harry potter book of crimes

Hampstead Garden Suburb, London, UK.

Heathgate Road, which intersects with Meade Street, is a street full of green atmosphere. This small street is not wide, and to be honest, it is indeed a bit short - it can be walked in a few steps

The kind that ends.

This is a slightly compact but beautiful residential area.

Most of the houses here are small three-story buildings with red bricks and brown tiles. The residents invariably have white lattice windows, which makes the greenery here even more interesting.

Standing on the street and looking to the north, you can still see the door of St. Jude's Church with its conical spire, facing you so straight, as if it is always ready to welcome devout believers to confess and repent.

The sun had already set at this time, and there were not many street lights on this street, making it look a little dim. Hermione dragged her suitcase and walked gently, her eyes quietly wandering around the houses on both sides of the road.

This Christmas vacation, she originally planned to spend it at the Burrow or the Black Mansion - she had even sent a letter home. But under Maka's inadvertent persuasion, she left and right.

Thinking about it, I still chose to go home.

Granger's house was the fifth house after turning left at the crossroads. Before she could take a few more steps, Hermione had already arrived at the door of her long-lost home.

There was still a light on in the window, so Mr. and Mrs. Granger must be enjoying this deserted dinner without their daughter by their side, right?

They were very tolerant parents, and there was no doubt that they loved their daughter deeply. Of course Hermione knew that, and she loved them too.

But after Maka's unintentional reminder, she was now standing in front of her home, and the feeling of family affection seemed to become deeper and deeper.

Hermione is a very independent girl, and she has been this way since she was a child. Her parents usually do not object to what she wants to do, because the Grangers believe that their daughter is the best and should give her enough trust and trust.

encourage.

Just like this time, even if Hermione said she wanted to spend Christmas in her magical world, the Grangers didn't even say a word of objection in their reply.

But now, when Hermione quietly looked at the orange firelight coming from the window, she could finally feel how heavy the love contained in that trust was.

All normal parents hope to watch their children grow up every day. Even if they can choose to let their children go for the sake of strong love, in a corner called "home", they will still silently look forward to their children growing up.

One day I can come back again.

Standing at the door, Hermione twitched her nose, which was slightly red from the cold, and blinked.

"...This weather." She mumbled softly.

Just as she regained her composure and was about to reach out to ring the doorbell, she heard a faint conversation coming from the room. Her outstretched hand hesitated for a moment, and then stopped in mid-air.

"...Dear, put away the Christmas tree! Didn't Minnie say in her letter that she won't be back for Christmas this year?" Mrs. Granger said.

"Oh, let it stay there! Just think of it as a way to make up for Christmas for me," Mr. Granger paused and said, "When I was little, my father was too busy, so my mother had to use a branch to fool me..."

"Stop nagging about those old things of yours. I've said them so many times and I've already remembered them!" Mrs. Granger's voice sounded a little unhappy, but after a short while,

She then added, "Then let's put the Christmas tree there first! Come and help me pack up the gifts, and we have to let the owl deliver it to Minnie!"

"Of course, of course, come on!" Mr. Granger said repeatedly, "But to be honest, it's really unimaginable that owls are so smart-"

"They understand Minnie," Granger explained for her husband. "Minnie mentioned it to me... but they can't seem to understand us. It's amazing, isn't it?"

"Yes!" Mr. Granger agreed, "It's very amazing, and...our daughter is amazing, she can command those smart owls!"

At this point, Mrs. Granger seemed to hesitate, and the conversation in the room paused for a moment.

"...Dear, I think we should agree with her?" Mrs. Granger said regretfully, "Minnie is so amazing, she should be able to use her method to cure her front teeth, instead of the wire frame we have been insisting on.

?”

"But we are dentists, aren't we?" Mr. Granger said. "We know very well that it's just because the front teeth are a little too long, and braces are the safest option."

"Oh...well, I have to admit, braces do give me more peace of mind..." Mrs. Granger also followed, "It sounds too dangerous to use magic in the mouth..."

"Yes!" Mr. Granger said, and sighed slightly, "I wonder how Minnie is doing. I really want to take a good look at her!"

"Do you think I don't want to?" Mrs. Granger said, "But don't sigh. The Minnie that makes us proud can take good care of herself... As long as she is happy, as parents, we can do anything..."

"oh--"

Standing outside, Hermione couldn't listen anymore because she felt it was too cold outside - so cold that her nose was sore.

"Ding dong——"

The crisp ringing of the doorbell interrupted Mr. and Mrs. Granger's casual chat. They were probably a little confused, and soon the door was opened by Mr. Granger.

"Dad!" Hermione let go of the suitcase's handle and hugged her father.

"Oh! Minnie?" Mr. Granger said in surprise, "Why are you back? Didn't the letter say -"

"Dad, I...I thought about it and came back." Hermione's head was buried in her father's slightly thin chest, and the thick cotton nightgown could not completely hide his swollen ribs, "I miss you.

,Dad——Mom——”

"Oh, we miss you too -" Mr. Granger's face was full of that unstoppable smile, "Come in quickly! It's very cold outside...is it freezing?"

Under the surprised gaze of Mr. and Mrs. Granger, Hermione came to her living room. The white furniture and white walls showed that this place had never changed.

Mr. Granger, who had snatched his daughter's luggage, carried the suitcase and went upstairs. Mrs. Granger quickly took her daughter to sit in front of the fireplace and poured her a cup of hot chocolate to warm her up.

"Have you had dinner? Haven't you eaten yet? Don't worry, the fruit cake has been prepared at home..." Mrs. Granger said hurriedly, "I have been wondering if our little Minnie will come back suddenly.

!Who knew, I was really looking forward to coming back!"

"Oh...Mom." Hermione felt like she couldn't speak.

In fact, her parents loved her very much before she entered Hogwarts. It has always been her habit to prepare all kinds of delicious food for her before various festivals.

But somehow, even though her feelings now were obviously the same as before, she still felt an inexplicable feeling in her heart.

"Mom, I...I..."

"What's the matter? My dear?" Mrs. Granger rushed out of the kitchen as soon as she heard something was wrong in her daughter's voice, and worriedly held Hermione's shoulders, "What's the matter? Something unpleasant happened at school.

Are you okay? It’s okay, dad and mom are here, we—”

"No, it's not like that. The school is very good, I just..." Hermione pursed her lips and said softly, "Mom, I actually want to spend Christmas at other people's homes instead of my own... I'm soooo

Silly!"

Obviously, Hermione felt extremely guilty about her previous decision.

"Oh... you can do it anywhere, dear." Mrs. Granger half-hugged her daughter and said, "As long as you feel happy, you can do it anywhere..."

"No, no..." Hermione shook her head and said, "I understand now that I will be truly happy only if my parents are happy..."

"Oh - our Minnie has really grown up!" Mr. Granger, who had just come down from putting his luggage upstairs, said with emotion.

Mrs. Granger, who was hugged tightly by Hermione, nodded and said in agreement: "Didn't you say that? They are almost as tall as me... This is really happy!"

"As beautiful as you." Mr. Granger joked deliberately.

He seemed to want to adjust the atmosphere to prevent his daughter from getting into trouble over this matter again. He knew his daughter too well, and she would always become very stubborn sometimes, and then she would keep immersing herself in thinking.

However, he seemed to have failed to change the topic this time.

"Really, I didn't expect that-" Hermione hugged Mrs. Granger and said softly, "Any family needs the company of their children during Christmas. Otherwise, parents will lose the meaning of decorating the Christmas tree.

Already..."

"Oh, dear...did you hear it outside just now?" Mrs. Granger said.

"I heard a little bit..." Hermione muttered, "But I didn't say that - it was Maka who told me. It seems he is right... he is always right."

"Is it a boy?" Mr. Granger's mind suddenly jumped to a tight chord, "Last time we were in that... um, Diagon Alley? That's right, the one we saw there.

child?"

"Oh - don't get me wrong!" Hermione said hurriedly, "He and I... are just friends... at least... for now..."

"Oh my God!" Mr. Granger said in surprise, "Honey, our Minnie has really grown up!"

Hermione opened her mouth. She instinctively wanted to deny it, but she didn't seem to want to. After a slight hesitation, she shook her head.

"No!" Hermione said, "At least not yet...but...I won't let him run away! Definitely!"