Because he mentioned it once, the Time Turner, as long as it's planned well, actually has no usage intervals.
So now, the girl even uses the Time Turner to carve out a separate portion of time for sleep.
"Hmm, found it."
Hermione rubbed her eyes and said without looking up.
"Alright, it's good that you found it, you should quickly take a rest—"
"..."
"...wait, found what?"
Hermione didn't reply and instead leaned against the table, pushing a pile of draft paper she had set aside towards William.
William was stunned for a moment, silently flipping through the stack of papers—time slowly passed until Hermione completely resolved her Potions Class paper and looked up. Only then did William finally look up from the stories recorded on those draft papers.
"You worked hard."
"Not hard, just unlucky."
"...Alright, go take a rest."
William nodded somewhat speechlessly, his eyes turning towards the not-too-distant corridor, while Hermione said nothing more, having finally resolved the backlog of coursework that had piled up on her for the past two to three months after a whole night of hard work. Now the girl only felt a sense of relief.
The girl stretched lazily, got up, and walked towards the room on the right side of the corridor—yes, because she often needed to use the Time Turner, there was now a room in the Room of Requirement just for her. After all, although time could be turned back, energy could not, and she often needed to catch up on sleep. But going back to the dormitory each time was a bit too troublesome.
"Meow~"
Watching Hermione's silhouette disappear behind the door, William reached out to touch the cat's head peeking out from the pile of books—he had to admit, although it felt nice, this cat named Crookshanks was really ugly, with its ginger pancake-like face looking rather abstract.
But Crookshanks didn't know about what William was muttering in his heart, merely rubbing its head against William's palm.
However, William didn't have to wait long, as just two and a half minutes later, the first door on the left side of the corridor opened a crack. A half-hidden Hermione, with a Diricawl perched on her head, peeked stealthily from behind the door. She looked much better than she had earlier.
Seeing that "herself" had already left, the girl sighed in relief and put away the "Hourglass" held in her hand.
"Good morning, senior."
It was only then that a fully refreshed Hermione greeted William for the first time that day.
"...Good morning. You really need to manage your time manager usage better."
"Is there a problem?"
Hermione blinked as if puzzled.
"In these three months, you've grown almost half a head taller."
William paused, looked at the girl whose height was nearly up to his shoulder, and sighed, "If you continue like this, by the end of the semester, you'll probably be an adult. Although you keep reliving the same day, the time that passes on you is very real..."
"Then what should I do?"
"Start reducing the use of the Time Turner, only using it when class times conflict."
"...Is it because I helped you find the origin of that crystal that you're telling me this?"
Hermione squinted, feeling something was off.
"Cough, cough, would I be that kind of person?!"
William immediately stared at the girl without backing down, retorting righteously.
"Yes."
"Tsk..."
William sighed, his face filled with helplessness from being seen through, "Alright, what are your plans for today?"
"Oh, there's a Quidditch match today, Gryffindor vs. Slytherin—want to come along?"
...
...
Harry woke up rather early, the sky just barely lighting up. Initially, he thought the howling wind outside the window had startled him awake. Then he felt a gust of cold wind blow across his neck, and he sat up straight with a jerk—
Looking back, the prank-loving ghost Peeves was floating back and forth beside him, blowing into his ear with all his might.
"What are you doing?"
Harry waved his fist in anger.
Peeves puffed his cheeks and blew hard, then shot out of the room, cackling wildly.
Harry found his alarm clock and checked the time; it was already five-thirty in the morning. Muttering curses at Peeves in his mind, he was about to turn over and go back to sleep. But now that he was awake, and with not much time left, it was hard to ignore the thunder rumbling overhead, the gale slamming against the castle walls, and the distant sound of branches snapping in the Forbidden Forest.
In just a few hours, he would have to battle the storm at the Quidditch Pitch outside.
So, Harry no longer hoped to fall back asleep. He got up, dressed, picked up the Nimbus 2000 by his bedside, and quietly left the dormitory.
In the common room, the storm's noise was even louder, but Harry knew very well that the match would not be canceled.
Quidditch matches are never canceled for such minor issues as thunder and storms.
But even so, he began to feel worried.
Today was the Gryffindor versus Slytherin match. Although he no longer cared about Malfoy's taunts, he didn't want to lose to him over this; it was a question of pride. He didn't think himself to be weaker than Malfoy, nor could he be weaker than him.
Harry sat by the fire, dazedly passing the time. Finally, he felt it must be time for breakfast and went alone through the portrait hole.
"Halt, duel, you mangy dog!"
In the picture frame, Sir Cadogan, riding a plump little horse, shouted loudly.
"Oh, shut up."
Harry yawned, speaking without turning his head.
Heading down the stairs to the Great Hall, he found out that a few people had arrived even earlier than him. After greeting Hermione, who was having a small meal with William at the Hufflepuff Long Table, Harry didn't opt to join them. His gaze instinctively drifted towards the Slytherin Long Table not far away, where only Draco Malfoy sat.
The boy's face was exceptionally pale, almost the same color as his platinum blond hair. He also noticed Harry's gaze, returned it defiantly, and even gestured a throat-cutting motion with his hands.
Harry didn't respond, merely breaking eye contact instantly. He plopped himself at the table, eating a big bowl of porridge, and felt a little more energized. As he began on some bread, the rest of the Gryffindor team members arrived.
"It's definitely going to be a tough fight."
Wood glared fiercely at the group of Slytherins, not eating anything.
"Don't worry, Oliver," Alice comforted him, "a little rain won't bother us."
Yet it was far from just a little rain.
Quidditch is hugely popular, and as usual, the whole school came out to watch the match. They ran across the lawn towards the pitch, crossing water channels on the grass that almost turned into small streams, bowing their heads against the fierce wind. Many of them had their umbrellas blown away mid-journey.
"Honestly, I could start selling umbrellas—"
After catching the fifth umbrella that flew into his face, William muttered while casually handing it over to Cedric beside him—a circle of people had already gathered around him: Cedric, Cho Chang, Hermione, Ginny, Luna, Astoria, and Daphne...
However, most of these people had nothing to do with him, like the few little girls who asked him where Kabuda was as soon as they met him.
When they heard William say that because of the rain, King Niffler was lazily sleeping in the castle, the girls were visibly disappointed for a moment.
"...But you obviously assigned it a pile of essays."
Beside him, Hermione suddenly elbowed William, whispering.
"I'll let it do your homework later."
William grinned and told the girl to keep her voice down.
"..."
So, Hermione nodded, indicating she agreed to the suggestion.