"What is that?" Silan asked curiously.
Hermione glanced up at him, then quickly looked away, looking down at her toes, her little feet rubbing together, but she hesitated to say what she was about to say.
"Do you want a kiss or a hug? Hurry up!" The Fat Lady straightened the wilted flowers in her hand and grumbled, urging them on.
"Fat Lady!" Hermione said through gritted teeth, embarrassed and annoyed.
"Alright, alright." The Fat Lady raised her hand and zipped her lips up.
Hermione, disturbed by her interruption, became less shy. She quickly hugged Silan and whispered in his ear, "You owe me a friend's hug."
Miss Granger only dared to give you a light hug before quickly letting go, explaining hastily, "Don't misunderstand, it's just a friendly hug. Ron and Harry both hugged you today, and even Malfoy joined in..."
After saying that, Hermione tried to run back to the lounge.
As a result, Silan reached out and hooked her fingers, and with a little force, pulled her into her arms, giving her another generous hug.
"A hug between friends, buy one get one free," Silan said.
This free gift was even tighter than Hermione had hugged it earlier, almost pressing her flushed cheeks against Silan's chest.
A faint, refreshing minty scent wafts over.
This made Hermione almost forget that she was in front of the Gryffindor Common Room.
The Fat Lady in the portrait murmured, "It's so cold outside, yet you all seem so hot-blooded..."
Hermione woke up with a start, quickly scrambled out of Silan's arms, ruffled her hair haphazardly, gave the command, and fled into the lounge.
Hermione ran all the way back to her dorm, but didn't dare go straight in. She stood at the door and fanned her face with her palms.
After calming down for two or three minutes, Hermione finally pushed open the door and entered the bedroom.
As soon as she entered, she saw Lavender and Parvati looking at her with knowing smiles.
"Why is your face so red? Did you do something bad, Hermione?" Lavender chuckled as she leaned closer.
Hermione vehemently denied it. "No way! I'm just a little hot from running back from outside."
"Do you even believe that yourself?" Parvati rolled his eyes.
That's just the way it is.
Hermione pouted stubbornly, deftly bypassing the two of them with nimble steps, taking off her shoes, getting into bed, and wrapping herself in the blanket—all in one smooth motion.
Lavender and Parvati looked at Hermione, who had deployed a three-dimensional defensive stance, with a sense of helplessness.
This defensive stance is so difficult to counter.
When Hermione returned to the Gryffindor common room, the Fat Lady slowly closed the door, glancing at Silan: "Why are you still here? I don't serve supper here. Or are you waiting for the next one?"
The Fat Lady hugged herself in fear. "Is one not enough for you?"
Looking at the Fat Lady who was adding so much drama to her life, Silan shook her head speechlessly and turned to leave.
However, he did not return to the Room of Requirement.
Tonight is Full Moon Night.
The Mandrake in his mouth had been there for a month; today was the day to proceed with the next ceremony.
"The Death's-head Hawkmoth Pupa is here... Crystal vial is here too..."
"A silver teaspoon of Dew needs to come from a place that has not seen sunlight or been touched by humans for seven days, which is a bit troublesome."
Silan checked the items needed for the second step of the ritual, frowning as he thought, "Looks like I'll have to go deep into the Forbidden Forest."
He knew there was a secluded spot in the Forbidden Forest where he could surely find Dew that met his requirements.
While Silan was heading deep into the Forbidden Forest, the Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy received two letters from Hogwarts.
"What did Severus say?" Narcissa asked.
Lucius frowned and handed her the envelope. "He suggested we strengthen Draco's home education."
What problems have we encountered with his family education?
"I don't know about that. Severus's letter said he bullied his classmates at school," Lucius said helplessly. "Wasn't our home education good enough? I remember the Sorting Hat just touched Draco's head and he shouted 'Slytherin!' That means we've raised him to be a typical Slytherin student."
Narcissa guessed from the side, "Could it be related to Prewett?"
Upon hearing this, Lucius's heart tightened.
It seems quite possible.
Severus wouldn't have written to anyone else.
Could it be that he's bullying Prewett or his friend? That would be troublesome.
"Didn't he receive my letter? Or does he dare to treat family honor so lightly?" Lucius said angrily.
"Don't worry." Narcissa sat down next to Lucius, leaning on his arm, and stroked his chest, comforting him. "Draco sent a letter, didn't he? Let's see what he says."
Lucius nodded, opened the reply Draco had sent, and read it together with Narcissa.
The reply was short, but Lucius and Narcissa read it for a very long time, their expressions growing increasingly strange.
Narcissa stared wide-eyed as she read the reply again from beginning to end, feeling as if those few short sentences were pounding on her head like a hammer.
What does it mean to acknowledge Prewett as your older brother?
Ah?
Malfoy's heir publicly acknowledges his family?!
Narcissa asked, bewildered, "Is that right?"
"That's definitely not right." Lucius frowned strangely, his voice low and menacing, as if bound by stone.
"Don't be angry, darling, Draco might just be..." Narcissa quickly interjected, seeing Lucius's displeasure.
Lucius frowned and said, "He should call him Uncle Prewett; calling him brother seems to mess up the generations."
To be honest, the Malfoy family and Prewett family did indeed have a history of intermarriage, so it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they were related.
It's just that so much time has passed, and the relationship is now very distant.
Lucius followed the genealogy and discovered that although Silan and Draco were from the same generation, Sheeran was actually of a higher generation.
Narcissa's words caught in her throat as she stared at Lucius in astonishment.
Is this the important point?
Lucius didn't take it to heart, instead thinking Draco had done the right thing, "As expected of my son, he's so clever! To come up with such a method, he's a genius! Becoming related to Prewett is a great thing, both now and in the future!"
Lucius slowly folded the letter Snape had sent, stuffed it into the envelope, and a smug smile appeared on his lips.
What's wrong with my family's parenting style?
This family education is excellent!
Draco, Dad is so proud of you!
Meanwhile, Silan exited the castle through a secret passage, bypassed Hagrid's Hut, entered the Forbidden Forest, and gradually ventured deeper until he arrived at the lair of the Acromantulas...