Quidditch practice ended, the setting sun bathed the castle in a warm gold, and a group of people walked back chatting and laughing, still immersed in the excitement of Draco's stunning performance.
Just as they reached the stone steps leading to the castle entrance, a gloomy figure suddenly emerged from behind a pillar.
Filch hunched over, squinting his cloudy eyes, his face even more pale than usual.
Wait a minute.
He called out to the group.
The group froze on the spot, and the atmosphere suddenly turned cold.
Ron shrank back in fright, instinctively hiding behind Harry, muttering under his breath:
"Oh no, it's Filch... what's he doing here with us?"
Harry tensed up, while Lavender and Parvati were slightly pale, their hands clenched tightly together, afraid of being spotted by Filch.
Hannah and Susan were too frightened to speak, their heads bowed, their toes shuffling on the ground, looking extremely obedient.
Neville froze, stammering, "I... we didn't do anything wrong..."
Olivia remained relatively calm, but she knew this wasn't the time for empty talk.
Draco suddenly took half a step forward and casually uttered a sentence that shocked everyone:
" Little Filch, what can I do for you so late?"
The moment the word " Little Filch " was uttered, the air froze.
Filch froze, his cloudy eyes bulging as if about to pop out.
"You—what did you call me?! How dare you! Malfoy, how dare you be so disrespectful!"
He was so angry that his finger was trembling as he pointed at Draco, and even Mrs. Norris next to him arched her back as if her hair had stood on end, hissing threateningly.
The reactions of the friends nearby were nothing short of a mass petrification.
Draco spoke in a way that no one else understood, but which made Filch's face turn pale instantly:
"Watch your words, Filch. Where have you been lately? Have you been spending more time with Peeves?"
Filch's anger froze on his face, and his flushed complexion turned deathly pale.
This is not a reminder at all; it's a blatant, covert threat.
The group of people nearby were completely dumbfounded; everyone held their breath, afraid to even breathe loudly.
Harry and Ron exchanged a glance, feeling that what they were witnessing was even more shocking than Quidditch performance that captivated the entire audience.
Draco looked at Filch face was alternating between pale and flushed, and asked, "Now you can tell me what you wanted to see me about."
Filch felt a tightness in his chest from that veiled threat, but dared not retaliate, so he could only honestly reply:
"You... you haven't cleaned yet! The Trophy Room, you forgot about it?"
Draco asked, puzzled, "Do we have to clean on weekends too?"
"Rules are rules, and you can't skip them even once!"
Draco suddenly laughed and said:
" Mr. Filch has been very diligent in supervising me."
"Stop talking nonsense! Go get the tools! Don't try to slack off!"
Draco glanced at him, then stopped arguing and simply replied, "Okay, you can go now."
After saying that, he turned around and gestured for his friends to go back first, while he went to get his cleaning tools.
He remained calm throughout, as if the person who had just threatened the administrator was not him at all.
The onlookers were stunned, not daring to breathe, until Filch turned and left dejectedly, only then did they dare to secretly breathe a sigh of relief.
Once they were some distance away and he was sure Filch couldn't hear him, Ron approached in shock and couldn't help but whisper:
"Seriously... Filch is acting like someone who's done something wrong in front of you?"
Draco laughed, "You've all forgotten, I can command Peeves."
Olivia suddenly realized. "I get it— Filch is most afraid of Peeves!"
"Uh-huh."
Hermione and I are going to clean up. You guys go back first.
After exchanging glances and confirming that everything was alright, everyone nodded in agreement.
"Then we'll wait for you in the common room."
After parting ways with his friends, Draco cleaned the Trophy Room and put the tools back in their places.
Hermione straightened her sleeves, looked at Draco, and said, "I'm planning to stay in the library a little longer and finish previewing tomorrow's lessons."
Draco gently stopped her. "Now's the perfect time; you can practice broomstick flying."
Hermione paused, then instinctively looked down at her empty hands. "But... I don't have a broom."
Draco didn't speak, but simply waved his hand and took out a lightweight broom from his bag. It was light, smoothly polished, and looked to be of excellent quality, and handed it to her.
Hermione looked at the broom that had suddenly appeared, then at him, and said helplessly, "Where did you get this from?"
Draco said with a hint of smugness, "Just think of it as my pocket being enchanted with Space Extension Charm; it can hold quite a lot of things."
Upon hearing this, Hermione, without waiting for Draco's reaction, suddenly mustered her courage and swiftly reached into the inside pocket of his coat.
She wanted to touch it herself and see just how many strange and wonderful things were hidden inside.
But when I gently probed in, I was surprised to find that it was completely empty inside, with no room to extend.
She withdrew her hand, glared at Draco, and exposed him with a hint of displeasure, "You're lying, there's no such thing as a spatial charm."
Draco was taken aback by her sudden action, but he just laughed.
Surprisingly, Hermione didn't delve into the matter further, nor did she ask where the broom came from.
Hermione was touched by Draco's thoughtful preparations and whispered, "... Anyway, I know you mean well."
Draco, gazing at her flushed cheeks and gentle eyes, felt a mischievous urge, "The atmosphere is so nice right now, shouldn't we kiss?"
Hermione was completely stunned, her cheeks instantly burning, and her voice trembled slightly. "You did that on purpose... Who says something like that so directly..."
Draco gently took a half-step forward, leaned slightly closer to her, and his breath lightly brushed against her forehead:
"So I won't say anything, just kiss me, okay..."
Hermione's heart was pounding so hard it felt like it would burst out of her chest, her mind completely blank. "... You... you mustn't do anything rash..."
Hermione's heart was pounding wildly, her cheeks were burning, and she was at a loss when Draco gently cornered her against the wall.
She tensed up instantly, not daring to even look up.
But the next second, Draco leaned down slightly, a mischievous yet gentle smile playing on his lips, "Just kidding, Miss Granger."
Hermione was startled, then realized she'd been tricked. She said angrily:
" Draco Malfoy! You—you're playing me on purpose, aren't you?!"
"Just now, I really thought you were going to..."
Draco, seeing her embarrassed and annoyed expression, teased:
"I was just testing the waters. It seems Miss Granger has already fallen for my charms and won't even refuse a kiss."
"I didn't! Stop talking nonsense! Who wants to be with you... with you like that! You're just trying to scare me, just trying to tease me!" Hermione said, turning around to avoid him.
Draco immediately reached out and gently grabbed her wrist, preventing her from leaving. He softened his tone, stopped joking, and coaxed her, "Alright, alright, I won't tease you anymore. It was my fault."
Seeing that Hermione was still turning her face away from him, Draco continued to coax her:
"Don't be angry, okay? I promise I won't joke about things like that again. Let's go to the Room of Requirement, and I'll teach you how to fly properly, okay?"