Chapter 32 Guilt
The sweet soup in front of him, which had only been touched a few spoonfuls, had become completely cold due to repeated stirring. Harry was still turning the spoon carelessly, his head lowered, his eyes unfocused, until his arm was pushed by someone, and he suddenly came back to his senses.
Hermione's hand was still on his, her brown eyes full of worry, Harry smiled at her and then shook his head to indicate that he was fine.
Hermione in front of them looked a little haggard. Even Ron, who was the most cautious, was always waking up from nightmares screaming. What bothered them was not the dark shadow in front of the unicorn, but the group of snakes that surrounded Malfoy and Della that day, staring at them covetously.
After being rescued by the Centaur Firenze, Fang quickly led Hagrid and the others over. The shadow escaped, the unicorn was dead, and Malfoy and Della, who fled in panic, were nowhere to be found.
They followed Yaya with lanterns in hand. The road was littered with broken branches and messy footprints of varying depths, showing how panicked the two were at the time. The two children ran an unexpectedly long distance and gradually went deeper into the forbidden forest.
The further we walked, the more serious the expressions on everyone's faces became.
Fang finally stopped and sniffed the oil lamp that was left aside and was still emitting a faint flame. Hagrid held the oil lamp and shone it towards the bottomless steep slope. A long, discordant trail meandered through the densely weeded land.
"Merlin, there's a snake cave down there!"
Harry still remembered the shock and solemnity in Hagrid's eyes when he said this. When the situation became extremely critical, all panic was thrown away. What Firenze had just said about Voldemort's intention to return was also thrown behind Harry's mind. They rushed down eagerly along the shocking trace.
With the help of moonlight, they soon saw the two people lying lifeless on the ground. Malfoy's head tilted to one side, revealing his messy blond hair covered in mud, and Della was lying on top of Malfoy, with no sign of breathing.
As soon as they found the two people, the roaring sounds of the snakes instantly filled their ears. Rows of terrifying snake eyes shining in the moonlight also jumped into the eyes of the group, and everyone gasped.
A large group of snakes surrounded Malfoy and Della. They kept twisting their bodies and trying to move forward, but soon shrank back as if frightened. As Hagrid's oil lamp got closer and closer to them, the patterns that Maggie was familiar with appeared before their eyes.
The always docile little snake was constantly opening its mouth, showing its fangs and roaring. In order to guard against its own kind who were eyeing Della and the others, it kept wandering around the two unconscious people to intimidate them. Its small body compared to many snakes in the group burst out with amazing strength at this moment, scaring away wave after wave of snakes.
Fortunately, Maggie, Della and Malfoy were not bitten by the poisonous snakes, but the situation was not optimistic. After Hagrid drove away the snakes, they were only breathing slightly, and it felt like this slight breathing would disappear in the next second. Maggie, who had been in a stalemate with the snakes for an unknown period of time, collapsed in Harry's arms.
Because their conditions were so dangerous, Hagrid asked Firenze to drive them to the infirmary.
There was a lot of noise that night. When they finally arrived at the infirmary, Professor McGonagall and Snape were already there with gloomy faces, listening to Madam Pomfrey talk about the two's situation.
"They are seriously injured. I think they will wake up in two or three days if the situation is good. Malfoy's breathing is still good, but Della seems to have a weak will to survive. I'm not sure..."
After rushing over, they heard Madam Pomfrey say this, and the three of them were driven out by Snape without any explanation the next moment. In their peripheral vision, only Hagrid, with a guilty look on his face, stood in front of Professor McGonagall with his head lowered.
Three days have passed since that night.
They went to Madam Pomfrey to inquire, and found out that Malfoy's condition had improved a lot. Although he hadn't woken up yet, he was no longer in danger of death. As for Della's situation...
Her wounds had healed, but her breathing was getting weaker and weaker. She even had to use magical props to assist breathing a few times. Madam Pomfrey's sighs that day seemed to still linger in her ears, and they were even allowed to visit the patient.
Malfoy's bed was right next to Della's. His face was paler than ever, and he lay quietly on the bed. There were fresh flowers and some gifts beside the bed. They were brought by his mother who had rushed over.
Mrs. Malfoy, who looked haggard but still arrogant, would only glance at them with her cold black eyes and then continue to look at her beloved son.
Perhaps the lady's aura was too terrifying, and Della, who was always popular, looked very desolate by her bed. In fact, there was no other space to place those fresh flowers and warm gifts, because there was a bulky magic prop lying there to keep the poor girl breathing.
The girl on the hospital bed with a breathing apparatus already revealed a peaceful look. Her body, which was kept alive only by the potion, had a cold white tone and her blue-gray blood vessels were clearly visible.
Maggie, who was always by her pillow, was not in good condition either. The brave little snake rejected all the good intentions to take care of him, and only accepted a little food and water every day, stubbornly staying by Della's pillow.
Thinking of Della who seemed like she might leave at any moment in the infirmary, Harry's heart tightened. His troubles were not only the snakes he saw in the Forbidden Forest, but also the conversation with Della in front of the Mirror of Erised that day. Madam Pomfrey's words about her weak will to live hit his heart like a heavy hammer.
He thought about the conversation that night countless times. He never shared that suspicious conversation with his friends. Because of the confusion, he didn't know how to face Della alone. He concealed the fact that Della was practicing black magic, and deliberately avoided the coercion of Quirrell revealed between the lines of her words.
He had obviously wanted to talk to Ron and Hermione about this countless times, but for some reason he was always hesitant and would back off when he was about to open his mouth. After failing once or twice, he never said anything and just paid more attention to Quirrell. However, the timid professor never showed any abnormality.
Originally, this matter had been quietly suppressed in his heart. Now, looking at the girl whose life was gradually slipping away, Harry tore at his heart again and again, chewing over the words that he had ignored until now. The more he chewed, the more he felt that Della was asking for help that day, like a drowning person reaching out a hand, eager to be held.
But he watched those hands gradually sinking, and only felt guilty when he saw her really drowning.
He had to do something.
Harry clenched the spoon in his hand, a resolute look lingering on his face. He pulled Hermione and Ron beside him and said softly, "Let's go to Hagrid's hut later. I have something to say."
"Now? We might not be able to make it to our afternoon classes."
"Yes, now."
Harry's face showed an unprecedented seriousness. Hermione looked at him and nodded seriously.
Before they approached Hagrid's cabin, sad music came from the tightly closed broken wooden door. Hagrid's cabin, which was always open, had been closed for the past three days. He locked himself in the cabin, blaming himself deeply for what happened that day.
"Why are you here? Are they awake?!"
After seeing the trio shaking their heads, Hagrid sighed, put the strange-looking instrument in his hand aside, and started talking to himself.
"These past few days have been really rough. I finally won the dragon eggs, but the little dragons had to be sent away right after they hatched. Now they've let two poor kids get hurt because of me. It's all my fault. I took things for granted. The monsters and the forbidden forest are too dangerous for you."
"I wanted to ask this last time. My brother said dragon eggs are extremely precious. I wonder what kind of person would use dragon eggs as bets in a tavern." Ron's freckled face wrinkled as he recalled what his older brother had said to him and spoke with confusion.
"A weird guy wrapped in a black cloak. I had to talk to him for a long time before I won the dragon egg." Hagrid still had a sad face. He responded to Ron's words and thought about the scene that day. "He seemed to be very interested in the three-headed hellhound. But this is normal. After all, it is such a rare magical animal."
"He wouldn't ask questions like how to keep the three-headed dog quiet, would he?" Hermione's eyes were almost wrinkled as she listened to Hagrid's words.
"Oh, he did ask. This behavior of the three-headed dogs is very interesting. Although they are very fierce, a little music can make them fall asleep peacefully."
After saying this, Hagrid realized something was wrong. He quickly covered his mouth and stared at the trio, muttering weakly, "I really shouldn't have told you."
The trio had already run out of the cabin at full speed, and it was while running that Harry told them, panting, about his conversation with Della that night.
"Why are you saying it now?"
"Merlin, you actually kept it a secret until now!"
Two angry voices exploded in Harry's ears at the same time. Harry felt even more guilty, and the few words he had tried to defend himself were instantly shattered.