Chapter 143: The Chamber of Secrets
Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, and Snape departed, leaving Harry feeling distracted by the whispers of other students. He decided it was best to head back to Gryffindor Tower.
Meanwhile, Filch stared blankly at the bloodstain on the ground. The usually grumpy caretaker suddenly collapsed, his hands covering his tear-streaked face as he wept bitterly.
"Woooooooo..."
Nagini found Filch's grief difficult to witness. Though she felt the urge to say something, she ultimately sighed in resignation.
"Let's go, Artel, Hermione..." Nagini said softly, recognizing her limitations. She had done all she could to dissuade the basilisk from harming the students, but she couldn't control its actions entirely.
As the other students departed, only Filch's cries echoed through the corridor on the fourth floor.
"Poor Filch... He only had Mrs. Norris, and now she's gone..." Hermione remarked, her voice tinged with sympathy and sorrow.
"Filch's demeanor can be peculiar... If only he were kinder and more compassionate towards the students, perhaps he wouldn't be so disliked," Artel consoled Hermione, gently patting her head to ease her distress.
"And Mrs. Norris might not be dead... I can't imagine anyone in the castle intentionally harming a cat," Artel added optimistically, though he knew deep down that Mrs. Norris's fate was likely sealed by the basilisk's hunger.
Observing Nagini's concern, Artel noticed her quick adjustment, her smile returning as she took a deep breath.
Back in Nagini's office, they resumed their study of the "Standard Spell" book. Artel and Hermione worked on selecting spells suitable for teaching young wizards, categorizing them by difficulty level and anticipating potential learning challenges.
At noon, they made their way to the Great Hall together. The atmosphere in the school was somber, with most students discussing the day's events.
Although Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape were present, Dumbledore was notably absent. Harry, Ron, and Neville were also in the Great Hall, and upon seeing Artel and Hermione, Neville greeted them warmly.
"Do you know what happened this morning?" Neville inquired as he joined Artel and Hermione at the table for lunch.
"Well... Hermione and I went to check, but did Mrs. Norris turn up?" Artel responded, taking a seat and ordering his meal alongside Hermione.
"No, she's still missing... Filch is really torn up about it. Dumbledore granted him some time off, and if something happened to my Ralph... I'd be beside myself," Neville lamented, his tone heavy with empathy.
Ron, sitting across from them, nodded in agreement. "If Scabbers went missing, I'd be just like Filch..."
"Scabbers?" Artel looked up, intrigued.
In passing, Artel had informed Dumbledore, disguised as Saruman, about a mouse in Hogwarts, though it hadn't been taken seriously. Initially, Ron used to bring Scabbers to Transfiguration class, but after Malfoy's prank involving a jewelry box, Scabbers was never seen again. Over time, Artel had forgotten about it.
"It's complicated, though..." Ron continued, casting a glance at Harry, who remained silent. Deciding not to alarm him further about the mysterious sound Harry had heard earlier, Ron took a sip of juice before continuing. "We need to be cautious. First Barrow, now Filch's cat... Next, it could be any one of us..."
"Percy mentioned that if the culprit isn't found, the school might shut down for a while..." Neville added somberly.
The atmosphere at the table grew tense, devoid of its usual joviality. Hermione, feeling uneasy, leaned towards Artel and inquired, "Artel, who do you think is responsible for this?"
"It's definitely not one of the younger students... No first or second-year could pull off something like this," Artel stated calmly as he savored his pork chops. Glancing at Harry, he continued, "I suspect it might be someone who infiltrated the castle or... some sort of dangerous magical creature. The latter seems more plausible, given that if it were a wizard with malicious intent, they wouldn't target a cat. It just doesn't make sense unless they specifically aimed for Filch's pet."
Artel's reasoning drew chuckles from the other students; the idea of a dark wizard infiltrating Hogwarts to harm a Squib's cat seemed far-fetched.
"So, you think it's some kind of magical creature?" Hermione inquired, her eyes wide with curiosity.
"Most likely... around eighty percent," Artel confirmed, mindful not to divulge too much and raise suspicion. However, he decided to subtly probe Hermione for any observations she might have made.
"Hermione, did you notice anything peculiar today?"
"Special circumstances?" Hermione's brow furrowed in thought, considering the events of the day. Apart from the incident on the fourth floor, nothing else seemed out of the ordinary.
"I don't know... oh, don't mind my language," Hermione interjected, grabbing Artel's sleeve and shaking it gently. Ron, sitting opposite them, observed the interaction with a mix of envy and longing. While he wasn't particularly fond of Hermione at the moment, he couldn't help but wish for a close relationship like the one between Hermione and Artel.
"If you pay attention, you'll notice the spiders in the castle are on the move... We saw it on the fourth floor today," Artel explained, addressing Hermione and the curious onlookers.
"The classroom on the fourth floor has been abandoned for a while, and it's quite dark, so it's a haven for spiders. But today... those spiders were scurrying, as if they were trying to flee the fourth floor, even the castle itself..."
"So I surmised that perhaps a powerful magical creature has claimed parts of the castle as its territory, and the spiders are fleeing in fear," Artel continued.
Hermione nodded in agreement, a memory stirring in her mind.
"I recall reading about it in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Some creatures are natural predators of spiders... Perhaps you're onto something! That formidable magical creature might have taken Mrs. Norris!"
"But why would the spiders move?" Neville chimed in, scratching his head nervously. "There's a terrifying giant spider in the Forbidden Forest; maybe they're seeking refuge there..."
"If that were the case, they would have left long ago. So why now?" Artel mused, adjusting nonexistent glasses with a solemn expression.
"To sum up... I believe a formidable magical creature has infiltrated the school... Considering its ability to petrify ghosts, and drawing from the legend of the secret room recorded in 'Hogwarts: A History'..."
"I have reason to suspect that the Chamber of Secrets has been opened!"
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