Grace excitedly ran off; she needed to quickly find Ms. Hooch to update the list of main team players.
Kael glanced back at the library and the still angry Madam Pince.
Going back to reading was clearly impossible, so he could only turn around and head towards the common room.
…
In the following days, Hogwarts enjoyed a rare period of peace—no attacks, no Dark Magic.
Even the Daily Prophet rarely reported news of anyone being attacked by Death Eaters… The Magic Realm seemed to have returned to the scene of a few years ago.
But what exactly happened, and whether things outside were truly as calm as the newspapers suggested, Kael, who stayed at Hogwarts, couldn't know.
He could only discover some strange things within the school… like Malfoy.
Lately, he barely saw Malfoy in the school, with the few encounters happening only during meals in the auditorium.
Stranger yet, whenever Kael wanted to go over and say a few words, expressing his gratitude, Snape would appear like a ghost nearby, and then promptly whisk Malfoy away without a word.
"Really, since when did Snape and Malfoy become so close!"
During a Herbology Class, Kael couldn't help but complain, "Snape is so concerned about Malfoy, he might as well use a Stickfast Hex to stick him to his side."
"Why do you want to find Malfoy?" Conna asked beside him.
"To thank him, of course," Kael blurted out, "He did help me in Hogsmeade, after all; I should at least show some appreciation, or it would be too impolite."
"If that's the case, you could totally visit him in the office," Conna suggested, donning protective gloves and carefully lifting the blue mushroom from the soil and placing it on a nearby wooden stump.
From the base of the mushroom, seven or eight tiny tendrils emerged, clingingly attaching to the stump, which then visibly began to shrivel.
This was the Horklump mushroom's special fertilization method, and also their task for this class.
Once the Horklump mushroom began to absorb the tree sap, Conna continued, "Malfoy has been in Professor Snape's office lately; I saw him numerous times during my detentions."
"You've seen him?" Kael asked, "So he doesn't stay in the common room at night?"
Conna, wanting to avoid Slughorn's dinner invitation, often scheduled her detentions at night.
"He probably doesn't," Conna pondered, "It seems Malfoy is also in detention, only when curfew hits does Professor Snape take him back."
"Tsk, taking him back…" Kael smirked, "Is he afraid Malfoy might get lost?"
Conna didn't reply, only returning the fallen Horklump mushroom back to the soil.
After finishing this task, she suddenly asked, "Last time in Hogsmeade, it was Malfoy who used the Imperio on Katie, right?"
"Why do you say that?" Kael asked.
"I guessed," Conna said, "Just like how I am in detention to avoid Professor Slughorn, Malfoy surely wants to avoid someone too."
"Then why do you think it's me?" Kael raised an eyebrow.
"Because you're the only one looking for him," Conna said, "Given all this, the rest becomes rather obvious, doesn't it?
And the only interaction you've had recently was last time in Hogsmeade. If Malfoy truly helped you, he wouldn't need to hide, so it must be another possibility… that Malfoy gave Katie that Dark Arts Necklace and instructed her to deal with you."
Kael paused in his actions, unable to help saying, "Conna, you're the smartest witch I've ever met."
"Thank you for the compliment…" Conna smiled at Kael, "So I guessed right?"
"Sort of," Kael said, "I can only confirm the necklace has something to do with Malfoy right now, but I still need to ask Malfoy himself to get the specifics.
"Unfortunately, Snape never gives me the chance… I mean Snape, the professor."
"He must have some other reasons, I know him," Conna whispered, "And I've discovered he's been acting strange lately, as if secretly doing something."
Kael put down the mushroom and looked at Conna.
She continued, "For example, during the holiday this year, he seemed to not want me to stay in the United Kingdom. Even though the assessment starts in August, he sent me over just the day after the holidays began, and after the assessment ended as well."
"Maybe… he's just worried about you encountering You-Know-Who," Kael said.
"At first, I thought so too, but it still doesn't seem right." Conna frowned, staring blankly at the dried-up stump in front of her.
"Moreover, I've noticed he maintains a deliberate distance from me at school as well, whether privately or in other situations, he insists on me calling him Professor Snape, without any alternative titles.
"I feel he's afraid of someone."
When she said the last sentence, Conna's voice was small, yet her tone was very certain.
Kael stared at Conna, not even noticing Professor Sprout walking over.
"No more talking," she observed the row of Horklump mushrooms still left in front of them, "You're far behind the others."
"Yes, professor, we'll get to work now!" Kael said.
Professor Sprout nodded and walked away.
In the remaining time, neither of them spoke again, focusing instead solely on the class assignment.