"So, did you enjoy your birthday this time?" Dumbledore asked with a smile as he watched Glenn put away the teleportation door in the headmaster's office.
Whether Glenn was satisfied or not was unclear, but Dumbledore himself was quite pleased. He had reunited with old friends, and Hermione was evidently happy too, having received high praise from both him and Minerva in front of her family. Even the usually stern Minerva had smiled several times today. All in all, Dumbledore thought the birthday party for the two youngsters had been a great success!
"Of course, Professor," Hermione replied, still brimming with excitement, as if she were still immersed in the joyous atmosphere. "This was the best birthday I've ever had!"
"And thank you so much, both you and Professor McGonagall, for attending our birthday party. I was so thrilled to have you there!" the young girl added.
"Haha, as long as you're happy. What do you think, Minerva?" Dumbledore turned to Professor McGonagall, asking about her thoughts on the day.
"It's been a long time since I've had such an enjoyable conversation with others," McGonagall replied with a smile. Hermione thought that the number of times Professor McGonagall had smiled today far exceeded the total number of smiles she had seen from her back in their first year.
"Professor McGonagall, you should smile more often," Hermione seized the opportunity to offer her suggestion. "Everyone likes you, and I believe everyone wishes you wouldn't always wear such a serious expression."
As if recalling something, Hermione turned to Glenn and stuck out her tongue.
"And you too, Glenn. You should smile more often. Anyone who doesn't know you might think you're expressionless."
Glenn: ?
Why did this suddenly involve me?
The four of them chatted for a while longer before Dumbledore began ushering them out. "That's enough for today. Glenn, Hermione, it's time for bed. You have classes tomorrow. Off you go."
Indeed, it was already past midnight without anyone realizing it. The young girl, gradually coming down from her excitement, suddenly felt her energy drain. Her eyelids grew heavy, and she yawned repeatedly.
"Then, Professor, Hermione and I will take our leave," Glenn said, nodding as he took Hermione's hand and led her out of the headmaster's office. The young girl didn't forget to turn back and bid them goodnight before politely closing the wooden door.
"I think I'll remember this birthday forever," Hermione said as they strolled through the dimly lit corridor, illuminated only by the occasional flicker of torchlight. Swinging the hand she held with Glenn, her brown eyes gazed dreamily at the ceiling. "Whether it was the morning chaos with Parvati and Lavender, or Neville and Draco bringing us a cake and chatting with us in the Room of Requirement, or the gathering with our family in Longguo, accompanied by Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall, I loved every moment."
Hermione sighed with emotion. "We're so lucky to live a life like this."
Glenn nodded in agreement.
"I think so too."
---
After Glenn and Hermione's birthday, life returned to its usual rhythm. The young wizards went to classes, slept, lost points, played, and studied… studied?
In short, everything was back to normal.
After Glenn and Hermione had taken some time to observe Draco and the Slytherin team's Quidditch practice, they found themselves pursued by Marcus Flint, the Slytherin Quidditch captain, who was desperate to recruit Glenn to join the team and bring glory to Slytherin. Since then, they had avoided the Quidditch pitch during Slytherin practices, much to the disappointment of a certain young dragon. Every time Draco trained, he would shoot resentful looks at Marcus, who could only respond with an awkward smile.
However, as October rolled in, the weather abruptly turned cold. Rain fell continuously at Hogwarts, and the icy dampness seeped into the castle despite its protective enchantments.
The sudden change in weather caused many to catch colds. In the face of the cold and damp, no one was spared—whether young wizards or adult witches and wizards. A wave of colds swept through the school, affecting both staff and students alike.
Fortunately, our little Hermione, under Glenn's attentive care and his familiarity with such situations, managed to avoid falling ill and escaped the ordeal unscathed.
But others weren't so lucky, especially the younger students. Having only recently left their parents to live independently, they were unprepared for the sudden drop in temperature and fell ill one after another, crowding the school infirmary.
For a time, the Hogwarts infirmary was packed, leaving Madam Pomfrey overwhelmed and at her wit's end. To make matters worse, the infirmary housed a problem even more troublesome than the common cold—Gilderoy Lockhart.
Initially, Lockhart had been fretting about losing his audience's attention due to his injury preventing him from teaching. But when he saw students pouring into the infirmary in droves, he was overjoyed. He immediately began causing a scene, even attempting to hold a press conference and autograph session in the infirmary.
As a result, Lockhart fell victim to the same cold that had struck everyone else. He was soon bedridden again, this time with a fever. Even in his delirium, he continued to boast about himself. The young wizards in the neighboring beds were so exasperated that they wanted to stuff socks in his mouth, but Madam Pomfrey stopped them.
"Annoying as he may be, he's still a patient," Madam Pomfrey said sternly, her face dark.
The young wizards were on the verge of despair. Did this mean they would have to endure Lockhart's incessant chatter until the next batch of Invigoration Draught was ready?
They couldn't take it anymore! Maybe they should just use the socks!
In the end, the situation escalated to the point where Dumbledore had to personally visit the infirmary and cast a soundproofing charm around Lockhart's bed, finally putting an end to the complaints.
However, this left Lockhart's fangirls feeling both dissatisfied and regretful. Still, they reluctantly accepted the measure, as rest and quiet were necessary for recovery.
Fortunately, thanks to the swift production of Invigoration Draught by Glenn, under the commission of Snape and Dumbledore, the afflicted quickly recovered.
Life had thrown a small hiccup into the mix, but it was nothing serious.
That said, some young wizards found it unbearable that both their Potions and Defense Against the Dark Arts classes were taught by Snape. In addition to the already grueling Potions class, they now had to endure the even longer Defense Against the Dark Arts class, leaving them utterly miserable.
While the less astute students continued to bemoan their plight, the clever ones had already seen through the situation. During the brief three-week period of Snape's Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons, they diligently absorbed as much useful knowledge about defending against the Dark Arts as they could. After all, Snape's teaching prowess far surpassed that of the incompetent Lockhart.
Of course, the truth often lies with the minority. The majority of the young wizards continued to pray for Lockhart's speedy recovery, hoping he would return to the classroom soon and rescue them from the clutches of the "old bat," allowing them to once again bask in his radiant presence.
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