"Did you send them all to the hospital wing?" Hermione's eyes widened. "For a whole week, the Gryffindor common room was buzzing with rumors about a black magic experiment accident in the Slytherin dungeon... I bet Fred and George, who are always sneaking off for midnight adventures, must have made wild guesses."
"Mmhmm." Ivy made a satisfied hum through his nose. "Guess what? I quite like that version. Maybe I really should conduct some black magic experiments at Hogwarts."
A look of terror immediately spread across Hermione's face. From what she knew of Ivy, he was a wizard who was reckless and often didn't care about the consequences of his actions.
Just look at what he'd done so far. On the first day of school, he sent half the school to the hospital wing; he sneaked out at night, attacked the Hogwarts caretaker with magic, even modified his memory! And all of that was just what Hermione knew. Since they were in different houses, who knows what Ivy might have done behind everyone's back! After all, he was a Slytherin.
Hermione felt her throat dry. She couldn't immediately tell whether Ivy was joking or if he really had such ideas. She took another sip of her rich, fragrant tea to calm herself, then tried to reason with him: "Professor Dumbledore is the most famous white wizard of the 20th century. I'm sure you wouldn't…"
"Of course not." Ivy nodded. "But he's also the president of the International Confederation of Wizards and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, so he's not always at the school. When he's not here, I just have to seize the opportunity."
"Oh, Ivy." Hermione sighed, continuing her plea. "I've heard that dark magic can unknowingly change a wizard's temperament. Wizards who study dark magic are always affected, and some even lose themselves entirely! I really think you shouldn't dabble too much in dark magic…"
"Hahahaha…" Before Hermione could finish her sentence, Ivy burst into laughter.
The clever little witch immediately understood that Ivy was just joking.
"How can you joke about dark magic!" Hermione crossed her arms, looking upset.
"Look, Hermione." Ivy stopped laughing. "When people know you have the ability and the possibility of doing something wrong, and if they're unable to stop you, they start to advise you gently, trying to make you abandon the idea. That's the luxury of being strong."
"In other words," Ivy leaned slightly forward, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the table, "if people don't agree with your righteousness, there are only two possibilities."
"Either the situation isn't as right as you think, or you're not strong enough."
Ivy settled back into his armchair comfortably, continuing, "Is what you stand for wrong, Hermione?"
"Of course not!" Hermione responded firmly, like a lioness.
"Then it's because you're not strong enough." Ivy made his conclusion. "You need to become stronger and let them know it, and recognize it. That way, people will treat your good intentions as treasures and regard your suggestions as truth."
Hermione's face scrunched up as she pondered, thinking hard. Although Ivy's words made sense, she instinctively wanted to argue back.
"Maybe…" Her voice wavered with self-doubt. "Maybe what the majority agrees on is right." She thought of those Gryffindor troublemakers who never followed the rules.
Ivy couldn't help but laugh. "Haha, you know what? Most people believe that 'truth is only in the hands of a few,' because they think they're the ones who hold the truth."
"Well, maybe you're right." Hermione finally gave up trying to reason it out and turned to Ivy for advice. "So what should I do? You know, I'm just a first-year student, not an ancient wizard from over a hundred years ago."
"Oh, don't sell yourself short, Hermione." Ivy shook his finger. "You're the smartest witch I've ever met. All you need is a little time and help. And I just so happen to be able to offer help."
"Although my mom always says, 'Do your own work.'" Hermione looked like she had made up her mind. "But she's not a witch, so she doesn't understand the troubles of young wizards."
"Good. Now, step one," Ivy nodded. "Enjoy the Halloween feast! You're only a first-year, you've got time, no need to rush."
The Slytherin first-years had their Charms class as the last class of the day, and after that, it was time for dinner.
Although it wasn't quite dark yet, various pumpkin lanterns had already started to light up throughout the castle. They were all special pumpkins grown by Hagrid, unusually large.
With such a wonderful festive atmosphere, how could one not enjoy it?
"Only once a year…" Hermione bit her lip, though she was competitive and impatient, she did appreciate the mood of the season. "It's time to enjoy the holiday atmosphere. When will your help begin?"
"Maybe now…" Ivy glanced in the direction of the castle. A suspicious figure had just emerged from the edge of the Forbidden Forest, circled around Professor Sprout's greenhouse and garden, and was about to enter the castle.
"What? Didn't you say we should enjoy the feast first?" Hermione was puzzled.
"Shh—" Ivy cast a Disillusionment Charm, making both Hermione and himself invisible, and pointed to the figure. "Look over there! Right next to the greenhouse."
"...Who is that?" As the light dimmed, Hermione couldn't make out the figure clearly, but the tall, raised hood gave them away. "Professor Quirrell? What's he doing there?"
"Maybe he's just trying to add some festive atmosphere to Halloween Eve." Ivy chuckled. He remembered the story where Quirrell had brought a troll into the castle to distract the staff, all in an attempt to get the Philosopher's Stone.
"Here, try this." Ivy directed one of his Elemental Orbs to hover toward Hermione. It was the red one, glowing with fire.
"What is this? How do you use it? I heard you made it yourself? Based on Harry's broom?" Hermione held the warm crystal ball in her hands, asking a string of questions. "I don't see how it's related to flying broomsticks…"
"You can think of it as a weapon. Just aim it at the target and say: Fire ball!" Ivy placed his hand on the Elemental Orb and aimed it at the lake's surface.
A bright flash shot out from the Elemental Orb, flying toward the calm surface of the Black Lake. With a low roar, it exploded into a burst of flames. Steam and water splashed out, and the vast surface of the lake was rippled by the force.