"Professor, I feel that the homework you assigned this time is a bit too much."
Hermione raised her head and said seriously.
Sherlock lifted his head in surprise, even doubting if he had misheard.
"You're saying the homework I assigned is too much?"
Hermione nodded and said earnestly.
"Yes, Professor. A scroll one foot long. I don't think we can finish it during the holiday."
Sherlock frowned. He hadn't expected this to be the reason Hermione came to his office.
Having been a professor at Hogwarts for nearly a semester, he had a clear understanding of the workload assigned by the other professors.
Normally, an essay one foot long would indeed be quite a lot.
If professors for five different subjects assigned such homework, the students would have no free time whatsoever, spending all day buried in assignments.
But Hogwarts was about to begin the Christmas holiday, a break second only to the summer vacation in length.
Compared to the length of the holiday, a one-foot assignment was practically negligible.
Furthermore, while one foot sounded like a lot, there were no strict rules regarding the size of the writing on the parchment. As long as it wasn't too excessive, even Sherlock usually turned a blind eye.
Yet now, the student universally recognized as the smartest and most diligent in the second year had come to him, claiming his homework was too much and couldn't be finished during the holiday?
Sherlock keenly sensed a problem.
At this juncture, something happening to Hermione, who belonged to the protagonist group, was highly likely related to the recent events at Hogwarts.
He stared into Hermione's eyes and spoke calmly.
"I don't think a one-foot assignment is too much, Miss Granger. If another student came to me, I might suspect it was just an excuse to be lazy, but you must have another reason. So, can you tell me why you feel you won't be able to complete this holiday assignment?"
Hermione did not avoid Sherlock's gaze; in fact, she deliberately met his eyes. A subtle hint of expectation was cleverly concealed in her look.
"Professor, are you saying that you believe, barring any unforeseen circumstances, I would definitely be able to complete this holiday assignment and hand it in to you?"
Her voice was soft, as if she had some difficulty she was considering whether or not to reveal to Sherlock.
Hearing her speak this way, Sherlock felt he had guessed correctly. Hermione clearly had some unspoken secret, and regardless of what it was, he felt he needed to get to the bottom of it.
"Of course, I trust that you will complete the holiday assignment and deliver it to me, unless..."
But unexpectedly, Hermione interrupted him before he could finish.
"Thank you so much for your trust, Professor Cavendish! I also believe I can complete the holiday assignment, and I can hand it to you right now!"
Excitement was evident in Hermione's tone, as if she had heard exactly what she wanted and her purpose for coming had been achieved.
But Sherlock was stunned.
Wait, this isn't right?
Why did you suddenly change your mind?
Shouldn't there be some unspeakable secret that you reveal under my continuous questioning, which I then discover is related to the recent continuous attacks happening at Hogwarts? Is that not the plot?
Hermione's deviation from the expected script left Sherlock completely dumbfounded.
But Hermione's test hadn't stopped. She spoke rapidly.
"Professor, wait a moment! I'll go finish the assignment right now and bring it to you!"
Without waiting for Sherlock's reply, she quickly ran out of the office. In an empty classroom nearby, she retrieved the assignment from Harry, which was still missing two lines.
She completed the missing parts at top speed.
Then, holding the assignment, she ran back into Sherlock's office and placed the completed work in his hands.
The entire process took less than three minutes.
Only then did Sherlock finally come back to his senses.
He looked at the holiday assignment Hermione respectfully handed him, an absurd feeling rising in his heart that she was exploiting some kind of game bug.
What in the world was going on?
A prank from Hermione?
"Professor, do you think this assignment is completed satisfactorily?" Hermione looked at Sherlock expectantly.
Sherlock carefully reviewed the holiday assignment Hermione had handed in early.
The handwriting was neat, the letters extremely small, densely filling the entire sheet of parchment. This clearly wasn't the result of trying to casually brush it off.
After a quick glance at the content, everything about the Boggart's habits, characteristics, countermeasures, and detection methods was covered comprehensively. She had clearly put genuine effort into it.
So what was she trying to achieve?
Sherlock looked at the assignment in his hand, then at the expectant Hermione, completely baffled.
"Professor, is my assignment considered satisfactorily completed?" Hermione asked softly, her tone laced with impatience.
Sherlock examined the assignment submitted by Hermione for a long time, turning it over and over, but couldn't figure out the trick.
"It's very well done, Miss Granger. But you had already finished the assignment before you came to see me, hadn't you? So why did you say at first that you wouldn't be able to complete it?"
Hearing Sherlock's words, Hermione's face flushed red, and she hurriedly explained.
"I'm sorry, Professor, I just wanted to play a small joke..."
Sherlock looked at her with suspicion.
"Just a joke?"
Hermione's face grew hotter.
She felt hypocritical. Just two days ago, she had lectured Harry and Ron about apologizing to Sherlock, and now she herself was lying to him.
But her intuition told her it was best not to mention the test for now.
"Yes, Professor, just a joke. I know I was wrong."
Sherlock didn't continue to doubt the veracity of Hermione's words. He felt there was only one most likely reason for Hermione acting this way today.
She must have been corrupted by following those two boys, Harry and Ron!
"Some jokes should not be made, Miss Granger," Sherlock said seriously. "Although your assignment was completed well and early, given your behaviour today, I must deduct 3 points from Gryffindor. I hope this serves as a warning."
Hermione's face showed shame.
"I understand, Professor. I won't make this mistake again."
Seeing her willingness to admit her mistake, Sherlock did not pursue the matter further. He returned his attention to compiling questions and waved his hand.
"You may go. Even though it's the holiday, don't relax your standards. And, I wish you a pleasant Christmas break."
The moment he finished speaking, Hermione froze on the spot. Her face instantly turned from red to white.
Everything was so sudden. She stood motionless, her eyes becoming vacant, and the entire world seemed to turn grey and white.
Only in her ears did Sherlock's recent blessing seem to echo.
"I wish you a pleasant Christmas break."
"...a pleasant Christmas break."
"...Christmas break."
"...pleasant holiday."
"...pleasant."
"...pleasant."
"..."
""