Harry Potter: The Golden Viper

073 Panic

The Gryffindor common room was filled with a heavy silence, broken only by the crackling of the fire and the occasional sniffle. Percy covered his face with both hands and sat on the sofa without saying a word. He looked like he had aged ten years in a day. Fred and George, his twin brothers, sat opposite him, and they had no reaction to their common friend Lee Jordan's comfort. They stared blankly at the floor, their usual mischief and humor gone. They had just learned that their little sister Ginny had been taken into the Chamber of Secrets by the heir of Slytherin.

Ron, another brother of Ginny, stayed by the fireplace with a pale face, his lips constantly mumbling, as if he had just had a serious illness. He clutched his wand tightly in his hand, as if it could bring him some comfort. He felt guilty and helpless, wondering if he could have done something to prevent this tragedy.

Beside him, Harry Potter shook his legs anxiously, and occasionally looked at the door of the common room, as if waiting for something.

"I found it!" Finally, the portrait of the Fat Lady opened, and Hermione Granger climbed out of the door hole panting, waving a note in her hand. She had been in the library for hours, searching for clues about the monster in the Chamber of Secrets. She glanced at Ron who had no reaction, and Harry quickly got up from the chair and greeted Hermione's answer.

"–Professor Watson's guess was right,"

Hermione's orange eyes sparkled with a hard light. She stuffed the note into Harry's hand without saying anything, and recited the contents of the note in a low voice, "In our country, there are many terrible beasts and monsters wandering around, among which the most bizarre and lethal is the basilisk, also known as the king of snakes. This snake can grow very large, usually living for hundreds of years.

It is hatched from a rooster's egg by a toad. The basilisk kills people in a shocking way. In addition to its deadly venomous fangs, its stare can also cause death. Anyone who is stared at by it will die immediately. Spiders will flee when they see the basilisk, because the basilisk is the spider's mortal enemy. And the basilisk will flee when it hears the rooster's crowing, because the rooster's crowing is also very deadly to it–"

The note was written by Newt Scamander, a famous magizoologist who had studied many fantastic creatures. Hermione had found it in one of his books in the restricted section of the library.

"But–"

Ron finally came to his senses. He moved his dry and pale lips and muttered, "So far, no one has died. If the basilisk's gaze can kill people, what about Colin and Justin?"

"That's because no one has confronted the basilisk's eyes–" Harry felt his stomach bubble in ice water. He twitched his cheeks and said softly, "Hagrid's roosters were strangled to death. Colin saw it through his camera. The basilisk burned the film in the camera, so Colin was only petrified. Justin was Nick. He must have seen the basilisk through Nearly Headless Nick. Nick was stared at by the basilisk, but he couldn't die a second time, right?"

"And Mrs. Norris"

Hermione said solemnly, "I guess she saw the basilisk from the reflection of water flowing out of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. Harry, I'm glad you understand what's going on. Riddle lied to you. The monster in the Chamber of Secrets is a basilisk, not some furry creature. Hagrid may be innocent!"

Hermione's conclusion made Harry pale. He stammered and didn't know how to explain why Riddle's memory would deceive him.

"Let's go find Hagrid!"

After a while, Harry finally came to his senses. He said firmly, "Hagrid must know something. I don't know why Riddle told us a wrong memory. Maybe he is the real culprit. But anyway, Hagrid must know some key information!"

Professor McGonagall, the head of Gryffindor house and the deputy headmistress of Hogwarts, had ordered all young wizards to stay in the common room and not go out. Although Percy's state was already unable to execute Professor McGonagall's order, they didn't know what was going on outside. Harry rushed to the dormitory to get his invisibility cloak.

When they sneaked out of the common room, they found that there was no young wizard wandering in the castle. The corridor was silent, only accompanied by professors patrolling up and down the castle. And the expressions on those professors' faces also made them feel desperate.

Was Ginny still alive? Why did the heir of Slytherin choose Ginny as the target of attack in the end? Hermione couldn't answer this question either. In fact, Harry had a terrible picture flashing in his mind at this moment. That was Ginny being found as a cold corpse, Mrs. Weasley lying on Ginny's body and crying loudly, while Mr. Weasley squatted aside and pulled out his few hairs one by one!

Regret tore Harry's heart like a poisonous snake. He wished he had handed over Riddle's diary to Professor Watson earlier, when he had first found it in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. Professor Watson was the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, who had a keen interest in the Chamber of Secrets and its monster. He had guessed that it was a snake that moved through pipes that launched the attacks, based on the sound he had heard in his office. If he had communicated with Riddle's diary instead of Harry, Harry would bet that Professor Watson would be able to dig out what secrets were hidden in Riddle's mind!

But it was too late now. Ginny Weasley, Ron's younger sister and Harry's friend, had been taken into the Chamber of Secrets by the heir of Slytherin, who had somehow used Riddle's diary to control her. Harry felt responsible for her fate, and he was determined to find her and save her.

It was a starry night. The moon shone brightly over the Hogwarts castle, casting long shadows on the grounds. Harry, Ron, and Hermione ran towards Hagrid's hut, which was a small wooden house near the Forbidden Forest. They could see a faint light coming from Hagrid's window, indicating that he was still awake. They hoped that he could tell them something useful about the Chamber of Secrets and its monster.

They ran as fast as they could, without saying anything. They were careful not to make any noise or attract any attention. They knew that they were breaking the school rules by leaving the common room at night, but they didn't care. They had more important things to worry about.

They reached Hagrid's door outside. Harry looked around cautiously before taking off his invisibility cloak. He had used it to cover himself and his friends, so that they could sneak past the professors who were patrolling the corridors. He folded it and put it in his pocket.

He knocked on the door softly, hoping that Hagrid would hear him and open it quickly. He didn't want to waste any time.

A few seconds later, Hagrid slammed the door open. They saw Hagrid holding a crossbow and aiming at them. He looked angry and scared at the same time. The big hound Fang barked loudly behind him, wagging his tail.

Hagrid seemed very shocked that they would appear here. He looked restless, and his eyes darted around nervously. He lowered his crossbow and let them in, but he didn't seem happy to see them.

The inside of Hagrid's hut was cozy and warm, but also messy and cluttered. There were various animal skins, bones, feathers, and eggs scattered around. There was a fireplace in one corner, where a kettle was boiling over. There was a table in another corner, where a cake was waiting to be cut.

Hagrid moved some chairs for them to sit down, but he didn't offer them any tea or cake. He seemed to have something else on his mind.

"You've heard about Ginny, haven't you?" He asked them in a hoarse voice, as if he had been crying or shouting. His face was pale and sweaty, and his beard was tangled.

Ron stared at Hagrid with a dull face. He nodded slowly, but he didn't say anything. He looked like he had lost all hope.

Hermione didn't say anything either. She bit her lip and clenched her fists. She looked like she was trying to hold back her tears.

Harry had to start the topic by himself. "Oh, yes, I've heard." He said in a calm voice, but he felt a lump in his throat. He wanted to ask Hagrid about the Chamber of Secrets and its monster, but he didn't know how to begin.

Hagrid seemed to have no idea that they came to ask him anything. He choked and kept looking out of the window nervously. He picked up a knife and tried to cut a thick piece of fruit cake, but he was so clumsy that he knocked over the teapot instead. The hot water spilled out and almost extinguished the fire.

Harry opened his mouth to speak again, but before he could say anything, there was another loud knock on the door outside.

Harry felt a jolt of fear in his chest. He wondered who it could be at this hour of the night.

Hagrid looked even more frightened than before. He whispered to them to hide behind his bed, where there was a large pile of blankets and pillows.

Harry quickly grabbed his invisibility cloak from his pocket and threw it over himself and his friends. They crawled behind Hagrid's bed and hid under the cloak.

Hagrid grabbed his crossbow again and opened the door abruptly.

"Good evening, Hagrid." It was Dumbledore's voice. Harry recognized it immediately. It was deep and calm, but also stern and serious.

Dumbledore walked in with a very grave expression on his face. He was wearing a long purple cloak and a pointed hat, both decorated with silver stars and moons. He had a long white beard and hair, and a pair of piercing blue eyes behind half-moon spectacles. He was the headmaster of Hogwarts, and the most powerful wizard in the world.

Behind him, there was a strange-looking man who followed him timidly. He was short and fat, with brownish gray hair on his head like Professor Watson, but much more messy. His chubby face was anxious and sweaty. His clothes were matched in a very strange style, striped suit, bright red tie, black cloak, purple pointed boots, and under his arm, he also held a dark green hat with a golden buckle.

"That's my dad's boss!" Ron finally came to his senses. He whispered to Harry and Hermione, "Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic!"

Hermione elbowed Ron hard and told him to shut up. She didn't want them to be discovered by Dumbledore or Fudge.

For Hagrid, the worst thing finally happened. He fell on the bed with a pale face and defended himself. "I can't help it, Hagrid–" Fudge said in a crisp and fast tone, "It's very bad, Dumbledore. Keep calm. After those two young wizards were petrified, I can't tell you how much pressure I've been under. I forced the Daily Prophet to shut up, but now this can't be hidden anymore. Many people in the department who are paying attention to this matter already know that Weasley's daughter may have been unfortunate."

"I hope you understand, Cornelius, that I trust Hagrid completely." Dumbledore said in a firm and clear voice. He looked at Fudge with a stern gaze, but there was also helplessness in his blue eyes.

Sometimes power is such an unreasonable thing. Even Dumbledore had to obey the power structure under the stable social framework. Unless he wanted to push everything back to the beginning.

Fudge looked like he was trying to act professional and authoritative, but he also looked like he was scared and nervous. He played with his hat and didn't look at Dumbledore's eyes. Instead, he said casually, "Look at it from my point of view, Dumbledore. A little precaution is necessary. If we eventually find another person who opened the Chamber of Secrets, Hagrid will be released, and the Ministry of Magic will apologize fully."