Hogwarts Study Panel.

Chapter 583, Section 581: In the Light of Earth

They spent countless sunsets on that unnamed hillside.

Time stands still.

The church bells in the distance ring out precisely at dusk, slowly drifting over every hill, over every stream, and over every window lit with orange light.

Ariana liked to lean on the windowsill and count the chimes when they rang.

She would always be distracted before she could count to ten—by something that appeared out of nowhere in her dream, or by a figure flashing behind the window of a wooden house in the distance.

Albus sat in the old armchair behind her, a book spread out on his lap, but he never actually turned a page.

His gaze remained fixed on his sister's back, on the golden tips of her hair that were gently blown by the evening breeze.

He finally spoke.

Anna.

She didn't turn around, but simply gave a soft "hmm".

A butterfly landed on her fingertip, its wings opening and closing.

"I have to go now."

When he said this, his tone was unusually calm, as if he were simply stating a rule about the rising and setting of the sun and moon.

Ariana's fingers stiffened for a moment.

Startled, the butterflies fluttered away and disappeared into the misty sky.

She slowly turned around and looked at her brother in the armchair.

She didn't make any big moves.

Her eyes remained clear, but what they held had changed from the light of dusk to a deep, quiet understanding.

"I know."

She said, "The God said that there are still living people waiting for the visiting guests—Brother Albus will have to go back sooner or later."

Albus closed the book that had never been opened.

He tried to get up, but found his legs felt as heavy as lead.

"I'm so sorry, Anna."

His voice finally cracked slightly, "I'm sorry, I have to—I have to leave you alone again."

He owed this sentence for a hundred years.

He couldn't say it that summer in Godric's Valley, he couldn't say it at the tombstone at the funeral, and he couldn't say it in the countless nights afterward when he was awakened by nightmares.

Now he's finally said it.

Ariana shook her head.

She walked from the window, her bare feet stepping on the carpet, and came to his armchair.

She wasn't as timid as she had been when they first met, nor did she cling to him like she had during the storm.

She just stood there, standing very straight, like an adult with all the courage in the world.

"no the same."

She paused, trying to find the right words.

Her lips moved several times, but she eventually gave up trying to launch into a long speech and simply stretched out her head to gently touch Albus's forehead.

Because she remembered his valiant figure as he fought his way here, Ariana would never again choke up, even if separated by three thousand hills and eight hundred streams.

In that instant, the entire white void trembled slightly.

The lawn beneath my feet began to extend in all directions, tender green shoots breaking through the mist, making a soft, rustling sound as they grew.

Those crooked Gothic arches seemed to be straightened by an invisible hand, and the black mist on them peeled away inch by inch, transforming into pure white vines that climbed up the stone pillars and bloomed with specks of firefly light in the void.

The wind was no longer a hollow wail, but carried warmth, brushing across the lawn and bringing the fragrance of daisies and grass.

Albus slowly opened his eyes.

Tears blurred his vision, but he finally saw clearly those pale blue eyes so close to his face.

They were as clear as the cloudless sky of Godric Valley in October, without a trace of gloom.

Albus looked at her.

He suddenly understood why Ariana had lingered.

She lingered on the edge of a hazy illusion, utterly alone and homeless.

But all I wanted was for them to know that these numb and gloomy people were never despised.

Albus stood up.

His tears streamed down his parched cheeks once more.

He missed the exam on a test paper where every answer would be a perfect score.

On another answer sheet, he gave the same poor score.

Where is that boy, Green?

Where is he?

The massive battle at the border lasted so long that he actually managed to weather the darkness and bring forth the dawn, and even promised the twilight.

Albus can no longer stay here.

He knew two children who didn't talk much: his Ariana, and the child who was sometimes silly, but even more sincere.

He gazed into the distance, then bent down, wanting to give his sister one last hug before leaving.

But Ariana took a step back.

"Next time,"

She spoke softly, a barely perceptible hint of panic finally creeping into her voice, "Will you find me, Brother Albus?"

She looked up at him.

Her features were also fading.

Her arms, shoulders, and waist-length golden hair began to be bathed in a soft silver light, like the dew of dawn about to evaporate, yet a thousand times warmer than dew.

"It's always been like this."

Albus took a step forward, knowing that this was the last act of heroism in his absurd years.

His steps were so firm that even the mist dared not approach him.

-I think.

Albus heard something echoing in his own mind.

"I want to live with you in a small town, Anna, sharing endless sunsets and the ceaseless chiming of bells."

And so, in the light of the earth, in the love of humankind, I saw you.

His deepest fear was never death.

Rather, it was because he had hurt her in that way.

But from that moment on, he never looked back.

Because deep within his heart, in that corner untouched by any spiritual thought, there was always a small lawn, on which stood a tall daisy, and beside the daisy stood a girl in a blue cotton dress.

She will always be there waiting for him.

Darkness is coming again.

The sound of hail outside the window became exceptionally clear. As if finding its home ground in the darkness, it began to pound even more wantonly, pounding on the roof, pounding on the windows, pounding on the silence.

At that moment, the only sound in the cabin was a small, faint inhalation, like a cat sneezing.

The curtains were not drawn.

The hail was still pounding against the window. But in the darkness, a small, cool hand found his sleeve.

He put down his sword and gently embraced her.

All the thorny ambitions he carried throughout his life, the fleeting brilliance of his failed attempt, his mother's name on the tombstone, his brother's roar in the tavern, the countless nights of self-judgment—all of it, all of it, melted away like snowflakes in that moment.

It drifts down, then settles.

"A part of you carries me with you."

Ariana seemed to be eating a dream.

Albus smiled and nodded, his eyes blurry with tears.

So he picked up the sword again.

He took her with him, and she longed for him.

This is the end.

She waited for him for so long, and he searched for her for so long. Finally, in a twilight that belonged to no time or space, they completed this farewell that was a century overdue.

And reunion.

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