The incident regarding the Forbidden Forest caused ripples. Rumors began to spread that Gabrielle Lestrange had arrived, intending to extract revenge on Harry for hurting his master. Based on the recent events that troubled the British wizarding world, the professors decided to play it safe, cancelling all trips to Hogsmeade. They regulated a strict curfew that prevented the students from being outdoors.
(Quirrell's POV)
Quirrell was extremely satisfied with the outcome.
"Fudge has finally found his scapegoat to blame," he muttered. "Good for me. Nobody will suspect me."
After careful planning and consideration, Quirrell decided to target the stone when Dumbledore was away. The white wizard held other prestigious positions and could not tend to Hogwarts all the time.
(End of POV)
The clock marched forwards, a few days going by. The exam season had arrived, with everyone reviewing their notes meticulously. Other than the occasional squeals and scampers of the Weasley twins, the Great Hall had almost turned into a library. During mealtimes, all the students brought their notes with them, including Harry and Ron. With their average academic performance since the start of the year, they knew there were no excuses. Ron, particularly afraid of Mrs. Weasley, could only shudder at the thought of performing poorly. He trembled at the mere thought of her voice.
Felix and Hermione, unlike the other two, had reviewed since day one. With the exam season approaching quickly, they were well prepared.
Meanwhile, on the Slytherin side, Adrian continued his normal routine. He was not one bit nervous for the exam — excluding Herbology. Despite preparing with his sister for the entire year, Adrian did not feel confident in dealing with those dirt-chugging disasters. "Ughh," he groaned mentally. He never understood the use of those plants.
Similarly to how Evanna helped her brother, Draco and Nott were aided by Adrian in their preparations. This had also made them quite confident in taking the exam.
The awaited day soon arrived with the exams starting. Since cheating was almost a tradition for the exams, every teacher meticulously looked for cheating props. Whether it was a quill hidden inside an underwear or not, Professor McGonagall ensured that nobody cheated.
Adrian passed his exam with flying colors, managing to score full marks in every exam except for Herbology — barely getting an Outstanding. Similar to Adrian, his friends Draco and Nott got an EE in every subject. Well, if you're wondering about Luciano, he placed third, falling behind the famous Miss Know-It-All.
(Quartet's POV)
Hermione, who was still disappointed with her results, meekly walked through the hallway. Just then, she heard Harry calling out to her from behind.
"Hermione!" he called out. "Dumbledore is not at school today, meaning this is the perfect opportunity for Snape to strike. Let's inform a professor about this."
Felix, who had been silent the whole time, finally spoke. "They won't believe us. They'll say we're making assumptions."
"Then we have to act on our own," Harry said determinedly. "I saw Snape acting strange again. He's hiding something. If Dumbledore's gone, we need to check if the stone's safe."
"What if it's not Snape?" Hermione asked, suddenly frowning.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean… what if it's somebody else? We have always been accusing Snape.
"Either way, we're already too late," Felix muttered.
(Adrian POV)
Adrian wasn't far away when he overheard them. Standing behind one of the stone columns, he quietly processed everything.
So Quirrell was finally making a move.
His lips pressed into a thin line.
It was time for the original plot to begin.
"Still, I have no intention to unnecessarily involve myself," he muttered.
As Adrian headed to the common room, he heard a commotion. "Nott is missing!" a tall, lanky Slytherin fifth-year shouted.
Come to think about it, Adrian had also not seen Nott since morning.
Suddenly, a shriek emerged from the Slytherin common room. As the crowd gathered to see what all the commotion was about, they saw the bloody text engraved in Nott's dormitory. "He is my tool and has always been, yet now, it is time to dispose of him. Below the engraving lay a hideous carving of Voldemort's face.
Seeing this, Adrian raced out of the dormitory in panic. "He never intended to help Harry Potter, yet now the circumstances warranted him to. The plot changes were too sudden, and he did not expect Quirrell to pull off something like this. Like, how daring had he become to sneak into Snape's common room?
As Adrian headed to the forbidden corridor, the Slytherins had called upon all the professors to report the incident. "Merlin's beard! What happened here?" Flitwick muttered. Every single professor was shocked by the incident—well, except for one overly serious Slytherin professor.
At this moment, Snape was inwardly cursing Dumbledore. "You hypocritical old man. I told you leaving a ticking time bomb like Voldemort in Hogwarts was far from a good idea."
As all the panicked professors stood in the common room, the quartets had already made their way through the third stage of the trial. At the end of the trial stood Quirrell, a smarter Quirrell, one who had ambitions beyond just serving Voldemort—far greater ambitions.
As all of Hogwarts erupted into chaos, the final room of the trial had an eerie feeling. One accompanied by silence and laughter. Not just any laughter, it was the laughter of a maniac.
"Come, Dumbledore. Come, Potter. Come, Blackthorn. All of you have fallen into the serpent's nest," muttered an exasperated Quirrell.