Seeing the sleeping Hermione, Tom had the intention of leaving at that moment, taking advantage of her slumber to do something important. However, just as he had finished putting on his clothes, he saw Hermione turn on the bed, hugging the blankets and murmuring his name incoherently.
"Tom... hehe..."
Tom sighed and shook his head. With a girlfriend like her, he really didn't want to leave that room. Plus, it was already late; it would be better to go the next day. After all, what he was looking for was still in that place and wouldn't move.
Tom intended to go to Grimmauld Place Number 12 and destroy Voldemort's Horcrux. If his calculations were correct, Salazar Slytherin's locket should be one of the last two Horcruxes of Voldemort, aside from Harry. There was a curse left by Voldemort on the Resurrection Stone, but he wasn't in a hurry to take it. He preferred to start with the simpler Horcrux.
"I don't know if Grimmauld Place Number 12 has been occupied already. In theory, after Dumbledore called the Order of the Phoenix, they would have used it as their headquarters..." While pondering, Tom climbed onto the bed and pulled the blankets from between Hermione's legs.
Don't steal my blankets, come closer to me!
The next morning, Hermione woke up and saw Tom's peaceful expression as he slept. His well-defined profile made him look beautiful, and it made Hermione's heart race.
This is my boyfriend~!
He might be a treasure to others, but now he's in my bed!
Thinking about this, Hermione couldn't contain the excitement in her heart anymore. She reached out and stroked Tom's chest, then gently licked his earlobe.
Under this provocation, Tom woke up.
"What... are you... doing?" he asked lazily.
"Last night, I had a super interesting dream," Hermione said, blinking and starting to make up a story. "I dreamt that you took me on an adventure, but you were captured by the enemy... I rescued you, but you were cursed and couldn't move...!"
Tom: ???
Is this a serious enemy?
"Since you didn't take me on an adventure, I decided to teach you a lesson," Hermione continued, while her hands became mischievous.
"What lesson?"
"I turned you into a little witch!"
Hmm? Tom became alert.
"Eh?" Hermione noticed the blankets rising and her eyes curved into half-moons. "It looks like you really like this story. Do you want to try it?"
"What?! No, let me..."
They struggled for a while before finally getting out of bed.
Bah!
Hermione took the trash can next to the bed and spit in it.
"Kiss (づ￣3￣)づ"
Tom: ...
Hermione: ???
Rejecting doesn't help! Hermione took Tom's face and kissed him on the mouth for a while before stopping.
"Don't complain," Hermione said with an eye roll. If he had proposed that idea himself, then he had to pay the corresponding price.
"Do you have anything planned for today?" Hermione asked as she dressed, looking at Tom.
"First, we'll have breakfast, and then we'll go see Professor Dumbledore."
"Great!" Hermione's eyes sparkled. Did this mean that Tom was about to do something? It didn't matter; as long as she was there, it wouldn't be "doing something" because she would stop him from going too extreme.
Hermione didn't realize her logical error.
Both of them went to the Great Hall and enjoyed a delicious breakfast.
"Tom, can you pass me that?"
"What?" Tom shifted his gaze from his sausage, looking confused.
"That!... Haha, ketchup, pfft, haha..."
Mentioning ketchup, Hermione was already struggling to hold back her laughter, but finally burst into laughter. This reminded her of a "small" prank they had a while back.
At that time, they had just started their relationship and were both a little shy. Tom had hinted to Hermione if she could help him relieve his stress with her hands, but innocent Hermione didn't understand that skill. So Tom told her a sentence he would regret for a long time.
"Pour it as if it were ketchup."
And Hermione did. But the only problem was... When Hermione was at home, to pour ketchup, she always grabbed the bottle and forcefully hit it on the bottom.
She didn't understand why Tom wanted her to do it that way; maybe it was some strange preference of his.
But after his cry of pain, it seemed he didn't enjoy it very much.
Then, when Tom showed her angrily how to properly pour ketchup in the Great Hall, Hermione understood it instantly and burst into laughter.
Since then, ketchup practically became a forbidden word between them. Red ketchup filtered through a yellow filter between them.
"Tom, do you have time? There's something I want to talk to you about." Just as Hermione was laughing heartily, Harry approached and expressed his desire to talk to Tom.
Of course, Tom wouldn't refuse.
So, from Harry's mouth, Tom learned the latest news about Voldemort.
He couldn't believe that what he considered the most complicated Horcrux of all had been eliminated by Voldemort himself. That meant that now there was only the locket and...
Harry Potter.
"Find a way to learn Occlumency properly, Harry."
"But..." Harry tried to say something more, but Tom shook his head, unwilling to listen to his explanations.
"If you keep going like this, sooner or later, he'll infiltrate your mind. You can't keep spying on his mind-"
"I don't!" Harry got a little angry; Tom's words insinuated that he was a pervert invading other people's privacy.
"If it's not something you do willingly, it's even worse. He can decide what you can see; he can even invade your sight." Tom frowned; he understood Harry's difficulties, but sometimes there were things you knew you shouldn't do, but you couldn't help doing them.
Harry needed to find a way to learn Occlumency and make it as difficult as possible for Voldemort to access his mind.
"I'll try," Harry said a bit disheartened.
Before, he thought being able to see Voldemort's movements was a good thing. This way, Dumbledore could gather information about Voldemort effortlessly, and it could finally contribute to the fight against him.
But after what Tom had said, he began to doubt.
Just as Tom was about to end the conversation with Harry, he saw an imposing figure entering the Great Hall.
"Harry, look, it's Hagrid!" Tom pointed to the professors' area.
Indeed, the name Hagrid diverted Harry's attention.
"He's finally back!" Harry exclaimed happily.
Since Rita Skeeter published that absurd article, Hagrid hadn't been seen by the students for a long time.
Now that he was willing to come and eat in the Great Hall, it was a good sign.
At that moment, Dumbledore, sitting in the center of the professors' table, greeted Hagrid, and Madame Maxime, next to him, also showed a happy smile.
"Hagrid, would you like to try some wine to accompany your meal? Hogwarts red wine is of very good quality," she raised her tall glass and gestured to Hagrid.
"I'll take my leave then," once Hagrid appeared, Harry's thoughts focused on him, so he hurriedly said goodbye.
Of course, Tom was delighted to have some quiet.
He returned to his seat and shared a hearty breakfast with Hermione.
After breakfast, both of them left the dining hall as if nothing had happened and then met Dumbledore outside the Great Hall.
"Good morning, Miss Granger and Mr. Jodel," Dumbledore smiled, his gaze resting on Hermione's radiant face. "You look much better than yesterday; I hope you're well."
Tom pursed his lips.
She looks better now, but after a while, she'll drink the potion again and feel sick again. The side effects of Snape's potion were becoming more intense, which made him hesitate. He didn't know if he should stop her for a few days and give Hermione time to detoxify.
"Professor, can I stop taking this potion for two days? Lately, Hermione's adverse reactions have become stronger-"
Hermione wanted to stop Tom, but he spoke anyway.
Dumbledore sighed, "You can't, you can't stop taking the potion. You told me before that you already found a solution, so I hope you can endure a little longer..."
Inside, he felt a profound apology towards Tom and Hermione. It was his mistake to let these two children, who were not yet adults, bear such a heavy burden.
"Well, I'm fine," Hermione said as she stared at Tom, making it clear that he should shut up. "Professor Dumbledore, can we request permission not to attend classes today?"
"Oh?" Dumbledore adjusted his glasses, looking amazed at the two of them in front of him. "Miss Granger, Mr. Yodel, please do not abuse the use of Polyjuice Potion."
Tom, Hermione: ???
This is really strange! Is this okay? Wait a moment... If the two of them were to switch bodies... isn't it...?
Their thoughts took a strange turn.
No wonder Dumbledore had such suspicions, especially since it was Hermione who came to ask for permission today, which was very unusual. Such a responsible girl as Hermione skipping classes? So Dumbledore instinctively suspected that this Hermione was actually Tom in disguise.
"Professor, we haven't taken the Polyjuice Potion," Tom intervened, trying to clarify his relationship with Hermione. They hadn't reached that point yet! And he had no intention of using the Polyjuice Potion. Not because he could transform into the appearance of other wizards, but because he feared Hermione would become addicted and one day ask him to transform into the appearance of other wizards...
"I have some things to investigate with Hermione. We want to go to Sirius's house. We've discovered some clues about that person."
This piqued Dumbledore's interest. If it was about Voldemort, it couldn't be taken lightly.
"Have you found new clues?" Dumbledore scrutinized him.
"Yes, it seems Sirius had a brother, right?"
Dumbledore nodded, "Yes, he had a brother named Regulus Black, who mysteriously disappeared at the end of the Wizarding War. We believe he died somewhere."
Tom fell silent for a moment, "I suppose you know it wasn't members of the Order of the Phoenix who killed him, right?"
After Regulus's fate, various factions investigated after the war, after all, this involved the whereabouts of the last heir of a pure-blood family, and Dumbledore was no exception.
He had interrogated members of the Order of the Phoenix, but they all answered negatively. Dumbledore believed that members of the Order of the Phoenix would not lie, so Regulus did not die at their hands.
Since he was not killed by members of the Order of the Phoenix or the Ministry of Magic, what could make an adult wizard disappear?
There were only two possibilities: Voldemort sent him on an extremely dangerous mission, and he died somewhere in the world, or he tried to leave the Death Eaters, and Voldemort eliminated him.
Most of the magical community believed in the second possibility, but the true core Death Eaters knew that both possibilities were absurd.
They knew the trust Voldemort had in Regulus, a trust that never wavered until his disappearance. After Regulus disappeared, Voldemort even sent his followers to look for him.
Given Voldemort's character, would he really need to hide if he was purging his followers? He would want all the Death Eaters to know the consequences of betrayal. So the Death Eaters think it is very possible that the Order of the Phoenix used some dishonorable method to kill Regulus and simply refused to admit it.
"I want to investigate the cause of Regulus's death; it's really suspicious. And if we consider what happened to the Malfoy and Lestrange families, I have reason to suspect that Voldemort may have done the same with the Black family."
Tom spoke vaguely, but Dumbledore understood. Voldemort entrusted his Horcruxes to Lucius Malfoy and Bellatrix, so isn't it possible that he also entrusted one to Regulus Black, who came from the Black family?
This was not impossible. The Black family, like the Malfoy and Lestrange families, was one of the most prominent pure-blood families in the magical world. So it was very possible that Voldemort "entrusted them with an important mission."
Dumbledore considered what Tom said made sense, especially in light of his previous accomplishments: the diary, the crown, and the goblet. His achievements were notable, and with a single effort, he had led the resistance against Voldemort. With these achievements as a backdrop, why shouldn't Dumbledore cooperate?
"Well, this is the address of Sirius's house. Do you need any further assistance?" Dumbledore approved the two's permission request and wrote down the address of Grimmauld Place on a piece of paper, which he handed to Tom. According to him, this mission shouldn't take them too far, as Hermione would be there to keep them in check and prevent excesses.
"No, I just want to investigate the clues that Regulus left before he died, to see if we can find any leads." Tom didn't say too much; who knew if Kreacher had hidden the locket?
"That sounds good." Dumbledore nodded, satisfied that Tom and Hermione knew what they were doing.
"Number 12 Grimmauld Place is already under my custody; it's now the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. So if you encounter any Order members, just tell them that I'm aware of your visit." Before the two left, Dumbledore didn't forget to brief them on the current state of Sirius's house.