hell do you want?"
Fred and George flanked Kyle, one on either side.
"Don't even think about saying you were just passing by…"
"We're not buying that lame excuse!"
"I wasn't going to say that," Kyle shrugged. "I came here because I wanted to go to Knockturn Alley. Remember what I wrote to you guys earlier?"
"Knockturn Alley?" Fred thought for a moment. "You mean that thing about watching Draco Malfoy?"
"Exactly," Kyle confirmed. "So, what do you think? Did he go to Knockturn Alley during the holidays?"
The Weasley twins' shop wasn't far from the entrance to Knockturn Alley. Even from inside, they had a clear view of the alleyway through their shop window. When Kyle had written to them before, he had mentioned this in passing.
"We're not sure," George admitted, shaking his head. "You know how things are these days—the Ministry has a lot on its plate, and we haven't had time to keep an eye on the shop all the time."
"But we left it to the House-elves," Fred added. "They've got an almost unnatural enthusiasm for their work, so they're the right ones to keep watch."
"Fair enough," Kyle said, patting both of them on the shoulder. "So why am I even telling you this?"
With that, he turned to leave the room.
"Hey, wait!"
Fred quickly blocked the doorway.
"We were going to ask you about this this afternoon and then write to you," he explained.
"We didn't think you'd come back so soon," George added.
"After all, we did help a little, so at least tell us what your plan is."
The twins stared at Kyle, making it clear that they had no intention of letting him leave without an answer.
They were more than curious as to why Kyle suddenly wanted to keep an eye on Draco Malfoy.
"Tell us quickly—are you going to do something to the Malfoys?" Fred asked. "If so, count us in."
"We've been waiting for this day for a long time," George said eagerly.
The Weasley family's feud with the Malfoys was practically legendary in the wizarding world. Mr. Weasley and Lucius Malfoy had even come to blows in Flourish and Blotts, an incident that had been splashed across The Daily Prophet for days.
A few years ago, Ron had been forced to fly a car to school because the platform to the Hogwarts Express had been inexplicably sealed off. Lucius Malfoy had seized on the incident and lobbied against the Weasleys, nearly costing Mr. Weasley his job.
And that was just one of many incidents. The rivalry between the two families had never ceased—it had continued to this day.
Now, with an opportunity to kick the Malfoys while they were down, the twins weren't about to let it slip away.
Kyle knew exactly what they were thinking.
"Sorry, you're overthinking it," Kyle said. "This time, it's just about Draco Malfoy."
"That's fine, one person is enough," Fred said. "Just tell us."
"Yeah," George nodded. "You'll be heading back to school soon and preparing for the N.E.W.T. exams, so you won't have much time to deal with things outside of school."
"Maybe we can help you."
Kyle hesitated for a moment. "You really want to know?"
"Mm-hmm."
"Yes!"
Both of their heads bobbed eagerly.
"Alright," Kyle said. "The truth is, I found out that Draco Malfoy is planning a way to get Death Eaters into Hogwarts."
The room fell silent.
A second later.
"You don't have to tell us if you don't want to," Fred scoffed. "But why make up such a ridiculous story just to lie to us?"
"Yeah, and if you are going to make something up, could you at least put a little effort into it?" George added disdainfully. "A Malfoy sneaking Death Eaters into Hogwarts?"
"Even if you told this to Ron, he wouldn't believe it."
The two of them looked at Kyle again, clearly disappointed in what they saw as his halfhearted attempt at deception.
But Kyle remained perfectly calm.
"A Malfoy alone couldn't do it," he said. "But what if I help him?"
"What are you going to help him with?" George froze for a moment before tentatively asking, "You mean transporting Death Eaters into Hogwarts?"
"Yes," Kyle replied. "Is there a problem?"
The first thing that crossed Fred and George's minds was that Kyle had been replaced with Polyjuice Potion.
But they quickly dismissed the thought—Charlie had been guarding the entrance, and he wouldn't make such a basic mistake.
Besides, Kyle's expression and tone weren't those of someone joking.
Which meant… he was serious.
The realization hit them all at once.
The two of them immediately lit up with excitement, closing in on Kyle and practically forcing him onto a stool. One began kneading his shoulders, while the other started pounding his legs, putting on their most eager expressions.
"Quick, tell us everything—"
"We've resented Hogwarts for so long for banning our joke products—"
"This is literally destroying our dreams—"
"A complete and utter rejection of everything we stand for—"
"We have been at war with this school rule!"
The twins were so fired up that it felt as though, if Kyle gave the word, they would personally escort the Death Eaters into the school just to overthrow Dumbledore and establish a new Hogwarts.
"You two are so brave… does Mrs. Weasley know?" Kyle asked flatly.
"Of course not."
"Mum would kill us," Fred shrugged.
"Alright then, come on—tell us your plan."
"It's not my plan—it's Malfoy's," Kyle said, no longer bothering to hide it. "He's planning to use the Vanishing Cabinet to create a new secret passage into Hogwarts."
"Vanishing Cabinet?" Fred rubbed his chin. "You're talking about the kind that connects two different places, right?"
"Other than that, is there anything else that can be used to artificially create a secret passage leading outside the school?" Kyle asked.
"Impossible," George frowned. "Aren't the Vanishing Cabinets long gone?"
"I read about them in a book on alchemy once," he continued. "It said that sixty years ago, someone used a Vanishing Cabinet to infiltrate the International Confederation of Wizards and assassinate a key witness. After that, they were all destroyed."
"Exactly," Fred nodded. "And the alchemists who were capable of making them back then were forced to sign magical contracts—binding oaths to never create them again, let alone pass on the knowledge of how to make them."
"Even the Malfoy family wouldn't have the means to get their hands on something like that," George added.
"That's true," Kyle agreed. "But coincidentally, one Vanishing Cabinet was left behind at Hogwarts."
Fred's expression darkened. "Malfoy found it?" He straightened up immediately. "No, I have to tell Dad."
"Relax," Kyle stopped him. "Malfoy didn't find it. I did."
Fred and George froze in place.
Before they could even breathe a sigh of relief, Kyle continued, "And I already gave it to Malfoy."