A Nice Day

By Sunday afternoon, word had spread throughout the school that Harry Potter and Sally-Anne Perks had gotten into a fight, Rose Peta-Lorrum could throw people onto the ceiling without a wand, and Sally-Anne had been attacked by the Monster of Slytherin. It was also announced that the monster was a basilisk, it wasn't likely to bother anyone soon, but people were to start carrying mirrors with them for safety. Professor Dumbledore also reinforced the importance of staying together. Once again, he looked directly at Rose when he said this.

Unfortunately, since Sally-Anne had been attacked almost immediately after she had gotten into a fight with Harry, most of the students had gotten it into their heads that Harry was the Heir of Slytherin.

Why can't everyone just leave me alone? he thought. I'm just a normal kid. Why won't they let me be a normal kid?

That was all Harry wanted. He wanted to be left alone to be normal. He realized that it was just a fantasy, something that would probably never happen, but he kept hoping. Harry didn't want to be the hero that defeated Voldemort, he just wanted to be Harry. A normal, 12-year-old wizard with black hair.

"How are you feeling, Harry?" Sally-Anne asked him as the five of them were outside.

It was Sally-Anne that said that some fresh air would be good for them; that some time out of the castle would make them all feel better. She didn't tell them that she was afraid that the Basilisk would come after her again, or that she was constantly eyeing the grass and forest, worried that another snake would come after her. Therefore, unlike the rest of her friends, she was sitting on the grass instead of laying on it.

"I'm alright," Harry replied, trying hard not to shut out his friends anymore. He and Sally-Anne still hadn't spoken about their fight, but Sally-Anne wasn't going to pressure Harry into anything. In fact, she was trying hard to do the opposite, and just let him believe that everything had returned to normal.

"Is anyone else thinking that Malfoy's just going to pop up out of nowhere and start a fight?" Ron asked.

"He does that," Hermione replied, sitting up to once again brush grass out of her hair. "Rose is here, so she'll frighten him off."

Hermione glanced over at Rose, who was sprawled out over the grass. If she didn't know better, Hermione would have thought her friend was asleep. It was a little odd seeing her friend so relaxed, rather than… hyperactive.

"Rose, I've got a question," Hermione said.

"Shoot."

"On one of the first nights at Hogwarts, you told me you were hyperkinetic. Where did you hear about that? Did Sk'lar tell you?"

"No, I read about it in a book," Rose replied, not opening her eyes. "Carolina said it would be a good idea to have a reason why I didn't sleep, and I found that in one of the books I read, so I thought it would make a good cover story." She grinned. "I didn't think I'd be talking to a genius when I used it, though."

Sally-Anne saw Hermione blush and smile.

"What're you smiling about, Hermione?" Sally-Anne asked.

"Just remembering why Rose and I are friends," Hermione said.

"Is it cos I'm adorable?" Rose asked, looking over at her friend.

"Sure, Rose," Hermione said. "It can be because you're adorable."

"Yay!" Rose exclaimed. "I'm adorable!"

Hermione and Sally-Anne both laughed, and even Ron chuckled a little.

"How do you stay so happy all the time?" Sally-Anne asked.

"Practice," Rose replied. "Bad things happen, and you just gotta roll with it." She beamed. "Besides, worse things have happened!"

"Sally-Anne was attacked by a giant serpent yesterday," Ron said. "Last year Hermione was nearly killed by a troll, and you were attacked by You-Know-Who."

"Worse things!" Rose exclaimed, throwing her hands up into the air, then allowing gravity to pull them back down onto the grass.

Sally-Anne was finding it difficult to not read Rose's mind. She knew it wouldn't do anything, but it was tempting to try. Her crimson-haired friend remained a mystery. While Rose was forthcoming about certain information, there were still topics on which she refused to speak.

"What's worse than almost dying?" Harry asked.

"Actually dying?" Hermione suggested.

"I guess that's true," Ron said. "It's not like any of us have died, right?"

"The Basilisk is still out there, though," Hermione said. "Who knows what will happen if we stay?"

"I heard a lot of students are going to be transferring out until it's handled," Ron said. "It didn't take long for the Daily Prophet to catch wind of it."

"I'm sure Lockhart's to blame," Hermione said with a hint of disgust.

"Yeah, he'll do anything for some free publicity," Ron said. "Did you hear that people are asking him to find the Basilisk and kill it?"

"I'd love to see that," Hermione said, laughing.

"If it's anything like class, he'll just scream and faint," Harry agreed.

Sally-Anne was glad that her friend was talking again, but she was becoming uncomfortable with the current topic. She didn't care for Lockhart, but she was still afraid of the Basilisk. Her friends had brought her up to speed about what they knew, so she knew it traveled through the pipes in the school. What was stopping it from attacking her at night? She hadn't slept the night before, terrified that it would come after her again. Fortunately, Madame Pomfrey had still let her leave the Hospital Wing that morning to join her friends. Sally-Anne still wasn't sure why, but she wasn't about to argue with being allowed to enjoy the nice November morning.

"Rose, why haven't you just gone and killed it, yet?" Sally-Anne asked.

"It's not like anything in the Chamber of Secrets can kill you," Ron added.

"Nothing has been able to kill me so far," Rose corrected him. "If Salazar Slytherin hid a basilisk down there, there might be something else. And as apathetic as I am about dying," Rose added, patting her head for correctly using the word "apathetic", "I still try to avoid it."

"Why did you just pat your head?" Sally-Anne asked.

"I correctly used 'apathetic'!"

"Good work, Rose," Hermione said. Was it odd that her friend patted herself on her head when using a "big" word? Absolutely, but using big words was also the sort of behavior that Hermione wanted to encourage.

"Thanks, Hermione!"

"You're welcome."

"It's strange," Harry said. "I thought it would be harder to enjoy the day with a monster on the loose."

"Like I said," Rose said. "It's gotta recover first. I don't know if basilisks have fast healing on this plane, but if it doesn't, then it will be out for a good month. I beat it pretty badly, so it's going to take it time to recover."

"That's reassuring," Ron said. "I'm glad I don't have to worry about that thing."

Sally-Anne found an interesting piece of information in Ron's mind. Not only was he afraid of the Basilisk, but he was afraid that it would attack one of his friends or family. Ron was terrified that it would go after Ginny, and Harry was second on his list of people he didn't want it to attack. Funny enough, while Sally-Anne and Hermione were both considered, Rose wasn't. Like he had said, he honestly believed that there was nothing that could kill her.

"It wasn't really a problem before," Hermione said. "I think that's why so few Gryffindor students have talked about leaving. Since Rose can just fix any of the victims that get petrified, they only need to worry about looking directly at it."

"And the Gryffindors are the only ones that believe Rose," Harry said. Looking at Rose, he added, "No offence."

"None taken!" Rose exclaimed.

Sally-Anne had learned a few things about using the amulet that Rose had forgotten to mention, or left for Sally-Anne to figure out for herself. The first was that she shouldn't try it near most of the teachers, or Rose. Not only could she not read Rose's mind, but she got feedback when Rose was just within range. Sally-Anne had found out that the same thing happened when some of the teachers were also in range. Or at least Professors McGonagall and Babbling, both of whom had visited them at the Gryffindor table that morning to check on her.

The second was that she didn't have to concentrate on a person to use it, which was what she had originally believed, but instead on the amulet itself. This made it more difficult to exclude Rose from the area of the amulet.

This was the final piece of information that Rose had neglected to mention: The area of the amulet. It was a cone in front of her, although she hadn't figured out the exact dimensions of it, but spanned well past the edge of the Gryffindor table, which accidentally got her the thoughts of some of the Hufflepuff students if she spaced out while using it. It couldn't affect someone sitting directly next to her while she faced forward, which was her reasoning for sitting next to Rose at the moment, and part of how she had worked out that it was a cone.

At least Harry's sensitive.

Sally-Anne glanced over at Hermione, which was probably a mistake, as she was trying not to react to other peoples' thoughts. Hermione smiled at her and Sally-Anne smiled politely back. Sally-Anne was pretty sure that Hermione didn't realize what the amulet did, although if there were anyone that would figure it out, it would be Hermione.

Sally-Anne glanced over at Rose and saw that the crimson-haired girl was glaring at her. Rose mouthed, "I know you heard that."

Sally-Anne frowned at her friend. Sure, Rose could hear her thoughts, but her friend had promised that she wasn't listening in on them anymore. Rose didn't know that Sally-Anne liked Harry, did she? Besides, there was no reason to be jealous of Hermione. Sure, she was smarter than Sally-Anne, but Sally-Anne was kind. Not that Hermione wasn't, but Sally-Anne had put a lot of effort into being a good person.

Sally-Anne put it out of her mind. There was no need to dwell on it, after all. Sally-Anne relaxed and tried to enjoy the nice day.

Monday morning, Sally-Anne and Rose walked with Hermione to Arithmancy. This wasn't out of the ordinary, as the girls sometimes walked together, and sometimes the boys decided against joining them. What was out of the ordinary was that Rose had tinted her goggles black for some reason.

"Rose, why are your goggles black?" Hermione asked.

"It makes me look intimidating," Rose replied in what the girls were sure was supposed to be a deep voice, but still came out sounding like a child's voice. The most impressive part of her current composure was her completely stoic face.

"It really doesn't," Hermione replied as Sally-Anne chuckled.

"Does so!" Rose exclaimed.

"Why are you trying to look intimidating?" Sally-Anne asked, not certain she knew what the word meant.

"To keep people from messing with us," Rose replied.

"Your presence does that normally," Hermione said.

"Why would people want to bother us?" Sally-Anne asked.

"Not people in general," Rose said. "But to the Heir, we're three targets."

"Rose, I'm sorry, but you don't look frightening," Sally-Anne said apologetically. "You look a little adorable like that, actually."

"Aw," Rose replied as her goggles returned to normal.

"How did you do that?" Hermione asked her.

"Ma–"

"Don't say 'magic'!"

Rose stuck out her tongue at Hermione.

"Seriously, how do you do that?" Sally-Anne asked.

"I can alter my appearance at will," Rose replied as if it were no big deal.

"Like the Twins?" Hermione asked. "With the hats you made them?"

"Exact same spell," Rose replied.

"If you can look like anyone or anything, why always look like that?" Hermione asked.

"I like it!" Rose exclaimed, grinning.

"Sometimes I wish I could change my appearance at will," Hermione muttered, glancing down at her hair that was currently splayed around her. Try as she might, it was impossible to control her hair, so she settled for out of the way.

"Why?" Rose asked. "You're so pretty!"

"Thanks, but," Hermione said, forcing a smile, "not everyone thinks that."

"It's alright!" Rose exclaimed. "We do, and that's what counts! Right, Sally-Anne?"

"Yeah," agreed Sally-Anne. "Don't worry about it, Hermione."

Hermione nodded, although she wasn't entirely convinced that it was alright. For years, she had been teased about her buckteeth and her bushy hair. Her parents always told her that it was only because she was smarter than everyone else, and the other children were afraid and jealous of her because of it. Still, that didn't stop the words of the other students from hurting her.

The trio arrived at the Arithmancy classroom, and Hermione bid Sally-Anne and Rose farewell for the time being. She took her seat towards the front of the classroom and pulled out her notebook.

"Good morning, Hermione," Cedric said as he arrived. Accompanying him were Roger and Rebecca, the former of whom grinned at her, while the latter scowled.

"Good morning, Cedric," Hermione replied.

"How are you doing?" Cedric asked.

"Fine," Hermione said. "You?"

"I'm alright," Cedric said. "How's your friend?"

"I think she's still a little shaken up, but Sally-Anne will be alright." Hermione smiled. "Thanks for asking."

"Of course," Cedric said, smiling back at her.

Arithmancy continued to be Hermione's favorite class, but if it hadn't been for Professor Vector and Cedric being so nice to her, it would've been far tougher than it already was. It wasn't the course work that was difficult. Hermione could handle work with ease, especially work that involved maths, but the other students were making it hard for her. She still felt like they were all staring at her whenever she was in class, and now and then she caught them whispering after she answered a question.

"Aren't you worried about the Basilisk?" Rebecca asked her.

"Not really," Hermione replied. "It hasn't left the Chamber of Secrets since Saturday, and Rose said she hurt it pretty badly, so it probably won't recover for a few weeks."

"Wait, what?!" Roger exclaimed. "She hurt it?!"

"I've heard Rose is pretty good in a fight," Cedric said. "That's impressive for a second-year. Basilisks are dangerous, especially when you can't see them."

Hermione nodded. "'Impressive' is one word for it. Rose said she's got this spell on her called blindsight. It lets her sense where people are without needing to see them."

Hermione chose not to mention that Rose couldn't be affected by the Basilisk's stare. Blindsight wasn't impossible for a normal magic user to do, but whatever spell Rose had that made her immune to the Basilisk's stare was. Although, what if it wasn't? Hermione made a note in her notebook to research exactly how the stare worked. What if it could be blocked somehow?

"I've never heard of that spell," Rebecca said.

"I heard Professor Vector doesn't even recognize some of the spells Rose uses," Cedric said.

"Where did you hear that?" Hermione asked.

"One of the other Hufflepuffs heard it," Cedric said.

"I still don't see how a second-year could do magic that the professors don't know," Rebecca said.

"It's rare, but not unheard of," Professor Vector said as she entered the room. "We are only human, after all, and we can't know everything. In fact, it's more common for orphans and Muggle-borns to know unfamiliar magic than it is for purebloods, Ms. Gamp. Children who don't know how to use their magic will often teach themselves, which may even result in them inventing spells that no one has seen."

That got Rebecca to hold her tongue until class began. Surprisingly enough, no students were missing from class that day. Hermione kept expecting to see the number of students dwindle as more students left to go home. Maybe people weren't that afraid of a basilisk.

"Where are we?" Sally-Anne asked Rose as the latter paced back and forth along the hallway.

"Room of Requirement," Rose said. "I need to pick up something, then we can be on our way."

"What's that?" Sally-Anne asked.

"You'll see," Rose replied.

The plan that day was to visit Myrtle, which meant going to the first-floor bathroom. Sally-Anne was in no hurry to return there, even if it was to visit her new friend. Just passing by it on Sunday had nearly given her a panic attack. Fortunately for her, none of her friends had noticed.

"There we go!" Rose exclaimed as a door began to appear on the wall.

"This is amazing!" Sally-Anne exclaimed as they stepped inside and looked around the room. "How long have you known about this?"

"Depends," Rose said, skipping over to a small yellow creature walking around the room. "What's today?"

"Monday."

"Then…" Rose counted on her fingers. "Since the second week of first year or so."

"Why haven't you said anything?"

Rose shrugged. "I told Hermione about it, but there was a point to it at the time. It's the place to go when someone needs to be cheered up."

Sally-Anne frowned. She tried hard to hide the fact that she was afraid so she could be strong for everyone. "You don't think I need–"

"Nope!" Rose said, taking a small red rod from the creature. "Thanks, Inar!"

Inar nodded, then scurried off to begin organizing the room.

Rose grinned as she inspected the rod in her hands.

"What's–?" Sally-Anne began.

Rose cut off the other Gryffindor by pushing a button on the rod. With a series of clicks, the rod expanded out in either direction, then a pair of prongs shot out from each end. Finally, with a loud SHINK! a crimson blade extended from either side of the device.

Sally-Anne recognized the weapon, except for the runes that now decorated the blades. Of course, she had only seen the weapon once before, and that entire day was still a blur. They could've been there and she just didn't notice them.

"Crimson Thorn," Rose said, grinning maniacally. She swung the two-bladed sword around a few times, then slammed him on the ground. As it struck the ground, licks of flame flared up around it.

Sally-Anne jumped back, startled by the sudden burst of fire.

"What?!" she gasped, catching her breath.

"Some of the modifications I made to him," Rose said, grinning. "It gets so much better than that."

"What's that mean?" Sally-Anne asked.

"I mean he's now a keen, merciful, flying, disarming, whirling, prismatic burst, everbright, wounding, metalline, feycrafted two-bladed sword!" Rose replied as her weapon folded back up. "Uncle Oz reminded me that there were a few properties that didn't enhance the bonus, so I thought 'Why not?'"

Sally-Anne stared at her friend as the metal rod vanished.

"I know," Rose said. "I'm awe-inspiring. It's alright."

"Not… I'm… Never mind," Sally-Anne said.

After their stop at the Room of Requirement, Sally-Anne and Rose made their way down to the first floor. Sally-Anne began to tremble as they approached the bathroom in which she had been attacked.

"That happens sometimes," Rose said. "It'll pass."

Rose took her friend's hand and opened the door.

Inside they found Myrtle floating around the bathroom miserably. Sally-Anne was happy to see her face light up when she saw them.

"Sally-Anne!" Myrtle exclaimed, floating over to them. "Are you alright?! I was so worried!"

"I'm okay," Sally-Anne replied. "Like I said, I've got Rose here to look after me."

Rose curtsied. "It's nice to officially meet you, Myrtle!"

"Likewise," Myrtle replied, still smiling. "I'm so glad you two are alright. When that snake attacked, I was so scared, and–"

"Don't worry, Myrtle," Rose said, grinning. "I'm gonna keep everyone safe!"

That's what I want to do, Sally-Anne thought.

"What was that giant snake?" Myrtle asked.

"It's called a basilisk," Rose said. "It can kill people with a glance. I think it's what killed you."

Myrtle's eyes went blank, and she stared off into space for nearly a solid minute.

"Myrtle?" Sally-Anne asked. "Are you alright?"

"I just remembered," Myrtle said. She floated over to one of the toilets. "I was here. I was crying because Olive Hornby was picking on me again, and I looked up…" She looked up towards one of the sinks. "And I saw those… those eyes staring back at me. Next thing I know, I'm a ghost."

"I'm so sorry, Myrtle," Sally-Anne said.

"It's alright," Myrtle said. "I think I've just about gotten used to being dead."

"You're dead?!" Rose exclaimed.

Sally-Anne and Myrtle eyed the other Gryffindor, until she grinned at them. Then the three of them broke out laughing.

"We've got to get going," Rose said. "Sally-Anne and I have got one more stop to make."

"We have?" Sally-Anne asked.

"It was you that wanted to make the stop," Rose said.

Sally-Anne thought for a moment. What was it that she apparently wanted to do? Where did she want to go? Was Rose remembering some small thing, some piece of information Sally-Anne had idly mentioned, and forgot immediately after mentioning it.

"I'm sorry, I'm still confused."

"You asked me Saturday night," Rose said.

"Oh!" Sally-Anne said. "Right!" She turned to Myrtle. "I'll see you later, Myrtle."

"See you, Sally-Anne!" Myrtle exclaimed.

After class, Professor Vector asked Hermione to stay for a moment. Hermione, being Hermione, was terrified beyond all belief. She calmed herself down by reassuring herself that it was only Professor Vector, which probably meant that she wasn't in trouble. Probably. Unless she was being kicked out of class! No, why would she? Her homework wasn't late, and she had been acing all of her exams. Was that it? Did Professor Vector think she was cheating?!

"Are you alright, Hermione?" Professor Vector asked, snapping Hermione out of her impending panic attack.

"Of course," Hermione said, regaining her composure. "I'm not the one that got attacked two days ago."

"There is a confirmed monster at Hogwarts known to target Muggle-borns," Professor Vector said.

"And my best friend beat said monster within an inch of its life."

"Fair enough," Professor Vector said. "Have you told your parents yet?"

Hermione looked down at her shoes. "No."

"I'm sure you've already thought of this, Hermione, but you should tell them sooner rather than later. Better they hear it from you rather than someone else."

Hermione nodded. "I know, I just… I don't know how to tell them in a way that won't send me back home."

"Tell them what you've just told me. Tell them that Ms. Peta-Lorrum nearly killed the beast a few days ago. Tell them it fled from her in terror, and remind them that she hardly ever leaves your side." Professor Vector looked up towards the empty entrance. "Isn't that right, Ms. Peta-Lorrum?!"

"Right!" came the reply. Shortly after that, Rose stuck her head into the class. A wide grin was plastered over her face. "Salutations, Professor!"

"Don't worry about it, Hermione," Professor Vector said. "I know you'll think of some way to convince your parents to let you remain here."

"Thank you, Professor," Hermione said.

"Before you go, one more thing," Professor Vector said. "What exactly does that hair clip do?"

Hermione froze. "I'm… I'm sorry?"

"It does little to hold your hair in place, but you never remove it," the Arithmancy Professor said. "So I assume that it holds some other purpose, especially considering that you mentioned once that Ms. Peta-Lorrum gave it to you."

Hermione couldn't speak. It was happening. The moment she had been dreading for months had finally come. Professor Vector knew about the hair clip. It was all over. She was going to kick Hermione out of Arithmancy, maybe out of Hogwarts. There was nothing Hermione could do about it. She had been caught cheating.

"I… I… It's nothing!"

"And going by the look on your face, you're worried that you're not supposed to have it," Professor Vector continued. "Considering you've got a seashell that lets you communicate with Rose and a bracelet that lets you instantly read any book, I would guess that the next most important thing to you is your intelligence, so I'm going to guess that the hair clip makes you more clever. Am I right?"

Tears welled up in Hermione's eyes. It was all over. Professor Vector knew. Why had she waited until after asking Hermione if she was alright? Was it to lull her into a false sense of security? Persuade Hermione to lower her defences before striking?

"I'm sorry," Hermione sobbed. "I didn't mean to cheat, but I hate taking it off! My mind just feels murky, and I can't think, and–"

"Hermione," Professor Vector said. "Cheating is looking up the answers during a test, or copying someone else's work and taking credit for it. You aren't cheating."

Hermione blinked. "I'm not?" she asked, her head still whirling. "But I'm using magic to make myself smarter."

"Professor Babbling once told me about a rune that could do that," Professor Vector said. "It's very complicated, so I don't think even she has one, but I do believe Professor Dumbledore does." Professor Vector smiled. "It sounds an awful lot like that hair clip of yours."

Hermione stopped crying. "Professor… Dumbledore uses magic to make himself more clever?"

"Only temporary spells are against the rules, Hermione," Professor Vector said. Looking up, she shouted, "Ms. Peta-Lorrum! Does that wear off?"

"Nope!" Rose exclaimed.

"So I can use the hair clip?" Hermione asked.

"Of course," Professor Vector replied. "Cheer up, Hermione. You've already proven yourself to me time and time again. I have faith that you wouldn't accept help from Ms. Peta-Lorrum if you truly thought you would be cheating by doing so."

"Thank you, Professor," Hermione said, a smile returning to her face. "Thank you so much."

"You're welcome, Hermione," Septima replied. "I'm sorry for upsetting you like that. I'll see you tomorrow. Stay safe."

"I'll be alright," Hermione said.

"Before you go, I'd like to speak with Ms. Peta-Lorrum for a moment," Septima said.

"Okay!" Peta-Lorrum exclaimed, skipping happily over to the Arithmancy Professor. "What do you need, Professor?"

"Ms. Peta-Lorrum, I'll be honest," Septima said after Hermione and her other friend had given them some space. "I don't much care for you."

"That's alright," Peta-Lorrum said. "Carolina says I'm an acquired taste." She tilted her head. "Still not sure where she learned the word 'acquired'."

Does anything upset this girl? Septima thought. Peta-Lorrum was trying to become friends with Severus, so probably not. "My feelings towards you aren't the problem; Hermione looks to you for protection. So, I will say this once: Don't let any harm befall that girl."

"Professor Vector," Peta-Lorrum said. "You don't know me, and probably won't believe a word I say, but let me tell you something about myself. At my old school, I was kicked, punched, spat on, and suffocated. I couldn't fend for myself, but my sister could. She stood up for me and kept me safe. All of those bad things stopped after my big sister started shadowing me." She grinned. "When it comes to my friends, I follow Ali's example, so I'm going to say this once: The only way that basilisk, or anything else for that matter, is getting to Hermione is over my dead body." She paused, then added, "which, by the way, is a lot harder than it sounds."

Septima agreed that she didn't entirely believe the girl, but she did believe that she'd die protecting Hermione. For the first time Septima had ever seen, her face was serious.

Septima nodded. "Thank you, Ms. Peta-Lorrum." A thought struck Septima, and she added, "Would you please tell her parents that?"

Rose beamed. "Will do!"

Rose skipped out of the room, meeting Sally-Anne and Hermione at the door.

"What did Professor Vector want to talk to you about?" Hermione asked nervously.

"She wanted to make sure that I was taking good care of my friends!" Rose exclaimed.

"That's nice," Sally-Anne said.

"Off to plant class!" exclaimed Rose.

"It's called 'Herbology', Rose," Hermione said.

"That's what I said!" Rose exclaimed.

Dear Mum and Dad,

I'm sorry this letter is late, but there has been a lot happening here at Hogwarts. I'm alright, but there was an attack at the school. We found out that inside the Chamber of Secrets is a monster called a 'basilisk'. It was thanks to Rose that we now know that, as she saw it on Saturday. It has been using the pipes in the school to move around within the castle for about a month, judging from what Rose and Harry say, both of whom have been hearing the Basilisk all this time. That's another long story.

All of this came after the attack. Before the attack, a Bludger went rogue and tried to kill Harry during the first Quidditch match. We don't know how it happened, but Rose destroyed the ball before it could harm Harry. After that, we had yet another encounter with Malfoy, which was ended by Rose chasing him away. He really got under Harry's skin, and Harry lashed out at Sally-Anne. She ran off crying, leaving Rose to handle Harry. Don't worry, Rose didn't hurt anyone. She told us that Harry had been hearing voices, which is why he's been so quiet lately.

Sally-Anne ran off crying to the girl's bathroom, which was an issue on its own, since we're not supposed to be alone. She actually made friends with Moaning Myrtle, the ghost that's always crying in the first-floor girl's bathroom. It was during this time that the attack happened, as the victim was Sally-Anne. Fortunately, she was only petrified, although it could've been far worse. A basilisk normally kills when a person looks into its eyes. Fortunately, if you only see its reflection, then it petrifies you.

Shortly after, Rose found Sally-Anne in the bathroom, along with the Basilisk. As luck would have it, Rose is immune to the Basilisk's stare. Then, with her bare hands, she beat it within an inch of its life. A lot of the students that have heard about it think she's lying, but we know she's not. I've seen what she can do, and I know how good Rose is. She brought Sally-Anne to the Hospital Wing, gathered some of the professors, including Professor Dumbledore, and we worked out what was going on based on what Rose told us (I helped!).

My last piece of news is that Rose can restore the victims of the Basilisk to health, assuming that they've only been stunned. She also mentioned something else to me last year. Rose said that she can restore someone to life, so long as they've only been dead for six seconds. I know it doesn't seem like much, but it's why I'm not scared. I know Rose can fix me if I'm petrified, and even bring a person back to life if they've died (again, six seconds). A year ago I would've thought Rose was lying, but I've seen her do the impossible before.

I know you're worried about me, but I promise you that I'll be alright. Once again, Rose has written to you to reassure you that I'm fine. I really am fine. Please don't worry. My friends will take good care of me.

Lots of Love,

Hermione

Dan and Emma put down the letter, then picked up the second one.

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Hermione's Mum and Dad,

I've got Hermione's back. She said she covered the basics, so I'll just tell you what I told Professor Vector: The only way that basilisk, or anything else for that matter, is getting to Hermione is over my dead body. Which is a lot harder than it sounds.

I hope you're doing well! Say "hi" to Ana for me!

Sincerely,

Rose

"Why does this have to happen at Hogwarts?" Emma asked. "Why not at one of the other wizarding schools?"

"Doesn't matter, we're getting her out of there," Dan said.

"Hold on. If what she and Rose are saying is true, then she should be fine."

"What?!" Dan shouted, picking up the letter. "'A basilisk normally kills when a person looks into its eyes'!"

"And Rose says she can handle it," Emma replied. "She's my little girl too. I'm terrified, but… Ana." She indicated their duct tape helper. "If Rose says she can do it, I believe her."

Dan glared at Ana, who stared back at him with its expressionless face.

"She's a child," Dan said, turning back to his wife. "They both are."

"I think we both know that's not entirely true," Emma said. "Hermione may not see it, but Rose isn't quite what she seems. She'll keep Hermione safe."

Dan took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled, still thinking. He didn't want to leave his little girl in danger like that, but on the other hand, Rose had handled the monster once before, and could do it again. Hermione loved it at Hogwarts, and he hated to make her leave.

"Alright," he said finally. "She can stay."

Ana nodded its approval, then continued with its chores.