"It's definitely Malfoy!"
In the Gryffindor common room, Ron lowered his voice and said firmly, "Think about his family; they all look like the Heirs of Slytherin!"
Harry nodded in deep agreement.
Only Hermione sat in an armchair by the fireplace, holding Lia, her brow furrowed.
Lia, in her arms, also felt her anxiety and rubbed her furry head against her chin.
She had already recovered from the petrifying fear she felt from Madam Norris.
"Suspicion alone is useless; we need evidence," Hermione analyzed calmly, while unconsciously and naturally stroking Lia's smooth back fur.
"Then what should we do? Just go up and ask him, 'Hey, Malfoy, are you the jerk who opened the Chamber of Secrets?'" Ron gestured exaggeratedly.
A bold idea gradually took shape in Hermione's mind.
"Maybe... we can get him to tell us himself." Hermione's eyes lit up, sparkling with the light of wisdom and adventure. "With Polyjuice Potion."
Harry and Ron were both stunned.
Polyjuice Potion—a Potion that could turn someone into another person for a period of time—was complex, dangerous, and carried explicit warnings in the book Moste Potente Potions.
"That's too hard! And where would we get the ingredients? Bicorn horn and Boomslang skin are both in Snape's private stores!" Ron countered, shivering at the mere thought of Snape's somber face.
"That's why we need a plan," Hermione said in a tone that brooked no argument.
She had fully entered her top-student battle mode.
The heavy responsibility of brewing the Potion naturally fell on Hermione's shoulders.
The secret base they chose was the abandoned girls' bathroom on the second floor—Moaning Myrtle's territory.
A large, dusty cauldron was set up, and Hermione meticulously prepared the initial ingredients, following the instructions in Moste Potente Potions, which she had borrowed from the library's Restricted Section.
"Giggle... what mischief are you up to?" A translucent ghost of a girl with pigtails emerged from a toilet, floating in mid-air and eyeing them curiously.
She was Moaning Myrtle. Myrtle's gaze was soon drawn to Lia in Hermione's arms.
Lia was sitting on the sink in her Cat-girl form, her snow-white long tail twitching occasionally as she looked back with equal curiosity at this "person" who could pass through walls.
"Wow, a girl with cat ears!" Myrtle floated over, circling Lia. "You're so cute! Much more fun than those smelly boys!"
Lia found this non-corporeal, icy-cold existence very novel.
She wasn't afraid of her.
As Myrtle floated closer, Lia reached out with a soft paw pad and swiped tentatively.
Her claws passed through Myrtle's translucent body without resistance, bringing a strange, chilly sensation.
"Giggle..." Myrtle was amused, letting out a series of shrill laughs.
Lia tilted her head and tried again, with the same result. She seemed to find it interesting, and for the next while, she stayed on the sink, constantly using her claws to "catch" the floating Myrtle, having the time of her life.
Brewing the Potion took time, and the most crucial ingredients had to be stolen from Snape's office.
The plan unfolded during Potion Class. As planned, Harry threw a lit Filibuster Firework into Goyle's cauldron.
Bang!
Thick green liquid erupted from the cauldron, and the entire Dungeon was instantly shrouded in foul-smelling smoke. Students screamed as they dodged, and Snape roared as he went to deal with Goyle, who was covered from head to toe. The scene was chaotic.
That was the signal!
Hermione's eyes met Lia's, and she gave her a tense look.
Lia's body instantly turned into a streak of white light, silently darting out from Hermione's arms. She remained in her petite Ragdoll Cat form, her four paw pads making no sound on the cold stone tiles—a natural master of stealth.
In the chaos, no one noticed this white lightning flying close to the ground.
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