Chapter 477: Repairing the Time-Turner
Chapter 477: Repairing the Time-Turner
"Don't worry, Hermione. Hedwig will deliver the letter to your dad on time", Harry said confidently. "It has never failed—besides, Professor Mcgonagall said that a professor will be sent to your house to pick you up on the day of the competition. There won't be any delays."
"It's not that I'm worried about... I, sigh." Hermione sighed. "In their reply, they mentioned going to Diagon Alley to exchange money—"
"That's normal", Ron said.
"You don't understand them", Hermione said, shaking her hair in frustration. "Exchanging money is just an excuse. I suspect they went to Diagon Alley to gather information about the tournament."
Harry and Ron exchanged glances. They didn't have this worry. Ron's entire family were wizards, and Harry didn't think the Dursleys would secretly run to Diagon Alley to gather information about his safety. They would only pray that something bad would happen to him and that he would never return. Moreover, the only family Harry truly cared about was Sirius.
"Such things can't be avoided", Ron consoled her. "They will find out eventually—"
"No, you don't understand", Hermione took a deep breath. "Is there anything more straightforward than the images of the tournament sold by 'Future World' in Diagon Alley? I can imagine it—Dad will buy a magical projector and the images of the second task without hesitation. Maybe they've already seen them and just haven't told me!"
They arrived at the Transfiguration classroom Professor Mcgonagall had lent them to practice spells, especially those that might be useful in the maze. They had been doing this for the past month.
But today, Hermione was completely out of sorts.
"I can't focus", she said dejectedly.
"Take a break", Harry suggested. "We've prepared enough. There's no need to push ourselves these last two days."
If it were any other day, Hermione would have been the first to protest, but today she accepted Harry's suggestion. She sat on a mat, hugging her knees, looking utterly helpless.
Harry and Ron didn't know how to comfort her. They stood silently for a moment. Harry pulled out a magic book from his bag. He had read it from cover to cover, and the professor had said the magic in the book had a very weak effect on him. It would likely last a few more months, so the professor gave it to him as a keepsake.
"Do you think it's the influence of this book?" Ron leaned in and whispered. "Hermione has read it too, hasn't she?"
"That was last week", Harry whispered back. He didn't think it was the book's influence. "The magic effects wouldn't last that long."
"You have a point", Ron said. He pulled out his magic notebook and started reading the stories, occasionally glancing at Hermione in the distance. He deliberately raised his voice. "No matter how many times I read them, they're still scary... I wonder if Hermione would have dared to use the Time-Turner if she had read these stories in her third year? I mean, what if she turned it a few extra times..."
Hermione suddenly stood up, took a few deep breaths, and picked up her bag.
"You're right. I should find something to do", she said and walked out of the classroom.
Ron was taken aback and turned to Harry, "Did I say something wrong?" Harry shook his head. They followed Hermione to the Room of Requirement, where she repeated, "I need an alchemist's laboratory... I need an alchemist's laboratory... I need an alchemist's laboratory..."
An ancient door appeared before them.
Hermione exhaled slowly, pushed the door open, and walked into the room. Harry and Ron looked at each other, realizing what she was about to do. "I've been waiting for this", Ron muttered, and they followed her inside.
The room was spacious, with several large workbenches in the center. The tables were cluttered with various strange devices, oddly shaped glass bottles, wooden toolboxes, a golden scale, weights, and a cauldron. Two bookshelves lined the walls, filled with common alchemy books.
Hermione set down her bag and took out the Time-Turner. She looked at Harry, who wisely handed her the dusty hourglass.
"Do you plan to fix it now?" Ron couldn't help but ask. "I thought it would be a month or two from now."
"There's no need to delay", Hermione said calmly. "And it's not really fixing it, just taking it apart and replacing a part... With Nicolas Flamel's successful experience, I have a lot of confidence."
"I hope it's as simple as she says." Ron said, full of hope.
Harry expected to see a screwdriver or something, maybe one that could screw itself in... But Hermione just held her wand, chanting a lengthy spell, occasionally tapping the golden timer or tracing a few runic scripts and alchemical symbols, imprinting them on the hourglass. Hermione's forehead was covered in a fine layer of sweat, and her expression was serious. Harry and Ron dared not even breathe, afraid that their breath might affect her.
After about an hour, Hermione was already quite exhausted, but her eyes sparkled with excitement.
"Quick, Harry, Ron, help me out."
"What do you need us to do?" Harry asked hurriedly, and he and Ron moved closer to the Time-Turner, which was floating in mid-air, constantly spinning and emitting a soft white light.
"Grab it, remove the original hourglass, and replace it with the flat-headed one! Hurry!" Hermione said, her face flushed as she struggled to maintain the spell.
Harry and Ron exchanged a glance, their hearts pounding as they reached out. Harry grabbed the spinning timer, as if catching a dazed Golden Snitch, while Ron tried to pry out the round-headed hourglass. "I can't get it off!" Ron shouted.
"Then use more force!" Harry said, his face contorted, as the object fought fiercely to break free from his grip.
Ron gritted his teeth, placed both hands on it, and pushed with all his might—there was a "click", and the hourglass came off.
Harry immediately picked up the dull hourglass with his other hand, found the right spot, and inserted it into the gap. "Done!" At that moment, a sudden shockwave radiated from the golden timer, throwing all three of them backward.
Harry sat up, wincing, his arm having hit the sharp edge of the workbench. He suspected it might be broken, and then he heard two sharp intakes of breath. Harry looked up from his arm to see Ron and Hermione both gaping in the same direction. He turned his head and was equally shocked to see the same sight.
The Time-Turner hung in mid-air, radiating a brilliant golden light. Harry squinted and clearly saw the dull surface of the hourglass as if wiped clean by an invisible hand, regaining its luster. The material inside the hourglass—dark golden clumps—melted and twisted, transforming and emitting a beautiful metallic sheen.
After an unknown amount of time, the golden light faded, and the Time-Turner fell from the air, rolling twice before coming to a stop.
"Did we succeed?" Ron asked, amazed.
"Yes, thank goodness", Hermione smiled, "If we had failed, we would have had to spend the whole night looking for scattered parts."
After resting for half an hour, Harry and the others left the Room of Requirement. It was now midnight, and they carefully returned to the common room. Before heading back to their dormitories, Ron was still in awe. "It's incredible... we repaired a complete Time-Turner. When can we try it?"
"Not now", Hermione said.
"I know. I mean, after the tournament, Hermione, I've never experienced this before!" Ron pleaded.
There was a moment of silence.
"Alright", Hermione hesitated, "It's not that I don't want you to use it, but there are risks. You've seen what happens to Wizards trapped in time, haven't you? We should have a professor check it first."
Ron was convinced, but he had one request.
"Don't tell Professor Mcgonagall. If she finds out we have an uncontrolled Time-Turner, she'll definitely confiscate it!"
"We can ask Professor Hep for help", Harry chimed in, thinking Ron's words made perfect sense. In fact, besides Professor Hep, he couldn't think of any adult who would allow them to keep a Time-Turner.
...
On the morning of June 23, Felix finished supervising the last year's exam and returned to his office, looking relieved. Valen was sitting unceremoniously on the desk, sniffing the air. In its hand was a postcard. When Felix entered, Valen looked up, its black eyes filled with curiosity.
"Chirp! (Familiar scent!)"
Felix leaned closer.
Felix leaned closer.
Felix leaned closer.
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(End of Chapter)
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