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Chapter 241: Nightmare
Chapter 241: Nightmare
"It's definitely because Snape put too much pressure on you in Potions, Harry. You're just on edge. There's nothing here."
They held the straw and circled the empty classroom, but found nothing. Ron shrugged and said so.
Harry was certain he hadn't been mistaken. He had definitely seen something strange peering through the window of the classroom, but in reality, there was nothing there.
In the end, they left the classroom, and Harry casually tossed the straw into the trash bin.
"Stop talking about the Triwizard Tournament with Seamus and the others. You need to finish the Defense Against the Dark Arts homework today. I won't let you copy from me again."
"Hermione, you always say that."
"This time I'm serious! And have you told anyone else about our S-P-E-W? It would be great to get more people involved."
"I have no interest in promoting an organization called 'S.P.E.W.'"
"I've been thinking about writing to Sirius Black. I don't have time for this right now."
"You always do this! Fine, I'll go to Professor Forrest. He'll definitely support me."
"Oh, sure, Hermione. You think it's great. When you talk to Professor Forrest, he'll say, 'Hermione, I believe your noble cause to free house-elves will succeed!' Then you can give up on this idea."
The three of them continued chatting as they walked away. After they left, in the shadows of the empty classroom, a hand made of withered twigs slowly extended out. A dilapidated oil lamp dangled from the hand, swaying gently.
Then, a faint orange light flickered from the oil lamp, casting a dim glow.
That night, Harry had a nightmare.
He dreamt that Voldemort had captured him. The dark lord, his face obscured, laughed maniacally and pointed his wand at Harry, casting the Killing Curse.
Harry was hit by the Killing Curse, but he didn't die. Lily once again took the blow, her eyes filled with boundless love and sorrow as she faded away.
Harry suddenly sat up in bed, gasping for air.
He stared at the night sky outside the window, waiting for his heart to calm down before checking the time.
It was three in the morning, and it would be a while before dawn. But Harry couldn't sleep anymore. He sat on his bed, hesitant to summon Lily.
As he was lost in thought, he heard movement from Ron's bed.
"Ron?"
Harry called out softly. Ron, breathing heavily, pulled back the curtain of his bed.
"I had a nightmare!" he whispered, his voice trembling with fear and tension. "I dreamt that my whole family was killed—my parents, Bill, Charlie, everyone!"
Harry frowned.
"That's not right."
Ron looked at him in surprise.
"You had the same nightmare?"
Harry couldn't reveal Lily's presence, so he nodded vaguely.
"I was just woken up by a nightmare too."
Seamus, apparently disturbed by their conversation, mumbled and turned over in his sleep. Neville's snoring remained steady, indicating he was still deeply asleep.
Ron climbed down from his bed, drank a glass of cold water, and quickly calmed down.
"It might just be a coincidence. We just happened to have the same nightmare", he said, trying to sound casual.
However, Harry didn’t think it was that simple. Even now, he still couldn’t shake off the feeling of being watched that he had sensed in the empty classroom this afternoon.
The more he thought about it, the more he felt it wasn’t just his imagination. Something in that classroom had indeed been watching them.
But he didn’t say any more to Ron. He could tell that Ron was already scared and didn’t want to talk about it too much.
Neither of them felt like sleeping, so they chatted quietly, discussing the Triwizard Tournament until dawn.
Fortunately, it was the weekend, or they would have lost a lot of points in any professor’s class with their current lack of energy.
In the common room, Harry and Ron sat by the fireplace, waiting for Hermione to come out so they could go to breakfast together.
It didn’t take long for Hermione to emerge from the girls’ dormitory, looking just as sleep-deprived with dark circles under her eyes.
Harry and Ron were taken aback. They exchanged a glance and then asked Hermione in unison, "Did you have a nightmare last night too?"
Hermione looked distressed as she slumped onto a single sofa.
"I dreamed that dark wizards found my home. They hung my parents up in the air, just like the wizards at the Quidditch World Cup. They took my wand away, and I could only scream as I watched them fall to the ground and die, unable to do anything."
Harry and Ron exchanged another glance, their eyes widening in disbelief.
"You said 'too'?" Hermione asked, finally noticing their reaction and looking up at them.
Harry’s expression was serious. "Ron and I had the same nightmare last night and woke up scared. We thought it was just a coincidence."
Hermione’s face grew even more concerned. "It can’t be a coincidence! The chances of three people who are connected having the same nightmare on the same night are far too low, especially since we didn’t experience any shocks during the day."
Harry had an idea and thought aloud, "I think it’s still related to that classroom. I always felt like someone was watching us."
Ron shivered involuntarily. "But when we went in, there was no one there."
They hadn’t slept well and were now famished, so they started walking to the Great Hall, continuing their conversation on the way.
"Maybe there’s some strange ghost in there. I’ve read in some magic books that some malevolent spirits feed on the life force of the living, causing them to have nightmares at night", Hermione said matter-of-factly.
Harry looked at them, suggesting, "What if we go back to that classroom after breakfast?"
Hermione agreed, and although Ron looked hesitant, he eventually agreed to go with them.
After breakfast, they returned to the empty classroom in the castle dungeon. It looked the same as it did yesterday. Being underground, no sunlight could reach it, and there was no lighting inside. They could only rely on the dim light from the corridor to prevent the room from being pitch black.
(End of Chapter)
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