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Chapter 523: Kyle’s Dark Past
🕑 Added 2025-02-21 12:50:11 +0000 UTCThe next day, early in the morning, Kyle sat at the breakfast table with a grave expression, slowly chewing on a piece of toast.
“What’s wrong with you?” Cedric asked, noticing Kyle’s tense demeanor. “You look like you’re about to dive straight into the second task of the tournament.”
“To be honest, I’d rather do the second task today,” Kyle sighed. “By the way, can you dance?”
“Yeah,” Cedric replied casually. “My dad took me to a few dances when I was younger, so I picked it up then. Why? Can’t you?”
“Why does everyone assume I’d know how to dance?” Kyle grumbled, biting into his bread with irritation. “If I could, I wouldn’t be in this mess.”
“Pfft...” Cedric’s face twitched as he struggled to hold back a laugh.
It was rare to see Kyle so flustered, and Cedric found the sight both amusing and oddly endearing.
“It’s not that hard,” Cedric said, trying to sound supportive despite his mirth. “Just follow the music. Oh, and I saw the notice in the foyer—Professor McGonagall’s holding a dance club at 10 a.m. You should check it out.”
“You mean that? I was the first to sign up,” Kyle muttered, exasperated.
Cedric couldn’t hold it in anymore. He clapped a hand over his mouth to stifle his laughter, imagining Kyle clumsily stomping on his partner’s feet at the ball. Trying to avoid embarrassing his friend, Cedric hastily excused himself, claiming he needed to find Cho, and hurried over to the Ravenclaw table.
Kyle, too preoccupied with thoughts of the club, barely noticed Cedric’s hasty exit and assumed he was off to ask Cho to the ball.
By now, the news of the Christmas ball had spread like wildfire. Students buzzed with excitement, and this year, a record number of them had signed up to stay at Hogwarts for the holidays. It seemed like nearly everyone except the first years was planning to attend.
Groups of girls gathered in clusters, whispering and giggling about what to wear on Christmas night, while the boys suddenly seemed much more self-conscious. Ryan, for instance, had pinned a brooch to his shirt—something Kyle had never seen him do before.
As Kyle sat at the table, a girl with curly hair approached him hesitantly.
“Kyle, will you go to the ball with me?” she asked.
“Oh... sorry,” Kyle said, snapping out of his thoughts. “I already have a date.”
The girl’s face fell, and she walked away looking disappointed.
She wasn’t the only one. In the next ten minutes, several more girls from all four Houses approached him with the same question, only to receive the same polite rejection.
Kyle, realizing that sitting in the Great Hall was only inviting more awkward encounters, decided to abandon his plan to wait there until the club started. With a sigh, he pushed back his chair and headed for the common room instead.
...
At precisely ten o’clock, Kyle arrived at the Great Hall, accompanied by Kanna and Cedric.
“If you already know how to dance, why are you here?” Kyle asked, eyeing Cedric with suspicion.
“Ahem, no reason,” Cedric replied, feigning calm. “It’s just that I haven’t danced in a while. I want to brush up, so I don’t make a fool of myself.”
Kyle nodded, accepting the explanation, and took a deep breath before pushing open the doors to the Great Hall.
Inside, the space had been rearranged by Professor McGonagall. The long tables had been moved to the sides, leaving rows of chairs along the walls, many of which were already occupied by students.
Kyle’s footsteps felt unnaturally heavy as he walked toward the front, as if someone had hit him with the Leg-Locker Curse. Behind him, Cedric and the Weasley twins were desperately trying—and failing—not to laugh, their faces alight with anticipation.
Once everyone had arrived, Professor McGonagall closed the doors with a flick of her wand and began to address the group.
“Dancing is simple, elegant, and agile,” she said. “Every girl has a swan within her, and every boy has a lion eager to leap.”
For Kyle, however, the next two hours were anything but simple or elegant.
Theoretically, dancing wasn’t as difficult as some of the magical creatures’ rituals that Newt had taught him. The problem was that before he could grasp the basics, Professor McGonagall had called on him to demonstrate.
It had been a disaster. He tripped over her feet three times, eliciting laughter from the Weasley twins that they didn’t even try to hide. Kyle could feel Professor McGonagall’s patience waning as her expression darkened with each misstep.
Fred and George would certainly milk this moment for all it was worth.
As expected, the twins spent the following days gleefully mimicking Kyle’s clumsy movements during meals, with Fred stomping on George’s feet for added realism. Kyle could only ignore them—there was no other way to deal with those two.
The Hogwarts professors seemed eager to present the castle in its best light to the visitors from the other two schools. A few days before Christmas, the banisters along the grand staircase were adorned with glimmering icicles that never melted. The Great Hall was transformed into a winter wonderland, featuring twelve towering Christmas trees, each lavishly decorated with a variety of baubles—from clusters of Winky Holly berries to golden owls that hooted softly.
Kyle couldn’t help but wish the professors hadn’t abandoned their old tradition of using ghosts as Christmas tree ornaments. He had always thought it was the most entertaining touch. A Christmas tree covered with ghosts would surely impress the visiting schools.
As Christmas approached, the castle bustled with activity. Groups of giggling girls roamed the halls, their laughter echoing whenever one of them received an invitation to the Yule Ball. The anticipation was palpable.
After a Charms lesson, Kyle happened upon Harry in the corridor. But it wasn’t him Harry was looking for.
“Er... Cho Chang, can I have a word?” Harry asked nervously, clutching the hem of his robe in both hands.
“Sure, what is it?” Cho replied.
“Er... could you, well... go to the ball with me...” Harry stammered, his voice so low that Kyle had to strain to catch the words.
“I’m sorry, Harry,” Cho said apologetically, shaking her head. “I already promised Cedric.”
Kyle was taken aback as Harry’s face turned a deep red in mere seconds, as though someone were frantically painting it with a brush.
“Oh, okay, that’s fine,” Harry mumbled casually before abruptly turning and walking away.
“I’m really sorry,” Cho called after him, but Harry didn’t respond. In a flash, he disappeared around the corner of the staircase.
Kyle clicked his tongue. “Well, he’s definitely living up to his title as Hogwarts’ best Seeker. That speed... impressive.”
“It’s been like this lately,” Cho sighed, as she and Kyle headed toward the Great Hall. “I really hope Christmas comes soon. By the way, it’s odd—no one’s invited you yet.”
“Not happening right now,” Kyle said lightly.
In truth, he’d received plenty of invitations earlier. After Professor McGonagall’s club meeting, a few older girls had even offered to teach him how to dance. He had declined them all. Their dancing skills simply didn’t measure up to Professor McGonagall’s impeccable standards.
Kyle’s evenings were now consumed with rigorous training. Professors McGonagall and Flitwick worked with him personally for three hours every night after dinner. Occasionally, Nearly Headless Nick would join them to offer tips. The ghost, with his perpetually wobbling head, actually had a surprising talent for dancing. However, his habit of dramatically shaking his head made the experience a bit unsettling.
