We traveled in silence until we finally arrived at Gryffindor Tower.
After the Fat Lady gave the command, the gate opened, and the older students, familiar with the area, walked straight in as if they were at home.
Only Percy was left behind to patiently explain the rules of the common room, lights out time, and the responsibilities of the Prefect to a group of freshmen, looking very serious and authoritative.
Draco and Hermione slowly walked to the fork in the stairs leading to the male and female dormitories, and stopped simultaneously.
Despite the commotion around them, they remained unaffected by the outside world.
Hermione looked at him and said, "Don't forget your earmuffs in Herbology tomorrow; Mandrake are dangerous."
"Okay, honey," Draco said with a smile.
As soon as she finished speaking, Hermione's eyes widened instantly, and she made a small cat paw gesture, scolding him. "Keep your voice down! There are new students here, do you want to corrupt the children?"
"What's there to be afraid of? Back in our year, weren't we all influenced by you in various ways?"
Hermione choked, recalling everything that happened when she first enrolled last year, her cheeks flushing even more. "How can that be the same?"
"I'm just helping them get used to the pace of Hogwarts in advance," Draco chuckled slyly. "It's better than being suddenly scared to tears by Peeves or knocked out by Mandrake, isn't it?"
Hermione was rendered speechless by his rambling and could only shake her head helplessly. "There are always more fallacies than truths. Go back to sleep, you have to get up early tomorrow morning, don't be late."
"Yes, sir, Granger." Draco bowed slightly, performing a standard gentlemanly salute.
Draco watched her turn and walk towards the girls' dormitory stairs until her brown curly hair disappeared around the corner before turning and heading towards the boys' dormitory.
The next morning, Hogwarts was still shrouded in the morning mist, and the Gryffindor Tower was quiet.
In the boys' dormitory, Ron, Harry, and Neville were still fast asleep, wrapped in their blankets.
The sounds of breathing mixed with soft snoring showed no sign of them getting out of bed.
Since everyone was free in the morning, they were all determined to stay in bed longer than usual.
Draco got up quietly, without disturbing anyone, quickly tidied himself up, and went downstairs.
Hermione was already waiting at the top of the stairs in the girls' dormitory.
She changed into her school uniform, carrying a thick copy of " The Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs " in her arms, and also holding two pairs of extra-thick earmuffs that she had prepared in advance.
Seeing him come down, Hermione said softly, "You're awake? I thought you'd sleep a little longer."
"It's more important to help someone study than to stay in bed," Draco smiled, his gaze falling on the books in her arms. "Let's go."
The two walked quietly down the empty corridor, one after the other.
The castle was so quiet in the early morning that you could hear the soft clinking of armor. Pale golden sunlight streamed in through the windows, warming the marble floors.
They didn't encounter many people along the way, only a few House-elf carrying food trays hurried by, bowing their heads to greet them.
As Madam Pince walked to the library, she opened the door to find it empty; there wasn't even the sound of pages turning.
Hermione found a small corner by the window, opened her book, and turned to the page about Mandrake.
"This afternoon is Herbology. The cry of Mandrake can cause unconsciousness, and the process is quite complicated. Let's clarify the key points first."
"I don't want someone to be scrambling around this afternoon and getting called on by Professor Sprout."
Draco pulled up a chair and sat down beside her, his shoulder lightly touching hers, the faint scent of vanilla emanating from her hair filling his nostrils.
"I'm not Ron, flustered and forgetful. Besides, Professor Sprout has always valued me and won't hold a grudge over a small mistake."
"Don't get too cocky. Mandrake is no joke. No matter how much it's valued, it can't withstand your deliberate misbehavior."
"Don't I still have you?" Draco turned to look at her.
"I'm not going to cover for you..." Hermione retorted stubbornly.
The two then immersed themselves in their studies.
The morning light fell on the books between the two of them; in the entire vast library, there were only the two of them.
At noon, the two went to the Great Hall for lunch.
Ron finally woke up from his sleep in the dormitory, rubbed his eyes, sat up, and yawned widely.
Harry woke up too, looked at Draco's bed, and asked groggily, "What time is it? Where's Draco?"
Ron glanced at the clock on the bedside table, then at the empty bed, and muttered, "That kid's up earlier than the chickens... He must have gone to find Hermione."
He pursed his lips, flopped onto the bed, and went back to sleep. "Seriously, showing off their relationship on the first day of school is just too much..."
There were very few people having lunch, probably due to back-to-school syndrome.
The greenhouse was warm and cozy in the afternoon, with the smell of soil and grass filling the air.
Rows of earthenware basins covered with black cloth were neatly arranged on the wooden table, from which faint, soft sobbing sounds could be heard from time to time.
That's Mandrake protesting!
As class approached, everyone lined up in the greenhouse. Lavender glanced around and frowned slightly.
"Where are Harry and Ron? Why aren't they here yet?" She nudged Neville quietly. "Are they still sleeping?"
Neville clutched his textbook nervously and whispered, "I... I called them before I left, and they answered me..."
"You agreed?" Lavender's face immediately fell, and he groaned softly, "That's terrible! I'll oversleep through the first Herbology of the semester! That's just too much!"
Hermione sighed softly, "Last night he patted his chest and said he would definitely work hard this semester and never be late."
Lavender clapped his hands and retorted with particular certainty:
" Ron's mouth is a liar's mouth! You'd be better off believing Mandrake can sing than believing he's hardworking."
Hermione couldn't help but burst out laughing.
By this time, the sunlight in the boys' dormitory had already crept past the foot of the bed, and Ron's alarm clock had actually rung three times.
" Professor Sprout is such a nice person, it shouldn't be a problem if he's a little late, right?"
They both went back to sleep, comforted by this.
Ron was even secretly pleased with himself.
"Maybe by the time we get there, Draco will have already taken care of the hardest part—weeding—and I can just learn from him."
This sliver of hope kept them asleep for another twenty minutes, until he suddenly woke up with a start, jumping up as if burned. " Merlin's beard! We overslept!"
At that moment, he was filled with panic and a hint of regret, but more than anything, he was quickly calculating how to "make an excuse."
Moving the stairs is definitely the best reason.
Harry, however, only sat up abruptly and became instantly awake when Ron's scream yanked him out of his dream.
Watching Ron frantically put on his school robes backwards, Harry had only one thought in his mind, "Oh no, I'm dragged into this."
As he quickly put on his clothes, he smiled bitterly to himself: Sure enough, sleeping in with Ron was bound to cause problems sooner or later.