In the face of such an intimidating yellow cat, there was a gleam in Scabbers' eyes. He wriggled in the witch's hand, broke free, and fled towards the door.
The two of them searched for a quarter of an hour but found no trace of Scabbers, and just as Harry was about to give up, Ron found Scabbers under a trash bin outside the Quidditch supplies store.
Crookshanks, who had scared off Scabbers, showed no shyness in "causing trouble." He thumped the counter in satisfaction, yawned, and fell asleep.
"Is it called Crookshanks?" Hermione approached the counter and examined the cat closely.
Everything had happened so quickly that she hadn't noticed the cat until now. Crookshanks looked like a shrunken lion, with long, thick, fluffy ginger fur, short legs, a squashed face, and a displeased expression, as if someone owed him dried fish.
Tom recognized the cat, which outwardly looked like a Persian. But it was too lively, possibly due to its part-Kneazle blood.
Tom recognized it. By appearance, this cat looks like a Persian cat. But its personality is too lively, which can be attributed to its cat and Kneazle blood.
To Tom, this cat wasn't particularly handsome. He preferred cats with moderate-length, elegant, and strong tiger-like fur.
But Hermione really liked furry things. She gazed at this Persian cat with a tender expression on her face, wanting to reach out and stroke it but feeling hesitant to do so.
"It's, um..." Hermione hesitated to speak.
The cashier read Hermione's mind. "This cat started off as a stray. I think its owner fed it a bit of cake, and ever since, it has been here. I don't know how many years, but it has been here for a long time, and no one has wanted to adopt it."
The cashier was somewhat impressed. The cat had been in the store longer than she had.
"So..." Hermione nodded, unable to help but glance at Tom when she learned about Crookshanks' experience, and Tom immediately furrowed his brow.
"Don't bring that up!" Tom was a bit annoyed. Am I the type of person who can be won over with a small piece of cake and have my favorability filled? At this rate, if our experiences become a game in the future, I won't be one of those characters who sign up for seven days and automatically get it, right? Or a first-load type who gets a free first load of $6?
The worst part is having a 5-star Hermione gacha template with a 4-star Tom Yodel... so even though the character's strength is known as a 6-star template, it's still embarrassing!
Tom pondered for a while. If he were to adapt as a game character, he would be a good support: he can heal, revive, remove negative status effects, have hard control, and deal some damage...
Except for the fact that he can't add attack power, he's basically a hexagon! Basically, the best support is to help the protagonist kill all enemies.
"Well~ well~ behave," Hermione rubbed Tom's head, messing up his hair, "You're not, you're not the same as a cat~"
Then she looked at the employee. "Can I try to hold him?"
The shopkeeper nodded. "Of course you can, but be careful, he can be very grumpy."
But when Hermione reached out her hand and gently embraced Crookshanks, he didn't object. He even purred comfortably. Cats only purr when they're more comfortable and secure. It was clear that Hermione and Crookshanks got along well.
In the end, the shopkeeper didn't accept any money from Hermione and gifted her Crookshanks.
Tom and Hermione left the magical animal shop and returned to the bustling street, with Crookshanks sleeping in Hermione's arms.
When Ron saw Tom and Hermione, his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. "You bought that monster?!"
"No, and it has a beautiful coat, right?" Hermione said with a satisfied smile as she buried her face in Crookshanks' fur.
Ron felt like his temple was about to explode and quickly pulled Harry away from Hermione before the crazy cat could attack Scabbers again. Crookshanks had been staring at him intensely ever since he woke up in Hermione's arms, and it was making him nervous.
The four of them separated, and Tom and Hermione continued to wander through Diagon Alley for a while.
When they passed by a magical trinket shop, Tom stopped, and something on the counter caught his attention.
Hermione: ???
Tom rushed into the store and came out moments later, looking like he had slipped a small box into his robe.
Hermione: ???
"Hey!" Tom had no intention of providing any explanations and headed straight for the Leaky Cauldron.
When he returned to the pub, Tom saw a mass of redheads: the Weasleys were talking to Harry, and their youngest daughter, Ginny, stood by quietly with a red face, listening to her siblings' gossip.
When they saw Tom and Hermione approaching, they greeted them warmly.
"Hello, Yodel, Granger." Percy extended his hand solemnly, as if it were a diplomatic meeting. Fred and George stood behind him, winking and making faces at Tom.
"Congratulations on becoming a Prefect."
"Yes." But Percy's seriousness was quickly broken by Fred and George, and they laughed and laughed together.
In the evening, the two long tables were brought together, and a pleasant dinner was served. After the meal, everyone went about their business.
At night, as Tom roasted by the fireplace, he noticed Harry heading out with a pile of discarded newspapers. What caught Tom's attention was that the photos in the clippings were still.
It wasn't easy to come across Muggle newspapers in Diagon Alley.
So Tom stopped Harry and told him to burn the newspapers later. Harry said it was a disguise for his spellbook. His Aunt Petunia occasionally entered his room, and to be safe, he not only hid the book but wrapped it in some old newspapers.
"I see," Tom looked at Harry sympathetically. With their shared background, he was much happier than Harry. But his eyes stopped when he looked at the newspaper.
He saw the headline on the newspaper scrap that said: ["Did the Jade Book Originally Emerge? A Great Discovery by a Beautiful Adventurer!"]
He took the newspaper, folded it carefully, and put it in his pocket.
"Tom, since you're here, I have something to ask you. Did you receive the Hogsmeade permission slip? Who did you get to sign it?" Harry wasn't too concerned about Tom's actions; he had more important things to deal with.
"Mr. Granger."
Harry: ...
Damn it! Is there any way to make this work? Isn't it too late to get a girlfriend? Harry thought bitterly.
"If there's nothing else, I'll head back. The trip from Platform 9 is about to start again." Tom stood up.