Chapter 158

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5/27/93

Dear Harry

A Basilisk, I'm guessing that is a magical creature since I cannot find a mention of it anywhere in the nonmagical world, not even in mythological creatures and there's no mention of it in any of the books you've sent me. Exactly how big a snake are we talking about. The biggest snake in the nonmagical world is the reticulated python which can grow to more than 32 feet long and weigh more than 450 pound. It must also have a rather large food supply somewhere, it's far too big to be living off spiders and rats, perhaps a way of getting out into the Forbidden Forest to feed, that would certainly explain why it's off limits to students.

I can't believe that Hermione would have a ripped page of an old book in her hand. She would never rip a page out of any book, especially an old one unless there were literally three or four other copies in better condition in her possession. You said she wrote the word pipes, did she think that it's moving around in the plumbing? I don't know how much you know about plumbing but your standard water pipe is about an inch in diameter and even wastewater pipes are only two or three inches, the only thing bigger is the plumbing for the toilet which is about 5 inches but if it's been travelling through the sewers I would have thought you could smell it coming. A giant snake wouldn't fit though any of these pipes and even with magic it wouldn't make sense to have water pipes so much bigger than necessary, though plumbing in general was virtually unheard of in nonmagical Britain at the time the castle was built. Magical people might have retained the knowledge of plumbing from the ancient romans but they used channels carved in stone they still wouldn't have been big enough for a snake that size or larger. I'm surprised that if they retrofit the castle for modern toilets and hot water that they couldn't also retrofit at least part of it so electricity will work there must be a way to get a generator to run on conjured fuel if they can't get it to run on pure magic so it wouldn't need to be connected to the electrical grid or have a fuel tanker deliver regularly. Is seems they are just resistant to using anything nonmagicals have made, even if they would make their lives easier. It's probably part of the bigotry you described and it's limiting the influence muggleborns can have in their society but it's also holding them back and it could be dangerous. You say that the wizarding world is hiding from muggles but as time goes by and electronics, cell phones and computers become more and more a part of everyday life in the regular world, total ignorance of what they are and how to use them will make witches and wizards stand out.

Did you even consider that the piece of paper might have been planted in Hermione's hand for you to find? Handwriting isn't that hard to fake for a single word though it might be able to be detected by an expert and as we both agree, it is highly unlike Hermione to have deliberately damaged a book and it's not like she couldn't have copied out the relevant information it wasn't something like an incredibly detailed map. She's a big believer in books being for everyone to use (probably as long as she isn't wanting that particular book at that time and then she probably thinks it's unreasonable that it's not in the library waiting for her and accuses other people of hoarding the books she needs without considering that they need them too). I don't think that there is anything that would induce me to rip a page out of one of my own books let alone a library book. I'd be too worried that I'd get my library privileges revoked and I'm sure Hermione would feel the same in this. The question then is, if it was planted who by? I'm assuming that they meant you and Ron to find it that day, that would explain why you were suddenly let in to visit her and I'm assuming left alone with her to be able to prise the paper out of her hand without the nursewitch catching you and wanting to see it.

You mentioned that Ginny was looking depressed before Christmas but put it down to being homesick, could whatever is wrong with her go back that far? Could she be being bullied by her classmates or dorm mates? None of her brothers seem to be taking it seriously but then again Ron is so self centred she'd just about have to be bursting into tears every time he saw her for him to notice and the twins don't seem to be much better, using their sister's anxiety as an excuse for doing what they love best, pranking their siblings instead of genuinely trying to help her, and Percy seems to care more about rules than Ron's well being so he's probably the same with Ginny. Does she have any friends in her year level that you could encourage Ron to ask? I quite understand why you wouldn't want to trigger a re-emergence of her crush by appearing interested in her yourself and if I know anything about teenage girls it's that if someone asked about her, then her friends will blow it out of proportion when they told her about it, particularly if it's someone they like.

Their parents not wanting them home for Christmas doesn't make sense to me. I can see Mrs Weasley wanting, or even needing, a break from caring for her children after all you said that Bill's been out of Hogwarts a couple of years before Ron started so Mrs Weasley has had children to look after for twenty years now and if she was the one homeschooling them all until they started at Hogwarts as well as cooking for nine people and keeping a house full of children clean and tidy she wouldn't have got much if any time to herself. That being said she's had more than three months off between Ginny starting Hogwarts and Yule, they could have gone to visit their elder son's during that time instead of at Christmas when their other children could come home. I missed Mom so much that first year at college even though I had enjoyed not having to look after her and wondering each time I got home which version of herself she would be and who she would think I was today. I couldn't have chosen to stay at school as fascinating as I found living in the dorms and being able to attend classes at my own level. I would've thought Mrs Weasley would have been counting the days until her children came home. You certainly presented her as being someone who defines herself as a mother and wife over anything else. Could her whole image be fake? If so, why? Is it part of her behaviour towards you? What's she trying to achieve by making you think she dotes on her children? Or were the whole trips away fake, or arranged to give Ron an excuse to stay at school because Ron was ordered or being paid to keep an eye on you during the Yule break, and they didn't think you'd agree to go home with him?

There's nothing as mysterious or interesting happening here as there is at Hogwarts. Not that I'm complaining, I think that you could do with a lot less mysteries in your life and adventure seems to be another word for danger where you're concerned, so you could do with less of that too.

I'm fairly well prepared for my upcoming exams, though I'm not really looking forward to the end of term. I have enjoyed this term more than most. I am staying here for the summer but most of my house mates and friends will be going home. I will miss them, particularly if you cant come until the end of the summer term at Scoil Draiocht.

Ethan and I will both have enough seniority to apply to have our own rooms next year, which I must admit I am looking forward to though we still applied for rooms next to each other, it will depend how many other senior students want to stay in the house but at least if we do have to share again we'll get one of the bigger rooms. We still get along very well most of the time. I'm also in the process of trying to decide what subjects I want to take this summer, applications are due at the end of the week so I've left it much later than I normally would.

Superman seems to have chosen to be a superhero and developed his fighting ability and gadgets, I don't think that he was born with any superpowers which gives kids hope that they could grow up to be superheroes too. Though I suppose a lot of children from bad families might dream of being like Batman and adopted from another planet with nothing in common with their parents, it doesn't seem particularly healthy to encourage those fantasies.

Your friend always

Spencer

A/N: Thank you to all those who reviewed followed or favourited this story for your support.

Please stay safe everyone.