HP: I’m working on redemption at Hogwarts

Chapter 171 Holiday Daily Life

Although a magical potion to cure petrification had been made, Headmaster Dumbledore still cancelled the final exams because of the petrification incident in the Chamber of Secrets. Of course, this should have been extremely happy for all the teachers and students in the school, which was reflected very well by the Gryffindor House who was jumping up and down excitedly and almost overturned the long table.

Holiday life is very different from what Astoria had imagined. The dim and gloomy environment at home always makes people feel depressed.

"Daphne, do you want to go back to grandma's house with me?"

So, Astoria mustered up the courage to ask Daphne out. Surprisingly, she was just slightly stunned and quickly nodded in agreement.

"Okay."

"Hey, wait a minute, aren't you supposed to go to the boutique clothing store with me today?" Pansy, who had just sat down and had her afternoon tea for a while, suddenly widened her eyes and stared at Daphne with an exaggerated and sad look.

"Let's go together when we get back, and I'll buy you the emerald brooch you've wanted for a long time." Daphne's expression seemed a little perfunctory, but her sincere eyes and moving tone still made Pansy accept it.

So, with that happily decided, Astoria took Daphne via Floo powder back to the sweet home where she had lived for nearly six years.

"Puff, cough, cough—" The flying dust surrounded the two of them. Daphne staggered and fell out of the fireplace, her face covered with dirty dust, and she couldn't stop coughing with a ferocious expression.

"Leah..."

"Grandma, Aunt Margaret!" Astoria ran out of the fireplace excitedly, shaking off the dust on her body. Her excitement made her almost not bothered by the discomfort caused by the Floo powder transmission.

"Child, you... you are Daphne, right?" Grandma, wearing two thick reading glasses, squinted her eyes and helped Daphne up. Margaret, who was standing by, still remembered Daphne as the mean lady who targeted Leah last time. At this moment, she glanced at Daphne awkwardly, with a look of scrutiny in her eyes.

"Aunt Margaret, it's summer vacation, I'm bringing my sister back to play for a few days." Noticing Aunt Margaret's gaze, Leah quickly stepped forward, hugged her waist, and acted coquettishly and affectionately.

"That would be great. Grandma talks about you every day. Whatever you want to eat, Auntie will make you a feast!"

"Wow! That's great." Astoria blinked excitedly, her sapphire blue eyes sparkling with light, so beautiful.

"Leah, come here..." Grandma's hoarse but kind and melodious voice came over.

Leah looked over and saw her grandmother sitting on the sofa. Her weather-beaten face was smiling and her eyes were shining with kindness. Daphne was standing beside her grandmother. The dust on her face had been wiped off at some point. At this moment, she was awkwardly held by her grandmother's hand, and she stood there at a loss.

"Here I am! Grandma!" Astoria smiled, her tone brisk and bright. She quickly squatted in front of her grandmother and took the initiative to hold her wrinkled hand.

"It's good to be back. You two sisters should get along well and play together..."

Grandma gently stroked the sisters' hands and repeated it over and over again in a kind tone.

"Yeah, okay!" Leah answered firmly, with a smile on her face that hadn't fallen off since she came home.

Looking at the scene in front of her, Daphne gradually became dazed. Astoria seemed to be completely different after returning to this home. She was no longer depressed and cautious, but like an optimistic and cheerful little sun.

……

"Why did you bring me here?"

On a summer afternoon, the sun shone through the gaps in the leaves and onto the sparkling river, forming patches of golden light. Daphne followed Leah with a puzzled look on her face, paying attention to the bumpy gravel ground under her feet and asking in confusion.

"It's still early for dinner, and I see you seem a little uncomfortable, why don't you come out for a walk."

Daphne paused, her face embarrassed, and she scratched her head awkwardly. She didn't expect that Leah would pay so much attention to her.

"Come on, maybe we can add something to dinner!"

Leah looked back at Daphne with a bright, confident smile on her face, and soon she was pulling Daphne to the stream.

The willow trees by the river lowered their long branches, gently brushing the water, as if whispering to the river. Daphne stared at the blonde girl who had rolled up her trousers and was jumping in the water, splashing countless water. She seemed to be infected by her involuntarily, and her mood gradually became cheerful.

Astoria's little feet kicked up a string of water droplets in the clear river, and the water droplets sparkled in the sun. She kept dancing her limbs, groping under the sparkling water with her hands, trying to catch a big fish under Daphne's guidance.

The warm sunshine shines on the golden heads of the two people, and the breeze blows across the lake, creating ripples. The whole picture is full of the leisure and tranquility of summer, which makes people unable to help but indulge in it.

At night, Daphne and Leah lay together on the warm and soft little bed, the moonlight slowly poured into the bedroom through the glass window, and printed the pattern of the curtains on the ground. In the dim light, only Daphne stared at the ceiling in a daze with her deep and bright eyes.

"Leah, are you asleep?"

The air was silent, with only the crisp tinkling of wind chimes brought into my ears by the breeze.

"So this is the home you and mom live in. Seeing grandma and you here, I seem to vaguely recall mom's appearance, the lullabies she sang, the sweet snacks she made, and many more..."

Daphne murmured to herself, with a tone full of helplessness. She turned her eyes slightly to the side, quietly gazing at Leah who was sleeping with her eyes closed, her eyes affectionate and gentle.

The next morning

"Daphne, I'm going to take you somewhere."

"It's fishing and outing again—"

“Neither…” Leah shook her head vigorously, her messy golden curly hair hanging on both sides, blocking her vision but not hindering her sweet smile.

Soon, the two came to an ancient tree behind the old house. They climbed up the moss-covered wooden ladder hanging on the trunk and arrived at a quiet and small tree house.

"Is this your secret base?" Daphne looked around the cabin curiously, raised her eyebrows slightly in surprise, and stared at Leah jokingly.

"Well... sort of." Leah pulled Daphne and quickly sat down on the sofa cushion in the corner. Then she seriously pulled out a large box from the side of the bookshelf and handed it to Daphne.

Daphne tilted her head in confusion, her eyes fixed on the wooden box in front of her, not knowing how to react for a moment.

Prompted by Leah's expectant expression, Daphne carefully opened the wooden box, which was filled with many items. The first thing that caught her eye was an extremely childish stick figure drawing.

"This... was drawn by me?" Long-lost memories were gradually awakened, and Daphne stroked the two matchstick figures, one big and one small, on the yellowed paper.

Unconsciously, Daphne's eyes became red and moist. She held the paper tightly in her palm, and the smell of old oil paper seemed to bring her back to her childhood memories.

At that time, the relationship between her father and mother had not yet become rigid and broken. Her mother often held her in her arms, and her gentle smile and beautiful nursery rhymes echoed in her ears, making her linger.

There were many other things in the box, all related to my mother, including photo albums from her school days, various strange magic items, and an old, dark-colored Slytherin school robe.

"I thought maybe you would like to take a look." Daphne looked up suddenly and saw Leah squatting in front of her with a cautious smile. Her blue eyes were full of warmth as she looked at Daphne patiently.

……

...

"Won't you stay a few more days?" Aunt Margaret packed up the snacks for Leah in front of the fireplace, her eyes full of reluctance.

"No, I'll tell Dabu to be careful. Father will be back soon, and we're worried..." Daphne looked serious. She nervously clenched the picture album in her hand, and there was some fear in her words.

"Indeed, that bad old man..." Since the head of the Greengrass family was not around, Aunt Margaret was somewhat outspoken.

She smiled awkwardly at the two sisters, then waved her hand helplessly. "Go say goodbye to grandma."

"Hey! Leah is back. It's good to have you back. You two sisters should get along well and play together..."

Before Leah and Daphne could get close, the grandmother who was dozing with her eyes closed suddenly nodded with a look of relief on her face and repeated the same words as yesterday.

"Grandma, we'll come to see you next time." Leah sighed helplessly, walked forward and squatted down.

As the two approached, the grandmother gently held Daphne and Leah's hands and put them together. The calloused palms of her hands scratched the back of Leah's hands, causing an inexplicable itch, and she subconsciously hooked her fingers, involving Daphne.

"Huh?" Daphne looked up in surprise, as if she thought Leah was acting coquettishly with her. She took the initiative to turn her hand in her grandmother's palm over and intertwined her fingers with Leah's small hand. Then the corners of her mouth raised and she revealed a smile.

"That's great, that's great." Seeing the two sisters getting along well, grandma smiled kindly and stared at Leah and Daphne's clasped hands with her mouth wide open.

……

manor

Leah and Daphne came out of the fireplace in a panic, and before they could react, they heard the cold and low voice coming from the other side.

"Where have you been?"

Astoria looked over when she heard the voice and saw that her father had been standing in front of the fireplace for some time, with the hunchbacked house-elf Dab standing next to him, glancing over here with a cautious and fearful look on his face.

"Nothing, I went out to play." Daphne subconsciously hid the photo album in her hand behind her back and responded coldly.

"Play, then it seems that you are having a lot of fun." The father snorted coldly, with a cold arc on the corner of his mouth. He looked up and down with disdain, "You are so dirty, just like a country girl. Instead of spending all this time playing, you might as well learn a few more spells and make more pure-blood friends..."

"And you, Astoria, since you know you are ill, don't go out and run around and attract attention." Leah was frightened by the big face that suddenly approached her. Her face turned pale and her breathing suddenly became rapid, as if her throat was shackled. Daphne subconsciously stopped Leah in front of her, holding her hand and protecting her behind her.

Looking at the deep affection between the sisters, the father seemed not to react at all. He raised his eyebrows in surprise, then raised his proud and conceited head, sneered, and turned away.