384 Chapter 383 Granger's game

Snape didn't make a sound, he just listened quietly as Barty Jr. continued, knowing that he didn't have to be some kind of yes-man and that Barty Jr. would spell out his entire plan on his own because tonight was the night when the results for the game he set up would finally be seen.

"As I told you before, I researched a lot about Jon Green, not just some of his experiences before he entered the wagon but also after he entered the wagon for school, I also went to that fool of a Weasley family in the Ministry of Magic specifically to find out a few things. Among them, there was something about which girls Jon Green had been closest to at school."

"It was from him that I learned that the only girl on the whole wagon who was a bit closer to him was this mudblood girl he had rescued from the castle in front of everyone back then - Hermione Granger - and that fool thought I was trying to listen to his grievances and told me that when he was arguing with Jon Green, this girl whose family name was Granger was standing in defence of Jon Green. It's not uncommon to find heroes saving the day and falling in love at first sight, both in the magical world and in the filthy society of muggles, and if he had to pick a date for the Ball, the most likely choice for Jon Green would be this girl called Hermione."

"Having reached that conclusion, it was even easier to investigate Hermione as a person, she had lived in the Castle for over a year, not all the mudbloods who had been with her at one time or another had been rescued along with her, I extracted the memories of a few mudbloods who had known her, and it became incredibly clear what kind of character the girl really has. Brave, kind and compassionate, ha, full of weaknesses at first glance, a simple and easy target, it might be hard to fool Jon Green about some things, the boy didn't even look like a student of his age, it was like he could figure some things out at a glance, but a young girl like that, who was also fifteen but full of kindness and likely to be sympathizer would be much easier to deal with. "

Barty Jr. narrowed his eyes and smiled widely as he looked through the crowd to see Hermione's raised right hand that reflected the light from the candle, on which a white bracelet barely distinguishable.

"See, the bait has been successfully hung on the hook, and as long as you are certain that this bait you have created will not go wrong, then we are in for a treat tonight."

Snape's voice was calm, he didn't bother to look at the bracelet in Hermione's hand that he had soaked up in potions with his own hands, instead, he looked at the candelabra that floated in the middle of the great hall, the bright candle flame reflecting on his vacant eyes.

"I have not made a single mistake with the potions I have made so far, and if you had any doubts about my abilities in this regard, you would not have approached me to share in this credit that should have all belonged to you in the first place."

Barty crossed his legs and relaxed against the back of his chair as he watched the flying candelabras gradually all converge in the centre of the great hall, and after a music band in ragged, non-mainstream clothing came out, the whole great hall began to grow quiet.

"Then let's take our time and enjoy."

As his words fell, soft music played in the already quiet great hall, signalling the start of the day's ball.

As the candles on the tables went out, Jon helped Hermione to rise from her chair, and Diane and George rose together beside them.

Not only them, but Draco pulled the girl named Pansy and Emil put his arm around the girl named Selwyn, and together they made their way to the centre of the great hall, dancing to the melancholy and quiet music.

They were being watched by everyone around them, which Jon always felt a little uncomfortable about, but luckily the dance steps he had been practising with Rosier for two whole months did the trick and didn't make him accidentally step on Hermione's pale white feet or something stupid like that.

"Honestly, I sort of got the feeling that you and Professor Dumbledore were hiding something from me."

Jon's face was so close to Hermione's that he could even clearly feel the girl's warm breath, and being so close to a girl for the first time, coupled with the fact that he had little interest in dancing itself, he simply found something to talk about at this point in time.

"It's not like we're keeping it from you, but the professor said that you're taking up enough energy just to deal with the tournament, so there are certain things we should be able to handle without worrying you about them."

Jon wrapped his arm around Hermione's slender waist and spun in place.

"So, are you guys doing something tonight?"

"You really want to know?"

Hermione looked at Jon, blinking her long eyelashes, the eyes reflecting in the candlelight like stars twinkling in the dark.

"Maybe you could talk to me about the part that has to do with me?"

At his words, Hermione couldn't help but smile, the corners of her mouth seeming to eclipse everything around them at the moment as it curved into a wonderful curve.

"Then actually, this whole thing tonight should have something to do with you."

Jon was a little puzzled by this answer from Hermione, he thought he was having a pretty leisurely day, either going fishing or on his way to dance for the night, so how could it all be about him.

"We're going to take a break later on halfway through the Ball, then I'm going to make a trip to the lavatory, after that, there will be another me returning to continue to spend some time with you in the great hall, and then finally we will go out for a walk in the garden."

Hermione didn't continue the riddle any further as she pressed herself to Jon's ear and whispered as she shifted her dance steps to the melody.

"There'll be plenty of people watching us then, especially the two that are right behind us right now."

Jon looked up in a feigned casual manner, and then he saw Barty Crouch Jr. who was leaning back leisurely in his chair on the raised platform, and Severus Snape who looked like he had been expressionless for three hundred and sixty-five days.

"They have plans to target us today?"

With just a simple turn of his head, Jon could guess that the cause must have been these two who were up to no good.

"Remember that half-blood girl from the Castle that I was so close to before?"

"Yes, and I remember her name was Assia Konrad."

"Why do you remember her name so well? And especially saying it so openly while dancing with a lady."

"Ahem, it's nothing, I guess, I just thought at the time that you were getting too close to her and that you might be tricked into falling into a trap."

"She's not a liar, she's just being used by a bad bunch of liars. I've always kept my distance from the students in the Castle, no matter who they are too, and at the time you didn't wonder why I was suddenly so close to Assia?"

"I thought you were too bored in the wagon."

"Even if I was bored I knew the limits, and contact with anyone or anything in the Castle at a time like this is dangerous. Also, the very day I saved her from those pureblood students, and you got involved; when Assia returned, I kept a constant eye on the Marauder's Map for her movements to see exactly who she was in contact with in the Castle. That was the biggest advantage we had, with the Marauder's Map in our possession, these people in the Castle had no more secrets to keep from us, and they were all unaware of that."

"So you saw Crouch or Snape in contact with Assia on the Marauder's Map back then?"

"Only Barty Crouch to be precise, he was in contact with Assia, but each time it was short, and it was as if the two had just met in the Castle unintentionally, but even if it was just that, it still allowed me to conclude that, whether Assia knew it or not, the fact that she was in contact with me must have had something to do with Crouch. Having established this, I went to Professor Dumbledore as soon as I could, which was the evening of the day we rescued Assia."

"Was it the professor who told you not to voice it out first?"

"Professor Dumbledore said that their ultimate goal must be you and that using Assia to contact me was most likely just using me as a springboard. Professor didn't tell me how to handle it, he said he wanted my opinion, and I was still at that point doubting whether or not Assia herself knew anything about what she was doing, so I decided to continue down the line with her for a while before seeing what happened, and then I found out about the second problem."

With a slight movement, Hermione shook the hand she had on Jon's shoulder at him, the white beads on the string hitting each other with a crisp sound.

"My mum used to wear this exact kind of bracelet, but I also remember very clearly that when my dad gave it to my mum as a gift, he said that it was a special commemorative piece for that year and that there were only a few pieces sold, and that this one was only bought when my dad got lucky and drew the right to buy it, and that there hadn't been any more of the same piece for sale since then. But when Assia told me that her mother had given it to her for her eleventh birthday, I was sure that it hadn't been given to her by her mother, but that someone had found the exact same bracelet that my mother wore and handed it to her in order to get my attention and the only person in Hogwarts Castle who had ever seen my mother was Barty Crouch, who had taken me away from my family."

Jon couldn't help but be a little lost in thought as he listened to this calm analysis from Hermione, he hadn't forgotten that Hermione is really only fifteen years old!

"It was the same day that I discovered that there was something wrong with this bracelet that I established that Assia had been kept in the dark from start to finish, that she was just an ordinary girl who had been bullied in Hogwarts castle and was planning to sacrifice herself for the safety of her family. It was also at that time that I found Professor Dumbledore and told him all of my findings and discussed with him that perhaps we could use this plot of using me as a springboard to eventually target you for something to accomplish the plan that we had been struggling with how to carry out."

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