Herman hesitated at the door, glancing at the scene inside the Hospital Wing —a hospital bed, a screen, and Madam Pomfrey; no one else was present.
He then slowly moved in, taking very small steps, as if afraid of accidentally pulling on something he shouldn't.
Madam Pomfrey noticed his movement, raised an eyebrow slightly, and looked at him with the scrutinizing gaze of a seasoned doctor examining a patient. She sized up Herman's height and then muttered something under her breath. Herman vaguely heard something like, "Are kids these days so precocious? Playing so much in first grade."
As a transmigrator with an adult soul, he naturally understood the meaning of those words. His face immediately turned red, and he hurriedly explained, "No, I am... I am..."
He froze for a moment. What could he say? Did he mean to say that he got kneed because he hugged Harry?
This sounded like an unclear explanation. Finally, he forced himself to say, "I just tripped and fell."
Madam Pomfrey gave her a "I knew you'd say that" look and nodded. "Yes, yes, that's what almost everyone who comes here says. Come and sit down, let me check."
She beckoned Herman to sit on the examination chair next to her.
Herman sat down awkwardly, looking at her, unsure of what to do next.
Madam Pomfrey put down the potion she was holding, walked to his side, picked up her wand, and her tone returned to the calm of a professional doctor. "Alright, now take off your pants, I need to check."
Although Herman had lived two lives, he still felt somewhat uncomfortable in this situation.
He added in a low voice, "It was really just a bump, a minor bruise. Can you just cast a healing spell on me?"
Madam Pomfrey said sternly, "That's what everyone who comes here says, but I've seen far more than just bruises; all sorts of weird illnesses. Kids these days are so precocious."
Herman opened his mouth, still trying to argue, saying that he was still a genuine virgin and that getting involved in that kind of thing too early was bad for his development.
But before he could speak, the screen behind him was suddenly pulled open.
"Exactly! Too precocious! Such a worry!" a teasing voice rang out. " Herman, did Draco or Harry do this? Of course we believe you, you definitely weren't up to that kind of thing!"
Then another voice chimed in, echoing, "But he got beaten up!"
Herman turned his head sharply and saw two red-haired heads peeking out from behind the screen. George and Fred were lying on the hospital bed with expressions that said, "We've finally got something interesting to look forward to."
Herman paused for two seconds, then asked, "What are you two doing here?"
George opened his mouth to answer, but Madam Pomfrey's stern voice rang out. "Lie back down right now! And don't you dare move!"
George and Fred said almost in unison, "Yes, madam, we'll lie down right away!"
The two retreated behind the screen, but Herman could hear them chuckling quietly on the other end. He never expected to hear gossip while lying in the hospital.
Madam Pomfrey turned back to look at Herman, her gaze filled with an unwavering determination.
Herman was silent for a few seconds, then finally sighed resignedly and took off his pants.
Madam Pomfrey examined it with her wand. After a flash of white light, Herman felt a chill, and then the vague discomfort quickly disappeared.
Madam Pomfrey put away her wand. "Alright, it's just a minor bruise, nothing serious."
She paused for a moment, then added, "Magic can heal these kinds of common injuries, but you should still be careful for the next few days and avoid strenuous exercise. Oh, by the way, you're still young, so there shouldn't be any strenuous exercise for you."
Knowing that Herman had only suffered a setback, Madam Pomfrey felt somewhat embarrassed and began to apologize and reflect, realizing that she had been prejudiced and that the academy had been discriminating against her.
Herman didn't have too many thoughts about it. Although he was a little embarrassed, he was, after all, an adult. Embarrassment aside, he knew that he should still get checked.
He pulled up his pants and nodded silently, pretending not to understand her hint at all.
George, who was behind the screen, couldn't hold back any longer, his voice laced with obvious amusement. "Yes! We must avoid strenuous exercise!"
Fred quickly added, "Oh, I forgot, little Herman probably won't have much opportunity for strenuous exercise."
Madam Pomfrey's face darkened. "You two better behave yourselves, or I'll tell Professor McGonagall that you're causing trouble even in the Hospital Wing, and she'll add two months of detention to your sentences."
George and Fred fell silent almost simultaneously, as if their mouths had been zipped up. Clearly, Professor McGonagall's name still carried considerable weight.
Herman, hearing that the two were injured, was both curious and concerned. He asked Madam Pomfrey, "May I see them? What happened to them?"
Madam Pomfrey looked at Herman and thought it would be good to have someone keep these two troublemakers company for a while. After all, if the two of them didn't have something to do, who knew what kind of trouble they would cause.
So he nodded and said, "Okay, but keep quiet and don't let them get on the ground." Okay, Herman nodded quickly, straightened his clothes, walked to the screen, opened a crack, and slipped inside.
Behind the screen were two hospital beds side by side, which were originally meant to be one for each of the brothers.
But one of the beds was empty, and George and Fred squeezed into the other bed, side by side, their ears perked up towards the screen, clearly eavesdropping on Herman and Madam Pomfrey's conversation outside.
The moment Herman pulled back the screen and slipped in, the expressions on their faces changed rapidly, from their previous focused, breathless concentration to an air of nonchalant calm, as if everything that had just happened was an illusion.
However, Herman didn't have time to investigate the two of them eavesdropping; he was stunned when he saw their expressions.
They were almost entirely covered in bandages, with white gauze wrapped from their necks to their ankles, their arms, chests, and thighs completely wrapped up, leaving only their heads and fingertips exposed.
The bandages had a faint layer of light pink medicine stains on their surface, as if they had been repeatedly soaked and dried.
Several rolls of used gauze lay in the corner, their edges curled up and stained with dried, dark marks. Herman stared at them for several seconds before finally asking, "How did you two get hurt? Did you fall into Fantastic Beasts's lair? Or did you finally piss Filch off?"
George scoffed, " Filch? I could give him a fifty-meter head start and he still couldn't beat me."
Herman then asked, "So you got caught stealing Fantastic Beasts's egg and got a scolding from the Fantastic Beasts's parents?"
Fred sighed upon hearing this, "More or less."