The appearance of Pansy and the others made the nearby young Slytherins all breathe a collective sigh of relief.
Their tacit, strangely synchronized reaction naturally caught Hermione's attention. She looked at Draco suspiciously, and that puzzled gaze made Ginny, who had been quietly watching her from the side, suddenly grow nervous.
Although Ginny did not quite understand what that feeling was, she quickly interrupted Hermione's thoughts.
"Hermione, I've been looking for you for ages. What have you been busy with lately?"
"...Just a few things."
Although Hermione felt that Ginny's reaction was a little odd, as if she were feeling guilty about something, she still answered her question.
As she spoke, she accepted the mashed potatoes Draco pushed toward her.
Pansy, who did not care why Ginny was here, skillfully moved closer to Draco and whispered something only the two of them could hear.
"Draco, we've found some clues about the thing you asked us to look for."
"Did you run into any problems along the way?"
"Mm. Without that map, it really wouldn't have gone so smoothly. After all, that place isn't exactly hidden away in some remote corner."
It had to be said.
Both Pansy and Hermione were starting to admire Draco's judgment and decisiveness.
Who could have imagined that a single map would bring such astonishing returns?
In the recent string of events, Draco had made full use of its value.
Interestingly, if they had been even a little later, and had failed to get the Marauder's Map from Harry Potter, these tasks would not have been so easy to complete. They might not even have succeeded at all.
That alone showed how wise Draco's original decision had been.
At the same time, it also indirectly showed that Harry Potter really was not that outstanding in this regard, and his luck had been rather poor.
...
While Pansy was busy replenishing her "Draco energy," Hermione was also curious about why Ginny had appeared here.
More precisely, she was worried that Ginny might have found out something.
"What's going on? Why did you come here? Is there something you need to tell me?"
"Mm... I had some questions I wanted to ask you, but I haven't seen you around lately, so I..."
"I thought..."
"You thought?"
Hermione looked away and waved a hand. At first, she had wondered whether the incident last time had made Ginny suspicious, but it seemed that was not the reason.
That made sense.
Harry Potter had disappeared outright, so he had never had the chance to say a single word to Ginny. Naturally, Ginny could not have known that there had actually been an unspeakable reason behind calling her and Longbottom out together last time.
To be honest, if those two had been seen together, someone would definitely have grown suspicious. It would not have stood up to scrutiny.
So Harry Potter's disappearance really had come at just the right time.
And Ginny certainly would not know that Pansy Parkinson, who was sitting at the same table as her now, had once disguised herself as Ginny to get close to Harry Potter.
Since she knew it had nothing to do with that matter, Hermione was not foolish enough to bring it up herself. "No, nothing. Go on, then. What did you want to ask me?"
Ginny studied Hermione's expression suspiciously, but when she could not see anything from it, she repeated what she had just told Draco.
The wanted notice. The Ministry of Magic.
"I see. I do know quite a bit about this."
"So you also know that the Ministry of Magic has already been taken over by that person?"
"More or less."
"..."
For some reason, an uncomfortable feeling rose in Ginny's heart, as if she had lost to Hermione in some way.
Hermione, who did not notice the strange look on Ginny's face, reached out and pulled Pansy away just as she was about to burrow into Draco's arms. "Pay attention to where you are. Also, I have something important to discuss with Draco."
"Granger... Hmph!"
Although Pansy was dissatisfied, she knew time was tight, so she still let go of Draco's arm.
Hermione paid no mind to that cold snort and looked at Draco seriously. But after thinking of something, her gaze quietly shifted toward Ginny and Luna beside them.
That meaningful look seemed to suggest there was something confidential that could not be allowed to reach anyone else's ears.
Naturally, the quick-witted Ginny could not have missed it. Nor was she thick-skinned enough to pretend she had not seen the apologetic look in Hermione's eyes. "I'll come find you another time. Luna and I will leave fir..."
"Wait."
"Huh, Draco?"
Draco looked at Ginny, who was about to stand and leave, then slowly said, "Although our positions outside are indeed different, the current situation means we have to unite every force we can use."
"What do you mean?"
"I think I told you before. Hogwarts is no longer safe, and the Dark Lord will definitely make a move."
"So what..."
"And I can say with absolute certainty that the Dark Lord has already begun to act... against Hogwarts."
"..."
Looking at the somewhat bewildered Ginny Weasley, Draco leaned forward. "I'm staying. I won't leave Hogwarts."
"You?!"
"And here... I'll fight him!"
"..."
Ginny's lips parted slightly.
She stared at the faintly mad curve of his mouth, and at those deep, shining eyes.
For a moment, all Ginny could see was the blond figure before her.
Gryffindor's courage.
Slytherin's ambition.
In that instant, both seemed to appear in Draco at the same time.