Chapter 61: Daily Life
Early Saturday morning, only a few people in the Gryffindor common room were up, including Miss Hermione Granger.
She sat earnestly by the fireplace, diligently taking notes with a quill, while a Defense Against the Dark Arts circlet rested on the table beside her.
Occasionally, she would put on the circlet to review the lesson's content, then carefully record each piece of knowledge.
This circlet is amazing... It allows repeated viewing of memories, so even if some content wasn't clear, you can learn it again.
Professor Hamilton really is a genius...
But geniuses have their quirks... Hermione chewed on the end of her quill, troubled. This Professor Hamilton has never spoken a word.
It was said that when Harry met her in Knockturn Alley, he hadn't heard her speak either.
She really is a peculiar person...
Within two weeks of the term starting, Professor Hamilton had surpassed all previous Hogwarts professors to become the strangest and most mysterious figure among the students.
First, she wasn't a Hogwarts graduate, which was already quite special at Hogwarts... Second, she never spoke and never revealed her face.
It was as if she were hiding in the school conducting some terrible experiment.
Of course, many people thought this was cool, including Ron's brothers, Fred and George... They had somehow obtained two silver masks and would hunch over, pretending to be Professor Hamilton to scare students.
Ron seemed quite frightened by this... Even though Headmaster Dumbledore had healed him in the memory, the painful memory of facing the Killing Curse still affected him greatly.
At least it probably wouldn't go away anytime soon...
Of course, Hermione had also heard some rumors. Some said Professor Hamilton was a Dark witch who delighted in torturing rats.
Miss Granger naturally didn't believe this, because there really was a rat in Ron's pocket... and Professor Hamilton... at least so far, hadn't shown any interest in it.
But I really am curious about where Professor Hamilton comes from, what she looks like, and what she's done...
Hermione completely failed to notice that she had mentioned Professor Hamilton far more frequently than Mr. Lockhart in the past two weeks.
The mysterious Professor Hamilton... is just too intriguing.
Hermione thought for a few seconds, then shook her head. No matter how curious she was, there wouldn't be any clues. After all, she couldn't investigate a Durmstrang graduate, could she?
And... the other professors didn't seem to have much interaction with Professor Hamilton either...
She had hardly ever seen Professor Hamilton in the Great Hall. Even when she did, she only saw her taking leftover lunch back to her office.
She never took off her mask.
It was no wonder the Weasley twins thought the mask was some kind of cursed item that couldn't be removed once put on...
I seem to be distracted... Hermione shook her head, turning her attention back to her studies.
Professor Dumbledore said... Love is the most powerful magic... and the Unforgivable Curses have no counter-curse...
Hermione wrote word by word, but soon she shook her head again.
No, I'm still very curious about Professor Hamilton's identity... what past and secrets she has... And there's only one place at Hogwarts where I might find the answer.
So, Hermione picked up her notebook, walked out of the Gryffindor common room, and headed for the library.
There weren't many students along the way. After all, it was Saturday morning. Even though it was almost ten o'clock, most people were still resting. Only at the entrance to the library did she see a somewhat unfamiliar face.
It was a girl with red hair, standing timidly in the corner, muttering something.
"Go out the door, turn left, then go down the stairs... finally through the main gate... follow the road and you can find... Hogsmeade..."
Hogsmeade?
Hermione looked at the student with some surprise. Is she already a third-year?
Only students in their third year and above could leave Hogwarts on weekends... but they should have already left, right?
And... why was someone going to Hogsmeade here?
Hermione pressed her lips together and asked instinctively, "Are you going to Hogsmeade?"
"Ah!" Seemingly startled by Hermione, the red-haired girl flinched and took a few steps back.
"..." Am I that scary?
Hermione asked again, dissatisfied, "Are you going to Hogsmeade?"
"Ah... yes... I... I'm going to... Hogwood... no... Hogsmeade."
What a strange person... Have I seen her before?
Hermione frowned and thought for a few seconds before saying, "It seems a bit late for Hogsmeade now."
"Professor McGonagall should have already arranged for the students to go."
"Ah..." The girl let out a surprised whimper, then said, "It's okay... I can..."
"That won't do," Hermione shrugged. "Students leaving Hogwarts require a professor's approval... and must be in their third year or above."
"I'm already... already a third-year..." the red-haired girl whispered, twirling her fingers as she spoke.
"I just need... just need to know... how to get there..."
Seeing her say this, Hermione felt a little annoyed.
Didn't I tell you that you need a professor's approval? Even if you want to go now, you can't find a professor... And if I remember correctly, you also need parental consent.
Did your parents agree?
Also... Hermione doubted whether this girl could find her way back on her own after reaching Hogsmeade.
"I... I must go..." the girl whispered. "To buy... buy something..."
I can't help with that... Wait... buy something...
Hermione seemed to remember something. "Do you know Hagrid?"
"Ha... Hagrid?" The red-haired girl froze, then said hesitantly, "I know him... He... he shouldn't eat people..."
"No one thinks he eats people," Hermione frowned.
"S... Sorry."
"I mean... Hagrid said he was going to Hogsmeade today."
"You could ask him to buy things for you," Hermione shrugged. "Do you know how to get to Hagrid's hut?"
"N... Not really..."
"Go straight from here, then turn right, then left, go down a flight of stairs... finally follow the road straight out the door and you're there."
"Ah..."
Looking at the seemingly confused girl, Hermione sighed, took out a quill, and wrote it down in her notebook.
Rip.
Handing the paper to the girl, Hermione shrugged. "This should work, right?"
"It's surprising... haven't you been at this school for three years?"
"To think you wouldn't know how to get to Hogsmeade..."
"Sorry... I... I didn't know this was... common knowledge..."
"It's not common knowledge either... just... just something you should know," Hermione shook her head. "Alright, I've written down how to find Hagrid for you."
"You'd better find him early."
"If it's too late, he'll have left."
"Ah... th... thank you," the girl whispered, clutching the paper.
"You're welcome." Hermione smiled, then walked quickly into the library. She still wanted to look for information on Professor Hamilton's identity...
She had no time to waste here.