Will sipped his grape juice. A moment later, Hermione pushed open the door.
"Will, there's something I'd like your help with," Hermione said before she had even sat down.
"Oh? What do you need help with?" Seeing that she was still standing, Will poured her a glass of grape juice. "If it's about your Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare, I really don't have time."
Will had no time to get involved. House-elves were the way they were by nature, so Hermione was basically wasting her time, and he couldn't spare any to indulge her right now.
"No, it's not about that." Hermione lowered her voice. "It's something else, actually. Um... it's not exactly within the rules..."
"Whose rules?" Will asked, puzzled. "If you mean Hogwarts rules, who cares? Does anyone in the High Tower follow them?"
"I've never broken a school—" Hermione began to protest, but Will cut her off.
"If roaming the halls at night, sneaking into a room Professor Dumbledore explicitly forbade you to enter, and casting a spell on a professor don't count, then sure, you haven't broken any rules since starting school." Will's words left Hermione speechless.
All right, she had never really been one to behave herself.
"Enough of that. Let's get back to the point," Hermione said quickly. "I want to get hold of some books from the Restricted Section."
"Oh?" Will looked puzzled. "Then you can ask Professor McGonagall for permission. Why come to me?"
"Professor McGonagall hasn't been keen to approve requests like that lately. She said I shouldn't spend so much time in the Restricted Section, that I should focus on mastering my textbooks, and that the books there are too dangerous," Hermione explained.
"But I'm not looking for dangerous books. I just want to prepare for the future.