Chapter 43: Quidditch and the Second Attack
Chapter 43: Quidditch and the Second Attack
The following week flew by in a blur, with everyone busily occupied.
Felix had to focus more on the fifth and seventh years, as this year was crucial for a young wizard's future. Of course, he also hoped more people would engage in Runic Script research—not the outdated translations, but studies like his own.
He also had to tend to the Devil's Snare and infuse the Whomping Willow branches with magic, which was essential for the success of his first Runic Script creation.
He couldn't afford to neglect the instant kill technique either.
There were numerous Restricted Books in the Library waiting for him to sift through and read...
Everyone else was equally busy. Harry was focused on Quidditch training, and as the first match approached, the entire Gryffindor Quidditch team grew increasingly anxious. They would use every evening after classes to practice.
Hermione, besides her daily Runic Script practice and research on the Chamber monster, had to find a professor to get a signature.
She successfully obtained a signature from Professor Lockhart, who, flattered by her exaggerated praise, signed his name without even reading the content of the note.
"You used a tea strainer to catch the last ghoul, that was really clever..." Hermione blushed when she thought about what she had said.
Fortunately, the project to brew the Polyjuice Potion was off to a smooth start.
"It should take about a month to brew, around Christmas", Hermione said cheerfully.
Harry and Ron sat glumly on the bathroom floor, the environment here was truly awful.
In the days that followed, the school remained calm. There were no new attacks, and no unknown monsters suddenly appeared to turn young wizards to stone.
The young wizards lost interest in the legends and secrets from a thousand years ago, even suspecting that the previous incident was a cruel prank. After all, the victim was Filch's cat, the least liked "ally" of the castle's caretaker.
Some young wizards were already confidently claiming that they saw a suspicious shadow lingering on the third floor before the incident, holding a cake that must have contained a petrification potion!
These rumors spread faster than the truth, and within a week, everyone was discussing how petrification potions could have a similar effect, leaving Dumbledore helpless and waiting for the mandrakes to mature to brew the antidote.
However, the Hogwarts professors knew the truth. They spent a week searching the entire castle but found nothing. They then ordered the prefects to take responsibility and do their part in spreading the message.
Percy used an example of his brother loitering near an abandoned girls' bathroom during a Gryffindor meeting to illustrate the irrationality and danger of such behavior.
The scene was intense, and Ron nearly came to blows with his brother.
"You shameless opportunist, all you care about is your power! I'm your brother! Your brother! You're a complete power-hungry beast!" Ron's ears were red as he shouted.
"I'm a Gryffindor prefect! I have to consider the badge on my chest, understand, moron!" Percy shouted back, his ears equally red.
"You went there too! You went to the girls' bathroom!"
"I was performing my duties as a prefect! Gryffindor loses ten points!"
But overall, Hogwarts remained a harmonious and friendly place.
This peace persisted until Saturday, when the first Quidditch match of the school year took place.
The match was highly anticipated, not only because the two teams, Gryffindor and Slytherin, were age-old rivals, but also because Slytherin had "shamelessly" received external assistance, with the entire team riding the most advanced brooms in the world—the Nimbus 2001.
The other two teams were eager to witness the power of the Nimbus 2001 in action.
Felix didn’t attend the match. He just stood outside the tower, taking a quick glance from a distance.
He had no particular interest in Quidditch, and this had nothing to do with his failing the flying lesson in his first year. Those two things were unrelated.
He simply preferred quiet and didn’t enjoy overly noisy places.
However, Felix still wanted to complain about the course schedule at Hogwarts. Why was flying class only offered in the first year? This left him no chance to improve his flying skills and earn points.
He could fly steadily and confidently now!
Later that afternoon, he heard a major piece of news: Harry Potter had been injured on the Quidditch pitch, suffering a compound fracture in his arm, with bones shattered into pieces.
Fortunately, Professor Lockhart, undaunted by the crisis, used powerful magic to extract the shattered bone fragments from Harry’s arm, thus saving the career of Gryffindor’s talented Seeker.
“This is all nonsense!”
In the evening, Hermione fumed, the incident completely shattering her admiration for Lockhart. From that day on, she was a Lockhart detractor for life.
The truth was that Harry had simply broken his arm, a minor injury that could have been fixed with a simple healing spell. However, thanks to Lockhart’s “helpful intervention,” Harry had to stay in the hospital wing and take “Skele-Gro” to regrow his bones.
Just thinking about the sewer-like smell of Skele-Gro made Felix shudder.
That night, after seeing the young witch off, Felix prepared to watch a movie to cultivate his mood. Dumbledore’s Phoenix Patronus flew in through the window.
The Patronus appeared before him, and Dumbledore’s serious voice echoed from its beak.
“Felix, come to the professors’ common room immediately. An emergency has occurred.”
When Felix arrived quickly, the office was already crowded with professors, some still in their pajamas, clearly having been summoned in a hurry.
Dumbledore sat solemnly at the table, his eyes half-closed, while Professor Mcgonagall continuously rubbed her hands.
“What’s happened?” Felix moved closer to Snape and asked in a low voice.
Snape glanced at him and then whispered, “The attack has happened again. The second one.”
Felix’s expression turned grave.
“Who?”
“Colin Creevey, that Potter fanatic.”
Felix had no recollection of him, but Professor Mcgonagall, looking sad, said, “He’s a first-year, always admired Harry... Yes, he always carried a camera with him. I remember him well... I heard he had already sent three photo albums home. Oh, dear!”
Felix picked up the damaged camera from the table, the strong smell of burnt plastic hitting his nose.
A few minutes later, a cheerful and carefree voice pushed open the door. “Did I miss anything?”
Professor Lockhart, wearing golden pajamas, entered the room, slightly taken aback by the crowd. “So many people!” His next words made all the professors glare at him. “Are we having a pajama party?”
“I’m the best at these, with lots of experience!” Lockhart winked, flashing his trademark toothy smile.
(End of Chapter)
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