bacchusnovels Chapter 374 Hermione's Internal Struggle
Chapter 374 Hermione's Internal Struggle
Chapter 374 Hermione's Internal Struggle
Hermione stood there, caught in a constant clash between two diametrically opposed ideas, plunging her into a profound internal conflict.
"If it happens once, it can happen again—" a voice whispered in her heart, carrying an irresistible allure, "If it's a professor, then it's not entirely impossible—"
Her cheeks flushed involuntarily, and her thoughts became increasingly chaotic.
Another voice strongly objected: "Hermione, you can't do that! This is your professor!"
"But didn't we already do that last time?"
The seductive voice rang out again, with an air of self-righteousness, "Don't you often do this kind of thing in your dreams? Treat tonight's events as a dream; no one will know. Heaven, earth, you, and I will know. Isn't that enough?"
Hermione's heart pounded like a drum, her reason desperately reminding her: "Professor Tonks already has a girlfriend. If he knew about this, he would be heartbroken—."
"Just once, it's no big deal." The seductive voice whispered persistently, "The professor holds your secret; you have no choice—"
Her hands clenched into fists involuntarily, her legs trembled slightly, and two voices rose and fell in her mind, almost tearing her will apart.
The silence in the air grew increasingly suffocating, while Sean's gaze remained fixed on her, awaiting her decision. "Hermione—" she whispered to herself, "Make your choice."
After a while, Hermione seemed to have made up her mind. She took a deep breath, slowly walked to Sean, and knelt down.
Sean raised an eyebrow, watching Hermione's movements with interest.
Hermione gritted her teeth and reached out with trembling hands to pull open the front of Sean's robe...
Half an hour later, Daphne, who was outside the door, heard the intermittent sounds coming from inside finally stop, and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly, revealing a meaningful smile.
She gently shook her long hair that was draped over her shoulders, seemingly quite satisfied with everything she had planned.
"Gryffindor nerds aren't much better," she muttered to herself, then turned and left, leaving only a dashing figure disappearing at the end of the corridor.
Two days later.
Having finally won the Quidditch Cup, Harry has been immersed in excitement for the past two days, and even the weather seems to be celebrating Gryffindor's victory.
The clear, cloudless sky and the sweltering air made one want to grab a few pints of chilled pumpkin juice, stroll over to the field, plop down, and casually play a few rounds of Wizards Kill, or lazily watch the giant squid leisurely swimming on the lake.
Unfortunately, reality is not so pleasant.
As exams approach, students are forced to confine themselves to their castles, forcing their brains to concentrate, even as the summer breeze outside the windows, carrying the scent of earth and grass, desperately tempts them to escape and steal a moment of leisure.
Even Fred and George Weasley, who usually didn't put much effort into studying, became serious and buried themselves in their studies for the 0.WL (Ordinary Wizarding Level) exam.
Percy Weasley was extremely nervous, as he was about to take the NEWT (Ultimate Wizarding Exam), the highest level of education at Hogwarts, to pave the way for his future entry into the Ministry of Magic.
He's become terribly neurotic; even coughing a little too loudly in the common room will get him scolding you.
However, Hermione was even more nervous than Percy.
She seemed completely absorbed in her study plan, her tense nerves making her unapproachable.
Harry and Ron had long since stopped asking her how she managed those mysterious schedules, but they still couldn't help but show expressions of surprise every time they saw her exam schedule.
"Hermione," Ron began cautiously, trying not to provoke her, "are you sure you haven't copied anything wrong all this time?"
Hermione was engrossed in flipping through her books when she heard this and looked up sharply, her tone shrill: "What? How could you possibly copy it wrong?"
"Of course!" She grabbed her exam schedule and quickly glanced at it.
"But—" Ron pointed to the form, unwilling to give up, "how can you take exams in two different rooms at the same time? For example, Monday, nine o'clock in the morning, arithmetic divination and transfiguration, how is that possible?"
“Nothing is impossible,” Hermione replied crisply, without a trace of hesitation. “Has anyone else seen my ‘Numerology and Grammar’? It’s not on the shelf anymore!”
"Oh, right, I—borrowed it to read," Ron said weakly, raising his hand, his voice lingering in his throat, "I flipped through a few pages when I couldn't sleep last night."
Hermione took a deep breath, her face contorted as if she were about to explode: "Ron! That's what I was studying! How could you do this?"
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Ron quickly raised his hands in surrender. "I'll give it back to you right now!"
Hermione glared at Ron angrily, clearly very unhappy with his behavior, but she obviously had something more important on her mind.
Two days have passed since that night.
In other words... tonight is the last day.
She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down, and then turned to look at Harry.
"Harry," she suddenly spoke, her tone unusually urgent, "I need to borrow your Invisibility Cloak."
Harry paused, looking at her with a puzzled expression: "Invisibility Cloak? What do you need it for?"
Ron, who was standing nearby, stopped what he was doing and came over, asking curiously, "Yeah, Hermione, what do you need the Invisibility Cloak for? You don't seem like the type to use it for anything exciting."
Hermione's expression changed slightly, and she seemed to be struggling with whether or not to tell them.
She gripped the book tightly, her eyes darting around for a moment, before finally sighing and saying in a low voice, "Alright, I'll tell you, but you must promise not to tell anyone else, especially not the Slytherins."
Harry and Ron exchanged a glance and nodded simultaneously: "Of course not."
Hermione pursed her lips, as if organizing her thoughts, then whispered, "It's about Buckbeak."
"Buckbeak?" Ron exclaimed, then realized he'd spoken too loudly and quickly lowered his voice. "You mean, Hagrid's hippogriff?"
"Yes, that's it." Hermione nodded, a hint of anxiety in her voice. "It's in a terrible situation. The Ministry of Magic is pushing for its execution, which is completely unfair. We're trying to get a retrial, but we need to find some crucial evidence to support it."
Harry frowned and asked seriously, "What does the Invisibility Cloak have to do with this?"
Hermione bit her lower lip, explaining hesitantly, "We need to infiltrate the Ministry of Magic's archives, find the original documents, and see if we can find any clues that would benefit Buckbeak. The Invisibility Cloak will help us avoid the guards and make us safer."
"Infiltrate the Ministry of Magic?!" Ron's voice rose again, his face filled with shock. "Hermione, are you crazy? Do you know how dangerous that is? If we get caught—"
"That's why we need the Invisibility Cloak," Hermione interrupted him, her tone firm. "I know it's risky."
But if we don't do it, Buckbeak will certainly be executed. We cannot stand by and watch this injustice happen.
Then, she whispered in their ears the plan she and Professor Phillips had devised.
Although... this plan comes at a high cost.
Harry remained silent for a moment, processing what Hermione had said.
A flicker of hesitation crossed his eyes, but he quickly nodded. "Alright, I'll lend it to you. Buckbeak is innocent. If the Invisibility Cloak can help, then use it. But—"
"But what?"
"But how could we be left out of something like this? You're not planning to go on an adventure to the Ministry of Magic all by yourself, are you?"
"Yeah, right!" Ron immediately chimed in, a hint of excitement on his face. "Since it's for Buckbeak, of course we have to go together. Besides, the Invisibility Cloak can cover the three of us, right?"
Hermione shook her head, her face full of helplessness: "Harry, Ron, I understand how you feel, but the Invisibility Cloak has a limited area; it can only barely cover two people at most. Bringing both of you along will only make things more complicated."
"Then what should we do?" Ron scratched his head and said unwillingly, "Are we just going to let you go alone? That's too dangerous!"
Just then, a clear voice came from the side: "Maybe—I can help."
The three of them turned around at the same time and found Sophia leaning against the wall with a faint smile on her lips.
"Sophia?" Hermione asked, somewhat surprised. "You just heard that?"
"Of course I heard you," Sophia smiled slightly and slowly walked over. "Your voices are quite loud. Infiltrating the Ministry of Magic sounds exciting, and coincidentally—I have an invisibility cloak that I can lend you."
"What?!" Harry and Ron stared wide-eyed in disbelief. "You have an Invisibility Cloak?!"
Sophia shrugged, a hint of smugness flashing in her eyes. "That's right. It's a family heirloom, not used very often, but it'll come in handy. However," she paused, turning her gaze to Hermione, her smile deepening, "the condition is that I have to come along too."
"What?!" Hermione was stunned. "Sophia, this isn't about stealing Honeydukes' sweets from Hogsmeade, this is about infiltrating the Ministry of Magic! It's extremely dangerous!"
"I know," Sophia said casually, but with a hint of provocation in her tone, "but aren't you going too?"
I just wanted to help. Besides, it sounded interesting. The more of me there was, the higher the chances of success.
"This isn't just for fun—"
Hermione frowned, her tone revealing her disapproval.
Sofia spread her hands, smiling innocently: "You need more invisibility cloaks, don't you? Having an extra helper might help you handle emergencies better. Besides, I have experience—trust me, this isn't the first time I've done something like this."
Harry and Ron exchanged glances, weighing the pros and cons.
Ron nodded first: "She's right, Hermione. It's definitely safer with one more person."
Harry whispered, "At least two invisibility cloaks will make things much easier."
Hermione bit her lip, lost in thought for a moment, and finally sighed softly, "Alright, Sophia, you can join, but you must follow my orders. We can't afford to make any mistakes."
Sophia smiled triumphantly and nodded gently. "Don't worry, Hermione. I'm a good helper." Her tone was light, and her expression revealed undisguised excitement.
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