Chapter 182: Are You Looking for a Hard Time?
Chapter 182: Are You Looking for a Hard Time? (Requesting Monthly Votes)
Ivan wandered through the corridor of the Girls' Dormitory, initially feeling a bit nervous, fearing he would be exposed. But as he continued, he gradually calmed down, realizing that no one could see through the disguise of the Polyjuice Potion.
The progress notification for his Quest periodically rang in Ivan's mind, but when he finished walking through the corridor, he frowned.
The progress he gained was far too little, much less than what he had earned in the common room and the Boys' Dormitory. This shouldn't be the case.
Did he really need to enter a specific dorm room to see what was inside?
Ivan clenched his teeth, reached out, and knocked on the nearest Girls' Dormitory door, preparing to find an excuse to go in and take a quick look before returning.
After a tense wait, the dorm door opened, and a young witch with loose hair looked out, her eyes widening in surprise as she saw Ivan.
"Hermione? Didn't you say you were going to the Library to study? And why are you knocking? Why not just come in?"
"Lavender?" Ivan inwardly cursed his luck. He hadn't expected his random choice to lead him to Hermione's dorm room.
Once inside the common room, the effects of the Marauder's Map had significantly diminished, with hundreds of names scattered in the small area, making it difficult to determine who was where.
To avoid raising suspicion, Ivan hadn't checked the Marauder's Map again.
But Ivan quickly composed himself and came up with a reason.
"I suddenly remembered I forgot something, so I came back to get it", Ivan said, deliberately ignoring the Question about knocking.
"Oh, I see." Lavender didn't seem suspicious and stepped aside.
Ivan steeled himself and walked inside. The decor of the Girls' Dormitory was drastically different from the boys', with a strong pink and girlish vibe. A few pieces of intimate clothing were casually tossed over chairs.
Since it was Saturday, Parvati was still in bed, lazily flipping through the latest issue of a magazine in her pajamas.
Ivan glanced around and was immediately drawn to the various moving stickers on the walls. Each one featured countless Lockharts smiling at him.
Ivan almost lost his composure. He had known that most of the young witches in the school were Lockhart's fans, but he hadn't expected them to be so obsessed that they would plaster their dorm room with his face.
Wouldn't it be creepy to be watched like that every day?
Ivan shook his head in exasperation, unable to understand their mindset.
To avoid arousing suspicion, Ivan found the bed with Hermione's name on it and pretended to put a book down.
He had initially planned to do nothing, but he accidentally noticed some cut-out articles from the Daily Prophet next to Hermione's pillow. The first one was a news report about Lockhart taking up the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.
On her timetable, the Defense Against the Dark Arts class was circled with a pink heart.
No wonder she's such a devoted fan of Lockhart, Ivan thought to himself. If he remembered correctly, in the original timeline, Hermione had even placed a Lockhart card under her pillow to sleep with it.
"Looking at something else, Hermione?" Lavender asked curiously, leaning over his shoulder. Didn't you say you were just putting a book down and leaving?
Ivan was about to come up with a casual excuse to brush her off, but at that moment, Lavender saw the newspapers Hermione had placed on her bedside table.
Ivan felt something was amiss but couldn't stop it in time. Lavender, driven by curiosity, snatched the papers away.
"What is this? A collection of Professor Lockhart's events?" Lavender excitedly examined the stack of newspaper clippings, her voice filled with gossip.
Ivan was about to scold Lavender and demand the papers back when she suddenly exclaimed in surprise.
"Oh, I didn't expect to find reports about Hals too!"
Ivan froze, glancing at the clippings in Lavender's hands and realizing she was right.
In this stack of newspapers, besides the reports on Lockhart's book signing and his appointment as the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, the rest were all news articles about himself. The collection seemed quite comprehensive.
"Where? Where? I want to see too!" Parvati, who had been lying on the bed, jumped up with her eyes sparkling, completely ignoring any potential indecency as she joined Lavender, snatching a few clippings to look at.
"Enough! Give them all back to me!" Ivan scowled, his voice stern.
These were Hermione's carefully kept items, her privacy. Ivan already regretted his impulsive entry and couldn't bear to let them continue looking.
"No way!" Lavender hugged the stack of clippings to her chest, grinning. "Unless you tell us which one is more important to you: Professor Lockhart or Hals?"
How can that incompetent fool compare to me?
Ivan thought to himself but didn't dare say it aloud, as he was currently in Hermione's form and couldn't afford to slip up.
"Are you sure you won't give them back?" Ivan sighed, looking at the two young witches with their gossiping faces.
"Right! We won't!" Parvati quickly raised the clippings high, showing no intention of returning them.
"Looks like you're asking for a fight", Ivan muttered.
He instinctively reached for his wand, then remembered that it looked different from Hermione's and could easily expose him.
With that thought, Ivan abandoned the idea of using magic. Instead, he rolled up his sleeves, revealing his pale arms.
"Hermione, what are you doing?" Lavender, seeing Ivan's actions, felt a twinge of fear but quickly regained her composure when she glanced at Parvati.
We are two against one!
Just as Lavender was trying to boost her confidence, she saw "Hermione" pounce at her with a fierce expression, clearly aiming for the newspaper clippings.
"Give them here!"
"No way!"
"Parvati, help me! Hermione has gone crazy! Hold her back!"
"Let go! Give me the papers, or you two are dead!"
"Ouch, that hurts!"
The three of them engaged in a fierce struggle in the small dormitory, the clippings scattering everywhere.
Unable to get the papers, Ivan cleverly snatched their wands first. He casually cast a few minor spells, leaving Lavender and Parvati with paralyzed limbs and unable to resist. He successfully won the battle despite the odds.
Hmph, fighting me!
Ivan arrogantly straightened his torn clothes. However, seeing the two young witches on the verge of tears, he hesitated, muttering to himself.
"Great, what do I do now?"
(End of Chapter)
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