Who Was the Bad Kid?

Compared to the fist-sized ball of light a few days ago, the ball of light is now about the size of Hermione's head.

Hermione curiously poked at the ball of light with her finger. Her fair finger went right through it, and she blinked, saying, "I can't feel anything."

"Could it be that this ball of light needs to grow to the same size as your Patronus animal to take shape?" Hermione speculated thoughtfully.

"Then it shouldn't be long."

It's several times larger than it was three days ago, and Loren is quite satisfied with this progress.

He stopped casting the spell, dimmed the silver light from the tip of his wand, and looked at Hermione. "You try."

Hermione straightened her casting posture and silently recited in her mind: the spell is "Expecto Patronum," the wand should be drawn in a circle, recalling the happiest memories.

The morning wind swept across the open fields and into the courtyard, making Hermione's unkempt hair fly wildly.

Hermione calmed herself down and thought it through.

A year ago, before the girl received her Hogwarts acceptance letter, she was unaware that she was a very talented Witch.

For a long time, she attended regular schools, but her parents, who were dentists, spent a lot of money to send her to a private school. The teachers were very dedicated, and the curriculum was very comprehensive.

Having grown up surrounded by her mother, Hermione loves reading and learning, keeps up with her teachers' lessons, and completes all her assignments perfectly.

But that's all.

Most of her classmates didn't like Hermione, who excelled in every subject, and considered her a bookworm. During breaks at school, she would politely exchange pleasantries with classmates, but outside of school, she had virtually no social interaction.

Her parents were worried and anxious about this, but they couldn't show it. However, Hermione didn't feel unhappy during that time. She studied hard at school and had her parents' company at home, which made her life fulfilling and wonderful.

However, nothing unexpected happened.

If asked about her happiest memories, Hermione would immediately recall the day she received her Hogwarts acceptance letter, when Professor McGonagall opened a door to miracles for her.

From then on, her life was completely different from the previous ten years: Diagon Alley, Hogwarts, the Sorting Hat...

All the scenes came to life because of the magic.

The person standing out in this vivid scene is this person with a terrible personality.

He always loved to play pranks, always left her both amused and exasperated, always acted mysteriously, and always spoke in ways she couldn't understand...

This same person pulled her out of her perpetual loneliness, taking her out at night, leading her to break school rules, and doing things she would never have done before. Even when visiting her home, he would sneak her into her parents' study and have her drink beverages there.

Hermione's lips curved into a beautiful smile; she knew all too well the happiest memories:

"[Patronus Charm] "

The magic wand made of Vine Wood emitted a bright silver light, like twinkling stars, illuminating the courtyard under the sun.

A flash of silver light appeared, then quickly faded away.

Loren was a little stunned. "You opened it, right?"

"Try it again!" Loren said with a strange expression. Why are both Patronus Charm different from yours?

Hermione was also amazed by the light she emitted for the first time, and she waved her wand again. "[Patronus Charm]!"

This time it worked normally; a fist-sized silver orb of light emerged from the tip of the wand, emitting a soft glow.

Hermione tried several more times, but she couldn't reproduce the effect of the first time.

Loren breathed a sigh of relief. He was afraid that Hermione wouldn't be able to learn it, but he was also afraid that Hermione would learn it in one go.

Hermione knew this was normal, and after a slight disappointment, she and Loren began to practice seriously.

In a car parked on a deserted street, a young couple is having a family conversation.

Wendell turned off the car, looked at the fuel gauge, and said, "Was it really the right thing to send Hermione to wizarding school? I mean, shouldn't we check out Hogwarts? Their society seems completely different from ours."

"You seem to be the most interested in and enthusiastic about magic among our whole family," Monica teased.

"So even I think so. What about you? I know you're more rational than me. You don't reject magic, but you don't accept it entirely either."

Wendell unbuckled his seatbelt, turned sideways, and looked intently at his wife. "We've been through similar times. New ideas are still brewing, and old concepts and systems are like dilapidated buildings—broken but not yet collapsed, still playing a residual role."

"You went through a lot of hardship after graduating from medical school; we both know what that kind of environment is like."

Wendell was talking about her time in college. Even though Monica's family supported her studies, there were many prejudiced teachers and students in medical school. Their gazes were like knives, chilling to the bone.

Monica still had a smile on her face, "I hesitated for a while at breakfast. Now I've thought it through. Sending Hermione to Hogwarts is not only because she likes magic, but also for little Hermione's healthy growth."

Wendell understood Monica's point. Hermione was exceptionally intelligent from a young age compared to her peers, but this intelligence was also a burden.

"As you know, Hermione's social life is not normal. Before this, she didn't have a single friend. I actually think that sending Hermione to wizarding school was the right thing to do. She did learn new things at Hogwarts, learned how to get along with people, and made good friends."

Wendell nodded in agreement.

Monica, believing the issue had been resolved, reached for her car key, started the car, and said, "Loren's a good kid, isn't he?"

Wendell relaxed. "Is it because he'll compliment your cooking?"

"Of course, at least I'm not like you who only reads newspapers."

"Hey, think back to how good I was to you in college..."

With a tap on the gas, the Mr. and Mrs. Granger drove their car toward their happy little house.

In the courtyard behind the villa, Apple Wood and Vine Wood wands flashed again and again with the silver light of the Patronus Charm, demonstrating how hard their owner worked.

Loren stopped casting the spell, rubbed his slightly sore wrists, and wanted to slack off.

It was as if I was stuck; no matter how many times I practiced, I couldn't make the size of the Patronus Charm's light orb grow much.

Unlike other spells, the Patronus Charm doesn't require the caster to simply chant the incantation, wave the spell, and practice repeatedly.

It's very troublesome. You need to mentally prepare yourself before casting the spell, recalling your happiest memories. Mental work that requires full concentration is more tiring than physical work, so practicing this spell is also very mentally taxing.

Hermione noticed that the frequency of the silver light flashing on the other side slowed down and eventually stopped.

She glared at the lazybones. "Dumbledore said all you have left to do is practice more. You should be more diligent and try to summon your physical Patronus as soon as possible."

"Ugh!" Loren groaned. Hermione's words made perfect sense, but he still wanted to slack off.

But the "class monitor" Witch was watching him, and he had no choice but to wave his wand again.

Hermione saw that Loren had listened to her advice and continued practicing his Patronus Charm.

Seeing that Hermione was no longer looking at him, Loren thought that having to mentally prepare himself for every spell was too tiring, so he changed the spell he was about to utter: "[Lumos]"

Call out!

The tip of the wand emitted a silver light, which then went out.

The difference in difficulty between the Illumination Charm and the Patronus Charm is enormous. Loren could cast the Illumination Charm with his eyes closed, without any effort at all.

If you don't look closely, the way the Illumination Charm flashes is similar to the Patronus Charm.

Hermione didn't see it, but she could hear the sound. Not fooled, she laughed in exasperation.

Loren continued, "[Lumos]"

The tip of the wand lit up with a "whoosh" and then went out.

Hermione couldn't hold back any longer, "Do you think I'm stupid? Can't you tell the difference between the Illumination Charm and the Patronus Charm?!"

"Keep practicing, no slacking off." She poked him hard with her finger.

Loren had no choice but to mentally prepare himself and practice the Patronus Charm.

The silver light flickered in the courtyard. By the end of the morning, the Patronus light orbs that the two could summon had grown considerably, but they still hadn't taken shape.

Hermione's summoned orb was about the size of a head, while Loren's orb was the size of two heads.

Slowly, the sun climbed above the house. It wasn't very hot in the courtyard yet, but after a morning of practice and constantly repeating incantations, both of them were parched.

Loren gradually couldn't hold on any longer; his voice unconsciously grew softer and weaker until he finally stopped.

Hermione also felt her mouth and throat were dry, and her chanting became slurred, so she slowly stopped.

"Hermione, are you thirsty?" Loren chuckled.

Hermione swallowed hard, seemingly a little...

Hermione understood Loren's implication; the cola yesterday was indeed very sweet. After hesitating for less than a second, a mischievous smile appeared on her face.

The two exchanged a glance, then happily went inside, walked to the refrigerator, and opened the refrigerator door.

"What would you like to drink?" Loren asked, looking at the drinks in the refrigerator.

"Cola!" Hermione said decisively.

"Aren't you afraid of cavities?" Loren joked, finding Hermione's behavior quite amusing.

Hermione retorted, "I brush my teeth every day, and drinking a little Coke won't cause cavities."

As a result, the supply of Coke in the refrigerator decreased by two bottles.

Hermione was already familiar with the process, turning the bottle cap into a straw and then slurping up the stimulating bubbles, the cool and sweet black syrup.

The cool sensation slid down my throat and into my stomach.

The two of them let out a satisfied sigh in unison, "Ah!"

For Hermione, this was a novel and exciting experience. Whether it was sneaking into the study or stealing a Coke, things she wouldn't have done before, but with Loren's company, these things became fun.

Hermione drank almost half the bottle in one gulp, quenching her thirst. A strange sense of guilt rose in her heart, and she looked up and said dejectedly, "It's all your fault. I've become bad. I never did these bad things before."

"Cough!" Loren almost spat out his cola. "You're not thirsty anymore, so you're starting to blame me, huh? If you're so capable, then don't drink the rest."

Hermione said righteously, "No, we can't waste it."

"I won't waste it, I'll drink the rest!"

"You wish!"

The two argued while slurping down their cola. Yesterday's cola was flat, but today's wasn't. One bottle made their bellies bulge.

While Loren wasn't looking, Hermione took a deep breath and lifted her belly slightly, but then couldn't hold it in and went back to normal.

She touched her lower abdomen, her expression serious as she secretly resolved: I can't drink like this anymore.

"Hermione! Hermione!"

"Loren!"

"Come out and help us move our things!" Wendell's voice came from outside; they had returned.

The two quickly hid the Coke bottle.

Hermione lifted her tummy again and skipped out the door.

"Dad, what did you buy?" Hermione asked excitedly as she pushed open the door.

Wendell opened the trunk and started unloading bags and packages. "A bigger camping tent, Loren's sleeping bag, some charcoal..."

They upgraded their camping gear from a family of three to a family of four, replacing items like tents and sleeping mats with larger ones. They also bought Loren sleeping bags, cooking utensils, and other personal items.

Loren followed Hermione and arrived. Seeing the huge pile of things, he picked out a suitable bag and carried it into the house.

"Good boy!"

Wendell was still taking things out. "Your mother also bought some medicine to update our medicine box."

After closing the car door, the four of them made two trips to carry the things into the house.

Wendell helped Loren and Hermione unpack the things they had just bought, while Monica went to the study to put away the bills and checkbook.

Monica went to the study, put the key in but couldn't turn it. She paused for a moment, then grabbed the handle and turned it, and the door opened.

Monica immediately understood what had happened, and she leaned out to look at the three people tidying up.

The two children were completely unaware that they had forgotten to clean up the crime scene. They were still looking at all sorts of interesting things and instructions, whispering to each other from time to time, and laughing loudly.

Monica didn't say anything. She went inside and first checked the medical bookshelf to make sure they hadn't touched those books. Then she looked at another bookshelf, but there were no signs of it being disturbed.

As a mother, I immediately understood that the two of them were treating this as an adventure destination.

This was Loren's first time visiting their home, and he didn't know what the study was like; that's what Hermione had shown him.

As for the method of unlocking, it must be magic.

Monica smiled and called out, "Hermione, come here for a second!"

Hermione, who was examining Loren's new sleeping bag, stiffened. Her quick mind immediately realized that the little thief who had sneaked into the study had been caught.

"Hermione," Monica called again.

Hermione glanced at Loren, who seemed completely oblivious to what was happening, poked him with a pained expression, and slowly moved to her knees.

She moved slowly and leisurely until she entered the study. Seeing her mother next to the bookshelf, Hermione walked over awkwardly.

Monica reached out and poked the little rascal's forehead, asking with a smile, "Which books did you flip through?"

Hermione answered hesitantly, "I didn't flip through much of the book, I just glanced at it, that one—"

As she spoke, Hermione stretched out her little hand and pointed to "Krav Maga Analysis" on the bookshelf.

Monica didn't see any inappropriate books for children, so she took one down and handed it to Hermione, patting her hair. "Tell Mom what kind of book you want to read, and Mom will let you read it if she thinks it's suitable. Don't sneak in like that again."

Hermione nodded, thinking to herself: How will I know what book I want to read if I don't look through it?

But he didn't dare to show it.

"Go play," Monica ruffled Hermione's curls and sent her out.

Hermione turned and left quickly, as if afraid that Monica would change her mind; she really liked the book.

Seeing Hermione's somewhat different figure, Monica reaffirmed her decision to send her to Hogwarts.