Professor McGonagall looked at the staircase railing above her, knowing that behind her was the boy named Tom. She vividly remembered the moment she received him three years ago, and if someone had told her back then what this boy would be like after three years, she would have thought that person was crazy.
But who would have imagined that in just three years, he would become a trustworthy wizard? Professor McGonagall even felt some regret: why wasn't such a talented wizard in Gryffindor?
Tom behaved like a Gryffindor prefect! Filius had truly found great talent.
With mixed feelings, Professor McGonagall watched as the young wizards formed a long line towards the Great Hall. She knew it wasn't the time to lament the appearance of young talents in every generation; she had more pressing matters to attend to.
Standing on the staircase, she drew her wand, and from its tip sprang four silver cats, with eyes surrounded by glasses frames. The four silver Patronuses surrounded Professor McGonagall, bathing the staircase in a silvery glow. The cats brushed against the hem of Professor McGonagall's robes before running upstairs, disappearing one by one.
Three of them dispersed throughout Hogwarts, while the last one ran straight out of the school and vanished into the falling darkness. The remaining three Patronuses found the other three Heads of Houses in different parts of the castle, so when the young Gryffindor wizards had barely entered the Great Hall, the students of Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin also entered with expressions of bewilderment.
The fourth Patronus, on the other hand, ran to Dumbledore. Before leaving Hogwarts, he had told Professor McGonagall where he was going so that she could contact him in case of an emergency.
As she watched the Patronus dissipate into the air, Dumbledore's mind continued to dwell on the news he had just heard. Two figures lay before him, with their heads opened, revealing the roots of their brains inside.
Dumbledore had been dealing with the aftermath of the Illusory Dream Flower for some time. The flower itself had been destroyed, but the infected individuals remained, and the seeds left in their heads were sprouting, so Dumbledore was working to rid them of it before it caused more harm.
Fortunately, after several days of effort, he and the man named Evans had eliminated all the infected ones, and these two people were the last remnants.
"Sirius Black..." a young, handsome, and carefree face came to Dumbledore's mind. Dumbledore was impressed by the student from the Black family who had been sorted into Gryffindor. As he remembered this student, his expression became complicated.
Dumbledore shook his robes abruptly and appeared on the main street of the village of Hogsmeade. Fortunately, it was already evening, and no one noticed the presence of the Hogwarts headmaster in that place.
He quickened his pace and headed straight for Hogwarts Castle.
After the four Heads of Houses settled their respective house students, Dumbledore entered the Great Hall. When Dumbledore stood in front of the teacher's platform, Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick closed the doors of the Great Hall.
"The professors and I will conduct a thorough search of the castle," Dumbledore said, looking at all the students and outlining his response measures. "I'm very sorry, children, but you'll have to spend the night here."
He waved his wand, and the four long tables flew to the edges of the Great Hall, while hundreds of purple sleeping bags appeared on the floor.
"I hope the prefects can guard the entrance to the Great Hall. The Prefects will handle the administration instead of the professors. Any suspicious movement, inform me immediately through the ghosts." He looked at Percy, who was standing to the side.
Under normal circumstances, Percy, being entrusted with an important task, would have shown a proud and serious attitude. However, today he only nodded seriously, indicating that he had received the orders.
He had been reflecting all the time: how could he have behaved so clumsily at the Common Room entrance? He was completely overshadowed by two younger students. He reviewed his performance and felt like a mediocre clown. After analyzing it, he realized that even if the two young students hadn't appeared, his behavior wouldn't have been appropriate.
'It's time to reflect on it! Since becoming a Prefect, I've become a bit impatient,' Percy thought. He decided he would have to step up and live up to Professor Dumbledore's expectations at the Great Hall vigil.
Dumbledore had no idea about Percy's inner thoughts; he simply thought the boy seemed calmer today. He descended from the teacher's platform along with the rest of the staff and headed toward the exit of the Great Hall. As he passed through the territory of Ravenclaw, he remembered something and stopped.
"An excellent answer, an impressive amplification charm. Ravenclaw earns twenty points," he winked at Tom and Hermione, then left the Great Hall and slammed the doors shut.
Once the doors closed, there were excited whispers in the Great Hall. The young Gryffindor wizards quickly told their friends from other houses what they had witnessed, while the Slytherin wizards perked up their ears to listen attentively.
"Tom, tell us what happened." Some young Ravenclaw wizards also approached. They weren't willing to listen to rumors that had passed through many hands in Gryffindor. They knew that at that moment, it was Tom Yodel who had stood up and managed the situation.
"I'm embarrassed to say that I only made a small, insignificant contribution," Tom began modestly, then recounted to his Housemates what had happened in detail.
At that moment, Percy's voice urged everyone to get into their sleeping bags and go to sleep from the teacher's platform. Tom took the opportunity to escape the crowd and grab a sleeping bag, running to a corner.
Seeing Hermione, who also held a sleeping bag, Tom gestured for her to put it next to his.
"Do you think Blake is still in the castle? Will Professor Dumbledore and the others catch him?" Hermione had felt a bit anxious but couldn't show it. Now that they had the chance to be alone, she quickly asked the two most important questions that were bothering her.
"I think he probably has already left the castle. I don't have much confidence in Professor Dumbledore's actions," Tom analyzed, sharing his conclusion.
After Sirius's plan to enter the Gryffindor Common Room had failed, he knew that, being sought after, he had to withdraw quickly to avoid being captured by the professors heading there. Otherwise, he could never seek revenge in his life. Moreover, as someone who had escaped from Azkaban, how could the professors find him?
It had been a long time since the incident and the search, and Sirius only needed to hide in the Forbidden Forest where no one could find him.
Hearing Tom's response, Hermione felt even more anxious.
"And now what do we do? I mean, fortunately, he chose tonight's dinner hour; there are no students in the Gryffindor Tower. But if... I mean, in case he goes in there and encounters students, there could be a tragedy. Someone could die!" Hermione spoke quickly but quietly, with a tone of concern.
Tom shook his head. "I think he deliberately chose this moment when no one is around."
Tom knew that Sirius's mind was clear. As a Gryffindor, how could he not know that a password is required to enter the Gryffindor Common Room? Therefore, his somewhat reckless and crazy act had one purpose: to scare the mouse.
Sirius was not willing to resolve their dispute in the small wizards' dormitories, so he could only find a way to get Peter out of the dormitories. He needed to perform an action flashy enough to disturb Peter Pettigrew and make him panic. He wanted him to know that he had infiltrated Hogwarts.
This way, Peter Pettigrew would choose to flee; he knew that it wouldn't be too difficult for Sirius to obtain the password. Once Peter had escaped the dormitory, Sirius could strike.
But with the lack of information, not even Hermione could guess what was going on. Upon hearing Tom's supposition, she opened her eyes in surprise and said quietly, lowering her volume even more so that only Tom, who was nearby, could hear: "But that doesn't make sense, he wouldn't..." Then, she whispered again, in an even lower voice: "Is he going... after Harry?"
Although she didn't understand the fundamental reason behind the events, most of the young wizards believed that Sirius's escape was to avenge his master, Lord Voldemort.
"No, if Sirius Black wanted to take revenge on Harry, he would have found a way to escape a long time ago. Why wait twelve years? There's definitely a hidden motive behind this," Tom replied.
But Hermione didn't easily accept his explanation. It seemed too forced to her, and without much thought, she offered another explanation, "Maybe he was preparing to escape during those twelve years."
At that moment, a comment drifted from a distance: "... it seems he has no sense of time anymore. Otherwise, he would have burst into the Great Hall..."
Hermione shuddered.
Tom sensed Hermione's fear, so he rearranged their sleeping bags, placing Hermione's against the wall.
"You can sleep there," Tom said.
Hermione remained still for a moment, pursed her lips, and intertwined her fingers, fidgeting with them. After thinking for a moment, she chose to accept Tom's kind offer.
"Thank you," she said as she removed her shoes and placed them aside. She then climbed into the sleeping bag, zipping it up snugly, leaving only her head outside.
At that moment, the nearby companions were also chatting with their friends, all wondering how Sirius Black had managed to get in.
The answers varied. Some said Sirius Black had used the Apparition Charm, others said he had flown there, and there were even those who believed he was an expert at disguising himself. Hannah Abbott from Hufflepuff was convinced that Sirius could turn into a bush.
"I don't think many of them have read 'Hogwarts: A History,'" Tom commented from his sleeping bag, teasing Hermione on the other side. He turned over and settled in to sleep, face to face with Hermione.
"Yes, at Hogwarts, you can't use the Invisibility Cloak, the Dementors at the entrance can unmask any disguise, and Filch has closed all the secret passages..." Hermione responded.
The discussion around them intensified. The enchanted ceiling looked like the real sky, and an unfamiliar breeze added a camping feel to this sheltered situation in the Great Hall. It was evident that this "excursion" activity was very popular among the young wizards.
However, Percy put an end to the discussion. He shouted, "Get ready to sleep!" and ordered everyone to get into their sleeping bags to rest.
Upon hearing Percy, Hermione closed her mouth. But seeing Tom less than thirty centimeters away, she pursed her lips.
Tom moved closer to Hermione, leaned in, and gave her a light kiss on the lips.
"Goodnight," he whispered.
"Goodnight," she replied.
Tom watched Hermione close her eyes, her long, wavy eyelashes trembling, her pink lips, her small, soft nose. Tom's heart started to beat faster.
Suddenly, Hermione opened her eyes. "Oh no, I left Crookshanks in the common room. I should have brought him..."
"He can take care of himself. Besides, you don't always have him with you, do you?"
Hermione closed her eyes again. But this time, she reached a hand out of her sleeping bag, and Tom extended his hand from his sleeping bag, firmly entwining their hands.
The sleeping bags of the young wizards filled the Great Hall, but there was a large empty space near the main entrance. It was the most cleared area in the whole Great Hall, and the other young wizards instinctively kept their distance, except for Percy, who brought his sleeping bag there.
"Turn off the lights!" Percy exclaimed loudly as he placed his sleeping bag at the Great Hall's door. This way, even if Sirius Black tried to enter through the door and harm his peers, Percy would be alert immediately.
Percy felt prepared for it.
However, all his preparations proved to be in vain. This night was Christmas Eve, and the students saw no trace of Sirius Black. Percy woke up early, with disheveled hair and dark circles, feeling as if he had punched the air with a fist. He had hardly slept the night before, only managing a few hours of sleep before dawn.
It wasn't his fault, as a professor appeared in the Great Hall every hour to make sure everything was in order. With these interruptions, it was almost impossible for Percy to fall asleep while being near the door.
When they opened the door for the first time, he almost jumped to sound the alarm. If it weren't for Snape's quick and silent Quietus spell, Percy would have surely awakened all the students in the school.
After several instances like that, Percy decided to simply not sleep and sat by the door on guard.
It could be ensured that many people were awake that night, and most young wizards didn't fall asleep until the early hours of the morning. However, Tom and Hermione were not part of that group, as they slept deeply and peacefully.
At three in the morning, Professor Dumbledore entered the Great Hall once again, followed by Snape.
They began to inspect the Great Hall, and Percy moved slightly but ultimately decided to stay where he was. He chose to continue guarding the door.