RNP Chapter 40 Aftermath
Chapter 40 Aftermath
Oh!
With the sound of clothes tearing, the diary and the crown spun together and flew away from their owner.
Everything seemed preordained. The Disarming Charm struck the exact spot where Tom Riddle had hidden the Horcrux!
"No!"
Tom Riddle shouted one last time using Lockhart's voice.
Having missed the opportunity to use the "flamingo's" body to resurrect himself earlier, he no longer felt any resentment towards her.
……
The abrupt end of the battle silenced the previously noisy hall. Aside from Harry, most people's eyes remained fixed on Lockhart, who had just collapsed.
Professor Sprout and Cedric did not rush to put away their wands. Unaware of the secrets of Horcruxes, the victorious group still took slow and cautious steps, approaching the noodle-like Lockhart step by step.
"Professor, he seems unable to move. Should we go and call Mrs. Pomfrey?"
Cedric Diggory asked.
Sprout frowned, first giving Lockhart a look of disgust, then turning to glance at where Harry was, and finally said:
"Well, then I'll leave it to you, Cedric. Remember to bring the rooster; who knows if that basilisk is dead or not."
"it is good!"
Hearing Cedric's hurried footsteps disappear into the distance, Harry, completely exhausted, didn't even turn his head. He sat on the ground, holding a Horcrux in each hand, his eyes fixed on Fawkes, whose little head peeked out from the ashes.
"Are you alright, Harry? Are you hurt?"
Hermione, who was the first to reach Harry, was pale and her hands trembled uncontrollably in the air. She wanted to check Harry's injuries, but she was more afraid of making them worse.
"I listened to you and had the Gryffindor students stay in their dormitories, and I also wrote a letter to the Ministry of Magic. Then I asked the Fat Lady to help me relay messages to the other houses. George and Fred didn't listen to me, so I followed them out. Good heavens, Harry, do you want some White Dew Essence...?"
Harry forced a smile, shook his head, and then winked at Hermione.
As her emerald eyes swept over the Horcrux and the Invisibility Cloak, the clever little witch had already hidden Harry's diary and tiara.
......
"Harry! The invisibility cloak you gave us is amazing! Did you see the dung bomb I threw? It hit the bullseye!"
"And my portable swamp! It made Lockhart stumble and fall! That guy's really stupid, he doesn't even know that the harder you push in the swamp, the faster you sink!"
"The only downside is that we couldn't escape those two curses; we're bound to get a lecture from Miss Granger!"
The Weasley twins' jokes always lightened the mood. But this time, even they didn't expect that the little witch, who was more ferocious than their own mother just minutes before, would suddenly start praising them.
"We really owe you all this time!"
Hermione said sincerely:
"At the time, I was only thinking about doing what Harry said, and I didn't think about how to help him properly. If it weren't for the two of you attracting Lockhart's attention, I don't think this battle would have ended so quickly."
George and Fred looked at each other, then covered their mouths like an old father and mother, giving Hermione a touched and gratified expression.
"Oh my god, my child, you've finally grown up, waaaaah..."
"Although it took a little longer, it's good that you can appreciate our good intentions."
Harry, who was sitting on the ground, wanted to laugh along, but given his current condition, even breathing a little faster would cause his diaphragm and abdominal muscles to ache terribly, so he had no choice but to give up.
A few minutes later, Lady Pomfrey arrived in a hurry. Appearing alongside her on the first floor of the castle were the students from the four Houses who remained at their schools.
Having not witnessed the entire battle firsthand, they generally assumed that the Basilisk attacked Lockhart first, and was then driven away by Professor Sprout and Harry and the others.
"Where is the basilisk? Was it killed?"
"By Merlin, is Professor Lockhart seriously injured...?"
"What basilisk? I clearly saw a black wind flying in the stairwell!"
The students gathered around Lockhart and Madam Pomfrey, chatting amongst themselves. Seeing that more and more classmates and a rooster were gathering around, Harry quickly turned to Hermione and whispered:
"Don't tell anyone what happened in the secret room. Let's go back to the dorm first."
Upon hearing this, Hermione reacted swiftly. While supporting Harry's arm, she coughed softly, summoning George and Fred to cover for her. Then, while the two were arguing, she quickly draped the Invisibility Cloak over herself and Harry and quietly slipped away.
Harry, who had been using the Invisibility Cloak to conceal his Horcruxes just a moment ago, was stunned by Hermione's move. To be honest, from the time he first met Miss Granger on the train until now, he had never felt any particular awe or wonder towards her.
But today...
……
After finally getting Harry back to the Gryffindor common room, Hermione breathed a sigh of relief. After settling Harry on a cushioned sofa, she quietly folded the Invisibility Cloak and gently draped it over Harry's arm, saying:
"I...I won't go back to the dorm with you. I was immature in my first year and caused you a lot of unnecessary trouble. I want to apologize to you here."
"Then, as for earlier tonight, the situation was somewhat unavoidable. If you blame me, I understand and won't make any other excuses, but I promise this is the last time."
"Also, I hope that Harry will get some rest after you go back to your room. You've drunk a lot of potions to keep going until now. If you keep pushing yourself, your body definitely won't be able to take it."
"Okay, then I won't bother you any longer..."
Harry called out to Hermione as she was about to turn and walk toward the girls' dormitory.
"Wait a minute! Hermione!"
他 说:
"Thank you so much for tonight!"
"I might need your help with two more things, which is... um... before I leave tonight, I used a Stunning Charm to 'sleep' Ron, because I'm afraid I won't have the strength to cast the antidote on him later, so I'll just sleep until the day after tomorrow."
"Also, I'm really running out of energy right now, and I can barely walk. If you don't want the hassle, you can go wake Ron up and have him come over..."
Before Harry could finish speaking, Hermione had already walked up to him and put his dirty arm on her shoulder.
"Let's go."
She said softly.
……
Ron's soft, almost inaudible snoring could be heard coming from the second-year boys' dormitory in Gryffindor. Hermione first tidied Harry's clothes a little, helped him lie down on her bed, and then took out her wand and spoke to Ron:
"Scourgify." (to clean up thoroughly)
"Enervate." (Wake up quickly.)
Ron grunted as the curse was lifted, then smacked his lips, shifted his position, and went back to sleep. Seeing Ron enjoying such quality sleep, Harry and Hermione chuckled softly.
"I just thought my attempt to break the curse had failed!"
"Yeah, I feel like it was pointless for me to cast a stun spell on him."
Moonlight streamed through the window, casting a slanted glow on Harry's face, making him appear exceptionally haggard as he lay in bed. Hermione, who had already turned to leave, couldn't help but walk to Harry's bedside and gently tuck him in.
She whispered:
"You asked me to come up here, so you can't blame me."
Harry gently twisted his head on the pillow, and said with a mixture of sincerity and surprise:
"Why would I blame you for this?"
Hearing Harry say that, Hermione simply squatted down by Harry's bedside, jokingly making a face of annoyance, and asked:
"Hmm~ So you're blaming me for something else?"
Harry smiled and said:
“I’m not blaming you. I just think a witch as smart as you should be able to see that Lockhart is a complete idiot.”
"Oh, right, if you want to pretend to be angry, you should suppress the curve of your lips, otherwise even Malfoy will have a hard time telling you're acting."
Hermione pursed her lips, then grabbed a handful of her brown curly hair to cover her face, and murmured softly:
"How could I possibly be angry with you..."
"Huh? What did you say?"
"No...no, I meant you should rest well, and we can talk about Lockhart when you wake up, okay?"
"Oh, okay, goodnight Hermione."
Goodnight, Harry.
……
After being pushed to their limits by the relentless battle, Harry and Mo Ran finally got out of their comfortable bed after sleeping soundly for eight hours because their stomachs were rumbling.
Looking at Ron, who was still lost in a sweet dream, Harry immediately took out his wand and cast the Quick Awakening Charm on his friend again.
"Hmm...Hmm? Harry? Let me sleep a little longer..."
Mo Ran was speechless.
"Why does he still want to sleep? I remember we controlled the intensity of the spell carefully when we cast it before?"
"Maybe he had too much fun at the Christmas Eve dinner? I don't know. I even had Hermione use a spell to break the curse on him last night. If we had known this, we wouldn't have gone through all that trouble."
"..."
"..."
The sudden awkwardness caused both of them to fall silent. Mo Ran was unaware that Harry had seen some of his private matters, but being able to sense subtle emotions from his host, he still noticed something was amiss.
"Have you gotten your Horcruxes yet?"
"Well, but we haven't had a chance to destroy it yet. I'd like to discuss it with Professor Dumbledore first."
"it is good."
"that……"
"Oh, right..."
"Ah! You go first!" (in unison)
……
"Why don't you go to the auditorium and get something to eat first, and see what the situation is like at the school?"
"Great idea! Let's go!"
The ultimate understanding can sometimes be revealed only through perfectly timed silence. However, what Harry and Moran didn't expect was that after arriving at the Great Hall, having slept until 11 a.m., they found themselves at a time when they could neither have breakfast nor lunch.
What time is it now?
Harry asked instinctively.
"I didn't hear the bell, but judging from the position of the sun, it was probably close to noon in the morning."
As Mo Ran was speaking, his gaze, passing through Harry's eyes, fell upon Hermione at the Gryffindor table. Before he could even warn her, his host had already waved and walked towards the little witch.
What's going on? I feel like Harry's feelings for Hermione are a little different. Is it just my imagination?
Mo Ran muttered to himself while observing the two people's actions and expressions.
"I knew you'd be up late, so I saved some food for you. Here, have a little something to eat first, and lunch will be ready in about an hour."
"Thank you, I'm so sorry to have troubled you to take care of me last night."