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“Your set of standard school uniform,” Madame Malkin came in with several packages. “Will you try it on?”

“No,” Hermione shook her head. “I completely trust your skill.”

“Pleased to hear. Now it’s your turn, young man.”

I stood on a stool, and the measuring instruments began to dance around me.

“Listen…,” Hermione broke the moment’s silence when Madam Malkin left. “There is something in your words. Let’s buy normal textbooks. But what professor recommended such textbooks?”

“Maybe Lockhart himself?”

“The writer will be a professor?” At first, Hermione was delighted but then thought. “But if he recommended his books, then he may turn out to be a bad teacher. Even with the Order of Merlin.”

“Maybe. Not everyone dares to take this position. Too many professors left it … somewhat rumpled or even dead.

“Yes, you are right…”

“Surely he decided to advertise himself as well as his books.”

Then we talked about all sorts of little things until Madame Malkin brought my set of clothes. We paid at the exit, and I put the purchases in my backpack. The next item was a shop with consumables such as pens, ink, parchments, and other little things. Next is the bookstore, but the crowd has not diminished, and it looks like the situation has even worsened. To my surprise, I noticed a red-haired family hurrying from the bank in our direction. And of course, Harry Potter was with them. Still the same shabby, but in an expensive robe. The absurdity of the highest measure! But communicating with the Weasleys, he will never understand that something is wrong with his form. Everything on redheads is always shabby. He is with them just like a native!

Hermione and I struggled our way through the crowd of women. Lockhart himself stood in the middle of the store, unfolding books, straightening his portraits, smiling with all thirty-two teeth, straightening his blond curls. And his mantle, a pungent lemon color, made my eyes bleed, as did his milky frock coat rich in embroidery. In general, he caused double impressions.

On the one hand – a gallant handsome man, a kind of hussar, his chest is bulging, his mustache is not enough. On the other hand, it is overkill with self-praise. It is in every detail. Hermione, from the look on her face, had similar thoughts. We quietly made our way to the second floor and just walked around, chose books, made our own list of DADA textbooks.

“Mr. Knight,” a familiar voice said from behind.

Hermione and I turned around and saw Narcissa. All the same cold detachment with a slight interest in the eyes. Hermione looked at her with some suspicion, at me, at her again, and made some conclusions.

“Mrs. Malfoy,” I replied with a slight smile, bowing my head slightly in greeting. Hermione hastened to do the same. She also gave me a look that literally required a detailed story. She is attentive, although here, you have to be blind to not notice anything.

“A surprising number of people find this wizard worthy of attention,” Narcissa said, glancing down at the crowd.

“I agree. For this reason, we are selecting textbooks on DADA from not recommended.”

“Even so? Very wise of you. I can recommend textbooks for the sixty-seventh year edited by Rowley. The best available at the moment.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Malfoy.”

“I can show you where they are if you want.”

“You are very kind.”

Narcissa walked through the rows of wardrobes, and we followed closely behind her.

“On these shelves,” Narcissa said. “Besides this, there is still a lot of interesting and useful literature. For those who can find it.”

“Thank you.”

We started examining the books. Narcissa didn’t go anywhere and also looked after something for herself.

“Going back to our conversation long ago, Mr. Knight. What would you do in that hypothetical situation when a Legiliment Potion Master comes to visit not only for a personal conversation over a glass of Ogden?”

“Tough question, Mrs. Malfoy. Depends on the purpose of the visit, reasons, and motives. If you can sincerely thank for something, then for something else – cruciate to madness, cut off the head, impaling it on a stake at the entrance to the house of your ancestors.”

“Very… wide range, “she said thoughtfully.

“So the actions of this wizard can extend over an extensive range. On the one hand, it can help to survive something, and on the other hand, it can take something important. Potions and Legilimency are a terrible mixture.”

“Legilimency?” Hermione asked quietly.

“The science of penetrating someone else’s consciousness, reading it and changing it,” I answered shortly.

“The further, the more terrible the fairy tale,” summed up Hermione under the sad smile of Narcissa, who turned to us.

“You can protect yourself from this, but books on Occlumency are not well tolerated …” Narcissa vaguely swept her hand around the room. “Bright light.”

Some exclamations, panic, indignation began to be heard from below. Narcissa’s face immediately changed, regaining her coldness and aloofness.

“I’m forced to leave you. Have a good day, Mr. Knight.” Narcissa gave Hermione a blank look, turned around, and walked away. We were silent for about a minute, putting the books we needed in piles to take them to the counter.

“You are very similar.”

“Well, sooner or later, I would have told you anyway. Narcissa is my biological mother. Don’t ask how it happened. I only know a couple of facts and no details.”

“Okay,” Hermione nodded. “You and Draco are completely different,” Hermione shook her head thoughtfully.

“Well, he’s Malfoy,” I shrugged. “And a ritual was performed over me, which did not leave a drop of this lineage blood in me. It seems to me that biologically I can be considered the twin of Narcissa. And a son at the same time.”

“Some kind of magic,” Hermione said with a smile.

“Exactly. Magic”

“So what do you think about it? Well, know all this?”

“Let’s just say I do not regret and do not suffer about this, but I need to find out the details. Just to know how to treat whom. Not all circumstances of life are subject to us.”

On this note, we went down. There the photo session and the signing of Lockhart continued. Still, in the crowd, every now and then, someone whispered about how Malfoy and the Weasleys elders managed to fight.

We pushed our way through the crowd and put the books on the counter. We quickly settled but were immediately intercepted by Lockhart.

“Look at these wonderful young wizards that have decided to purchase my complete collected works!” With a dazzling smile, he spoke while pushing a stack of books in our direction. “With exclusive materials and personal autograph!”

Lockhart winked. Surprisingly, after a recent peaceful conversation, Hermione was in no rush to buy them. But we paid for them too. An indecent price for books. Six Galleons for fiction! Burn with Fiendfire! If my dreams are to be believed, then I know how to summon it.

We are not Potter, no one took pictures of us, and we could safely leave the store. The books were safely transferred to my backpack.

“What do you think, Max, what Mrs. Malfoy meant by bright light?”

We were already on our way to the exit from Diagon Alley.

“What do you think?”

Hermione frowned slightly.

“Does defense against Legilimency belong to the dark arts?”

“Maybe. And it is possible that they are studied inseparably from each other, and Legilimency is definitely considered dark. However, not everything is so sad as with the unforgivable. The ministry has full-time legiliments. In general, many people indulge in it, no matter how bad it may sound. And it is not always safe for others. And for the wizard himself. But books on occlumency really need to be searched.

“But where? I haven’t seen anything like this in stores,” said Hermione.

“Well, in Knockturn Alley.”

“Max! It’s not safe there,” the girl was weakly indignant. It seems that our friendship still affected her vision of correctness and safety.

“But what can we do? It is necessary.”

“This is no longer a hypothetical school showdown, and it’s too early for us to go into the lion’s mouth. We can’t make Protego right away. High quality. And it’s pretty dangerous there.”

A person unfamiliar with the girl might think that she was scolding me. Still, in fact, I know that this is her way of conducting an ideological dispute.

“We?”

Hermione looked at me with a smile.

“You didn’t think that I would let you go alone on such a dangerous and irresponsible journey?”

So I shouldn’t tell her about it. Because I’m going there today.

“So, we will go to Knockturn Alley together only after we learn to fight decently?”

Or maybe I should contact Flitwick. It seems to me that he can encourage the desire to protect yourself and your loved ones.

“Exactly. And you know…” Hermione became somehow more serious. “I can see that something happened to you. Something is bothering you a lot. You can always share and tell. Together we will definitely come up with something.”

It was impossible not to smile at this girl.

“As soon as help is needed, you will be the first to know about it.”