Malfoy walked so quickly that Hermione had to jog to keep up.
"How do we get there?" Once she made up her mind, Hermione was even more enthusiastic than Malfoy.
"Just follow me."
Hermione followed Malfoy around, entering and exiting the classroom at times. Soon, they reached the middle of the corridor on the fourth floor.
"You're the one." Malfoy walked straight to the statue of a witch. The witch had a hunched back and only one eye.
"Split left and right!" Malfoy tapped the stone witch lightly with his wand.
The statue's back immediately opened, large enough for a thin person to enter.
"How did you know there was a mechanism here?" Hermione asked curiously.
"It's a secret." Malfoy kept her in suspense.
"Fine, I won't tell you." Hermione was a little annoyed, but at the same time, she seemed to have forgotten her previous unhappiness.
"Follow me, and don't get lost. Although it's not like we'll get lost from here."
After saying that, the two of them entered the cave that the witch had opened.
The two slid for a long distance, like a stone slide. After an unknown amount of time, they felt they were standing on solid ground again.
"It's really cold here." Malfoy couldn't help but shiver.
"Flicker!" This spell was naturally used in dark places.
"It's like a rabbit's tunnel." Hermione looked around for a while and came to this conclusion.
"Don't get distracted. Look at your feet," Malfoy reminded.
The ground here was full of potholes, and if one wasn't careful, they would fall. Hermione had almost fallen a few times already. It was Malfoy who caught her in time.
The journey was a little boring, but since there were two of them, they didn't feel lonely. They chatted from time to time.
An hour passed quickly.
"I'm starting to wonder if you're trying to murder a Muggle wizard." The two became more familiar with each other as they chatted. Hermione even joked about it. "Look at how secretive it is. I can't beat you."
"That's not a funny joke. I also have a headache over my parents' beliefs." Malfoy shrugged.
"Oh, we're almost there." Malfoy felt the passage begin to steepen.
Ten minutes later, the two arrived at a shabby stone staircase that extended to a place they couldn't see.
The two of them then began to climb the stairs again.
"Knock, knock." They seemed to have reached the top. Malfoy knocked twice on the trapdoor and pushed it open.
"Look out, we're in the cellar," Malfoy whispered to Hermione.
"Come on up." Malfoy climbed up first, then extended his hand to Hermione and pulled her up.
The cellar was filled with chairs and tables, and the floor was covered with a thick layer of dust, making the trapdoor almost blend into the floor. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, it would have been hard for him to imagine that there would be a door here.
"So how do we get out now?" Hermione asked. "I think we'll be treated as thieves now."
"You don't have to worry about that," Malfoy said as he walked towards the stairs, ready to walk out openly.
"I think you're really crazy." Hermione rubbed her forehead. She had already expected Slythrin and Gryffindor to lose 20 or even 50 points. "I'm just an accomplice. This guy should deduct more." Just as Hermione's imagination was running wild, Suddenly, there was a burst of exclamations.
"Oh, little Draco, why are you here?" A woman's voice was heard.
"No wonder he's so familiar with this place," Hermione thought.
"It's Halloween, Aunt Ambrose, so I came out to relax."
"Oh, it's little Malfoy. Thanks to your idea last time, we made a lot of money." A middle-aged man's voice was heard.
"But you should just stay in this shop. I remember you're only in your first year. If you're caught, you'll lose points, right?" Ambrose said. This man was the owner of the Duke of Honey. "The people in the other shops aren't as nice as us."
"Of course, I snuck out this time, and I have a burden with me," Malfoy said.
"Let me see. Oh, it's Halloween and you're bringing your girlfriend here to play. How romantic. We won't disappoint you. Coincidentally, we got a new batch of goods today. Do you want to try it?" Ambrosius laughed heartily. She obviously saw Hermione behind Malfoy.
"I'm not his girlfriend!" Hermione emphasized word by word. Her tone was soft but firm.
"I know, I know. You young people are all the rage these days. It's too old-fashioned. We can't keep up with the trend." The owner obviously didn't listen to her explanation. The two of them broke the school rules to come to Hogsmeade on Halloween. Who was he trying to fool?
"Alright, let's stop chatting. Show us around." Malfoy looked at Hermione's expression that was getting colder and colder, and decisively interrupted the conversation.
"Then you should take a look at my new goods. These things are really hard to transport. If it wasn't for the huge profit last time, I wouldn't have been able to buy them." Ambrose said.
Although it was said to be a tour, Honey Duke didn't occupy much space. At a glance, it was enough for one to see everything. However, the shelves were densely packed with all kinds of sweets. It was enough to make one dizzy.
Large pieces of butter peanut candy, pieces of shimmering pink coconut sorbet, neatly arranged hundreds of different kinds of chocolate, a large bucket of flavorful beans, a bucket of Zizi Bee candy, fruit juice drinks floating in the air, and so on.
Along the other wall were all kinds of sweets with "special effects." Blowhard Super Bubble Gum (it fills the room with bubbles the color of bluebells that won't pop for days), Strange Shards of Fuzzytooth Mints, Little Black Pepper Urchins ("Breathe fire out of your nose for your friends!"), Little Black Pepper Ice Rats ("I can hear your teeth chattering and squeaking!") Cream Mints shaped like toads ("They really bounce in your stomach!") Crunchy Sugar Quills, and exploding Sandwiches.
Hermione was almost dazzled by all the sweets. Sweets in the Muggle world didn't look that amazing.
"Just looking at you won't satisfy your stomach," Ambrosius said as he handed the two of them some Honey Bee Candy. "Try it. It's not bad."
"B-but we haven't paid for it yet," Hermione said.
"Little Draco already paid for it, didn't he?"
Hermione gave Malfoy an inquiring look.
"Take it. I'll tell you later," Malfoy said.
"Okay then." Hermione slowly reached out and took the sweets.
Once again, it was proven that one should never underestimate the allure of sweets. Even for humans, the desire for sweets had long been engraved in their genes.
"How is it? Do you feel better?" Malfoy asked after finishing a Zizi Bee candy.
"Mmm …" Hermione nodded lightly.
"How is it? Do you want to take some back to school?" Malfoy asked.
"I can't eat that much." Hermione pursed her lips.
"Don't you want to bring some for your two friends?"
"They're not my friends!" Hermione suddenly became agitated.
"You're still angry? Let's make a bet. You go to the Halloween party as usual, and they'll definitely apologize to you. "
"Really?" Hermione asked subconsciously.
"See, you still can't bear to part with your two friends."
Hermione's face stiffened. She muttered, "You're trying to trick me again."
In the end, the bet was left unsettled because Hermione seemed to have believed what Malfoy said. "Gryffindor's courage should include bravely admitting his mistakes, such as your apology to me."
"If you give out the sweets again, maybe their jaws will drop," Malfoy continued.
Hermione giggled, as if she had imagined the expressions that Harry and Ron would have.
"Then I'll believe you for now." She seemed to have realized that something was wrong, and quickly returned to her normal expression. However, the light in her eyes betrayed her happy mood.
"Oh, it's getting late. I think we should get ready to go back," Malfoy suddenly said as he looked out of the window. The sun seemed to be setting.
"What?" Hermione looked out of the window, and suddenly panicked.
"Don't worry, I think we still have enough time. Everyone is celebrating the festival, and won't notice that a few people are missing." Malfoy said as he took a few types of sweets from the counter and the wooden bucket on the floor, and handed them to the boss.
"Do you want more of this flavor?" Malfoy said as he pointed at the Hairy Tooth Mint.
"Yes, I think my parents will like it too." Hermione nodded subconsciously. "No, we really should go. If we're discovered, we'll all have our marks deducted!" Hermione seemed to have returned to the straight-A student who remembered the school rules.
"Does this mean that you're no longer giving up on yourself after you've resolved the knot in your heart?" Malfoy smiled.
"Alright, let's go." He took the sweets from the boss and handed them to Hermione.
"I wish you a prosperous business. See you next time, boss." Malfoy bid farewell to the boss.
"Thank you for your hospitality today." Hermione did not forget to bow to Ambrosius and his wife.
"Be careful on the road! It's not an easy road! "
"Of course," Malfoy replied. Then he went into the cellar, and Hermione followed closely behind him.
After that, they went back the way they came.
"I didn't have time to ask you just now. Why are you so familiar with the boss?" Hermione asked as she tugged at Malfoy's sleeve in the pitch-black darkness.
"When I first came here to play, I gave him a few tricks for doing business in the muggle world. What was it called again? Right! Hunger marketing. Seems like he made a lot of money, so he didn't ask me for money. "
"How old were you back then?"
"Sometimes, it's obvious that you can't measure a person's wisdom by age." Malfoy pointed at his head, although Hermione might not be able to see it in the dark.
"Why didn't you go to Ravenclaw?" Hermione was clearly puzzled.
"Are you thinking that if I were Ravenclaw, maybe our relationship would be closer?" Malfoy suddenly said frivolously.
"What are you suddenly saying!" Hermione's face turned red, but it was too dark to see.
"It's just a joke."
However, a light joke touched Hermione's heart. "If only he was really a Ravenclaw." Hermione patted her face lightly.
It had to be said that their last encounter had changed Hermione's view of Malfoy greatly. It even made her reflect on the mistakes she had made when they first met. At the same time, it strengthened her resolve to make Harry and Ron apologize to him.
"What nonsense am I thinking!" Hermione tried to shake herself out of her imagination.
"Alright, I think we're about to return to school." Sensing that the terrain was gradually leveling off, Wang Yao said. Malfoy said to Hermione.
After walking for a while, the two of them felt a glimmer of light in their eyes. They were about to reach the one-eyed hunchback witch's exit.
Malfoy walked out first and looked around a few times. After making sure no one was around, he let Hermione come out through the door.
"The party is about to start. I think Ron and Harry are looking for you to apologize. Let's go. "
"Today, thank you so much for today," Hermione said softly.
"It's nothing," Malfoy said.
"This can be considered as solving the troll issue." Malfoy let out a long sigh of relief as he watched Hermione turn and leave.
The next development should be the three of them reconciling, and then Hermione's impression of him would improve.
"I've been gone for too long. I should go back as soon as possible." Malfoy was thinking of going to Slythrin's lounge before attending the party.
When he turned around and was about to move, he suddenly met a pair of cold eyes.
"This is going to be difficult." Malfoy suddenly felt the malice of this world.
In front of Malfoy's eyes, a girl was crossing her arms in front of her chest and looking at him with a cold smile.