Chapter 31 Padma

"To be honest, when I first saw that big guy, I thought we were going to die!" Padma hugged Hermione's arm and said sincerely, "Hermione, you are so brave."

Hermione blushed and said, "I had no other ideas at that time. All I could think about was the levitating spell. I mean - I'm really lucky. I've only made textbooks levitate before!"

"Brother, your slide spell is so wonderful!" Michael waved his wand and gestured: "The slide is mediocre! You must teach me the next time you study in self-study!"

"No problem." Vader turned around and said: "-Harry, don't pay attention to Professor Snape's comments. Using a bucket is a good idea. On the contrary, a normal spell cast on a troll is like being bitten by a mosquito. It’s almost like a bite.”

"No wonder Michael's petrification spell didn't work before - none of you used spells to attack the trolls directly afterwards." Harry thought and said, "But I don't seem to have seen the one you used in "Standard Spells: Elementary". Two spells."

"Vade has already learned "Standard Spells: Level 3" by himself in his spell class." Michael said proudly: "And he spent all day in the library and study room, and he learned more spells than all of us. There are so many people combined—even though the school year has only been open for two months.”

Harry suddenly felt a little ashamed and inferior - if Ron, Michael or even Malfoy had mastered more spells than him, he could comfort himself by saying that it was because they had learned them at home. But he knew that neither Vader nor Hermione had ever been exposed to magic before entering school, but now they were the best students among the freshmen.

He couldn't help but wonder - was he too slack in his studies?

Seeing a few people talking and laughing, even Harry naturally joined in the conversation. Ron wanted to say something but couldn't get in, so it was very embarrassing to follow behind.

Soon they reached a fork in the road and they separated. Harry, Hermione and Ron walked towards the Gryffindor Tower. Without Michael and the others to make jokes, the atmosphere among the three of them immediately became tense. Without looking at anyone, they quickened their pace and hurried back to the lounge.

…

On the way back to Ravenclaw Tower, Padma pretended to be casual, looked at the road ahead, and said, "Vade, can I also learn that spell with a mediocre slide? It seems very interesting."

"Of course." Wade said, "There is no class tomorrow morning, so I can teach you."

"Well - it might not be convenient in the lounge, I heard -" Padma glanced at Michael quickly and said, "Do you have a place dedicated to practicing spells?"

After all, she was only eleven years old. Although she had tried hard to make a roundabout request, the hint should not be too obvious.

Vader understood. He thought for a moment and said, "I need to seek other people's opinions, but I think they won't refuse your joining."

"Of course - welcome!" Michael said with a smile.

"That's great!" Padma couldn't help but jump a little, then blushed. She pretended to be steady, straightened her clothes, and said, "I'm honored."

Outside the lounge door, the eagle-shaped door knocker asked: "O, T, T, F, F, S, S, E, N, what is the next letter?"

"Uh..." Michael is the kind of Ravenclaw who is not very good at guessing riddles. He held his chin and pretended to think, but gave up decisively after three seconds and asked: "What do you think it is, Vader?"

"It's a 'T,'" Padma said.

"Correct answer," said the knocker in a chant, and opened the door.

"Why is it 'T'?" Michael was still asking when he entered the door: "Is it the 'T' of Troll? This door knocker also knows that we defeated the Troll today?"

He winked and exaggerated, and Padma couldn't help laughing: "It says the first letters of one to ten - one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten."

The common room was packed with people, it seemed like all the Ravenclaws were here, and there were several long tables next to the fireplace filled with food and drink. The students spent their second Halloween here, and it was even better than in the auditorium - because there were no professors here to keep an eye on things they weren't allowed to do.

Wade saw that some usually withdrawn students also chose to stay in the lounge and just sit in the corner. I don’t know when the lounge was changed into Halloween costumes. A huge skeleton walked around in the lounge, causing screams from time to time. There were also students wearing skull masks, and the masks occasionally made ghostly noises. scream.

"Would you like a bloody lollipop?" Terry enthusiastically recommended to Lisa.

Wade bypassed the crowded crowd and went directly back to the dormitory - the stench of the troll seemed to still linger on the tip of his nose, and he was not in the mood to eat for the time being.

Padma watched his back and asked Michael with some anxiety: "Didn't Vader not have dinner? Why didn't he come to the dinner?" She was worried that it was because she was boring to others that Vader would rather I went back to the dormitory hungry and didn't want to get along with them.

"Don't worry, it has nothing to do with you. Wade just doesn't like places that are too busy." Michael said casually, focusing on piling food on his plate.

Padma breathed a sigh of relief and felt a little hungry. After the two of them had filled their stomachs to 70% to 80%, they had time to continue chatting.

"By the way, remember to say something good for me in your study group when Wade asks for other people's opinions tomorrow!" Padma remembered this and couldn't help but repeatedly reminded him.

"OK! OK! I promise to complete the task!" Michael raised his hand and said with a smile.

-Ask for opinions?

Michael knew better than anyone that as long as Wade agreed, others would have no objection at all.

Theo and Ryan were both easy-going and could not refuse the candidates proposed by their partners; Neville was submissive, and Michael felt that he had no temper and no opinion; the only one who might be a little difficult to deal with was Hermione, and Padma had just established a good friendship with her.

In fact, when Michael proposed that "the addition of new members must be approved by everyone", what he actually meant was "If Wade doesn't agree, you can't bring others over"-the restrictions were on the other four people.

He knew very well that the SSC looked like a group that helped each other, but in fact, it was Vader who helped them most of the time - the notes organized by Vader made it easier for them to understand the obscure expressions in the books, the way of writing papers taught by Vader allowed them to complete high-quality homework in a short time, and Vader also helped them master various spells quickly and accurately.

Anyone who joins this group can feel the benefits in a short time.

Gryffindor and Hufflepuff are both enthusiastic guys. If they think this place is good, they may bring their other friends here without saying hello - maybe they think that bringing more members is contributing to the group! In fact, it just adds trouble to Vader, and the SSC will not last long.

Vader will not refuse on the surface, but when there are more and more people and more noise, he will disappear from the umbrella house quietly one day, just like now, staying in a quiet and lonely place with only him.

That's why Michael had to set up rules, and then use the rules to restrain the people from the two academies from being too "enthusiastic", and also use the rules to tactfully reject those who tried to join through him. The only exception was Wade - because he was the center, he could of course decide who he wanted to help.

Michael didn't tell anyone about these calculations. At this time, facing Padma's request, he just nodded with a smile, and promised that he would try his best to persuade others.