Draco opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was the high ceiling, and then he smelled a fresh scent, likely the fragrance of flowers. He knew he was completely safe now. He slowly sat up in bed and saw the white linen sheets beneath him. Pansy was at the foot of the bed, resting her head on her hands as if asleep, with faint tear stains at the corners of her eyes, which warmed his heart.
He looked around and saw that the students who were still petrified were still lying on hospital beds, just like himself, and there was one more person—Hermione, though she seemed to still be unconscious.
"Child, are you awake? Good morning." Dumbledore's smiling face suddenly appeared before his eyes.
"So, is the Basilisk taken care of?" Draco asked directly, showing none of the respect due to a Headmaster.
Dumbledore didn't mind. He shook his beard and lowered his voice, looking at Draco and saying, "Of course. It was already on its last breath when I arrived."
"How did you do it, child?" he asked, his bright blue eyes staring straight at Draco, though he didn't use Legilimency. He sounded like a kind elder sincerely questioning a child.
"No comment," Draco said.
"Hmm, everyone should have their own secrets that they don't share with others," Dumbledore nodded, seemingly unconcerned.
Dumbledore looked around and then said with a smile, "In a few more days, the Mandrakes will be fully matured, and everyone will be back to normal. That really is good news."
"Of course," Draco nodded.
"But our hero might not get the treatment he deserves," Dumbledore said, once again looking at Draco with his sharp blue eyes.
"Hero? Who? Are you talking about me?" Draco played dumb. He vaguely remembered explaining things to the Headmaster before he passed out, but he didn't know exactly what Dumbledore had done.
"So? How did you explain it to the outside world?" Draco asked.
"Second-year Draco was controlled by a diary and orchestrated a series of Basilisk attacks, but was finally exposed on Christmas by the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, Lockhart. Second-year female student Hermione Granger also happened to get caught up in this accident." Dumbledore checked Draco's expression, and seeing that he didn't care, continued in his low voice, "After a hard-fought battle, Professor Lockhart cast a perfect Transfiguration Spell to conjure a rooster and defeated the Basilisk. However, to protect his students, he was unfortunately struck in the head by the Basilisk and fainted after the victory. We don't know if there will be any lasting effects. As for Hermione, she fainted from shock after running out to seek help and has remained unconscious until now."
"Headmaster! How could you do this!" An angry female voice came from a nearby bed. It was Hermione, who had woken up and apparently heard everything Dumbledore had just said. She sat up, her small face flushed red, and her eyes filled with disbelief. "He saved me! It was Lockhart who was controlled! This is a slander against Draco!" she shouted, unable to accept the fact that someone was being framed.
"Obliviate!"
"Alright, we can continue talking." Draco looked calmly at Dumbledore. On the bed nearby, Hermione hadn't even reacted before being hit by the spell and falling back down stiffly.
Dumbledore hadn't expected the student in front of him to strike so suddenly. Even though he wanted to stop it, his reaction was half a beat too slow, and it was to no avail.
"My reactions are getting slower and slower," Dumbledore thought grimly. As time passed, he grew older, while that person could return at any moment. The old man couldn't help but worry about the future, which made him even more eager to secure whatever help he could. It seemed that although the child before him was from a so-called pure-blood family, he was not the Slytherin in common people's eyes.
He was worth winning over.
"Attacking another student in front of the Headmaster—one hundred points from Slytherin." Dumbledore crossed his hands, but there was no anger in his voice; it was more like a joke. The old man could only accept this reality; if anything, the truth was indeed better known by as few people as possible. Though he felt a bit helpless, perhaps it was for the best.
"Is our house score negative now?" Draco joked.
"It should still be in the double digits," Dumbledore said slowly after a moment's thought.
"Even if it was unintentional, the fact remains that harm was caused to the students. If it were a student's deliberate act, they would have to be expelled. Considering he was merely controlled by sorcery similar to the Imperius Curse, we will only deduct three hundred points from his house." Dumbledore paused, watching his reaction.
"I'm not expelled? That's great." Draco clapped his hands, completely unconcerned, appearing almost happy and excited that he wasn't severely punished.
"This is just a small trick to deal with your father's meddling," Dumbledore said, adjusting his glasses. "How can I compensate you, child?"
"Finally, getting to the point," Draco thought.
He couldn't miss the chance to fleece him, and his plan did indeed require some items. Draco accepted readily, further realizing the fearsome nature of the White Wizard before him. There was a saying: "Stupid mages all die during their apprenticeship." Although this world didn't correspond exactly to that one, the principle remained the same. Dumbledore, who could become the most powerful White Wizard in the world today, didn't just rely on strength alone.
Draco and Dumbledore now had a sort of tacit understanding. He had already shown Dumbledore his stance, and Dumbledore hoped to win him over.
"The Basilisk's carcass," he said.
"Of course, that should count as your trophy," Dumbledore said with a chuckle.
"Phoenix tears," Draco added.
"No problem. I think Fawkes will surely be moved to tears by your bravery," Dumbledore joked, a rare occurrence.
"The Sword of Gryffindor," Draco stated his final requirement.
"Hmm..." Dumbledore fell into deep thought. This request seemed to make things very difficult for him; his brows furrowed deeply, and there was a long silence. "Your courage is not inferior to any Gryffindor."
"May you always maintain such courage," Dumbledore finally said, pushing up his half-moon spectacles.
"Thank you," Draco thanked him sincerely. He knew this was Dumbledore's acknowledgement of him, and perhaps it was the beginning of their cooperation.
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