Chapter 692 The Beginning Of The Task
Evan naturally couldn't sleep with Cho. The effect of the Polyjuice Potion only lasted an hour.
This meant that he would definitely return to his original form when he lay down for the night. It was impossible for Evan to get up every hour to take the potion.
After dinner sent by the house-elves, he declined Cho's invitation and didn't want to play wizard's chess with Harry.
Evan returned to the guest room on the first floor of the castle, locked the door, extinguished the candles, and retired early.
He lay down, pondered for a while, got up again, removed all his clothes, and then fell heavily onto the bed...
After the transformation, Gabrielle's clothes would definitely not be suitable, and the Polyjuice Potion proved to be quite problematic.
He sighed in the darkness. Today's experience was truly remarkable!
Tonight was meant to be a sleepless night, not only for Evan but for some others as well.
In the Gryffindor Common Room, Hermione and Gabrielle were also talking until late.
When there was no one else around in the middle of the night, they both realized it was time to sleep and couldn't delay any longer.
"Come on, everyone must be asleep. Let's speak more quietly," blushed Hermione.
A strange feeling surged through her. Although she knew Gabrielle was in front of her, she now looked like Evan.
She was personally leading 'Evan' to bed, leaving her mind blank.
"I should stay here, in case someone..." worried Gabrielle.
"No, as long as you're vigilant, there won't be any issues," Hermione actively led Gabrielle, and they walked to the dormitory, saying, "Come on, I can't leave you here alone, you can't stay up all night."
She reminded herself that it was Gabrielle, not Evan, and there was nothing to be ashamed of.
In such matters, her courage needed to be a bit greater to set an example for Gabrielle.
The defensive magic at the entrance of the girls' dormitory was undisturbed, greatly calming them both.
They slipped quietly into Hermione's dormitory. There was no sound around. At that moment, everyone was asleep!
Hermione and Gabrielle glanced at each other for a moment, and then with Hermione's help, Gabrielle undressed in the darkness.
They were not wearing pajamas either and lay down in bed as soon as possible.
Hermione lowered the canopy curtain and let Gabrielle lie in it.
The originally spacious large bed became smaller with one more person in it.
Both of them contemplated, tossed and turned for a long time before finally falling asleep.
Neither of them noticed that Gabrielle, clinging to Hermione, had returned to her original appearance.
In the early hours of the following day, Evan opened his eyes and woke up.
He took the bottle, took a sip of Polyjuice Potion, put on his clothes, and left the room.
At the end of the hallway, Dumbledore was already waiting outside, seeming to expect Evan to be the first to wake up.
"Good morning, Professor," said Evan before realizing Moody was standing in the shadowy corner.
In the faint light, his mutilated face looked exceptionally grim, and his eyes were fixed on Evan.
Today was a crucial day, his plan was coming to life!
He would personally bring Harry Potter before the Dark Lord, demonstrating his loyalty to the great Lord Voldemort.
That was his dream and his greatest desire.
Despite the many changes along the way, deviating from his original plan, letting the cunning vampire escape, killing his father with his own hands, and possibly being sent back to Azkaban or even facing death...
But he didn't care at all, as long as he could help the Dark Lord return, everything was worth it. Thinking about this, madness seized Barty Crouch Jr.
"Hello, Gabrielle," said Dumbledore with a smile. "You look tired; did you not sleep well last night?"
"Yes," Evan nodded, glancing sideways at Moody. "Perhaps I'm too nervous, the thought of diving into that huge lake... you know... I still can't swim!"
"Don't worry, you won't be in any danger," Dumbledore said calmly, giving him a reassuring tap on the shoulder. "We have made all the necessary preparations. Believe me, you will return unharmed. I wish you good luck."
"Thank you," Evan nodded, standing by Dumbledore.
Shortly after, Fudge, Bagman, Madame Maxime, Karkaroff, Sirius, Snape, Professor McGonagall, and several aurors also arrived in the first-floor corridor of the castle. Harry and Cho stepped out of the room.
Neither of them seemed to have slept well, with deep dark circles under their eyes.
Everyone was speaking in hushed tones, Sirius pulled Harry aside and said something to him, to which Harry nodded occasionally.
While the others were not paying attention, Evan secretly took another sip of the Polyjuice Potion and would drink it several more times after descending to the bottom of the lake.
It was already past five o'clock. Poliakoff had not yet emerged. That guy was deeply asleep, and everyone was waiting for him.
"Get up, Poliakoff, you unpleasant boy!" Karkaroff impatiently pounded on the door, often in a brusque manner.
Five minutes later, after he finally emerged, Dumbledore began casting spells on everyone.
A blue flash appeared, and Evan lost consciousness, plunging into endless darkness…
In the meantime, Hermione also woke up early.
Feeling someone holding her body, she abruptly opened her eyes, only to see it was little Gabrielle, and then she relaxed.
Last night, she had a strange dream, dreaming that she and Evan were in bed together...
Hermione quickly changed her train of thought. Evan should have gone to the bottom of the lake by now, and she hoped everything would turn out fine.
After pondering for a while, she woke up Gabrielle and handed her the bottle containing the Polyjuice Potion and Evan's clothes. Then, turning her gaze to Evan, they both swiftly made their way to the Common Room without being seen.
The Common Room was becoming more crowded, everyone excitedly discussing the upcoming task.
During last night's dinner, Dumbledore announced that today's task would take place at the lake in front of the castle, which truly excited everyone.
Every young wizard at Hogwarts was well aware of the depth of the lake, which housed the fearsome giant squid and the Kelpies.
Being able to breathe underwater was an achievement in itself.
These discussions made Hermione uncomfortable. She didn't want to stay there, so she took Gabrielle to the Great Hall for breakfast.
Intentionally choosing an empty corner, it was around eight o'clock when they saw Ron enter.
He had his wand upside down in his pant pocket, and the other pocket was filled with Siren's Kelp.
