Maranhao and Marietta, sitting opposite them, naturally noticed this, and their eating slowed down slightly.
After exchanging a glance, they decided to find a time when Lynn wasn't around to ask Hermione what was going on.
Only after arranging her napkin did Penelope begin her meal unhurriedly, her elegance and meticulousness appearing perfectly natural.
Seeing her pick up her cutlery, Lynn finally reached for her own and began to eat at a slow pace.
Lynn's slow eating speed took everyone present, except Hermione, by surprise.
Merlin's lunch! Lynn was actually eating slowly?!
Ron watched this in disbelief, even muttering a sentence to Harry beside him.
"Mate, pinch me. I'm not dreaming, am I?"
Harry gave his best friend a speechless look and reached out to grant his wish.
"Hiss..." Ron winced and clutched his arm, glaring at Harry. "Man, you really didn't hold back."
Harry gave a guilty cough and turned back to bury his face in his food, though a mischievous smirk played on his lips.
Compared to the playful interaction between the two boys, the other three girls, who saw Lynn as a younger sister, were filled with relief.
Lynn could finally slow down her eating; it wouldn't affect her health anymore.
Everyone finished lunch feeling satisfied. After the meal, just as Lynn was about to wash the dishes, Hermione beat her to it and took all the cutlery.
"You did most of the cooking for lunch, so I'll do the dishes."
"Go take a nap. If you don't want to sleep, then watch some TV."
After instructing Lynn, Hermione turned her gaze toward Harry and Ron, her eyes narrowing slightly.
"You two can sleep until one-thirty, then get up and do your homework. Don't think I don't know—your homework hasn't been touched at all!"
Having truly not touched their homework and spent the last two weeks just playing, Harry and Ron both froze.
They obediently agreed and went upstairs for a nap, figuring they should sleep as much as possible before they had to come down and do homework.
The remaining three Ravenclaw girls covered their mouths and giggled at the "dejected" backs of their juniors.
They had planned out their homework long ago, doing a bit each day so they could both play and study, finishing it all before the last two weeks of summer.
The remaining two weeks could then be spent reviewing and playing—a perfect balance of work and rest.
However, the three of them simultaneously looked toward Lynn, who was already sitting motionless in the living room watching TV. They guessed Lynn's homework had probably been finished long ago.
Sitting on the sofa, Lynn watched the cartoons playing on the TV, but her primary attention remained on the yard outside the living room window.
She was not only listening for movement at the yard gate but also constantly listening for any helicopters passing overhead.
To ensure a smooth disposal execution, Enforcement Agents sometimes carried out the process through a combination of ground and air operations.
Thus, both the sky and the ground were points that required attention, Lynn concluded in her mind.
Maranhao, Marietta, and Penelope didn't take a nap; instead, they followed their own plans and went upstairs to their rooms to complete their daily portion of homework.
Having already finished her homework, Hermione saw that Lynn hadn't gone upstairs after she finished the dishes, so she walked over to the sofa and sat beside her.
Naturally reaching out, she pulled Lynn toward her to let the girl lean on her shoulder and asked softly,
"Don't want to nap?"
"No. It's not my sleep time right now," Lynn answered in a flat tone.
"Then let's watch TV." Hermione smoothed her hair and accompanied her in watching TV.
As the clock reached one-thirty in the afternoon, Hermione looked down at Lynn. "I'll be right back."
With that, she got up and went upstairs. Lynn mechanically turned her head to watch Hermione's retreating back.
Her mind quickly analyzed that she was going to wake Harry and Ron up to do their homework.
Withdrawing her gaze, Lynn continued to watch the TV expressionlessly. It was still those cartoons with no educational value.
But why didn't she have the same feeling as when she had peeked at cartoons in the mall? There was no sense of curiosity or confusion.
Lynn simply pondered this neutral question. But what had she felt back then?
Upon careful thought, her brain throbbed with pain again. Lynn didn't reach a conclusion and stopped thinking about it.
Just then, Hermione came back down and gently pulled her into her arms again.
The two had been sitting together for only a short while before Maranhao and the others started coming down one by one.
The amount of holiday homework assigned by the Hogwarts Professors wasn't very large, even for Professor Snape.
Holidays were meant for students to relax; assigning a reasonable amount of work was just to ensure they didn't forget what they'd learned.
If too much was assigned, they might just give up and not complete it seriously.
So it was better to assign less, allowing students to spread out the work, finishing it by doing a little each day and leaving the rest of the time for play.
This way, they might actually put effort into it.
Thus, for Maranhao and the others who managed their time well, writing for just over an hour each day was actually enough.
They sat on the sofa, said their hellos, and joined Lynn and Hermione in watching cartoons. After another hour or so, Hermione stood up to go upstairs.
When she came back down, Harry and Ron were following behind her.
"From now on, stick to this schedule every day. Write for at least an hour and a half and finish on time. Don't expect me to let you copy my homework in the end, and Lynn won't give hers either."
Hermione crossed her arms and looked back at the two. Harry and Ron nodded hurriedly in agreement.
An hour and a half a day was fine; the burden wasn't heavy, and they still had plenty of time to relax.
They couldn't afford to make Hermione angry; they would need to rely on her for their final exam reviews in the future.
When dinner time arrived, the large pot of ribs Lynn had been stewing finally made it to the table. After simmering all through noon and the afternoon, the moment the lid was lifted, the aroma instantly filled the entire dining room and living room.
Everyone present involuntarily swallowed, and even Penelope's movements in arranging her napkin quickened slightly.
After Penelope took a large piece of rib with her hands, Hermione eagerly followed suit and took a large piece along with Lynn.
With one bite, her mouth was filled with rich juices, and Hermione squinted her eyes in happiness.
Beside her, Lynn took a bite of a rib, chewed, swallowed, and then turned to Hermione, speaking in a flat voice.
"I'm sorry, Hermione. I didn't notice when I took the ribs last night. This slab of ribs is better for stewing than for braising. So I made Stewed Ribs instead; I'll definitely make braised ones next time."
Eating, Hermione blanked for a moment at Lynn's words, then quickly swallowed the meat in her mouth once she registered them.
"You don't need to apologize, Lynn," she said, wanting to reach out and pat Lynn's head, but seeing the grease on her hands, she silently lowered them. "You're the one who worked hard to cook. Of course we eat whatever you make; we certainly have no right to be picky."
Hermione gave a bright smile, and everyone else at the table nodded in agreement.
Lynn nodded stiffly, but her mind paused for a moment.
If she didn't make the dish someone wanted, shouldn't she be punished? Because she had failed someone's expectations.
But Hermione said it didn't matter, and even said she was the one cooking, so everyone should eat whatever she made and shouldn't be picky.
Lowering her head, she bit off a piece of meat from the rib, and a scene from her memory gradually surfaced in her mind.
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