The Mirror of Erised (Part One)

At the Granger family home, a long way from Hogwarts, Hermione was enjoying Christmas dinner with her parents.

When she saw the enormous turkey her mother brought to the table, Hermione's eyes lit up. She loved the taste of turkey.

As usual, she got one of the turkey legs. Carefully cutting off a piece with her knife and fork, she put it in her mouth and closed her eyes in bliss.

It tasted just as familiar as ever. Her mother was such a good cook. She wondered if she'd ever learn how to cook like that...

Then she could make meals for her own family and the person she loved.

As she thought this, Lin Yue's image appeared uncontrollably in Hermione's mind.

Why had she thought of Lin Yue? The moment the question occurred to her, Hermione answered it herself.

It was perfectly normal to make a Christmas dinner and invite her friend over to eat.

Smiling, she took another bite of turkey and followed that thought as she chewed.

Lin Yue... She wondered what she was doing now. She was probably having Christmas dinner too.

But maybe not... If she was still eating for only three and a half minutes... she'd probably finished already.

At the thought, Hermione's smile slowly faded. Christmas dinner... If Lin Yue was still eating like that, Hermione pressed her lips together tightly.

It would really break her heart. Christmas dinner was supposed to be a meal to enjoy...

Seeing his daughter press her lips together, looking as if something was troubling her,

Mr. Granger asked in confusion, "Hermione, what's wrong? Is something bothering you?"

"Hm?" Hermione came back to herself and shook her head at her father. "I'm fine. I'm just a little worried..."

"Worried?" Mr. Granger looked at Hermione, bewildered.

Mrs. Granger had just brought the rest of the food out of the kitchen. One look at Hermione's expression was enough for her to guess what she was worried about. It was that girl named Lin Yue, wasn't it?

She wasn't sure what Hermione was worried about, though. "All right, don't ask so many questions."

Mrs. Granger patted her husband on the shoulder, indicating that he should eat and not ask any more.

Then she went over to Hermione, bent down, and gently put an arm around her shoulders, leaning close to her ear.

"Don't worry, Hermione. It's Christmas today. Santa Claus makes sure everyone has a happy day."

"Mom..." Hermione pouted. "You know I stopped believing in Santa Claus when I was eight."

Mrs. Granger chuckled and ruffled her daughter's hair. "Sometimes, believing in fairy tales is a wonderful thing."

Hermione lowered her head as a few thoughts quietly passed through her mind. She had stopped believing in Santa Claus when she was eight.

But tonight, she was willing to believe... In fact, she was willing to believe in Santa Claus every Christmas from now on.

She only hoped Santa Claus really could make sure Lin Yue had a happy day—and that she was truly happy.

The Granger family's Christmas dinner was underway, and the Christmas feast at Hogwarts was still going on too.

The professors and students in the Great Hall chatted with one another as they enjoyed dessert and ice cream.

Lin Yue sat quietly at her place, eating small spoonfuls of the Vanilla Ice Cream in front of her.

For the first time in a long while, her mind was completely blank. She wasn't thinking about studying or recalling anything she'd read in a book.

It wasn't until she returned to the Dormitory after the feast that Lin Yue's mind went back to its usual state.

She instinctively reviewed her actions over the past two days. Her thoughts settled on spending the entire afternoon playing in the snow with Harry and Ron.

She had wasted study time playing in the snow. The study time she'd wasted had to be made up, and she also had to punish herself for wasting it.

Without hesitation, Lin Yue raised her right hand and pressed it against her left arm, but she couldn't bring herself to strike.

Her mind kept replaying the Christmas feast, along with the taste of the Christmas present Hermione had given her that morning.

Though she still felt no emotional stirrings, Lin Yue slowly lowered her hand.

I don't want to punish myself tonight, the thought came clearly to her mind.

Then she could punish herself tomorrow. Even if delaying the punishment meant doubling it, she still didn't want to punish herself tonight.

She didn't want the memory of punishing herself to become tied to Hermione's present and the Christmas feast, though she didn't know why.

With her right hand lowered, Lin Yue stared blankly around her.

This was usually study time. Now that she wasn't studying... she had no idea what to do.

Sitting quietly on the bed, Lin Yue stared at the floor until her eyes began to ache. Only then did she look up at the clock in the Dormitory.

One in the morning. She had been sitting there for a full two hours. Maybe she could sleep.

Lin Yue told herself this, but... should she really sleep?

"You don't need much sleep. One hour a day is enough. If you sleep any longer, you're making a mistake!"

Her mother's voice echoed in Lin Yue's mind. She slowly lowered her head and, in the end, didn't lie down.

She sat quietly until it was time for her rest, then lay down and closed her eyes.

Without any transition, she fell asleep.

An hour later, Lin Yue abruptly opened her eyes and sat up in bed.

It was already a new day. Before getting out of bed to put on her shoes, Lin Yue raised her hand and struck her left arm without the slightest delay.

She had spent four hours playing in the snow that afternoon. Because she had delayed her punishment the previous night, the original four strikes had become eight. After eight strikes, without holding back at all, Lin Yue's left arm was already trembling slightly.

Her upper left arm was now covered in dark bruises, one handprint overlapping another. It was a frightening sight.

She laboriously raised her left arm and rotated it, her expression still calm, showing no sign of pain.

Once the trembling in her arm had eased a little, Lin Yue got out of bed, put on her shoes and socks, picked up her schoolbag, and left the Dormitory.

When she arrived at the Library, it was so early that Madam Pince hadn't come in to start work yet.

So Lin Yue could only leave the books she needed to return on the table beside her and wait for Madam Pince to arrive.

Then she went over to the shelves, pulled out a few new books, and sat in her usual seat.

After reading quietly for two and a half hours, she saw Madam Pince arrive at the Library at seven sharp.

Lin Yue went over, returned the books she'd borrowed, and borrowed some new ones from her. Then she left the Library with her schoolbag on her back.

Watching Lin Yue go, Madam Pince couldn't help reflecting once again on how diligent she was. As she did, she couldn't help thinking that if every student at Hogwarts were this diligent—

The thought had barely crossed her mind when it gave her such a fright that she shuddered. A pang of distress struck her, too.

The children would be working far too hard... It was better for them to stay as they were: healthy and happy, learning as they grew up.

With a helpless sigh, Madam Pince shook her head and looked away. Lin Yue... She simply expected too much of herself.

Lin Yue hurried into the Great Hall. As soon as she sat down at the central round table, the house-elves promptly brought her breakfast.

She finished breakfast in three and a half minutes, then stood and hurried back to the Dormitory as fast as she could. Opening a book, she began reading intently.

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to her, Harry had just come out of his Dormitory and was excitedly discussing the mirror he'd seen the night before with Ron.

"I saw my parents!" Harry excitedly shared his joy with Ron.

"Well..." Ron glanced at Harry uneasily, but decided to congratulate him first. "I'm happy for you, mate, but you know... they're gone..."

"I know! They're dead..." Harry lowered his head and fell silent for a moment. Then he looked up, a light shining in his eyes once more.

"But I really did see them in the mirror last night! Maybe it's a mirror that lets people see the dead!"

"All right, maybe it is," Ron said with a nod.

"Will you come with me?" Harry asked Ron excitedly. "I mean, you can meet my parents."

"Of course, mate." Ron patted Harry on the shoulder. "I'd be happy to!"

Harry nodded happily. Seeing how unusually excited he was, Ron suddenly felt a flash of inspiration.

"I think we could invite Lin Yue along too. I mean, she knows so much. Maybe she'll know what's going on with that mirror. And we could use the chance to help her relax."

"Good idea, Ron," Harry said with a nod of agreement. "Then let's ask her to come tonight."

Confusion crossed Ron's face. He looked at Harry with an exasperated expression. "Why... do we have to go at night, after curfew? You know Lin Yue probably wouldn't like breaking curfew."

Harry slapped a hand to his forehead. "Oh, right... I forgot we could go during the day. I got too excited."

Ron let out a long sigh and patted Harry on the shoulder. "It's fine. Come on."

When they arrived in front of the Ravenclaw Common Room, the Bronze knocker, as expected, asked them another question.

The two boys looked at each other, then couldn't be bothered to think it over and started making up answers.

In the end, Harry got unbelievably lucky and actually guessed a reasonable answer. The Bronze knocker slowly opened the door and let them in.

As they entered the Ravenclaw Common Room, the first thing they saw was the little library belonging to Ravenclaw Academy.

"Ravenclaw really does love studying," Ron remarked.

Harry nodded in agreement, then looked around. When he didn't see Lin Yue, he guessed she was reading in her Dormitory.

Since no one else from Ravenclaw had stayed at Hogwarts for Christmas, he simply called out.

"Lin Yue! Lin Yue, are you there?"

Harry's voice was muffled by the door to the girls' Dormitory, but it still reached Lin Yue's ears.

The sound was faint, but enough for Lin Yue to recognize someone calling her by her full name.

Leaving her study, Lin Yue set down the book she'd been reading without changing her expression and went to open the door.

She walked downstairs into the Common Room. Her gaze settled calmly on Harry and Ron, and she spoke without emotion.

"What is it?"

"Um... I found a really interesting mirror while wandering around last night. I wanted to take you to see it. You know, to help you relax."

Harry hesitated as he spoke, making a point of emphasizing the part about relaxing. That showed he was doing what Hermione had asked, though he wasn't sure whether Lin Yue would agree.

They're taking me to relax. The thought flashed through Lin Yue's mind.

Relaxing would take up study time. She couldn't use up study time.

But Hermione had asked them to help her relax... The two thoughts in Lin Yue's mind clashed once again.

In the end, just as before, Lin Yue calmly nodded and agreed to let Harry take her to relax.

She could make up for the time she spent relaxing later, along with the three hours she'd spent knitting Hermione gloves and the four hours she'd spent playing in the snow.

As for the punishment for using up study time, she would do that when she got back.

With Lin Yue along, Harry led her and Ron to the abandoned classroom where he'd seen the mirror the previous night.

As soon as they entered the classroom, Lin Yue saw the enormous mirror in the center.

The moment Harry saw it, he forgot everything around him and hurried over, gazing longingly at the images of his parents inside.

After looking for a few moments, Harry finally remembered the others. He turned and beckoned to Ron and Lin Yue. "Ron, Lin Yue, come on! Look at my parents!"

"Okay." Ron nodded and hurried over.

Lin Yue walked up calmly and examined the mirror with a steady gaze. Then she recognized the inscription written across it in runes.

The Mirror of Erised. The description she'd once read in a book immediately came to mind.

"Can you see my parents?" Harry was still excitedly asking Ron from the other side.

"No..." Ron sounded just as excited, but also a little puzzled. "I can see... myself becoming Student Council President, Gryffindor Quidditch Team Captain, and winning the Hogwarts Special Contribution Award!"

"Does this mirror show us the future?!" he exclaimed, then looked at Harry, thrilled.

Harry froze for a moment, then shook his head with a bitter smile. "How could it, Ron? My parents are dead."

Ron abruptly realized what he'd said and hurried to speak. "Oh, sorry, I didn't mean— I..."

"It's all right." Harry waved a hand to show he didn't mind.

Once Lin Yue had confirmed that it was the Mirror of Erised, she walked forward slowly, her expression unchanged.

Ron turned to look at her curiously. "Lin Yue, do you know what this mirror is? Why do Harry and I see different things in it?"