I Let My Guard Down

As soon as the eight hours were up, the Dreamless Sleep Potion had completely worn off. The moment it did, Lin Yue's eyes snapped open.

Her body had been trying to force her to "boot up" for ages, but under the potion's influence, all she could do was struggle back and forth between waking and falling asleep.

Now that the potion had fully worn off, Lin Yue woke at once, just as expected.

At the foot of her bed, Professor McGonagall had changed back from a tabby cat. The stern witch stood with her lips pressed tight as she watched Lin Yue.

Professor Flitwick was sitting nearby, too. When he saw her wake, he handed her a glass of water.

Lin Yue took the glass in both hands and, without changing her expression, murmured her thanks. Only then did she lower her head and take a small sip.

Madam Pomfrey came over from the beds where Hermione and the others lay and waved her wand at Lin Yue.

"Your body is all right now, but your mind still hasn't fully recovered. You'll need to stay here for a while. Is that all right?" Her imposing gaze settled on Lin Yue. Not many people dared to challenge Madam Pomfrey's authority within the Medical Wing.

Lin Yue fell silent for a moment, then looked at Madam Pomfrey with calm indifference. "I might need to go get some books. They're all in my dormitory. I've finished a few, so I need to go to the Library and exchange them."

Hearing Lin Yue, Madam Pomfrey took a deep breath. Just listen to this girl! She was in this state and still thinking about studying?!

"Miss Lin Yue, what you need right now is rest. Put your studies aside for a while. Your health comes first, understand?"

The words reached Lin Yue's ears, and her brain reacted at once. Studies came first. The thought took up an absurd amount of space in her mind.

Lin Yue's voice remained flat as she spoke mechanically. "Studying is the priority. My body is just trying to slack off and waste time that should be spent studying."

Madam Pomfrey felt she was about to lose her temper. She turned to Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick, silently urging them to say something.

"Miss Lin Yue, I understand that you want to study, but Madam Pomfrey is right, too. How about this?" Professor McGonagall reached out and gently took Lin Yue's hand. "You can read in the Medical Wing, but you have to listen to Madam Pomfrey. When she tells you to rest, you rest."

As professors, they really couldn't force a student to stop studying when she was so eager to learn... And with Madam Pomfrey keeping an eye on her, Lin Yue probably wouldn't be allowed to overdo it.

Lin Yue's mind quickly analyzed the situation. Professor McGonagall had told her to listen to Madam Pomfrey, and when Madam Pomfrey said to rest, she had to rest.

In other words, Professor McGonagall was also telling her to rest whenever Madam Pomfrey said so. It was an order from a professor.

"All right. I'll do as you say." Lin Yue nodded stiffly.

Only then did the three adults present relax a little, though there was still something they didn't understand.

Why had Lin Yue woken every hour after taking the Dreamless Sleep Potion? That had never happened before.

But her examination had revealed no problems other than extreme fatigue and damage to her digestive system, so they assumed Lin Yue simply had an unusual constitution.

After all, even Professor Snape, a master of potions, and Madam Pomfrey, a professional healer, couldn't figure out what was going on. A first-year student like Lin Yue probably wouldn't know either.

Asking her might only cause her unnecessary stress. It wasn't worth it.

"Get some good rest, Miss Lin Yue." Professor Flitwick stood up with a smile.

"Don't worry about your exams. You got a very good score."

"That's right." Professor McGonagall smiled and nodded along. "You also scored very highly in my class."

"Thank you, Professor McGonagall. Professor Flitwick." Lin Yue nodded mechanically, automatically concluding that she must have gotten full marks.

Though getting through the end-of-year exams only required a score in the top two-thirds, and placing in the top third could bring a family access to above-average resources, only full marks counted as acceptable to her. That was what her parents had told her.

Only full marks would spare her punishment, too, so she instinctively interpreted the professors' praise as meaning she had earned a perfect score.

But why were they praising her for getting full marks? Wasn't that the bare minimum she was supposed to achieve?

Lin Yue felt no confusion. She simply ran through these thoughts in her mind, perfectly calm.

After praising Lin Yue, Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick left. Madam Pomfrey returned to her office to prepare a diet to help Lin Yue's digestive system recover.

The curtains on either side of Lin Yue's bed were drawn back. Harry was on her left, Hermione on her right, and Ron on Harry's left.

The three of them had already woken while Madam Pomfrey was examining them. Ron now wore a miserable expression and couldn't help groaning.

"I'd barely opened my eyes, and the first thing I heard was the professors discussing grades... Merlin, it's put me in a terrible mood."

"You did pretty well in your revision, Ron. Have a little confidence in yourself." Hermione turned and rolled her eyes without a hint of tact. "Even if you don't believe in yourself, at least trust my abilities. I helped you revise. You'll be fine."

"Or," Hermione narrowed her eyes ominously, "did you not memorize what I told you to?"

"I did, I did! I memorized everything, I swear!" Ron quickly raised both hands in his defense.

For Merlin's sake, he was still recovering from his injuries. The last thing he wanted was another attack from one of Hermione's heavy books.

Satisfied, Hermione got out of bed and sat down beside Lin Yue's. She reached out and tucked the hair falling against Lin Yue's cheek behind her ear.

"How did you sleep last night?" Professor McGonagall and the others hadn't told Hermione about Lin Yue waking every hour, so she didn't know about it.

"Pretty well." Lin Yue nodded without expression.

She raised her right hand to check the time and immediately calculated that she'd slept for eight hours... Eight hours.

You let your guard down!

The four words abruptly appeared in Lin Yue's mind, making her brain throb again and again.

In the yard of a villa, a girl in a T-shirt and shorts stood barefoot on the ground. Snow had been cleared from the surrounding area and piled over her feet, burying them completely.

A middle-aged woman stood in the villa doorway, bundled up in a down jacket. "You let your guard down, didn't you! Do you know second place is only ten points behind you? Why did you lose a point in physics? Why didn't you get full marks?"

"Are you satisfied with yourself like this? Have you met the standard?"

"No..." Snow covered the girl from head to toe. Her body trembled uncontrollably from the cold, but there wasn't the slightest hint of pain on her face or in her eyes.

"Say it. You let your guard down." The middle-aged woman glared at the girl.

"I let my guard down."

"Again!"

"I let my guard down."

"Again!"

"I let my guard down."

"Good." The middle-aged woman looked satisfied. "Remember this lesson."

The girl's lips had turned black, and her feet, buried in the snow, were bright red.

"Yueyue, Mom's only doing this for your own good. You have to hold on to first place."

The middle-aged woman sounded earnest and caring. "Same as always. Come inside by yourself in ten minutes." Then she turned and went back into the villa.

The door slammed shut. The middle-aged woman rubbed her arms through her down jacket. "It's freezing. Why is this winter so cold?"

You let your guard down!

The four words flashing through Lin Yue's mind kept tormenting her, and memories of the past surged up.

She should do something... She should be punished. One thought in Lin Yue's mind reminded her of this.

Hermione had said she mustn't punish herself over her studies anymore. Another thought arose in her mind, and the two thoughts tugged at each other, as if they were trying to tear her brain in half.

Even as the memories resurfaced and her brain throbbed, Lin Yue's expression didn't change in the slightest.

And yet Hermione looked into her eyes and sensed that Lin Yue was thinking about something upsetting. She was... struggling?

Without another moment's hesitation, Hermione slipped off her slippers, climbed onto the bed, and drew Lin Yue into her arms. She gently patted her back.

Harry and Ron "obediently" turned around, facing away from the two girls as they hugged.

"What's wrong? What are you thinking about?" Hermione asked softly, looking down at Lin Yue in her arms.

Warm... So warm... Lin Yue blankly lifted her head. There was no villa in front of her, no slowly falling snowflakes, only Hermione's gentle smile and her warm embrace.

"I let my guard down..." Lin Yue instinctively voiced the conclusion in her mind.

"Who said that?" Hermione frowned. "The professors just praised you for your grades."

"I slept for eight hours yesterday, and I haven't started studying today. I let my guard down. I..." Lin Yue's voice held no emotion.

Hermione raised a hand and covered Lin Yue's mouth, looking at her with serious concern. "You didn't let your guard down, all right? You didn't. You just took a normal, necessary break."

I didn't let my guard down? Lin Yue asked Hermione silently, without feeling anything.

"You didn't." Hermione nodded firmly.

"But I slept in, and I didn't use that time to study."

"That's called giving yourself a break." Hermione gently stroked Lin Yue's hair.

A break... Lin Yue's mind immediately supplied the definition of the word. A break? In her mind, a holiday meant time to study on her own. It should be filled with books and test papers, not spent lying in bed.

"This is a break?" Lin Yue stared at Hermione's slender, pale neck.

"This is a break." Hermione pulled her fully into her arms, letting Lin Yue's face nestle into the hollow of her neck.

"Don't think about it. Let your mind rest for a while."

"Mm..." The thoughts in Lin Yue's mind were swept away. She simply stayed nestled in Hermione's neck, dazed and thinking of nothing, with Hermione's scent lingering beneath her nose.

Harry had quietly drawn the curtain beside his bed, separating himself and Ron from the two girls.

"Harry..." Ron looked at his best mate, holding his stomach. "Do you think I can ask Madam Pomfrey for some Stomach-strengthening Potion? My stomach hurts a little."

"You could try?" Harry answered uncertainly.

"Speaking of which, when can we leave?" After resting for a while, Ron waited until his stomach settled before picking up the chocolate Madam Pomfrey had left on the bedside table and taking a big bite.

"We should be able to leave this afternoon, but Lin Yue has to stay for a few days. The professors said she needs to rest here, remember?" Harry thought it over before answering.

"That's true. She really needs to get some proper rest." Ron nodded in agreement.

"Ah..." Harry sighed. Having spent more time with Lin Yue, he'd also begun to sense a faint contradiction and conflict within her.

It was as if what she was doing wasn't what she wanted to do. The feeling was subtle, and Harry sensed it far less clearly than Hermione did, but he'd noticed it all the same.

As her friend, he was genuinely worried about her state of mind.

He used to think she truly loved studying. Even now, he still thought so, but Harry couldn't help feeling that something was wrong.

Just as Harry had said, Madam Pomfrey let the three of them leave the Medical Wing that afternoon. Lin Yue, without question, had to stay.

That afternoon, Madam Pomfrey finally gave Qiuzhang and Marietta permission to visit the Medical Wing.

"Thank Merlin, Lin Yue, you're all right." Qiuzhang patted her chest as she looked at her junior, who sat on the bed reading with an expressionless face.

Merlin knew how frightened she and Marietta had been when they heard the rumors.

The story going around was that a Dark Wizard—in other words, Professor Quirrell—had tried to steal the Philosopher's Stone. The Chosen One from Gryffindor and his two friends had discovered him and gone to stop him. In the end, Lin Yue of Ravenclaw had faced the Dark Wizard and defeated him.

Though the rumor ended with Lin Yue defeating the Dark Wizard, who knew whether she'd been hurt? Or hit with a nasty curse?

That was a Dark Wizard, after all! And hadn't Lin Yue been admitted to the Medical Wing? She hadn't even come back that night.

Lin Yue shifted out of her studying mode, closed her book, and greeted Qiuzhang and Marietta politely. "Good afternoon, Qiuzhang Senior Student. Elder Sister Marietta."

"Good afternoon," Marietta replied with a smile. "How are you? Is anything still bothering you?"

Lin Yue shook her head, her voice as calm as still water. "No. Madam Pomfrey thinks I need more rest, so she asked me to stay in the Medical Wing."

"Absolutely right!" Qiuzhang and Marietta exclaimed in unison.

"But it's a shame you won't get to watch tomorrow's Quidditch Match. Ravenclaw is playing Gryffindor."

They each took a chair beside Lin Yue's bed. Qiuzhang looked at Lin Yue with regret.

"That's true," Marietta agreed with a nod. "Fortunately, we have you. Ravenclaw is already more than eight hundred points ahead of the other houses. There's no way anyone can catch up."

"Exactly. You're Ravenclaw's great hero. Everyone's saying they'll throw you a celebration of your own once you're out." Qiuzhang looked at Lin Yue with a smile.

Lin Yue's expression didn't change. "I only did what I was supposed to do."

Qiuzhang and Marietta exchanged glances and shrugged helplessly.

At the same time, Rowena Ravenclaw, who had just woken from her intermittent slumber inside the watch on Lin Yue's right wrist, abruptly heard Qiuzhang and Marietta's words.

She hadn't even had time to feel happy for Lin Yue before she realized the girl had been admitted to the Medical Wing.

Admitted to the Medical Wing?! The girl had endured the Cruciatus Curse before without letting anyone take her there. What on earth had happened this time to land her in the Medical Wing?!