"You're definitely overthinking it. If Little Grindelwald really had that kind of relationship with him, the first one to get blasted wouldn't be you. Everyone in the school keeps saying he's actually dating the Ravenclaw door knocker."
Obviously.
Some rumors are never late.
"That's too much—even worse than the stuff Professor Lockhart had me spread in that ridiculous storybook." Daphne Greengrass might know what she's talking about, having played the role of the rumor mill herself before.
She actually has developed a bit of a BS detector for rumors these days.
"Who knows... My dad told me the Black Demon King used to sleep with snakes. You know, wizards' brains are wired different from us normal folks."
Gesha Selwen said, sounding a bit emotional, and just then a grown wizard walked past, making her—always eager to kiss up to professors—immediately blurt out a greeting on reflex.
"Hello, Professor Quirrell."
Gesha Selwen even gave a little bow, etiquette on point, but when she looked up, the Professor of Muggle Studies was staring at her with such a chilly look that she almost felt a chill down her spine.
"You look good, too."
Professor Quirrell's reply made Gesha Selwen's scalp tingle even more.
She could only desperately try to remember when and how she'd managed to offend the Professor of Muggle Studies. Before she could even ask, Quirrell had already slipped into the Hall for a meal.
"Are we still going in to eat?"
Daphne Greengrass glanced into the Hall. Ian was already at the Slytherin table, chatting with Aurora between bites.
"Missing one meal counts as dieting, I guess..." Right then, Gesha Selwen wasn't about to go near the Slytherin table—and she wasn't about to go eat at another House's table either.
"You're right."
Even though Daphne Greengrass's stomach was loudly protesting, she decisively started heading out of the Hall, with a worried Gesha Selwen tailing behind.
"You don't think he'll spend the whole break monopolizing our table at every meal, do you?" Gesha Selwen thought this was actually a very real possibility.
Daphne Greengrass shared the same concern.
"If it comes to that, we can go steal some herbs and chew on those."
She proposed a "genius" solution.
Only one thing to say here.
These broke girls might actually be more stone-cold broke than their own broke jokes about the other students.
So broke, they're literally poorer than all the poor students they ever mocked—while the two of them debated gnawing on grass roots through the holidays, Ian was feasting away at the Slytherin table.
Of course.
Even while eating, he kept glancing up at the ceiling every so often.
"What are you looking at?"
Aurora had been holding in her curiosity for ages but finally had to ask.
"I'm looking at my losses."
Ian's voice was tinged with regret. Yesterday, he'd set up a little Christmas surprise right here, but not only did he not get to retrieve his hidden Galleons—he didn't even see a single copper Knut left behind.
"So last night's incident was your doing..." Aurora instantly put two and two together from Ian's words, her eyes widening in realization.
"So who got the Galleon?"
Ian was thinking if he still had any hope of getting back what he'd lost.
"No clue. Pretty sure no one knows, because last night at the feast everyone was diving for cover after stuff started flying everywhere. The professors thought it was just one of Peeves's pranks."
Aurora touched her forehead—must've been the spot she got hit.
"... ..."
Ian was silent for a moment.
"Yeah, must've been Peeves's prank. I just happened to witness his mischief." The little wizard's words were solemn and full of righteous condemnation.
"?????"
Now it was Aurora's turn to fall silent.
Seeing that, Ian quickly changed the subject.
"So, the key you gave me—what's it for? Is it the key to a mansion in Austria? Do I get to pick out the decor style?" He hadn't just joined them at this table because there were few students and plenty of empty seats—he was genuinely curious about the key Aurora had given him.
"Not a house key. You can't open any mansions with it... but you can go to the Gringotts Wizarding Bank up in Northern Europe and use it to open the vault my grandfather hid away."
"I don't know what's inside, but it's definitely my grandfather's treasure. He hid it really well—the only reason I found out about it was thanks to my special talent."
Aurora explained in a slow, unhurried voice.
Across from her, Ian's expression visibly shifted into one of shock.
"What's wrong? Don't you like it? I thought you'd be thrilled… You're obsessed with Galleons, after all?" Aurora tilted her head, looking at Ian with genuine confusion.
"No... it's just that this thing..."
Ian quickly pulled out the key. He'd imagined all sorts of scenarios about this key, even going so far as to wonder if it might open the door to the Slytherin girls' dormitory.
But—
The truth was even more nerve-wracking than his wildest ideas.
"Trust you to take things to the next level, guts-of-steel!" Right then and there, Ian felt like a little yellow-haired boy caught in the act. His eyes flicked around nervously to where the professors were seated in the Hall. Luckily, Grindelwald wasn't around for lunch, letting the little wizard breathe a shaky sigh of relief.
How do I put this...
You can't even blame Ian for freaking out a little.
I mean, come on—
This isn't just stealing from Grindelwald...
This is like Aurora just cleaned out Grindelwald's family vault, full stop!
[ps: Off for today, the next couple of days—brothers and sisters, bear witness—this is my limit]