Hogwarts: This Dark Lord is Good?

"Oh, wonderful... Lucky me..." Tom's voice dripped with sarcasm.

Just then, another owl swooped down from the treetops.

Tom jolted upright. "Wait.. The letter… it said I used a levitation-type charm at 9:30, right?"

"Yup, 9:30 exactly," Wade confirmed.

"You—!" Tom's face darkened. "You were the one using magic at 9:30! I didn't start until, what, 9:40?! And you literally used magic just now to float that letter over to me!"

"Huh? Oh… yeah… now that you mention it…" Wade blinked, pretending to think.

Tom's face turned an alarming shade of green. "No way… I'm gonna get expelled, aren't I?"

"Yeah… rumor has it… if you get expelled, they break your wand too…" Wade muttered ominously.

At that moment, the owl dropped the letter right into Tom's hands.

Tom stared at the envelope, utterly devastated, the light fading from his eyes.

"Ahem... Should I write to Grindelwald and ask if he's still accepting applications?" Wade suggested casually.

"WADE REYNOLDS! I'LL KILL YOU!"

…

Safehouse.

"Wade… you… you've truly disappointed me," Dumbledore said, his tone grave.

It was the first time Dumbledore had ever scolded Wade.

Tom, however, had absolutely no energy left to enjoy the spectacle, because he was the one facing expulsion.

Just then, Toby stepped forward and piped up in his shrill voice, "Professor Dumbledore! You only need to inform the Ministry that it was Toby who cast the Levitation Charm while helping Master fish. Then Young Master Tom won't be expelled!"

Tom was stunned. For the first time, he actually felt a tiny bit of gratitude toward Toby—though he knew perfectly well that Toby was doing this mainly to protect his master from being scolded by Dumbledore.

Dumbledore was silent for a moment before finally speaking. "Toby... but you…"

"Toby is a house-elf. House-elves do not require permission from the Ministry to use magic. And there were no Muggles nearby!"

"Sigh.. It's useless. The Ministry will check the wands for traces of magic..." Dumbledore said calmly.

"Oh! We didn't use our own wands while practicing during the holidays!" Tom's eyes lit up instantly. "They won't be able to detect anything!"

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. "Is that so? Then show me the wand you used to cast magic."

Tom hurriedly handed over the wand he had used for the Flight Charm.

Wade also pulled out his old and battered wand and handed it over.

Back when he was preparing for the holidays, Wade had bought a whole collection of second-hand wands for both himself and Tom.

Tom used one for practicing, another for… less lawful activities.

Sure enough, when Dumbledore examined Tom's wand, there was no trace of any problematic spells.

But as Dumbledore turned his attention to Wade's wand, Tom suddenly felt himself growing nervous.

Because he remembered clearly—Wade had actually used a different wand when casting the Flight Charm earlier. If Dumbledore failed to find any trace of that spell on this wand, wouldn't that mean Wade still had another wand hidden away?

And if Dumbledore really checked the wand Wade had actually used… wouldn't that reveal a whole heap of Sectumsempra, Cruciatus, and Bombarda Maxima?

Wait… why am I even worried about that bastard?!

Let him get exposed! Let him be expelled!

However, to Tom's shock, Dumbledore's Prior Incantato actually did reveal the trace of the Flight Charm on Wade's old wand.

What the.. In other words… that bastard had planned this all along?

Everything that happened to him today… was that guy's doing?!

And he had the nerve to claim it was his first time testing the Flight Charm?!

But… what for? Just to screw him over? What kind of grudge was that big?!

"What a… remarkable spell… Wade, you said this is a spell you developed yourself?" Dumbledore studied the Flight Charm revealed by the spell trace, clearly impressed.

"I think… even without needing Toby to intervene, I can easily argue for canceling Tom's expulsion. In fact… Wade, you might even win an award for this innovation!"

Tom's eyes widened in disbelief. Suddenly… it all clicked.

He used me as a stepping stone?!

Wade Reynolds, you absolute dog!

Is it going to kill you to file for recognition of a spell like a normal person instead of pulling this nonsense?!

Wade: Kekeke~~ Merit points!

...

Wade generously explained the entire Flight Charm to Dumbledore.

The more Dumbledore listened, the brighter his eyes became.

This was indeed a completely unprecedented spell that allowed a wizard to fly without relying on any magical tool.

The most remarkable thing was that this spell didn't require an exceptionally high level of magical proficiency.

Even a first-year student could just about manage to cast it.

The fact that the "expelled" Tom had successfully cast the spell on his very first try spoke volumes about how low the entry barrier for this magic really was.

Dumbledore took Wade's research notes and the two wands they had used during practice and left. He was heading to the Ministry of Magic to advocate for Tom.

Before leaving, he warned both Wade and Tom to stay cautious for the time being, to avoid going out unnecessarily, and advised Wade not to teach this spell to anyone else for now.

Wade understood that this was because Dumbledore was worried that if Grindelwald's people got their hands on this spell, it would make them even more dangerous.

After Dumbledore left, the safe house once again fell into an awkward silence.

Tom sat with his head lowered, lost in thought, while Wade pulled out a large pile of wands again and began picking through them.

Some of these wands were ones Wade had bought from secondhand shops, while others had been confiscated from the captured Grindelwald supporters...

"Tom… you're not still mad, are you? You can't blame me for this… you know, nobody wanted it to turn out like that," Wade said as he handed over the pile of wands.

Tom glanced at the wands in front of him but didn't reach for them.

"How would I dare be angry with the great Lord Wade?" Tom said with a stiff smile. "Besides, I was the one who insisted on tagging along… after all, you didn't actually invite me."

In truth, he had already figured it out—there was no point in arguing with Wade.

Because from start to finish, Wade wasn't wrong.

Yes, he wasn't wrong! And that was precisely what made it so infuriating.

When Wade went to test the spell, Tom had chosen to follow him—solely because he wanted to see Wade make a fool of himself.

Wade had never asked him to come along.

So it was perfectly reasonable that Wade hadn't remembered to tell him how to block the Trace.

And it wasn't like Wade had begged him to learn the Flight Charm. No, Tom had shamelessly asked for it himself.

So if Tom really tried to argue that Wade had set him up, it wouldn't hold water at all.

After mentally reviewing the whole process, Tom realized it was basically like he'd handed Wade the shovel to dig his own pit. 

(ヘ･_･)ヘ┳━┳ ... (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻ "FUCK!"

Tom shouted in frustration at last.

__________

(≧∇≦)ﾉRead ahead: P^treon: Captain69