NOVEL NEXT Chapter 119: Chapter 119
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Chapter 94- The Spiders, Harry! The Spiders!
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"Why the hell have they arrested Hagrid? It makes no sense!" A Gryffindor student shouted, prompting a bunch of others to also pipe up in the giant's defence, all of them knowing that the man was a bit of an oaf, but he wasn't capable of doing anything evil. "If Hagrid has been arrested, then it is for a reason. The ministry clearly believes he is responsible for the petrifications, and I trust the ministry. Good riddance to him; I will not think further about it. I suggest none of you pay him another moment of time either." A surly voice calls out, Percy Weasley making his thoughts known.
Shouts and arguments spring up around the common room, but Percy just heads up the stairs, heading to bed looking forlorn and angry. The Gyfinddors in the common room continued to debate, the majority defending the friendly half-giant, but Harry was only half-listening. He didn't seem to be able to get rid of the picture of Hermione lying on the hospital bed as though carved out of stone. And if the culprit wasn't caught soon, the real culprit, because he was sure it wasn't Hagrid, he was looking at a lifetime back with the Dursleys.
"What're we going to do?" said Ron quietly in Harry's ear. "D'you think that Hagrid actually did it?" Ron says, not wanting to believe it but not being able to refute the very public arrest that had taken place.
"No, and the longer everybody thinks it is him, the longer the real criminal continues to go around free," said Harry, making up his mind. "Remember what he told me before he was taken away? He said to follow the spiders that are behind his hut, and that will prove his innocence. It won't catch the real culprit, but it will eliminate Hagrid as a suspect, and that's a start. Let's go." Harry was eager to get started, unable to sit still and do nothing after seeing Hermione in such a state.
"But McGonagall said we've got to stay in our tower unless we're in class—" Ron said, trying to be the voice of reason; with Hermione disabled, it was up to someone to do it, and surprisingly, Ron was stepping up to the table. Though just like Hermione, Ron would still go along with the recklessness that was Harry's life. "I think," said Harry, more quietly still, "it's time to get my dad's old cloak out again." And with that he rushed off up to his room, Ron running up after him.
Harry had inherited just one thing from his father: a long and silvery Invisibility Cloak. It was their only chance of sneaking out of the school to try and prove Hagrid's innocence without anyone knowing about it. They went into the room, and thankfully, Neville, Dean, and Seamus had stopped discussing the Chamber of Secrets and finally fallen asleep; the rest of the Gryfinddors were also heading to bed, the revelations of the day being too much for everyone. Not willing to waste any time, Harry started to search through his trunk for his Invisibility Cloak, his hand scraping through it until they inevitably scratched the bottom of the trunk.
"Where is it?" In his haste, Harry had forgotten that his Invisibility Cloak was missing; his top theory is that he had left it at the Dursleys in his rush to escape his uncle and jump through the window and into a flying blue car. "What're we going to do? We can't sneak out without the cloak. We'll get caught for sure." Ron says, worried but also a bit relieved that their foolish adventure was over before it began. But then, he was swiftly dragged back to reality, and the reality was that Harry Potter did not give up easily.
"It's fine. Hermione, before she... Hermione helped me learn the disillusionment spell to hide myself since I don't have the cloak. I'm sure she told me you can also put it on other people. So I'll put the charm on the both of us, and then we can go." Harry said, and knowing he would not be dissuaded, Ron agreed. Harry quickly cast the spell on the both of them, letting out a sigh of relief when it worked on Ron, and then they began their descent out of their rooms. Making sure the coast was clear and that everyone had gone to bed, both the boys quickly left the Gryffindor common room. Their next destination, Hagrid's hut and then, the spider nest behind it.
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I was currently in my office, readying myself for another night of page hunting. With Dumbledore temporarily out of the castle, who knew what Tom Riddle would be getting up to. With the strongest and oldest wizard no longer around, Tom was free to be more bold without fear of being found out or repercussions. Well, I had to make sure that that wasn't the case. I would be here to curb his actions and make sure he isn't allowed to get away with so much tonight, though I am just a single man, and I can't be everywhere. Still, I'll do my best, and knowing that I have captured so many pages, I know he won't actually be able to have a lot of possessed students out tonight.
Readying the invisible soul cage holding the Diadem to follow me, I pull out my Marauders Map (yes, I'm classifying it as mine now) and go to check the castle, but my eyes focus on my own location first and discover there is someone lying in wait just outside my classroom. Leaving the cage behind, I ready my wand and exit my office into my classroom, making sure to lock it behind me before heading towards the door of my classroom, slowly opening it and glancing out towards the left, my wand at the ready just in case. "Gemma?" I say into the empty corridor, having seen her name just outside of my classroom.
I wait in silence, nothing happening, but then the air to my left shimmers and Gemma Farley appears in my eyes, looking excited to see me. "Professor Lockhart, I am so glad to see you." She says, leaping forward and wrapping me up in a hug, my arms automatically wrapping back around her as she buries her face into the crook of my neck. "With what happened tonight... I didn't feel like being alone." She moves her hand up to behind my head, her fingers curling in my hair as she begins to kiss at the side of my neck, slowly moving up to my chin.
"Stop," I say, shoving her back, to which she looks confused and then angry for a split second, but that fades as she quickly reverts to her placid persona. "Professor? I don't understand. I thought that with what happened, we could find some comfort together." She says, being the opportunistic person she is that wants to worm her way in and get married to me and get my money, and I don't actually mind that, but I would take what I could and leave no quarter. However, the situation has changed, and I can't, in good conscience, keep this going.
"Gemma... Miss Farley, our relationship, if this can even be classified as such, is now at an end. With things the way they are at the moment in the school, I no longer have time to entertain you and must focus on the well-being of all students as well as my duties. Now go back to your house, like you were told; it is not safe right now." I say as firmly as possible, leaving no chance to argue and making my stance very clear. As much as I like Gemma and what she does for me, I can't keep it going, especially not when she could be in danger.
The fact of the matter is that Penelope Clearwater was targeted because of her connection to me, and that means Riddle has his eyes on me and the things I do, and that includes Gemma. Honestly, it would have made more sense for Riddle to go after Gemma since I had a longer relationship with her, but he went for Penelope, and I assume it is because he wanted to make a point of him watching me. His going for someone I had just started hanging around with was to point out how close and thorough his surveillance of me was, to intimidate me. But it won't, but even so, I have to stop my relationship with Gemma for her safety and perhaps all my other paramours inside the castle.
"...Okay. Then, can you escort me back to the Slytherin common room? It's not safe for me out here at night." She says, but I see right through it, having been around the sly and cunning Gemma Farley for quite a while. Even if I can't read her mind, which makes me wary in the first place, I have spent enough time in her company to know she is a gold digger; she is with me and so submissive because she wants something. I don't mind since I want something of her as well, but I am not that much of an ass to keep it going when it could result in her being harmed.
"Gemma, I am very aware of your capabilities. I don't have time for this, so go back. You can defend yourself just fine, and you were disillusioned a second ago. So leave, now. I will know if you don't return..." I say, turning my back on her and walking back into my classroom, I start closing the door. "How would you know?" She asks me, for some reason excited by the prospect. "Never you mind how." I then close the door and lock it before going back up to my office. Pulling out the Marauders Map again, I look outside my classroom and see the footsteps belonging to the obstinate girl outside my classroom.
She lingers around the area, her footprints right outside my door, either trying to unlock it and come in after me or just waiting for me to come out so she can't try again. I take the time to check over everything again and then just sit there and watch the Marauders Map, waiting for her to make a move. Soon after, Gemma retreats and heads back in the direction of the dungeons and back to the Slytherin common room. With her gone and no longer an issue for me, I can turn my attention back to the castle and who else is roaming its halls tonight when they should be asleep.
Looking around the map, I can spot a few names, ten at the most at the moment. Does that mean I have just taken enough from him that ten is the most he can bring to the table at the moment? Or is ten the most he can control at one time? Either way, it's more than usual, which shows he's being more bold with Dumbledore busy for the night. I have to go and get as many pages as I can tonight because otherwise, he is going to be able to complete a lot of his work tonight. Now, let's see who is out and about and where they are.
Hmm, that's strange. Two of the names on the map are together. It's weird because usually, the possessed are going about their business on their own, spread out to cover more ground. Never have I seen two together, which might mean what these two are up to is more important and consequential than the rest. What's even more strange is that these two names are actually leaving the castle and heading out, which I have never seen any possessed student do either. Clearly, these two deserve most of my attention, so I made the map zoom in on them so I could identify them.
Their names are... Harry James Potter and Roald Bilius Weasly. I don't understand. Has Riddle possessed both of them and used them both? And if so, why? Maybe his plan is coming to fruition, and he wants Harry there for the finale, but if that's the case, then why Ron? As a hostage? Or to kill him in front of Harry as some weird, cruel gesture? Maybe I can glean something if I deduce what their destination is. Hmm, they have left Hogwarts now and are on the grounds, and they seem to be heading for Hagrid's house, more aptly called a hut. Ah, I see. They must be following what Hagrid told them in the Great Hall.
I don't know if Hagrid was trying to whisper that, but the man is anything but subtle, and he said it loudly enough that everybody in the room heard, but most everybody wrote it off as a madman's rabble. Still, that message to follow the spiders was undoubtedly aimed at Harry, and the boy seems to have taken the advice to heart and gone as soon as possible. That's fine, and if all goes as it did originally, then he will have to run away, but he will be fine. Harry and Ron will go into the Acromantula nest and find Aragog. Say Hagrid sent them, and then Harry will ask Aragog about what happened fifty years ago- no, that's not right.
Harry won't know Aragog's name, let alone that Aragog used to be Hagrid's pet, and since he never had the Diary, Harry won't know about what happened fifty years ago and won't have anything to question Aragog on, which means the Acromantula's will just get straight to feasting on Harry and Ron's flesh. Shit. Without wasting any time, I quickly took the Marauders Map away and left the soul cage behind, running out of my office and classroom and making sure to lock both behind me before sporting to the staircase to try and get down there and chase after them to stop them from becoming spider chow.
Did they have to do this tonight? Because now I'll have to save them instead of stopping whatever Riddle has planned for tonight.
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It was a difficult journey through the castle, dodging all the teachers on patrol, but they managed to reach the Entrance Hall and step out onto the moonlit grounds, walking forward together in silence, neither really in the mood to talk. Harry was sombre, and Ron was nervous. They reached Hagrid's house, sad and sorry-looking with its blank windows. Harry could only look at it for a moment before looking away and moving towards the back of the house, remembering Hargid talking about the nest being behind his hut, and that's where answers would be.
Harry took out his wand and murmured, "Lumos!" and a tiny light appeared at the end of it, just enough to let them watch the path for signs of spiders. "'Good thinking," said Ron. "I'd light mine too, but you know... it'd probably blow up or something" Harry ignored Ron's muttering, instead pointing his wand at the grass where two solitary spiders were hurrying away from the wand light into the shade of the trees. "Looks like they are heading for the Forbidden Forest. That's probably where the nest Hagrid was talking about is." Ron was very clearly unhappy with this information, but there was nothing he could do.
"Okay." Ron sighed, as though resigned to the worst, "I'm ready. Let's get on with it." And with that, they entered the forest. By the glow of Harry's wand, they followed the small trail of spiders moving along the path, or what passes for a path in the Forbidden Forest. They walked for an indeterminable amount of time, not speaking, listening hard for noises other than breaking twigs and rustling leaves, both of their nerves fraying. Then, when the trees had become thicker than ever so that the stars overhead could no longer be seen, and Harry's wand was the only source of light in the sea of dark, they saw their spider guides leaving the path, heading for the dark depths of the forest.
Harry paused, trying to see where the spiders were going, but everything outside his little sphere of light was pitch black. He had never been this deep into the forest before. He could vividly remember Hagrid advising him not to leave the Forest path the last time he'd been in here. But Hagrid was miles away now, probably sitting in a cell in Azkaban, and he had also said to follow the spiders. "The spiders are leaving the path", Harry said to Ron, whose eyes he could just make out, reflecting the light from his wand. "Then I suppose we best follow them then," said Ron. So they followed the darting shadows of the spiders into the trees.
They couldn't move very quickly now; there were tree roots and stumps in their way, barely visible in the near blackness. More than once, they had to stop as they lost sight of the spiders, having to crouch down and find the spiders in the wandlight. They walked for what seemed like forever, their robes snagging on low-slung branches and brambles. After a while, they noticed that the ground seemed to be sloping downwards, though the trees were as thick as ever. And then there was a sound that breached the eerie silence of the forest. "What was that?" said Ron loudly, looking around into the pitch dark and gripping Harry's elbow very hard.
"There's something moving over there," Harry breathed. "Listen. It sounds like something big." Some distance to their right, something big was snapping branches, carving a path through the trees and heading in their direction. "Oh no," Ron began to panic. "Oh no, oh no, oh –" Harry quickly clamped his palm over Ron's mouth, but the boy just slapped it away. "Shut up," said Harry frantically. "It'll hear you." Ron looked at Harry like he was crazy.
"Hear me?' said Ron in an unnaturally high voice. "It can probably smell me!"
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It was my last week of uni, and now I am free! Dobby is a free elf! Or so I thought until I found out there was an assignment due during the holiday, which ruined my mood. Oh well, what can you do? I at least have some free time now. I'm gonna try to continue my other stories as well now. I know you guys don't really care about my YouTube and Twitch, but right now, I am playing God of War Ragnarok, which is awesome. Seriously, loving it. If that interests you, follow the link below. Anyway, thanks for reading; also we are now out of Hogwarts on the pat.
Upcoming Chapters:
Hero: Chapter 95- Salvation Incoming!
Super: Chapter 97- It Was Me, ***!
Legendary: Chapter 99- The Suicide Squad!
Galactic: Chapter 103- Freedom At Last!
Mythic: Chapter 104- Back in Business!
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