There was an unaccustomed silence in the Gryffindor drawing room. Harry, Ron and Hermione were sitting by the fireplace, reflecting on the events of the night. They were feeling a little depressed and embarrassed about what had happened and the loss of points for Gryffindor.
- I can't believe we lost so many points- muttered Ron, looking at the fire.
'All we wanted to do was find Hermione, and it ended so badly.
- We shouldn't have broken the rules," Hermione said, fixing her glasses.
"It was stupid and irresponsible of us. We let our faculty down."
Harry, immersed in his own thoughts, sat in silence. It wasn't the fine that bothered him the most, but what had happened in the dungeon. He couldn't get the image of Itachi Uchiha defeating the troll with such calmness and strength out of his head.
"I still can't believe what I saw," he muttered, breaking the silence.
"It was... unbelievable. How did he manage to do it so quickly and easily?".
- Maybe he scared the troll somehow," Ron suggested.
- 'He's so weird,' Hermione said, flipping through the pages of her textbooks.
"He's always so calm and reserved, like he's not with us but somewhere far away."
- Yeah," Ron seconded her, taking a break from his chocolate frog.
"And he always listens so intently, but I've never once seen him say anything. It's like he already knows everything."
Harry, looking wistfully into the fireplace fire, nodded.
They had watched Itachi many times before. They had seen how he handled all his assignments in class with ease, but always stayed in the shadows. They had seen him handle a broom with extraordinary dexterity, but unlike the other students, he had never shown much interest in Quidditch. They had seen how he listened intently to his teachers and how he watched the other students as if analyzing them rather than just looking at them.
- Besides," Hermione continued
- I've never once seen him even smile or show any emotion. It's like he has no feelings at all."
Ron shrugged.
- Maybe he's just a Slytherin? I mean, they're all like that. Arrogant and cold."
Harry remembered how Itachi kept his cool when other Slytherins tried to intimidate him. He remembered how deftly he dodged their taunts and how calmly he reacted to their provocations. Harry realized that Itachi wasn't like the other Slytherins, that he wasn't just arrogant and cold. He sensed some kind of mystery in him.
- 'No,' Harry replied, shaking his head.
- 'He's not like the other Slytherins. He's different. He's more... aloof."
Hermione frowned.
- Aloof, to put it mildly, Harry. I think he's hiding something. Maybe he's some kind of spy or messenger of dark forces?"
Ron shuddered.
- Don't say that, Hermione. I mean, it's creepy. Although...
- But Hermione continued, trying to calm Ron down
- I saw him in the library, and he's reading very difficult books, much harder than what freshmen read. And he does it with such ease, as if he already knows it all."
Harry remembered that in his Defense Against the Dark Arts class Itachi had asked Professor Quirrell such strange questions, as if he was trying to find out his weaknesses. He remembered Itachi watching Professor Snape with the same look on his face, as if he was analyzing and questioning each of them.
- Maybe," Harry said, looking thoughtfully into the fire
he's just really smart and observant? Maybe he just wants to be better than everyone else?"
But," Ron interrupted him
Slytherins are ambitious, sure, but like this? I think he's kind of crazy, I've never once seen him socialize with anyone but that Nott guy."
Hermione shook her head.
"Maybe we just can't understand him. Maybe he's just different and we need to accept him for who he is."
"So how did he defeat the troll?"
Hermione shook her head.
I've seen Itachi use spells. But those spells were very complicated, not like the ones we learned in class."
He used two spells," Harry said, remembering the events of that night.
"First he did something to his legs and then it was like he was hypnotized. It was kind of creepy."
It's genjutsu," Ron muttered.
'That's really weird,' Hermione said, frowning her eyebrows.
"And yet... I have to admit that I'm very grateful to him for saving us. If it wasn't for him, who knows what might have happened. "
"After all, he did save us. If it wasn't for him, we probably wouldn't be alive anymore."
Harry looked at them.
"I don't think he's as bad as you think. But I admit, I don't know what to think of him either."
There was silence in the living room again. Harry, Ron, and Hermione stared at the fire, each immersed in their own thoughts. The events of Halloween had turned their usual world upside down, making them question what they thought was true. And now they knew that there was more lurking at Hogwarts than they had ever imagined.
You know," Ron said suddenly, breaking the silence
Itachi wasn't alone, was he? Theodore Nott was with him.
Theodore Nott," Hermione repeated thoughtfully.
"He always keeps to the shadows. I don't remember him ever showing himself as brightly as Itachi. But that doesn't mean he isn't strong."
"Or maybe he's just scared?" - Harry suggested.
"Maybe he was just following Itachi and didn't know what to do. After all, he wasn't in the battle."
Maybe he was-Hermione agreed.
Hermione frowned.
"You know, when Itachi used that genjutsu, I didn't feel any magic. It was just weird. It felt like the troll just suddenly passed out and was just knocked out rather than being affected by the spell."
Ron frowned.
But, Hermione, you saw, the troll froze for a few seconds before collapsing. There's no way that could have happened without magic."
Indeed - Harry agreed.
"Maybe you were just too scared to notice what was really going on in there? In the heat of the moment you can overlook little things like that, it's like when you're looking for something and then it turns out it was in front of your eyes the whole time."
Hermione thought for a moment.
'Maybe you're right,' she muttered, but there was a sense of doubt in her voice.
"Maybe I'm missing something. But things look different in my memory. But... Yeah, maybe I was just too scared."
She still felt inside herself that something was wrong, but she didn't argue with her friends.
'It's possible,' Hermione said, silent for a bit, as if trying to convince herself that they were right.
"Maybe Itachi found information about these spells in some ancient books? Or maybe he's just very well trained? But I don't see how he could have done it so quickly. He acted like a professional, not a novice."
Yeah, and that's scary-" Harry said, his voice becoming more serious.
"After all, how can a freshman have that kind of knowledge? I mean, he's just like us. Or is he?
Ron nodded.
''It's not fair at all. We're trying to learn simple spells here and he's already using things we haven't even heard of. Is that even possible? Maybe he's not a freshman at all? ".
And that's scary," Hermione confirmed.
"If he knows such dangerous spells, what else could he know? And why does he even know such things? I don't like it at all."
There was silence in the living room once more. Each of them was immersed in their own thoughts, their faces full of worry. Itachi, who they knew as an ordinary freshman, was suddenly a mystery to them, hiding something dangerous and incomprehensible.
'Maybe we should ask someone else,' Hermione suggested, feeling her anxiety rising.
"Maybe there's someone else who saw what he was doing and can explain it all to us."
"I'm not sure that's a good idea," Ron said.
"I think the fewer people who know about it, the better. But, on the other hand, we can't just sit back and do nothing either."
We have to be careful," said Harry.
"And very careful, too. Otherwise we won't solve this mystery."
All three of them fell silent again, concern and uncertainty in their gazes.