Chapter 588: Hermione's Diary (2)
Chapter 588: Hermione's Diary (2)
As night fell, Hermione sat at her desk, leisurely flipping through her diary. She made it a habit to meticulously record any significant events that transpired, ensuring that every detail was preserved within its pages.
"I don't know how much he truly knows about the Chamber of Secrets, but Albert Anderson is certainly more than he appears. He's an enigmatic individual." Hermione penned these words with a feather quill, her thoughts drifting to the mysterious boy.
In the past, Hermione had often wondered why so many girls admired Isabelle and why the Hogwarts girls fawned over Albert, seeing him as the ideal lover. Now, she felt she was beginning to understand.
Hermione recalled her own initial doubts about her placement in Gryffindor. While the Sorting Hat had deemed her suitable for both Ravenclaw and Gryffindor, she had ultimately chosen Gryffindor because Dumbledore himself had been a Gryffindor student.
However, her decision had not been without challenges. Hermione faced numerous setbacks and even struggled to make friends initially. It was only when she met Albert that things began to change for the better. Through him, she learned how to adapt to life in Gryffindor. Eventually, she formed friendships with Harry and Ron, and her life at Hogwarts gradually became more fulfilling.
"I am truly fortunate," she mused, setting down her quill and resting her chin on her hands as she reminisced about the day's events in Potions class. Harry and Ron had provided her with the opportunity she needed to sneak into Snape's office and steal the two ingredients for the Polyjuice Potion.
It would be a lie to say she wasn't nervous or felt no pressure. Of course, she was anxious! Even Harry and Ron had initially opposed the plan, fearing that their mischief during Potions class would get them caught by Snape.
How could she not share their concerns? Yet, Hermione had her reasons for taking this risk. She refused to let the Polyjuice Potion fail, and the Sorting Hat's decision to place her in Gryffindor was proving correct. In this regard, she possessed more "courage" than her friends.
Hermione couldn't help but smile at the memory of Harry and Ron's reluctance. She understood their hesitance, as Snape's office was protected by multiple layers of security. Even with magic, it would be challenging to gain entry quickly, and any delays increased the risk of their plan falling apart.
If they were caught by Snape, all three of them would be in deep trouble. However, Hermione was neither Harry nor Ron; she rarely acted impulsively. If she dared to take this risk, it was because she was prepared.
They desperately needed the Polyjuice Potion to transform into Slytherin students and extract the truth from Draco Malfoy about who had opened the Chamber of Secrets. Their need for the potion was too great.
Hermione recalled Albert's words—that Harry had always been lucky. Perhaps this time, too, they could rely on Harry's good fortune to get some useful information out of Malfoy.
A month had passed since the attack, and while the initial tension had eased, no one knew what might happen next. The sooner they solved the mystery of the attacks, the safer everyone would be. After all, Hermione herself, born to Muggle parents, was a target of the Slytherin heir's attacks, as was Albert due to his fame. Harry, unfortunately, was also under suspicion by his peers for being the heir because of his previous incident with the snake.
There were too many reasons why Hermione had to succeed, and she desperately wanted the Slytherin heir to be caught as soon as possible.
The door to the Potions office had easily yielded to the Alohomora spell, but the storeroom containing the ingredients was sealed with an unknown magic, far more complex than a simple locking spell.
This obstacle, however, was not enough to deter Hermione, especially not when she came prepared. With a simple hairpin, she effortlessly picked the lock on the storeroom door. Albert had once shared a secret with her—that many locks in the Hogwarts castle, which seemed impervious to magic, could be easily opened with a hairpin. It was a flaw born of wizards' disdain for Muggles.
The plan proceeded flawlessly. Hermione infiltrated Snape's storeroom without a hitch and quickly located the unicorn horn and snake skin among the assortment of potion ingredients. She had memorized the appearance of these crucial components, ensuring she could find them swiftly upon entering the storeroom.
In truth, everything had gone according to plan, and it was all thanks to Albert's assistance. With the addition of the unicorn horn and snake skin, the Polyjuice Potion only needed time to be ready. However, Hermione couldn't bring herself to feel elated just yet, as doubts lingered in her mind about the rashness of their scheme.
While they suspected Malfoy was the Slytherin heir, there was no certainty. No one could know for sure.
Hermione paused in her writing, her quill hovering over the diary as she contemplated whether relying on Harry's luck was a sound strategy.
When it came to the identity of the Slytherin heir, she found herself questioning if it would be more productive to ask Albert instead of Malfoy. Admittedly, this thought sometimes struck her as odd, but she couldn't shake the feeling that Albert might know more, perhaps due to his divination abilities or some other reason.
Driven by this instinct, Hermione sought out Albert. When she found him, he was walking with a beautiful red-haired girl, deep in conversation. The sight stirred a strange restlessness within her, and while she wanted to discuss the Chamber of Secrets with Albert, she hesitated, unsure if her intrusion would be unwelcome.
In the end, she steeled herself and approached them. It felt as though she was summoning all the courage she had ever possessed.
To her relief, Albert didn't seem bothered by the interruption, and the red-haired girl merely sized her up before walking away, leaving them with privacy.
Hermione eagerly shared her successful infiltration of Snape's office, feeling like a child seeking praise for an accomplishment. She then confided in Albert her suspicions about the monster lurking within the Chamber of Secrets.
Recalling his reaction now, Hermione felt a twinge of amusement. Albert didn't seem particularly surprised by her theory about the Basilisk, leading her to wonder if he had already guessed as much. After all, a thorough perusal of the "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" book would reveal that the Basilisk was an incredibly long-lived creature.
As Hermione flipped through the pages, she confirmed that a Basilisk named "The Foul Basilisk of Bogedon" had lived to be almost nine hundred years old. If the monster lurking within Hogwarts was indeed a Basilisk, it wouldn't be unusual for it to have existed since the creation of the Chamber of Secrets.
Hermione trusted that if Albert had considered this possibility, then surely Professor Dumbledore had as well. But the most pressing question remained: How could a Basilisk move about undetected?
Given its massive size, it seemed impossible that no one had spotted it. Where was it hiding? Where was the entrance to Slytherin's Chamber? For centuries, people had failed to locate the Chamber's whereabouts, and countless mysteries surrounding it remained unsolved.
If they couldn't address the threat of the Basilisk, revealing the truth might only serve to heighten the panic among the students and faculty. As for protecting herself from the Basilisk, Albert had jokingly suggested carrying a rooster around, as the crowing of a rooster was known to repel the creature.
"I believe he already has a plan to deal with the Basilisk," Hermione wrote at the end of her diary entry, her faith in Albert unwavering.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
