Hogwarts: My Grandmother is the Queen

Chapter 405 Going Home

Henry put the bookmark into his inner pocket and gently rubbed his thumb against the edge of the oak leaf.

The silver veins are slightly raised, and the fourth arc is engraved thinner than the other three, as if deliberately left to allow for some leeway.

"Thank you," he said.

Cedric smiled and said nothing more.

The crowd on the platform grew increasingly dense, and Hufflepuff students called out to him from the other end. He waved to Henry and squeezed through.

Henry dragged his suitcase into the train. Slytherin's compartment was a few cars further back, and he passed several car doors as he walked.

Several younger Gryffindor students were crammed into a box with the door open. A boy was throwing a Chocolate Frog out the window, probably saying goodbye to his friends on the platform.

A girl standing nearby shouted, "Stop throwing them away! If you keep throwing them away, there won't be any left!"

The boy ignored him and threw another one, then got his fingernail stuck in the chocolate frog's leg and started yelling.

Henry continued walking forward.

The Slytherin box was already quite full. Draco had taken a seat by the window and was pushing his suitcase onto the luggage rack.

Pansy sat opposite, a copy of "The Witch Weekly" spread out on her lap, while Daphne leaned against the window frame next to her, dozing with her eyes closed.

Crabbe and Goyle sat in the corner, with a large box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans between them. Goyle was picking out a black one from the box, hesitating whether to eat it or not.

Henry put the suitcase on the luggage rack and sat down next to Draco.

"What did you just say to Cedric?" Pansy asked without looking up.

He gave me a bookmark.

"What bookmark?"

"Oak leaf."

Pansy turned a page of the magazine.

"He's thoughtful."

The train slowly started moving, and the parents on the platform began to wave. Several first-grade girls leaned against the window and shed tears, their noses red.

As the train pulled out of Hogsmeade Station, the hillsides outside the window gradually receded, and Hogwarts Castle grew smaller and smaller in the distance, eventually shrinking into a blurry silhouette among the mountains.

Draco leaned against the window, looking outside without saying a word.

Henry pulled a piece of chocolate from his pocket, which he had taken from the breakfast table, broke it in half, and handed it to him.

Draco took it and took a bite.

"Who do you think will be Defense Against the Dark Arts next semester?" Draco asked, chewing on his chocolate.

"I don't know," Henry said. "McGirl might be doing it temporarily."

"Then it's better to let Snape teach," Pansy said, closing the magazine. "At least he'd know what he's doing."

As the train passed through an open field, a small sales cart came along.

A middle-aged witch dressed in a Hogwarts Train uniform knocked on the compartment door and poked her head in.

"Would you like something?"

Draco bought two boxes of Chocolate Frogs and a big bag of Licorice Wands, while Pansy bought a bag of Sour Pop Candy.

Daphne ordered a pumpkin juice, while Crabbe and Gore bought sandwiches and several bottles of butterbeer.

Henry didn't buy anything; he still had two fruit pies Lucy had given him that morning in his bag, wrapped in parchment paper, and they were still warm.

The train continued south, and the scenery outside the window changed from the Scottish Highlands to the English countryside. The sky also changed from gray-blue to light blue, and the atmosphere in the compartment gradually relaxed.

After Crabbe and Gore finished their sandwiches, they started playing cards, betting on Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. The loser had to eat the strangest flavor in the box.

After losing three rounds in a row, Gao Er tasted earwax, soap, and some indescribable gray beans, his face scrunched up in a grimace.

Pansy and Daphne watched for a while, and Pansy couldn't resist joining in.

She had a good run of luck, winning two games in a row, which forced Crabbe to eat a bean that supposedly tasted like expired milk. Crabbe remained silent for a long time after swallowing it.

Henry leaned back in his seat, the fields stretching out the window, occasionally dotted with farmhouses and flocks of sheep. Draco, sitting beside him, was flipping through his Quidditch magazine, stopping when he came across an interview with Krum.

"Krum said he's transferring next season." Draco turned the magazine over to show Henry, "From the Bulgarian national team to an English club. When asked why, he said it was for personal reasons."

"Personal reasons?" Henry asked.

"When pressed for details, he said he couldn't say." Draco turned the page. "Do you really think he'll come to England?"

"I don't know," Henry said. "But he mentioned it this morning when he left, saying he would come back to Hogwarts sometime."

Draco raised an eyebrow but didn't ask any further questions.

As the train passed through Yorkshire, Pansy pulled a box of Pipa bombs from the luggage rack.

She played with Daphne, Crabbe, and another girl, with Goyle acting as referee. The cards exploded twice: once in Crabbe's face, blowing his hair into curls; and once on Pansy's hand, prompting her to utter a curse in French, probably learned from Madeline.

Henry chuckled. Draco chuckled too.

In the afternoon, the train passed through a long tunnel.

The carriage darkened, with only the tip of Pansy's wand glowing faintly.

Daphne fell asleep again against the window frame. This time she was truly asleep, her breathing even and her lips slightly parted.

Gore took off his coat and covered her with it, his movements clumsy but careful.

After the tunnel, sunlight streamed back into the carriage. Outside the window, the scenery of the London suburbs unfolded, with rows of red-brick houses...

A narrow garden, the occasional glimpse of a church steeple, and a supermarket parking lot.

"We're almost there," Draco said.

He put away the magazines and took the suitcase off the luggage rack.

Henry also stood up and helped Pansy take her suitcase off the shelf.

Pansy was tidying up the scattered cards when Daphne woke up, rubbed her eyes, and returned Gore's coat to him.

The train slowed down and finally came to a stop at Platform 9¾ at King's Cross Station.

The area outside was already packed with parents, and you could see their faces peering out through the car windows.

Henry carried his suitcase out of the box, the corridor filled with students trying to squeeze out. He stepped aside to let a few younger Gryffindors pass before descending the steps.

The air on the platform was warmer than at Hogwarts, carrying the distinctive smell of London's coal smoke and exhaust fumes.

Henry's gaze swept across the crowd and quickly found Eileen. She stood by a pillar at the end of the platform, wearing an inconspicuous dark gray coat, holding no sign and waving. But Henry knew she was looking at him.

Draco stopped beside him.

"My father is over there." He gestured with his chin toward the other end of the platform.

Lucius Malfoy stood beside an iron pillar, dressed in black, and a head taller than the people around him.

He saw Draco, nodded slightly, then shifted his gaze to Henry, bowing slightly from a distance.

"See you on the holidays," Draco said.

"See you on the holidays," Henry said.

Draco dragged his suitcase toward Lucius, while Pansy and Daphne found their families. Pansy's mother waved to her from the platform entrance, and Daphne's father took her suitcase.

Henry walked through the crowd and stood in front of Eileen.

"Your Highness," Eileen bowed slightly and took the suitcase from him, "the car is outside."

"Is Grandmother at Kensington Palace?"

"Her Majesty the Queen is in Windsor," Eileen said. "She asked me to take you back to Kensington Palace first, and then we'll go to Windsor tomorrow morning."

Henry nodded, and he followed Eileen out of the platform, through the King's Cross station hall, and out through a side door.

A dark-colored sedan was parked on the side of the road, and the driver was standing next to the car door.

Eileen put the box in the trunk, and Henry got into the back seat.

As the car pulled out of the station, Henry glanced at the street outside through the window.

The London evening was hazy, the streetlights were already on, and pedestrians hurried to and fro.

As the car crossed the Thames, Henry saw several pleasure boats moving slowly on the river, their lights shimmering on the water.

He leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes.

They arrived at Kensington Palace, and Eileen led him through a side door. The corridor was warmly lit and quiet.

Henry returned to his room and placed the box next to the wardrobe.

He walked to the window and looked out at the garden.

Someone knocked on the door.

"Come in."

A young maid came in carrying a tray with a pot of tea and a cup on it.

She placed the tray on the small table by the window, bowed slightly, and left.

Henry poured himself a cup of tea and held it in his hand.

He took a sip of tea, put down the cup, walked to his desk, sat down, picked up a pen, and wrote a date at the top of the letter.

It was quiet outside the window. In the garden downstairs, an owl landed on the hedge, preened its feathers for a while, and then flew away.

Henry stood up, took his pajamas out of the box, and took a shower.

As the hot water poured onto his shoulders, he felt the weight of the past year slowly slipping from his bones.

He dried himself off, changed into his pajamas, and lay down on the bed.

The bed is very soft. Unlike the beds at Hogwarts.

The beds at Hogwarts are firm, the mattresses are thin, and the weight of the blankets rests just on your chest. The beds here are too soft, and the blankets too light.

Henry turned over and faced the window.

I slept soundly on my first night at Kensington Palace, and when I woke up, London was still shrouded in a grayish-white fog.

He sat up and realized he had slept for nearly ten hours, and the fog outside the window had mostly dissipated.

Henry got out of bed, went to the window, and drew back the curtains.

The hedges in Kensington Gardens were neatly trimmed, and the distant Rugby Lake shimmered with a cool silver light in the morning glow.

Several early risers were jogging along the lake, their figures flashing through the shadows of the trees.

He washed his face, changed his clothes, and when he opened the bedroom door, there were already people waiting in the hallway.

A young male servant stood by the door carrying a tray with breakfast on it: fried eggs, toast, a small jug of Darjeeling cheese, and a small dish of butter and jam.

"Put it on the table by the window," Henry said.

The servant placed the tray down and left.

Henry sat down by the window, poured himself a cup of tea, and took a bite of his toast.

The butter was from Windsor Farm and was slightly saltier than the butter from Hogwarts kitchens.

The jam is made of strawberries and contains whole strawberry pieces.

After finishing breakfast, Henry pushed the tray aside and took the oak leaf bookmark from the inner bag.

Cedric bought it at Hogsmeade, but things there weren't cheap. Henry had been to the silversmith at Hogsmeade; a regular bookmark cost three Galleons. Cedric wouldn't spend three Galleons on a bookmark unless he thought it was worth it.

Henry put the bookmark away, stood up, and left the room. The hallway was quiet, and most of the room doors were closed.

He met Eileen when he reached the top of the stairs.

"Your Highness," Eileen bowed slightly, "the carriage is ready. Her Majesty the Queen awaits you in Windsor."

"Leave now?"

"If you're ready."

Henry nodded and followed Eileen down the stairs, through a corridor lined with oil paintings.

The portraits depict members of the Windsor family throughout history.

The car was parked outside the side gate of Kensington Palace. It was a dark green Land Rover, and the driver, dressed in casual clothes, was standing next to the door.

Eileen opened the back door, and Henry got in.

As the car pulled out of the side gate, he saw several tourists taking photos in front of the main gate of Kensington Palace, holding up their phones and selfie sticks.

A little girl in a red coat is riding on her father's shoulders, clutching a Union Jack in her hand.

The car drove through central London, and Henry leaned back in his seat, looking at the street scene outside the window. Summer sale signs hung in the shop windows on Oxford Street, and a few young people who looked like students were waiting for the bus at the bus stop, holding coffee cups in their hands.

As we passed Buckingham Palace, a small group of tourists had already gathered at the entrance. Two guards stood ramrod straight behind the railing, their red uniforms standing out starkly against the hazy sky.

"There are more tourists this year than in previous years," Eileen said. "After the Triwizard Tournament, more people from the wizarding world have come to London."

Three wizards disguised as Muggle tourists were discovered last month.

"Does the Ministry of Magic know?"

"I know, Mr. Oswald has had people register. They're all just here to watch the fun, no one means any harm."

The car drove out of London and onto the M4 motorway.

The scenery on both sides of the road changed from gray walls and red bricks to green fields and hedges. Henry rolled down the car window a crack, and the summer breeze blew in, carrying the scent of grass and soil.

Windsor is about a 40-minute drive west of Heathrow Airport.

Henry recalled running back and forth between Kensington Palace and Windsor when he was a child. William was little, and Harry was even younger. The three of them would chase each other and play on the big lawn in Windsor.

Prince Philip watched from the side, occasionally calling out, "Don't run too far!"

As the car entered the side gate of Windsor Castle, Henry saw the Royal Standard flying on the flagpole on the castle's outer wall.

Eileen led him through a stone corridor, past the side of St. George's Church.

Someone was playing the organ inside the church. The deep notes came through the stone walls, making the stone slabs underfoot tremble slightly.

The Queen’s study at Windsor Castle is smaller than the one at Kensington Palace, but has larger windows that face the lawn to the north of the castle.

She sat in an armchair by the window, a document in front of her.

She wasn't wearing a formal dress, but only a dark blue cardigan with a pearl brooch pinned to the collar.

"You've arrived." The Queen looked up. "Please sit."

Henry sat down opposite her, and Eileen left.

"Did you sleep well last night?"

“Very good,” Henry said. “The beds at Kensington Palace are softer than those at Hogwarts.”

"That's good," the Queen said with a smile.

"Grandmother." Henry picked up his teacup and explained the matter of the seal.

The Queen nodded slightly and said, "The first seal is the same. It seems that the two seals are essentially the same."