Everybody finished tea at Hagrid's.
"Come an' see what I've bin growin'," said Hagrid as everybody finished the last of their tea.Betty, Devin,
In the small vegetable patch behind Hagrid's house were a dozen of the largest pumpkins Harry had ever seen. Each was the size of a large boulder.
"Gettin' on well, aren't they?" said Hagrid happily. "Fer the Halloween feast… should be big enough by then."
"What've you been feeding them?" Key wondered.
"Well, I've bin givin' them—you know—a bit o' help—"
Harry noticed Hagrid's flowery pink umbrella leaning against the back wall of the cabin. Harry had had reason to believe before now that this umbrella was not all it looked; in fact, he had the strong impression that Hagrid's old school wand was concealed inside it. Hagrid wasn't supposed to use magic. He had been expelled from Hogwarts in his third year, but Harry had never found out why—any mention of the matter and Hagrid would clear his throat loudly and become mysteriously deaf until the subject was changed.
"An Engorgement Charm, I suppose?" said Hermione, halfway between disapproval and amusement. "Well, you've done a good job on them."
"That's what yer little sister said," said Hagrid, nodding at Ron. "Met her jus' yesterday." Hagrid looked sideways at Harry, his beard twitching.
"Said she was jus' lookin' round the grounds, but I reckon she was hopin' she might run inter someone else at my house." He winked at Harry.
"If yeh ask me, she wouldn' say no ter a signed—"
"Oh, shut up," said Harry.
Ron snorted with laughter.
It was nearly lunchtime and as Harry had only had one bit of treacle fudge since dawn, he was keen to go back to school to eat.
They said goodbye to Hagrid and walked back up to the castle.
They had barely set foot in the cool entrance hall when a voice rang out, "There you are, Potter—Weasley. Walter" Professor McGonagall was walking toward them, looking stern. "You four will do your detentions this evening."
"The four of us?" replied Key.
Makai is revealed.
"What're we doing, Professor?" said Ron, nervously. "You will be polishing the silver in the trophy room with Mr. Filch," said Professor McGonagall. "And no magic, Weasley—elbow grease."
Ron gulped. Argus Filch, the caretaker, was loathed by every student in the school.
"Makai, you are going to get your assignment from Professor Snape", said McGonagall.
"Potter and Walter will be helping Professor Lockhart answer his fan mail," said Professor McGonagall.
"Oh no—Professor, can't I go and do the trophy room, too?" said Harry desperately.
"I agree" replied Key.
"Certainly not," said Professor McGonagall, raising her eyebrows. "Professor Lockhart requested you two particularly. Eight o'clock sharp"
Harry, Key, Makai and Ron slouched into the Great Hall in states of deepest gloom,
Hermione behind them, wearing a well-you-did-break-school-rules sort of expression.
Harry didn't enjoy his shepherd's pie as much as he'd thought.
"Filch'll have me there all night," said Ron heavily. "No magic! There must be about a hundred cups in that room. I'm no good at Muggle cleaning."
"I'd swap anytime," said Harry hollowly. "I've had loads of practice with the Dursleys. Answering Lockhart's fan mail… he'll be a nightmare…"
"At least, you won't have to deal with that annoying teacher", replied Key. "But I am sorry for you because Harry and I have cleaned up before".
"You have mentioned the Dursleys and how horrible they are", Makai recalled.
"Horrible is putting it mildly", said Key.
Saturday afternoon seemed to melt away, and in what seemed like no time, it was five minutes to eight, and
Harry and Key walk to the second floor corridor to Lockhart's office.
"Do I knock? Or do you knock?" Key asks Harry.
"I'll do it", said Harry, then knocks on the door.
The door flew open at once. Lockhart beamed down at them.
"Ah, here's the scallywags!" he said. "Come in, Harry,Key come in—"
Shining brightly on the walls by the light of many candles were countless framed photographs of Lockhart. He had even signed a few of them. Another large pile lay on his desk.
"You can address the envelopes!" Lockhart told Harry and Key, as though this was a huge treat. "This first one's to Gladys Gudgeon, bless her—huge fan of mine—" The minutes snailed by. Harry and Key let Lockhart's voice wash over them, occasionally saying, "Mmm" and "Right" and "Yeah."
Now and then he caught a phrase like, "Fame's a fickle friend, Harry and Key" or "Celebrity is as celebrity does, remember that."
The candles burned lower and lower, making the light dance over the many moving faces of Lockhart watching him.
Key and Harry help Lockhart with his envelopes for so long their hands ache, as Harry write out Veronica Smethley's address.
'It must be nearly time to leave', Key and Harry thought miserably, 'please let it be nearly time'
Then, Harry and Key hear a voice to chill the bone marrow, a voice of breathtaking, ice cold venom. "Come… come to me… let me rip you… let me tear you… let me kill you…"
Harry gave a huge jump and Key looked a bit scared, at the same time a large lilac blot appeared on Veronica Smetgley's street.
"What was that?" Key wondered.
"I have no idea", Harry wondered.
"It's unbelievable for this to be going on for six solid months at the top of the bestseller list! Broke all records!"
"No," said Harry frantically. "That voice!"
"Sorry?" said Lockhart, looking puzzled. "What voice?"
"Could he not hear it?" Key wondered.
"Maybe only we can hear it", Harry figured out.
"What are you talking about, Harry? Perhaps you're getting a little drowsy? Great Scott—look at the time! We've been here nearly four hours! I'd never have believed it—the time's flown, hasn't it?"
Key and Harry looked concerned, listening out for the voice again.
"Are we going crazy, after being in here so long?" Key questions her sanity.
"Maybe, but it felt so real", said Harry.
It was so late that the Gryffindor common room was almost empty.
"Well, see ya tomorrow", said Harry.
"Same to you and get rest", said Key.
"You get rest too", said Harry.
Harry and Key went straight up to theit dormitories.
Ron wasn't back yet.
Harry pulled on his pajamas, got into bed, and waited.
Key gets dressed for bed and looks out the window.
Qin and Syria see Key.
"How was Lockhart?" Qin asks Key.
"Annoying, but that's not what I want to talk about", said Key.
"What did you want to talk about?" Syria asks curiously.
"Harry and I heard a strange voice saying something about killing", replied Key.
"Really?" Qin looked concerned.
"Yeah, and it was really weird only Harry and I could hear it", said Key.
"That's not a good sign", said Syria.
"I know, do you think it could've me and Harry being loopy?" Key asks Syria and Qin.
"No, I have heard of people in the wizarding world hearing voices, can you describe this voice?" Qin told Key.
"It was evil, creepy, sounding like an animal", Key described.
"Can you talk to animals?" Qin wondered.
"Harry and I did speak to a snake once, could it have been that?" Key remembered.
"I don't know, I mean there aren't many snake here", Syria pointed out.
Half an hour later, Ron arrived, nursing his right arm and bringing a strong smell of polish into the darkened room.
"My muscles have all seized up," he groaned, sinking on his bed. "Fourteen times he made me buff up that Quidditch cup before he was satisfied. Then, Gem came running and almost knocked over a Special Award for Services to the School. How was it with Lockhart?"
Keeping his voice low so as not to wake Neville, Dean, and Seamus, Harry told Ron exactly what he had heard.
"And Lockhart said he couldn't hear it? Yet Key could", said Harry.
Harry could see him frowning in the moonlight.
"D'you think he was lying? But I don't get it—even someone invisible would've had to open the door." Ron wondered.
"I know," said Harry, lying back in his four-poster and staring at the canopy above him. "I don't get it either."
In the Slytherin common room, Makai limbs and sees Keni and Devin.
Keni helps Makai.
"What did he have you do?" Devin asks Makai.
"I had to clean after all the pets", said Makai.
"Oh my gosh, how were you able to do it?" Keni asks Makai.
"Just watch over the animals and keep them causing any havoc", said Makai.
"Was detention fun, Makai?" Veronica acts, tauntingly.
"It seems so, she was chasing the ferret looking like the animal itself", said Luci.
Luci, Dave, and Veronica laugh as they walk off.
"Those annoying", said Keni with fire in her eyes.
"It's not worth it, Keni", said Makai, stopping Keni from cursing Veronica and her crew.
"You are right", said Keni. "Let's get you into bed".
"I wish I could at least wish Key Goodnight", said Makai.
"You two are such a couple", said Devin.
"Why do you keep saying that?" Makai wondered, as she is being taken to the room.