Chapter 22: New Victims
The first Quidditch match on Saturday seemed to dilute the impact of the Halloween night attack. The whole school focused on this match, Slytherin vs. Gryffindor.
Eleven o'clock approached, and the whole school began to make their way to the Quidditch Stadium. It was a hot and humid day, and there was a faint sound of thunder in the air. Phoenix came over to wish Draco good luck before he walked into the locker room, or at least he looked confident.
When they came out to the arena, they were greeted by a boo, and Phoenix has been trying to get the four houses to reduce conflict and confrontation, but it has not had much effect.
Mrs. Hodge whistled, and the fourteen members of the team jumped into the lead-gray sky together. Harry flew taller than all the team members, squinting and looking around, looking for the Golden Snitch.
At the beginning, a heavy black Bludger flew towards Harry, narrowly narrowly dodging it, with the Gryffindors exclaiming and the Slytherins booing.
The Bludger just didn't seem to let Harry go, no matter how hard the Weasley twins hit it elsewhere.
It started to rain, and commentator Lee Jordan said, "Slytherin leads, sixty-forty. β
Apparently, the Slytherins' super broomsticks worked, while the crazy Bludger did everything in its power to knock Harry out of the air. Fred and George were now flying right and left close to Harry, leaving Harry with no hope of finding the Golden Snitch and catching it.
Mrs. Hodge's whistle blew, and both teams fell to the ground. Gryffindor and Slytherin were in the stands, insulting each other, with Gryffindor believing that they had done something to the Bludger to kill Harry, and Slytherin believing that the Gryffindor team's broomsticks were too broken because they were slow to fly.
Now it's raining harder. The Gryffindor team seemed to have an argument during the timeout. But in the end, the game resumed.
As soon as Mrs. Hodge's whistle blew, the game resumed. Harry rose higher and higher, turning and turning, spinning, turning sharply, spiraling upwards, and then going around and around, taking a zigzag route. He was slightly dizzy, but still kept his eyes wide open. As Harry hung headfirst to dodge another ferocious attack from Bludger, the rain ran into his nostrils. There was a burst of laughter from the crowd, and he began to fly around the edge of the arena like a ring pulley.
"If only Draco could focus on finding the Golden Snitch instead of laughing at Harry. Now we have won the game. Phoenix noticed a tiny flash of light flickering above Draco's head.
"Then why don't you join the team?" Melinda didn't take his words to heart.
"I've added quite a few points to the class for Slytherin House to give me a breather. β
"No, I don't think so. Melinda scoffed.
"You can come to my bed at night and try it. Melinda blushed and pretended not to hear, and continued to cheer for the Slytherins.
Harry eventually lunged at Draco to catch the snitch, and Slytherin lost by two goals. After the match, Flint yelled at Draco for not seeing the golden snitch overhead, and laughed at Harry.
"I think Draco would be a little happier at the news. "Phoenix saw Lockhart next to Harry treating his arm.
"This idiot teacher is probably going to take Potter's arm off. Bress saw the scene as well.
As it turned out, he had removed all the bones from Harry's arm, and Madam Pomfrey wouldn't be happy. The Hogwarts school doctor is the best wizarding school in the world, which has a lot to do with Headmaster Derwent, as she was a healer at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Injuries and Injuries before becoming Hogwarts Headmaster.
Everyone who can become a Hogwarts doctor is no ordinary healer.
That evening, Phoenix went to Professor Dumbledore with a few questions about his dissertation. In front of a gigantic stone monster that was so ugly, Phoenix uttered the password Professor Snape had told him: "Chilled lemon juice!"
I saw that the monster suddenly came to life and jumped to the side, and the wall behind it cracked in half. Behind the wall is a spiral staircase, which is slowly moving upwards, like an escalator. He swirled higher and higher, higher and higher, and finally, standing on a gleaming oak door, topped by a brass knocker in the shape of a sphin-headed embogriff.
Phoenix knocked, and the door opened silently, and he walked in. Professor Dumbledore wasn't there, and he looked around. Dumbledore's office was very distinctive, a spacious, beautiful circular room filled with all sorts of funny little voices. On the table with slender legs, there were many strange silverwares, spinning and belching small puffs of smoke.
The walls are covered with portraits of the old headmasters, all of whom are snoring softly in their frames. There is also a huge table in the room with claw-shaped legs. On a tall gilded perch behind the door, stood an old phoenix, its eyes dull.
"Good evening, Phoenix. Find me if you have questions. Dumbledore returned a moment later, looking at the parchment in his hand.
"Good evening, Professor Dumbledore. Yes. Dumbledore gestured to sit down in the chair in front of the table. The portraits of the principals suddenly became sleepy, and Phineas was the happiest, waving to Phoenix.
"About Transfiguration--Magical Objects and Magical Creatures--Animagus---" Phoenix does have a lot of questions to ask. Professor Dumbledore always had a few seemingly simple examples to explain, and of course there were many questions that Phoenix didn't get answers.
For example, the transformation of Animagus into a magical creature will bring unpredictable consequences, but what exactly will be the consequences, Dumbledore could not answer such a question, because only in ancient times did anyone in the wizarding world try to become a magical creature, and they only left the future generations with the word "unpredictable consequences".
"Thank you, Professor Dumbledore. I won't disturb your rest. After asking the question, Phoenix chatted with Dumbledore before getting up to leave.
"Nothing, I hope it helps your paper. I'm just going downstairs to get a hot cocoa and let's go. Dumbledore stopped talking, opened his mouth, and before he could say anything, he got up and went downstairs with Phoenix.
As soon as they got downstairs, they ran into Professor McGonagall.
"Albus, there's another attack, just-" Professor McGonagall pointed to the staircase around the corner, and Dumbledore hurried over.
It was Colin's photogenic Gryffindor freshman, with a bunch of grapes next to it. Dumbledore and Phoenix lifted him up and walked towards the hospital hospital, where Professor McGonagall went to inform Madam Pomfrey first.
They arrive at the hospital hospital, where Madam Pomfrey puts on a jacket and Professor McGonagall helps put Colin on the hospital bed.
"What's going on?" Madam Pomfrey asked Dumbledore in a whisper, leaning over to examine the statue.
"Another attack," Dumbledore said, "McGonagall found him on the stairs. β
"He's got a bunch of grapes with him," Professor McGonagall said, "and we guess he wanted to sneak out here to see Potter." β
"Petrified?" asked Madam Pomfrey in a whisper.
"Yes," said Professor McGonagall, "I shudder when I think about it, and who knows what would have happened if Albus hadn't happened to come downstairs to serve hot chocolate and go downstairs with Phoenix." Dumbledore leaned forward and pulled the camera from between Colin's stiff fingers.
"Could he have taken a picture of the attacker?" Professor McGonagall asked eagerly. Dumbledore didn't answer. He pried open the back cover of the camera.
"OMG!" Madam Pomfrey exclaimed.
A hot breath sizzled out of the camera. A pungent smell of burning plastic. "Melted," said Madam Pomfrey, surprised, "it's all meltedβ"
"What does that mean, Albus?" Professor McGonagall asked urgently.
"This means," said Dumbledore, "that the Chamber of Secrets has indeed been opened again. β
It had happened before, and it seemed that Voldemort couldn't have been left untouched by what his ancestors had left behind.
"I'll take you back to the Slytherin common room myself. Phoenix followed Professor McGonagall out of the infirmary.