Hermione's shrill yell nearly shattered the glass in the common room, and her several best friends looked up in pain. For a moment, they thought Hermione was going to run afoul of something untoward again, perhaps a curse.
"Amazingly!" Hermione stamped her foot, a bit overwhelmed, "I've just realized!"
Everyone in the common room was staring at Hermione, but she didn't make any explanation. Instead, she pushed aside the Weasley brothers blocking her way and ran quickly towards the entrance, disappearing behind the portrait of Mrs. Weasley.
It was time for them to know something bad had happened, and Harry and Ron's roommates, the Weasleys and the Creevy brothers, were in stunned silence before they all took a step forward and chased after her.
They only wasted less than ten seconds, but by the time they caught up to Hermione, she had already descended to the fifth floor.
"What's going on, Hermione?"
Since coming back from St. Mungo's, Neville had shown a certain leadership quality, his composure standing out among the underage wizards, he took a big step over several steps, and was the first to catch up with Hermione.
"Harry and Ron in trouble?"
"The second match is under the Black Lake, Neville!"
With every leap Hermione nearly soared over half a floor of stairs. It was easy to sprain an ankle at this speed, and she had to concentrate on her explanation.
The fact that the second match is to be held under the Black Lake is no longer news. After all, for several days now, the event organizers have been setting up the stage, and everyone had already guessed it.
"But what does this have to do with Harry and Ron?"
Neville was the only one who could keep up with Hermione while still having enough breath to ask questions. He asked in confusion.
"You don't understand, Neville... huh."
After jumping over a trap of a spinning staircase, in a blink of an eye, this group of Gryffindor students who had caused a lot of attention had already appeared on the second-floor platform. The notice on the wall in the entrance hall had officially told everyone that the second match would take place in the Black Lake. The headmasters and house captains were organizing teams to watch the match at the foot of the marble steps outside.
"They're going to take away the heroes' treasures! They have to be found back within an hour, or else, they'll never be seen again!"
Hermione's explanation was backwards, but Neville immediately understood. His face turned white in an instant and he let out a shocked cry.
"You mean that Harry and Ron have been taken to the bottom of the Black Lake by them, and our task is to save them back within an hour?!"
"I'm glad you got it, Neville!"
Hermione worriedly said, "I just looked at the notice in the entrance hall and I want to rush out of here, but Neville, you pulled me back from behind and said in a serious tone,"
"I guess you didn't have breakfast, Hermione."
"Breakfast?"
Hermione's eyes were confused for a moment, and then she absurdly said,
"Oh, no, Neville, listen to me. Harry and Ron are waiting for me to save them now. I can't waste any time, or else"
"The match hasn't started yet, hasn't it?"
Neville held onto Hermione's sleeve tightly and spoke calmly,
"To the bottom of the Black Lake. To look for Harry and Ron in such a large lake, isn't that just plain exhausting? Hermione, you must eat something!"
Others followed one after another, and the Weasley siblings looked at Hermione with pale faces, even Fred and George, who were usually playful, ceased their jokes.
These Weasley children usually tease each other, but when facing danger, they always unite in an unusual way. Hermione clearly saw some reproach in their eyes, especially Ginny, who considered Ron and Harry to be 'things that cannot be lost'.
"You're right, Neville--"
Hermione bit her lip, rushed to the end of the table, grabbed a few slices of bread and pastries, stuffed them in her mouth quickly, and squeezed through the crowded entrance hall.
"I need to find Professor McGonagall first and ask for clarification."
"Get back to the group, Mr. Lupin, and all of you!"
When they found Professor McGonagall, she was leading the students of Gryffindor across the lawn. Perhaps it was because of the slow assembly speed of Gryffindor that she was not pleased; she did not give a favorable look to Neville and the others. However, when facing Hermione, she still tried to show a gentle smile.
"How do you feel, Hermione?"
"Oh, I'm fine--"
Hermione said softly, but then she asked urgently,
"Professor McGonagall, as I heard from Neville that you took Harry and Ron away last night, what can we assume about them now?"
"Your judgment is very accurate--" McGonagall bit her lip, "They have already been taken away by merpeople. Now they are all in the lake waiting for you to save them."
Many people had pricked up their ears to eavesdrop on their conversation, and upon hearing Professor McGonagall say this, there was an immediate stir.
"Shut up!"
McGonagall sternly glared at the students, and then gently pushed Hermione's shoulder.
"Go on, Hermione, I believe they are gathering the heroes already. Don't worry; Professor Breyan has cast a spell for them. They'll be fine."
Professor McGonagall felt sorry for Hermione's pale face. Before she left, she muttered a few words softly.
The sun shone brightly today, but after getting close to the Black Lake, Hermione still felt a chill. She had no time to think about what it would be like when she went down into the water later. She ran along the lake shore as fast as she could toward the other side of the lake.
The venue for the second match was not as grand as the one set up on the high ground for the first match. It was just a series of seating tiers set along the lake, with an additional four platforms where the heroes would dive into the water. Of course, a large screen for live broadcasting was still set up.
Hermione saw many little winged creatures flying over the lake surface. Then, she realized they were Professor Breyan's surveillance mirrors.
She had heard that this stuff couldn't work underwater. This relieved Hermione. She didn't want the entire European magical community to see her with a long tail, so she would rather spend another half a month in St. Mungo's.
As Hermione approached the venue, she saw a table with a golden tablecloth on the grassy area next to the lake. Cedric, Fleur, and Crouch were standing by the judge's table, watching as Hermione darted over several small puddles like a swift swan and quickly approached them.
"I'm sorry, am I late?"
The ground near the table was wet, and Hermione slid across the mud as if she were ice-skating, covering a distance of about 16 feet before stopping at the edge of the table.
"Oh, there's still half an hour!"
"Ludo was smiling and seemed very impressed with Hermione's stamina, given the distance she had run so far."
Professor Moody was patrolling along the lake, and when he saw Hermione, he pretended to be walking over. He just peeked his head over at Hermione, who was listening to Ludo's introduction of the situation. Then, he looked towards Cedric. Cedric hesitated for a moment and barely nodded.
"I'm Cho Chang, Fleur is her sister, and Crouch's pick is very strange—they chose the headmaster of Durmstrang, who's also a judge. Who are you, Hermione?"
As the clock ticked down to the start of the match, Professor McGonagall finally led the Gryffindor students over to the venue. The scene at the field was a mess, and Cedric managed to avoid Ludo and chatted with Hermione casually.
"I think it's Harry and Ron."
Hermione looked at the shimmering Black Lake and judged which direction to search for after diving into the lake.
"Two?"
Cedric said in surprise, with compassion in his eyes,
"They can't possibly figure out which one is the most important to you, so they just take the easy way out, right? Have you found a way to breathe underwater yet?"
"It was just a few days ago that I came up with it," Hermione replied, still scanning the surface of the lake as she talked to Cedric, "But I'm not sure if it won't work, you know, the spells that are effective are those only practiced by upper-year students. I'm just guessing--"
"Oh--"
Cedric nodded and, as if not paying attention, moved closer to Hermione, a dark green object sliding into his palm.
He gently brushed his hand against Hermione's hand with the back of his hand, as if casually looking at the Black Lake, while pretending to examine it himself.
"Hermione, since you helped me in the first match, I believe I must--"
Distracted as she was, Hermione immediately became alert. She noticed Cedric's subtle movement and recognized what he was trying to hand to her.
She had seen the pattern in the book given to her by Sirius, which had helped her ancestor in difficult times and was very rare and precious.
"No!"
Hermione stepped back from Cedric as if she had been struck by lightning.
"I'm very grateful, but no, Cedric. This was your idea, and you should use it yourself. I have my own plans."
Hermione said firmly.
"It's actually--"
Cedric hesitated, glancing behind him, afraid that his persistence would reveal to the judges what he was doing. He wanted to explain himself urgently, but Hermione had already followed Fleur and Crouch towards their diving platform.
Disappointed, he shrugged his shoulders and stuffed the salamander into his pocket. He wasn't planning to use it anyway.
"So!"
On the judges' stand, Ludo's voice echoed like thunder across the dark black lake surface, reaching the stands.
"Our heroes are now in position. As soon as I whistle, the second event will begin. They have an hour to retrieve the items they were robbed of. I count to three. One, two, three. GO!"
(Chapter ends)
