Struggling to survive at Hogwarts

"Thea, want to go watch Quidditch? Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff!" Daphne called out.

"...Okay, you go to the lobby first, I'll come over as soon as I'm done."

Thea calmly stuffed the black notebook into her pocket. She wanted to see if the petrification incident would still happen today without the temptation of the notebook!

Hey! Thea! You're here to watch Quidditch too!

As soon as Thea and her friends stepped onto the stands, Marcus immediately greeted Thea and gestured for her to save them seats.

Thea didn't hesitate and led Draco and the others straight over.

"Captain, did Gryffindor know beforehand that they were going to compete against Hufflepuff?" Thea asked, somewhat puzzled.

“Of course I don’t know. I just brought up the matter of changing the game with the dean yesterday.” Marcus flashed his signature smile, clearly quite pleased with himself.

"It's good that Gryffindor doesn't know. Trying to defeat us by targeting our tactics is wishful thinking!" Thea mocked mercilessly, and the young wizards around her joined in the laughter.

Although everything seemed normal now, Thea still felt a little uneasy. The reason was simple: she didn't see the people she wanted to see in the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw stands…

Is the plot truly irreversible?

Just then, a piercing whistle rang out!

"Today's Quidditch match is cancelled! Prefects, please organize your respective houses' wizards to return to their dormitories!"

The moment she finished speaking, Thea's face turned pale.

She unconsciously clenched the notebook in her pocket, her mind a jumbled mess.

Why? My laptop has been with me the whole time, and I haven't been to any escape rooms these past few days.

"Thea, what's wrong?"

Draco noticed that Thea's expression was off and became somewhat worried.

"...I'm fine, I probably just didn't sleep well last night," Thea said gently. "Let's go back to the dorm!"

"Remember to get some rest earlier next time," Draco reminded him, then watched Harry and Ron hurry away, and said with a hint of disappointment:

"Gryffindor is so lucky! What a pity about this arrangement..."

Harry and Ron, who had left in a hurry, were completely confused, not understanding why the game had been paused or why they had been brought to the infirmary.

As they got closer to the infirmary, a growing unease began to rise in their hearts, and their steps unconsciously slowed down.

“I hope you won’t panic or be afraid.” Teacher McGonagall seemed to sense their unease and turned to reassure them, “Headmaster Dumbledore just rushed back from the Ministry of Magic after hearing about this, and several heads of departments are inside…”

"Now, come in!" Professor McGonagall looked at the two people whose expressions were not good, and her tone became unusually gentle.

The two followed Professor McGonagall in a daze and immediately saw the professors gathered around a hospital bed.

Hearing the door open, the professors turned to look at the three of them and then made way for them.

Hermione!

Harry cried out in surprise and rushed to the bedside, staring blankly at the motionless figure.

Her eyes widened in surprise, one hand was raised high, and she lay stiffly on the bed.

"Harry, do you know why Hermione was in the hallway?" Dumbledore asked patiently, patting Harry on the shoulder to try and calm him down.

"...She must be going to the library. She seemed really happy yesterday and even agreed to lend us her Potions notes..." Harry thought, trying to recall, despite Snape's death stare.

"We wanted to find her to watch Quidditch this morning, but her roommate said she went to the library..."

Harry forced himself to calm down and racked his brains to recall if Hermione had done anything wrong these past few days.

“Well done, Harry,” Dumbledore nodded approvingly, a glint of light flashing in his eyes, and waved for the other professors to leave.

When only three people remained in the hospital wing, Dumbledore spoke again: "Harry, did you participate in the investigation of the Chamber of Secrets yesterday?"

“…Professor,” Harry stammered, startled by Dumbledore.

“Harry, don’t worry, I was just asking. After all, the headmaster always has some special authority…” Dumbledore winked mischievously, successfully dispelling Harry’s unease.

“No, the last time we participated in an event was on a Monday afternoon, and then it stopped.” Harry shook his head.

“I see,” Dumbledore said quietly. “Has Thea looked for Hermione these past few days? Or any of the three of you?”

As Dumbledore spoke, his gaze swept over the two of them.

Ron shuddered involuntarily, then took a small step back without making a sound.

“No, Thea has been very busy lately; she’s been analyzing those lists,” Harry answered readily this time.

Dumbledore pondered for a moment, then bid farewell to the two, leaving Harry and Ron looking at each other with puzzled expressions.

"Why did Dumbledore bring up Thea? Could it be..." Ron couldn't help but ask, his face growing increasingly terrified.

"Impossible! Thea has absolutely nothing to do with the Chamber of Secrets! Otherwise, why would she be investigating the Chamber of Secrets with us?" Harry immediately retorted to Ron, firmly defending Thea.

Ron also felt that his guess was unfounded, so he didn't say anything more.

"So what are we going to do now? Just stand here and watch?"

After sitting for a while, Ron became somewhat agitated.

“No, we…we should go find Hagrid!” Harry hesitated for a moment, then said firmly, “Hagrid is a Hogwarts student too, maybe he knows something!”

Ron agreed, so the two prepared to go back to their dorm to get their invisibility cloaks and then go find Hagrid!

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"What did you say? Dumbledore lifted my detention for tonight?"

“…Yes, that’s what Professor Dumbledore said.” A Ravenclaw, facing Thea’s shock, couldn’t help but tremble slightly.

"Did he assign me any homework?" Thea was still a little surprised, but her expression softened as she continued to ask.

“No,” Ravenclaw looked at Thea’s expression, thought for a moment, and confirmed, “The professor only said that tonight’s detention has been lifted.”

Thea stood at the door for a moment to process what she had just learned, then smiled and said, "Thank you for informing me, Mr. Carter."

Carter was surprised that Thea remembered him, and a blush rose to her face as she excitedly said, "You're welcome! Miss Black!"

Then Thea mentioned a few more points about things the other party wasn't familiar with, which made the little eagle nod repeatedly before she closed the door.

"What's wrong? Why were you so surprised just now?" Daphne asked casually, sipping her tea.

Thea glanced at the sofa and, as she expected, the people around her, though seemingly indifferent, were actually all listening intently.

“It’s nothing, Dumbledore just lifted my detention for tonight,” Thea said, taking the honey tea Theodore offered her. She took a sip and exclaimed, “This honey tea is good, the sugar is just right.”