Chapter 355: The Source of Cedric’s Happiness
The train chugged along, releasing clouds of steam as it sped down the tracks.
Inside the carriage, after Kyle and the others had settled in, Kanna and Cho put aside The Quibbler and began chatting about their holiday adventures. Soon, Cho's face turned red with frustration.
"Cedric, that liar!" she huffed. "He told me that Beauxbatons Academy of Magic was in the Pyrenees, so we drove all over the place, but we couldn't find anything on the map. We spent an entire day circling around, but there was absolutely nothing there!"
"That's actually pretty normal," Kyle replied. "I don't know about the other schools, but the locations of the three major wizarding schools in Europe are heavily protected. These charms not only safeguard their teaching methods but also shield students and the schools themselves from harm."
"Just like Hogwarts," he continued. "If a Beauxbatons student were to visit, all they'd see is a bare cliff."
Cho and Kanna looked stunned. They knew the schools were hidden by protective magic, but they'd always assumed it was only to keep muggles away—like the Muggle-Repelling Charm in front of the Leaky Cauldron. They hadn't realized that this protection extended to other witches and wizards as well.
"But then how did Cedric..." Cho wondered aloud.
"Maybe he met someone connected to the school," Kyle suggested. "If a professor or someone else from Beauxbatons shared its location with him, then the protections would be bypassed. Or, if a student led him there, it would work similarly to the Fidelius Charm."
Cho thought back and remembered Cedric mentioning an encounter with an old French wizard who had told him the location of Beauxbatons. That must have been it.
She sighed, feeling a bit disheartened. Why hadn't she met someone like that?
"Fidelius Charm?" Ginny looked up from The Quibbler, her expression curious. "I think Dad mentioned it once, but I don't remember much about it."