Tom's face turned instantly red, like a boiled Boston lobster.
"Uh, well... um..."
"So you don't want to, huh?" Hermione grabbed the wrinkled socks from the bed and manipulated them in her hands.
"It's not that," Tom replied quickly, as if he was about to lose something if he waited a second longer.
"Then alright, thank you, Mr. Yodel~," Hermione said with a mischievous smile, tilting her head.
...
After a while, Tom and Hermione left the Room of Requirement.
Although Hermione's dress had been ruined by Tom, she was a witch and wasn't going to walk around naked. Cleverly, she transformed her robe into a wizard's robe so she could change later in her room.
"Are you okay?" As they walked down the hallway, Tom noticed that Hermione's steps seemed a bit unnatural. As the responsible one, he obviously had to show concern.
"Get out of my sight!" Hermione gave Tom a annoyed look and rejected Tom's offer to carry her, walking back to the common room on her own.
Once in her room, Hermione was immediately surrounded by her roommates.
"Spill it, where were you last night?" Sue Li put her hands on her hips and stood in front of Hermione, blocking her way into the room.
"And your dress from last night, where is it? I remember you spent a lot of money on it," Padma chimed in with a more detailed observation, realizing that the precious dress Hermione wore last night had disappeared!
A young woman in her prime who doesn't return home all night and comes back with changed clothes... what does that mean?
Hermione, surrounded by her roommates, felt a headache coming on and really wanted to smack Tom a couple of times.
But thinking about Tom, Hermione had a clever idea and came up with a good excuse.
"Volunteering! I've been busy with volunteering these past few days. In fact, we have to go see Professor Dumbledore soon," Hermione recalled, she was the volunteer for the first event of the Triwizard Tournament, and the event was starting today.
As for the formalities of volunteering, Tom had already arranged it for her. After considering it for a while, Dumbledore personally approved Hermione as a volunteer for the event.
It wasn't because Tom used influences, but because Hermione's own power was strong enough. She was a witch who could outperform Tom in pure magical spells!
The power of Tom and Hermione was already beyond the reach of normal students. According to Dumbledore, Hermione had an "almost professor-level" of power, while Tom Yodel had a standard "professor-level" power, not much worse than Grindelwald when he went mad.
This was demonstrated in the record of their real battles.
On the night of the World Cup final, Dumbledore rushed to the campsite. There, he saw the familiar marks: he could swear by his beard that these were the footprints of Fiendfyre. Combined with Tom's previous history, Dumbledore was one hundred percent certain that Tom Yodel had learned the Fiendfyre Curse from somewhere.
That was dark magic!
But Dumbledore wasn't a stubborn old man. He had a flexible attitude towards magic, with a fairly adaptable moral compass. In his view, spells themselves weren't all that different; what mattered was the kind of person casting them. A honorable wizard using dark magic to confront a dark wizard wasn't a problem. But a dark wizard, even if he cast the Patronus Charm, would still be evil.
Tom Yodel fit the description of a wizard who understood the power of "love" perfectly! So, Dumbledore decided to turn a blind eye to the matter of Fiendfyre. The boy was talented, he managed on his own, what more could Dumbledore do?
It's fortunate that he took the right path. If he created another third-generation Dark Lord, Dumbledore would seriously consider retiring and living in seclusion. The relationship between the three Dark Lords and him was very close; shouldn't he reflect on it?
Tom Yodel is now a fundamental force in the fight against the Dark Lord! Even the Order of Merlin is preparing a medal for Tom.
It's not a bad thing for both of them to volunteer for the tournament.
Tom and Hermione aren't the only volunteers. Dumbledore selected a group of sixth and seventh-year students, as well as the best from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons, to participate in the first event. According to the plan, they were supposed to meet with him before the tournament started to go over the details of the first event.
Hermione's words immediately drew the attention of the girls.
"What? You became a volunteer, Hermione?"
"Tell me about the first event!"
"Isn't it supposed to be only older students who can volunteer?"
"Isn't Hermione exceptional enough?"
While the girls chatted animatedly, Hermione quickly changed her clothes and left the room without Sue Li noticing.
"I have to go see Professor Dumbledore; see you later!" She hurried away.
"I feel like something's not right with her," Sue Li looked at Hermione's figure as she walked away and furrowed her brow. She felt that something in Hermione had changed.
Perhaps she had acquired an air of "maturity"?
Surely it was just her imagination!
After Hermione left the dormitory, she went straight to the headmaster's office. There, she would learn the details of the first event and the role she had to play.
"Hermione, wait." Just as Hermione was about to leave the common room, Tom caught up with her from behind with a large package in his hands. Judging by the package's shape, it seemed to be her magical silver wings.
Although these wings were a birthday gift for Hermione, Tom had always kept them. Today, for some reason, he had taken them with him.
"You'll probably need these later." Tom winked at Hermione and without saying anything, he placed the wings in Hermione's arms.
Hermione felt somewhat resigned and tucked the awkward package into her backpack, where she had previously applied an Undetectable Extension Charm. Then, the two of them headed to Dumbledore's office together.
When they arrived outside the office, Tom realized how powerful the Triwizard Tournament was in terms of attracting everyone.
The agreed-upon time with Dumbledore and the volunteers was nine o'clock, but it wasn't even half-past eight yet, and the hallway outside the headmaster's office was already crowded.
Tom saw several older students from Ravenclaw, as well as from the other three houses. Sporadically, there were over ten Hogwarts volunteers present. The other two schools were also there. More than thirty people were crammed into the hallway, creating a chaotic atmosphere.
In addition to the volunteers, Dumbledore, the heads of the four houses, and the members of the judging panel were also present.
When Tom and Hermione arrived, Dumbledore displayed a slight smile. He cleared his throat, signaling to those present to be quiet and listen to his speech.
"Well, everyone is here."
Upon hearing these words from Dumbledore, the attending students directed their gazes toward Tom and Hermione. Upon seeing the two, they all had a premonition. But it was when Dumbledore confirmed it that they felt a sense of surprise.
It was no wonder! These two were too young! Most of the volunteers were older students from the school. The age of the volunteers present exceeded seventeen, but were these two in front of them only sixteen? And yet, they had become volunteers.
But everyone was convinced, after all, Tom had made a name for himself on the day of the Quidditch World Cup final.
Upon seeing Tom and Hermione appear, both Madame Maxime and Professor Karkaroff had unfavorable expressions. Although the two didn't fully understand the content of the event, they had basic knowledge.
As Hogwarts volunteers, it was natural that they would have a biased attitude towards Hogwarts champions, right? At that moment, both of them were somewhat concerned.
Although they all had their own roles in the background, they kept quiet and held their thoughts to listen attentively to Dumbledore.
"Honestly, I'm surprised you all arrived so early. I thought last night's party would exhaust you so much that you wouldn't be able to get out of bed this morning." Dumbledore gave Tom and Hermione a subtle wink.
Tom: ...
How can this old man know everything?
"Today is the day the first event of the Triwizard Tournament begins. As volunteers, you will be the first to enter the competition venue along with the champions..."
Everyone, except Tom, paid attention. They felt a burning curiosity, eager to discover the nature of the Triwizard Tournament.
"The first event will take place in... the Forbidden Forest!"
Upon hearing this name, everyone held their breath. The young wizards of Hogwarts didn't need to be told, but students from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons had also heard about the danger of Hogwarts' Forbidden Forest in recent times. It was not an exaggeration to say it was the most dangerous forest in the wizarding world.
This forest was dense and vast, housing countless magical creatures, many of which were extremely dangerous. Normal students were not allowed to enter the Forbidden Forest; only those who had committed serious offenses were punished by being sent to patrol the forest.
When they learned that the first event would take place in the Forbidden Forest, everyone became tense. Even some of the volunteers started to doubt: who knows what kind of creatures are in the Forbidden Forest? It was said that there were werewolves there. If they were captured or bitten, wouldn't their lives be ruined?
Not only were the students surprised, but Directors Maxime and Karkaroff were also extremely surprised. This didn't match the information they had received! Wasn't the first event supposed to be about dragons? Why had it changed to a survival test in the wilderness?
Wait... did they release some dragons into the Forbidden Forest?
The two directors were taken aback.
Dumbledore looked at the students present with an exceptionally serious expression. "I must remind you that, even though you are volunteers, if you act irresponsibly in the Forbidden Forest, you will also face mortal danger. Although the Ministry of Magic has taken many precautions, caution and prudence remain the most solid protection."
Everyone nodded in silence, determined not to exceed their limits.
After warning everyone, Dumbledore pulled a golden bracelet from his robe. The bracelet was large and thick, seemingly suitable for Hagrid to wear. Numerous inscriptions were engraved on the bracelet.
Before everyone could clearly see what the bracelet looked like, Dumbledore drew his wand and made an unexpected move: he pointed the tip of the wand at the bracelet, and instantly, the bracelet shattered into pieces, turning into several dozen fragments of different sizes.
Then, the fragments turned into beams of light that flew out of the hallway windows. Some pieces were also thrown into the hands of the volunteers.
Tom received one of the fragments, which seemed to be the largest and heaviest, almost an ounce in weight. Hermione also received a small piece, but much smaller than Tom's, about the size of a fingernail.
The volunteers who received the fragments couldn't help but examine the pieces of gold bracelet in their hands closely, while those who didn't receive them also showed curiosity.
"You must guard the fragments carefully. The three champions and their assistants will do their best to take them from you... All you can do is protect the fragments in your hands or give them to the champions you choose." Dumbledore spoke with a smile.
The volunteers present immediately changed their expressions. Those who received the fragments stored them away immediately, cautiously eyeing the small wizards from other schools and houses around them. Those who didn't receive fragments quickly remembered the names and faces of the volunteers who had them.
The air instantly filled with tension.
Madame Maxime glanced at the especially large fragment in Tom's hand, barely containing her internal discontent. "So Dumbledore continues to show favoritism, he gave the largest piece to his own!"
"Remember that the fragments in your hands will determine the outcome of the competition. Now, I will explain some basic rules..."
After explaining the fundamental rules, Dumbledore had the members of the refereeing team distribute protective suits to the volunteers. These suits were designed to safeguard their lives as much as possible.
The suits contained two things. The first was a flare, which could be fired if a volunteer suffered a severe injury or faced a mortal threat. Professors outside the field would enter the Forbidden Forest to retrieve the volunteer. Once the flare was fired, it would be considered that the volunteer was withdrawing from the competition, and the champions and other participants were prohibited from inflicting further harm.
The second thing was even more interesting: an activation Portkey. By touching it, they would be transported to the Quidditch pitch. This was also a safety measure prepared by the Ministry of Magic for the volunteers. The Portkey had an outer cover that small wizards normally couldn't touch. Only in times of crisis, by breaking the cover, would the Portkey activate, transporting them back to the pitch.
With these two tools, the safety of the volunteers was guaranteed.
In addition to this, the volunteers also received a small bag, no one knew what was inside, they could only open it and check its contents once in the competition field.
According to Dumbledore, inside the bag could be magical items, a map, or a combination of both, completely random.
As for food, water, and tents, they were naturally provided.
"Very well, now, deans and members of the refereeing team, lead the volunteers into the Forbidden Forest." After completing the arrangements, Dumbledore made a sweeping hand gesture and announced that everyone could depart.
Tom seemed to contemplate for a moment. He had something else to do.