Harry Potter: Who cares about belated motherly love?

Chapter 287 Malfoy holding a girl

It had been two days since Lockhart's first class.

I was being watched by Lockhart, and unlike Harry, he seemed to be paying special attention to me.

I was tired of avoiding Lockhart's gaze.

It is said that Lockhart discovered that I could quickly clean up those Pixie goblins and thought I was a "natural dragon user", so he began to find various excuses to try to pull me into his laboratory, as if he wanted me to be his assistant.

Am I being too sentimental? No, you would understand if you saw him in person. Even though I was not good at socializing in my previous life, I could still feel his sticky gaze and tone. When I first met him, I really got goosebumps and felt nauseous.

Although I'm still pretty developed compared to the Japanese, I'm only 11 years old?! In the British wizarding world, marriages with big age gaps are common, but it's ethically too much for a teacher to take action against a younger student.

It should be so.

That day, he put his hand on my waist and I froze with nausea. If Percy hadn't happened to be passing by, I would have been dragged into his laboratory. When Percy appeared, I almost cried.

Afterwards, Percy checked my safety in the Gryffindor common room. His face was even greener than mine. I guess my face wasn't much better. Then, Fred and George also joined in and surrounded me to take care of me.

Specifically, I sat on Percy's lap, eating scones that Fred and George brought from the kitchen, drinking milk tea, and playing chess with them. My classmates looked at us with confusion on their faces. Fortunately, the older seniors saw our expressions and seemed to realize something, and cleverly diverted the attention of others. I am really grateful to them.

Lockhart has the title of professor after all. If I am not careful, he might drag me into his research room in the name of "punishment", so I can only choose to escape. But Hermione is a loyal fan of Lockhart and is currently in a state of "blind worship". Moreover, she is not a pure-blood wizard, so she can't see Lockhart's true purpose. On the contrary, she always instigates me to find Lockhart. As a result, I have to avoid her and Harry during my recent break and stay with Neville more.

Although Harry didn't quite understand the specific situation, he didn't like Lockhart very much. Seeing that I didn't want to get close to Lockhart, he would help stop Hermione. Neville is the heir of a pure-blood family. He has obviously been educated in this area and has seen through everything. He tried his best to protect me. He is so reliable. Although he is not so strong in strength, he has given me great spiritual comfort.

More importantly, as the heir of the Longbottom family, one of the "28 Holy Families", Neville's company made other boys dare not approach me easily. The majesty of the pure-blood family is really as heavy as Mount Tai.

The professors at Hogwarts seemed to have vaguely sensed something, especially Professor McGonagall, who told me: "If you have any questions, just mention my name." Her words made me feel a lot more at ease.

However, the trouble is that Lockhart seems to be trying to start from the "outside", and he even won over my mother. So, I received a letter from my mother, and the letter actually asked me to accept "private lessons from Professor Lockhart". I couldn't believe my eyes.

No, no way…?

Is this what a mother should do...?

When I couldn't help but show the letter to Charlie, his expression immediately changed and he wrote a reply letter questioning his father Arthur.

However, this seemed to be a unilateral decision made by my mother Molly. Soon, I received a reply from my father Arthur. The handwriting was messy, but the content was clear: I must not be alone with Lockhart.

Charlie said that the incident eventually turned into a violent argument between the couple.

Since then, I have become more cautious. I stayed with Harry and Hermione during class, and with Neville during breaks. Other than that, I tried to stay in the Gryffindor dormitory to avoid meeting Lockhart. However, Lockhart obviously had no idea about the importance of the "Holy 28 Family" (isn't he from Ravenclaw???).

One day after dinner, when I was about to return to the Gryffindor dormitory, I ran into him in the corridor near Lockhart's laboratory and was caught by him.

"Ms. Weasley, come to my laboratory once! I can teach you how to deal with dragons from the beginning. What, you know, I had in-depth contact with dragons when I went to the Hebrides!"

"No, sir. I'm just about to go to Professor McGonagall's laboratory with Neville."

If an ordinary wizard heard the names of "heir to the Holy 28 family" and "dean of the academy", even the most slow-witted would know that they should give in.

However, Lockhart obviously didn't understand this.

"It's alright, I will explain it to Professor McGonagall myself later. Mr. Longbottom, Miss Weasley has important study assignments to complete with me next. You can go to Professor McGonagall on your own."

The moment Lockhart grabbed my arm, all the hair on my body stood up and I felt so disgusted that I almost suffocated.

"Please let Ronnie go, teacher! We have to go see Professor McGonagall..." Neville hurriedly defended me.

"What an unreasonable child... She obviously has something important to discuss with me."

Neville tried to protect me, but Lockhart wouldn't listen. Who is being unreasonable, this pedophile?

Although my mind was full of curses, I couldn't make any sound and could only breathe weakly. Just when I was about to despair, that voice sounded.

"Teacher, what are you doing?"

The cold tenor voice sounded as if he was judging Lockhart.

"Oh, Mr. Malfoy…it's nothing. I was just giving Miss Weasley a special lesson on dragons. She's just a little shy."

She hates you!

I was filled with anger, but I couldn't speak. Feeling the sick chill, I unconsciously looked at Malfoy for help, and surprisingly, he nodded slightly to me.

"She obviously doesn't like it. If you are rude to a lady, I will tell my father. As the son of a Hogwarts trustee, I cannot turn a blind eye."

Lockhart was obviously panicking, and Malfoy immediately took the opportunity to pull me away and let me hide behind him.

"Ronnie, are you okay..." Neville patted my back with concern and handed me a handkerchief, which made me realize that I was in tears.

"You're going to tell your father...?"

"Of course. Father has always told me to report any unusual circumstances at Hogwarts in a timely manner."

Lockhart likes to show off very much, but he is afraid of power. Hearing Malfoy's cold voice, he could only weakly defend himself: "I have no ill intentions... I just pay more attention to outstanding students..." But in the end, he did not dare to contradict the name of "Malfoy" and returned to the laboratory in disgrace.

Watching him leave, I finally breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed in the corridor.

"Ronnie?!"

Neville knelt beside me anxiously, but I could not respond at all. I could only keep crying and couldn't stop.

"You don't look well, Weasley. I'll take you back, sorry."

Malfoy wrapped me in his Slytherin robes and put the hood over my face to hide my face. He then lifted me up horizontally.

"?!"

I was so surprised that my tears stopped immediately, but I subconsciously hugged Malfoy's chest.

"I'll take you to Charles Weasley," he said. "Longbottom, you go find the Weasley prefects. After all, my presence in the Gryffindor dormitories would attract too much attention."

Malfoy mentioned Charlie's name ("Charlie" is actually his nickname, his real name is Charles), and when he turned around, Neville responded hurriedly: "Got it, Malfoy! Please take care of Ronnie!"

I watched Neville hurriedly leave, and struggled to make a weak sound from behind Malfoy's shoulder: "...Malfoy..."

"what happened?"

He responded calmly, and I looked into his icy blue eyes, tears welling up in my eyes once again.

"...Thank you for saving me..."

"As a British gentleman, this is a matter of course. As a man, I cannot tolerate such despicable behavior. Even if you are a Muggle-born, I will ask the teacher to deal with it."

Malfoy snorted, with a hint of arrogance in his tone, as if this was just a trivial matter. I couldn't help but laugh.

"…My dad was really sorry for you during the summer vacation. Is Mr. Malfoy's face okay?"

I asked, remembering my father's beautiful right straight punch in the Fröhlich and Blotz bookstore.

"Well... he was indeed unhappy afterwards, but he recovered quickly. After all, he is an excellent wizard. What about your family?"

I also remembered Mr. Malfoy's powerful knee strike to my father's stomach, but after the incident, I almost forgot about it.

"My dad made some ointment himself and applied it. Although my mom scolded him, it should be fine."

"How cruel to your father."

Malfoy smiled slightly and continued walking with a brisk and graceful pace. Even though he was holding me, a girl of the same age as him, his steps were still steady.

It occurred to me that he had grown quite a bit since we first met.

Although we weren't intimate, I felt surprisingly relaxed and gently rested my head on his chest. The borrowed robe and his shirt had a light, musky scent.

……

Afterwards, Malfoy carefully led me to Charlie's office, avoiding too many eyes on the way.

However, with nearly a thousand people living at Hogwarts, it was almost impossible to avoid everyone, so about a dozen students saw us. Malfoy holding a girl did cause some surprise, but because his Slytherin robes covered my face, Gryffindor's red and gold tie and iconic red hair, no one recognized me as Ronnie Weasley. They just thought he was helping a classmate who was unwell.

It was common knowledge that Slytherin students were usually tolerant of their own kind, so it didn't arouse much curiosity.

Malfoy handed me over to Charlie, briefly explained the situation, and quickly returned to the Slytherin dormitory. During this time, I borrowed his robes.

At that time, Charlie was furious and comforting me, and Percy came to comfort me. During this period, the smell of Malfoy's robes made me feel at ease.

However, the fear lingered. For the next two or three days, every night when I went to sleep, I would think of Lockhart's disgusting look and voice, and feel a deep fear.

But holding Malfoy's robes, I was able to recall the feeling of security and gradually relax. So I secretly fell asleep holding his robes to comfort myself.

By the weekend, I felt better, so I asked the school's house-elf to quietly clean the robe and return it to Malfoy along with a thank-you card.

About half a day later, at breakfast on Saturday, a stately eagle owl arrived, handed me a small package and a letter, and then flew away quickly.

The wax seal on the letter was a dragon holding a star. I didn't recognize it, but when I saw the letters on it, I understood it instantly.

"DM."

——Draco Malfoy.

I couldn't help but look towards the Slytherin table, but I didn't see the iconic platinum hair.

I carefully opened the letter, and inside was written neatly:

"I received the robe and the card. I have asked my father to put pressure on you. A villain like Lockhart is afraid of power, so you don't have to worry about it anymore. I hope you are not too upset about this. Not all men are like him. If you feel uneasy, you can use the magic prop I sent you. This is a cognition-blocking pendant commonly used by girls from pure-blood families. Except for people you trust, no one else can remember your appearance and personality clearly. If you don't need it, you can send it back to me, but I personally recommend that you wear it. -DM"

I opened the small package with surprise, and inside was an exquisite black leather box. Inside the box, there was a pendant with an ice blue gem, placed on soft velvet.

It was a silver pendant, with a claw-sized teardrop-shaped gem inlaid on a simple base. When I saw this gem, I couldn't help but think of Malfoy's eyes - the beautiful eyes I once looked up to.

While everyone was busy eating breakfast, I quickly put on the pendant and repacked the box. Although the pendant should be cold, I felt a little warm and couldn't help but smile.

-By the way, from this incident on, Malfoy and I began to secretly exchange letters, but that’s a story for later.

Also, a few hours later, Gryffindor and Slytherin had a violent argument over the use of the Quidditch pitch, but this did not directly conflict with me (including Harry and Hermione), so I won't go into details.