Summer 1899 : Eternity Has An End (English Vers)

I

The wind was gently blowing through the trees. A scent of flowers drifted along the path, and in the distance, the sun was setting. She turned around to admire the castle, immense behind her. Although the young girl had been here for several years now, she never tired of its majesty. Of course, she was used to grandeur, having grown up in a castle herself. Her family had owned theirs for several generations. But that one was cold and empty, unlike the castle stretching out before her. With its countless towers, wings, and staircases, she could spend hours exploring it, slipping into its tiniest corners. She had even managed to find a few secret passages that allowed her to hide while roaming the castle at night.

Aaah... Hogwarts... she thought. The school was exactly as she had imagined it, dreamed of for years before finally being able to enter. Her brother had often mocked her, telling her Hogwarts was nothing compared to Durmstrang, where he was. She didn’t share his opinion, especially after visiting that school once. Cold, hostile, empty—it reminded her too much of her home. After all, it was partly to escape her manor that she had come to Hogwarts.

She sat down on a bench to enjoy the last rays of sunlight and the warmth they gave her. She thought of her brother—she missed him. It must have been four months now since they had last seen each other. As a child, she had never been separated from him for so long. They had spent their whole childhood alone together, and that was all that had mattered to them. Their parents were never there and had never taken care of them. She had always known they didn’t love them—they only wanted to carry on their bloodline. A pure-blood lineage, she scoffed. On the surface, they looked like a loving family, but she couldn’t imagine them as real parents. There had always been a chasm between them and their children—something they didn’t seem to care about. Except for those cursed galas, unfortunately... Good thing I’m at Godric’s Hollow, at least I get to avoid that. Suddenly, she heard someone calling her.

"Eleana, Eleana!" A young boy ran up, out of breath, pulling her out of her meditative state. She recognized Sam Bancks. He had short, light brown hair, was a bit chubby, and always carried a cheerful attitude that amused her. However, she didn’t like being disturbed in her moments of solitude. "I’ve been looking for you! The feast has started, you should hurry."

"Yeah, yeah, I’m coming, just let me enjoy it a bit longer," she replied, slightly annoyed.

"It’s the last day before summer break, it’d be a shame to spend it in Madam Headjoy’s office writing lines because you broke curfew," came a voice from behind her. Eleana jumped. Albus Dumbledore was standing next to her. She quickly regained her usual confident demeanor.

"Albus Dumbledore!" she exclaimed. "Would you stop sneaking up on me, unless you’d prefer Hogwarts to lose its best Quidditch Seeker?"

Albus and Sam laughed as if she had just told the funniest joke ever. Of course, what she said was true—besides scoring the best results among the fourth years, she also had a definite talent for Quidditch. The two boys were mostly amused by Eleana’s occasional arrogance.

"Alright, that’s enough," she declared, standing up. "We’d better hurry before Jane eats all the feast."

"That’s the most sensible thing I’ve heard you say so far," Albus replied instantly.

Eleana took Sam’s arm and the three of them climbed the slope back to the Hogwarts entrance.

"I hope there’s pudding for dessert," Sam said. That made Eleana’s mouth water—she hadn’t realized how hungry she was.

They entered the Great Hall. Eleana immediately felt the eyes on her and Albus. She was used to it by now—they were both strikingly beautiful. She had long blond hair that reached her waist and eyes of a magnetic blue. On top of that, she was very tall, which allowed her to stand her ground against anyone.

"Hey! Albus! Come sit with us!" a group of boys and girls suddenly called. "It’s our last day at Hogwarts—freedom at last! We have to celebrate together!"

Albus looked at Eleana, smiling. "See you tomorrow on the train," he said as he joined the group.

They were heading to their group of friends when Eleana spotted Jaiden Northon. She glanced sideways at Sam to gauge his reaction. As expected, he blushed at the sight of him.

"Well then, what are you waiting for?" she whispered to him.
Sam blushed even more, much to Eleana’s amusement.

"It’s just that... I can’t seem to find the courage to talk to him," he moaned.

"You just have to go for it," Eleana replied nonchalantly.

She walked over to Jaiden, to Sam’s great dismay. "Excuse me, but I think my friend would like to get to know you," she said mischievously. Then she shoved Sam toward him, whispering, "You can thank me later."

She then walked off to find a seat. The rest of the feast went by in joy and laughter. The students were relieved that the exams were over and eagerly awaited the holidays. After the Headmaster finished his speech and bid farewell to the seventh years, everyone rushed off for one last night at Hogwarts. Eleana returned to her dormitory accompanied by the rest of the Gryffindors. Albus was leading the way, as he was their Head Boy. She didn’t see Sam anywhere and assumed everything had gone well with Jaiden.

"So Eleana, what are you going to do this summer?" a young girl suddenly asked. The rest of the students perked up, curious to hear more. Eleana sighed inwardly. She had managed to avoid this question until now. Of course, they weren’t really interested in her holidays—they were curious about her brother. "I suppose I’ll go stay with my aunt like every holiday. And who knows what will happen? Life is full of surprises, isn’t it?" she replied with her usual enthusiasm. That seemed to satisfy the curious crowd, as the conversation shifted to another topic.

After passing the countless moving staircases, corridors, and halls, they finally arrived in front of their dormitory. "Great scott," recited Albus to the Fat Lady. She opened the passage for them. "Off to bed, everyone!"

One part of life at Hogwarts Eleana didn’t enjoy was the lack of solitude. She had to wait until late at night, after everyone was asleep, to sneak out. She used the concealment spell she and her brother had learned. That way, she could wander the castle without much difficulty. Eleana loved walking at night and had done so since her very first night at Hogwarts. She passed by the common room, cozy with its fireplace and velvet armchairs. She explored the entire castle, visiting all her favorite spots late into the night. Then she returned to her room and collapsed exhausted onto her bed.

Eleana was woken the next morning by the noise of her friends packing their things. They headed together to the Great Hall for one last breakfast. Time flew by, and in no time, the students were on the train platform, trying to find a seat with their luggage.

Eleana was just about to board when she heard someone call her name.

"Mrs. Grindelwald!"