"Sorry, I don't want to dance, please find someone else!"
When Hermione said this, her expression was mixed with something... well, something strange
Maka didn't know how to describe that feeling. He just found that this was the first time that he couldn't read other people's thoughts at all.
But no matter what, when a girl suddenly moves away from you, whether you should chase her or not is always a big question.
If Hermione finally chooses to let go, Maka's proactive approach will embarrass the other party; and if she temporarily distances herself for other reasons, it will definitely not be good if he doesn't figure it out.
In the end, Maka took steps and rushed in the direction Hermione left - he couldn't leave it alone. After all, Hale has been hiding in the dark during this period. Paying attention to everyone around him is what Maka, a professor, wants to do. due responsibilities.
"Hermione—"
He gently pushed aside the crowd and moved forward, grabbing the girl's sleeve by the corridor at the entrance of the small hall. The delicate gauze fabric was held in his hand, as if it were touching human skin, causing him to immediately let go as soon as the girl stopped.
"…Maka."
The girl pursed her lips and turned around, stepped back slightly, then just called Maka's name and stopped talking.
It was already dark now, and although there were windows along this corridor and a row of torches on the wall, the surrounding environment was still a bit dim.
Hermione's head was slightly lowered, and her gaze seemed to be on Maka's toes, so that most of her face was quietly covered by shadows.
Maka used her sense of magic to check her condition, but found nothing unusual.
"Hermione, are you... what's wrong?"
The situation that just happened was somewhat embarrassing for Maka. Now he was catching up, but for a moment he couldn't think of what to ask.
But Hermione quickly shook her head.
"It's okay, nothing happened, don't worry!"
"I just...wanted to be alone for a while."
Her voice was calm, but Maka detected something suppressed in it.
Maka knew that if he continued to ask, Hermione would probably say the classic rejection lines such as "I want to be quiet".
But no matter how much Maka wanted to know who "Jingjing" was, it was obvious that she shouldn't pursue her anymore at the moment.
It's a pity that because the incident of Halbo invading Harry's body last time is still happening, this time Maka is determined not to let go of any anomaly easily.
"Uh -" he said hesitantly, "I know you must have your own reasons for running out suddenly, but... I think you also understand that in this situation, I definitely can't leave you alone now. "
Because Hermione had stepped back a little bit, there were still several steps between the two. As Maka said this, she wanted to get closer, trying to sense the state of magic in Hermione's body in more detail.
But it was Maka's step forward that made Hermione take a step back, obviously not wanting Maka to get too close to her.
"Don't come here—" She stretched out her hand, but then shook her head quickly, "No, I mean... give me some space, okay?"
Hermione's tone was a little hasty, but before Maka had time to think too much, she heard her continue:
"Yes, I can understand what you mean... After your explanations last time, I also know that I need to pay attention to various details and hidden dangers during this period. But, just for today... okay? I have to... um, adjust myself. "
When Maka heard this, she suddenly felt that she began to understand Hermione's mood.
Hogwarts has been relatively quiet recently, and life goes on as usual, with nothing weird happening. But under the shadow of the last incident that has not been completely resolved, as an insider, there will always be some gloominess accumulated over time.
Maca himself is the most representative example.
What's more, Hermione has always been very smart, and she often takes the initiative to think about messy problems. Just like she had studied day and night in order to improve herself before, Hermione's strengths and weaknesses are actually hidden here.
However, understanding is understanding. While it was not certain whether Hermione's anomaly was related to Halbo, Maka, who was always cautious, would not allow herself to compromise on anything.
"Hermione," he took another step forward and said, "there are some things that instead of keeping them in your heart and letting yourself feel depressed, how about saying them out? Even if it's not me, it can be your roommate, friend, or someone else..."
"No, it's not what you think!"
Hermione finally couldn't help it anymore, and saw her walking quickly to Maka with a complicated expression on her face, and then forcefully grabbed Maka's arm and made him turn his back to face her.
"Maka, you are right, but you should go to Harry and the others first! I'm not going anywhere, so I'm going back to the dormitory to sleep. Let's meet tomorrow, okay?"
After saying that, she pushed Maka's back hard and pushed Maka forward several steps. Then, she took several steps back again, leaving Maka's reach.
Maka took a few small steps forward according to the strength she gave, and stopped hesitantly.
He turned back subconsciously, wanting to see what Hermione's expression was at this moment. But after his eyes swept across the moonlight outside the window on the side of the corridor, an idea suddenly came to his mind.
"Hermione, Hagrid came to me just now, did you see it?"
"… Um."
Hermione paused for a while, then responded softly.
"I think Hagrid has found what I asked him to find before... Do you want to go and see it together?" Maka asked slowly, "You can only see them at night - I think you are sure Will like it.”
Probably aware of Maka's stubbornness and knowing that he wouldn't leave until he figured out his situation today, Hermione could only nod helplessly after pondering for a while.
"Okay... Then wait a moment and don't look back just yet."
Before she finished speaking, Maka suddenly noticed a wave of magic coming from behind her - Hermione seemed to have cast a very simple silent spell.
Because the simpler the spell, the lower the completeness of the rules and runes contained in it, so much so that Maka didn't even know what the spell was.
"Okay, let's go to Hagrid's hut and have a look..."
Maka turned around after hearing the sound and looked at Hermione who was walking towards the hall first, and suddenly realized that she seemed to be more relaxed than before
"What kind of spell is that?"
Although there was no way to be sure, Maka was certain that it was a modern curse. If it was more ancient magic, he could easily learn it based on the traces of the rules.
After thinking about it for a while, Maka stopped staying and immediately raised her legs to follow.
…
The moonlight is very bright tonight, because there are no clouds, and the starry sky looks particularly clear.
However, due to the position of the celestial body, the comet named "Hare-Bopp" can only be seen for a short time at dusk. If you want to observe it at night, you may have to wait a few more months.
And then...
Maka and Hermione walked on the grass under the moonlight, neither of them speaking. But Maka would occasionally raise her head and think about that wonderful comet far below the horizon.
Not long after, they arrived in front of the hunting lodge one after another. You can see that orange firelight is shining through the window, slightly dispelling the coolness outside.
The snow in the first two days did not accumulate much, but the melting process will bring more coldness to the environment. The cold night wind blowing across their cheeks seemed to tell them both that winter had arrived.
Maka took two quick steps to catch up with Hermione, but before he could knock on the door, he heard some movement in the yard behind the cabin.
This immediately attracted his attention.
"No need to go into the house, let's go around - Hagrid is probably behind now!"
Sure enough, when Maka saw the fence in the backyard first, he immediately understood that he had guessed right.
That's a group of moon-crazed beasts.
There were about fourteen or five of them, all with light gray smooth skin. Their long necks were connected to their round bodies, with four thin legs growing underneath.
When Hermione, who was following Maka, came to the fence, those cute creatures with big eyes on their heads immediately made her sigh.
"Is it the Moon-Crazy Beast?"
These little creatures are not large, and the tallest ones are only half the height of ordinary people. At this moment, Hagrid stood among them, looking like a real giant, which was particularly obvious in comparison.
At the moment, Hagrid was feeding the little guys. When Hagrid gently scattered a handful of the feed rolled into small balls, the moon-crazy beasts gathered together in small jumps.
They used their own natural abilities to control the small meat balls on their heads, then stretched their necks and opened their mouths to grab food. Look at their cute looks jumping up and down, even Maka has a knowing smile on her face.
"The book says that the Moon-Crazy Beast can only be seen in a few special breeding farms, and those farms are forbidden to visit... Where did Hagrid find these?"
Hermione was first intoxicated by the little cuties bathing in the moonlight, and then she started to fall into her old habit of asking questions.
"I don't know either," Maka spread her hands, "Actually, I'm going to ask Hagrid! You can come too... Of course, keep your voice down so you don't scare those shy little guys."
If they are wild moon-crazy beasts, they will go to the forest to hide during the day and at night without moonlight, and this is entirely because they are shy.
But just seeing how close these moon-crazed beasts were to Hagrid, Maka knew that they must have been raised by wizards.
The backyard fence of this hunting lodge is not high. Hagrid originally only cultivated land and raised Flobber caterpillars here. Now Maka and Hermione could easily step over it.
"Hagrid—"
Maka, who was walking in front, called out after getting closer.