Chapter 650 Peeves Stealing!
Harry lunged forward to try to catch the egg, but it was too late!
The egg tumbled down the long staircase with a thunderous crash like a drum on each step.
Dong, Dong, Dong...
The Golden Egg fell through the tapestry at the bottom of the stairs, opened, and began wailing loudly in the hallway below.
"Oops, it will wake everyone in the castle!" said Harry. "Come on, Ron, retrieve it!"
His feet were still sunk up to his knees in the trap step, unable to free himself. He could only urge Ron anxiously.
"No, someone's coming, I can't go there!" Ron said in a panic. He had taken two steps and quickly retreated.
He covered himself and Harry with the Invisibility Cloak, standing in the middle of the staircase, listening fearfully...
And almost immediately, they heard someone shout... "PEEVES!"
It was the unmistakable hunting cry of caretaker Filch. They could hear his swift, shuffling steps approaching, his breathless voice raised in anger.
"What's all this commotion? Waking up the whole castle, eh? I'll catch you, Peeves, I'll catch you... Eh, what's this?"
Filch's steps halted. He picked up the egg hesitantly and closed it.
Harry and Ron only heard a clinking of metal against metal as the wail ceased!
They remained very still, Harry's leg still firmly stuck in the magical step.
At any moment, Filch would draw aside the tapestry, expecting to see Peeves... and there would be no Peeves.
But if he ascended the stairs, he might encounter Harry and Ron.
"Golden Egg?" Filch said softly at the foot of the stairs. "My sweet cat, this is a clue from the Triwizard Tournament. This belongs to a school champion! Ah... I see... PEEVES! You've been thieving!" He roared with uncontainable delight.
He pulled the tapestry back, and Harry and Ron saw his dreadful bloated face and bulging eyes fixed on the dark, deserted staircase.
Harry's heart beat like a drum, and Ron's eyes widened as he swallowed hard.
"Hiding, are you?" Filch said softly. "I'm coming for you, Peeves... You've gone and pilfered a Triwizard Tournament clue. Dumbledore won't forgive you this time, you cursed, plundering poltergeist..."
Filch started climbing the stairs, his scrawny, dusty gray cat at his heels.
Mrs. Norris' lamp-like eyes, so similar to her master's, were fixed directly on Harry and Ron.
Harry was covered in a cold sweat. He had wondered before if the Invisibility Cloak worked on cats.
He was so horrified he nearly fainted, watching Filch draw closer and closer in his old flannel dressing gown.
He tried desperately to free his trapped leg, but only sank inches deeper.
Ron was no help at all. He was too scared, remaining immobile like a wax figure.
At any second, Filch was going to collide with them directly...
"What's going on, Filch?"
Filch stopped just a few steps below Harry and Ron and turned.
At the bottom of the stairs stood Snape, his chest heaving violently, his wand tightly gripped in his hand, as if he had just run there, looking furious.
Evan and Hermione were beside him!
Evan had just come up from the lake, and Hermione ran to him and embraced him.
She didn't care that Evan was completely soaked. She hugged him tightly and never wanted to let go.
She had been outside, staring at the dark lake, waiting for hours, fearing something might happen to Evan.
The last hour or so had been torture for Hermione. Evan had been gone too long. If not for the lack of means to breathe underwater, she even wanted to go in and search for him. Whether with the Bubble-Head Charm or human Transfiguration, advanced courses that Hermione had yet to master.
Thinking of this made her feel useless. Her magic was so weak she couldn't help Evan at all.
In this tense and complex mood, Hermione sat alone for hours by the dark lake.
Her body was freezing, but she didn't mind at all. She just hoped Evan was safe.
When she saw him emerge, she was naturally delighted.
Closely embraced by Hermione, even though the cold with gusts of chilly winds blowing, Evan felt warmth in his heart.
They embraced for a while before being startled by the cold water of the lake and the icy wind.
While Evan wanted to do something for Hermione. They embraced back to the shore, feeling sweet and serene being together. Evan listened to Hermione talk about her concerns, her worries, and the hope that she would grow stronger and assist him in the future...
This girl was much stronger than he had thought.
Hermione had always been exceptional, not so hesitant, but proper practice was truly necessary.
Regarding his current biggest issue, which was also a common problem for young wizards of his age, the lack of magic...
Evan was contemplating that perhaps he could give Hermione the Philosopher's Stone left by Ravenclaw. Anyway, it would be useless for him.
As for utilizing the magical powers of the Philosopher's Stone, he had recently devised several tricks and had made progress in his research.
Unlike Harry, Ron, and Colin, who lacked theoretical foundations, Hermione's greatest issue at the moment was the lack of sufficient magic.
Just like Evan before, Hermione was very intelligent, had read many magic books, and knew numerous spells, although their approaches were different.
Evan focused more on Transfiguration, dark magic, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. Hermione, on the other hand, enjoyed Charms, History of Magic, Potion Classes, ancient magical texts, Arithmancy, and other non-combative forms of magic.
But the problems encountered were the same. Limited by magic, she couldn't perform most of the magic she knew. That's why Hermione couldn't fully demonstrate her strength at that moment.
The Philosopher's Stone was the only way to increase magical power with the best effect and the fastest speed.
Evan thought that the next time he reached the bottom of the lake, he should take Hermione with him.
More than twenty minutes later, they returned to the castle hand in hand.
Upon entering the entrance hall, they saw the figure of a person disappearing swiftly into the corner of the stairs not far away.
Evan was stunned for a moment. The person resembled Caresius...