Hermione rushed out of the Reading Room; only the sound of her own hurried, panicked, and even stumbling footsteps echoed in the empty corridor.
Without hesitation, she lifted the hem of her skirt and ran desperately toward the Gryffindor Common Room. That path, usually a source of comfort and warmth, now felt as long as an endless nightmare.
"Harry! Ron!" Hermione's voice, carrying a panic and broken tremor she hadn't even noticed, burst in like a fierce gale, "marauders map! Quick! Lend me the marauders map for a moment!"
Harry and Ron, who were playing wizard chess, were startled by her ashen face. Harry subconsciously pulled the blank Parchment from the inner pocket of his robe.
Hermione snatched it away; the force was almost a grab!
Taking a deep breath, she used all her strength to steady her voice, but it still trembled with extreme urgency.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good..."
Ink lines rapidly spread across the Parchment, constructing the complex and familiar structure of the Castle. Hermione's eyes scanned the map frantically, her heart pounding as she searched for the one name unique to her.
Hermione was inexplicably overcome with suffocating fear, more afraid than ever before.
The gruesome scene of Lia's brutal killing flashed uncontrollably in her mind—the blood and cruelty she had only glimpsed in snippets from Lia's few words were now magnified thousands of times.
She feared seeing Lia's name overlapping with another name she didn't want to see in some dark corner of the map—perhaps Cerberus, or Professor Quirrell, who gave her an instinctive cold feeling, or even the damned Professor Snape!
The thought that Lia's soft, warm body might be maliciously harmed again made Hermione feel as if her heart were tightly gripped by an ice-cold iron hand, making even her breath taste of blood.
Finally, on a corridor on the seventh floor, she found the moving ink dot.
[Lia].
The ink dot was pacing back and forth in a small area, seemingly not in danger, with no other names nearby.
Hermione let out a long sigh of relief, a breath that seemed to drain all the strength from her body. Her tense frame instantly went limp, and she nearly collapsed.
But immediately after, she noticed something was wrong.
The location where Lia was situated was a complete blank on the map.
No room was marked, no secret passage indicated—just a bare wall.
"What's going on?" Ron leaned over curiously, "Is the map broken? Fred and George said it never makes mistakes."
Hermione's brow furrowed tightly. She stared closely at the ink dot moving in the blank area, and a bold, startling idea formed in her mind.
Hogwarts was full of secrets, and some secrets only opened up for those who needed them.
"I have to go find her." Hermione shoved the map back into Harry's arms, her eyes filled with an unprecedented determination. "Thank you, both of you."
With that, she turned again and ran toward the stairs without hesitation... Lia walked alone in the empty corridor.
The flagstones beneath her feet were cold and hard, and the chill crept up from the soles of her feet. Every time the bell around her neck chimed, it echoed lonely in the deserted Castle, as if repeatedly reminding her that she was alone again.
That icy feeling of being abandoned by the whole world invaded her heart from head to toe.
She didn't know where to go.
The Castle was vast, but any place without Hermione was just cold stone, devoid of warmth.
She just wanted to find a warm, safe place where no one would shout at her, and stay there for a while.
She ascended the winding stairs, her ears drooping almost against her scalp. Her usually lustrous long hair was now somewhat frizzy and messy, and her steps were unsteady as she wandered unknowingly to the seventh floor.
It was very quiet here. On the wall hung a large, comical tapestry depicting a Troll beating Barnabas the Barmy.
However, Lia had only met the Troll once.
Lia stopped, gazing blankly at the stone wall before her with listless eyes, her long tail hanging limply behind her.
Just then, a peculiar intuitive attraction came from the other side of the wall, across the tapestry.
The feeling was subtle, like a familiar yet desired fluctuation that was soothing her wronged and frightened emotions.
She tilted her head, her soft cat ears twitching slightly. Following the impulse in her heart, she paced back and forth along the wall.
Once.
Twice.
When she walked past the wall opposite the tapestry for the third time, filled with the thought, "I want a warm and fun place that belongs only to me," a smooth, unadorned black wooden door materialized on the otherwise smooth stone wall without warning.
The door appeared out of thin air, as if it had always been there, quietly awaiting her arrival.
Lia's cat ears perked up alertly. She tiptoed closer to sniff it.
There was no sense of danger emanating from the door; instead, a scent that made her feel incredibly comfortable and delighted drifted out from the crack.
She hesitated slightly, then gently pushed the door with her hand.
The door opened inward silently.
The scene behind the door instantly stunned Lia.
Her sky-blue eyes regained their sparkle, her tail involuntarily curled up, the tip shaking slightly in excitement, and a sound escaped her mouth without conscious control.
"Wow~"
There were no books, no tables or chairs, and no cold stone walls.
The room was piled high with countless colorful balls of yarn, like small, soft mountains. The floor was covered with thick, plush pure white carpet that sank deeply when stepped on. Various scratching posts of different heights and materials stood against the walls, ranging from rough hemp rope to smooth wooden posts—everything imaginable. Countless thin strings hung from the ceiling, with colorful feathers, crisp bells, and sparkling crystal balls dangling from the ends.
The entire air was filled with the scent of sun-dried bedding mixed with Catnip, an aroma intoxicating to cats.
This was... heaven!
"Meow—!"
A cat's cry, filled with extreme happiness and sickeningly sweet, echoed in the room. Lia could hold back no longer. With a light leap, she transformed into Lia the Cat mid-air and dove headfirst into the nearest pile of rainbow-colored yarn balls!
The soft yarn enveloped her body, and she rolled around happily within it, feeling the soft warmth wrapping around her.
Using her paws to hook the rolling balls of yarn, chasing the feathers dangling from the ceiling, stretching her body to the fullest on the giant cat scratching post, sharpening claws that had never truly harmed anyone.
The grievance of being ignored by Hermione, the boredom with the library, the fear of loneliness... all negative emotions were swept away at this moment, completely submerged by the pure joy belonging to a Feline.
Lia the Cat was completely immersed in this perfect paradise of happiness that belonged only to her.
Just as Lia the Cat was hugging a ball of yarn larger than her body, rolling around and having a blast, the black wooden door, which she had forgotten to close in her excitement, was pushed open again.
Hermione rushed in, panting, the wisps of hair on her forehead soaked with sweat, her chest heaving violently.
When she clearly saw the scene in the room, and Lia the Cat frolicking among the yarn balls, she froze entirely.
She had imagined many possibilities: Lia was trapped by something, Lia encountered danger, Lia was hiding in some dark corner crying sadly... but she never expected this... cat paradise scene that made her want to laugh and cry.
"Lia!"
Hermione was both angry and amused, hands on her hips, her voice filled with the exhaustion and helplessness of surviving a scare. "So you were here! What is this place?"
Hearing the familiar voice, Lia the Cat's movements abruptly stopped. She poked a fluffy little head out of the yarn pile, turned around with her fur all messy, a feather still dangling from her mouth. Upon seeing Hermione standing at the door, a flicker of joy first crossed her blue eyes, which was immediately followed by the memory of her grievance in the library. She deliberately turned her head away from Hermione, letting out a small, tearful "Meow..." from her throat, full of accusation.
Hermione's heart instantly melted into a puddle. That bit of amusement and helplessness was immediately replaced by deep guilt and heartache.
She quickly walked over, carefully stepping around the toys on the floor, and picked up the little one who was still sulking from the pile of yarn. She gently removed the feather from her mouth and the scraps of yarn stuck all over her.
"I'm sorry, Lia," after first gently kissing her forehead, Hermione pressed her cheek tightly against Lia the Cat's face, greedily savoring the warmth and softness of having her back, and whispered an apology with a slightly trembling voice, "I shouldn't have yelled at you just now. I was just... I was just too anxious, I was scared... I was terrified you might run into danger again. The thought of you getting hurt nearly drove me mad. I'm sorry, don't be mad at me, okay?"
Lia moved in her arms. She could feel the sincerity and lingering fear in Hermione's words, as well as the unusually fast heartbeat. She buried her head in Hermione's neck and rubbed against her forcefully, marking her with her own scent again.
While in Hermione's arms, a soft glow flashed. Hermione felt her embrace suddenly become heavy, and the light body of the cat rapidly elongated and transformed. The fluffy touch in her arms was instantly replaced by large expanses of warm, smooth skin. A mass of messy long hair cascaded over her arms, causing a slight tickle.
Hermione's breath hitched, and she looked down.
A small, soft young girl was nestled perfectly in her arms, having taken the place of the cat just moments before. Lia had reverted to her human form, her head resting in the crook of Hermione's arm. She looked up, her deep blue eyes watery as she gazed at Hermione, the corners of her eyes still showing a hint of aggrieved redness, yet she couldn't help but curve her lips into a smiling look.
Holding the soft, fragrant young girl in her arms, feeling the tight curves and warm body temperature, Hermione's cheeks instantly flushed 'boom'.
She cleared her throat, her gaze nervously shifting away, yet she couldn't resist reaching out to gently knead the pair of fluffy ears on Lia's head, which were trembling slightly according to her mood. At the same time, she looked up to survey this magical room, trying to think in her mind: "I need a place where Lia can rest comfortably and be soothed."
As soon as the thought formed, the yarn balls and the scratching post in the room instantly receded like a tide, vanishing without a trace. They were replaced by a large, soft sofa, in front of which appeared a small coffee table, upon which a plate of Lia's favorite, golden-brown, crispy Dried Fish had materialized.
Hermione's eyes lit up instantly.
The Room of Requirement!
Legend had it that it was a mysterious room in Hogwarts that could change its form according to the user's most urgent inner needs! Her knowledge of this room was limited to snippets from 'Hogwarts, A History,' and she never expected Lia to find it purely by instinct!
This incident made the speculation about Lia's identity deep within Hermione's heart clearer and more certain.
Super-speed Regeneration, Danger Intuition, constant body temperature, the ability to communicate with animals without barriers, and now the ability to instinctively find the Room of Requirement... Hermione felt that looking for Nicolas Flamel could wait. Figuring out all the secrets of the little one in her arms, ensuring she was always safe and always belonged only to her, was the most important and urgent matter right now.
She tightened her arms, pulling Lia closer into her embrace, and sat down on the soft sofa. Lia naturally adjusted to a comfortable position, leaning entirely onto Hermione's lap. Hermione picked up a piece of Dried Fish, brought it to Lia's mouth, watched her open her mouth to bite it like a kitten, and squint her eyes in satisfaction. Her possessiveness and adoration almost overflowed.
Forcing down thoughts like 'We are still too young,' 'At least not here,' and 'Wait until we are both adults and see what I do to... her!', she gently planted a kiss on Lia's cheek, then focused on tidying up Lia's messy hair after her wild play.
If not for the pinkish hue covering her neck to her ears, an ordinary person wouldn't notice anything unusual about Hermione.
However, the Cat-girl in her arms was no ordinary person. Sensing the fleeting warmth on her face, she looked up at Hermione with surprise.
This was the first time Hermione had kissed her in human form! Happy!
Listening to Hermione's rapid heartbeat, she wiggled contentedly in her arms a few times.
The two of them stayed intimately close in the Room of Requirement until the start of the banquet, when Lia finally left after much coaxing and trickery from Hermione.
Fortunately, they still made it to the banquet.
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