bacchusnovels Chapter 161 Valentine's Day Operation: Hermione's Gift
Chapter 161 Valentine's Day Operation: Hermione's Gift
Chapter 161 Valentine's Day Operation: Hermione's Gift
(The previous chapter reversed the order of time that Hermione and Tonks agreed upon.)
As evening fell, a peaceful and warm atmosphere filled the room. The setting sun shone through the gaps in the curtains, casting dappled golden light and shadow on the floor, making the room feel warm and comfortable.
In the quiet evening, a soft knocking sound suddenly rang out. Although the sound was faint, it clearly entered the room, breaking the tranquility.
"Please come in," Sean replied softly after confirming the time.
However, when the door was slowly pushed open, an unexpected figure appeared in the doorway.
It wasn't Hermione, but a small, delicate figure.
That's Luna Lovegood.
What happened at the same time?
Inside Malfoy Manor.
"What did you say?" Narcissa's voice trembled so much it was almost inaudible, and her face turned deathly pale.
It felt as if I had been suddenly doused with icy snow water.
Her gaze was fixed on her husband, her lips trembling slightly, as if she wanted to confirm it again.
But Wen was afraid to hear that unbelievable answer.
"Yes." Meeting Narcissa's gaze, Lucius nodded slightly. "He's back."
Narcissa felt a sudden tightness in her chest, as if struck by a heavy hammer. That name, the name they thought they would never mention again, was now being spoken again by her husband.
She felt her body begin to tremble, not only from fear, but also from the sudden shock.
"How is this possible?" She finally found her voice, but her tone was filled with disbelief. "He clearly already—"
“I thought he was dead too,” Lucius interrupted her, his voice low. “But in fact, he’s not only alive, but he’s become even stronger than before.”
Narcissa's eyes widened, her heart reeling from the news. That person was still alive and had become even more powerful—it was beyond her wildest imagination.
"Narcissa, under his leadership, we will surely bring the Malfoy family back to its former glory." Lucius's voice suddenly became louder, with a hint of fanaticism.
His eyes gleamed with ambition and anticipation, as if he could already see the Malfoy family returning to glory under that man's leadership.
"Are you sure he really is that person?" Narcissa's voice still trembled slightly as she asked again to confirm.
"I'm sure." Lucius's voice was full of determination. "I saw him with my own eyes. That unique temperament, that powerful aura, there's absolutely no mistake."
"And guess who I saw next to him?" Lucius lowered his voice again, speaking with a hint of mystery.
Narcissa frowned slightly, her curiosity fully piqued. "Who?"
"Sean Phillips," Lucius uttered slowly.
For some reason, upon hearing that name, Narcissa's heart began to race uncontrollably, as if...
Ten minutes passed in the blink of an eye.
As the hour hand of the wall clock slowly reached six, Sean lowered his head and gently patted Luna, who was lying on his lap.
Just as he was about to say something, there was another knock on the office door. The crisp sound echoed in the quiet office, breaking the warm atmosphere between the two of them.
"Professor Sean," Hermione's voice came from outside the door, her tone tinged with anxiety.
Upon hearing Hermione's voice, Luna, who was in Sean's arms, darted into the closet in the corner of the room like a startled rabbit before Sean could react.
Sean was stunned.
No, we didn't do anything.
Why are you running?
The knocking on the door became more urgent. "Professor Sean, are you in there?"
Pulling Luna out of the closet now would seem a bit strange. Sean took a deep look through the gap in the closet, then stood up, straightened his clothes, and made sure he looked normal before going over to open the office door.
"Miss Granger, what's wrong? You seem so anxious, what happened?" Sean tried his best to make his voice sound calm.
Hermione paused, seemingly confused. "Professor, did you ask me to come tonight? You said you had some questions to discuss with me."
It seems that's the case.
It's all Luna's fault for making him a little distracted.
Sean mentally shifted the blame onto Luna, then slapped his forehead, feigning sudden realization, "Oh, I'm sorry, I almost forgot."
As he spoke, he stepped aside to let Hermione into the office.
After entering the office, Hermione sat down on the sofa where Sean and Luna had just sat before Sean and Luna had sat, even before Sean could say anything. Every time she came to Professor Sean's office, she always felt a sense of homecoming.
However... she felt that the sofa was warmer than usual today.
However, when she saw that Sean's desk was piled high with books and documents, it was clear that the professor had indeed been busy, and her doubts lessened somewhat.
"Green tea or...:"
"A cup of honey lemon black tea, please," Hermione replied first.
Sean handed Hermione the black tea with a recipe that Helga had carefully improved. Hermione took a small sip, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes. "Professor, the black tea seems to taste better now."
Sean nodded slightly.
Then, the two fell into silence.
The reason Sean remained silent was because Luna was present, and he didn't know how to bring up the topic of Valentine's Day gifts with Hermione; it just felt strange.
I have a strange sense of immorality about me.
Moreover, he needed to find a reason to quickly resolve this matter and get Luna out of the closet after Hermione left.
Just as Sean was pondering to himself, he suddenly noticed a change in Hermione's expression.
Her usually bright eyes now seemed somewhat shy, and her lips were tightly pressed together, as if she was hesitating about something.
This shy and hesitant expression surprised Sean. Could it be...?
At that moment, Hermione suddenly took a deep breath, as if she had made a decision, and then slowly spoke, "Professor, I think..." Her voice was much softer than usual, and even trembled slightly.
This kind of scenario was quite familiar to Sean. He suppressed his excitement and gently encouraged her, "Hermione, just say what you want to say. I'll listen carefully."
Hermione nodded, a slight blush rising to her cheeks, as delicate as peach blossoms in the morning light. She gently bit her lower lip, as if to encourage herself, then raised her voice slightly. Though still trembling a little, her voice was noticeably more determined than before: "Professor, I would like to give you a gift."
Her fingers rummaged in her pocket and finally pulled out a notebook and a greeting card.
The notebook looked ordinary, but the cover had a small illustration carefully drawn by Hermione, making it unique and heartwarming.
The greeting card was handmade by her, covered with hearts and flowers drawn with colored pens, and with some warm wishes written on it.
She handed the notebook and greeting card to Sean, her eyes filled with anticipation and nervousness.
Sean took the two items, a surge of curiosity and anticipation welling up inside him. He first opened the notebook, and with a gentle flip, he was greeted by a compilation of clippings of all the news articles that had appeared in the newspapers since his graduation.
His past deeds were carefully pasted into the notebook, each page so neat and orderly. Familiar titles and passages, like a timeline, connected his career and personal journey.
He saw his own growth, his own changes, and even more so, his own perseverance and hard work.
What surprised him even more was that each article was carefully marked with the date and source, and there were even some short annotations recording some of his words at the time.
Sean looked at these documents, his heart filled with emotion and awe. He hadn't expected Hermione to put so much effort into organizing these materials for him, and he certainly hadn't expected her to express her support and care for him in such a way.
He looked up at Hermione, his eyes shining with gratitude and admiration. "Hermione, thank you. This gift is really special, I love it."
Hermione smiled happily when she heard Sean's words.
She went to great lengths to prepare this gift for Professor Sean, spending over a month in the process.
In order to collect all the news reports about Professor Sean since his graduation, she scoured the library and read through a large number of newspapers and magazines. Whenever she found an article related to Sean, she would carefully record the timeline.
She wrote to the Daily Prophet multiple times, pleading with them to sell newspapers from previous years, and contacted Kramer, the editor at the Obscure Publishing Company, requesting his help in collecting the newspapers.
In her letter, she explained her intentions and purpose in detail, expressing her admiration and gratitude for Professor Sean.
Finally, with the help of many parties, she obtained almost all the information. After receiving this precious information, she worked day and night to organize and annotate it, just to give Professor Sean the most perfect Valentine's Day gift.
Therefore, from collecting articles from newspapers to carefully cutting and organizing them, and then adding annotations to each article, every step was filled with her hard work.
She even used her spare time to personally draw the cover of the notebook, just to make the gift more unique and meaningful.
Ever since the compound decoction incident during Christmas, she had been restless. While preparing gifts, she reflected on and gained a deeper understanding of Professor Sean's career and unique personal charm. She felt she was almost completely...
Just as Sean was about to say something to Hermione, there was another knock on the office door.
(1822 words have been deleted)