Voldemort, that bastard, really didn't tell the truth.
On the last day of the Easter break, Kael walked out of his room, cursing that corrupting bastard in his heart.
Back when Voldemort was teaching him about Soul Artifacts, he made it sound so great—claiming he would teach Kael exactly what Dumbledore forbade... Complete nonsense, just a scam.
How should I put it, the main steps aren't wrong, but the problem lies in some inconspicuous details in the middle. If you follow his method, the Soul Fragment that is split off will evaporate instantly like a snowflake landing in a fire.
Just like with Tom Riddle in the diary, Voldemort seems to love misleading others this way, flaunting his so-called intelligence.
Good thing Kael was cautious and didn't fall for it.
Kael had originally planned, after the school year ended, to borrow some books from Sirius. Number 12 Grimmauld Place, as the ancestral home of the Black family, preserved a huge collection of books, including quite a few about Dark Magic.
Even that "Advanced Black Magic Unveiled" Dumbledore took from the library, Sirius's house also has a copy.
But now, it didn't seem necessary to go through all that trouble.
Kael took off the Diadem and put it back on Helena's head.
"My mother said she'd leave the Diadem to you, but only after we return to school…" Helena said softly, "She left a portrait of herself in the school, which can carry this part of her memory in place of the Diadem."
"That's fine, you guys can catch up for a while longer…" Kael shook his head.
This time, Kael wasn't just being polite—he really meant it.
The Diadem's effect was too powerful. With his current level of Occlumency, unless necessary, he wouldn't wear the thing again for now.
"Oh, right, my mother also said she can only figure out how to store Magic Power in the Pendant Box after you get it."
"That might have to wait a while longer…" Kael replied.
Just then, Nicolas Flamel, who'd been missing for two weeks, also walked out.
"Looks like you had a good chat," he said.
Judging by his lively movements, this Nicolas was also "fake."
"Nicolas, can I take the Diadem with me?" Kael asked.
"Do you even need to ask?" Nicolas smiled, "The Diadem is yours by right, of course you can take it. Just remember what I told you, Kael: don't rely on it too much."
"I'll remember." Kael nodded seriously. "How's the Philosopher's Stone coming?"
"The process is going smoothly," Nicolas said cheerfully. "Lady Ravenclaw gave me some advice. At this rate, it'll probably take about another half a year to finish gathering all the materials."
"Still that long?" Kael muttered.
"You didn't think making a Philosopher's Stone was going to be easy, did you?"
Nicolas couldn't help but roast him: "This isn't baking bread, you can't just stick it in the oven for half an hour and take it out… When I made my first Philosopher's Stone, it took me nearly three years."
"No, that's not what I meant." Kael explained about the Pendant Box.
"Storing Magic Power?" Nicolas seemed surprised. "Fascinating—so the Pendant Box can be used like that? Maybe that's its true purpose.
"Alright, as long as it helps you, I'll think of something… There's still some Ancient Magic Potion left, maybe Albus can help, if you don't mind him knowing about the Pendant Box."
"That's fine." Kael replied.
Unlike the Diadem, Dumbledore already knew about the Pendant Box, so it wasn't even a question of whether Kael minded.
...
By the time Kael returned to Hogwarts, it was already evening. From a distance, he saw the returning train just arriving at Hogsmeade Station.
The moment Kael opened his trunk, Helena couldn't wait to float away.
Kael had originally wanted to warn her—be careful not to hang around Dumbledore—but before he could say a word, Helena was already gone.
Whatever, Ravenclaw already said she'd leave the Diadem to him. Even if Dumbledore found out, at worst he'd just be curious and borrow it for a while.
Kael waited for a while longer, until small groups of students who'd gotten off the train started appearing at the school entrance. Only then did he head inside.
The Auditorium was brightly lit, preparing for the start-of-term feast.
Kael walked in and immediately saw an Easter egg almost as big as a Fire Dragon near each House's table, each one stuffed with all sorts of sweets: Exploding Custard Creams, Chocolate Toffees, Ice Mice, Cockroach Clusters—it looked like Honeydukes had been emptied out.
"Kael, over here!" Conna waved. "How did everything go with what you had to do?"
"It's all settled," Kael replied. "How was your Easter holiday?"
"Honestly, I wish we didn't have this holiday at all." Conna sighed. "There was so much homework, I even went to Hogsmeade and bought ten rolls of Parchment."
Even Conna was complaining about all the homework—that said it all.
When the feast started, Kael kept feeling it was a bit too quiet around him. He glanced around and asked,
"Where are Mikel and Ryan? Haven't seen them."
"They're probably still in the library," Cedric said. "I saw them there every day during the holiday."
"No way. They're reading books?"
"Nah, they're probably doing homework." Cedric shrugged. "That's fifth year for you—so much Easter homework you can't finish it. When I left the library this afternoon, I saw them flipping through 'Powerful Potion.' They were probably working on Potion Class assignments."
"They're only now working on Potions homework?" Kael shook his head. "If I were them, I'd start with Potions, just so Snape wouldn't get a reason to pick on me…"
Before he even finished, Kael suddenly realized something and froze mid-sentence, the Yorkshire pudding dangling in midair in his hand.
"What's up?" Conna asked, confused.
"I think… I haven't done my homework either," Kael said gloomily.
He'd been listening to opera at the Flamel Manor, studying Magic Text, then learning about Soul Artifacts with Ravenclaw—he'd completely forgotten about his homework.
"So what?" Conna didn't care at all. "Didn't you say Professor Dumbledore excused most of your homework?"
"He only excused most courses, not Potions." Kael sneaked a glance at the staff table. "So, uh, do we have a lot of Potions homework?"
"I have no idea." Conna shook her head. "I haven't done Potions homework in ages."
...