Hogwarts' Golden Glory

Karkaroff sat in a chair next to the Durmstrang area, a shadow in his eyes.

These young people are far too flamboyant.

He remarked, "The students at Hogwarts and Beauxbatons are much more open than those at our school."

Moody sat on the edge of the teachers' section, his prosthetic eye darting around.

"If you're envious, just say so. No need for sarcastic remarks!"

Seeing Moody standing nearby, Karkaroff snorted coldly.

Mrs. Maxime sat on the edge of the Beauxbatons area, very close to Hagrid. She was staring at Hagrid, seemingly pondering how to have a close conversation with him later.

The band naturally switched rhythms as the first song was about to end.

The last note of the intro circled the wall before falling into a new beat, slower than before, as if someone had slowed down the breathing rhythm of the entire room by half a beat.

Light streamed down from the ceiling, slowly spreading along the edges in all directions, then was absorbed and reflected by the moving figures in the dance floor, forming a flowing, dark golden halo.

The crowd had already begun to move from the edge of the foyer toward the center; some were reaching out to take their partners' hands, some were adjusting their steps, and some were trying to align their distance from each other.

Harry is dancing with Cho Chang.

He took the first step with his left foot, and she followed his rhythm, continuing to walk in a circle. He led her to a different angle, and then they returned to the original path.

Both of them are still adjusting to each other's rhythm, but they are already very close in position.

As the candlelight fell on her shoulders, her eyelashes cast a row of tiny shadows in the light.

Harry turned his head and saw the row of shadows. He was silent for a moment, as if making some brief confirmation.

"Do you want to change direction?" Harry asked.

"Just follow your lead. Have you danced with other girls before? You danced so well."

"Yeah?"

Harry was a little shy; Sirius's training these past few days had paid off.

At that moment, he noticed Cedric, who had been paying attention to Zhang Qiu.

Then Harry instinctively hugged Cho Chang even tighter.

It's like declaring sovereignty.

Neville and Hannah are dancing.

His steps were light, as if he were afraid of stepping on something. Hannah was moving slowly in rhythm with him. The distance between them was just right so that they wouldn't bump into each other's feet when they turned a corner.

"You jumped very well," Hannah said. "You don't need to walk so lightly, it's fine."

"I'm still getting used to this rhythm."

"So what do you think of the mandrake I'm raising?"

"If only she didn't scream like that."

"Your outfit looks great."

"Yes, my parents sent it. Can we take a picture later? I want to send it to my parents and my grandma."

"Sure!"

Neville's clothes had been sent to him by his parents a long time ago.

He also advised Neville to find a suitable girl as his dance partner.

Neville thought of his family, then looked at Kane.

Kane made him realize that his life could be full of fun.

If Kane hadn't cured his parents, he might still be living the same life he had before he turned eleven, without any aspirations.

Kane and Fleur jumped half a circle.

His right hand rested on her waist, while his left hand loosely grasped her fingers, guiding her through a complete arc and turn.

Her steps were light, landing precisely on the same point as his stride, as if the two of them were taking steps of different lengths in the same amount of time, but always landing on the same beat.

As they passed the row of slanted candlelight, her silhouette briefly lit up before dimming again.

"It's your turn and Miss Granger's," said Fleur.

As a beam of light slanted across the edge of the dance floor, drawing a narrow line, Furong released her grip.

Then Hermione walked out from where she was.

She walked with small strides, moving from the wall to the edge of the dance floor. As the beam of light moved, she adjusted the distance between herself and the edge of the dance floor, as if she had calculated in advance how many steps were between her and Kane.

She was a little nervous, after all, it was her first time doing something like this.

The moment Hermione placed her hand on hers, her fingers were indeed a little cold. Not the kind of cold that comes from nervousness causing trembling, but more like the coldness of not knowing how high or how heavy her hand should be.

Kane didn't adjust her position; he simply waited for her to settle naturally before starting to move.

After she regained her footing, he led her around a full turn. She followed his rhythm and took her first step, then her second, then her third, as if she were gradually confirming whether the difference in stride length between them was within an acceptable margin of error.

As she turned, her skirt gathered and unfolded naturally along her ankles, forming a continuous, uninterrupted arc. When she turned her head, she could see the outline of his shoulder in the candlelight.

"I never expected to be standing here."

She spoke, her voice soft, as if she were reaffirming her earlier judgment.

"You've thought of it, but you're not sure you'll actually go this far."

"You've been arranging tonight's events, putting yourself in a position where you need to balance multiple directions, and I'm just one of those directions."

They walked along the central axis of the dance floor, passing the edge of a beam of light. She glanced down at the edge of her skirt at her feet, as if to make sure that the edge hadn't changed suddenly as it moved.

Then she looked up again and focused her gaze back on his shoulder line.

As she passed through the slanted light, she adjusted the angle of her footsteps to make it easier for her to adapt to changes in direction and rhythm.

Someone was watching them from the edge of the dance floor.

"They really make you want to dance better," Hannah said. Neville added, "Because the path they take on that beat is so clear, it shows you a direction you could try."

"You really put your mind to this tonight," she said.

"Since we've started, let's try to finish it."

"So, how do you think you did?"

"I need more time to confirm before I can make a specific judgment."

Are you still confirming it?

"I have confirmed that it is you."

Hermione didn't respond.

She followed him through the next bend in the route, and then returned to the original track.

Several pairs of dancers nearby were also adjusting their steps and directions; some were imitating the distance between them, while others were trying to mimic their turning angles.

The candlelight continued to flow, spreading along the walls and the floor, filling the gaps between every section of the moving path.

The music continued, and the figures moving on the dance floor extended forward along their respective paths.