"So the basilisk really exists?" Hermione squinted her eyes, noticing Luke's subtle movements.
Their eyes met, and they were very close.
"And you've seen it!"
Luke could even feel the warmth of her cheeks as Hermione spoke.
"...did you drink chocolate milk this morning?" Luke guessed after a moment of hesitation.
Hermione also realized the closeness of their proximity and quickly took a step back.
"Don't change the subject!" she grumbled in dissatisfaction.
"I haven't seen it," Luke said, shaking his head and lying.
He had realized that some of his habits had already been figured out by Hermione, so this time he didn't make any extra moves.
"Really?" Hermione gave him a suspicious look.
"What good would it do for me to lie to you?" Luke said, touching her brown curly hair and messing it up slightly.
"I just got my hair done..." Hermione pouted.
Hermione quickly broke away from Luke's hand and sat across from him with a book in her arms.
"Okay, don't worry about the basilisk. Maybe it's just a rumor," Luke said, trying to reassure her.
Seeing Hermione nodding lightly in agreement, Luke was slightly relieved. The basilisk's eyes had the power to kill with a glance, a danger he absolutely couldn't allow Hermione to face.
Later, in the Great Hall at night:
"Have you seen Ronald?" Harry asked, looking up from his pumpkin pie as Luke and Hermione arrived with their books.
"I haven't seen him this afternoon," Luke replied.
"I wanted to take him to practice Quidditch," Harry said. In his second year, Ronald had signed up for the Quidditch team, but it was uncertain if he would make it.
"No, Luke and I have been studying in the library all afternoon," Hermione shook her head.
"You haven't seen him all afternoon?" Luke echoed, looking thoughtful.
"No, I didn't see him during lunch either," Harry said, spreading his hands helplessly. After the morning's Herbology class, he had seen Ronald heading to the dormitory to rest, but by the time Harry arrived, Ronald was gone.
"Don't worry, you can't lose him," Hermione said softly, ordering her dinner. Ronald was a big boy; he wouldn't get lost at Hogwarts. From her perspective, Harry was overthinking. After all, they were inseparable most of the time.
Luke took a sip of black tea, his pale blue eyes narrowing. Based on Harry's description, he suspected that something might happen tonight. Could the basilisk be waking up?
After dinner, Harry decided to search for Ronald, and Luke and Hermione joined him.
In the corridor on the second floor:
"Why are there so many people in front?" Harry asked, suspiciously eyeing the crowd gathered ahead.
Suddenly, he looked dazed. A hoarse voice entered Harry's mind, making his scalp tingle and the scar on his forehead ache slightly.
"Did you hear strange noises just now?" Harry asked, his voice tinged with unease.
Harry approached Luke and Hermione, covering the scar on his forehead.
"Strange sound?" Hermione frowned. "No. How about you, Luke?"
"I don't hear anything," Luke shook his head. However, he knew that the basilisk had been released by Ronald, who was under Tom's control. Given Harry's ability to speak Parseltongue, hearing the basilisk wasn't uncommon.
"But I do hear... the sound is gone!" Harry looked around, puzzled. He saw only the walls on either side and a large group of little wizards ahead. The loud, hoarse voices had vanished from his mind as if they were just an illusion.
"Let's go and see what's going on ahead," Luke said, pulling Hermione towards the crowd.
When they reached the edge of the crowd, Luke was suddenly taken aback. "Filch?" he exclaimed.
Hermione quickly covered her mouth, gasping. The surrounding little wizards wore expressions of horror.
Someone had attacked Filch? Which little wizard had done this?
Filch, usually grim-faced, lay motionless on the ground. His patrol oil lamp lay shattered on the slate beside him.
"He was petrified?" Luke muttered. He hadn't expected Filch to be the first victim. Had he looked into the basilisk's eyes through the mirror in the window? Luke glanced at the bright, patterned glass on the wall. Seeing the basilisk's eyes through a medium like glass could petrify someone without killing them.
"How did this happen?" Harry squeezed in, his emerald green eyes widening at the sight of Filch on the ground. "Is Filch... dead?"
"No, he's just turned to stone," Cedric said, approaching with a serious expression. "I just informed Professor Flitwick about this."
"Ronald hasn't been found yet?" Harry asked, his concern overriding any rivalry with Cedric.
"The red-haired wizard?" Cedric asked, puzzled.
"Yes, have you seen him?" Harry asked urgently.
"I saw him go up the stairs just now, looking tired," Cedric pointed to the stairs above.
The professors arrived quickly. Snape was the first, his black robe billowing as he moved briskly. His cold, indifferent expression caused the nearby students to step back.
"Petrification..." Snape crouched down to examine Filch, frowning.
"This is no ordinary petrification spell," he said.
"How is it, Severus?" Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey arrived next.
"It's not life-threatening, but he'll need some potions," Snape replied.
.....
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