Ginny's retreating figure from the Great Hall was like a dead leaf swept away by the cold wind, leaving behind frozen silence at the table and a biting chill. Hermione instinctively rubbed the wrist that had just been assaulted by Ginny's cold aura. The warmth of the Starlight Bracelet was doing its best to drive away that bone-deep chill.
"What's wrong with her?" Ron stared toward the Ravenclaw table, his voice tight. "She looked like she'd just been fished out of an icy lake..."
"The Diary." Harry lowered his voice, his green eyes full of worry. "That thing is draining her life force! Lynn, just now..."
"It's accelerating the corruption." Lynn's voice was as deep and steady as stone. His palm wrapped around Hermione's slightly cool hand, gently yet firmly channeling Star Power into her like a trickling warm current soothing her taut nerves. He looked toward the staff table. Dumbledore's gaze had also crossed the bustling crowd and settled on Ginny, his blue eyes behind half-moon spectacles as deep as the sea.
Hermione took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down. She squeezed Lynn's hand tightly in return, drawing strength from his composure, then turned to Harry and Ron, her tone carrying Gryffindor decisiveness. "We can't wait any longer. We have to get the Basilisk's fangs and destroy that Diary! The valve has sealed off the eastern wing's pipes, but the main passage is still active. The Star Chart marks several possible 'node intersections.' If the monster is moving around, it has to pass through one of them!"
"How do we know when it'll come out?" Ron asked miserably.
"It needs 'eyes.'" Lynn suddenly spoke. His voice was not loud, yet the three of them fell silent at once. "Ginny... is its eyes. The Diary controls her