Old Blood at Hogwarts

The Gryffindor common room has never looked so crowded and silent.Everyone already knew about Ginny, and almost no one thought the poor girl was still alive.

Harry, Hermione, Ron, Fred and George sat in a corner of the Gryffindor common room, none of them saying a word.While Percy was away, he sent an owl to deliver a message to Mrs. Weasley, and then locked himself in the dormitory.The Gryffindors around them were in a sad mood and felt sorry for the Weasley brothers.

When the sun was about to set, Fred and George couldn't sit still any longer, so they went back to the dormitory to sleep.

Aaron saw the sun as red as blood, gradually sinking below the horizon.He had never felt so sad, partly because of what had happened to Ginny, and partly because Professor McGonagall had said in the staff room that the school would be closed.If the school is really closed, Aaron will have no choice but to go back to the orphanage, but he doesn't want to go back.This year in school was the happiest year in Aaron's life.He didn't want to lose this life, but he didn't know what to do.After all, he is still just an 11-year-old kid.

Just then, he heard Ron say to Harry and Hermione: "She must know something, so she was taken away."

This was the first time Ron spoke since he knew Ginny had been captured.

"It has nothing to do with the stupid things Percy did. She must have discovered something related to the Chamber of Secrets. That must be the case, so she would..." Ron rubbed his eyes desperately, "I mean , she is a pure-blood, and it was not her turn. There can be no other reason."

"Harry, Hermione." Ron said, "Tell me, maybe she hasn't... you know..."

Everyone understood that Ron meant to ask if Ginny might not be dead yet, but neither Harry nor Hermione answered.

"What do you think?" Ron said, "I think we should go find Lockhart and tell him what we know. Isn't he planning to enter the Chamber of Secrets? We can tell him where the Chamber of Secrets is."

Perhaps out of concern for their friends, or perhaps for psychological comfort, Harry and Hermione agreed to Ron's proposal.Then they got up, crossed the room, and emerged through the portrait hole.

Looking at the backs of Harry, Hermione and Ron, Aaron felt that he should do something instead of just sitting like this.

If Ginny could be rescued or the murderer who opened the secret room could be caught, the school would probably not be closed.With this thought in mind, Aaron stood up from his seat and chased Harry, Hermione and Ron out of the common room.

Aaron caught up with Harry, Hermione and Ron in the corridor, stopped them and said, "Wait a minute."

"What's the matter, Aaron?" Harry asked.

"I heard your conversation in the lounge," Aaron said. "I'd love to go with you if I could."

What happened today was enough for Aaron to confirm that Harry was not the one who opened the secret room.The real murderer would never intentionally reveal the entrance to the secret room to others.Therefore, Aaron can act with him with confidence.

Harry, Hermione, and Ron looked at each other, and then said to Aaron: "Come together."

Night had fallen by the time they descended to Lockhart's office.There seems to be a lot of movement in the office.They could hear scraping, bumping, and hurried footsteps.

Harry knocked on the door and it suddenly fell silent.Then the door opened a tiny crack, and they saw one of Lockhart's eyes peering out.

"Oh... Mr. Potter... Mr. Weasley... Miss Granger... and Mr. Elf." He said, opening the door a little wider. "I'm busy now. I hope you have Talk quickly..."

"Professor, we have something to tell you," Harry said. "We think it will be of some help to you."

"Well... that's it... it's not really..." Aaron saw that this half of Lockhart's face looked very nervous, "I mean... ugh... okay."

He opened the door and let Aaron and the others in.

His office was almost completely emptied.Two large suitcases lay open on the floor.Clothes of every color, emerald green, lavender, dark blue, were piled haphazardly in one of the suitcases.All kinds of books are piled up in another suitcase.Those photos that used to hang on the wall were stuffed into a cardboard box on the table.

"Where are you going?" Harry asked.

"Well, yes, yes." Lockhart said as he tore off a life-size poster of himself from behind the door and rolled it up. "An urgent notice has been received...there is no way to avoid it. ...had to go..."

"So what about my sister?" Ron asked impulsively.

"Ah, as for that matter... it's so unfortunate." Lockhart said, averting his eyes, he forcefully opened a drawer and put the contents into a large bag. "No one feels it more than I do." It’s a pity…”

"You are the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher!" Hermione said, "You can't leave now! There are so many evil things here!"

"Well, well, how should I put it... when I accepted this position..." Lockhart muttered vaguely, while piling socks on top of the clothes in the box, "the work regulations did not include... I did not expect……"

"You mean you're going to run away?" Hermione said in disbelief, "But you've written so many amazing books?"

"Books can be deceiving," said Lockhart slyly.

"You wrote it!" Hermione shouted.

"My dear boy," Lockhart straightened up and looked at Hermione with a frown, "use your common sense and think about it. If people don't think that I did those things, the sales of the book will be far worse. La. Readers won't want to read about an ugly old American wizard who saved a village from the scourge of werewolves. Put his picture on the cover and it wouldn't look bad. He wears clothes. There's no taste at all. And the witch who exorcised all the female ghosts, she's a mouthful! I mean, think about it..."

"So you just charge everything that others do to your own account?" Hermione asked in disbelief.

"Miss Granger, things are not as simple as you said." Lockhart shook his head impatiently and said, "I have a lot of work. I want to track down these people and ask them how they can do it. Those who do those things. And then I'm going to cast a Forgetting Charm on them so they'll forget all about it. If there's anything I'm proud of, it's my Forgetting Charm. You You know, Harry, I have to put in a lot of hard work, too. You know, it's not just book signings and celebrity photos. If you want to be famous, you have to be prepared to work hard for a long time."

He ping-pong put the lid on the trunk and locked it.

"Let me see, everything is packed," Lockhart said. "Oh, by the way, I forgot one thing."

He drew his wand and turned to Aaron, Harry, Hermione and Ron.

"I'm sincerely sorry, children, I have to cast a forgetting spell on you. I can't let you spread my secret everywhere. Otherwise, I won't be able to sell my books..."

Harry drew his wand just in time.But Aaron moved faster than him. As soon as Lockhart raised his wand, Aaron yelled: "Expelliarmus!"

Lockhart was knocked back a few steps and fell onto his suitcase.His wand flew high into the air, caught by Ron, and tossed out of the open window.

"You liar! Stand up!" Harry said angrily, kicking Lockhart's trunk aside.Luo Hat looked up at him, looking even more skinny and haggard.

"What do you want from me?" said Lockhart weakly. "I don't know where the Chamber of Secrets is. There's nothing I can do."

"You're lucky," said Harry, pointing his wand at Lockhart and forcing him to stand up. "We happen to know where the Chamber of Secrets is. Let's go."

Aaron, Harry, Hermione and Ron escorted Lockhart out of his office, went down the nearest staircase, walked through the dim corridor with the words flashing on the wall, and arrived at the door of the girls' bathroom on the second floor.They sent Lockhart ahead, and Aaron was shaking with fear when he saw him.

They came to the dragon head engraved with a snake, and Hermione said: "How should we open it now? I think there must be some mechanism here."

"Harry," said Ron, "try speaking a few words in Parseltongue."

Harry seemed a little embarrassed. He stared at the snake engraved on the faucet for a long time, and then said: "Open it."

Hermione immediately pointed out his mistake: "No, Harry. You are speaking humanly."

Harry turned his head and looked at the snake again, and remained silent for a long time.Just when everyone was getting impatient, a strange hissing sound suddenly came from his mouth.

As soon as the voice left Harry's mouth, the faucet emitted a dazzling white light and began to spin rapidly.Then, the pool started to move.Aaron watched as the pool slowly disappeared from sight, revealing a thick water pipe that could accommodate a person.Hermione and Ron both gasped.

Harry raised his head and said firmly: "I want to go down."

Ron said: "I'll go too."

"I'll go with you." This was Hermione's voice.

"Then let's all go down together." Aaron finally said.

A moment of silence.

"Well, it seems you don't need me anymore." Lockhart said on the side, with his usual smile on his face again, "I will..."

He reached for the doorknob, but Aaron, Hermione, Ron and Harry all had their wands pointed at him.

"You go down first!" Ron shouted.

Lockhart, who had lost his wand, turned pale and walked slowly towards the entrance of the cave.

"Children," he said pitifully, "Children, what's the use of this?"

Harry poked him in the back with his wand, and Lockhart thrust his legs through the pipe.

"I really don't think this is..." He wanted to continue, but Ron pushed him and he suddenly slipped down and was out of sight.

Harry followed closely and slowly got into the pipe, then let go and let himself slide down.Ron and Hermione followed Harry and got into the pipe one after another.Finally, Aaron also got into the pipe.