Qin Yu unclipped the alchemical device from his waist—a hollow bell, just a bit smaller than a ping-pong ball.
What made this bell unique was that it had no clapper inside. Yet, even without one, it buzzed and vibrated ceaselessly, as if some invisible force was striking it from within.
Whenever the bell made noise, it meant its twin—the matching whistle—had been blown.
The whistle and the bell: two items Qin Yu had originally crafted to keep Hermione from getting lost in the castle. Since he'd given her the whistle, she'd only used it twice, both times during the day. With Qin Yu as her guide, she'd grown so familiar with Hogwarts—even venturing into secluded corridors for the fun of it—that the odds of her getting lost were now slim.
But now, in the dead of night, the whistle had sounded.
Given the time, their "tracking plan" for tonight, and how unlikely it was for Hermione to simply lose her way, Qin Yu reached a swift, chilling conclusion—
She was in danger.
His thoughts raced. He stopped in his tracks.
This was the first time the whistle had truly served as an alarm. His first task: figure out exactly where Hermione was.
He closed his eyes, focusing. This wasn't some cultivation novel—there was no spiritual sense or magical radar in the wizarding world, at least not one he'd mastered. But by feeling the tug and vibration of the bell in his hand, he could roughly sense the direction of the whistle's call.
The bell trembled, pulling downward.
He remembered the duel Malfoy had arranged with Harry—the trophy room on the fourth floor, right below him.
Piecing it all together, Qin Yu quickly pinpointed where Hermione must be: the fourth floor.
All this flashed through his mind in an instant.
Target locked, Qin Yu dashed down the stairs.
He doubted anything truly catastrophic could happen—after all, Dumbledore's office was just up on the eighth floor. If there was real danger, the headmaster wouldn't just sit idly by. Still, he couldn't help but worry. His feet flew, leaping down steps in twos and threes, until he landed in the fourth-floor corridor.
…
"Qin?!"
Hermione's voice echoed from the dimly-lit hallway.
She hadn't expected that, after blowing the whistle, Qin Yu would arrive almost instantly. It caught her off guard.
He heard the relief in her tone and guessed she was safe, but he didn't slow down—if anything, he sped up. Only when he felt her small, familiar hand in his did his heart finally settle.
"What happened? Are you alright?" he asked, gripping her hand tightly.
"I'm okay now… but it was a close call. We ran into a big dog—no, three… Actually, it was one big dog with three heads! I think I've read about it before—a three-headed dog…" Now that Qin Yu was here, the tension and fear drained from Hermione's face, and she poured out the whole story, voice trembling with leftover adrenaline.
As she spoke, Qin Yu looked her over, making sure the three-headed dog hadn't left so much as a scratch on her face, arms, or legs.
Hermione obligingly turned her head this way and that, letting him check her for injuries.
Then she frowned, puzzled. "It's strange, though. At first, the dog was growling and baring its teeth, but then one of its heads came close and sniffed me… and suddenly it calmed right down."
She shuddered at the memory. "Its head was less than two feet from me. I could see its wet nose and drooling mouth—my legs nearly gave out from fright. But when it relaxed, we ran for it. I blew the whistle, and you came so fast—I never thought you'd get here so quickly."
Watching her recount the ordeal, ending with a bright, relieved smile, Qin Yu couldn't help but reach out and pinch her cheek, half-exasperated. "I sent you a message telling you to stay in the dormitory. Why did you insist on coming along?"
Hermione knew he was truly angry this time—otherwise, it wouldn't have stung so much. Usually, his pinches were just playful.
"Ow, that hurts… Qin, I know I was wrong," she yelped, immediately apologizing.
He'd barely used any force, but she acted as if he'd pinched her twelve times harder.
Seeing her contrite face, Qin Yu couldn't bring himself to scold her further. He sighed. "Good thing that three-headed dog didn't attack. If it had lost its temper, you could have been hurt—or worse. By then, it'd be too late for regrets."
Hermione nodded vigorously, not daring to say another word for fear of making him even angrier.
…
The three-headed dog—no doubt, it was Hagrid's pet, Fluffy.
Qin Yu had only seen the beast a handful of times, but Hagrid had trained it to recognize his scent, as well as the Weasley twins'. That way, they could feed or approach the dog without being mauled.
As for Hermione, she probably spent so much time with Qin Yu that she'd picked up his scent, and Fluffy had mistaken her for him. That would explain why the dog had sniffed her and then quieted down.
With that mystery solved, Qin Yu finally noticed the other kids.
Besides Harry and Ron—the inseparable duo—there was Adam, perpetually sleep-deprived and up at all hours. What surprised Qin Yu most was seeing the usually timid Neville, cowering behind the others, looking utterly terrified.
When Qin Yu glanced at them, Harry and Ron immediately dropped their heads, sheepish and anxious. Adam just yawned, clearly ready to fall back asleep. Neville looked on the verge of tears, still lost and bewildered.
"Well, Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley—how did tonight's duel go? Who won, who lost?" Qin Yu drawled, his tone dripping with sarcasm at the two troublemakers.
"Malfoy… didn't even show up…" Harry mumbled, voice barely audible.
"What was that? I didn't catch it," Qin Yu said, rolling his eyes.
"Malfoy tricked us—he never came! He's just a lying cheat who doesn't keep his word!" Harry blurted, anger flaring.
"Yeah, not only did he not show, he probably tipped off the caretaker to catch us here! Otherwise, we wouldn't have ended up hiding in that room with the big dog!" Ron chimed in, emboldened.
The story was simple: Malfoy had challenged Harry to a midnight duel, but never intended to show up—instead, he'd ratted them out to the caretaker. As soon as they arrived, they were chased by the night patrol and, in their panic, stumbled right into Fluffy's lair.
Their indignation made Qin Yu chuckle. "Heh. If you let yourselves get played so easily, you've got no one to blame but yourselves for being naïve."
At that, Harry and Ron hung their heads even lower. They'd been outfoxed by a simple trick and knew it.
"All right, enough standing around. Back to bed, all of you. Whatever needs sorting out can wait till morning."
With that, Qin Yu took Hermione's hand and turned to leave.
The other four quickly tagged along.
As they made their way back, Qin Yu learned that Adam had just gotten up for the loo and happened to see Harry and Ron sneaking out, so he'd followed out of curiosity. Neville, meanwhile, had been injured during flying class and was resting in the hospital wing. He'd tried to return to the dorm at midnight, gotten hopelessly lost, and, after wandering the castle for over an hour, had bumped into the group headed for the duel and joined them out of desperation.
In short, while Qin Yu was off having tea with Dumbledore, these kids had stumbled into a chaotic little adventure of their own—one that, in the end, saw them all safely back to the Gryffindor common room under Qin Yu's watchful eye.
"All right—everyone to your own rooms, and no more late-night escapades," Qin Yu instructed.
The kids all nodded and dispersed.
Soon, the common room was empty except for Qin Yu and Hermione.
Moonlight spilled across the floor, the castle quiet and still. The two of them stood alone in the vast common room.
"Qin, this time I…" Hermione looked up at him, biting her lip, her voice soft with guilt.
But before she could finish, Qin Yu pulled her into his arms. What started as a gentle embrace grew tighter and tighter.
She could feel the depth of his worry and care in that hug.
Now that they both understood each other's hearts, words were unnecessary.
Hermione hugged him back just as tightly, her face nestled against his chest like a contented kitten, breathing in his familiar scent.
That scent made her feel safe and warm, with a sweetness that seeped right into her soul.
Only now did her heart—so frightened and unsettled all night—finally find peace.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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