38 Boredom

Chapter 35 – Boredom

After arriving in Hogsmeade, the students were taken to Hogwarts to start preparing for their classes. Along the way, many students cast strange looks at Simon, something he noticed but tried to ignore for now.

Although there was no hatred, there was a certain fear and mistrust towards him, especially from the older students and those from pure-blood families.

All his fame as a talented student and a troll killer was overshadowed by the news that he was 'possibly' involved in the death of an entire family.

Simon remained silent the whole time as he headed towards the school, imagining different ways to inflict pain on Rita and how amusing it would be to do so.

Heloise noticed the looks her brother was receiving and, after learning that a photo of him with details about his interrogation had been published in the newspapers, she nearly exploded with anger.

She was irritated by this, but even more angered and somewhat disappointed by how easily something like this happened within the ministry. How on earth did the head of one of the most important departments in the ministry not notice someone taking a photo right in front of her? How on earth did an interrogation that was supposed to be confidential have so many of its details exposed to the public?

These questions lingered in her mind, and gradually she began to feel a bit disappointed with the ministry. Moreover, there was Rita Skeeter... what kind of unprincipled woman would defame a 12-year-old boy? What would she gain from it?

In the end, all Heloise could do was be a pillar to support Simon, preventing him from sinking into loneliness.

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Days passed, and Simon led a common and tedious life within Hogwarts. Somewhat isolated, the only person he talked to was Heloise and some Hufflepuff students who respected Heloise and wanted to give Simon a chance.

The teachers also didn't comment on Simon's situation, of course, they wouldn't believe something so absurd, especially since, although the article was very sensationalist, it still reported that Simon had voluntarily submitted to Legilimency and nothing was found.

Minerva and Snape also held the boy in high regard due to his talents and his will, which at no point faltered even though he was basically isolated from everyone.

Simon also spent most of his time in the library, always jotting something down in a notebook while calmly observing the students around him, especially Harry's group.

He knew that soon the trio would discover about Flamel, and after that, they would embark on a magical and exciting adventure to protect the stone from the evil Professor Snape.

Thinking about the challenges the group would have to face, Simon wondered if the teachers knew that it was all just a way to test young Potter. Although they seemed grandiose and challenging, everything was so simple that any slightly older student could get through it.

No doubt, if you disregard the last challenge, the Mirror of Erised, and maybe the troll and Fluffy, it was all just a child's exploration game in the eyes of truly talented wizards.

Even Quirrell, who was being parasitized and in a severely decrepit state, reached the location with extreme ease and only failed to obtain the stone because he couldn't unravel the mystery of the last challenge.

Watching the group leaving the library a bit downcast, Simon realized that they had yet to discover anything. Frankly, sometimes he wondered what was so hard about finding information about Flamel. Even in the Muggle world, he is a known figure, as long as you ask anyone who knows a bit about history.

This delay was making Simon lose his patience, but what could he do? Getting too close to Harry would be imprudent, he knew there were those watching him. Besides, his own legal situation didn't give him much room to communicate with other people.

Sighing a bit tired of such monotony, Simon closed his notebook and a nearby book, stood up, and went back to the common room to prepare for dinner.

Dinner was calm, the Gryffindors chatted animatedly, with George and Fred causing a commotion, the Ravenclaws whispered quietly and silently, the Slytherins mostly just bowed their heads and ate calmly and elegantly without hurry, occasionally exchanging a few words, and finally the Hufflepuffs had a calm meal without much discussion, like a large, ordinary family.

Simon calmly looked at all this while eating a piece of meat when he saw something interesting. At the Slytherin table, a few seats away, a certain person was just stirring her food without any real desire to eat.

Simon quickly recognized the girl as Daphne Greengrass. Over the school year, although they were not close, Simon ended up exchanging a few words with the girl, and although she was not outgoing, she was quite sociable, and always maintained a polite, albeit a bit cold, smile on her face.

He saw some girls trying to talk to her, but she just nodded lightly and continued stirring her food. Finding this behavior strange, Simon decided to observe for a while.

It wasn't as if he suddenly became interested in her. Well, there was some interest, but mostly, it was the sheer boredom of having to wait for Harry's group to head towards the Philosopher's Stone, allowing him to make his move.

After dinner, the students headed to their respective houses, starting the curfew. Simon continued to observe Daphne's strange behavior and began to notice that she seemed a bit downcast and somewhat melancholic.

After entering the common room, Simon saw that she went directly to her room while most stayed in the room chatting, and Simon decided to do the same and stayed in a somewhat more isolated spot.

Gradually, people left the room, going to their rooms to rest. And the previously bustling hall fell silent. Simon turned off the light of the small lamp beside him and sat in silence looking towards the corridor leading to the female dormitories.

He didn't know exactly what he was waiting for, but decided to stay there for a while. Time passed, minute by minute, and just when Simon was about to give up, a small light came from the corridor.

Simon became a bit more attentive and, as he suspected, he saw Daphne heading towards the exit of the common room. She was dressed in a black cloak and held a lantern to light her way.

Daphne walked with calm steps and as quietly as possible, and after checking that there was no one nearby, she left the Slytherin common room and silently walked through the school corridors. Seeing this, Simon left his small hiding spot and remained a few meters away, trying to stay discreet as he followed the stealthy girl.

Simon followed Daphne calmly and began to find it quite amusing. He had been feeling a bit suppressed lately, and this little game of pursuit left him somewhat excited. Curiosity about what Daphne was seeking also motivated him to continue.

Finally, after a few minutes, she reached the doors of the library. Looking around, she opened the door calmly and entered silently. Simon came shortly after and held the door before it closed and followed her in.

Daphne walked cautiously and somewhat nervously towards the restricted section. Since returning from the Christmas holiday, she had felt a bit bitter due to her sister's condition.

A long time ago, an ancestor of the family was hit by a curse that ended up being passed down to their descendants in the form of a blood curse.

Although it wasn't something that caused much harm, in some cases, it could lead to the death of its bearer. And that was what was happening with her sister at the moment.

Astoria Greengrass, her younger sister, had always had a weak body and fragile health. Although it wasn't enough to prevent her from living a normal life, she still had to take certain precautions.

However, upon returning home during the Christmas break, Daphne was informed by her father that Astoria had developed signs of the blood curse, further weakening her health.

Daphne loved her sister; she had already lost her mother and didn't want anything bad to happen to Astoria. After some discussions with her father, she learned that there was nothing they could do.

However, Astoria didn't give up, and since returning to Hogwarts, she had been searching through different books in the library for ways to help her sister. However, she ended up only being disappointed to find that there was nothing in the common books.

Desperate and with few choices, Daphne decided to make one last bet: to invade the restricted section. She knew that there were several books there about the most terrible curses, including the three Unforgivable Curses, so if she heard something that could help her treat a blood curse, that was the place to look.

The library was terribly silent and dark. Daphne walked firmly towards the restricted section, unaware that Simon was quietly following her.

Upon reaching the corridor that led to the section, Daphne stopped for a moment. She was nervous and a little scared; breaking into the restricted section was not a small thing, even though all she needed to do was cross a simple rope, this simple action seemed very scary and wrong.

Unbeknownst to Daphne, she began to be consumed by a feeling of guilt and helplessness just by being there, and she was about to give up when suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Eek!" Daphne almost screamed in surprise, but then she felt a hand covering her mouth. She tried to struggle for a while but stopped upon hearing footsteps coming from outside.

Suddenly, her small lantern was extinguished, and she heard a simple whisper coming from behind her, and then silence.

Shortly afterward, Filch appeared with his lantern searching around, making Daphne a bit nervous. Behind her, someone still kept her mouth covered, preventing her from making noise.

Filch looked around and suddenly focused his eyes on the spot where Daphne was, but after a brief moment, he looked away. Suddenly, a sharp meow sounded from another part of the castle, catching Filch's attention and causing him to leave the library.

Seeing Filch leave and the library return to absolute silence, Daphne calmed down. Suddenly, she felt the person behind her release her, and she quickly distanced herself while pointing her wand backward. She saw the person crouch down, pick up the lantern, and waving his wand lightly, he lit it again.

"Simon?"