Kapitel 35: Chapter 35
"Yeah, you're not helping, Goyle," said Goyle. Wait, Crabbe. Said Crabbe. Phew, close call.
"Yeah, you're just making things worse, Crabbe," said Goyle.
Draco rolled his eyes.
"This time," Draco said, "this time, it'll get him so bad he won't even be able to hide it. He'll be begging for mercy. And you know what I'll do then?"
"Relent, as he's seen the error of his ways, and demonstrate your kind, forgiving personality?" suggested Goyle.
"Relent, and buy him a puppy," said Crabbe. "A fluffy one. So he doesn't feel so bad about losing."
Draco gave them a peculiar look. Seriously, what was with these two?
"Nah, I'll kick 'im!" he cackled.
"Yeah!" said Crabbe.
"Yeah!" added Goyle, not wanting to feel left out. Goyle frowned, which made his forehead looked a little like Mount Etna would if it collapsed – slowly – and said, "So, boss, what's the plan?"
"The plan? You want to know the plan?"
"Yeah, boss, so's we can help," said Crabbe.
"Yeah, boss, so's we can... know the plan," said Goyle.
"I'll tell you the plan! It'll all go down tomorrow," Draco said. "Do you know what day it is tomorrow?"
"Uh," said Crabbe. "Thursday?"
"No!" shrieked Malfoy. "Well, actually, yes. Tomorrow is Thursday. But that's not what's important!"
"Uh," said Goyle. "Friday?"
"No!" shrieked Malfoy. "Wait... what? Look, Goyle, I just said that tomorrow is Thursday. Surely even you... I mean, really?"
"Well, you also said it wasn't what was important, so I thought, maybe the important thing about tomorrow is that, while it's Thursday, it's really Friday. You know?"
"Uh," said Malfoy. "No... not... really..." he frowned. "Look, guys, we're getting off topic. It's not about the day of the week, okay?"
"Oh! Oh! I love this game," said Goyle. "Is it smaller than a breadbox?"
"Uh. Well, kinda, I guess, in an abstract sort of sense, tomorrow is bigger than a breadbox... wait, no! We're not playing Twenty Questions! Just... just... just guess, okay? It's like, really obvious. Here's a hint, even. Today's the Thirtieth of October, so tomorrow is..."
"Friday!" said Crabbe.
"You're fired. You're both fired."
"The Thirty-First!" said Goyle.
"Yes!" Malfoy resisted, barely, the temptation to fist-pump. "And what happens every year on October Thirty-First?"
"Hallowe'en!" said Crabbe.
"NO! Well, actually, yeah, again, kinda. But once again, you're right but completely wrong! Tomorrow morning is the Northwestern Regional Semi-Finals for the UK Quidditch League!"
"Bwa ha ha!" Crabbe cackled.
"Mwa ha ha!" Goyle cackled, too.
o—o—o—o
"I'm confused," Ron admitted.
"Well, there's a surprise. Look," Milo explained, "a sidequest is a short adventure at most tangentially related to the major events of the story used primarily for character development."
"Character development?" asked Ron.
"Yeah. Getting hauls of XP, magic items, and gold, and thus making your character more powerful, or developed. Character development."
Harry frowned. "Look, unlike you two, I actually went to primary school, and I'm fairly certain that's not actually what character development means."
"Irregardless," Milo began.
"Not a word," Harry muttered.
"Says the boy on the Quidditch team. Anyways, regardless — there, happy? — of the meaning of character development, sidequests are brief excursions, more focussed on a single idea, generally simpler, and also where most of the best loot comes from."
"And that's why you're going on a date with the cute blonde?" asked Fred (or George, but we're not starting this again, okay?).
"Not a date. A sidequest," corrected Milo. He, Ron, Harry, and the Weasley twins were sitting in a corner in the Common Room. Milo had planned to co-ordinate his Hallowe'en schedule with them, so that they'd all know where the others would be at any given time (for when, inevitably, disaster struck) but the conversation had taken an unexpected turn when he'd filled them in on his conversation with Hannah.
"On a secluded, dare I say, private walk around the Hogwarts lake," said George, "where, being right out in the open, of course, everyone can see you."
"Yeah. An adventure past a body of water filled to the brim with monsters of every sort," said Milo.
"Ah, I see," Fred said knowingly. "So you can protect the fair maiden, eh?"
"Well, if I have to. She's a witch, though, should be more than competent at defending herself."
"I think, Fred," said George, "that he's not really getting into the spirit of things."
"I'm forced to agree, George," said Fred.
"She said she wanted to talk to me alone for a while," Milo shrugged. "So I just assumed she had some critical information she has to pass along, or possibly a magic item. For all I know, she'll give me a quest."
"Maybe she has some sensitive information, if you know what I... ah, nevermind, you know?" said Fred.
"Yeah, it's just not working. He seems to be immune to teasing," admitted George. "Such a shame."
"A missed opportunity."
"A wasted chance."
"A moment passed, never to return."
"Such a shame."
"No, we actually said that one, already," said Fred.
"Ah, nuts," said George. "And here I was, getting all Zen."
"Well, one way or another," Fred said, "I think you're going to have a very interesting Hallowe'en."
o—o—o—o
Quirrell paced back and forth irritably in his office. He just had to think. There must be some way to get rid of that boy... how did he know? How could he possibly know that the Dark Lord was returning? Dumbledore must have told him, Quirrell thought. No... that explains nothing. How could Dumbledore himself know?
And the boy had just told him. He'd just come out and said it was obvious. Obvious! To anyone with half a brain! He'd even named his three friends as accomplices... Was it a trap? A test of some sort? Perhaps the boy had been bluffing, trying to gauge Quirrell's reaction?
Irregardless, it didn't matter. The boy had to die. Snape would make things difficult, though... he seemed to know, somehow. The only times the accursed Potions Master isn't watching the boy, Quirrell thought, he's watching me. He must be trying to protect the boy... they're all in it together. That's what they were doing out in the forest... Snape went out to meet Milo in the Forbidden Forest, to discuss how to stop me. It's too much of a coincidence to be anything else. They must think they're so clever, but if they were really clever they wouldn't have let me notice. No, they weren't half as sneaky as they thought. Well, it'll all happen tomorrow, if everything goes according to plan... No. No, there's no if about it.
"A Power He Knows Not..." Quirrell heard the horrible, hissing voice say behind him.
"W-w-what was that, Master?"
"Nothing that need concern you," the voice lashed out at him, like a cobra. Then the pain started.
It would be a long night for Quirrell.
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