Two Dance Partners, a Second Task Twice as Difficult

"What do you mean by this?" Aaron asked somewhat nervously.

"You should have figured out the clues in the Golden Egg, right?"

"So what?"

"Other Champion have one dance partner, but you have two?"

Two... each...

These last few words kept echoing in Aaron's ears, making his head buzz and his heart feel like it had been struck by lightning.

He immediately understood Adrian's idea: the Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament was to rescue people in the Black Lake. Other Champion would have to rescue one person, but he would probably have to rescue two.

This isn't like herding sheep; whether you have one or two, it's all the same.

Black Lake is very large, and the competition has a one-hour time limit. If the two are too far apart, they will have to race against time. If one of them loses, he or she may have to sleep at the bottom of the lake forever.

"Adrian Klein," Aaron said, barely suppressing his anger, "Even pranks have their limits. Don't you think this is despicable?"

"It concerns the happiness of my younger siblings, so I have to be extremely careful," Adrian said earnestly. "Everyone has to face this choice sooner or later; I'm just bringing it forward a little."

"But there's no need to drag innocent people into this!"

"This can only be described as a coincidence, or a wonderful accident, but it suits me just fine."

"You're Gaius, after all. I'm really looking forward to your performance."

After saying that, Adrian gave Luna a big smile, placed Abei in her arms, and then turned and left.

"I don't think I understood a single word you were saying," Luna said, puzzled.

"I'm sorry," Aaron said somewhat apologetically, "You might be getting involved in the Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament."

"Wow! That's so interesting!" Luna wasn't scared at all; in fact, she seemed very curious. "It's related to the Champion's dance partner, right?"

"Yes, but it's dangerous."

"That might be true for others," Luna raised an eyebrow. "But I was there when you passed the First Task, and I have a lot of confidence in your abilities."

Aaron's lips twitched slightly. He was indeed confident. As long as he revealed one or two more cards Second Task wouldn't be a big deal for him.

But this third-year junior's confidence was a bit hard for him to comprehend. Shouldn't a normal person be nervous, scared, or anxious?

"You'll definitely pass the second competition perfectly, right?"

Aaron nodded blankly, but before he could speak, Luna laughed happily, "Then I have even less reason to worry."

She held Abei in her arms and played with its paws with great interest.

"Um... Miss Lovegood," Aaron said somewhat hesitantly. "Abei is a bit special, so I don't recommend you..."

"Professor McGonagall promised me this." Luna instinctively hugged the pet in her arms tighter. "I'll return it to you tomorrow."

"Can..."

"This is what I earned through my own hard work," Luna interrupted seriously. "I even took a great risk for it, so you can't not even leave me this little bit of consolation!"

Aaron:...

"Okay! But you have to promise me you won't take its clothes off."

"No problem, I agree."

"Sigh!" Aaron sighed inwardly, then used Dragon Language to tell Abei not to reveal his identity and to act as much as possible like a cat.

Abei glanced at her friend, then turned her face away haughtily.

"Thanks, senior." Luna smiled. "I had a very happy Christmas."

After watching Luna leave, Aaron shook his head with a wry smile, then headed towards the room behind the Great Hall.

At this moment, Ron suddenly called out to him. Because his dress was too inappropriate, he did not have the courage to go on stage to dance, even though he had invited a dance partner. This caused him and his dance partner Padma Patil, to sit awkwardly in their seats.

"What's up?"

"Isn't your dance partner Hermione? Who is that girl?"

"Something unexpected happened, Hermione couldn't make it to the ball on time."

"As for the girl, she's Luna Lovegood, a third-year Ravenclaw," Aaron said somewhat helplessly. "Professor McGonagall found me a dance partner at the last minute."

"Someone they found at the last minute? And she's so beautiful?" Ron admitted he was envious. "Why don't I get this kind of treatment?"

"You're not Champion in the Triwizard Tournament," Padma said irritably. "Aren't you going to invite me up to dance?"

"No, thank you."

"Very well." Padma glared at him and decisively left her seat.

She searched around the dance floor for a while and easily found a new dance partner.

"It's already good enough that they didn't look down on you, and you're still not satisfied?" Aaron was speechless.

"I didn't want to either!" Ron said, tilting his collar in frustration. "But wearing this outfit, I'll be the center of attention the moment I go up there. It's so embarrassing."

As soon as he finished speaking, Ron's eyes widened. "Harry, why did you come down here too?"

"I..." Harry stammered, "I'm not very good at dancing."

"It's not very good, but there must be other reasons, right?" Aaron said with amusement.

Harry nodded, his face flushed. "Cho Chang is right next to me, but she's the Cedric's dance partner. Do you know what it feels like to be heartbroken?"

Ron looked at him with sympathy, thinking that compared to Harry, he wasn't so bad off.

The ball had already started, and no one would pay attention to him at this point.

"And your dance partner?"

Harry pointed to the dance floor behind him, and the two looked in the direction he pointed. Parvati was dancing happily with a Durmstrang student.

"You two are truly best friends," Aaron said speechlessly.

"Let's not talk about us, where's Luna?"

"She went back to the public rest room, and she also took my pet with her."

But don't get me wrong, I'm not like the two of you.

"I can tell."

"I'm going to find Hermione first. As for you two... it's better if you go back."

The two looked at each other, but almost without hesitation, they got up and left in perfect unison.

Aaron opened the door behind the teaching seat and walked in somewhat awkwardly.

After passing through several gates, he saw Hermione sitting by the fireplace.

She wore a blue-purple evening gown, her hair deliberately styled in a bun, making her look more elegant and sophisticated than before, though she seemed somewhat distracted.

"I'm sorry, I seem to be a little late." Aaron got straight to the point and said apologetically, "I didn't know my sister had invited you, I'm really sorry."

"It's nothing." Hermione quickly regained her senses and waved her hand dismissively. "She arranged a lavish dinner for me. My mother's monthly salary might not even be enough to afford this meal."

"You were won over by just one dinner?" Aaron chuckled, "I can tell you dressed up carefully today. You must be having an unforgettable ball."

"That is indeed a bit of a pity, but it's okay, we can go out and dance again in a little while."

Upon hearing this, Aaron frowned slightly, sensing that Hermione's mood seemed a little off.

It was too bland; besides the blandness, there was a faint expectation and joy, but no vitality.

What did she say to you?

"Nothing?"

"If nothing happened, you wouldn't be making that face. Tell me what happened?"

"Alright!" Hermione said after a moment of hesitation. "She extended the invitation to me as a referee for the Triwizard Tournament."

I initially wanted to refuse, but she said it was related to my next competition and insisted I wait here for half an hour.

"And then you agreed?"

"Do you know how long I've waited for you? Even my dance partner was found with Professor McGonagall's help." Aaron shook his head, speechless, rubbing his forehead. He hadn't expected the usually shrewd Hermione to be so easily fooled.

"Uh... sorry," Hermione said somewhat awkwardly. "She said it's a sister's way of showing love to her brother and testing your ability to handle unexpected situations."

If you can't find a dance partner at the last minute, I'll immediately step in to help you out and won't embarrass you.

"Have you thought about what would happen if I found a dance partner?" Aaron countered.

"She said you would come to find me in half an hour at most, and that proved to be true."

"Hermione," Aaron said with a hint of helplessness, "Don't believe such unrealistic things so easily in the future."

What if I didn't come looking for you? You'd probably have to stay in this room for a full four hours before you could leave.

"The older sister still has a bloodline advantage over the younger brother," Hermione said, raising an eyebrow. "These are Miss Klein's exact words."

Aaron blinked blankly, a bitter smile creeping onto his lips.

"Good heavens, good heavens indeed."

Even though we're only a year apart, I still feel so inexperienced compared to her.

I was still jumping around on the chessboard, and she's already a skilled player, just a bit too ruthless.

"What's the meaning?"

"It's better if you don't know." Aaron sighed deeply. What's done is done, and there's no point in pursuing it further.

If Hermione knew that the half hour she hid made his first project several times harder than others, she would probably feel so guilty that she couldn't sleep.

"Besides this, what else did Adrian say to you?"

Hermione stammered, her face slightly flushed, unsure of what to say.

"Why are you so nervous? Just say what you have to say."

"She also said... she also said that this half hour would let me know how important I am to you."

"Wortefa!" Aaron couldn't help but curse. "This is outrageous, this is too much!"

"But you did find me within half an hour!" Hermione said embarrassedly.

Upon hearing this, Aaron realized that the two of them were thinking completely differently.

Hermione was thinking about whether he had entered the room within half an hour, while he was thinking about who he should save first during the first hour of the project.

Despite the intense inner turmoil and the burning desire to immediately tell Hermione about Adrian's plan, he managed to suppress the urge.

He can handle it alone, but Hermione's mental fortitude might not be able to withstand it. At least before the first project begins, it's best not to let her know too much.