Michael felt that if a girl took the initiative to invite him and he refused, it would be quite embarrassing for her, so he accepted.
In fact, Michael had always maintained good relationships with many girls, and Padma was well aware of this. But for some reason, this time, Padma was extremely angry, and after a big argument, she even suggested breaking up.
Michael tried to act indifferent, shrugged, and said, "You know, it's normal for couples to argue. We just need to calm down."
Wade handed his permission slip to Filch and gave the caretaker a nod and a smile.
"Approved."
After the two stepped out of the gate, Wade asked Michael, "So, how did you feel when you heard Padma say that silly 'Charlie' is cute?"
Michael fell silent. His face darkened slightly, and his lips pressed into a straight line.
"Think carefully, Michael," Wade said. "I remember you once told me that in the Mirror of Erised, you saw Padma… Don't forget what you truly want."
Michael climbed into the carriage with his head down and then saw Wade looking ahead. Wade reached out and touched something invisible in the air.
Michael knew it was a Thestral, but no matter how hard he tried to widen his eyes, he could only see empty air.
A moment later, Neville hurriedly climbed into the carriage, accompanied by Hermione.
"Ah, good thing there was still a carriage left," Neville said with relief. "I forgot today was a Hogsmeade weekend. Luckily, Hermione called me when she was heading out."
"Hermione?" Michael asked in surprise. "You're not going with Harry and Ron?"
Although they had a rough start, over the past two years, Hermione had formed a solid trio with Harry and Ron. After all, they are in the same house, and any conflicts would be gradually resolved through daily interactions.
"Don't even mention it!" Hermione huffed. "I don't want to hear Ron's name today!"
Michael tilted his head back and stared at the sky with deep concentration. The others couldn't help but follow his gaze.
"What are you looking at?" Wade asked, confused, as the sky was cloudless and completely devoid of even a single bird.
"I wanted to check today's moon phase—" Michael said in a serious tone. "Is today some special occasion? Everyone seems unusually irritable."
Neville took it seriously. He looked up at the sky again and said earnestly, "But… there's no moon in the sky right now!"
Hermione, who had been fuming, suddenly let out a snort of laughter.
Then she explained the reason.
This year, Hermione had bought a cat as a pet and named it Crookshanks. Although the cat's appearance was far from cute, Hermione was very fond of it.
Ron had kept his distance from rats ever since Scabbers turned into a bald man.
Last Christmas, Wade gave everyone a magical doll pet. Ron received a teacup puppy—about the same size as a rat, but obedient and adorable. It could roll over and find things, making it Ron's beloved treasure.
But yesterday, when they returned from class, they saw Crookshanks holding the teacup puppy in its mouth as if it were about to bite it.
Ron completely forgot that it was just a magical doll. He rushed forward, snatched his pet from the cat's jaws, and yelled at Crookshanks to get lost.
Hermione, however, unhesitatingly defended her cat:
"You scared it, Ron! They were just playing, and the doll wouldn't even get hurt!"
Hermione thought Ron was overreacting, while Ron felt Hermione wasn't managing her pet properly. Students around them watched their argument but simply laughed.
Everyone else found the situation amusing, but the two involved did not.
Ron was so angry that he didn't speak to Hermione for the entire day. When it was time to go to Hogsmeade, he pulled Harry along and left with a group of boys before Hermione could join them.
Hermione didn't have great relationships with most Gryffindor girls, and she wasn't the type to go out of her way to please others. So, she deliberately lingered in the morning, waiting until everyone else had left before heading out.
When she finally passed through the common room, she only saw Neville, who had mistakenly thought Hogsmeade weekend was the next day.
Like most other students, Michael felt their argument was a bit overblown. However, since he was Hermione's friend, he naturally took her side and criticized Ron along with her.
As they talked, Wade suddenly asked, "Caryll went to Hogsmeade too? Who signed his permission slip?"
"Caryll?" Hermione thought for a moment before saying, "I didn't notice, but he did submit a form… Professor McGonagall should know."
"It was Dumbledore," Neville suddenly muttered. "I saw the sign when Caryll walked past me."
"Dumbledore?" Michael was puzzled. "Is the Headmaster his guardian?"
"No idea. There must be some reason," Hermione said dismissively, still fuming about Ron.
Wade frowned slightly but didn't comment further.
—If Dumbledore arranged it this way, he must have had his reasons.
Even if Wade didn't understand it, he couldn't say it was wrong.
…
"Want to hear the sound of your teeth chattering? Then you have to try two Ice Mice! And this super bubblegum—I guarantee its bubbles will last at least five days!"
Honeydukes' owner, Mr. Flume, was enthusiastically promoting his products to the students. When he noticed a student standing nearby just watching but not buying anything, he immediately understood the situation.
He took out a basket of fragrant milk toffees and eagerly handed them out to the students in the store:
"These are brand-new toffee samples, completely different from anything you've tried before! Have a taste, kids!"
A handful of candies was stuffed into Caryll's hands—clearly twice as many as what others received. When he looked up, he saw the shopkeeper smiling and nodding at him before turning to give out more samples.
Caryll felt the few coins in his pocket, then made up his mind and pulled out a handful of Knuts. "I'd like to buy this kind of lollipop."
When their group first arrived in Britain, they had a large sum of operational funds, with plenty of money in both the wizarding and Muggle worlds.
But, of course, the money wasn't in Caryll's hands. By the time those three—one dead, the other two having fled—left him behind and Dumbledore captured him, all he had were a few Knuts.
Dumbledore, following the school's financial aid standards for underprivileged students, gave Caryll a pouch of money. But since this was his entire allowance for the semester, he had to spend it carefully.
"Blood-flavored lollipops?" the shopkeeper asked. "That's quite an unusual taste—usually only vampires like them. Are you sure you want to buy one?"
"I want to try it," Caryll insisted.
A few minutes later, Caryll was sucking on the strong, metallic-tasting lollipop, doing his best to avoid looking at his classmates' necks while curiously observing the buildings around him.
The last time they had been here, they were hiding just outside Hogsmeade and never had the chance to enter the village. They only caught glimpses through the streaming mirror.
But today's Hogsmeade was different—it was packed with Hogwarts students. Every shop had put out its best products to welcome these eager young customers.
Because of this, the village was also filled with visitors, including parents who had come specifically to see their children.
And since it was also Halloween Eve, the entire street was covered in festive decorations. Giant pumpkins were everywhere, and many windows displayed pale skulls.
A ghost had disguised itself as a teru teru bozu, swaying under a roof, sometimes letting out a sudden shriek to startle passing students.
(TN: teru teru bozu is a small traditional handmade doll hung outside doors and windows in Japan in hope of sunny weather)
Flocks of enchanted bats swirled through the streets, much to the delight of the students, who simply ducked when one flew too close.
Some bats hung from the eaves like a string of silent wind chimes. It was clear that once night fell, the Halloween atmosphere here would be even stronger.
Seeing those decorative bats, Caryll let out a mocking chuckle and bit into his lollipop with a loud crunch.
In a moment of distraction, he accidentally bumped into a passerby.
"Sorry," Caryll apologized briefly, not thinking much of it. He stepped aside and was ready to continue forward.
As they brushed past each other, the stranger suddenly said, "Is an apology all I get?"
The hoarse voice sounded strangely familiar, with a slight hint of amusement.
Caryl's head snapped up. In front of him stood a man with eerily pale skin, who was smiling at him.
A distinct tattoo marked the man's face, and perhaps because of this, he wore a large hood to keep his features hidden.
Caryl's expression immediately brightened with surprise, but just as he was about to speak, the man raised a finger and shook his head lightly.
Caryll closed his mouth and simply followed behind him, and they winded through the streets until they reached a secluded corner of the village.
The area was quiet, with houses nestled among the trees. The bustling sounds of the marketplace were barely audible here.
As they approached, the door of one of the houses suddenly swung open. A slightly plump woman in a gray dress, her hair neatly pinned up, hurried out. Her face was filled with joy as she looked at Caryll.
She covered her mouth and her eyes were brimming with tears. "Oh, thank goodness… Caryll, you're alive…"
Caryll could no longer hold back. He threw himself into her arms. "Mom—"
The tattooed man glanced around cautiously before ushering them inside. "We'll talk indoors. There are British wizards watching everywhere."
As they stepped into the house, Caryll, both excited and bewildered, asked, "Dad, Mom, how did you end up in Hogsmeade?"
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⭐Harry Potter: Becoming a Study God (HP:BSG)- +235 Chapters
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