The next morning, the Great Hall was as lively as ever, with owls flitting among the candlesticks, dropping letters and newspapers in front of their respective owners.
Herman took a sip of his milk and glanced at Draco's face beside him. There was a faint bluish-gray tinge under her eyes, but she was in surprisingly good spirits. Her hair was neatly combed, and she exuded an undisguised excitement.
Harry sat opposite her, her posture no different from usual. She wore her school uniform neatly, and the bread in her hand was cut neatly. There was no sign that she had fought with Cerberus the night before.
Herman slept well, but the spot on his shoulder where the Cerberus's paw had rubbed against him had been throbbing slightly since morning.
He tried to move around a bit and felt it was a little worse than last night. There was no obvious redness or swelling on the surface of his skin, but it hurt a dull ache when touched, as if something was stuck in his flesh and hadn't been expelled.
He was debating whether to go to the Hospital Wing when Draco approached him, her voice low and brimming with barely suppressed excitement:
"Did you hear that? Last night the professor said that the dog belongs to Hagrid, you know, the big guy. Since he owns it, he must know what the dog likes to eat."
Before Herman could reply, Harry, without even looking up, lightly traced a line in the plate with her bread knife. "Didn't I tell you? It likes to eat Herman."
Draco frowned. "But there's only one Herman. If we feed it, it'll be gone. What if we find one that looks similar? Can't we use magic to turn the rabbit into Herman...?"
Herman put down the milk. "You're really going to feed him?"
Draco and Harry exchanged a glance and then both laughed.
Herman noticed that Draco's expression was shifting towards Harry's wicked grin, and sensing something was amiss, decided to distance himself from them.
He turned to look towards the Gryffindor table.
Neville was slumped over the table, the bacon on the plate in front of him barely touched, one hand supporting his chin, his eyes half-closed.
Hugo sat beside him, his glasses askew, and the quill in his hand drew a messy line on the parchment. What he wrote was probably unrecognizable even to himself.
Ron was practically buried in her milk glass; it was clear none of the three of them had slept well the night before.
Herman withdrew his gaze, a guess forming in his mind. They probably really did go out to investigate last night, but he didn't know when they set off.
If it was late at night, then it would have been different from Herman and the others' time, so it wouldn't have been a problem to run into them. I just don't know if they saw Cerberus, or how they escaped. Maybe they didn't even go in.
Just as he finished thinking about these things, the throbbing pain in his shoulder flared up again, dull and aching, as if something was rolling around inside him with every movement.
Harry noticed he stopped, put down the knife, and glanced at him. "Is that the wound from last night?"
Herman nodded. "It feels heavier than last night."
Harry frowned. "That dog's paw must have some kind of magic on it. Even if it's just a scratch, there will be some residue. If we don't clean off the magic, the wound won't heal properly."
Herman quickly pressed, "Then what do we do? Do we have to use magic?"
Harry thought for a moment, "Advanced healing magic would work, or a special Potions specifically designed to clear away residual magic."
Herman's eyes lit up. "Do you have one?"
Harry glanced at him, a slight smile playing on her lips. "I'm here to study, not to engage in hand-to-hand combat with a three-headed dog."
Herman opened his mouth, then swallowed back the words he was about to say, finally managing to squeeze out only, "Then I'll go to the Hospital Wing."
Draco grabbed his arm. "Wouldn't going to the Hospital Wing expose that we went to the third floor last night?"
Herman said helplessly, "Well, I can't just leave it untreated, it feels a bit inflamed."
Draco thought for a moment, "Of course we need treatment. But we can think of another way. I'll write to my father and ask him to buy some and send it over. You just need to wait a few more days."
Herman hesitated for a moment. "Wait a few more days... it shouldn't be a big problem."
Draco patted him on the shoulder and comforted him in a bold tone, "The worst that can happen is amputation. We'll give you a longer and stronger arm that will work even better than the original."
After offering his comfort, Herman felt even more hopeless and could only reply expressionlessly, "I still prefer the original."
Draco didn't respond to that, instead saying, "Actually, we don't necessarily have to wait for my father to send it. We can go find the Potions ourselves. That big guy Hagrid keeps a three-headed dog, right? It's inevitable that he'll get scratched or bitten. He must have the corresponding healing Potions. You can go ask him."
Herman silently considered the situation; he realized he couldn't avoid Hagrid now, since he had gone to find Hagrid in the original story.
He had only met Hagrid a few times and they weren't particularly close. It wouldn't be natural for him to suddenly run over to ask for medicine to treat his injuries, or even to go directly to his door. Herman doubted whether Hagrid even remembered him, after all, he wasn't some dangerous Fantastic Beasts.
Thinking of this, he turned to look at Harry, Harry was looking down at a letter she had just received, seemingly having lost interest in the topic.
Herman hesitated for a moment before speaking, " Harry, want to come along? Hagrid's pretty close to you, isn't he?"
Harry flipped the letter over to look at the back and casually remarked, "We've only met a few times, so we can't really be considered close, right?"
Herman thought for a moment, then changed his approach. "Didn't you want to know what's hidden on the third floor? And you guessed Hagrid took it from Gringotts? We can find out from Hagrid. Besides, didn't Quirrell and Marlene mention last night that there are more checkpoints to come? The dog is just the first one; we have to go to Hagrid first."
Draco interjected, "What if they just happen to be keeping dogs there?"
Herman gave her a helpless look. "Keep a three-headed dog on the third floor of the castle? The Forbidden Forest is so big, isn't it big enough to keep a dog? Even if it has three heads."
When Draco was asked this question, she opened her mouth but couldn't find a reply.
Herman then turned to Harry: "There are other levels ahead. Something protected by so many traps must be something special."
Harry put away the letter, looked at Herman, and asked, "You have an idea?"
Herman recalled the details of last night, the original plot running through his mind. "And do you remember, there was a Trapdoor on the ground last night? It was too chaotic to see it clearly. That means there's something else down there once we get past Cerberus."
Harry thought for a moment, then replied calmly, "No need to look for Hagrid, just feed you to the dogs."
Herman took a deep breath. "Can't you be serious?"
Harry finally agreed, "If I'm free tomorrow, I'll go with you to see Hagrid."
She spoke casually, but Herman noticed that her tone didn't rise at the end of her sentence, indicating that she wasn't just being perfunctory; she was being serious.
Hopefully tomorrow goes smoothly, and I can get some Potions from Hagrid. I hope I don't actually lose a limb.