After leaving the Three Brooms and Seamus, who was planning to stay in the bar for a while, Harry and the rest finished their tour of Hogsmeade and headed back to the Hogwarts without stopping.
Harry and the rest walked a lot faster than when they came. They were carrying the Mandrake leaves, Ghostface Moth pupae, and other related materials that they had brought back from the Hogsmeade Post Office. They did not want too many people to know what they were doing, so they chose not to let the owls throw the things on the Hogwarts' tables in public. They had to arrange the materials that should not be exposed to the public since they had an appointment with Sirius in the afternoon to learn how to transform Animagus for the first time.
In addition to the parcel mail service, the Hogsmeade Post Office had at least two hundred owls to choose from, ranging from big gray falcons to pocket-sized bards (local delivery only). They all perched on shelves with color codes for you to choose from. As for which one to choose, it depended on how quickly you wanted your mail to reach the destination.
The wind and snow were still drifting in the air. They struggled to walk on the snowy ground, trying their best to get back to the comfortable and warm Hogwarts as soon as possible.
"Why didn't you start learning Animagus during the summer vacation? It's the full moon tonight, and you have to keep the Mandrake in your mouth until the next full moon … "Hermione asked Jenny as she adjusted her hood." Recently, starting from Snape, the other classes require us to start using the Silent Spell. Harry and the rest can use this opportunity to practice, but Jenny, this will delay your learning of the new spell. "
"Dunbar … Maybe Sirius is only free recently?" Harry was about to say something when he realized that Dumbledore might not want him to practice the black magic in the ancient magic class. Given the recent conflict between Dumbledore and Allen, Harry made up an excuse for Hermione. He did not want Hermione to tell Allen and escalate the conflict between them. After all, in Harry's opinion, Dumbledore and Allen were just different ideologies on this matter. In essence, they were both doing it for the good of others.
Jenny looked a little disgusted. "I have to keep the Mandrake in my mouth until the next full moon?"
"Until the next full moon, you can't swallow the leaf or take it out of your mouth at any time, or the whole process will have to start all over again. It's really not an easy thing." Hermione's mouth twitched involuntarily when she recalled the process of her preparation. She could not do oral cleaning for her teeth for a whole month at that time.
As they moved forward, the sound of the girls quarreling not far in front of them became louder and louder.
"Katie, you don't know what's in here?" A shrill female voice came through the wind and snow into their ears.
Harry heard Katie Bell, the ball chaser in his team. Bell shouted in a tone that was completely different from her usual gentle voice, "It's none of your business, Julian!"
The snow was falling even harder now. They had no choice but to squint their eyes and look forward, only to see Katie in a red coat. In a red coat, Bell was holding something in her arms and arguing with her friend, Julian, who was wearing a dark green coat.
Harry's glasses had just been blurred by the snow, and he had to wipe the lenses with his hands wearing dragon leather gloves. At this time, the quarrel had developed into an argument. Julian suddenly reached out to grab the package in Katie's hand, but as Katie pulled back hard, the package wrapped in kraft paper fell to the ground.
Suddenly, there was a miserable scream, and everyone stopped. They saw the two witches who had been arguing fiercely in front of them. Katie, who was wearing a red coat, had fallen to the ground, and Julian stood helplessly on the side.
Noticing the arrival of Harry and the others, Julian's voice was thick with tears and panic. "I warned her not to touch it!"
Then something strange happened. Katie, who had fallen to the ground, seemed to be pulled by something invisible. She swayed from side to side in the snow, like a lifeless rag doll. Suddenly, she was pulled up into the air again. Her arms were open and her head was thrown back, as if something was constantly pulling her in the air.
Harry and the others were frightened by this sudden change and took half a step back. Hermione, who immediately reacted, took out her wand and stepped forward. She froze Katie, who was still flying in the air.
Katie's eyes were wide open, and her long black hair fluttered in the wind. Before Harry and the others could relax, they saw Katie's eyes suddenly open, her mouth wide open, and she let out a silent scream of horror, as if she was suffering terrible pain.
Such a horrifying scene left the few Magi standing below dumbfounded. Katie's mouth opened and closed as she screamed, but no sound came out. When she finally lost consciousness, her whole body fell from the sky.
Hermione hurriedly added a shock reduction spell to slow down the fall, so that Katie's falling momentum could be reduced. She slowly moved her wand and lay down on the snow.
Ron sucked in a breath of cold air. He saw Katie lying on the snow with her eyes open, but her entire body was twitching and swaying unconsciously.
Harry and Jenny wanted to go over and help, but Hermione, who had noticed their actions, immediately stopped them. "Harry, stop! Don't come closer! The thing that hurt Katie may still be dangerous. I'll go and take a look first. "
"What happened?" Hagrid's rough voice pierced through the wind and snow. He strode over. The wind and snow had turned his hair and eyebrows into specks of white.
"Hagrid, something happened to Katie. Go back to the castle and tell the professors to go to the infirmary. We'll be there soon." Hermione calmly told Hagrid to go back to the school and inform the professors first. They still didn't know Katie's condition, and Hagrid had always been careless. It would be bad if he hurt Katie again.
Hagrid opened his mouth and wanted to say that he was also a professor, but when he saw that Hermione was acting like a female leader and an umbrella CEO, he couldn't help but obey her order. Without saying a word, he strode over the crowd and ran towards the castle.
However, a few Aura also came. Hermione went up to them and said a few words. Then, she walked towards Katie, and the other three Gryffindor Aura cubs hurriedly made way for her.
Everyone held their wands and followed her a little further away. Hermione leaned over to check Katie's condition. She then walked towards the scattered kraft paper and knelt down. She used her wand to press down on the kraft paper that was blown by the wind, revealing a cracked box that had fallen to the ground. Inside the box was a gorgeous opal necklace that was emitting a ghostly green light. The oval-shaped opals were wrapped in silver metal. It looked like a sun with a halo, and a long pendant was hanging below it.
"Oh, no, it's a cursed item. I don't know as much about curses as Allen, so I don't dare to lift the curse on her directly. We have to take her back to Madame Pomfrey. Maybe Dumbledore can solve it." Hermione lowered her head and looked at the green light emitted by the opal necklace. She looked up and said to the Aura, "I'll take care of the necklace. Mr. Aura, please use the levitation spell to bring Katie back to school."
The Aura who were arranged to go to Hogsmeade were naturally Harris' men. In fact, many of them were armed forces of the Red Umbrella Department. They knew the relationship between them and Hermione and obeyed.
The Aura commanded Katie's body with their wands and made her float in front of them. Katie lowered her head, and her long black hair fell down and covered her face. They began to transport her to the Hogwarts Castle. The only thing that went a little too far was that it was a professional habit. It made Katie look like she was being arrested and escorted by the Aura.
However, the arrival of the Aura also made Harry and the others feel relieved. It was not easy for them to maintain the levitation spell on such a snowy day.
Hermione carefully controlled the exposed opal necklace with her wand and let it float back into the box. Then, she looked at the dragonskin gloves on her hand and saw that there was no damage. She wrapped the necklace in kraft paper with her hand and stuffed it into her waist pouch.
When they arrived at the Hogwarts in the snow, Professor Mag hurried down the stone steps to greet them. She looked at the unconscious Katie who was floating in front of the Aura seriously. She thanked the Aura and pointed her wand at Katie, who floated behind her.
"Follow me." Professor Mag walked quickly to the school doctor's office. Perhaps Professor Mag had already told Filch and the Aura. When they saw this situation, they did not stop them. Instead, they ordered the students to make way for them so that they could get to the school doctor's office as soon as possible.
"Hagrid reported the situation to me. Miss Granger did the right thing." Dumbledore walked out of the school doctor's office and glanced at Katie who was floating in the air. "Poor girl."
Snape followed behind him with a gloomy face. He glanced at Harry and Ron unkindly. Madam Pomfrey brought Professor Mag into the ward and gestured for him to put Katie on a bed.
Hermione took out the opal necklace, the box and the kraft paper, and put them on the table in the ward. Dumbledore brushed his hand over Katie's head and looked at the necklace on the table. He asked Snape, "What do you think, Severus?"
Snape walked to the sickbed and lowered his head to carefully observe Katie, who was in pain from time to time. He then used his wand to peel open the kraft paper to make the necklace float. He scrutinized the opal necklace and said, "A powerful cursed item, Dumbledore. In fact, the fact that Miss Bell is still alive and lying there, I am very surprised by her good luck. "
"She was wearing wool gloves. Maybe she just touched it a little. Let me try first." Dumbledore pulled out the old wand with his good left hand. He bent down and moved the tip of the wand slowly over Katie's body. Dumbledore used the wand to draw out some dark green magic energy from Katie's body. However, as Katie's expression became more and more painful, Dumbledore had to give up.
Dumbledore took out his purple-red handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his forehead. Bob Doughty, the opposite school healer Madam Pomfrey ordered. "It's a very vicious curse. I only lifted part of it. But to ensure Miss Bale's safety, you should transfer her to St. Mungo's Magic Hospital for more conservative treatment. Poor girl. She will have to stay there for at least three months."
"Now, can any of you tell me what happened?" Dumbledore straightened his back and looked at the group of young wizards. He then glanced at the Aura who followed him. "I think the Aura's will need some clues to help them with their investigation. I still remember Mr. Hotchner was very responsible in school."
The oldest of the Aura seemed to be very happy that his name was remembered by his principal. He squeezed out a smile on his tense and serious face. "Thank you for your cooperation and help, Principal Dumbledore."
Then, under Professor Mag's stern gaze and Professor Snape's gloomy expression, Li Ann began to explain the incident. "We had just entered the Three Broomsticks Bar. Katie went to the bar to order something, and I went to get a seat. As soon as I sat down, I saw her go into the bar toilet. When she came out, she was holding it in her hand."
"Use your terrible memory to think. Are you sure Katie Bale didn't bring Katie Bale with her? She didn't bring this with her when she entered the Three Broomsticks Bar? " Snape's cold tone made Li Ann, who had just been reprimanded for making a mistake in the Defense Against Black Magic class, even more nervous.
"I'm sure. From the dormitory to the Three Broomsticks Bar, we were never separated." Li Ann recalled carefully, and then answered affirmatively, "She said she wanted to send this package back to the Hogwarts, and then she left the bar directly. I had to chase after her."
"Did she say who she was going to give it to?" Snape continued to ask.
"I've played Quidditch with Katie for many years, so I know her very well. Outside the Quidditch Stadium, she wouldn't even hurt a fly. She would only blow them away." Harry defended Katie. Then, he thought of the fact that his main suitor, who had been working with him for many years, would not be able to fight for at least three months. This new captain of Gryffindor Quidditch had a headache.
"I asked her who gave it to her, but she wouldn't tell me. She only said she was going to give it to someone in the Hogwarts. Her expression was very strange when she spoke … Oh no, oh no. She must have been cursed by the Soul-Seizing Spell. I was only paying attention to that damn package at that time, and I actually ignored her abnormality at that time. " Li Ann cried out, trembling all over, and wiped the tears on her face with her sleeve. Hermione gently patted her on the shoulder.
Hearing that someone might be suspected of using the Unforgivable Spell, Aura Hotchner ordered a black bearded colleague next to her, "Derek Morgan, catch up with Madam Pomfrey and help her send Miss Bell over. If she wakes up, ask her what she remembers. Remember not to delay her too long and disturb the patient's rest."
"Then how did she touch the necklace?" Snape's cold gaze made Li Ann shudder.
Thinking of the process at that time, Li Ann began to sob again. Her lips trembled, and she tried to explain the matter as clearly as possible. "I didn't know this would happen. I told her not to take this thing to the school. Filch and Aura would never let such an unknown thing into the Hogwarts. But no matter how I tried to persuade her, she wouldn't listen. So I wanted to snatch the necklace from her hand and throw it away. Who knew she would not let go as if she was possessed, and the package split open … and then something happened to her. "
"Katie must have accidentally touched it when she was fighting with you. Fortunately, she didn't take it directly in her hand …" Professor Mag said gently. She patted Li Ann's shoulder, who was on the verge of breaking down. "When Madam Pomfrey comes back, you may need some medicine to calm down."
Then, Professor Mag turned to the four Gryffindor wizards and sighed helplessly. "Why is it that every time something happens, you guys are always there?"
The Gryffindor wizards stood solemnly in front of her. Ron was also very helpless. He shook his head. "Trust me, Professor. I've been asking myself this question for six years."
Harry was a little embarrassed at the side, but then he said frankly, "Could it be Pency? Parkinson did it. "
Ron, who was standing on one side of him, rubbed his nose awkwardly. Jenny, who was standing on the other side of him, began to put her hand on her forehead. Hermione slid her feet on the ground as if she wanted to keep a certain distance from Harry.
Mag pursed his lips and turned to face Harry. "Potter, this is a very serious accusation."
"Mr. Potter, except for Aura who has the right to use it under certain conditions, anyone who uses the Unforgivable Curse on another wizard will be sentenced to life imprisonment." Aura began to take out her notebook to record the testimony. "Mr. Potter, did you see the crime with your own eyes?"
"Yes." Snape also stared at Harry with a serious face. "What evidence do you have?"
"I just know." After answering, Harry glanced at Dumbledore, who was silent at the side. He was very annoyed to find that when he talked to Dumbledore last time, he had completely forgotten that Allen had suggested him to tell Dumbledore about his suspicions because of the memory of the mysterious man and the excitement of learning Animagus.
Aura Hotchner put down her notebook impatiently. "Mr. Potter, your behavior is —"
"You … know?" Snape interrupted Aura with an annoying exaggeration. He began to imitate Harry to show how retarded his answer was just now.
Harry opened his mouth, but couldn't think of any words to support his words. He could only nod again.
"Your gift of prophecy is really amazing, Potter. Ordinary people can't even dream of having such a gift." Snape tilted his head and stared at Harry sarcastically. "How great you are! I know you, the savior of the world, are better than Allen in the divination class. Is Harris better than him? "
Professor Mag helped his students out of trouble. "I suggest that all of you go back to the dormitory and have a good rest. Everyone."
Aura Hotchner opened his mouth like Harry. He wanted to pursue the serious accusation without any evidence, but Hermione shook her head to stop him.
Dumbledore looked at Hermione with a smile, and said kindly, "Mileva, Severus, Miss Granger should be given 30 points for dealing with the emergency properly this time. Harry, Ron, Jenny, and Leon should be given 15 points for helping Hermione send Katie back."
Snape snorted discontentedly. However, when he met Harry's eyes, which were full of joy, he remembered the old bat that talked with Dumbledore. He swallowed back the sarcasm that was about to come out of his mouth.
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