The Fat Lady, returning from visiting neighbors, was very relieved that the scene from many years ago did not repeat itself tonight.
Although they weren't laughing or joking, the two young wizards, who were said to have "fallen out," no longer had the tense expressions they had before.
"Go inside quickly, children."
Her kind and gentle smile made Vincent and Hermione feel extremely uncomfortable.
"My roommates are all sleeping very soundly, how about you?"
"They won't care where I go."
"You could actually—never mind, you know what I mean."
"They don't like me, and I won't make a fool of myself."
Vincent hesitated for a moment before reaching out and opening the door in front of the boys' dormitory.
I hope you can make real friends soon.
Hermione, standing in front of the girls' dormitory, watched him walk in, then opened the door with a complicated expression.
"I just don't dislike you..."
She went inside, talking to herself.
At dawn, something astonishing happened in the Great Hall Hogwarts.
Today's breakfast was surprisingly all red and yellow tomato and egg noodles.
What shocked the Little Lions even more was that Hermione no longer stared at Vincent like she had before.
What exactly happened in the Gryffindor Common Room last night?
The twins, who were the most curious, squeezed over after finishing their noodles and soup.
"Dude, you're the best!" George gave him a thumbs up.
Vincent glanced at him and said, "I have some bad news for you: I've confessed everything."
"Confessed?" Fred slapped his forehead. "We're going to get double the damage from that Old Bat..."
"No, she won't." Vincent calmly put down his fork. "She'll be with us on our nighttime walks until the person who knocked Malfoy out reappears."
"!!!" The twins' eyes widened.
The shock of this news was comparable to Snape being expelled from school.
"Although I think even if we catch her, she'll still go out at night."
As they watched him eat noodles again, countless questions welled up inside them.
"Alright," Fred whispered, leaning closer. "Tonight, you have to give us brothers an explanation."
"Confess? What confession?"
George glared at him fiercely. "You abandoned us. Do you know how heartbreaking that is?"
Vincent suddenly leaned back, "I'm only 11 years old, I don't understand."
"This is boring~" The twins pouted and left.
He shook his head and continued to focus on his meal.
What class do we have later?
"Defense Against the Dark Arts."
Neville was stunned after hearing James's answer.
He forgot to prepare a gas mask again!
Alfred pulled a small bag of cotton from his school robe. "Want me to share some with you?"
"Thanks."
Neville took a small ball, then looked at Vincent beside him, "Would you like some too?"
Thanks.
Vincent gently tapped the cotton ball in his hand with the wand he was holding in his left hand.
A bright red mask with gold trim quickly appeared in his palm.
"Wow—" Neville looked it over. "You went to see Professor McGonagall the other day just to learn this?"
"More or less."
Vincent wiped his mouth with a napkin and looked at James and Alfred, whose faces were full of longing. "Do you want some too?"
"Yes!" x2
After showing off his Transfiguration again, he noticed that the first-grade Little Lions were all staring at him longingly.
"This— Professor Quirrell will be unhappy."
"Who cares if he's happy or not?" Seamus said dismissively. "Going to class is a disaster."
Dean nodded in agreement. "Vincent, he's a complete fraud. What professor would stammer when answering a student's question?"
"Okay." Vincent finally understood how Quirrell was perceived by others.
He's timid, eccentric, and doesn't even have any real skills.
After discovering that Troll was lurking on campus, the professor actually fainted after delivering the news.
He's not stupid, and neither is Dumbledore.
Vincent was conjuring up masks one by one, thought for a moment and realized that he could actually use this method to make Quirrell give himself away faster.
If the other party really wants to show that they have a problem, they will definitely cooperate with them.
When most of the people had left, Hermione came up to him and held out her little hand.
"Give me one too."
Vincent squinted at her for a while, "You change too, don't you?"
"And if we all wear masks to class, even Professor Quirrell, with his good temper, would get angry."
Hermione stared back at her. "You knew this would happen, so why did you grant their little wishes?"
"That's why you don't fit in."
Vincent lightly tapped the last clump of cotton with his wand. "You know the herd mentality, right? You're the maverick who stands out from the crowd."
Hermione, amused and exasperated, snatched the mask away. "So you're the ringleader of all the bad guys?"
"I admit it's only occasional."
Vincent was stunned after he finished speaking.
Alfred's cotton balls were a little short of enough for the Little Lions.
And that last bit, she happened to have it.
Looking at his empty hands, he shrugged generously. "Did you only come to me because you knew you didn't have enough?"
Hermione waved the mask in her hand. "There are consequences for doing bad things, Mr. Wayne."
"I really don't know who has the ability to be your friend..."
Listening to this rambling, she seemed to feel much better. "If I really want to make friends, I'll still have plenty."
"I'll wait and see." Vincent pulled out two napkins, then crumpled them into a ball after a moment's thought.
"They're really cautious."
He understood what the sarcasm was implying.
Masks are made of cotton.
Using a tissue to Transfiguration in full view of everyone—even a fool would know who's playing a prank on Draco.
"No, how did you know!" He suddenly stood up excitedly. "Malfoy never said that—"
Seeing a sly glint in those big brown eyes, he knew he had been tricked into revealing information.
"So it was Transfiguration ..." Hermione nodded thoughtfully.
Vincent, slumped in his chair, looked up at the blue sky and white clouds on the Great Hall ceiling.
He was just careless and fell into the little witch's trap.
Twice!
"Hey, I won't tell anyone."
"I'm not afraid of this."
Hermione knew why he was so upset.
It's definitely not a pleasant feeling to be outsmarted.
She has felt this deeply since the first day of school.
Just as she was about to say something, Vincent suddenly stood up with a smile.
It's just a one-for-one trade at best, so overall you don't lose out.
What he really wanted to keep secret was why he wanted to expose Quirrell's true colors.
It's just a high-end soap; it doesn't matter if people find out.
"Where you go?"
"Looking for cotton."
Hermione always felt that he was a little too optimistic.
If it were her, she definitely wouldn't have given her a pleasant look.
"The herd mentality..."
She gazed at the broad back of the man walking out of the Great Hall, muttering something to herself.