young man returning home

Chapter 10 Secret Realm

"Damn it!" Draco cursed in a low voice, and the dead branches made a crackling sound under the trampling of dragon leather boots. There was almost no sound around, only the sound of the centaur's kicking and trampling the ground in the distance. The sound echoed deep in the deep forbidden forest.

The tip of the wand led to a faint light, and his hand holding the wand looked even more beautiful under the glowing soft light. The small and exquisite family ring seemed to be restless fireflies on it, bright and vibrant. ——Hermione obediently held the other end of the wand, let him lead, obediently followed him to open a path full of dead branches, and found another way.

Hermione knew she was wrong. ... Well, it was her fault.

"I, I, I, I, you, you, you..." Draco was obviously confused, and he was a little incoherent, "Excuse me, please ask me—Miss Know-It-All, Gryffindor, what are you, what are you thinking?" What?"

Hermione rolled her eyes involuntarily: "..." She really didn't dare to look up at him.

"Malfoy is honored to be told why... Granger, what the hell were you thinking?—I mean," Draco gripped his wand tighter, "While Apparating, you! What??! Please tell me why... we are in this bloody place now!"

The dead leaves fluttered under my feet, and the cold wind whizzed by my ears.Hermione said without fear of death: "Malfoy has to take the risk for the 'trust' he is willing to give, you actually, you actually trust my ability to control the unskilled spell of Apparition!"

Yes, Miss Granger would never forget the day she met Malfoy in the Forbidden Forest - that was the beginning of all her nightmares.Draco's eyes of hatred, his cruel curse, the whispers of the wind in the Forbidden Forest, and the overwhelming despair... Thinking about it until now, I still feel cold sweat.So much so that when holding the hand of the blond boy and triggering the "Apparition" at the tip of the wand, what I was thinking of was still the hopeless secret forest.

So... unfortunately, Miss Granger and Mr. Malfoy will spend a cold night cursing each other here.

"Don't you know that when apparating, we have to think about the destination in our minds to get to where we want to go?...Don't tell me, what you think is..." He looked up at the shadowy sky above his head. The dense tree branches raised their eyebrows slightly, "You, you, you are thinking about this ghost place!"

Hermione nodded in embarrassment, and muttered in a low voice: "When you leave Malfoy Manor, you should take the elves with you, but you are so stupid as to make me use Apparition..." She stuck out her tongue, "Occasionally A little surprise is normal, Mr Malfoy."

"You...you..." he gritted his teeth, and said in a sharp tone, "you missed the curfew, and Slytherin will be punished with the stupid Gryffindor! Granger, please hurry up, we have to... get out of this place Ghost place!"

Draco shrunk his neck, turned his head hesitantly, and asked abruptly, "Is it cold?" Hermione was startled, and almost threw Draco's exquisite and gorgeous wand away, the end of which was dizzy with warmth, Against the lonely night, the fluorescence flickers on and off.The young man raised his head, and the beautiful eyes reflecting the stars were obviously full of concern at this moment. He tightened his wand tightly, and deliberately lowered his voice: "Hermione, are you cold?"

The stars are sparse, and the cold moon is silent.The silence seems to be an elf from another empty world, passing through the slanting shadows of trees, connecting the boundless thoughts under the grand sky at the other end of time and space.In the manor, at the end of the long corridor, the moment when the former blond boy was left alone by the years, 19 years, has been silent.

Draco walked ahead, complaining repeatedly.Hermione behind her may never understand that fate has repeatedly handed her an enviable deep-rooted love. At the age of 19, it has nothing to do with the process or the result, as long as they love each other.As long as she says yes.Even if the good times are as short as meteors, Malfoy shoulders the family's rebellious rebellion.

The young boy spoke harshly, but he embraced what he thought was happiness extravagantly, and smiled with his lips pursed in a place where Hermione could not see.Pretending to complain, Malfoy's sharpness became flirting.The dragon leather boots opened a flat path, the mud stained the exquisite Malfoy's boots, the hard branches even pierced the fine dragon skin, the boy's injured foot was buried under the dead leaves on the ground, making it difficult to walk .From time to time, he turned his head and glanced at Hermione who was looking left and right: "Hey, keep up with the nutria! Get lost and stay here to feed the Thestrals, stupid... Gryffindor!"

A sly smile flashed across the boy's light gray pupils.

Many years later, Mr. Malfoy bowed his head in the study room full of sunlight and recalled how he wished that the night in the Forbidden Forest would be endless and long, and they would not be able to get out of the siege of dead branches.For the first time, the gloomy Slytherin hated the sunshine of the next morning so much.

"D... Draco... I thought maybe we could try Apparating again..." Hermione reminded cautiously.

"Impossible." Draco replied, "There is an anti-curse barrier set up by the Dark Lord in the Forbidden Forest, you can only go in and out....Because of your stupidity, we can only choose to go out on foot." He turned his head, slyly He raised his eyebrows and smiled, "The moonlight is so beautiful, let's go for a walk, Granger."

"Damn!" This time it was Hermione's turn to curse in a low voice, and she tore off the hem of her clothes that was caught on the branch, frowning slightly.

"Thanks Merlin, finally you can't stand your stupidity anymore," Draco raised his eyebrows and smiled, pointing at Hermione's torn hem with the finger that pushed aside the branches, "I hope you can still Free up your hands for the Restoring Charm."

Hermione shrugged helplessly, looking at the elegant every move of the man in front of her, she couldn't help but think of the lady she saw at Malfoy Manor during the day—the mistress of the manor, Draco's mother.

Only a few hours ago, they had been in the winding mirrored hallway of Malfoy Manor, with a fire blazing in the fireplace and footsteps clattering down the stairs.The tall pines and cypresses in the manor squint their sleepy eyes and move far away.As if following the movement of the hostess, the whole manor lazily woke up from a nap.It was the first time that Hermione looked at Draco's noble and elegant mother, Narcissa, so closely.

The elf Nora was at a loss: "Husband... madam..."

In the past, the youngest girl in the Black family came downstairs with her head proudly held high. She had a beautiful neck like a swan, and her blond hair was combed meticulously and scattered on her shoulders even after a nap.She was wearing baggy pajamas with a floor-length skirt that barely covered her feet.A slight blush appeared on her face, which made her look stunning.Mrs. Malfoy didn't look domineering at all at this time, she was just like a shy little girl.

The former Miss Black was just a shy little girl.

"Mom... Mom..." Draco called out softly, his eyes were wary and complex, he took a quick step forward, and stretched out his hand to block Hermione behind him.

"Draco?" Mrs. Malfoy subconsciously brushed off her loose pajamas, obviously surprised.Her eyes flicked over Draco's shoulders, and the moment she glanced at Hermione, the surprise in her eyes was swept away, replaced by a slight joy: "Draco, you...you put..."

"Mom!" Draco interrupted in a panic at the right time!Hermione behind her was even more flustered, she never imagined that one day a Mudblood would also meet a noble lady from a pure blood family.Such an awkward eye contact.

Narcissa was very smart, as if she knew what her son was thinking, she quickly suppressed the slight joy in her eyes, and smiled moderately: "Draco, as a well-bred Malfoy, you need to introduce the daughter you brought back with."

"Her...Hermione? Granger, a Gryffindor." Draco's voice was trembling slightly, and Hermione would never know what was hidden behind a cultivated Malfoy's untimely gaffe secret.He and Narcissa had a tacit understanding.The boy's voice finally sounded again: "Oh, Mom, did you get up so early today?"

"Son... son..." Narcissa slowly stretched out her hand, wanting to touch Draco's iconic short blond hair with the soft and gentle gesture of a mother, her voice seemed to be full of indescribable excitement: "That's great... Draco, Mom is very happy..." She glanced at Hermione who was silent behind Draco, her eyes complicated.

"Hermione...will you live in the manor tonight?" The dignified lady finally said such a sentence.Hermione was startled, but before she could react, Draco had already stepped forward and interrupted anxiously: "Mom, don't talk about that."

Dusk has come.The sky is full of orange and yellow, and it fits into the quiet corner of the manor. Honeysuckle, zelkova, freesia, and the cypress hidden in sleep are all neatly decorated with golden edges by the palette of dusk.Circle after circle, like ripples on the surface of a lake, layer upon layer.

The quiet evening at Malfoy Manor is a fairy tale written by Muggle writers.The silver bells jingle, ringing in the sound sleep.

Narcissa looked at her overly worried son, hesitated to speak.

"Everything is Merlin's instructions, Mom," Draco gently took Narcissa's hand, bent down to kiss, "goodbye, good mother. I have to go back, don't forget the damn curfew, Slytherin must maintain The honor of the college." He took a step back and put down Narcissa's hand in a gentlemanly manner, "I really want to accompany you, good mother."

"Draco..." She buried her face in her beautiful golden hair with some frustration, "I hope someone knows what my son has been through..." Her voice was slightly choked.

Draco hesitated for a moment, then turned to tell the elf: "Nora, prepare dinner and let Madam go to bed early."

Narcissa cheered up a little, and sent an invitation to Hermione: "If you like, come and sit more, the air in the manor is not bad."

"That's...really good..." Hermione was very surprised, she never thought that pure blood Slytherins would treat Mudbloods with sincerity, instead of their usual contempt.Narcissa's abnormality is just like Draco's abnormality during this period of time. The whole manor that the half-blood wizards regard as a forbidden place is being filled with an astonishing and abnormal atmosphere. It does not hinder tolerance, and Slytherin has begun to have a full circle. Fusion of courage.

It was a scene that Hermione would never forget.Malfoy's unpretentious family life is tantamount to the happiness of Muggles, even if they are high above others.

Slytherin can love so simple, so deep.

Narcissa is like a little girl who doesn't know much about the world, shy and beautiful.There was a knocking sound from upstairs, accompanied by the sound of the magic spell, "Sissy, Sissy..." It was like a sleeping child seeking the protection of its mother.

Naturally, Hermione couldn't believe that the owner of the voice was the usually arrogant Lucius Malfoy.

"Daddy woke up from his nap... looking for you, Mom." Draco yawned lazily.Just like the little blond boy who was acting like a baby in his mother's arms more than ten years ago, with a baby voice.

The former Miss Black had unbelievable happiness on her face. She gently lifted the hem of her skirt, jumped up the cold stone steps, and smiled back at her beloved son: "Don't miss the curfew. Malfoy's gentlemanly education You must send off safely the friend you brought. Good luck, son."

Draco nodded and smiled: "Mom, send Lucius hello."

Hermione watched the noble Mrs. Malfoy disappear at the end of the stairs, the orange halo covered the floor with broken gold.

This cold and empty manor may hide another unknown story. It is not a cold contract to maintain the impregnable marriage of pure-blood nobles.And maybe, a lot of love.

The manor is surrounded by the bright moonlight, as beautiful as a fairy tale.