Harry Potter led the Gryffindor Quidditch team to yet another thrilling victory. The Gryffindor Great Hall was particularly lively that evening, filled with laughter and cheers, drawing annoyed glances from the Slytherin students.
"Hmph, let them enjoy it while it lasts! We Slytherins are still two hundred points ahead of them," one sneered. "Even if they win the Quidditch Cup this year, the House Cup is already ours."
The hundred points that had been deducted from the Twins earlier in the year had severely impacted Gryffindor's standing. Since the professors noticed that Dana was gradually being accepted among the students, they stopped subtly favoring him.
Dana, for his part, was quiet in class—he kept to himself, rarely volunteering answers unless called upon. As a result, the burden of earning points fell largely on Gryffindor's top students, led by Hermione.
But those few points they earned were a drop in the ocean, especially when a certain shameless head of house blatantly favored his own house while consistently undermining Gryffindor.
Draco Malfoy grinned.
"That's right. This year's House Cup is definitely ours."
Marcus Flint leaned in, curious.
"Malfoy, I heard that Merlin City has seen over seventy million in transactions since it launched?"
Draco smirked.
"Seventy million? That's just a rough estimate made by The Daily Prophet! My family's store alone brought in over five million galleons in orders this month. There are hundreds of large merchant guilds and noble families from around the world who've set up shop in Merlin City—plus countless smaller ones. Honestly, two hundred million is probably an underestimate."
"That much money?" Marcus echoed, clearly envious. His father had dismissed Merlin City during its early development, and now the entire family deeply regretted missing the opportunity.
Hesitating, Marcus asked,
"Draco, I heard your family has close ties with Dantes. Could you help my family try to get a shop in Merlin City?"
Draco sighed.
"Dantes said it's nearly impossible to arrange for new families to settle there right now. Wizards from America and Asia have started flocking to Merlin City, and the waiting list for property appointments is already thousands long."
Meanwhile, in the Gryffindor Great Hall, Dana—cutting into his steak—caught Draco's words with his sharp hearing. His eyebrow arched involuntarily.
"Is today's steak that good, Boss? Worth raising an eyebrow?" Fred asked, swiping a piece of beef from Dana's plate.
Dana laughed.
"Oi! If you're hungry, get your own! Why mine?"
George intercepted the stolen steak and returned it to Dana's plate.
"Boss, I've disciplined this rude thief for you!"
Fred laughed heartily and snatched up a potato instead.
"George, our Boss is generous—he won't mind a little garnish going missing."
Dana grabbed a fresh plate of steak and asked,
"When are you planning to open your shop? Merlin City's booming now. Shops like yours sitting idle are a rare waste."
Fred, his mouth full, replied,
"We're speeding up product development—"
George continued,
"Right now we've got about seventeen products ready for display, but the shop's too large. To properly fill it, we'll probably need until sixth year."
Fred nodded.
"Plus, we've still got three more years at Hogwarts. We won't be around to manage it, so we'll need to hire assistants too..."
While calmly slicing his steak, Dana suggested,
"The shop doesn't need to sell just your own inventions. Besides joke items, you can stock magical creatures and toys that younger kids like. That way, you fill the space and emphasize the uniqueness of your brand."
"Brilliant idea!" the Twins said in unison, eyes lighting up—until Dana continued:
"And if you're short-staffed, I can ask Dantes to arrange some attendants for you. They're loyal and highly competent."
Fred blinked.
"How much would we need to pay them?"
Dana waved it off.
"Dantes will cover their salaries. No need to worry."
"That's fantastic! In that case, we might be able to open as early as this summer!"
Ron, sitting diagonally across from them, listened in on the conversation about the Twins opening a shop in Merlin City. A mix of pride and disappointment stirred in his chest.
The Twins were his brothers. He should've been proud that they could establish a business in the most popular wizarding city in the world.
But deep down, Ron knew that the reason they were doing so well was because Dana had a close relationship with Dantes.
And he, Ron Weasley, had been the very first Weasley to befriend Dana.
Yet, remembering his attitude toward Dana during the previous school year, Ron clicked his tongue in frustration. He turned to Harry and muttered,
"Harry, you were brilliant today! If you keep playing like that, the Quidditch Cup is ours for sure!"
Harry blinked.
"Didn't you already say that before dinner?"
Ron also blinked.
"Did I? No way! Must've been someone else—you're imagining things!"
Of course, Ron's conversation didn't escape Dana's attention either.
Dana smiled faintly, set down his cutlery, and rose from the table.
"Fred, George, I'm heading back to my room to read."
Still chewing, the Twins waved him off.
Dana thoroughly enjoyed these interactions. Even though they often called him "Boss" now, he knew Fred and George hadn't truly changed—they remained the same sincere, loyal friends.
Taking a shortcut back to Gryffindor Tower—one that passed by the Potions classroom and was generally avoided by Gryffindors—Dana was suddenly stopped by a soft, dreamy voice.
"Dana!"
"Oh, Luna. What is it?"
Luna looked directly at him, her wide eyes glimmering.
"The nargles around you have greatly decreased. You must've resolved something that was bothering you. Congratulations!"
Dana chuckled.
"Yes, you're right. Thank you for noticing."
Luna shook her head.
"No, I should be thanking you."
Dana tilted his head.
"Why's that?"
"Dantes included our family in Merlin City's protection. He even provided office space for Dad's newspaper. So, thank you."
Dana was briefly confused.
"Huh?"
Luna continued cheerfully,
"Merlin City smells a lot like you. And Dantes also has that scent. I think you and Dantes must have a deep connection. If not for you, I doubt he'd be so kind to my family. We didn't even know him before this!"
Dana didn't know how to respond. Luna truly was the one who had spotted the flaw in his Animagus form with a single glance.
"Your father loves you dearly. He's had it rough—so be kind to him."
Dana waved casually as he turned and headed up the spiral staircase.
Behind him, Luna called out cheerfully,
"Of course! I love my Dad very much too."
After making two friends, Tom Riddle's journey to find a third—Dana Emrys—had been unsuccessful.
He was sixteen—well, more accurately, his Horcrux-preserved essence was sixteen. Let's just go with that.
At sixteen, all he wanted was a good friend, someone who could help him return to the world of the living.
It wasn't a malicious wish. What was so wrong about that?
And sure, maybe his "friend" would suffer a little in the process—but wasn't that part of friendship? Give and take?
He had, after all, generously shared knowledge of magic with Dana before trying to borrow his life force.
But now—because of that damned Ministry—he had fallen into Dumbledore's hands!
Now, locked in a cabinet in the Hogwarts Headmaster's office, he had no chance of making new friends.
Damn it! Damn it all!
He could only wait in silence again, as he had for decades, hidden in darkness, hoping for someone to someday flip open the diary's cover.
But would that opportunity ever come?
Ah—there was still the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor!
Even if he only attended a handful of classes this year, those had been some of the happiest moments of his existence!
He wondered—was the school year finally over?
Ah, how he missed his lovely students...
And indeed, the little diary's judgment wasn't wrong. The school year had come to an end.
Dana's second year had been full of twists and turns.
Harry's, aside from a few early bumps, was relatively uneventful.
As the Hogwarts Express began its journey home, the students returned to their families.
The second year at Hogwarts was over.
But the story of the second year?
That wasn't finished yet—
Who ever said the little diary had to be destroyed in the second year?
Look—Tom Riddle was still thinking.
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