Hermione pushed the leeches down to the bottom of the cauldron, completing the preliminary work on the Polyjuice Potion.
What came next would take time and patience.
"If it takes a month, will you be staying at school this Christmas?" Su Er suddenly asked, dumping all the discarded ingredients into an empty bucket with his gloved hands.
"I..." Hermione hesitated. "If I go home, there won't be anyone to brew the potion. Harry and Ron can't be counted on."
"All right." Su Er nodded. "I have to go home for a bit."
"I've already prepared Angel's present," Hermione said. "Take it to her for me."
Working together, they quickly cleared the workbench, leaving the cauldron bubbling away.
On the question of whether to tell Harry and Ron about this room, Hermione firmly chose to keep it secret.
There was no other reason: Ron had a rather big mouth, and with his temperament, anyone could goad him into spilling a secret.
At least until the Polyjuice Potion was finished, no third person would learn about this place.
When they reached the third floor of the Castle, they ran into Harry and Ron.
With an air of secrecy, Harry pulled them into an empty classroom nearby and locked the door.
"Someone else was attacked last night," Harry told them in a low voice. "Colin Creevey."
"We already know," Hermione interrupted Harry. "I overheard Professor McGonagall talking to Professor Flitwick this morning."
"So we have to get the-" Ron said angrily, "Polyjuice Potion-right away-"
"Malfoy's been miserable ever since the Quidditch match. I reckon he took it all out on Colin."
"There's something else," Harry said. "I ran into Dobby yesterday-"
Hermione looked at him in surprise.
"Remember how Ron and I missed the train? That was Dobby's doing. He sealed the barrier