The outside wind was biting cold, but the Three Broomsticks pub was incredibly warm. As soon as Lin Yue walked into the bar, a wave of heat rushed towards her.
Instinctively turning her head to avoid it, Hermione raised her hand and waved it beside Lin Yue's cheek, seemingly trying to disperse the excess warm air.
"Thank you, Hermione," Lin Yue said with a calm expression, turning her head back to look at the interior of the pub.
The style of the Three Broomsticks was completely different from the only other pub she had been to, the Leaky Cauldron.
It was clean and tidy, everything was in order, giving a sense of genuine happiness.
The three senior students led the two junior students to a nearby booth, and Cho Chang unbuttoned her coat, took it off, and let out a long sigh of relief.
"Finally, it's not cold anymore! Merlin, the weather has turned chilly way too fast."
Marietta nodded in agreement beside her. Years of "best friend" bond made her instinctively reach out to take the coat that Cho Chang had taken off and set it aside.
"Speaking of which, I've always wanted to ask," Hermione furrowed her brow, "since wizards can use warming charms, why don't we see everyone using them in winter and summer?"
Penelope waved to the waitress in the shop, "Because even wizards need to let their bodies adapt to nature if they don't want to be weak and sickly; that's normal."
"That makes sense."
Hermione clicked her tongue. With both her parents being doctors, she understood that a little exposure to cold and heat could help strengthen the body.
"Hello, little wizards from Hogwarts, five cups of butterbeer? You know, you can only drink this."
The waitress came over, looking at Lin Yue and the others with a smile.
"Yes, five cups of butterbeer, please."
Penelope nodded and watched the waitress walk back to the counter.
"When I turn 18, I definitely want to order a glass of flaming whiskey, I absolutely will."
"Why?"
Lin Yue looked up, her gaze calm as she regarded her senior. Based on her personality analysis, Penelope didn't seem like the type to indulge in or enjoy alcohol.
"Well..." Penelope paused, seemingly hesitant to reveal her "rebellious" side in front of her junior. However, after a moment of hesitation, she decided to abandon that thought and chose to be her true self.
"Sometimes, the more others tell you not to do something, the more you want to do it."
"So when I turn 18 and can drink real alcohol, I will definitely get myself completely drunk on flaming whiskey at the first opportunity."
"Pfft." Cho Chang and Marietta laughed without restraint, while Hermione next to them covered her mouth and chuckled.
"When you turn 18 in seventh grade, we'll be there to watch you drink. Don't worry, we promise we won't let you get drunk and act crazy."
Marietta laughed cheerfully and patted Penelope on the shoulder.
Penelope, teased by her junior, didn't mind at all. She raised an eyebrow and looked at Lin Yue. "Alright, but if it's to stop me from getting drunk, I specifically request Lin Yue to knock me out."
"I believe if she knocks me out, it would definitely be the safest choice."
Lin Yue tilted her head, her expression serious. "Why knock you out? In that situation, maybe a binding spell would be more effective."
Her earnest participation in the joke made the other four girls laugh uncontrollably.
Hermione laughed and put her arm around Lin Yue's shoulder, giving her hair a gentle rub. "It's just a joke, Penelope is just kidding."
"Uh-huh," Penelope nodded noncommittally. "Saying that you can knock me out is a joke, but when I turn eighteen, I really do want to drink."
After receiving the butterbeer from the waitress, Penelope handed each of the four juniors a bottle. "You promised to accompany me, so no one is allowed to run away when the time comes."
"We will definitely come with you," the four juniors, including Lin Yue, said without hesitation.
Their friend, Penelope, the beautiful prefect of Ravenclaw, was going to drink for the first time, and she wanted to enjoy it with firewhiskey. With these conditions combined, Lin Yue and the others could only agree to accompany Penelope.
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Otherwise, if Penelope was alone and got drunk, what if she unknowingly ended up in a bad situation?
With them around, even if there were ill-intentioned people, these four top students were absolutely confident they could make that person cry their way home.
Taking a sip of the butterbeer, Lin Yue slowly swallowed it.
Although it's called butterbeer, just as the seniors had said before, there was completely no presence of alcohol.
It just had a bit of an alcoholic taste, combined with some buttery flavor, making it quite pleasant to drink.
Lin Yue was pondering the taste she had just experienced, roughly analyzing the possible ingredients used in this bottle of butterbeer. By the time she had fully developed her thoughts in her mind, she had already consumed more than half of the butterbeer.
Hermione and the three senior students were engaged in a heated discussion about their studies, but as soon as Lin Yue turned her head, they instantly realized and shifted the topic to casual chatter. It was rare for Lin Yue to go out and have fun; how could they still bring up studying? That was just not right.
"It's so warm," Cho Chang said, comfortably leaning back against her chair, enjoying the moment with her eyes slightly closed. "No matter how cold it is outside, after finishing a bottle of butterbeer, I feel warm again."
"Where are we going next?" Marietta turned to Cho Chang, uncertain, and asked for her opinion.
Without hesitation, Cho Chang looked at Lin Yue and Hermione across from her. "Since today is the first time for these two junior students to visit Hogsmeade, our second stop must definitely be Honeydukes!"
Penelope, sitting on the other side, nodded vigorously in agreement, and Marietta quickly caught on, raising her hand to indicate that she was on board with the plan.
"So, can we go to Honeydukes in a bit? Or if you guys want to go somewhere else, feel free to let us know, and we’ll go with you!"
Cho Chang spoke softly, her voice gentle and refined. Lin Yue nodded with a detached expression, indicating that she was fine with whatever decision everyone made.
"No problem."
With the final agreement from Hermione, the five girls, who had completely warmed up, stood up again and walked out of the Three Broomsticks pub. Lin Yue followed closely beside Hermione, her eyes quickly scanning the surrounding buildings, comparing them to the blueprint of Hogsmeade she had just formed in her mind.
After confirming that there were no errors or omissions, Lin Yue silently withdrew her gaze and followed Hermione and the others toward the busiest shop in Hogsmeade.
"That’s Honeydukes," Marietta pointed to the shop not far away, filled with bustling crowds, "it’s one of the two most popular shops in Hogsmeade."
"The other shop is the Zonko's Joke Shop, a place that specializes in prank items."
"Harry and Ron will definitely be interested in that shop."
Hermione secretly clicked her tongue. After nearly three years of being with Harry and Ron, she knew exactly what the other two were like. Just as she understood Harry and Ron, they also knew her very well.
For these two boys, if they knew about this joke shop, they would definitely spend a long time browsing inside. They might even buy a few things to take back to Hogwarts to play with.
"Come on, let's go in and take a look," Penelope said, pushing Lin Yue and Hermione from behind, nudging them into Honeydukes Sweetshop.
Looking at the wide variety of candies in the shop, so numerous that they were beyond counting, Hermione felt as if she had fallen into a giant candy jar. She could hardly imagine what her parents would think if they knew she was in this shop right now... They might let out a few sharp gasps and worry about their daughter's dental health.
"Welcome, little wizards! Welcome to Honeydukes Sweetshop!" The owner of Honeydukes stood on the counter behind the shop, waving his arms at the crowd below.
"Everyone who wants to buy candy, please line up in an orderly fashion. If you don't want to buy, that's fine too; we have plenty of sample candies prepared for you to enjoy."
"Have a great time on your trip to Hogsmeade! Happy Halloween, little wizards!"
Cho Chang reached out and grabbed a piece of his favorite Chewy Bubblegum from the nearby tasting candy rack. This candy allows you to blow bubbles in the color of bluebells, and the bubbles can last for several days without popping in the room. The delicious taste and visually appealing effect made Cho Chang absolutely love it.
He tossed the bubblegum into his mouth and chewed a few times before opening his mouth to blow out several bluebell-colored bubbles. These bubbles slowly rose, gathering under the ceiling of the store, merging with the bubbles blown by others.
The little wizards in the store were eagerly discussing, laughing freely, and enjoying their favorite candies, while the shopkeeper stood behind the counter, smiling as she watched the scene unfold.
The Honey Duke Candy Store had business all over the British wizarding world, with branches located in various wizarding gathering places across the UK. However, this store in Hogsmeade remained her favorite branch.
One reason was that it was backed by Hogwarts, with the little wizards having strong purchasing power, which indeed brought her a good amount of profit. Another reason was that being close to Hogwarts allowed her to frequently see these little wizards, which greatly lifted her spirits.
It even made her feel like she had become a decade younger, as if she had returned to her school days. Indeed... the little wizards were the true treasures of the wizarding world. No, it should be said that children are the true treasures of the entire world.
And now, as part of this treasure, Lin Yue was calmly looking at the twins standing in front of her, both of whom had mischievous smiles on their faces.
"Good morning, Senior Fred, Senior George."
"Good morning, Lin Yue." Fred waved his right hand in a gentlemanly manner, bending slightly at the waist.
"Happy Halloween, Lin Yue."
George immediately followed up, handing over a blood-red lollipop.
"Please allow us to present this flower as a tribute."
"We're lending you some candy to help you enjoy Halloween."
Lin Yue mechanically blinked her eyes, "The micro-expressions on your faces tell me that you want to greet me and wish me a happy Halloween while also planning to play a prank on me."
For the first time, they were caught before they could do anything, yet Fred and George showed no signs of surprise.
"Indeed, Miss Lin Yue is as sharp as ever."
"The Miss Lin Yue who can deduce the identity of the mysterious person."
The two of them chimed in together, finally merging their voices into one.
"Then, Miss Lin Yue, can you guess how we plan to prank you?"
Lin Yue's expression showed no change, and her voice remained calm as always, "The lollipop you are holding has a faint smell of blood; it should be the bloody-flavored lollipop specially prepared for vampires by the Honey Duke Candy Shop."
"Oh, well, it seems our prank is destined to fail, George."
"I think so, Fred."
The twins linked arms, while Lin Yue, with unblinking eyes, reached out and took the lollipop from George's hand, putting it in her mouth.
"You just said you wanted to give me this candy to wish me a happy Halloween."
"Therefore, according to the rules of etiquette, I should accept this lollipop."
The faint taste of blood spread in her mouth, and Lin Yue's expression remained unchanged.
"Hey, girl, this kind of prank isn't fun at all."
Fred straightened up and gestured for Lin Yue to take the lollipop out of her mouth.
"Yes, a prank should make both parties happy and bring a smile; otherwise, it’s not really a prank. The rules of etiquette don’t apply to pranks."
George chimed in, and the twins caught sight of Hermione and the other three Ravenclaw girls approaching.
"Oh... I hope we won't get beaten too badly."
Fred clicked his tongue and exchanged a glance with George, both boys instinctively shrinking their necks.
Lin Yue tilted her head and took the lollipop out of her mouth.
"Lin Yue, did the two seniors prank you?" Hermione stepped forward, still maintaining her politeness.
"It’s just a lollipop, wishing me a happy Halloween. The flavor is quite unique, so I guess it counts as a prank."
Lin Yue indicated the bloody-flavored lollipop in her hand. Hermione felt a bit relieved seeing a lollipop she didn’t recognize; at least Lin Yue hadn’t turned into a canary or something.
She recalled having seen the canary biscuits made by the Weasley twins and thought to herself.
However, she was indeed quite reassured; after all, the Weasley twins had good natures, and their pranks were usually well-measured... well, at least now they were; they might not have been so measured when they were younger.
Ron probably had a deep understanding of this.
"Oh..." Penelope, walking over with Cho and Marietta, looked at the lollipop in Lin Yue's hand with a hint of disgust. "You two gave my junior a bloody-flavored lollipop?"
"Ahem... well..."
Fred and George were joking around, feeling a bit like they wanted to escape. Lin Yue raised a hand and waved it, stating a blunt truth,
"It's okay, Senior Penelope, the bloody taste of this lollipop is very faint. Compared to the bloody taste I've tasted before, it's quite easy to accept." "I have no repulsive reaction at all."