Office (Thanks to Southeast Savage for the Power of Love! Thank You!)

Su Yu stayed in the stands until nearly noon before Sister Ka finally called the Slytherin Quidditch players over for a break.

The morning's training had been intense. Sister Ka had made the team fly countless laps around the pitch and practice all kinds of tactical coordination. Even Malfoy had been worked until he was panting, his brand-new green jersey soaked through with sweat.

Yet Malfoy still 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 lazily, then turned to ask Sister Ka whether they should eat lunch first. There would be plenty of time to train after they had eaten.

The Nine-Tailed Fox chimed in from the side. She had only eaten a dry sandwich that morning and was already starving...

Sister Ka thought about it and nodded. The group packed up their brooms and headed toward the castle, chatting and laughing. The Nine-Tailed Fox lay on Su Yu's shoulder, her tail dangling over his chest and swaying back and forth as she muttered about what she wanted to eat for lunch.

Just as they reached the entrance to the Great Hall, they saw Professor McGonagall stopping Harry and Ron to assign their detention duties.

When Professor McGonagall saw Su Yu, she immediately called him over as well. After all, Su Yu had nearly crushed Professor Lockhart's head last time. He needed detention too.

Su Yu walked over gloomily and told the others to go eat first. Sister Fa glanced at him without saying anything, then pulled Sister Ka and Daphne into the Great Hall. The Nine-Tailed Fox jumped down from his shoulder and followed Sister Fa—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, the meaning of that smile clear: "Chief, good luck to you."

Professor McGonagall continued from where she had left off with Harry and Ron. "As for you, Su Yu, you will go with Potter and help Professor Lockhart answer letters from his fans."

"Ah, do I have to? Can't I just go polish trophies in the Trophy Room?" Harry said desperately.

"Ah, do I have to? Aren't you afraid I'll kill him?" Su Yu said helplessly.

"Of course not," Professor McGonagall said, raising an eyebrow. "Harry, Professor Lockhart specifically requested you. And Su Yu, Headmaster Dumbledore specifically asked for you. All three of you, remember to report there at exactly eight!"

Su Yu nodded helplessly. Harry and Ron walked into the Great Hall with mournful expressions, their steps heavy as though they were heading to the gallows.

Su Yu, Harry, and Ron all felt that their own punishment was the most miserable. Harry had to endure Lockhart's bragging, Ron had to help Filch polish trophies in the Trophy Room, and Su Yu had to restrain himself from stomping Lockhart's head into the floor. Each had his own suffering; none of them had it easy.

Saturday afternoon passed 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 while flirting with Malfoy. The imitation was practically identical, and it infuriated both Malfoy and Theodore. The two teamed up to beat Blaise up, but after they finished, a first-year Slytherin girl came over to fuss over Blaise and ask whether he was hurt. At that point, the two of them felt as though they had swallowed something awful. Total defeat...

Su Yu held Daphne and laughed for ages.

With five minutes left until eight, Harry dragged his heavy feet into the corridor outside Lockhart's Office, with Su Yu following behind him.

Su Yu watched as Harry gritted his teeth and raised his hand to knock. Harry's knuckles tapped the door three times, not very loudly.

The door opened at once.

Lockhart stood inside, smiling at Harry.

"Ah, you lazy little thing, you're finally here!" he said. "Come on, Harry, come in!"

Countless photographs of Lockhart gleamed brightly on the desk in the candlelight. He had even signed several of them, his flamboyant handwriting taking up nearly half the photographs.

"You can help me address envelopes!" Lockhart told Harry, as though he were granting him an immense 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 get a single word out. His smile froze on his face, his eyes widened, and his rosy complexion turned deathly pale. He sprang from his chair so abruptly that it tipped backward and crashed into the bookshelf, knocking several books down. He pointed his wand at Su Yu, his hand shaking so badly that the wand tip trembled too.

"Don't come any closer!!" Lockhart's voice came out high and shrill.

Su Yu looked at Lockhart speechlessly, frowning. "Headmaster Dumbledore told me to come receive my punishment, Professor Lockhart. What are you doing? And what exactly am I supposed to do here? At least tell me..."

By then, Lockhart's brain had stopped functioning. His mouth hung open, but he could not utter a complete sentence, only produce muddled sounds. His eyes stared straight at Su Yu, his pupils shrunk to pinpoints.

With no other choice, Su Yu walked over, grabbed Lockhart by the throat, and slapped him. "What nonsense are you babbling? Did you leave your voice behind when you came out?"

Lockhart's head snapped to the side from the slap, and his whole body swayed. He blinked once, then again, slowly coming back to his senses. He touched his slapped cheek, looked at Su Yu, and then—

"Mr. Su Fuli," Lockhart's voice suddenly became smooth and docile, as though he had become another person. "What an immense honor—it truly humbles me that you would deign to visit my humble abode. I have awaited this day for far too long. To host someone of your status, your renown... I can scarcely believe it. Please, come in, and do not stand on ceremony. This room has only become truly respectable from the moment you stepped inside."

His tone was as respectful as if he were speaking to a king. He bowed at a forty-five-degree angle and extended a hand toward the office, his posture so humble that he hardly seemed like a professor.

Su Yu was so irritated that he laughed. Had Lockhart been slapped into a system crash? He sounded like an old Londoner. Narrowing his eyes at Lockhart, Su Yu began speaking in the same affected tone.

"Oh, Merlin's beard, look at you, Professor Lockhart. You needn't go to such lengths to flatter me. I know perfectly well how desperately you crave even a moment of my attention. This little room of yours... has a certain rustic charm, I suppose, though its taste is truly beneath notice. If someone happens to mistake noise for nobility, then perhaps it could be called distinctive. Stop wasting your effort trying to put on airs and impress me; it is entirely futile. Now! Tell me at once what I am meant 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 beside them with his mouth slightly open, his eyes moving back and forth between Su Yu and Lockhart. He felt as though they were performing in a stage play. He did not understand much of it, but he was deeply shaken. Was this how nobles talked to each other? It gave him a great deal to think about. Still, if things could stay like this, he would not have to endure Lockhart's torment.

And so Su Yu's punishment was changed. It became drinking tea in Professor Lockhart's office. Lockhart personally brewed the tea, using a silver tea set with his own signature printed on the cups. His hand trembled slightly as he poured, but the smile never left his face.

Harry, meanwhile, still had to write Lockhart's letters.

Harry looked at Su Yu with a face full of grief and indignation. Why did he get to sit there with his legs crossed, leisurely drinking tea, while I could only listen to Lockhart bragging in my ear without end?

The Nine-Tailed Fox appeared again at some point, squatting beside him and taking tiny licks of tea from a cup. Lockhart had even specially brought her a plate of little biscuits.

"The first letter is for Gladys Gudgeon—God bless her—she is one of my most loyal fans." Lockhart handed Harry a letter covered in dense writing, the handwriting so ornate it was nearly illegible.

The minutes crawled by one after another. Lockhart talked and talked without stopping, occasionally taking the time to smile at Su Yu, terrified of disturbing him.

Harry could only keep responding with "Mm, yes" and "All right." Every now and then, he heard things like, "You mustn't care too much about fame, Harry," or, "Celebrities must carry themselves with the grace of celebrities, remember that."

The candles burned lower and lower. In the wavering candlelight, it seemed as though countless Lockhart faces were swaying too, watching Harry. By the time he reached the envelope for "Veronica Smiley," Harry's hand ached as though he had already addressed a thousand envelopes. It should be about time to leave, shouldn't it? Please let time pass faster...

By then, Su Yu had fallen asleep on the sofa. His head tilted to one side, his mouth slightly open, his breathing soft and even. The Nine-Tailed Fox lay beside him too, her tail curled into a ball around her face. Lockhart had even thoughtfully covered Su Yu with a blanket. Harry could only curse him inwardly for being such a bootlicker.

Just then, Harry heard something.

The sound was far away, yet it also felt close... as though it were coming from inside the walls. Someone was speaking, and the voice carried an icy malice that made his skin crawl and his heart pound.

"Come... come... let me tear you open... bite you to pieces... kill you..."

Harry jumped 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, completely failing to notice Harry's strange reaction. "First place for Best Book for six consecutive months! A record-breaking achievement!" He slapped the desk excitedly, then remembered that Su Yu was sleeping and quickly lowered his voice. "And keep your voice down. Do not disturb the distinguished Mr. Su Fuli's sleep!"

"No," Harry said in panic, "that voice!"

"What?" Lockhart said in confusion. "What voice?" He looked around and listened, but heard nothing.

"That—someone was talking—you didn't hear it?"

Lockhart stared at Harry in surprise. "What on earth are you talking about, Harry? Are you getting tired? Good heavens—look at the time!" He glanced at the clock on the wall and cried out dramatically, "We've been at this for almost four hours! I can't believe it—time really does fly, 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 off him. The Nine-Tailed Fox woke up as well and yawned.

"Are we done?" Su Yu's voice was still hoarse with sleep.

Harry did not answer. He held his breath, trying to hear clearly what the voice was saying again. But apart from Lockhart chattering away as he apologized to Su Yu for disturbing his pleasant dream and boasted about how well he had taken care of him, Harry heard nothing.

When Su Yu and Harry left, Harry still felt slightly 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, Sister Fa was still waiting for him on the sofa. She leaned against the armrest, flipping through a magazine. Today, she was dressed in a Hepburn-inspired style. (The author included a picture here.)

Su Yu pounced on her at once.

Sister Fa looked at him with disgust 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. He forcibly kissed her once, then happily ran off to shower. Hot water sprayed from the showerhead onto his face, and the comfort was beyond description.

After Su Yu finished washing, he came out toweling his hair dry, then picked Sister Fa up again and began tonight's great battle. The Nine-Tailed Fox had long since tactfully returned to Su Yu's body.