Chapter 582: The Reason
Chapter 582: The Reason (Seeking Subscriptions, Favorites, and Votes)
"Malfoy and Myrtle, what were they doing together?" Ron immediately pounced with a curious look after Harry mentioned seeing Malfoy and Myrtle together through the Marauder's Map.
"I was curious too, so I followed them", Harry said, adopting an innocent expression as if to justify his actions. "At first, I just wanted to eavesdrop at the door, but even with my ear pressed against the bathroom door, I couldn't hear anything. So, I gently pushed the door open and went in."
When Harry entered the bathroom, he saw Malfoy standing with his back to the door, leaning on the sink, his pale yellow head hanging low. From one of the stalls, Myrtle's gentle voice could be heard. "Don't do this... Tell me what's wrong... I can help you..."
"Nobody can help me", Malfoy said, his body trembling. "I can't... I can't... I can't do it... If I don't finish it soon... He'll kill me..."
"Who is 'he' here?" Hermione asked, interrupting Harry's story. "The Dark Lord?"
"I'm not sure", Harry shook his head. "But I think it must be, because at that moment, I saw Malfoy's face in a mirror on the wall. He looked extremely pale, and tears were streaming from his eyes. The only person who could have driven him to this state, besides Voldemort, is hard to imagine."
"Then what happened? You saw Malfoy, and I assume he saw you. What did he do?" Liam asked. "Did you just start fighting without saying a word?"
"How did you know?" Harry replied. "Of course, I didn't start it. He turned around and drew his wand immediately. In that situation, I had no choice but to draw my wand for self-defense. And the first spell was cast by Malfoy. I swear it wasn't a safe spell. Luckily, he missed and shattered a wall lamp. My counterattack didn't work either; he blocked my Levitation Spell."
"During the fight, I accidentally broke a toilet and slipped on the water that gushed out. Malfoy rushed over to cast a spell on me. I was about to use Sectumsempra, but I remembered Liam telling me it was a dangerous Dark Magic and stopped. Before I could cast another spell, Malfoy hit me with the Cruciatus Curse."
"That's terrible—Harry, how are you feeling now?" Ron asked, his voice filled with concern. They had known Harry was hit by the Cruciatus Curse when they entered, but hearing Harry describe it still made them worry.
"It's mostly over now. To be honest, the pain from Malfoy's curse was only about one-tenth of what I felt when Voldemort entered my soul at the Ministry of Magic last year", Harry said optimistically. "When the Cruciatus Curse hit, I fell to the ground and passed out immediately."
"Malfoy seemed to be scared stiff. He froze for a moment and then ran out of the bathroom. But he didn't get far. Myrtle, who had witnessed the entire conflict, shouted, 'Murder! Murder in the bathroom! Murder!'"
"Her cries brought Professor Snape, who was passing by. The door burst open, and Professor Snape grabbed Malfoy, who was trying to escape. After checking my condition with a few spells, he brought me here and informed Professor Mcgonagall on the way. The rest, you know. I hope Malfoy gets a severe punishment this time", Harry said, his face filled with hope.
"I hope so too", Liam said, though he didn't believe Malfoy would receive a punishment that matched his crime. Hogwarts often operated outside the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Magic, and even a murder like Voldemort's in his youth could be covered up.
"By the way, where's Ginny? Didn't she come to see you?" Hermione suddenly asked.
"I specifically asked Professor Mcgonagall not to call her. Since I'll be back to normal and attending classes tomorrow morning, I didn't want her to worry about me."
Well, Harry was definitely going to be a good husband. Just from the fact that he remembered Ginny even after being hit by the Cruciatus Curse, it was clear. The next few minutes were spent in light conversation before Madam Pomfrey rushed out of her office to shoo them away. "Alright, this boy needs his rest. You should leave now."
The next morning, Liam finished washing up and headed to the Common Room, where he saw a crowd gathered around the notice board. The notice board announced that Draco Malfoy had been reprimanded school-wide for using Dark Magic on a fellow student. Additionally, from now until the end of the term, Malfoy would have to serve detention with Snape every weekend. Finally, Slytherin had been deducted two hundred points.
"It's nothing like I expected", Hermione muttered to Liam as they walked to the Great Hall for breakfast. "If what Mad-Eye Moody said in class last year is true, Malfoy should be sent to Azkaban for what he did. This punishment is far too lenient."
"There's not much we can do. Given the current situation, Hogwarts can't afford to conflict with the Pureblood families who control the Ministry of Magic. The Malfoy family is one of the key clans influencing the Ministry. From recent conflicts, it's clear that we are already at a disadvantage. Splitting from the Ministry would be too dangerous."
Seeing Hermione's dissatisfied expression, Liam continued, "Besides, even in the Muggle world, the law often reduces sentences for minors, so this outcome isn't entirely unexpected."
When they entered the Great Hall, Liam noticed Harry sitting at the table with a sullen expression, while Ginny was whispering to him. Seeing Liam and the others sit down, Ginny said, "You should have told me about Harry's injury yesterday. You shouldn't have kept it from me just because he asked."
"It was Harry's firm request. We were worried his condition might worsen if he got too agitated, so we did as he asked", Liam quickly deflected the blame to Harry before pulling Hermione to a more distant spot to eat.
"Ginny interrogated me for the entire breakfast, treating me like I'm made of glass and can't handle anything", Harry complained to Liam and their friends in a low voice before class started. "Honestly, I'm not that fragile."
"Everyone?" Liam knew that Harry's attack couldn't have been kept secret, given how many people were aware of it. Especially after Myrtle's outburst, the entire castle knew about it. The only thing that could have been kept secret was the specific spell used, but Liam couldn't understand why one attack would make Harry feel so vulnerable. However, Ron's next words cleared up Liam's confusion.
"Harry has been banned from the next match. Madam Pomfrey came out of the Hospital Wing during our training yesterday and forbade Harry from participating in the Tournament. She said his body isn't fit for such intense activity and even prohibited him from watching the next Tournament."
"Did you just listen to Madam Pomfrey without a fight? I don't believe it", Hermione said.
"Of course, we didn't just give in", Ron shrugged. "But Madam Pomfrey called Professor Mcgonagall, and after 15 minutes of her lecturing us, we had no choice but to drop the idea of Harry participating in the next Tournament."
"To be honest, they're not wrong. Patients recovering from the Cruciatus Curse should indeed take it easy and calm their minds", Liam said. "You have a long life ahead of you; there's no need to risk it for one Tournament."
(End of Chapter)
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