A gentle evening breeze blew through the passageway outside the castle, and all was so quiet that only the sound of two people's footsteps could be heard.
Draco glanced down at Hermione's hands, which were hanging at her sides, and said softly, " Miss Granger, your hands..."
"Oh!" Hermione understood, and said with a mix of helplessness and amusement, "It's dirty again, isn't it?"
She naturally extended her hand to Draco.
"Hehe." Draco chuckled, gently grasping her hand, palm to palm, the warmth gradually transferring between them.
Let's go.
The two walked slowly side by side toward the library.
After walking a few steps, Hermione suddenly stopped, as if remembering something, and looked up at Draco: "Oh right, we haven't cleaned yet today."
Draco's heart skipped a beat.
He had actually remembered this all along and was deliberately trying to slack off, but Hermione still managed to see through his plan.
"Don't go," Draco drawled, coaxing her softly, "Honey, that old man Filch will turn a blind eye; he definitely won't tell on you."
"No." Hermione shook her head, her tone firm but not harsh. "We have to keep our promises. No slacking off."
Draco, seeing her earnest expression, couldn't refuse and could only sigh resignedly, "Alright then, I'll do as you say."
Hermione immediately flashed a small, smug smile. She gently poked Draco's cheek with her finger and said in a slightly proud voice:
"That's a good boy."
Draco's heart softened at her words, and he completely lost his temper.
They could only follow her lead, and the two of them, hand in hand, turned and walked towards the Trophy Room, preparing to complete their duties for the day.
When they arrived at the entrance of the Trophy Room, Filch was already waiting there, his back hunched over, his cloudy eyes scanning the surroundings.
Upon seeing the two finally appear, he immediately spoke in a sarcastic tone:
"I thought Young Master Malfoy was too forgetful and had completely forgotten his duty. I almost went to Professor McGonagall to complain."
Draco scoffed, deliberately trying to provoke him:
"We can forget everyone but that wretched Filch!"
He took a half step forward, his tone undisguisedly provocative, and said, "As for you going to complain—do you really have the guts?"
Filch was speechless with my words, his face turning ashen and the veins in his neck bulging.
He angrily threw the rag and bucket on the ground, saying, "Hmph! Malfoy family brat... Don't get cocky! You think you're so great, you should still be doing your cleaning."
"Oh, that makes sense."
Draco looked at the tools on the ground and stabbed them into his heart:
"However, Mr. Filch should thank us. If we hadn't come today, wouldn't Mr. Filch have had to do it himself?"
"If we had known this would happen, we would have come half an hour later."
Hermione, who was listening nearby, couldn't hold it in any longer. Her shoulders twitched slightly, and she chuckled softly, then quickly covered her mouth.
After hearing this, Filch's gaunt face turned a deep purplish-red. He pointed at the two men, unable to utter a complete sentence for a long time, and finally could only shriek and curse:
"Insolence! Insolence! Insolence! I'm going to put your names at the very top of my blacklist! I'm going to tell Professor McGonagall! I'm going to put you in solitary confinement until graduation! You—you two just wait!"
Of course, all he could do was rage in a state of impotence.
Finally, he grabbed the lantern from the corner, glared at the two of them one last time, then turned and scurried into the shadows of the corridor, leaving behind only a low growl that trembled with anger:
"Get cleaning done! If you slack off for even a second, I'll be right there!"
After Filch left, Hermione gently tugged at Draco's sleeve and muttered to herself with amusement:
"Are you two... here specifically to bicker?"
"The interaction is so interesting."
These words, spoken so casually, nearly made Filch so enraged that he choked on his own breath.
He was already trembling with anger at Draco, and now even the usually well-behaved Hermione was joining in the fun.
They even said their bickering was funny; this is a double whammy.
Filch's hunched body trembled violently, his finger quivering as he pointed at the two men, and he roared in a shrill, broken voice:
"Outrageous! Lawless! Miss Granger, you've joined him in this nonsense! I—I'll go right now—"
Draco glanced at him dismissively. "Go ahead, it'll be good for Professor McGonagall to see how Mr. Filch haggles with two students and makes them miss their cleaning duty."
Filch choked for a moment, his anger stuck in his chest, unable to subside. Finally, he could only angrily flick his sleeve and say, "Clean! Clean it now! Enough with the nonsense!"
Draco stopped teasing Filch and obediently picked up a rag and broom, cleaning the Trophy Room spotless.
Filch, who was watching from the shadows, saw that Draco hadn't slacked off at all, and his expression finally softened a bit, but he still snorted and didn't give him a friendly look.
Of course, Draco didn't need his kindness, because Filch's face had always been so ugly.
After tidying up his tools, Draco naturally took Hermione's hand, and the two walked side by side toward the brightly lit library.
The two sat quietly by the window all night.
She was doing her homework, Draco would occasionally flip through the History of Magic, and sometimes turn his head to look at her serious profile.
Time moved slowly and peacefully, and Hermione stayed until the very last moment before curfew before reluctantly packing her things and leaving.
Walking down the quiet corridor, Draco felt a little unhappy at the thought of having to part ways with his wife, with whom he had spent the whole night, and go back to their respective dorm rooms once he returned to the Gryffindor Tower.
If only I had a cell phone, I could send messages and video chat, so I could talk even if we were in different dorm rooms.
The thought had barely crossed his mind when a sudden inspiration struck Draco.
That's right! Two-Way Mirror!
During the Azkaban incident, didn't Sirius give Harry a two -Two-Way Mirror?
That thing is basically a video call for the Wizarding World; you can see the other person by looking in a mirror and even talk to them.
Thinking of this, Draco silently asked himself, "System, can I exchange for the Two-Way Mirror?"
Almost instantly, a light blue system panel popped up in front of him, with a clear list of recommended items pinned to the top:
[Item: Two-Way Mirror (pair) -- Enables cross-dimensional image communication, unaffected by magical barriers!]
Draco's eyes lit up. "System, can it be customized?"
[Host, please describe the specific style; the system can provide magical customization!]
Draco quickly came up with a plan in his mind: he wanted a small, round, flip-top mirror that would be easy to put in his pocket.
The mirror's outer surface is printed with Draco and Hermione's portraits, and below the portraits is the inscription. "People you can never forget."
[Customization request accepted. Requires special magical branding and portrait solidification; the process is quite complex!]
Draco: Stop beating around the bush, okay?
[Customization is possible, but will deduct additional Fortune Points!]
Sure enough, they were waiting for him here.
Draco scoffed inwardly, completely unconcerned. "Why didn't you say so earlier? Do I look like someone who lacks that little bit of Fortune Points? Just tell me, how much?"