"Stop messing around," Wade said. "How did your date with Padma go? Was it smooth this time?"
"Wh-what date?" Michael stammered, his face turning red with surprise. "We weren't on a date… We were just, uh, just discussing a problem…"
Wade looked at him as if he were an idiot.
Michael finally stopped trying to explain himself. He ruffled his hair and tentatively asked, "Who all knows?"
"Don't worry…"
As Michael's expression softened, Wade continued, "Everyone knows, except for a certain slow-witted individual."
Michael's expression froze, and his eyes gradually filled with despair.
"Th-then all this time…"
"Yep. Everyone thought it was pretty funny how hard you two were trying to hide it, so no one said anything… But after last time, we all thought you'd gone public! You haven't yet?"
Wade feigned surprise. "Ah, sorry… Just forget what I just said, then."
"How could I forget that?!" Michael retorted, immediately standing up. "No, I'm going to ask Terry… I don't believe everyone knows!"
Terry was Michael's roommate.
Wade watched him try to hide his embarrassment, fleeing the scene, and couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"You don't seem very happy."
A slightly ethereal voice suddenly spoke from not far away.
It was Luna, sitting on a sofa nearby. She had been reading a magazine, its cover completely hiding her face.
Now, the girl lowered the magazine slightly, her misty eyes peering over the top of it, staring at Wade.
Wade's smile instantly froze. That kind of gaze made him feel as if his skin was being pierced, which was quite uncomfortable.
A moment later, he dropped his smile and nodded. "Miss Luna Lovegood? Your magazine seems to be upside down."
"It's alright," Luna said in her slow cadence. "It's meant to be read upside down… Do you need help?"
"…Help?" Wade struggled to understand her meaning. "What makes you think I need help?"
Luna pulled out a strange pair of pink glasses from somewhere and put them on. She then scrutinized Wade carefully before nodding as if in confirmation.
"You're being bothered by Blibbering Humdingers… Do you need me to help you shoo them away?"
"…Blibbering Humdingers?"
"They're invisible bugs that float into your ears and mess with your brain," Luna affirmed.
Wade suddenly remembered that believing in the existence of certain fantastical creatures seemed to be a characteristic of this girl, Luna.
He was silent for a moment, not wanting to argue with a little girl about the existence of Blibbering Humdingers. With the mindset of humoring a child, he asked, "Alright then… How are you going to shoo them away?"
"Oh, that's easy."
Luna put down her book and walked over to Wade. She extended her arms, making swatting and shooing motions. Because there was nothing around her, she looked like she was performing a strange dance.
Laughter and snickers from other students drifted from not far away.
But Luna seemed not to hear them at all. She earnestly helped Wade shoo away the "Blibbering Humdingers," sometimes even bouncing, which made the corks on her hair ties bounce too, tapping the back of her head.
Wade found her both peculiar and adorable, causing him, sitting beside her, to waver between feeling "embarrassed" and "amused." His mood strangely improved a great deal.
Ever since hearing about the bait plan, some of the unpleasant emotions that had arisen in his heart immediately dissipated.
Luna stopped her movements and looked over.
"See, all the Blibbering Humdingers are gone. Wasn't that effective?"
"Yes," Wade said with a smile. "Thank you, Miss Lovegood."
"You can call me Luna, I don't mind."
After Luna finished speaking, she returned to the sofa. She showed no intention of continuing the conversation, instead covering herself with the magazine again.
Wade sat there for a while until Luna returned to her dormitory. Only then did he get up and head towards the boys' dormitory.
Suddenly, a brown-haired girl was pushed in front of him, followed by a few other girls giggling foolishly.
The brown-haired girl glared back, then looked at Wade and bravely began, "Um… Wade Grey, I… uh… I…"
She stammered, unable to complete a sentence for a long moment.
Wade looked down at her and asked, "I remember… you're Luna's roommate, aren't you?"
"Y-yes, I am!" The girl tucked her hair behind her ear, looked up at him, and asked cautiously, "Your relationship with the crazy gi—… with Luna is…"
"I suppose you could say we're friends?" Wade smiled. "Or rather, she's like a thoughtful little sister. I'm glad she has a roommate who seems as kind as you."
"N-no, not really…"
The girl looked a bit unnatural, her fingers unconsciously fiddling with her hair. The other girls behind her exchanged glances, their expressions somewhat awkward.
Wade acted as if he hadn't noticed, saying gently,
"Luna's personality makes it a bit hard for her to fit in, so it's fortunate that you're usually willing to be tolerant of her. If she occasionally says something unpleasant, don't just put up with it; tell her directly. She's not a bad child, she just doesn't quite know how to interact with people."
"No, no, actually everyone's already used to it... After all, we are... we're friends! Haha..."
The brown-haired girl tried her best to put on a "kind and friendly" smile.
Wade's gaze swept over the other girls behind her, who also wore the kind of smiles "a younger sister's friends" should have.
"Thank you. She's really lucky to have friends like you."
Wade took out a handful of Miniature Magical Pets from his bag, handing them over and saying, "These are some little trinkets I usually make. You can have them."
"Wow—"
Several girls gasped in surprise, covering their mouths.
In his slender palm were several magical pets no bigger than a fingernail: cats, dogs, rabbits, chicks, and the like. Some were lying down, some were huddled together playing, and some seemed to be looking for food. Their short claws and chubby bodies made them look adorably naive.
Each one was so cute it was impossible to look away.
Counting them, there was even one extra after each of them took one.
The brown-haired girl was still a bit hesitant to accept, but her companions had already started picking out their favorites. So, she simply took a little cat and then held the last little rabbit in her hand as well.
"I'll give this to Luna... You forgot to give it to her just now, didn't you?"
She said gently.
Wade smiled and said, "Yes. I'll trouble you with that then."
Watching the excited first-year girls leave, Wade smiled and walked into the winding staircase.
At the same time, some words Marchioni had repeatedly instilled in him echoed in his mind. Thinking about them now, they still made a lot of sense.
In some matters, the power of words is greater than violence.
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