Not long ago, Ron had told Ginny the reason why Professor Snape had been targeting her all along.
This made Ginny realize once again that the Valentine's Day gift she had courageously given to Harry had caused him quite a bit of trouble.
Because of this, she felt she should make amends and help Harry escape from his troubles.
Obviously, Colin Creevey, a first-year like herself, was undoubtedly a source of trouble for Harry.
After finally pulling Colin away from the crowd, the latter said angrily to Ginny.
"Weasley, what right do you have to keep me away from Harry!"
"I already told you, your behavior makes Harry feel very troubled!"
"Then why can she?"
"Who are you talking about?"
Ginny whirled around.
She saw Cho Chang, a third-year Ravenclaw student, talking to Harry with tears in her eyes.
Ginny: Σ(っ°Д°;)っ
Taking advantage of Ginny's moment of distraction, Colin broke free from her restraint and rushed toward Harry again.
Ginny was furious and immediately chased after him. "Stop! Stop right there!"
Seeing Colin being dragged away by Ginny, Harry finally breathed a long sigh of relief.
For a moment, he even had a dark thought—if only Colin could wait until the end of this year to recover from his petrification.
"Are you having some trouble?"
Just then, a pleasant voice spoke up. Harry turned to look and suddenly felt his eyes light up.
Perhaps it was because they hadn't seen each other for a long time, or perhaps it was the contrast after just recovering from petrification, but Harry noticed that Cho Chang was more beautiful than before.
"It's nothing serious. That's wonderful, Cho, congratulations on your recovery!"
"I have you to thank for that, Harry."
"Actually, I only did some trivial things. It was mainly thanks to Sherlock..."
"Then please thank him for me as well."
"Ah?"
Harry hadn't expected Cho Chang to respond this way and was momentarily stunned.
Seeing Harry's expression, Cho Chang laughed and pointed behind her.
"Luna and I came with Penelope. Penelope went to find Percy—you know about their relationship. Luna went to find Sherlock...
Just now, a Hufflepuff boy named Ernie found me. He said he had always misunderstood you before, but the moment I was also petrified, he knew you were wrongly accused... because he knew..." She reached out and took Harry's hand, "he said... you would never hurt me."
Harry noticed that when Cho Chang said this, not only her eyes but also her face turned slightly red.
Then, with his hand being held by Cho Chang, he turned red too.
That thought he'd had earlier was truly damnable, the petrified people should have woken up sooner.
Just as he was about to say something, a black shadow rushed over again.
"Harry, I still have things to tell you!"
Oh, if only people's constitutions could differ, one could wake up earlier, another later...
"Stop right there!"
Just then, Ginny chased Colin to Harry's side.
"Sorry, Harry, I couldn't hold him back." Her eyes swept over Harry and Cho Chang's joined hands. "I hope I didn't interrupt anything?"
Cho Chang quickly let go of Harry's hand.
"Hello, I'm Ginny, Ginny Weasley."
Except when facing Harry, Ginny was quite outgoing at other times.
Now she actively extended her hand toward Cho Chang and introduced herself.
Cho Chang looked at Ginny carefully for a moment, then extended her hand to shake hers.
"Ravenclaw, Cho Chang, third year. You can call me Cho."
Although it looked like a very friendly scene, Harry somehow felt that these two girls seemed rather strange.
Colin, completely oblivious to the atmosphere, continued displaying his fanatical devotion to Harry.
He took out his camera and first photographed Harry with Cho Chang, then Harry with Ginny, then had Harry pose for a group photo with Cho Chang and Ginny...
He was busy as could be. However, his presence inadvertently eased the strange atmosphere between Cho Chang and Ginny.
Watching Harry surrounded by Cho Chang, Ginny, and Colin, Ron kept shaking his head from a distance.
Being surrounded by Cho Chang and Ginny was one thing, but what was up with Colin, a boy?
Thinking this, he felt that whether to help his friend or his sister, he should pull Colin away.
But seeing Colin's excited state, even more fanatical than the two girls Cho Chang and Ginny, Ron instinctively wanted to find Sherlock for help.
With his help, dealing with Colin would be a piece of cake.
"Sher—"
However, just as he turned his head, he discovered that Sherlock had disappeared!
"Where is he?"
He looked around in surprise.
"Are you looking for Sherlock?" Fred asked.
"He's over there!" George pointed in a direction.
Ron immediately turned to look.
Then he discovered that Sherlock was receiving the same treatment as Harry, surrounded by three people in the middle.
Unlike Harry, though, all three people surrounding Sherlock were girls.
Ron: Σ(っ°Д°;)っ
"Who's the girl standing next to Hermione and Gemma?"
"You actually know Gemma Farley?" Fred was somewhat surprised. "She's a Slytherin prefect!"
"I know. I'm asking about the other girl, the one with the silvery-blonde hair!"
"That's Luna Lovegood, a first-year Ravenclaw," George shrugged. "She just came over with Ravenclaw's Cho Chang and Clearwater!"
"Luna Lovegood?"
Ron had never heard this name before.
However, looking at Sherlock surrounded by three girls, then at Harry surrounded by two girls and one boy, he couldn't help feeling lonely and cold.
For a moment, he suddenly felt he shouldn't be here. 'Maybe I should just go find Myrtle?'
Sherlock, surrounded by three girls, was obviously much more composed than Harry.
In fact, before Gemma and Luna arrived, Hermione had been pulling at him and complaining.
"Sherlock, don't you think the school's decision to cancel final exams was too hasty?
Without final reviews, there will be gaps in knowledge continuity next year..."
Sherlock, however, didn't care about this.
"Hermione, don't worry about exams at a celebration feast...
The basilisk's body has already been taken away by Professor Sprout and Professor Snape.
I was just planning to discuss with them—after all, the tool used to kill the basilisk was bought with your money and brought into the Chamber by me.
The basilisk's body is full of treasures. They can't give us no compensation at all, right?"
"That sort of thing doesn't matter! The professors will handle it properly. I still think about the exams—"
"Hermione, forgive me for being direct, but exams are merely a means, not an end."
"But..."
"Taking exams for the sake of exams is meaningless."
"Alright, but speaking of the tape recorder, there's something I've been wanting to ask you..."
"Are you wondering what would happen if the rooster's crow played by the tape recorder didn't work on the basilisk?"
"Yes, yes, yes! That's exactly what I wanted to ask!"
"It doesn't matter. Professor Dumbledore actually brought two roosters as well."
"...That's so like you."
The two chatted for a few more moments, just as Hermione was getting into the conversation.
"Congratulations on winning the House Cup again, Mr. Sherlock, Miss Granger!"
With this voice, Gemma Farley appeared before them and greeted them.
Sherlock wasn't surprised by Gemma's sudden appearance. "Thank you."
Hermione was also very friendly. "Just call me Hermione, Miss Farley."
"Alright, and please call me Gemma."
"Miss Gemma, congratulating others on winning the House Cup doesn't sound like something a Slytherin who values honor would say," Hermione looked toward the Slytherin section, "they look quite unhappy."
"As I've said before, when you're outmatched, there's no need to be ashamed to admit it."
Gemma withdrew her contemptuous gaze and smiled gracefully at the two, raising her glass elegantly.
"After all, I contributed to Sherlock's solving of the Chamber mystery. What do you say, won't you have a drink with me?"
Hermione was momentarily stunned by these words.
Looking at Sherlock, who had already raised his glass, she decisively followed suit.
"Cheers!"
The crisp sound of clinking glasses rang through the air.
As the three clinked glasses, both Hermione's and Gemma's hair gently swayed with the movement, and the joyful atmosphere spread like the fragrance of butterbeer.
Gemma put down her glass, her blue eyes, full of curiosity, curved into crescents with a mischievous gleam, her hair sliding over her shoulder as she tilted her head.
"To be honest, I don't believe the whole thing was as simple as the headmaster described.
Sherlock, compared to last year's Philosopher's Stone incident, this year's battle with the basilisk was probably more dangerous, wasn't it?"
"Actually, this year's battle was really easier than last year's."
Sherlock's fingers still maintained their glass-holding position, his gray eyes showing a composure beyond his years.
"Finding the Philosopher's Stone required solving several puzzles, while the basilisk, though seemingly powerful, had its weakness clearly written in textbooks.
The moment it heard the rooster's crow, its fate was sealed."
"That may be so, but making various preparations targeting its weakness wasn't a simple matter."
Gemma suddenly leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand, her eyes sparkling with mischief.
"Hermione, as the object of heroic rescue, I imagine you must have been very excited when you saw Sherlock in the Chamber, right?"
More than excited?
Even now, Hermione hadn't told Sherlock how she felt in that moment.
For Hermione Granger, now fourteen years old, after this Chamber incident, Sherlock Holmes had become a special existence.
Only she knew how fear had engulfed her like a tide when the shadow of the Chamber enveloped her entire being.
Two years ago, on Halloween when encountering the troll, she was just a panicked new student, huddled in a corner awaiting fate's judgment.
That time, Sherlock's appearance was like a ray of light cutting through darkness, illuminating her world of despair.
Only at that time, she was still young and didn't even realize the significance of this event for herself.
Until this time.
They say plans can't keep up with changes, but Hermione never imagined that when the school was protected by the rooster guard, Voldemort would pull such a drastic move.
Instead of attacking students, he directly kidnapped her to the Chamber.
For Hermione, that smiling face disguised as her idol Lockhart was more terrifying than the basilisk or even Voldemort himself.
That's why she seized the opportunity to strike decisively, only to be countered.
At that moment, she thought she would meet a more horrible fate than those petrified classmates.
Without exaggeration, she had almost felt the breath of death.
At this crucial moment, Sherlock appeared once again.
Two rescues, and Sherlock always appeared so composed, always spoke in that calm, almost arrogant tone, yet became her only light in her most desperate moments.
Sherlock had said more than once not to turn people into heroes, and even if they existed, he wasn't among them.
But Hermione no longer thought so.
Some heroes don't need to wear cloaks—as long as their weapons always point toward darkness.
For Hermione now, Sherlock had become the hero in her heart who would come to save her whenever she cried out.
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