A few more days passed.
During these days, Professor McGonagall always looked at him with worry, which left Charlie quite helpless.
At noon on Thursday, Charlie saw Neville walk into the Great Hall dejectedly, his hands stained with something black.
"What's wrong?" Charlie put down the book in his hand.
Neville looked up, appearing quite miserable.
"I melted my cauldron."
"Potion Class again?"
Although Neville wasn't as timid as before, facing Snape's high pressure, it was still difficult for Neville to do well in Potion Class.
"Mm." Neville vigorously rubbed his fingers, but the black stains wouldn't come off.
"Professor Snape told us to brew a Shrinking Potion. I don't know what step went wrong, but the bottom of the cauldron just melted. The Potion spilled everywhere and even burned through the desk."
Ernie leaned over.
"What did Snape say?"
"He said he'd never seen a student as untalented as me in his career, and that even Trolls were better than me." Neville's voice grew softer and softer.
"Then he gave me detention. I just came out of detention. Professor Snape told me to deal with a large bucket of toad guts. No magic, only by hand."
He held out his hands, his fingernails filled with sticky toad guts. The fishy smell made Ernie take a step back.
Charlie pulled out his wand.
A gentle breeze swept over Neville's head, and all the stains instantly vanished. Even the black Potion marks on his robes were clean.
Neville looked down at his hands, his eyes sparkling.
"This spell is so useful, Charlie, can you teach me?"
"Of course, no problem, it's very simple."
Charlie told Neville the spell and what to pay attention to, and Neville tried it a few times himself, barely managing to use it.
Although he couldn't use it as freely as Charlie, cleaning his fingernails was no problem.
Ron leaned over and said,
"Snape's temper this semester has been abnormally irritable." Ron lowered his voice.
"It must be because of Professor Moody. Haven't you noticed? Snape always walks around Moody whenever he sees him."
Charlie thought for a moment.
"Snape used to be a Death Eater, and Moody catches Death Eaters."
"Exactly!" Ron slapped his thigh.
"Moody must have caught him, or almost caught him. Now they meet every day in the Castle, how could he not feel guilty?"
"Speaking of which, I'm even more looking forward to Defense Against the Dark Arts Class this afternoon."
Charlie glanced at him; this guy had been chattering about Defense Against the Dark Arts Class for days.
While they were still grumbling about Snape, Cedric walked over and handed Charlie a piece of cake.
"Charlie... about that thing you said you'd help me with last time..."
"Ready?"
Cedric took a deep breath and nodded.
Charlie stood up and waved to Neville and the others.
"Bye, talk to you next time."
"Bye."
There weren't many people in the corridor. Cedric walked quickly, with Charlie following behind.
"You have to tell me who it is, right?" Charlie asked.
Cedric paused, his ears a little red.
"Follow me."
He led Charlie through several corridors, up a spiral staircase, all the way to the highest spire of Hogwarts.
Few people usually came here. The staircase was so narrow that only one person could pass at a time, but the stone walls were very clean, clearly cleaned regularly by House-elves.
The door to the room at the top of the tower was ajar, and the sound of rustling pages came from within.
Cedric stopped outside the door, looked back at Charlie, and his lips moved.
"She's in there?" Charlie whispered.
Cedric nodded and quietly pushed the door open.
The room wasn't large, with an old desk by the window. An Asian girl was sitting there reading a book, oblivious to their presence.
She was wearing Ravenclaw robes, her long black hair tied in a ponytail, but her appearance, well, it didn't quite fit Charlie's aesthetic.
Charlie generally couldn't appreciate the Asian looks that Europeans found attractive.
"Her name is Cho Chang," Cedric whispered to Charlie.
"Ravenclaw fifth-year, and also Ravenclaw's Seeker."
"I liked her when I was on the Quidditch pitch, but I don't know how to express my feelings, nor do I know what she thinks of me."
"Charlie, tell me, how should I pursue her?"
Charlie gave a mischievous smile.
"Your idea clearly marks you as a beginner."
Cedric was stunned, looking at Charlie with some confusion.
"Don't think about how to pursue a girl," Charlie lowered his voice.
"You need to show your excellent self and make her fall for you actively."
Cedric's eyes lit up, and he leaned closer.
"How do I show it?"
"It all comes down to one word." Charlie held up a finger and said mysteriously.
"Sexual tension."
"Sexual tension?" Cedric repeated the word, his face full of confusion; he had never heard of it.
"Right, for a man to create sexual tension, it's just a few points. First, care for her, make her feel warm all the time, so she'll remember your kindness in her heart."
As Charlie spoke, he suddenly reached out and pushed.
Cedric was completely unprepared and stumbled a few steps, directly entering the room.
He looked back at Charlie in a panic. Charlie gave him a thumbs-up, his face full of confidence.
Technique is indeed important, but the most important thing is the 'modeling.' Although Cedric's 'modeling' is a bit inferior to that of the esteemed readers, it's already top-tier.
How could he possibly lose even with a direct approach? Not to mention his own 'warmth' strategy.
Inside the room, Cho Chang was startled by the footsteps and looked up.
"Cedric?" She closed her book, a little surprised.
"What's wrong?"
Cedric stood at the doorway, flustered.
Charlie's words echoed in his mind—care for her, give her warmth.
He took a deep breath and pulled out his wand.
Cho Chang watched his actions, her expression growing more confused.
Cedric waved his wand and conjured a thick coat. He walked over to Cho Chang and draped the coat over her shoulders.
"For a little warmth."
Outside the door, Charlie suddenly turned around.
No, buddy?
Cho Chang looked down at the coat on her, then up at Cedric, her face full of question marks.
"But..." she began hesitantly.
"It's September, and it's 30 degrees outside."
Although Cho said that, Cedric still insisted on Charlie's 'warmth' strategy.
"But you seem a bit cold. I'll warm up some Potion for you to drink later. Wear a few more layers normally, and drink some whiskey to warm yourself up when you go out."
As he spoke, he even tried to pull the thick coat tighter around Cho Chang's shoulders.
Outside the door, Charlie was dumbfounded.
What are you doing, you big idiot, Cedric!
Are you trying to kill the conversation?
Cho Chang's expression had changed from confusion to embarrassment.
"You really don't need to..."
"You must keep warm," Cedric's tone was exceptionally sincere.
"I read a book that said Asian girls generally have a colder constitution and need to drink more hot water and wear more clothes..."
Charlie couldn't watch anymore and strode into the room.
"Stop, stop, stop!" He grabbed Cedric's arm.
Cedric looked up at Charlie, a bit bewildered, 'Didn't you teach me this?'
Charlie took a deep breath.
"Your idea is very good, but next time, don't think about it first."
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