Star of Gryffindor - Book 1

Chapter 12 - The Mystery Deepens

The Great Hall was immediately filled with gasps and agitated whispers. Iris actually started crying, and Jaycee Bell had to take her out of the hall for a few minutes to calm her down. The whispering subsided quickly, though. We all wanted to know who the victim had been this time.

McGonagall had stood in the front, calmly waiting for quiet to reign once again before she continued. Once the last whisperer had fallen silent, she continued. "The victim of the attack was Andrew Longbottom."

No one talked. No one moved. I felt the blood drain from my face as I realized that Arthur wasn't sitting with us like he normally was. He was probably with his brother. Professor Longbottom was also absent from the professors' table.

McGonagall didn't allow us long to process the news. She said, "He is very much alive, and will make a full recovery, according to Madam Pomfrey. We believe that the Cruciatus Curse was used on him as well, but for a longer period of time. He is currently in the hospital wing."

She sighed and clasped her hands. "Now, students. Again, I implore you, if you have any information regarding the identity, whereabouts, or motive of the intruder, please come forward. We cannot allow any more of this to happen to the students here. Professor Potter is already doing his best, with the help of several other aurors, to track down the culprit, but if you know anything, tell us. And once again, students, do not panic. You are completely safe here at Hogwarts. We are tightening security, and there is no possible way that an intruder could enter this school and hurt any of you. I do not want any panic, rumors, or pranks regarding this, all right? Thank you."

A very somber mood filled the hall. I caught James's eye, and we left breakfast early, closely followed by Albus and Wren.

"It had to be Ciara," I said as soon as we were out of the doors.

"But why?" Albus asked, sounding more confused than skeptical. "What did she have against Andrew?"

"Maybe Andrew stood up for Arthur," suggested Wren. "She likes to pick on him."

"Very true," James said, grinning.

"Now if only we had a way to get her to confess," I remarked.

"We can give up on Polyjuice Potion," James said. "I asked Professor Sulcan about it, and he said it takes a month to brew. She could attack thirty more people by then."

"Anyway, there's no way we could get into the restricted section to find out about it," added Wren. She noticed James and my raised eyebrows and added, irritated, "without breaking the rules."

James sighed in defeat. "Well, what do we do? Have any better ideas?"

"Um...not yet," she said slowly. "Let me think."

We all stared at her until she snapped, "It'll take longer than two minutes!"

"Ok, ok, you can have two and a half," I said, smirking.

Wren shook her head. "You are crazy. Give me a few days, ok?"

"Fine," James said, sighing. He perked up quickly, and at first I couldn't tell why. I turned around to see who he was looking at and saw Mackenzie Walker and Roxanne walking past us. They smiled and waved, and I forced myself to smile back, but I felt an overwhelming urge to hex Mackenzie. It had absolutely nothing to do with James Potter. Nothing.

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The strange thing was that Ciara seemed about as on edge as everyone else. She was an exceptional actress, acting just as paranoid as the people around her. She, Nico, and two other Slytherins stayed together all the time it seemed, and they weren't the only ones. Almost everyone was moving in a pack. Wren, Albus, and I were no exception. With the occasional addition of Luna, who was the only one seemingly unaffected by the mounting terror in the school, we walked together to every class, avoiding Ciara whenever possible.