"What is it?" Yvonne asked curiously.
"I read in a book that the tree blooms every Christmas, and all the Vanishing Fairies come out at night. It must be beautiful!" Luna said in a trance, as if imagining the view.
"Oh, and the Crumple-Horned Snorkack, which would have been attracted to it if it had been in the area…" Luna added.
"So you're going to look for the tree on your holidays?" Yvonne asked, suddenly understanding. He had seen something like this in Luna's memory, when the little witch was always keen to find something new.
"Yes! They tend to grow in very thick jungles. I think they might be found in the Forbidden Forest! I've never really looked for them," Luna said happily.
Yvonne opened her mouth to speak, then stopped.
He understood that Luna would never find the Vanishing Tree or the Crumple-Horned Snorkack in the Forbidden Forest — they were mere figments of her imagination.
But Ivan also knew he had no right to break this beautiful fantasy…
After a moment of silence, Ivan responded with a smile. "Well, I guess one day you'll find it."
"Yeah, I'll find it…" Luna said earnestly.
Before she knew it, they were at the end of the corridor, facing the blank wall. Luna turned her head to look at the main tower.
The lights of the Great Hall were still flashing, and students were coming out of the Entrance Hall in twos and threes.
Apparently, dinner is over…
"I think you'll have to leave, don't you?" Luna asked Ivan.
Yvonne nodded, apologized to Luna again, and hurried off towards the entrance hall.
As they walked, Ivan tried to think of something to say, but he was nervous. This was the first time he had ever confessed to a girl.
"George, Fred!"
As they passed through a corridor, Ivan caught sight of the Weasley brothers returning to their dormitory after dinner, and an idea popped into his head.
"What's the matter, Ivan? (Can I help you?") George and Fred turned around, but before they could ask, they saw something flying toward them.
George instinctively took it and saw that it was a golden Galleon.
"I have a favor to ask of you both!" Ivan said, looking at them.
… .
In the evening, in the Hogwarts Great Hall
Hermione sat absent-mindedly at the Gryffindor table, occasionally glancing at the entrance to the Entrance Hall.
Harry couldn't stand it any longer and asked, "Are you waiting for Ivan? Hermione? He's not going to eat at this hour!"
"I wasn't waiting for him…" the young witch protested, shaking her head in exasperation. The knife in her hand sliced the steak into pieces, but she did not notice.
Harry looked at Hermione's untouched plate and shrugged. He could see that his two best friends were having a falling out, but he couldn't figure out why.
It was only a few days ago that Ivan publicly invited Hermione to this year's Christmas ball, and they were supposed to be quite close.
"Did you refuse Ivan's invitation? Did you find someone else at the last minute?" Harry asked curiously.
However, he soon realised that if that were the case, Hermione would not be looking at the Entrance Hall all the time.
"Why are you asking so many questions?" Hermione asked, glaring at him angrily. She then grabbed her books and left the Great Hall without a word.
Hermione's face was blank as she left the foyer.
She did not return to the girls' dormitory, nor did she go to the library for the evening as usual. Instead, she wandered around Hogwarts Castle alone, thinking about her recent separation from Ivan.
When Ivan asked that question, she realised that she had misunderstood and that he had not invited Luna of Ravenclaw to the ball.
However, when she thought of the memories of Luna and Ivan together, she felt as if she had swallowed a bitter fruit. She was upset and could not help but provoke Ivan.
As soon as she finished speaking, Hermione regretted her decision and waited anxiously for Ivan to follow her.
This, coupled with the fact that Ivan was nowhere to be seen at the dinner party, caused Hermione some concern.
She had not forgotten her earlier suspicion that one of You-Know-Who's henchmen might have sneaked in and dropped Harry's name into the Goblet of Fire.
Perhaps the other party would also target Ivan, a warrior.
There is, of course, a second possibility, which is that Ivan has been inviting other girls along…
This thought annoyed Hermione, and she thought spitefully that even if Ivan did invite someone, it wouldn't matter!
All kinds of thoughts were running through Hermione's mind, and after walking for a while, she suddenly stopped, because the last person she wanted to meet was in front of her.
The blonde witch opposite seemed surprised to see Hermione there as well.
They were both stunned for a moment, then Hermione turned to leave, but Luna's voice cut through the silence.
"Hello, Hermione…" Luna greeted her.
Hermione stopped in her tracks. Not wanting to show weakness in front of Luna, she turned around and said angrily, "Hello … Miss Lovegood!"
Luna, apparently unaware of Hermione's distance and malice, hurried up to them, her hands searching through the pockets of her wizarding robes.
Hermione, secretly alarmed, clutched her wand in her right hand.
However, under her intense gaze, Luna merely pulled a thick notebook out of her cloth pocket.
"It's all right, I've been carrying it!" Luna said happily, handing Hermione her notes.
Hermione didn't take it immediately, looking at Luna in confusion as to what she meant.
"Aren't you going to take a look?" Luna asked.
Hermione ignored this and opened the notebook, wanting to know what was in it.
After scanning the pages for a while, Hermione discovered that the pages were filled with instructions on how to perform Occlumency and how to resist Legilimency. Most importantly, she recognized the handwriting, which was Ivan's.
Are you here to show off?
Hermione looked at Luna unhappily, but when she saw the innocent look on Luna's face, she realised that she had misunderstood, and after a moment's thought, she understood Luna's meaning and asked for confirmation.
"So you were practising Legilimency that day?"