Manus fell silent for a moment. How could he not know this was troublesome? But...
"Mr. Trelawney helped me solve an important problem, and I only need to look after her at school."
Manus had no intention of overstepping his bounds. Aside from the malicious bullying of other students, any other problems caused by the Trelawney family's enemies were Tracey's responsibility.
Bellows nodded knowingly at that.
The value of an answer depended on the question. The same answer could be worth vastly different things to different people.
But to Manus, the answers to most questions he could not solve himself were probably precious...
"You'd better be careful. Don't get dragged into it."
Manus might think that way, but others might not—especially when...
"That younger student doesn't seem particularly well-behaved."
Bellows warned him,
"By breakfast, most of Ravenclaw already knew quite a lot about her. The only ones who didn't were probably those who got up about as early as you did and had almost completely missed her at breakfast."
What should someone who had just arrived in a foreign country, entered an unfamiliar environment, and found her family's enemy here be like?
Perhaps there was no standard answer to that question, but every possible answer should include one key point: keeping a low profile.
Whether it was caution in an unfamiliar environment or caution toward an enemy who might act against her, doing less and making fewer mistakes within a safe zone where trouble was unlikely should have been the instinctive choice.
And this was only the first day of school!
If someone made a choice that went against instinct, then either there was something wrong with that person, something that set her apart from ordinary people.
Or she had other plans.
Manus frowned and nodded.
"Thanks. I'll keep an