Chapter 63 A Gift for Hermione
"A secret passage?" A voice came from the air.
Harry had just discovered the use of the Invisibility Cloak and put it on.
"Where is the secret passage? Do Fred and George know? Where is it?"
Basil's lips curled slightly. "A secret passage they don't know either. It's on the third floor, in Myrtle's bathroom."
The headless Harry appeared. "The girls' bathroom?"
He took off his hat, his eyes filled with curiosity and confusion.
After a moment, his kindness convinced him. "It's Christmas today, how about we go another day?"
"Sure." Basil rolled his eyes.
He casually opened a package; it was a reddish-brown book.
It was titled "On Magic, Why We Reject It."
Harry saw it too.
He smiled. "It must be Hermione's gift. She's still trying to convince you that the great wizards are just a figment of your ancestors' imaginations, not real beings."
"Yes." Basil pulled out a note tucked inside the book.
It read: [I think this book will be very useful to you.] [Hermione Granger]
"I think I need to go out."
Hammersmith-Fulham is a borough in West London. It borders the River Thames, Kensington-Chelsea to the east, Brent to the north, and Elling and Hounslow to the west. Historically, its prime location made it an upper-class residential area. Now, it's home to many middle-class families.
Granger's family, whose husband is a dentist, lives in this neighborhood.
Although the famous Chelsea Football Club is named after the borough of Chelsea, their stadium is actually located within the borough of Fulham, not Chelsea.
Therefore, many residents in this area are, through familiarity and peer pressure, fans of Chelsea Football Club, or simply football enthusiasts.
But Hermione didn't like football.
Christmas was also a time for visiting relatives and exchanging gifts.
Now, the house was filled with relatives whose names she didn't even know, watching the football match and discussing football-related topics.
In the past, she could at least show off her studies or what books she was reading to interrupt them.
But now... pulling out her wand and making an apple grow arms and legs to dance the cha-cha?
That was against the protection law!
She could only go outside alone, to the snow-covered fir trees, and gaze into the distance.
Her hands rubbed the rough bark. "If I had known, I wouldn't have gone home for Christmas. Basil."
Bang!
The tree began to tremble, and snow fell in a flurry.
The next second, Hermione's brown hair and clothes were covered in white.
Her eyes narrowed, blazing with anger as she searched for the person who had kicked the tree.
Then, a "Hi!" came from the left
. Hermione turned her head.
The anger vanished into thin air.
The blond boy, a smile playing on his lips, leaned against the wall. He was like a human furnace; as she drew near, the snowflakes that had just covered him turned into steam, and a warmth rose to his small, red hands.
She knew this was due to Basil's special ability to withstand snow and transform his eyes into golden vertical pupils,
but for some reason, she felt it was a warmth that inexplicably welled up within her.
She looked down at her toes and said softly, "Long time no see."
"Long time?" The blond boy counted on his fingers. "One day, two days, that's four days in total. How long?"
Hermione's cheeks puffed out, her breathing quickened, and her front teeth chattered, producing a Fou-like sound.
She raised her head. "You still haven't explained about the gift! Aren't you staying at school? And how did you know where I live?"
Despite her extreme embarrassment, her intelligent mind regained its footing.
She suddenly remembered that she hadn't yet counted the gifts she'd received from the magical world today.
Considering Basil's arrival now, there was at least a 70% chance he intended to give them to her personally.
Sure enough, the next second,
Basil conjured a package out of thin air from behind his back.
"The gift is here," Basil raised an eyebrow.
If he hadn't spent another 100 gems to illuminate Hermione's house and see that the packages were untouched, he would have been completely fooled.
He grinned crookedly, "But this is the second gift. You should have received the first one long ago."
This was a lie! In fact, the so-called first gift was something he'd bought from the Weasleys' Magical Tricks Shop and placed in Hermione's room. Of course, even so, he maintained his excellent habit of withdrawing money from the Lestrange family.
If Neville knew, he would definitely kneel down on the spot and call Basil "Papa" (the four who drove Neville's parents insane: Crouch Jr., and the three Lestranges: Bellatrix Lestrange and her husband and brother-in-law).
"Huh?" Hermione feigned ignorance. "Really? I don't believe it."
Even so, while accepting the gift, she didn't forget to touch Basil's hand.
Ugh, a groin!
Basil really wanted to write a short essay and post it online.
The format would be: Family, a truly speechless incident has occurred! I kindly gave a girl a gift, only to be betrayed and groped by her. Are you alright? I mean, help me! I really will thank you, I really will! Family, who understands?
But the underdeveloped internet and the usefulness of Hermione's Responder saved her.
She readily opened the gift.
Inside was a simple blue cloak.
Her eyes narrowed to slits, but she still complained, "Just a cloak?"
"A curse-resistant cloak. It has an Ironclad Charm, which can reflect simple evil curses. This is very useful for wizards who don't know the Ironclad Charm, or who are slow to react but haven't mastered the technique of infusing their mental power into magical magnetic fields," Basil replied.
Before Basil could finish speaking, Hermione had already put on the cloak.
She waved her hand. "Try casting a curse on me."
Basil obligingly waved his wand, and a beam of green light shot onto the cloak, then bounced off and onto a nearby fir tree.
From where it hit, a translucent slug emerged.
"It really worked!" Hermione exclaimed, almost jumping for joy. "What's the first gift?"
"A very interesting spell," Basil said, keeping her in suspense.
He looked at the snow-covered sky with feigned confusion. "By the way, aren't you going to invite me in?"
Hermione's face flushed. "There are other people here, I mean, relatives who don't know anything about the wizarding world besides my parents. How about we go to Diagon Alley? It's close to Paddington Station."
In fact, he knew.
He was just teasing Hermione.
Finally, Hermione ran into the room.
She told her parents that the famous wizarding adventurer Lockhart was attending an event in Diagon Alley.
After being allowed to go alone, she ran out again, her face still flushed.
They boarded the train together and arrived at the Leaky Cauldron.
Basil also gave old Tom a useful wand sheath.
They then spent the afternoon at Flourish and Blotts (spending two Sickles reading there).
As dinnertime approached, he escorted Hermione home.
Of course, he didn't warn Hermione that a tall man and a beautiful woman were secretly watching from behind her window.
He returned to Hogwarts as the Christmas dinner bells rang.
________________________________________
________________________________________
Can't wait for the next chapter?
30+ advanced chapters are already available on Patreon!
👉 patreon.com/Horizons685
________________________________________
(End of Chapter)