Su Yu stayed in the stands until nearly noon before Ka-jie finally called the Slytherin team's Quidditch players to rest.
The morning's training had been intense. Ka-jie had made the players fly who knew how many laps around the pitch and practice all kinds of tactical coordination. Even Malfoy had been drilled until he was panting, his brand-new green jersey soaked through with sweat.
Still, Malfoy wore a smug grin. After all, that hit he had landed on Wood with his broom today was enough for him to brag about in the Slytherin common room for a whole week.
Seeing that it was about time, Su Yu got up from Daphne's lap, stretched, then turned to ask Ka-jie if they should have lunch first. There was no rush to resume training until after they had eaten.
Kurama chimed in from the side. She had only eaten one dry sandwich that morning and was starving...
Ka-jie considered it, then nodded. The group packed up their brooms and headed back to the castle amid laughter and chatter. Kurama lay on Su Yu's shoulder, her tail hanging over his chest and swaying back and forth as she muttered about what she wanted to eat for lunch.
Just as everyone reached the entrance to the Great Hall, they saw Professor McGonagall stopping Harry and Ron to assign them their detention duties.
When Professor McGonagall saw Su Yu, she immediately called him over as well. After all, Su Yu had nearly stomped Lockhart's head to pieces last time, so he needed detention too.
Su Yu walked over gloomily and told the others to eat first. Fa-jie glanced at him without saying anything, then pulled Ka-jie and Daphne into the Great Hall. Kurama jumped off his shoulder and followed Fa-jie—Su Yu being held back was no big deal, but cheesecake could not be delayed.
The others were not worried at all. Su Yu was someone who went wherever he pleased; worrying about him was less useful than worrying about what to eat for lunch. As Blaise left, he even smiled at Su Yu, a smile that plainly meant, "Chief, you're on your own."
Professor McGonagall continued from what she had just been saying to Harry and Ron. "As for you, Su Yu, you'll go with Potter and help Professor Lockhart answer letters from his fans."
"Ah, do I really have to? Can't I go polish trophies in the trophy room instead?" Harry said despairingly.
"Ah, do I really have to? Aren't you afraid I'll kill him?" Su Yu said speechlessly.
"Of course not," Professor McGonagall said, raising an eyebrow. "Harry, Professor Lockhart specifically requested you. And Su Yu, Headmaster Dumbledore specifically requested you. All three of you, remember to be there at exactly eight o'clock!"
Su Yu nodded helplessly. Harry and Ron, meanwhile, walked into the Great Hall with sorrowful expressions, their steps heavy as if they were heading to the execution grounds.
Su Yu, Harry, and Ron all felt that their own punishments were the worst. Harry had to endure Lockhart's boasting, Ron had to help Filch polish the trophy room, and Su Yu had to resist the urge to stomp Lockhart's head into the floor. Each had their own misery; none of them had it easy.
Saturday afternoon flew by in the blink of an eye.
Su Yu and Blaise went to spy on Theodore's date and did not return until after six, both of them wearing wicked grins when they came back.
When Theodore returned, he found Blaise imitating Theodore's tone as he flirted with Malfoy. The imitation was practically identical, and it enraged both Malfoy and Theodore. The two joined forces and beat Blaise up, but after they finished, a first-year Slytherin girl went up to Blaise and fussed over whether he was hurt. Watching that, the two of them felt like they had swallowed something disgusting. Utter defeat...
Su Yu hugged Daphne and laughed for ages.
With five minutes left before eight, Harry dragged his heavy feet into the corridor outside Lockhart's office, with Su Yu following behind him.
He watched Harry grit his teeth and raise a hand to knock. Harry's knuckles tapped the door three times, not very loudly.
The door flew open at once.
Lockhart stood inside, smiling at Harry.
"Ah, sleepyhead, you've finally arrived!" he said. "Come on, Harry, come in!"
Countless photographs of Lockhart lay on the desk, gleaming brilliantly in the candlelight. He had even signed several of them, his flamboyant handwriting taking up most of each photograph.
"You can help me address envelopes!" Lockhart told Harry, as if he were granting him an enormous favor.
"And what about me, Professor Lockhart?" Su Yu's sinister voice came from behind Harry.
Like a rooster being strangled, Lockhart suddenly choked, unable to force out a single word. His smile froze on his face, his eyes widened, and his complexion went from rosy to deathly pale. He sprang from his chair so suddenly that it toppled backward into the bookshelf, knocking several books down. He pointed his wand at Su Yu, his hand trembling so hard that the wand tip shook too.
"Don't come any closer!!" Lockhart's voice was shrill and thin.
Su Yu looked at Lockhart speechlessly, frowning slightly. "Headmaster Dumbledore told me to come receive my punishment, Professor Lockhart. What exactly are you doing? And what am I supposed to do here? At least give me an answer..."
By then, Lockhart's brain had completely stopped working. His mouth hung open, but he could not say a single word. All he could do was make incoherent noises, his eyes fixed on Su Yu as his pupils shrank to pinpoints.
With no other choice, Su Yu stepped forward, grabbed Lockhart by the neck, and slapped him. "What are you babbling about? Did you forget to bring your voice with you?"
Lockhart's head snapped to one side from the slap, and his whole body swayed. He blinked, then blinked again, slowly coming back to his senses. He touched his slapped cheek, looked at Su Yu, and then—
"Mr. Su-Fuli," Lockhart suddenly said in a gentle, pliant voice, as though he had become a different person. "What an immense honor—it is truly humbling to have you grace my humble abode with your presence. I have waited far too long for this day. To receive someone of your status, someone of your reputation... I can scarcely believe it. Please, come in. Do not stand on ceremony. Only from the moment you entered has this room truly become respectable."
His tone was as respectful as if he were speaking to a king. He bent at a forty-five-degree angle and extended a hand toward the office, his posture so humble that he no longer resembled a professor.
Su Yu was so irritated that he laughed. Had Lockhart been slapped into a system crash? He sounded like old London itself. Su Yu narrowed his eyes at Lockhart, then began speaking in the same affected manner.
"Oh, Merlin's beard, look at you, Professor Lockhart. You needn't exhaust yourself trying so hard to curry favor with me. I know perfectly well how desperately you crave even a moment of my attention. This little room of yours... has a touch of rustic charm, I suppose, though its taste is truly beyond saving. If someone happens to mistake noise for nobility, I suppose that could be called distinctive. Stop bothering to put on airs in hopes of impressing me; it is entirely futile. Now! Tell me at once what I am supposed to do!! I have more respectable places to be and no time to waste another moment in a room reeking of ambition and mediocrity!"
Harry stood nearby with his mouth slightly open, his eyes moving back and forth between Su Yu and Lockhart. He felt as though they were acting in a stage play. He did not understand much of it, but he was deeply shaken. Was this how nobles spoke to one another? It gave him a great deal to think about. Still, if they could keep talking like this, that would be nice—then he would not have to suffer through Lockhart's torment.
Then Su Yu's punishment changed. It became drinking tea in Professor Lockhart's office. Lockhart brewed the tea himself, using a silver tea set with his own signature printed on the cups. His hand still trembled slightly as he poured, but the smile never left his face.
Harry, meanwhile, still had to help Lockhart write letters.
Harry looked at Su Yu with a face full of grief and indignation. Why did he get to lounge around drinking tea while I had to listen to Lockhart brag nonstop in my ear?
Kurama appeared again at some point, squatting beside him and taking tiny licks of tea from a teacup. Lockhart had even specially brought her a plate of little biscuits.
"The first one is for Gladys Gudgeon—God bless her—she's one of my most loyal fans." Lockhart handed Harry a letter covered in dense writing so flamboyant that it was almost impossible to read.
Minute by minute, time crawled past. Lockhart talked and talked without stopping, occasionally taking time to smile at Su Yu, afraid of disturbing him.
Harry could only keep answering with "Mm, yes," and "All right." Every now and then, he heard things like, "You mustn't care too much about fame, Harry," or, "A celebrity must carry himself like a celebrity, remember that."
The candles burned lower and lower. In the flickering candlelight, it seemed as though countless Lockhart faces were swaying and watching Harry. By the time he addressed an envelope to "Veronica Smiley," Harry's hand ached as if he had already written a thousand envelopes. It should be about time to leave, shouldn't it? Harry thought to himself. Please let time pass faster...
By then, Su Yu had already fallen asleep on the sofa. His head tilted to one side, his mouth slightly open, his breathing soft and even. Kurama lay beside him too, her tail curled into a ball with her face buried inside it. Lockhart had even thoughtfully fetched a blanket to cover Su Yu. Harry could only curse him inwardly for being such a bootlicker.
Just then, Harry heard something.
The sound was very far away, yet it also felt very close... as if it were coming from inside the walls. Someone was speaking, and the voice carried an icy malice that made his scalp crawl and his heart pound.
"Come... come... let me tear you apart... bite you to pieces... kill you..."
Harry leaped to his feet. The words "Veronica Smiley" were smeared by ink, and the quill slipped from his hand and fell to the floor.
"What?" he shouted.
"I know!" Lockhart said, utterly failing to notice Harry's strange reaction. "First place in Best Book for six consecutive months! A record-breaking achievement!" He excitedly slapped the desk, then remembered that Su Yu was sleeping and hurriedly lowered his voice. "And keep it down. Don't disturb the honorable Mr. Su-Fuli's sleep!"
"No," Harry said frantically, "that voice!"
"What?" Lockhart said in confusion. "What voice?" He looked around and listened, but heard nothing.
"That—someone was talking—didn't you hear it?"
Lockhart stared at Harry in surprise. "What on earth are you talking about, Harry? Are you getting sleepy? Good heavens—look at the time!" He looked at the clock on the wall and cried out dramatically, "We've been at this for nearly four hours! I can hardly believe it—time really flies, doesn't it?"
Su Yu was also awakened by Harry's shouting. He rubbed his eyes and sat up from the sofa, the blanket sliding from his body. Kurama woke up too and yawned.
"Is it over?" Su Yu's voice was still hoarse with sleep.
Harry did not answer. He held his breath, trying to hear more clearly what that voice was saying. But apart from Lockhart chattering endlessly as he apologized to Su Yu for disturbing his beautiful sleep and went on about how well he had looked after him, Harry could hear nothing else.
When Su Yu and Harry left, Harry still felt a little dizzy.
Su Yu glanced at him. "Are you all right?"
"I'm fine," Harry said, though his face was still pale.
When Su Yu returned to the dormitory, Fa-jie was still waiting for him on the sofa. She leaned against the armrest, flipping through a magazine. Today, she was dressed in a Hepburn-style outfit. (The author's note included a picture.)
Su Yu pounced on her directly.
Fa-jie looked disgusted and told him to hurry up and wash, pushing his face away with one hand so he could not get close. "You reek of tea, and Lockhart's perfume too. It smells awful."
Su Yu did not mind at all. He forcibly kissed her once, then happily ran off to take a bath. Hot water sprayed from the showerhead and struck his face, feeling indescribably wonderful.
After Su Yu finished bathing, he came out toweling his hair dry, then picked Fa-jie up again and began tonight's great battle. Kurama had long since sensibly returned to Su Yu's body.
Before you continue