Repatriate
You don't know the world without reading the newspapers, and you don't know the world's weirdest things without reading the entertainment pages.
The weekend edition of The Times carried this news: at the premiere of the film Mr. Bean, the famous actor Rowan Atkinson was forcibly kissed by an enthusiastic audience.
Such accidents are not new these days, but this time the audience was a dog.
Ginny read this at breakfast. Looked at the photo attached, the muscles in her face stiffened.
In the photo, Luffy leapt onto the stage with the poised body, his spirited tongue glued to the famous actor's face, looking unbelievably happy.
Luffy is a wonder of the world, always having first-hand knowledge of the terrain and staff schedules of any cinema. It is his unique talent to slip into the cinema to see a free film.
I knew there is no need to worry about them at all. Ginny thought with relief.
That same night, when Ginny and Papa Granger was in front of the TV on time for Prison Break and Mike's Fox River digging plan was in full swing, a wanted notice interjected.
"The police is reminding the general public that escaped prisoner Black is armed and extremely dangerous. A special hotline has been set up to notify immediately if there is any relevant information."
The fugitive on the wanted notice was withered and waxy, his long hair as lifeless as shreds of kelp on the shore.
"Mike's manifested!" Hermione's dad exclaimed.
The scene shifted back to the digging site again, every move of the eight strong men tugs at Ginny's breath as she completely ignored Hermione who was calling after her.
"Come here, I want to tell you something."
"Keep your voice down, the wardens are coming, watch out, Mike!"
"Mike doesn't need your worry." annoyed, Hermione pulled Ginny by the collar of her neck and dragged her upstairs.
"Okay, okay, I'll listen." Ginny broke away from Hermione's grip and sat down in a chair, feet tapping the floor anxiously, "Make it quick, I'm worried about Mike!"
"Worry about yourself first," Hermione said throwing over a pile of flyers. Ginny looked at them roughly, they were all travel promotions.
"Tour? Such treacherous places... Ten Day Trip to the Top of Kilimanjaro, South American Jungle, Dancing with Snakes... And this? South Sea Desert Island Survival Week?"
"All from my mum. She and dad are planning to take their annual vacation."
"A trip is a good plan, but the places chosen are too dangerous."
"You know too little about your guru, she picked these places most likely for you and me. Guess what my mother's education policy is?"
"Knowledge is power!"
"Wrong. It's that confronting us with the danger of death will give us the fight to live. She always says that the lions will push the cubs down the cliff, and only the ones that can climb up has the potential of being the next generation of the lion king."
"So she's going to push us off Kilimanjaro to our deaths this time?"
"Not in that way, but pretty much... It's all because of you, you told her things about witches going on trips and experiencing life. She loves to experiment with all kinds of ways of education." Hermione held her head in pain as if remembering something terrible from the past.
"What should we do?"
"Not we, I." She looked at Ginny's bewildered gaze and explained, "I don't know what sort of nonsense my mum has come up with, probably something no good. If you're gonna go on this trip too, I'll have to carry an extra burden when things go wrong."
"So what do you mean?"
"Don't come along!"
"That's too straightforward... "
"You cannot understand if I'm beating around the bush. Listen, my mother is a woman of action, and the disaster will strike in the next two or three days. You'd better say goodbye tonight and tell them you're going home."
"That's cruel, there's no one at my house and I have to spend the summer holidays alone and lonely!"
"A lonely summer better than a miserable one! Aren't you afraid my mum will send us off to some country in the Far East to experience a high school study camp? Look at this leaflet, big exams, small mock tests, a taste of all the bitterness in life in a second!"
"I'm going back. Hermione, take care."
Ginny walked sadly downstairs and through the living room, Mike and the pit on the TV didn't matter anymore. The good life had come to a fork in the road, and neither of the two paths does Ginny's favour. She lingered outside Hermione's mum's study for a moment, considering where to go. For a brief moment, she thought it would be nice to experience a deserted island in the South Seas with Hermione's family, but eventually, the possibility of a high school study camp made her knock on the door of the study.
"Master."
"Ginny, want to play video game with me? Wait a minute." Her mother sat at her computer, sorting through her medical records.
"No... I want to say thanks to you and Mr. Granger. I'm going back in the next day or two."
Hermione's mother stopped what she was doing and turned around with that conspiratorial smile again.
"Did Hermione say something to you?"
Ginny felt like her heart was suddenly pinched and she immediately said with a feigned composure, "No."
"Is that so? No more learning about life?"
"Maybe later... "
"No more helping Hermione clean her bedroom?"
"Haha... "
"You don't really have to be in such a hurry to get back, seriously. I want to take you guys to a few nice places."
It was as if Ginny saw herself sitting in a crowded, stuffy classroom, surrounded by piles of exam papers, with all the other students in front of her and behind her scribbling away, while the paper in front of her was empty.
"But Mum will be worried if I stay out too long." She hurriedly came up with a haphazard excuse.
Hearing this, Mama Granger smiled even more, making Ginny feel a little vain.
"I understand, it's no use forcing you to stay when you want to go home. But-" She whispered to Ginny, "Next time you leave home, don't wander around, just come straight to here, okay?"
"Hahaha... Sure you can't be fooled."
"That's right, I knew it as soon as I saw you."
"How?"
"Let's just say that me too, have been a teenager before."
Hermione's mother blinked knowingly, as if she knew everything, enjoying a sense of superiority as someone who had been there. Ginny looked into her eyes and kept guessing what someone like Master had done when they were young.
As a parting shot, they played a few more games together and, as usual, Ginny was defeated.
When she returned to her room, Hermione had everything tidied up again.
"Here's the luggage, here's the money I lent you, here's Luna's address. I think it is not good to leave you alone for the summer. I just sent a letter to Luna, go and see her if you want. There's a public fireplace there in Diagon Alley, here is the road map for the bus ride."
Ginny took the address and was glad for the third fork in the road.
"Hermione, when I get rich, I'll hire you as a housekeeper!"
"No, thanks... "
Ginny put the address in her pocket, still looking at Hermione with a longing look.
"I saw in your fairy tale book that before a Brave sets out on his journey, the wizard gives him three treasures."
"What else do you want, Lord Brave?"
"May I take a few of your old books to read?"
"Yes."
"May I have a few packs of instant noodles?"
"No problem."
"Can I borrow your notebook? I'll give it back to you at the beginning of the school year."
"Yea... No!" Hermione almost fell for it. "It's expensive!"
"Please, lend it to me. You can't take it with you when you leave anyway. You won't need it. I promise to treat it right, take it for walks and sing it lullabies!"
"No is just no!"
Hermione is just Hermione. She said no but still gave Ginny the computer the next day, loaded and ready.
"You need to give it back to me as is. Not with any less paintwork."
"I promise with my integrity!"
"That's the same as no promise!" Hermione reluctantly handed over her computer bag and took out another book, which she solemnly slipped into the crevice of Ginny's backpack, "Here are those two suspicious pieces of paper, more important than the computer. I am afraid you'd lose them, so I stapled them in this book. You must show them to Dumbledore after school starts."
"You don't really think he's Voldemort, right? I told you he's a liar."
"Can't give no promise, can't give all promises. You shall not talk to him all the time, hand it straightly to Dumbledore."
"Tom's pretty miserable on his own... "
"Do you still want the computer?"
"As you wish, my lady."
After breakfast, the Granger family put an uninvited hermit crab, who had been living for nothing for over twenty days, on the bus headed for the city centre. Before boarding the bus Ginny whispered a cheer for Hermione, wishing her a successful climb from the bottom of the cliff.
"Don't worry, I have battle expirence." Hermione was confident without Ginny by her side.
Ginny set off, poking her head out of the window to wave goodbye to the Granger family.
"Mrs. Granger, Mr. Granger, thank you, I'll good good study, day day up!" She reminded the muggle gesture Hermione had taught her and raised her middle finger to the Granger family with respect.
"In the wizarding world, that means 'goodbye'!" Hermione explained hurriedly.
It dawned on the Granger's and they both gave Ginny a fond wag of their middle finger as well.
Ginny saw that with her eyes, be touched on her heart. She vowed secretly that never forget Granger's advice, good good study, day day up!
Standing by the side of the road, watching the bus fade away, Hermione felt very bad. She knew it very well- it was over, the manner heritage of Hogwarts is going to be whacked.
