Yet even after the winter break ended, Hermione still did not know what had happened between the two professors. She had only noticed that the Sports Professor would occasionally go to Snape's Potions office to see him, while Snape seemed unable to refuse.
They were definitely plotting something, and her professor was the one taking the lead.
But Snape was not unhappy either. At least, he did not take it out on her; in fact, his attitude had improved considerably. When she met him in the corridors and greeted him, he would even nod in response, something he had never done before.
On the first day of the second term, the Principal added the points Hermione had earned for killing the Basilisk. Officially, of course, it was said that she had discovered Slytherin's legacy.
As for what that legacy was and where it had been, that was not something students were meant to know. They only needed to know that the sand in Ravenclaw's hourglass stood higher than that of all the other Houses combined.
Thus, everyday school life continued in its quiet, uneventful way.
Gradually, everyone else, including Harry and Draco, had basically fallen into despair. They knew the House Cup was beyond their reach this year.
Even if they won the Quidditch championship, the points it awarded would not amount to even a fraction of what Miss Granger had earned.
So Draco became even more reckless. In the new term, he went after Harry almost every day. His new goal was to make Gryffindor finish dead last. Would that not prove that he had won too?
Harry had initially wanted to be more tolerant, but Ron's temper was just like his hair—it caught fire at the slightest spark.
And whenever he tried to hit Draco or cast a