Inside the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey gently moved Hermione to an inner bed and drew the curtains around her.
Once Madam Pomfrey had left the main ward area, the Weasley twins' eyes suddenly fluttered open. Fred was about to speak, but George clapped a hand over his mouth, signaling that Madam Pomfrey was still sitting outside. Then, they began a silent exchange through their eyes.
Fred: "George, we really should've snagged that golden skull."
George: "Don't be daft! Madam Pomfrey would have confiscated it in a blink."
Fred: "Do you still have the Marauder's Map on you?"
George: "Of course! I was just checking to see where Snape took Harry... Oh no, they've gone to the Headmaster's office."
George: "Looks like Harry's in for a rough night."
Fred: "Who isn't? We're stuck here, aren't we?"
George: "That's all your fault! You just had to use the Golden Glow Charm on that rat, and it blew up!"
Fred: "Well, you didn't stop me, did you?... Hold on, someone's coming!"
The Weasley twins perked up their ears, straining to hear the commotion outside.
"Madam Pomfrey, please, just let me in..."
"Absolutely not, Potter. I told you, you're perfectly fine. Go back to bed. Miss Granger will be discharged tomorrow."
It turned out Harry had come back to the hospital wing after leaving the Headmaster's office.
"Madam Pomfrey, honestly, I'm feeling a bit under the weather myself. Perhaps you could give me a potion?"
Madam Pomfrey eyed Harry suspiciously, then pulled out her wand and performed a thorough diagnostic charm on him. Still, she found nothing amiss.
"But you're clearly as healthy as a Hippogriff..."
"I truly feel awful, and my roommates are all asleep. It wouldn't be right to disturb them if I went back now."
Madam Pomfrey chuckled softly. "Potter, you're a Gryffindor! Your roommates certainly wouldn't fault you for returning late."
Harry tried to persuade Madam Pomfrey to let him in, but she was resolute. In the end, he had no choice but to slink away.
Listening to Harry's retreating footsteps, the Weasley twins exchanged a look, then spoke in unison: "Poor Harry."
"If you two don't settle down and rest, I'll give you each a Sleeping Draught, and I promise you won't wake until noon tomorrow!" Madam Pomfrey threatened from behind the curtain.
The Weasley twins immediately fell silent. Soon, snores began to emanate from the hospital wing, and Madam Pomfrey, satisfied, drew the curtain and departed.
Harry walked alone down the corridor. Perhaps it was a lingering side effect of Legilimency, but his mind felt unusually active. He even had the strange sensation, just moments ago, that he could invade Madam Pomfrey's thoughts.
If Hermione hadn't been hurt, Harry would undoubtedly have been thrilled to have mastered such a powerful bit of magic.
But now, Harry felt no joy at all. His mind was consumed by Hermione's pained expression.
It had been a long time since Harry had felt such regret.
He walked silently to the fourth-floor corridor before remembering that his wand was still in the secret passage. Numbly, he retrieved his wand and continued towards the Gryffindor Tower.
"Hungry... so hungry..."
Suddenly, a strange, inexplicable voice echoed, but Harry didn't stop. He was in no mood to ponder why someone would be speaking in an empty corridor. Harry silently thought to himself, Perhaps it's just a portrait talking in its sleep.
He walked a bit further, and the voice faded away.
In the dormitory, Ron was already snoring, while Neville was tending to his plants by the window.
Seeing Harry return, Neville was about to greet him, but Harry simply collapsed onto his bed without a word. Neville opened his mouth, then turned back to loosen the soil around his flowers.
After a moment, Harry suddenly spoke, "Neville, do you think I'm reckless?"
Neville was startled by the question. He looked surprised, then declared firmly, "Of course not! Everyone thinks you're a good person."
Neville paused, then continued, "They say you're the only one who was willing to be friends with Hermione."
Harry didn't respond.
On the way back to the Gryffindor common room with Ginny, Percy couldn't help but offer Penelope a few explanations. Penelope, as understanding as ever, didn't blame him.
As they reached the Fat Lady's portrait, Ginny suddenly asked, "Percy, are you and Clearwater dating?"
Percy hadn't anticipated Ginny's sharp wit, that she would discern his unusual relationship with Penelope from just a few fragments of conversation. Percy wasn't ready to announce their relationship, so he didn't answer Ginny's direct question.
In that moment, though Penelope had prepared herself mentally, she still felt a pang of sadness. Seeing the two suddenly fall silent, Ginny seemed to realize she had spoken out of turn. She hastily mumbled, "I'll keep it a secret," before entering the common room.
Once Ginny had left, Penelope walked away without a word. Watching Penelope's retreating back, Percy opened his mouth but ultimately didn't chase after her.
Percy truly liked Penelope, but he also yearned for a career in the Ministry of Magic. He had known for a while that Penelope Clearwater's blood status was questionable; she might be a half-blood or Muggle-born.
While the Weasleys didn't care about blood status, people at the Ministry certainly did. Even Umbridge had to fabricate a pure-blood lineage to become a Senior Undersecretary. Percy's ambition was to become a high-ranking official at the Ministry, so marrying a pure-blood would be beneficial to his career.
Nevertheless, Percy had chosen to be with Penelope, he just wasn't ready to make their relationship public. Luckily, Penelope didn't mind a secret romance, otherwise, they would have broken up long ago.
Sighing, Percy pushed his thoughts aside, gathered his composure, and continued his patrol.
On his patrol, Percy encountered Snape.
"Good evening, Professor Snape. Everything's perfectly normal on my rounds. Prefect Clearwater has gone to the loo."
Percy greeted Snape and explained Penelope's absence. But Snape didn't even glance at him, simply walking past.
Noticing Snape's foul mood, Percy worried for a moment that Snape had caught Draco Malfoy out after hours. But then he remembered Snape was coming from upstairs; Malfoy surely wouldn't be foolish enough to walk up the stairs while sneaking around.
So, Percy relaxed and decided to find Penelope to soothe her feelings.
But Percy searched all their usual meeting spots and couldn't find Penelope anywhere.
"Odd, where could Penelope be? Surely she hasn't gone back to her dormitory?"
Finally, Percy decided to check the Ravenclaw Tower, thinking Penelope might be there.
Sure enough, Percy found Penelope near the Ravenclaw Tower. She was standing perfectly still in front of the mirror in the girls' lavatory. Percy breathed a sigh of relief and walked over.
"Penelope, don't be cross. Next time, we'll go to Hogsmeade Village together, it's—"
Percy suddenly stopped speaking. Just then, moonlight pierced through the clouds and illuminated Penelope. Her eyes were wide, staring, and her face was frozen in an expression of pure terror.
She had been Petrified.
Support me by leaving a comment, voting, and visiting my Patreon at ilham20