Harry looked at Ron, who sat motionless with his forehead pressed against the table, then at Hermione, who had already started planning her study schedule, and felt a profound sense of disconnect.
He opened his booklet, his gaze falling on the section titled "The Cruciatus Curse and Pain Science."
"...The normal function of pain is to alert you that your body has been injured. It is a protective signal.
"But the Cruciatus Curse bypasses actual injury and sends all-encompassing pain signals directly to the brain-your body is uninjured, but your brain believes you are being injured everywhere."
The book used an example from the Muggle World.
"Phantom limb pain-amputees still feel pain in their missing limbs, proving that pain can be dissociated from actual injury."
There was another line in small print below.
"Discussion question: prolonged exposure to the Cruciatus Curse permanently rewrites the brain's pain circuits. Drawing on case studies in the relevant literature, discuss its irreversibility. No fewer than twelve inches."
Harry's fingers tightened abruptly, crumpling the page in his grip.
Breakfast ended in an eerie silence.
The students left the Great Hall quietly, one after another, looking utterly lost. The only thing they had in common was that each clutched a booklet in a death grip.
No one chased or roughhoused in the corridors anymore.
At the turns in the staircases, no one chatted about Quidditch or weekend trips to Hogsmeade.
An unprecedented atmosphere of study enveloped the entire Castle, oppressive yet extraordinarily efficient.
"Move over, Weasley. You're blocking my light."
Harry and Ron had barely reached the second floor when a sixth-year Hufflepuff gave them a shove.
The student was leaning by a window, muttering to himself.
"...The symmetry of a Rune Array determines its function... rotational symmetry produces a cyclic effect..."
"Sorry."
Harry pulled the