Hogwarts' Golden Glory

In the foyer, a beam of light spread diagonally, bathing the entire floor in a warm hue. But no one looked at the light.

All eyes were fixed on the doorway, like a group of people waiting for something they knew was coming, but couldn't help but take a second look when it finally arrived.

Kane walked in, which surprised no one.

The person next to him was not surprising.

Fleur Delacour walked shoulder to shoulder with him, their pace as if they had practiced it many times.

She wore a silver-white coat, the style and cut of which perfectly matched her light-colored long skirt. She was covered by a very thin layer of light, as if she were standing in a morning mist that had not yet completely dissipated.

Her hair was light gold, and it would glow under the candlelight, as if each strand of hair contained a tiny glimmer of light. Wherever she walked, the color of the candlelight would naturally warm up a little. Others might not be able to pinpoint exactly what changed, but they always felt that after she passed by, even the air seemed to have gained a layer of light.

The fact that she's beautiful doesn't need anyone to tell you. Everyone can tell at a glance, just like seeing a painting hanging there; no one needs to specifically tell you that the painting is beautiful.

She stood next to Kane, the distance between them just right—not too far to seem distant, nor too close to seem contrived.

Kane wore a dark, well-tailored robe with clean-cut shoulders and a narrow, dark gray trim along the inside of the collar that only shone briefly at certain angles. His hair gleamed coolly in the candlelight, and his gray eyes looked at people with a measured, unhurried gaze.

When two people stand together, no one looks anywhere else. It's as if someone has placed two things that shouldn't be together on the same plane and then found that they fit together much better than expected.

Someone in the foyer put down their wine glass: "They're such a perfect match."

"They really look good together; no one would find the combination strange."

"They do look good standing together."

The person next to him nodded, seemingly having nothing more to add.

This conversation could have ended there if nothing else had happened.

Hermione walked over from the other side, her steps unhurried, her skirt swaying naturally an inch above her ankles. She stopped to Kane's right, not shifting her position even slightly, as if she had already confirmed the spot in her mind and didn't need to try again when she got there.

The actions that were still in progress in the foyer paused for a moment.

The scene unfolded simultaneously in the candlelight: Kane in the center, dressed in a dark robe; Fleur stood to his left, the edges of her silver coat gleaming softly; Hermione stood to his right, her pale purple skirt shimmering evenly in the candlelight. The distance between the three was roughly the same, as if measured by the same ruler.

The silence lasted for about two beats—a silence like something slowly being spread out, not falling suddenly, but layered upon layer, until the entire foyer floor was covered with a thin, even layer of silence.

Then someone spoke up first. "Wait a minute, so he brought two?"

"The one on the left is Furong, and the one on the right is Granger... Isn't that Granger?"

"Yes, that's Granger. She let her hair down tonight."

"So he's got one on the left and one on the right? He brought two people in at the same time?"

"It seems so."

"But isn't that against the rules? The Goblet of Fire doesn't prohibit one person from inviting two dance partners."

"This rule is indeed not in the regulations."

"So what does he plan to do tonight?"

"It's probably one person jumping halfway, then switching to another."

"Then he needs to talk to the band in advance."

"It's possible that it wasn't agreed upon beforehand, and he just planned to improvise on the spot."

Fred and George leaned against the pillar, their gazes fixed on that spot. They exchanged a few words, neither of them drinking what they were holding. "He brought both," Fred said.

"I brought two. One on the left and one on the right."

"So he's going to jump with the two of them?"

"We can only choose one opening dance, but dancing half of it first and then changing dancers is barely enough."

"What if he wants to jump at the same time?"

"Then we need to find a piece of music specifically written for the three of them."

Do you think he's looked for someone?

"I think he's looked for someone."

Ron stood by the wall, holding nothing.

He paused for a moment when he saw Hermione walk by: "Hermione and Fleur are both his dance partners?"

"So she was with him tonight?"

"And hibiscus."

"They were both with him, one on his left and one on his right."

"Was Hermione's seat for tonight reserved in advance?"

"It seems so; she didn't need anyone to tell her where to stand when she walked up to him."

Neville, standing at the edge of the Hufflepuff area, paused when he saw the scene: "He did bring two dance partners. And they were both standing next to him, and no one was adjusting their positions, as if they had been pre-set."

In the foyer, the sounds were slowly rising, but even after rising, they were still accompanied by a low aftershock.

Some people said, "If I had known earlier that it could be done this way, I would have asked a couple more people to try it. Anyway, the rules don't say you can only bring one dance partner." There was a joking element in their tone, but the proportion was indeed not high.

Someone chimed in, "Even if you ask, they might not agree at the same time; it depends on whether the other party is willing."

"But he really did it. And the two girls seemed very happy!"

In the teachers' area of ​​the dance.

Dumbledore sat in the center, his hands clasped on the table, his blue eyes peering through his half-moon spectacles toward the entrance hall.

He looked for a while, and his lips twitched slightly, as if he had seen an answer he had been guessing for a while but hadn't planned to reveal beforehand.

Then he picked up the cup in front of him, took a sip, put it down, and said nothing.

Professor McGonagall, sitting to his left, raised her eyebrows less than a millimeter when she saw the scene, then lowered them back to their original position.

Two dance partners? The rules don't seem to say it's not allowed?

Snape's gaze lingered in the direction of the foyer for about three seconds.

His gaze swept from left to right, over Hermione, Kane, and Fleur, as if confirming the location of each person, before returning to the uncut steak in front of him, the curve of his lips remaining unchanged.

This child is completely different from him.

Professor Flitwick sat next to Snape. He was short, and his gaze could just pass through the edge of the table to see the three people.

His eyes widened slightly, and he tilted his head to the side, as if to confirm whether what he was seeing was what he understood to be true.

Hagrid sat at the far end of the teachers' table. He was a large man, holding a glass of butterbeer bigger than his head. When he saw the three people standing there, he stopped holding the glass.

He tilted his head to look at it, then looked again, and grinned: "The three of them standing together look quite like a painting."