The weather was sunny during the first weekend in February.
Due to the approaching Valentine's Day, on the school courtyard's grass, by the Black Lake, and at the edge of the prohibited forest, there suddenly appeared many pairs of senior boys and girls holding each other closely. They ignored the pointing fingers of younger magicians and even paid no heed to the discontented glances from professors. They touched each other's noses intimately, whispered into each other's ears, not caring at all whether it was appropriate for the occasion.
"Disrespectful to conventions - why don't the principal and professors stop it?"
Hermione was in a foul mood as she discovered at least five couples on her way to the library, and she was annoyed.
Today's library was even quieter than usual, with strict Mrs. Pince still sitting in her usual spot, absorbed in a book with a gold-embossed cover. Behind her, in the hundreds of narrow aisles and among the thousands of shelves, there were only a dozen or so senior students who were about to take their O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s exams.
However, this did not affect Hermione's studying mood. She moved quickly and skillfully between rows of bookshelves, searching for the books she needed.
Ah, found it --
Hermione stopped in front of a shelf filled with dozens of old, dusty tomes, leaped up, and pulled out the top book, "Forgotten Ancient Magic and Spells." After flipping it open, she leaned against the back of the shelf to read the dense and intricate text within, hoping to find the cause of Colin and Justin's petrification.
Wood was indignant, as he had to announce the cancellation of today's training plan due to Fred and George running away without a word.
This also allowed Harry to enjoy a rare leisurely weekend after his early morning training—he had intended to join Hermione in looking for clues, but Ron pulled him aside just before he left,
"Rarely does Wood give you a break!"
Rons chewed his cheeks as he stuffed a small piece of roasted sausage into Hagrid's mouth, "Don't waste your precious weekend time on unimportant things, Harry. Seamus has got a new Hippogriff, I can go and borrow it to help us pass the time!"
Then, Harry was easily persuaded, and eventually, Hermione was the only one left to go to the library alone, navigating through the ocean of knowledge and the river of history in hopes of finding a little bit of information about the attack.
The sunlight filtered through the dust particles in the air and the gaps between the bookshelves, casting an eerie light on Hermione's young and earnest face. As time passed, the pile of books beside Hermione grew higher and higher, almost reaching over her delicate shoulders.
Amos was silently observing Hermione from the forbidden section for a while, and for some reason, his heart stirred with ripples, as if he saw a reflection of himself from years ago in Hermione.
"Ms. Granger --"
"Ah, Professor Brain! Engrossed in her reading, Hermione blinked and turned her head blankly. Seeing Professor Brain smilingly walking towards her, she quickly closed the books she had been holding and stood up awkwardly with both hands at a loss.
"Oh, sorry, Professor. I didn't realize you were here!"
This was the first time Hermione had met with Professor Brain in an informal setting, aside from the embarrassing first meeting they had during the Christmas holidays at the infirmary.
Amos pried a glance at the book clutched nervously by the young witch, understood her situation, nodded to Hermione, and asked gently, "Are you looking for clues about the Chamber of Secrets?"
Upon receiving a positive response from Hermione, Amos scanned the surroundings and exclaimed in surprise,
"Is it just you, Miss Granger? Where are your friends Potter and Mr. Weasley? They didn't come to help you?"
"Oh, them!"
The young witch with tousled hair immediately became indignant. She was about to complain about Harry and Ron, but before she could speak, she said that Harry had to go to Quidditch training and Ron was studying his Herbology homework in the common room. Only she had finished her homework early, so she came to the library for a stroll.
"Hmmph-hmmph..."
Even without the ability of Occlumency, Amos could tell that this was a lie, but he didn't expose it, instead he nodded understandingly.
"Strong individuals are always alone, Miss Granger. Keep pushing forward."
After leaving such an enigmatic remark, Amos left without further explanation.
Until his silhouette disappeared around the corner of a row of bookshelves for a long time, Hermione stood there dazed, gazing at Professor Brain's back, repeatedly mulling over the strange words he had just said. Suddenly, as if she had received some powerful encouragement, she didn't feel tired anymore and her arms holding books all morning were not sore. Her emerald-like brown eyes regained their brightness.
"Keep going, Hermione!"
Hermione clenched her fist and told herself, then with renewed vigor, she plunged back into the shelves.
As Amos walked down the bustling streets of Hogsmeade, he may have been greeted by many small witches who called him out, since they were used to seeing him as a professor. Despite this, Amos was friendly and greeted them all with nods.
But suddenly, two wizards in black cloaks, who were not too tall, caught Amos's attention on the right side ahead. For a moment, he paused and reconsidered his plan. After a brief hesitation, he deviated from his original path and casually followed them into an alleyway that was not often used.
Amos followed them to the Hog's Head pub, but he did not follow them inside. Instead, with a sly grin on his face, he waited silently outside.
Indeed, no more than a few minutes had passed before the angry shouting of the barkeep echoed through the pub. The two black-cloaked figures stumbled out of the bar, and before they could even exchange a word, they saw Amos standing twenty feet away, staring at them with a cold smile on his face.
Uh---
Embarrassment, fear, and a sense of helplessness gnawed at the hearts of the two men in black robes. They stood warily at the entrance to the Hog's Head pub, waiting for punishment to fall upon them.
"No, brother, he can't recognize our faces!"
The man on the right suddenly came to his senses. He lowered his voice and subtly pulled his partner's sleeve, and upon receiving the hint, the partner immediately understood and, under the cover of the black robe, a heavy cough was delivered by a hoarse voice.
"Cough, cough, don't meddle in our affairs, kid. We're the kind who don't flinch at the thought of murder!"
"I shit!"
Amos stared at the two Weasleys running away with black lines on his face, determined to find an opportunity to teach them a lesson.
Turning not far away, he saw Percy Weasley passionately kissing his Ravenclaw prefect girlfriend under a golden angel statue in a teashop filled with mist, where everything seemed to be adorned with ruffles or bows.
This family is all top talent in the wizarding world!
Amos turned his head pretending not to see this scene and walked quickly towards the Three Broomsticks pub.
..............
As the evening approached, Hermione told Harry and Ron about Professor Brain's words in the library that morning. Unfortunately, neither Harry nor Ron could understand the meaning of those words.
"But---"
Ron furrowed his nose unconsciously and waved his arms in mid-air.
"Sounds pretty cool, doesn't it? Suppose I... well, I mean, you, Harry, were down 0-140 to Slytherin in the Quidditch final with Gryffindor, everyone accepted defeat, but you scored the decisive goal from Dudley Pacey right in front of Malfoy just before he catches the Golden Snitch. Then you drop that line? I bet Malfoy would go a whole year without eating!"
"If it were, Ron, I'd be more than happy to help Malfoy eat a year's worth of meals in one day!"
Harry couldn't help but smile happily in his mind as he imagined the scene Ron described.
Hermione rolled her eyes at them, ready to scold them, but as she was about to speak, a loud commotion erupted in the foyer. A large crowd of people rushed in quickly, surrounding something.
Harry and Ron, who were in the midst of their laughter, froze in place. Hermione quickly realized something was amiss and dropped the food she was holding, running over to find out what was happening.
On the marble staircase, Professor Dumbledore, accompanied by several other professors, came down with serious expressions. In a short while, he dispersed the crowd and led aboard Professor Umbridge with Alastor Moody.
The Slytherin Heir is back in action!
Harry's mood plummeted into ice water just as he thought of the worst possible scenario. After a glance at the pale-faced Ron, both of them hurriedly followed.
On the hospital bed in the school infirmary, Alastor Moody was no longer the dapper figure he usually was. His hair was disheveled, and his eyes were bulging with blood vessels as he strained to emit a series of groans that indicated his urgency to speak!
Madame Pomfrey was checking his vitals, and from her 'serious' expression, it seemed the situation was grave.
Professor Dumbledore was very understanding in allowing the students to visit Professor Moody. The students stood outside the curtain, exchanging nervous glances with each other, and Hermione pushed her way to the front of the crowd. Seeing Professor Moody's pitiful condition, she suddenly covered her mouth and softly sobbed!
Uh...
Amos felt a pang of guilt as he saw this scene, reflecting on whether he had been too reckless with his playfulness. However, upon seeing Professor Snape standing in the shadows, seemingly holding back laughter, his spirits lifted again.
"How is he, Poppy?"
Professor Dumbledore stood at the bedside of Professor Moody, his face hidden from view, but his tone suggested that he was very concerned.
"It's not good, Headmaster Dumbledore--"
Madame Pomfrey quickly glanced at the stern-faced Professor McGonagall and explained to everyone.
"He has a severe alcohol allergy, Headmaster. He might spend Easter on the bed... oh, wasn't it obvious that Professor Moody doesn't handle alcohol well?"
Isn't a case of Ogden's Aged Flame Whiskey his favorite birthday gift?...
With tears glistening in her eyes, Hermione looked up blankly after hearing Madame Pomfrey's diagnosis.
"It's my fault, Headmaster Dumbledore!"
Amos stood up with a 'sorrowful' expression.
"It was me who asked Professor Moody to drink without understanding the situation properly, oh... he might have agreed just to spare my feelings, I... I truly feel ashamed for this. If you permit, I can resign in disgrace right now!"
"No, no... it's not enough..."
Before Professor McGonagall could take a step, to everyone's surprise, seeing Professor Moody, who was barely hanging on, had regained enough strength to speak. He struggled and wobbled to extend his hand towards Amos and whispered something inaudibly.
"West... west... trust?"
"What did you say, Professor Moody? Is there anything else you need to say?"
Amos immediately squeezed past Dumbledore, half-crouching in front of the bed and holding onto Moody's hand. The other hand hidden under his sleeve was already prepared to cast a spell at any moment!
"Snort... Granger!"
Who would have thought that Professor Moody would suddenly call out Hermione's name at this moment. Amos furrowed his brow, but in the end, he followed Professor Moody's 'last will and testament' and summoned Hermione as well, to the bedside.
"I'm here, Professor. What do you want to tell me?"
Hermione's face was dotted with large, streaming tears, her voice quivering with an intensity that couldn't be described. "What can I do for you, Professor?"
"You two... fans..."
Professor Moody, whose face was ashen, was spitting out each word individually.
"Write me a letter!"
Write me a letter!
Write me a letter!
Write me a letter!
Write me a letter!
Write me a letter!
Write me a letter!
Write me a letter!
