Harry Potter: Sectumsempra Chapter 20 | Seven Years of Chaos Book 2

Hermione is determined to solve Hogwarts’ mystery the right way: research first, panic never. While the school obsesses over Quidditch and rumors, she digs into serpents, magic theory, and the ugly logic behind the attacks, building a terrifying case for what might be stalking the castle.

But the deeper Hermione goes, the more the cracks show inside their friend group. Harry’s cold pragmatism collides with Hermione’s principles, and what starts as “how do we stop it?” turns into a harder question: what are you willing to do once you know what it is?

As the Slytherin vs Ravenclaw match approaches, the castle briefly breathes again. Bets are placed, alliances shift, and Hermione finds herself distracted by something dangerously normal: excitement, hope, and the flutter of feelings she did not plan for.

Then she steps into an empty corridor.

And the last thing she sees is a pair of massive yellow eyes.

Transcript

**Chapter 20: Basilisks and Boys**

“What did you get for Flitwick’s question about the mixture of gravity and the levitation charm?” Theo asked Hermione as they made their way to the library. Hermione scrunched her nose.

“I don’t think I answered as thoroughly as I should have. I explained how the charm warps the molecular cells of the object to make it defy gravity, much like objects in space.

But I think I should have talked more about the individual cellular structures. What did you say?”

“I didn’t think to mention anything about outer space!” Theo exclaimed quietly as they headed toward their favorite corner of the library.

“I can’t believe how inferior Wixen knowledge is scientifically compared to Muggles!”

Hermione patted his shoulder reassuringly. “I know, but we can exchange those books, and you’ll have all summer to catch up.” They had already agreed to swap as many books as possible.

Hermione was unfamiliar with the laws, traditions, and customs that Theo had been raised on, while Theo had no knowledge of any branch of Muggle sciences. Theo nodded in agreement as he grabbed their stack of books and handed half of it to Hermione.

“Ready?” he said, excitement sparkling in his light brown eyes. “Ready.” Hermione opened her book to the bookmark she had carefully placed during their last visit and settled into her chair to read.

“The Amazon Tree Boa (Corallus hortulanus) is a non-venomous boa species found in the Amazon Basin in South America, with no subspecies currently recognized. They kill their prey in various ways.

Some snake species constrict their prey, others press it to the ground or chew it to kill, and some simply catch their victim and swallow them alive.” 

Not it, she thought, feeling both irritation and excitement. None of the students showed any bite marks or bruising that would indicate the snake was attacking them.

She was determined to identify the specific snake that was petrifying Muggleborns, but she couldn't deny that the research challenge was thrilling in itself. She flipped to the next serpent in her book.

“The…”

The Arabian Sand Boa, also known as Jayakar's sand boa, is a harmless species native to the deserts of the Arabian Peninsula and southern Iran. Its geographic range includes eastern Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, and Kuwait.

Harmless. Next.

Of the many fearsome beasts that roam the Magical Lands, none are more curious or deadly than the Basilisk, often referred to as the King of Serpents. This snake can reach gigantic sizes and may live for hundreds of years.

It hatches from a chicken’s egg, which is incubated beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are remarkable; in addition to its deadly venomous fangs, the Basilisk possesses a murderous stare.

Anyone who meets its gaze suffers instant death. Even spiders flee before the Basilisk, as it is their mortal enemy.

The only creature that the Basilisk fears is the crowing of a rooster, which is fatal to it. “Theo, oh my God, Theo,” Hermione whispered fiercely.

“What?” Theo’s head popped up from behind his own book about serpents native to the United Kingdom. “I—oh my God—I think I found it!” 

Theo's jaw snapped shut with an audible click in the hushed library.

He snatched the book from her hands and read the passage himself. “Why do you think it’s a Basilisk?” he asked, curiosity lighting up his face.

“It fits!” Hermione whispered urgently. “It must be very old to have been around fifty years ago when Myrtle died and to have been Slytherin's personal monster!

And remember how we heard Hagrid telling Professor Sprout about his roosters being killed? What if that was the Heir making sure they couldn’t accidentally kill the Basilisk?!”

“But if anyone looked into the Basilisk's eyes, they would be dead, not petrified,” Theo said, thinking logically.

“Not if they didn’t look directly into its eyes,” Hermione replied quickly, her mind racing. “No one must have looked it straight in the eye, don’t you see?

Colin saw it…”

through his camera. The basilisk destroyed all the film inside it, but Colin was left petrified.

Justin must have seen the basilisk through Nearly Headless Nick! Nick took the full brunt of its power, but being a ghost, he couldn't die again.

And Cheyenne was found next to that big mirror on the fourth floor—what if she only saw the basilisk in the reflection?”

Theo's eyes went glassy as he stared through Hermione for a moment, deep in thought, before he gasped. “You’re a genius!” he exclaimed.

“You’ve figured it out!”

Hermione beamed at her friend and tugged on his hand. “Let’s go tell the others!”

“Guys!

Hermione is a genius!” Theo called out as they rushed into the Slytherin common room, where their friends were deeply engrossed in a game of... poker?

“Are you playing poker?” Hermione asked curiously, momentarily forgetting her discovery. “I didn’t know you knew how to play.

I love poker!”

Harry smirked slightly. “I taught Draco over the summer, didn’t I?

Blaise already knew how to play—”

Blaise grinned. “Stepfather number four was something of a card shark.”

“—and Ron’s a quick study,” Harry added.

Susan chimed in, “Luna, Neville, and I aren’t playing. It looks terribly complicated.”

“Oh, it’s not!

It’s easy!” Hermione assured her. “You just have to learn the different hands, figure out which ones beat which, and understand the different suits—”

Neville chuckled at her enthusiastic rambling.

“I think 'Hermione easy' and 'average people easy' are two different things.”

Hermione smiled, taking that as a compliment. “Never mind that,” Theo interjected, narrowing his eyes slightly at Neville.

“Hermione and I have something to tell you all!”

Quickly, Hermione and Theo sat down and shared the page from the book they had checked out. Hermione elaborated on her theory about how each attack must have occurred.

“A basilisk?” Ron whispered, horrified. “But those are—”

“Supposed to be all but extinct...

and huge! How would it even get around the castle?” Hermione struggled to find a logical answer, but Theo quickly chimed in, “The pipes!

I bet it’s traveling through the pipes in the walls! That’s why Harry heard it but didn’t see it!” 

“That's amazing,” Harry sighed wistfully.

“Can you imagine what we could do with a pet basilisk?” 

“No!” Draco jumped to his feet, pointing an accusing finger at Harry. “You are not adopting a basilisk that could kill us with just a glance!” 

Harry glanced at Susan, who thankfully shook her head gently.

Hermione had briefly worried that Susan might encourage Harry to go after it as a pet. Sometimes, she could be just as impulsive and reckless as he was.

“Fine,” Harry crossed his arms and slumped down, looking sullen. “This is the tornado of inferi all over again,” he glared at Draco, who had returned to his seat.

“One day, I’m going to have something amazing like that, and you’re going to be so jealous.” 

“Tornado of inferi?” Hermione whispered to Theo. “Best not to ask,” he whispered back, and she nodded in quick agreement.

Theo and Hermione had spent an entire night over Christmas break reading about Muggle psychology. Theo had found the subject fascinating, as there was no equivalent in the wizarding world.

They realized, while reading about some of the more severe diagnoses, that Harry was probably more than just mad; he might actually be clinically insane. He was still their friend, and they loved him, but he was unpredictable, and a pet basilisk or a tornado of inferi sounded like the kind of outrageous idea he would pursue.

“How do you kill a basilisk, besides using the crow of a rooster?” Neville asked hesitantly. “We can’t kill it!” Draco exclaimed.

“Basilisks are incredibly rare! Potions made from their venom are worth as much as my family home!” 

“So a dead basilisk would be worth more than a live one,” Harry said, raising an eyebrow.

Susan chimed in, “Brilliant! Let’s kill it then.” Hermione stared at Harry in disbelief.

“I thought you didn’t care if Muggle-borns were being petrified,” she said, her voice stiff. “Mione,” Harry replied, his green eyes momentarily filled with hurt.

“I didn’t say it like that. I wouldn’t care if it were pure-bloods being petrified either.

You know I don’t care about that bloodline nonsense.”

“I don’t want anyone to be attacked,” she countered. “Just because you don’t care about anyone else doesn’t mean the rest of us don’t.”

“Who says I don’t care about anyone else?” Harry shot back, his anger rising.

“What did any of those other students do for me, huh? Creevey was trying to sneak into the Hospital Wing to take my photo while I was regrowing the bones in my arm.

Justin practically called me a murderer in front of the whole bloody school, and I wasn’t even here for that Ravenclaw girl! Why should I care if they’re frozen or not?

I didn’t see any of them defending me when the whole school was against me!”

His hurt had transformed into fury. Susan reached over and gently took one of his hands, but he shook it off almost immediately, still glaring darkly at Hermione.

She swallowed hard and glanced at Theo for support. “Hermione didn’t mean it like that,” Theo interjected quickly.

“She’s just worried. Who knows who the Heir might attack next?

It sounds like it’s just luck that it’s only been other students.”

Harry still looked angry, though his expression had softened slightly. “If just one more person got attacked, though, we could be rid of Dumbledore,” he said.

“That’s all I want—one more attack.”

“See!” Hermione exclaimed, unable to hold her tongue at such a callous remark. “This is what I mean!

You shouldn’t be hoping for another attack! You should be helping us find the Heir!”

Harry stared intently at her and Theo, his eyes darting quickly between them.

“I thought we agreed that—”

"We're not getting involved with the Heir," Harry said slowly, his tone measured. The other students watched the disagreement quietly, except for Luna, who was whispering to the thin air, equally frustrated as Harry and Susan could sometimes be.

"We didn't agree to anything," Hermione replied firmly. "You said you weren't getting involved, but I still want to know who's attacking students like me."

In that moment, Harry, who had been tightly coiled and ready for a fight, relaxed and flashed Hermione a lazy smile.

"Mione, nothing is going to happen to you. You're the smartest witch in the whole castle, right?

No measly basilisk stands a chance against you."

Hermione would have called him out for his language, but she couldn’t help blushing a little at his words. Theo coughed lightly and rolled his eyes.

"I still say we should kill the basilisk," he suggested. "Hear, hear," Ron chimed in with a grin.

"Harry, can we?" Susan asked, her big puppy-dog eyes fixed on him. "Think of all the potions Professor Snape could make with the venom."

At the mention of Professor Snape, Harry tensed up.

Hermione and Theo exchanged glances. They had compared notes and knew something strange had been happening between Harry and Snape ever since Harry's guardianship had been officially cleared.

But Harry wasn't the sharing type, so they decided to keep observing. Susan constantly encouraged Harry to talk about it, but he stubbornly insisted that nothing was wrong, that he was thrilled about the guardianship and perfectly fine.

It was such a blatant lie that Hermione nearly scoffed every time she heard it. Harry Potter was many things, but "fine" was never one of them.

"We're not killing the basilisk right now, and we aren't finding the Heir as long as they leave us alone, and that’s final," he hissed. "We need the basilisk alive long enough to attack one more student so we can be rid of Dumbledore." 

The rest of the kids listened intently, the tension thick in the air.

The room seemed to shiver with a chill when Harry spoke those words. A heavy silence fell over them until Ron broke it, picking up his cards with a pointed grin at the other boys.

“Well, if we’re not killing a basilisk, are we going to play cards or not?” 

“We should be revising,” Hermione insisted, pleased with the change of topic now that Harry appeared more relaxed, having picked up his own cards. “It’s only March,” Draco replied.

“We have ages until exams.” 

Hermione rolled her eyes and pulled a book from her bag. “I’ll study with you,” Theo offered.

“Me too,” said Neville, his shy smile brightening the room. “I could use all the help I can get.” 

“I’ll help you,” Theo said quickly.

Hermione smiled at him; he was always so eager to assist Neville with his studies. Sometimes she wondered how Theo hadn’t ended up in Ravenclaw with her.

It would have been nice to have someone to share quiet study sessions with in the tower, especially in front of the fireplace. Luna, however, never wanted to work with her.

They studied in silence for a few minutes while the other boys played poker and Susan whispered with Luna. “If you were going to kill the basilisk, how would you do it?” Blaise asked.

Harry shot him a glare, but Blaise just raised his hands with a playful smile. “I know we’re not going to, but I was just thinking you’d probably have to cut its head off, right?

That’s how you kill snakes. But it’s supposed to be huge, so I bet it has thick skin.” 

“So we’d use a sword,” Ron snorted.

“A regular sword won’t cut through basilisk hide,” Draco said haughtily. “And we shouldn’t even be talking about killing it.

They’re practically extinct.” 

Theo, drawn into the discussion, chimed in, “What about a goblin-made sword? If they can cut through dragon hide, then they can cut through basilisks.” 

“Who is cutting open dragons?” Draco shrieked.

“You shouldn’t just go around cutting open innocent animals!”

“Draco’s right,” Luna said softly. “Dragons can be quite sweet if you treat them gently.”

Hermione stared incredulously at Luna.

“Sweet? Luna, are you insa—”

“Don’t finish that sentence,” Harry interjected quietly, his gaze fixed on the cards in his hands.

Hermione huffed but picked her book back up. Honestly, if it weren’t for Theo, she’d think all the kids in this school were completely insane.

Everyone returned to their previous activity, the conversation about killing a basilisk or a dragon seemingly over, until Harry hummed thoughtfully as he moved some of his chips into the pot. “I’d borrow Draco’s dad's sword,” he said, contemplating.

“He said it was goblin-made, didn’t he? It looked wicked on his wall.” 

Harry’s expression turned wistful, and Draco shot him an exasperated look.

“You already have a knife,” he pointed out. Harry shrugged.

“Yeah, but a sword would be way cooler, wouldn’t it?”

“It really would,” Ron agreed. “Imagine if the supposed Heir of Slytherin was walking around with a bloody giant sword.” 

The rest of the kids, except for Susan, exchanged cautious glances.

“I bet Mister Malfoy would loan it to me,” Harry muttered. Draco’s suddenly pale face all but confirmed it.

Hermione hoped he would write to his father immediately and make sure he never sent Harry a sword. Harry was dangerous enough with a little pocketknife and his ridiculous amount of magical power.

The last thing he needed was an actual sword. He’d decapitate someone just to test its sharpness.

***

Towards the end of March, Hermione was starting to slightly regret becoming friends with so many Quidditch fanatics. Exams were only six weeks away, and all they seemed to care about was the upcoming Slytherin-Ravenclaw match.

“Tomorrow’s winners get the Quidditch House Cup,” Ron explained, as if that made it okay to ignore studying. “Exams are more important than a silly trophy,” she replied tersely.

Theo gave her a sympathetic look. Draco shot Harry a sympathetic look but continued quietly reading his textbook and eating his dinner.

“Harry, you have to eat more,” Draco nagged. “You can’t faint on the pitch!”

“I’m not going to faint,” Harry sneered, glancing up at the Head Table before picking at his mashed potatoes.

“I’m not hungry.”

“You’d feel better if you just talked to him,” Susan muttered. “Mind your own business,” Harry snapped.

The other kids stared at him, wide-eyed, before quickly returning to their plates. This wasn’t like Harry; he and Susan usually operated like two halves of the same mad brain.

“You said this is what you wanted,” Susan pressed. “So quit being stupid and just tell him how you’re feeling.”

Harry shot to his feet and leaned down into Susan’s face.

“I do not need to talk about my ‘feelings’,” he said sharply. “You don’t know anything.”

Hermione watched as Harry stormed out of the hall.

She looked up at the Head Table and noticed Professor Snape was watching him too, his usually expressionless face showing a hint of sadness mixed with confusion. Susan’s expression mirrored that sadness.

“He’s not handling things well,” she said softly. “I thought he wanted to live with Snape?” Neville asked quietly.

“He does,” Susan sighed. “It’s complicated.”

“Did Harry tell you why he’s upset?” Hermione asked hesitantly.

She knew Susan wouldn’t share anything if she thought Hermione was just being nosy, but she had noticed how off Harry had been lately. He was her friend too.

“He doesn’t have to say anything,” Susan replied cryptically as she stood up. “You just have to pay attention to what he doesn’t say.”

Theo, sitting nearby, echoed Hermione’s thoughts.

“Well, that was incredibly cryptic.” 

***

At breakfast the next morning, Harry and Susan seemed to have moved past their disagreement. Harry sat beside her as usual, and they entered the Hall together, whispering to each other.

Susan smiled at Harry and Draco, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “You guys will definitely win,” she said, subtly slipping a few sausages onto Harry’s plate.

“I can feel it.”

“I can’t,” Luna replied, her brow furrowed in an uncharacteristic frown. “Are you sure the match is today?

The nargles said it isn’t.”

Harry, who typically listened intently to Luna's talk of nargles, flashed her a crooked grin. “Nargles might be wrong this time, Luna.

Flint’s been talking about it all night.”

Luna hummed thoughtfully but didn’t disagree. Hermione wondered how Luna had managed to sleep in the Ravenclaw Tower without hearing the constant chatter about today’s match.

She hadn’t even been able to read in the common room because of all the Quidditch talk. “Perfect conditions!” Ron exclaimed cheerfully, jotting down notes on a piece of parchment in front of him.

“Not a cloud in the sky!”

“What are the current odds?” Blaise asked, leaning in to catch Ron's response. Ron scribbled a few more notes and studied them carefully.

“The conditions improved Slytherin’s odds, but Chang has only lost two matches in the last two years. So it’s pretty tight—about 2 to 1 in Ravenclaw’s favor.”

Hermione thought to herself that if Ron put as much effort into his studies as he did into gambling, he’d be a much better student.

“So if someone bets 5 galleons on Slytherin, how much would they win?” she asked. She recalled making 7 galleons when Harry won his duel against the Weasley Twins, which allowed her to buy half a dozen new books.

If she used the original 5 galleons she still had to bet again and won, she’d love to buy one of the portable bookcases she had seen over the summer at Diagon Alley. “2 to 1 odds means you’ll win 2 galleons for every 1 galleon you bet,” Theo explained.

“So if you bet 5 galleons and Slytherin wins, you’ll get your original bet of 5 back plus 10 more. If you put your 5 galleons on Ravenclaw and they win, then you get your original bet back plus…”

"Two Galleons," Ron said.

"When's the latest I can place a bet?" Hermione asked, her excitement bubbling over. She didn't usually make a habit of gambling, but with Harry and Draco as excellent fliers, she felt confident.

Harry had caught the Snitch last game with a shattered arm, earning them a whopping 150 points. Plus, fifteen Galleons would almost cover the cost of the bookcase she wanted, which would mean no more difficult choices about which books to leave behind each year.

"You have until Madame Hooch blows the whistle," Ron replied. "Excellent!" Hermione exclaimed as she hurriedly packed her bag.

"I need to dash to my dorm for my money. I'll meet you guys in the stands!"

Theo flashed her a sweet smile, making her cheeks turn a faint shade of pink.

"I'll save you a seat," he promised. Hermione couldn’t help but smile as she raced through the empty corridors.

She rummaged through her trunk for her coin purse and rushed out of Ravenclaw Tower. Unlike most girls her age, she wasn't overly concerned with her appearance; she found it silly to waste time on hair and makeup.

But as thoughts of Theo's soft brown eyes filled her mind, she paused to check her reflection in a suit of armor outside the library on her way to the pitch. She just wanted to make sure her hair looked decent and that there wasn't a piece of strawberry stuck in her teeth.

The last thing she saw that day were the large yellow eyes of the biggest snake she had ever imagined could exist.