At the Grangers' house, just a wall away, Hermione had already come to her senses.
She had shut herself away for an entire day. Whenever she thought of how she had behaved in Diagon Alley...
"Eep..." The little girl buried herself under the covers, her face bright red.
Before long, she poked her head out again and pricked up her ears to listen to what was happening downstairs.
Downstairs, Su Er stood in the living room holding two gift boxes. Under Mr. Granger's "glare" and Mrs. Granger's amused gaze, he hardly knew where to put his feet.
No matter how old you were, meeting your in-laws' family always made you a little flustered.
"Um... Mrs. Granger, where's Hermione?"
"Little Hermione?" Mrs. Granger deliberately raised her voice. "She's upstairs. What did you want to see her about, Su Er?"
"Uh..." Su Er scratched his head. "Well... it's Christmas today, isn't it? I brought presents."
"There's one for you, too."
"Oh? What presents? There's one for me, too?" Mrs. Granger continued loudly.
"Well... I made them myself." Su Er was so embarrassed he felt he could dig out a three-bedroom apartment with his toes. He hurriedly offered her both boxes. "Sorry for the trouble, but could you give this to Hermione?"
But Mrs. Granger only took the one on top, which belonged to her.
"Oh, thank you, Su Er." Mrs. Granger hugged the box happily. "I think Christmas presents mean more when you give them in person. Don't you?"
"You know where her room is. You don't need me to show you the way, do you?"
"Uh..." Su Er's breath caught, and he gave a few awkward chuckles. "You're right."
But his feet felt as heavy as lead. He kept feeling Mr. and Mrs. Granger's gazes prickling against his back...
Knock, knock,