"It's very impressive for a first-year student to deal with a troll and protect a classmate. While this isn't something to be encouraged, I must say you did very well, Draco. For this, Slytherin will be awarded five points," Professor McGonagall said, her expression complex as she looked at Draco.
"As for you two!" She turned her gaze to Harry and Ron. "Although your intentions were understandable, you should have notified a professor instead of rushing out recklessly. For that, five points will be deducted... five points each!"
Faced with McGonagall's point deduction, Harry and Ron hung their heads in dismay.
Being docked points was bad enough, but seeing Draco steal the spotlight made it even worse.
Especially Ron. Watching Hermione standing by Draco's side, he felt a strange sense of loss, as if he had lost something important, and his expression grew even gloomier.
Under Professor McGonagall's urging, the two had no choice but to leave the scene and return to their dormitory.
As for Hermione, McGonagall didn't press her. She could see the girl was quite shaken and currently relying on Malfoy for support.
Some matters between children were best left for them to handle themselves.
After McGonagall escorted Harry and Ron away with her gaze, Quirrell, who had been pretending, also left.
"Well done, boy!" Snape, who had stayed behind, surprisingly patted Draco on the shoulder in praise. However, his eyes showed a hint of complexity when they swept over Hermione.
A Gryffindor girl and a Slytherin boy... Hmph… (TL/N: I can imagine snape saying something like this.)
"Professor, are you injured?" Just as Snape was about to leave, Draco noticed his awkward walking posture.
"That's none of your concern. Just take care of Miss Granger!" Snape's face darkened as he concealed his injury and tried to leave.
"Professor, whatever your responsibilities are, I believe you need to be in good health. This is Moonwell Potion; it can quickly heal wounds," Draco said, ignoring Snape's stubbornness and handing him a small glass vial.
Snape almost laughed in exasperation. Me, a Potions Master, needing a potion from you? And what is this "Moonwell Potion" that heals injuries? He'd never heard of it. Had this boy been scammed?
So Snape took the vial without ceremony and opened it.
But as soon as the vial was opened, the surge of natural magical energy inside immediately made Snape's expression change.
The magical power contained within far surpassed even that of unicorn blood!
"Where did you get this potion?" Snape couldn't help but ask.
"Professor, everyone has their secrets, right?" Draco replied with a smile, avoiding a direct answer.
After all, he couldn't very well tell Snape it was a specialty from the elves of another world, could he?
"Students these days are getting more and more audacious," Snape said, amused and annoyed. He took the potion and left without looking back.
"Was it really okay to talk to Professor Snape like that? He can be quite vindictive," Hermione spoke up only after Snape had left.
"Haha, don't worry. Professor Snape is actually stern on the outside but soft on the inside!" Draco said with a laugh.
"But he's always targeting me and Harry..." Hermione murmured.
"...Trust me, Snape only has it out for Harry. You're just getting caught in the crossfire," Draco said sympathetically, patting the girl on the shoulder to comfort her.
He had learned from Josh about the tangled web of love and hate between Snape and Harry's parents. It was more dramatic than Gilderoy Lockhart's novels—though Draco now knew Lockhart was a fraud, his books were still somewhat entertaining as fiction.
"Caught in the crossfire because of Harry? Why?" Hermione didn't understand.
"Well, I'll tell you a secret, but you mustn't spread it around!" Draco looked around to make sure no one was nearby, then leaned in and whispered into Hermione's ear.
Hermione initially felt a bit uncomfortable with Draco's closeness, especially when his warm breath near her ear made her blush.
But soon, she was shocked by what Draco was saying, her eyes widening more and more...
However, neither Draco nor Hermione noticed that a translucent figure had quietly slipped into the wall beside them at some point.
...
The next morning, Harry and Ron came to the Great Hall for breakfast as usual and saw Hermione sitting alone.
"Some people just don't know what's good for them. A Muggle-born witch actually thinks she can be friends with Slytherins? How ridiculous!" Ron couldn't help but sneer when he saw her.
Ron already disliked Hermione's usual know-it-all attitude, and after yesterday's failed rescue attempt that let their rival Draco steal the spotlight, he was even more frustrated.
Teenagers often struggle to hold back harsh words, no matter how cruel they might be.
In Gryffindor, anyone known to be friends with a Slytherin would definitely face collective rejection. The same was true in Slytherin, of course.
Sure enough, as soon as Ron spoke, the Gryffindors eating breakfast all turned their attention to Hermione, waiting to see how she would respond.
But to everyone's surprise, Hermione didn't argue back. Instead, she just glanced at Ron and Harry with a look of slight pity.
"What's that look for?" Ron snapped, angered by her expression.
"Thank you both for risking breaking the rules to try and save me yesterday. But it's clear now that we aren't really suited to be friends, so it's better if we don't interact too much," Hermione said with a sigh.
"Ha! So you're still going to be friends with that blonde pretty boy, then?" Ron retorted, his face turning red. He didn't realize he was pushing Hermione further away.
"Who I'm friends with is no one else's business!" Hermione said calmly. She seemed to have matured a lot after yesterday's events. She then turned to Harry, about to say something, when Snape approached.
"Good luck today, Potter. I hope you perform well on the Quidditch pitch," Snape said with a neutral tone, offering his "congratulations." He glanced at Hermione, then left before the children could respond.
"...His injury healed that quickly?" Harry wondered, watching Snape walk away.
"Injury? What injury?" Ron asked, confused.
"I think Snape was behind the troll incident last night. It was a diversion so he could get past the three-headed dog and steal something, but it probably didn't work... I saw he was injured on his leg yesterday, bleeding a lot," Harry explained.
"Wow, that sounds serious. But what was he trying to steal?" Ron asked, surprised.
Hermione, listening nearby, nearly facepalmed, wondering if she should recommend Sherlock Holmes to Harry.
"Before term started, Hagrid took something from Gringotts. He said it was top secret!" Harry replied. "Snape must be after that!"
"Harry, things aren't always what they seem..." Hermione sighed.
"Oh, really? So you think he genuinely wished Harry good luck? Don't forget he's been targeting Harry since the first day of school! You've been spending too much time with Slytherins; they're rubbing off on you!" Ron interrupted before Hermione could finish.
"Why not? If you don't trust him, don't you at least trust Dumbledore?" Hermione said, exasperated.
"Ha! Then how do you explain Snape always picking on Harry?" Ron still looked scornful.
"Because he wants to be Harry's dad!" Suddenly, Peeves popped up behind them, shouting loudly. "Snape wants to be Harry's—"
"REDUCTO!" Before Peeves could finish, Snape's furious spell echoed through the hall, blasting Peeves away.
That idiot... Nearly Headless Nick shook his head as he passed by.
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