Tomorrow We're Going to the Muggle World, Doki Doki

Muggle Life Experience Week.

No one was happier about the event than Hermione.

What made her happiest of all, of course, was that the event was being held in London! During their free time, she could invite Harry over to her house!

Oh, and Ron too.

Ginny was just as excited. Professor Burbage had made a big splash with the event, and Headmistress McGonagall had shown her enthusiastic support. This time, the event was limited to fifty people, but any student above first year could participate as long as their parents gave permission!

As the little princess of the Weasley family, who loved Muggles more than anyone, there was no reason for her family to object to her taking part!

Gryffindor accounted for half of the fifty places!

The fire crackled in the fireplace, bathing the common room in warm gold and red.

Suitcases lay scattered across the floor. Some were already neatly packed, while others lay open, revealing clothes and snacks stuffed in haphazardly.

"Harry! Please!" Ginny tugged at Harry's wrist, her brown eyes shining with pleading. "I have no idea what Muggles normally wear! Mum packed me a whole pile of clothes, but I'm afraid I'll bring the wrong things!"

Harry glanced down at her own loose T-shirt and jeans. She was still puzzled by how complicated women's clothing was and felt she couldn't offer much advice.

But surely she would be much better at it than a Pure-blood wizard who had never experienced the Muggle world?

"All right." She nodded hesitantly and handed Ron the Guide to Common Muggle Electrical Appliances she was holding. "Read this first, so you don't end up casting spells at a microwave tomorrow."

Ron took the book and protested, "I'm not Neville."

"Hey! I wouldn't do that!" Neville, who was struggling to stuff socks into his backpack, looked up, his face full of indignation.

Hermione closed her own suitcase, which she had finished packing long ago, and sighed. "I'll come too, so Ginny doesn't end up bringing a pile of wizard clothes without realizing it."

The three of them climbed the spiral staircase to the girls' dormitory. Ginny's bed was piled high with clothes: several skirts, a few knitted tops, and even a pair of wool socks that looked as though Mrs. Weasley had knitted them herself, complete with a Golden Snitch pattern.

Harry stared at the Chinese imperial court-style dress, her mouth twitching. "...Are you sure you want to bring this?"

"Doesn't it look nice?" Ginny held the dress up against herself. "Mum said I look cute in it."

Hermione pressed a hand to her forehead. "Ginny, Muggle girls don't wear vintage-style dresses like that to ordinary occasions, unless they're going to a wedding."

"What about these?" Ginny held up a pair of sequined shorts.

Harry and Hermione both fell silent for two seconds.

"...I'd better help you choose." Harry sighed and reached for the pile of clothes.

Meanwhile, downstairs in the common room, Fred and George were standing on a table, waving a stack of parchment.

"Attention, everyone!" Fred announced loudly. "Since magic is prohibited during this Muggle Life Experience Week-"

"We proudly present the Weasley Non-Magical Survival Kit!" George picked up, shaking open a small cloth bag. "Inside: a mini flashlight disguised as a ballpoint pen, a compass that will never get lost, and-"

"Most importantly!" Fred lowered his voice and mysteriously pulled out a packet of gummy candy. "Muggle sweets! Completely magic-free, but guaranteed to taste better than Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans!"

Lee Jordan raised his hand. "If you can't use magic, how can you guarantee the compass won't actually get lost?"

George blinked. "Trade secret."

Elsewhere, in the professors' office, Snape was checking a packing list with a gloomy expression.

"I don't understand," he said coldly, "why Black was allowed to worm his way into the group of accompanying professors too."

Sirius leaned back in his chair, lazily spinning a Galleon. "I'm the head of Gryffindor now. Isn't it perfectly normal for me to go?"

Snape's mouth twitched, and his eyes narrowed dangerously.

But then he remembered that the bad boy Malfoy would be there too, and relaxed again.

It was just as well to have another Black on the same side.

With that thought, he carefully placed the sweater Harry had given him for Christmas into his luggage.

The Slytherin Common Room was shrouded in dim, lake-green light, and the flames in the fireplace glowed a cool blue. In stark contrast to the lively atmosphere in Gryffindor, only a handful of students were talking quietly here, and an air of restraint pervaded the room.

Draco Malfoy sat cross-legged on a dark green leather sofa, his long fingers tapping lightly against the armrest, his gray-blue eyes gleaming with determination to get what he wanted.

"Listen carefully," he said unhurriedly, his voice carrying its usual arrogance. "For this event, only the three of us in all of Slytherin managed to get our applications accepted. That means-" He paused, a smug smile curling his lips. "I'll be spending time with Harry Potter for an entire week!"

Goyle was clumsily stuffing a black trench coat with silver buckles into his suitcase. It was a "Muggle fashion item" Malfoy had specially prepared for him, though it looked more like a vampire cosplay costume.

"Draco," Crabbe asked indistinctly, chewing on a piece of cake he had swiped from the Great Hall, "do you really think Potter will like you?"

Draco's expression stiffened for a moment, but he quickly regained his confidence.

"That's just her way of playing hard to get." He gave a little snort and pulled a silver-gray designer shirt from his suitcase, holding it up against himself in the mirror. "Just wait and see. Once we get to the Muggle world, she'll understand that a Pure-blood gentleman's charm is nothing a pauper like Weasley can compare to."

Goyle and Crabbe exchanged a glance.

To be honest, they weren't very interested in the plan to "conquer Harry."

Mainly because Draco's chances of success really did look almost nonexistent.

They were accompanying Draco to the event this time mainly for something else.

"I heard Muggles have something called a hamburger," Crabbe said, licking his lips. "It's bigger than the meat pies at Hogwarts, and you can put three layers of beef in it..."

"And cola!" Goyle chimed in with rare enthusiasm. "I heard that stuff tastes amazing! It's sweet and full of bubbles, and one sip is way more exciting than Butterbeer!"

Draco rolled his eyes. "Learn to use Muggle money before you start thinking about food, you two Troll-brains," he said disdainfully. "Remember, when we go out this time, you have to act like respectable people."

Goyle nodded earnestly, while Crabbe had already begun imagining a mountain of hamburgers.

In the corner, Pansy Parkinson watched it all coldly. Ever since the falling-out in the dormitory last time, she had grown even gloomier.

She couldn't let this opportunity pass. She didn't even dare imagine how that little bitch Harry Potter would blind Draco if they spent a week together in the Muggle world!

She had to find a chance to go with them!